INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION Solving production challenges and gearing up for the green economy Nthabiseng Serite, founder and CEO of SAKE Energy Solutions, is venturing beyond industrial automation to become a force in renewable energy. SAKE Energy Solutions Powering Africa What problem is your company solving? Sake Energy Solutions is a solutions-based company specialising in industrial automation and renewable energy. We tackle everyday processes and production challenges like energy efficiency, process safety, reducing downtimes, asset reliability and maintaining net zero goals, to name a few. How did the idea of starting the company come about? The idea was inspired by the realisation that there was a gap in the market in the area of green energy and process optimization. It has always been part of the plan, since I started my career, to be a solution provider. I realised that the best way to provide the solutions I have in mind was to start my own company. What is the origin or meaning of the name of the company? SAKE is a combination of SA (South Africa) and KE (Kenya) because my biggest inspiration to delve into the energy market was when I was doing some work in Kenya at an energy facility. I finally thought, this is it, this is my niche. I was excited about these new phrases I was hearing, “green energy”, “reduce carbon footprint” and so forth. So I thought to myself , SAKE can be a link or vehicle that will carry a full bouquet of green solutions for industries. What are the main services you offer? Industrial automation which covers a wide scope of control and instrumentation, valves, metering, analysers, robots, remote monitoring and renewable energy where we come in as an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contactor and project management until handover. Is one of your divisions much busier than other divisions? Yes, absolutely. Industrial automation has always been the busiest division because of the many applications and the wide scope it covers while energy is picking up due to current demands. Was it tough starting out? If it was easy, everyone would be doing it. We love doing the hard stuff! It was extremely hard, especially because we are talking about a very male-dominant industry where you still have to prove yourself over and over. I must say that there’s been great progress but it is still not easy. Our first project was for a company in Tanzania to provide engineering consulting services for an oil and gas facility. After the design was accepted, we supplied the system and did the installation and commissioning. What is the company’s exposure to renewable energy? I have worked on over 15 projects as an EPC and service provider. These projects have contributed at least 50MW of clean energy into the grid. What are you currently working on? I’m currently working on a project in Zambia, putting together a scope for a renewable energy plant which will have a good mix of waste-to-energy, hydro and wind energy. There are extremely exciting times ahead. And I cannot stop talking about the recently completed cement plant that we have just commissioned in Kenya, fully automated. Nthabiseng Serite, founder and CEO of SAKE Energy Solutions. Biography Nthabiseng Serite is a leading Automation expert in Southern Africa. A serial entrepreneur, Nthabiseng is a seasoned engineering and automation specialist in industrial automation, renewable energy and process control optimisation solutions. She has worked in top positions in various multinational companies varying from mining, chemical, international OEMs and petrochemical facilities as well as manufacturing. She transitioned into full-time business seven years ago, after leaving her 14-year career in the predominantly male-dominant industry of engineering. She is an MD of her two successful companies, SAKE Energy Solutions and SERITE Engineering, a global speaker, executive business coach, board member and humanitarian. 38 | www.opportunityonline.co.za
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