Abstract
Abstract:
Although a wide variety of casting processes entail the work in foundries, lack of
sufficient engineering skills, education and training has become a major issue in recent years.
This paper highlights the challenges faced by the foundry industry in South Africa. Majority
of the metal castings in South Africa are done in Ekurhuleni in Gauteng. Difficulties in finding
trained foundry men and pending retirements of experienced staff are the major challenges
they face. In this paper we acknowledge the need for active interaction between the academia
and foundry industry to further enhance suitable skills in the casting technology in small and
medium enterprises. We propose a new model for skills development in the foundries in
Gauteng. This model will have some measurable outcomes.