The Post-December 2019

The Post

ithotech is Out of this • Creating revenue & • Bidvest restructuring • LWorld delivering savings -

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Quarterly Newsletter Edition 28 / December 2019

In this issue A WORD FROM OUR CEO EDITOR’S NOTE NEW BUSINESS SPECIAL FOCUS INSIDE STORY CASE STUDY SPOTLIGHT SPECIAL FEATURE DIVISIONAL NEWS CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY TRAINING HUMAN RESOURCES ACHIEVEMENTS LONG SERVICE AWARDS APPOINTMENTS & PROMOTIONS SOCIAL RETIREMENTS & FAREWELLS BIRTHDAYS ENGAGEMENTS & WEDDINGS DEATHS BIRTHS & BABY SHOWERS LIFESTYLE

Lithotech Port Elizabeth

Electrifies corporate gifts / page 2

Bidvest Data

In for the long haul / page 2

Lithotech Johannesburg

Payslips for Botswana / page 2

Lithotech Pretoria Goes the extra mile / page 2

Bidvest Data Talks taxi / page 3

Lithotech

Bright new branded soccer shirts / page 3

Lithotech

Discovers Portugal / page 4

Masterpack Cape

Offers the whole package tour / page 8

Human Resources

Parental & family responsibility leave explained / page 11

Lifestyle

Holiday road safety / page 16 Editor: Gillian O’Carroll – Marketing Services Manager * We reserve the right to edit submissions for the benefit of the publication.

Next deadline: Please send your contributions to your Divisional Newshound by Friday 31 Jan 2020.

Layout: Orla Guilfoyle – Lithotech Johannesburg.

Printed by: Lithotech Johannesburg.

Printed on: 100gsm White Galerie Art.

Pushing Boundaries in Sustainability Rotolabel, in conjunction with Avery Dennison, is one of the first companies in South Africa’s labelling industry to become FSC compliant.

These two companies have now partnered with an exciting new initiative and are the first to recycle glassine liner. This is revolutionary in the label industry in South Africa, and will result in tonnes of liner not ending up in South Africa’s severely over-subscribed landfills.

“Consumers are becoming very aware of the impact of waste going to landfill. As these facilities get full and run out of space, disposal costs will increase substantially. Most pressure-sensitive labels are produced with a glassine liner, contributing to a significant amount of liner ending up in landfill sites,” Grant Watson of Rotolabel points out.

As part of value-added services in the Avery Dennison Sustainability Portfolio, the Liner Recycling Programme is available for PET and Glassine liners and is currently active in many countries worldwide.

The liner recycling programme will be rolled out in Cape Town.

Once the proof of concept is realised and manufacturers and consumers see its benefits, it will be rolled out nationally and to the industry.

“The liner is collected from our customers and brought back to the Rotolabel site to be compacted. Avery will collect the compacted liner and will then load it into a container to be sent to India where they make

tissue paper from it,” Watson explains. “Rotolabel is a major supplier to the FMCG food, wine and personal care market. Sustainability is a major talking point, with several challenges facing the packaging industry, brand owners and major retailers. The sustainability topic is an extremely complex one. If not understood a hundred percent, the incorrect decision could be made even though a company’s intentions might be honourable,” Watson says.

One of the first steps Rotolabel took was to become FSC compliant.

The label industry was lagging far behind other paper packaging for-

In the June edition of The Post, we highlighted a project by Bidvest Mobility to deploy 6 000 scanners to clinics and hospitals nationally within South Africa. This project forms part of the much publicised NHI (National Health Insurance) and we’re proud to announce that a further 2 000 scanners were deployed in September.

Following on from that success the DOH is now tackling its warehouses and the supply chain for its medical supplies. Bidvest Mobility recently won a major tender to supply mobile devices into the Gauteng region which forms part of the national rollout. In total over 600 mobile devices will be required and we’ll service these nationally in our accredited service centres.

The new Honeywell CK65 mobile computer was chosen as it includes all of the best features of its predecessors – the CK3R and CK3X – and updates to them on the Android and Honeywell Mobility Edge platforms. Featuring both a keypad

and touchscreen, the Dolphin CK65 is ideal for warehouses and other operations that are transitioning from Windows to Android while supporting legacy applications.

mats. This was driven in partnership with Avery Dennison to ensure that all paper material used is sourced from sustainable forests. This certification may seem like a small insignificant step, but is vital in the conservation of global forest resources.

Forests are being destroyed globally – often without any control or regulation. It is the company’s aim that the rest of the label industry will follow suit for the benefit of a more sustainable future.

“We are busy engaging with raw material suppliers on down-gauging materials. This could have a significant impact on the environment, with minimal if any impact on label

appeal. Along with the down-gauging, we have recycled material and material that is 100 percent recyclable during PET recycling,” Watson points out.

“At Rotolabel we have built up the knowledge to understand what materials are best-suited for the various packaging formats. Not selecting the right material can result in the main packaging material not being recycled,” he concludes.

Making the NHI Mobile

Designed for harsh warehouse and manufacturing environments, the CK65 mobile computer can survive multiple 2.4 metre (8 feet)

drops to concrete and is IP64-rated against dust and rain. It boasts a longer battery life than any other unit on the market, provides a fast keypad response, side buttons, advanced network connectivity, a large screen and enhanced barcode scanning.

The CK65 supports Android releases O through R, offering a longterm strategy for security and support. It is also backward compatible with legacy batteries and accessories for the CK3X/R, which reduces capital expenses.

It is estimated that that there are over 200-million Windows-based warehousing devices in circulation today, and there thus exists an opportunity to convert the legacy technology to the Android platform.

Should you have customers using mobile scanners in their warehouses, odds are they need upgrading to Android due to the end of support from Microsoft and their mobility operating systems and the CK65 from Bidvest Mobility would be a good choice.

For information on the project or product offering, please contact Luke Dunstan on luked@bidvestmobility.co.za or go to www.bidvestmobility.co.za

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Editor’s Note The Post is aimed at over 2 500 staff in a number of companies and branches – and we need you to be our eyes and ears and supply us with interesting articles of the goings-on within your company. Please submit your articles to your divisional Newshound or to our dedicated email address: stories@lithotech.co.za by Friday 31 January 2020.

To speed up the editing process, please remember to supply the first name, surname and designation for ALL people that are mentioned in your articles or who feature in a photo.

And remember, there’s a R750 Woolies voucher up for grabs for the branch that submits the best story!

The winner for this issue is once again Bidvest Data, who will soon receive their Woolies voucher.

If you’re going to be spending time on the road during the holidays, please remember that preparing for a road trip by having a safe car and clear mind is as important as the holiday itself. You can read more about staying safe on our roads these holidays on the back page.

Wishing all of our staff a safe and happy festive season!

In for the Long Haul!

Bidvest Data has had the SABC on board for the last 6 years, and is pleased to announce another successful award!

The initial awarding of the emailing contract to process and send out of the TV license renewals was in 2013.

This was a 3-year contract running until 2016. In 2016 we were successful in renewing the contract for a further 3 years.

In 2019 SABC went out to tender again – and this time we were awarded a 5-year contract, sending out an average of 500 000 emails per month! The new contract will run until August 2024.

With all the success in the electronic “world”, Bidvest Data has also been awarded the SABC print contract for the very first time after years of this being an internal process for SABC. This service will include creating content, laser printing, converting into a one-step mailer and lodging with SAPO. It’s always great to provide our customers with an end to end solution!

The Post: # 28 / December 2019

A WORD FROM OUR CEO Colin Adendorff CHIEF EXECUTIVE Bidvest Data, Print & Packaging

Hello Colleagues, Wow – what a great win by the Springboks to be crowned World Rugby Champions for 2019!

I re-ran the full game the following day and was amazed that every single player had a great game and each individual contributed to this amazing win.

It was so fantastic to listen to Siya Kolisi (our super Captain) and to hear that they played for

Medscheme Mailroom Tender In March 2019 Bidvest Data was awarded the tender for the Mailroom Services for Medscheme which has 14 schemes in its fold. The tender will run for a period of 3 years. Being awarded this tender has allowed us to expand our manual mailroom operation in Gauteng. We’re looking forward to the next three years and the many more opportunities that lie ahead.

Midvaal SVSMS Tender Bidvest Data was awarded the Midvaal Local Municipality print tender in 2017, and in June 2019, we were awarded the three year tender for mobile distribution via our SVSMS product. Another win for Bidvest Data!

Going the Extra Mile Tersia Loggenberg (Telesales Executive) from Lithotech Pretoria recently received an order to brand a vehicle for Compu Cable.

The vehicle was involved in an accident and the branding had to be redone after the repairs and the customer was so happy that he could be assisted in such a short period of time.

Debbie Hartmann (Sales Consultant) and the team at Bidvest SOHO really did a magnificent job – and, as always, went the extra mile. Thanks to them we have another very happy customer!

the country far beyond playing for themselves. Siya spoke about togetherness and the power of what we can do together and how he hopes that this will help our country and show that together South Africa can be great.

Thinking about this event and what Siya said, we can learn so much from the way they went about achieving this success. Their drive to achieve was bigger than themselves – it was about the bigger picture and being 100% committed to the team.

The euphoria of winning the Jolene Vermeulen (Account Manager) from Lithotech Pretoria received an order to brand vehicles for Sintrex, a proudly South African company that monitors IT infrastructure, assets, applications and users.

cup was absolutely amazing and such celebrations have probably never been seen for any sporting event in South Africa.

How do we contribute on a daily basis to keep this momentum? It is up to us! Let’s promote friendship amongst all of us, let’s double up on the ethics of politeness and concern for our fellow humans, let’s promote happiness and empathy and let’s be super patriotic on this wonderful country that we all love!

I love this country and the Springboks from all races made me

massively proud to be South African! As Bidvest, let’s shout and let it be known that we’re proud of our country and our company.

If we strive to make our company successful and we commit to working together as a team, we can also win the World Cup! This is the last edition of The Post for 2019 and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all your efforts in 2019 and to wish you and your family a fantastic festive season. Travel safely.

Best regards Colin

Electrifying Corporate Gifts Rubicon Electrical had an existing supplier for their Corporate Clothing and Gifting range – until they received one of Lithotech’s marketing emailers!

Kim Comley (Sales Consultant) at Lithotech Port Elizabeth was given an order for luxury travel bags as a test – and suggested adding value by branding them with the Rubicon logo.

The cost came in at just under R500 a bag, which Rubicon was more than happy with.

As a result of this Kim has just delivered branded golf shirts for staff at all their branches and is now also quoting on a ladies clothing range and soft shell jackets!

A brilliant example of the success of email marketing!

Payslips for Botswana Lithotech Johannesburg has been awarded a tender worth R2.6-million over two years by the Botswana Department of Government Printing for the printing of payslips for all Botswana civil servants.

One of the interesting points about these payslips is the inclusion of security features built into the artwork to act as a deterrent against people wanting to falsify the payslips to conduct fraud.

We believe that these fraud prevention features were a big influencing factor in the awarding of the tender.

Meister Packaging Clinton Brebner (Sales Consultant) of Lithotech Polokwane has secured an order worth R22 500 for

A very proud Trevor Hulleman (Exports Manager) shows off the payslips.

sleeves for Rib Meister’s spare ribs.

The same sleeves will also be done for their burger patties.

The Post: # 28 / December 2019

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SPECIAL FOCUS

Bidvest Restructuring Some divisional restructuring was announced at a recent Bidvest conference. Closest to us is the change of name from Bidvest Office & Print to Bidvest Branded Products.

Bidvest Branded Products will retain all of the companies that were formerly part of Bidvest Office and Print, but there will be three additions: Adcock Ingram Adcock Ingram is a leading South African pharmaceutical manufacturer that is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

The company manufactures,

markets and distributes a wide range of healthcare products and is a leading supplier to both the private and public sectors of the market.

Brands include Compral, Panado, Allergex, Cepacol, Viral Guard, Bioplus, Vita-thion, Natrodale and Gummy Vites.

Interbrand Interbrand is a global market leader that has achieved interna-

INSIDE STORY Kevin Swan, Chief Executive of Bidvest Packaging, answers some “cryptic” questions.

What’s the one book that everyone should read before they die?

There are so many excellent reads, but I would encourage everyone to read anything they find interesting. My choice for South Africans is “A Long Walk to Freedom” by Nelson Mandela, for business people it would be “Steve Jobs” by Walter Isaacson and for people interested in War history it is “The Tattooist of Auschwitz”.

Tell us about a hidden South African gem that not many people know about.

It’s not really hidden, but perhaps off the beaten track – Paternoster on the Cape West Coast. It’s a great place to relax, recharge and enjoy awarding-winning restaurants serv-

ing fresh seafood caught a few hours before service. Anywhere in the bush to view the Big Five is a close second.

What is the one investment that you wish you’d made, or made earlier?

Google, Apple, Amazon or Facebook shares when they listed.

What’s the worst airport you’ve ever been in?

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Kenya. I was there in 1995 and it was so badly signposted that I left the terminal when I should have been in transit to Uganda. Needless to say, to make one’s way back through customs and passport control was a nightmare.

What is your biggest indulgence?

Peppermint ice cream What is your favourite pastime?

CASE STUDY

Nando’s Taxi Talk In a drive to communicate with and uplift their employees, “Nandocas” (the Nando’s HR department) started audio podcasts to staff that discuss everyday life situations and how to be a better person at work and in their personal lives too.

Listening to the requirements, Bidvest Data offered Nando’s the tailored service of SVSMS to reach each employee and giving them the chance to access the information at their leisure.

Bidvest Data commenced sending out communications for Nando’s from June 2018. What started off very slowly has now drawn much traction.

As employees were reluctant and not sure if it could be trusted, Bidvest Data sent out warm up SMSs and internal communications to reassure them that it was safe and that accessing the links would be at no cost to them.

We soon started seeing an in-

crease in click and open rates.

After a successful 2018 drive, Nando’s decided to continue with this campaign in 2019 with another 9 podcasts to be distributed over a few months.

These podcasts have added value in the form of quizzes where employees can complete a quiz and get instant results.

We also introduced a competition where the first 100 employees that finished listening to the podcast would be entered into a draw and stand a chance to win a prize.

By doing so the open and finish rate increased by 4.65% within two weeks.

tional recognition as the prestigious brand of luggage and travel related accessories.

Interbrand comprises of three business units: distribution, retail and international.

Interbrand’s distribution hub supplies products to hundreds of specialist independent retailers as well as mass market, chain and department stores nationwide.

The luxurious Cellini brand was designed and developed by Interbrand, with the aim of providing functional and aesthetically pleasing luggage and accessories to the travelling consumer.

Other brands include Polo and Sissy Boy.

Travelling with my family and riding bikes with my friends.

What do you consider to be the most over-rated virtue?

I had to look this up and found there were 12 virtues introduced by Aristotle, the Greek philosopher. Most over-rated is easily PRIDE. Which phrase or word do you overuse?

There are a couple: “Timing is crucial”, “It is what it is, now we must deal with it” and to my children “It’s not how you start but how you finish”.

Who is your favourite comic book hero and why?

This is definitely not my scene. Let’s go with Spiderman because his ability is so outrageous.

What is your biggest regret?

Not studying further after leaving university and not learning to speak more languages.

What’s an interesting thing about you that people don’t know?

My last project as a struc-

tural design engineer working for Arup was to design offshore manmade islands in the South China Sea for use by Hong Kong as waste disposal sites.

Working with the Chinese when in a different time zone was a challenge – 20 hour working days for 6 months!

Which living person do you most admire?

Thuli Madonsela – her bravery and contribution to South Africa is still to be fully appreciated.

What is your most treasured possession?

There are no physical possessions that I treasure, but I do deeply treasure the strong bond and relationship I have with my wife, son and daughter.

What would be your choice for the 8th wonder of the world?

The Sydney Opera House – the engineering behind it is incredible!

What’s your favourite food?

Anything Italian!

The new Lithotech soccer shirts were printed with a sublimation process due to the design requirements and options that the process offers.

Sublimation printing is a process done by way of a digital full-colour printer that is fitted with special sublimation inks.

The design is printed onto a special transfer paper and automatically cut to the correct shape. It is then placed onto the fabric and heat is applied to convert the solid ink into a gaseous state (sublimation), causing the inks to migrate from the paper and bond to the fibres of the fabric.

Sublimation printing ensures premium full-colour photo-realistic results and is ideal when the requirement is for greater customisation than the traditional branding options (such as embroidery and screen printing) can offer.

Sometimes known as an ‘all over print’, sublimation is one of the most creative printing techniques, allowing you to make the most of the entire garment and print your design in

vibrant, fun colours and effects.

Sublimation printed clothing is manufactured in either polyester birds-eye or polyester interlock fabric. Both of these fabrics use moisture management technology to keep you cool and dry.

The printing will not fade or wash out, ensuring that branding is always top notch.

The Lithotech shirts were print-

Home of Living Brands Home of Living Brands Limited is a focused group specialising in the sales and marketing of branded household durables. Their vast range of quality products consists of the best-known local and international brands, which are either under licence or owned by them – so you always know that you’re getting world-class products.

Brands include Brother, Hoover, Salton, Russell Hobbs, Tedelex, Zyliss, and Pineware.

Bidvest Branded Products will be a formidable division!

GOOD TO KNOW

ed in a range of five colours (cyan, lime green, pink, purple and orange to match our product icons) on plain white fabric.

There was one design to accommodate all sizes from XS to 4XL. They then went to a CMT (cut, make and trim) process and emerged as bright, branded shirts.

And they were entirely (and proudly) made in South Africa!

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SPOTLIGHT

Discovering Portugal During the first few months of 2019, Lithotech’s supplier of Discovery copier paper, The Navigator Company, ran an incentive.

The prize was a trip to Lisbon in Portugal for the sales people that sold the most Discovery paper.

In all, 11 sales people qualified.

The lucky recipients were: • Arjen Hordijk, Eddie Jackson, JP Nel and Michael Ettish from Lithotech Cape • Jacques Botha from Lithotech Pretoria • Anushca Janse van Rensburg

from Lithotech Nelspruit • Charmaine Erasmus, Shenaaz Khan and Tracy Venter from Lithotech Johannesburg • Diana Healey from Lithotech KwaZulu-Natal • Kim Comley from Lithotech Port Elizabeth

Back L-R: Jacques Botha, Eddie Jackson, Kim Comley, Diana Healey, Anushca Janse van Rensburg, Charmaine Erasmus, Shenaaz Khan, JP Nel & Michael Ettish.

Front L-R: Arjen Hordijk and Tracy Venter.

The trip really kicked off on 20 October when all the participants met up in Johannesburg after flying in from different regions. After check in, it was straight to the FNB slow lounge where we got better acquainted with our travel companions, sharing our plans for the upcoming trip over a bite to eat and some liquid refreshments.

Neck pillows were purchased and we were ready to board our flight, with an 18 hour trip ahead.

All were set to embark on a journey to Portugal and visit The Navigator Company to experience first-hand how the paper we love selling is manufactured from inception to completion.

Day 1 – 21 October: Arrival at Lisbon Airport Eleven travel-weary but excited Lithotech staff members arrived at Lisbon Airport where we were met

by Raúl who took us to our hotel.

The long and arduous flight did not do much to dampen the spirits. After a quick freshen up, it was off to explore and take in as much as possible from this picturesque city.

The first night of our whirlwind visit was spent quietly with our host Aníbal Ribeiro, the Sales Manager for The Navigator Company, in a restaurant called DOTE, a modern brewery where we were served their speciality meal called Francesinha.

Caçador (Regional Marketing Manager of The Navigator Company), who gave us a brief overview and presentation on Discovery paper and its firm footprint in Europe and emerging markets in Africa.

This insightful presentation has been shared with fellow sales team members in the various regions.

Aliança Nurseries is one of Europe’s largest and most modern certified nursery, positioning itself as a world reference in efficiency and technological innovation.

While the girls sipped on wine, the gents got a solid introduction to the local beer “Super Bock”. Then it was early to bed in anticipation of our visit to the nursery and paper production facility the next day.

Day 2 – 22 October: Nursery & Mill Tour The Nursery On arrival we were met by Raul

These nurseries are capable of producing 6 million clonal plants per year and has the highest success rates in the clonal production of eucalyptus globules worldwide, achieving the highest category in the certification process of the ICNF (Institute for Nature Conservation and Forestry). This is an area where Alive Nurseries are pioneers and leaders in Portugal.

A substantial part of this production is provided to forest owners and their associations with the aim of contributing to the improvement of the productivity of the national forest and the planting of certified plants. The company uses eucalyptus globules as the prime raw material for the production of pulp for fine printing and writing paper.

With an annual production capacity of 12 million plants, these nurseries meet the needs of the company’s afforestation activities.

Viveiros Aliança’s regular activity resulted in the production and sale of 9.6 million plants, of which about 1.4 million are native or protected species and 110 thousand are ornamental or shrub plants. About 35% of the plants produced are for domestic use by The Navigator Company. The remaining 65% is sold to the market.

We were given the opportunity to plant our own trees from clones collected from the mother plant.

Our nursery guide, Carmen, who is in charge of the operation, took us around and explained the operation in a bit more detail. A more gracious, knowledgeable and passionate nursery Mom will be hard to find! It was almost as if she personally knew every little tree in the nursery and there are millions! We were promised updates on our babies and their development.

In addition to the wide variety of plant production, it is in the heart of Alive Viveiros, in Herdade de Espirra, that the award-winning wine of the same name, Herdade de Espirra, is also produced from vineyards that are over 30 years old. The 37 hectares of vineyards are perfectly integrated with nature and use the traditional Portuguese method of foot stomping to extract the sweet juices from the grapes harvested for their wine.

The Paper Mill The Navigator Company has a production capacity of 1.6 million tons of paper. This mill is fully automated with minimal human intervention in a seamless operation.

The first paper machine (PM I) began working in 1991, and currently has a capacity of 350 000 tons per year. The installation of the second paper machine (PM II) with a capacity of 425 000 tons per year, represents the most advanced tech-

nology in the sector.

The manufacturing process starts at the forest where the wood chips are converted into pulp. If pulp is used in the same industrial unit where it was produced, the bleached pulp in aqueous suspension is sent directly by pump through pipelines to the production area of paper. At this stage, the pulp is prepared for paper production at the start of the paper machine, called the arrival box.

Through various stations on the large papermaking machine, the end product is produced in a jumbo reel.

A jumbo takes around 60 minutes to produce and contains around 80 tons of paper. The mill is run 24/7 except for pre-planned maintenance shut down once a year.

Jumbo reels are later processed into smaller reels, the size of which allows them to be sent to customers or to the robotic warehouse, and subsequently used for processing into various formats. The paper reels thus obtained are sent to a packaging machine – the “Packing Machine” – to be conveniently protected against moisture variations and to allow them to be moved and transported.

These reels can be turned into sheets of different sizes or sent to custom-

ers in reel form.

In processing the paper is cut into large-format sheets (offset paper) for the printing industry, or small format sheets (A4 and A3) for use in the home and office environment.

Research & Development is a top priority for The Navigator Company, allowing it to get ahead – and stay ahead – in its sector. The labora-

The Post: # 28 / December 2019 tory is equipped with the latest printing equipment and Discovery paper is continuously tested to ensure that it remains the top-performing paper in its class. Competitor papers are also analysed here to benchmark Discovery paper.

Due to the integrated automated system used in the manufacturing process, keeping track of each jumbo converted to sheets or reels are effortless. A file is kept for each jumbo reel in this laboratory for future reference. Every sheet of paper produced in this mill can be tracked all the way back from the nursery to the end product. Each box of Discovery copier paper has an identity number printed on it to identify its origin and manufacturing process.

After a very long and informative day we were dropped off at the hotel to freshen up for our evening meal with The Navigator Team.

We were treated to the best seafood restaurant, Monte Mar in Lisbon.

The evening was spent discussing market sectors, growth opportunities and small talk.

After dinner the brave set out to explore the night life in Lisbon and happened upon the “Pink Street”, well known by the locals for its vibes and recreational activities.

It is safe to say, for some it was a bit too adventurous and for others an opportunity to experience the local hospitality and night life. Half headed back to the hotel and the rest – well, what happens in Portugal stays in Portugal!

Day 3 – 23 October: Guided Tour to Sintra & Cassias Our hosts arranged for a local tour guide who agreed for us to call her “Muffie” due to the difficulty in pronouncing or rather remembering her christened name.

Words alone cannot describe nor capture the essence of the picturesque Quinta da Regaleira Gardens and Initiation Well. Stepping into these majestic mythical grounds transported one to a fairy tale of yesteryear. Muffie gave us insight into how this magical garden came to fruition and the man who created it.

It is classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and consists of a romantic palace and chapel, and a luxurious park that features lakes, grottoes, wells, benches, fountains, and a vast array of exquisite constructions. The palace is also known as “The Palace of Monteiro the Millionaire” and is based on the nickname of its best-known former owner, António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro.

The Initiation Wells are two wells on the property that better resemble underground towers lined with stairs. These wells never served as water sources, but were instead used for ceremonial purposes that included Tarot initiation rites.

The tunnels above connect these wells to one another, in addition to various caves and other monuments located around the park. Of the two wells, the larger one contains a 27-metre spiral staircase with several small landings. The spacing of these landings, combined with the number of steps in the stairs, are linked to Tarot mysticism. The smaller well contains straight stairs that connect a series of ring-shaped floors to one another. This well is also called the “Unfinished Well”.

Off to the town Sintra the merry Lithotech tour group went, exploring shops, capturing the glory and beauty of the buildings and landscape for a well-deserved lunch break and liquid refreshments, before heading off to the next adventure, Cascais.

This quaint seaside resort is better known for the many members of royalty – including King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, King Juan Carlos I of Spain and King Umberto II of Italy – who have lived there. Exiled Cuban president Fulgencio Batista was also once a resident of this region. It has one of the most expensive real estate markets and one of the highest costs of living in the country and is consistently ranked highly for its quality of life.

The scenes were breath taking and

Page 5 the weather was perfect!

Back to the hotel we went to prepare for the last meal with our host at Museu da Cerveja (beer museum), before bidding a farewell, thank you and toasts of gratitude for an experience that can best be described as a world class momentous occasion shared by all.

Day 4 – 24 October: Tourists we are, taking Lisbon by storm!

Off to soak in the last, soon to be missed, opportunities to absorb this beautiful city.

From shopping in a 7 story department store to riding the trams and walking the sidewalks in search of that special “something” that might have been missed, our brave comrades took to the streets!

And all too soon, we were on our

way to the airport. Leaving behind a beautiful city and taking away with us our own special memory, favourite sights and packed to the hilt with souvenirs and an experience that could never be forgotten.

We also left a bit of ourselves behind in Lisbon: every eating establishment we encountered now knows how to make a coffee milkshake, courtesy of Michael Ettish.

Our hosts have adopted the great South African expression “Lekker Man”! Best of all on this trip was meeting our colleagues from the different regions, bonding and forging lasting friendships.

The flight back seemed so much longer, and while some caught up with some much needed sleep, some stood at the front of the A380 remi-

niscing about the awesome trip over a few G&T’s for old time’s sake!

There was already talk of a reunion, which in a nutshell says a lot about how much the trip was enjoyed.

Most of us did not know one another prior to the trip, but we all got on so well – perhaps this is because we’re all kind of ‘related’ in the Lithotech family.

We would also like to use this opportunity to thank The Navigator Company and Lithotech management for affording us this once-in-alifetime opportunity. You guys rock!

We enjoyed every minute of it and would encourage our colleagues to grab every opportunity afforded to us with both hands.

You never know until you experience the journey!

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The Post: # 28 / December 2019

SPECIAL FEATURE

Lithotech is Out of this World!

Lithotech’s Customer Month kicked off on 1 October and culminated in Lithotech Day on 25 October. Customers are vital to the success of our business, and are important every day of every month ‒ but Customer Month is when we all

really focus on our service to our customers to create a great customer experience.

As 2019 is Lithotech’s 50th birthday and the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, we decided to have an “Out of this World” theme.

Astronauts and rockets were the order of the day and branches were given display material such as banners, standees and mobiles as a constant reminder to staff and customer service “hacks” were emailed to staff daily.

Lithotech Day celebrates the unique and colourful individual that together make Lithotech. Lithotech Day was started in 2016 and has always been held at the end of June to mark the financial year-end. But this year was different ‒ with Lithotech celebrating its 50th birthday on 27 October, we decided to combine

Lithotech Day and a 50th birthday party and to have a super-sized Lithotech Day on Friday 25 October.

With a motto of fun, friendly and innovative, an Out of this World fun-filled fun fair seemed like the perfect party theme, and branches were tasked to create a fun fair/carnival suited to their environment and

staff composition. Guidelines were given, teams were formed and so the fun began!

On a national level, soccer shirts with a 50 on the back and giant puzzles were designed and produced; a drumming combo activity was organised; livestreaming of the WhatsApp group activity was put in

place and communications by email and SMS began.

And finally the big day arrived ‒ Lithotech Day is something special that we have created and we can all be very proud that we are able to have such a great day amongst our daily challenges.

Thank you to all Lithotech staff

all for the efforts you put in every day and for the last 50 years. We are really part of something great and we can be humbled by what we as a team achieve every day. We make ourselves unique by giving continued great service and quality products to our customers. We are fun, friendly and innovative!

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The Post: # 28 / December 2019

DIVISIONAL NEWS

Killing Communications Bidvest Data has been providing customised communications solutions to the South African market in the print-to-mail domain since 1945, and for the past 20 years in the electronic document hosting and delivery space.

With a shift toward digital communications, Bidvest Data has seen its single largest SVSMS (Smart View SMS) campaign in the 2020 financial year, sending out just under 5-million mobile messages on behalf of Clicks.

Bidvest Data sent out 162-million emails, 96-million SVSMSs, processed and printed more than 622-million images and delivered 179-million physical mail packs in the 2019 financial year!

Creating Revenue & Delivering Savings In a bid to differentiate itself in a very competitive market, Bidvest Data Cape recently installed an Océ VP i300 full colour inkjet sheet-fed printer.

The major difference between this installation and previous i300 installations is that this printer supports the new Océ IQuarius MX inks. These third generation inks have been specifically developed to meet the needs of

customers working with coated papers for high-quality graphic art applications.

This has really increased our competitive edge in more demanding applications such as higher quality books and direct mail as now we can support a broad range of papers which rivals offset printers, but with significantly shorter turnaround times and consid-

erably less waste.

With toner technology being comparatively expensive to run, migrating existing colour and even black print volumes to the i300 is showing significant savings in overall running costs without compromising on quality.

With this installation we have successfully created new revenue streams and savings with one printer!

L-R: Dean van der Speck (Laser Supervisor), Graham Moses (Laser Operator), Abdul Madatt (Technical Advisor), Sean Abrahams (Laser Production Manager) and Morgan Mitchell (Laser Shift Supervisor).

Growing from Strength to Strength!

After two years of negotiations and plenty of meetings, Bidvest Data’s Discovery mailroom project went live in December 2018. From starting off with just two medical schemes we now have 18 schemes on board.

The current service provided includes printing of letters and cards, inserting elements and mailroom fulfilment. As these are all different schemes and have their own requirements, we streamlined the process by incorporating the various business rules into the programme code to reduce manual intervention.

An Interesting Fact

Lithotech Johannesburg produces a lot of rolls – from very large ATM and gaming rolls to smaller POS “till” rolls and even smaller handheld machine POS rolls. We produce both printed and unprinted rolls as per each customer’s specific requirements. But what is a lot of rolls?

Well the total number of rolls produced and sold by Lithotech Johannesburg in the last financial year was an incredible 10 040 218 – yes that’s right, over 10 million rolls!

Let’s look closer: we manufacture for 50 weeks a year (2 weeks Christmas shutdown), so that’s on average 200 804 rolls per week or 40 160 rolls per day.

Now that’s a lot of rolls!

Getting the Whole Package Masterpack Cape invited customers to explore the manufacturing facilities at Epping for an open day on 18 and 19 September.

Guests received a warm welcome from our business developers

and management team before taken through the factory to see the Masterpack Cape production team in action in the various steps in our paperboard manufacturing process.

The Post: # 28 / December 2019

Getting Acquainted Over the last few months Lithotech Pretoria has hosted a number of Customer Days at supplier showrooms and production facilities.

The objective of these events is to expose customers to the production capabilities, opportunities and solutions available within particular product ranges and to highlight Lithotech’s ability to meet their specific needs.

Facilities visited so far include Amrod for corporate wear and gifting options, Rotolabel for labels and related products and Bidvest Soho for wide-format print solutions.

These events have proven to be highly beneficial as customers come away with a better understanding of production, costing and lead times.

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Bidvest Ladies Tea The prestigious annual Bidvest Ladies Tea was held at the Running Waters Function Venue in August.

Port Elizabeth-based Bidvest companies each hosted a table of 10 lady customers who were treated to an afternoon of entertainment, wine tasting, scrumptious food and networking.

Lithotech Port Elizabeth again hosted a table and the theme for the afternoon was Black & White, with each of us having to wear a mask. The reasoning behind the mask was that we all hide behind one: the biggest and

brightest smile often hides sadness, a face of bravery often hides insecurities etc.

We had Jane Stevenson, the Strategic Director of Magnetic Storm, give us an inspiring talk about her incredible life story and what she has had to overcome.

Nicky Cloete-Barris provided the entertainment and she did not disappoint.

Our chosen charity for the afternoon was the PE Rape Crisis Centre, and we were able to hand R10 000

over to the centre. The ladies from Rape Crisis were clearly overwhelmed with the generosity of Bidvest – not only did they receive money for the centre, but also the “entry tickets” to the tea.

Each guest had to bring a goody bag filled with items most direly needed by victims after an attack, such as soap, facecloth, underwear, toothpaste etc. – and 150 hampers were received.

The afternoon was well received by our customers who left feeling uplifted and inspired.

Lithotech Pretoria sales staff and customers in the Amrod showroom.

Out of This World Lithotech Bloemfontein gave notebooks with “Out of this World” branding to customers during Lithotech’ recent Customer Month.

New Interns

Lithotech KwaZulu-Natal proudly embarked on a one year internship programme with Rosebank College and Mancosa in September 2019. We successfully recruited four young, enthusiastic, energetic and self-motivated individuals who have all successfully completed a degree or diploma qualification in their respective learning institutions.

Three of the interns (Drethi Maharaj, Andile Mabaso and Khanya Matandeni) were placed in Sales and Zamo Mthembu in Logistics & Warehouse.

The interns underwent an intense induction programme and are now shadowing and being mentored by our subject matter experts in their departments.

Getting to Know You They have eagerly embraced the opportunity and are very grateful to have been chose from 53 candidates that were initially interviewed.

This initiative will assist with the contribution towards the B-BBEE spend for Skills Development for Lithotech KwaZulu-Natal and we aim to impart strategic skills to empower these young individuals.

The management team would like to take this opportunity to welcome them into the Lithotech family and to wish them everything of the best in their endeavours.

“The expert in anything was once a beginner.”

“Never let success get to your head. Never let failure get to your heart.”

Lithotech Port Elizabeth decided to let reps take their sales supports to visit some of their customers, who they often speak to on the phone, but never meet!

Part of the visit included a mousepad giveaway, which they all loved!

Kim Comley (Sales Consultant) and Thean (Owner of Serpac).

L-R: Andile Mabaso, Drethi Maharaj, Khanya Matandeni and Zamo Mthembu.

Jeanine Annall (Sales Support) and Shauneen (Manager of Maxiquip Parts).

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The Post: # 28 / December 2019

Time to Shine Casual Day 2019 – Time to Shine – was all about “going with your glow.”

From the sparkle in their eyes to the bright neon of their outfits, everyone was encouraged to shine their light and take up their rights.

No longer should persons with disabilities be relegated to the shadows – this year’s Casual Day was about standing out, being visible, living loud and being seen!

This was a bumper year for our group, and over 2 500 staff members from 29 branches across all provinces rose to the challenge on Friday 6 September – some with a lot more enthusiasm than others!

There were tutus, tiaras, colourful wigs and hats aplenty. Some very brave men wore tutus – and one or two The Dis-a Bling Sales Support team from Lithotech Bloemfontein

even wore frocks! Hats off to Phillip Venter (Developer) from Bidvest Mobility Cape Town who painted himself from head to foot and wore a Bidvest “B” with pride!

With a group competition to add some sizzle, the heat was on!

The competition was designed to level the playing field between large and small branches, as well as to encourage teamwork and collaboration.

Team names included Glow Getters, Fire Flies, Jozi Flare, Bling Accountaholics, Glam Warriors, Royal Stars, Blazing Divas, Cellulite Assassins, The Shining Stars, Glow Queens, Dis-A-Bling and Litho Sparkies, to name but a few.

Well done to the winning teams!

was ecstatic with their 2nd place vouchers.

L-R: Shelley Damons (Artwork Originator), Preba Joseph (Credit Controller), Rosemary Bekwa (Administration Assistant), Harry de la Cruz (Despatch Manager), Sarah Sithole (Receptionist), Greg Moody (Managing Executive), Marie Naidoo (Technical Manager), Suresh Lallbehary (HR Manager), Jade Whiteman (Planning Clerk) and Bheki Mlaba (Administration Assistant).

Back L-R: Bongi Ngoshane, Jonelle Kolver, Thabiso Kgomphiri (mascot), Juanita du Preez and Christel Willemse.

Front L-R: Angelique Bosman and Megan Mienie.

The Lithotech Nelspruit Fix It team lit up the faces of customers and

celebrated with fun and laughter.

L-R: Angelique Bosman, Jonelle Kolver, Megan Mienie, Juanita du Preez, Bongi Ngoshane, Christel Willemse and Thabiso Kgomphiri, our very own mascot (all are Sales Supports).

L-R: Simphiwe Manana (Storeman), Sue Ludick (Area Sales Manager), Anushca Janse van Rensburg (Sales Consultant), Charity Myele (Branch Administrator), Jecicka Smit (Telesales Consultant), Benedine Potgieter (Customer Service) and Given Mashego (Driver).

Great news: we achieved 1st place for Casual Day 2019 sticker purchases

and 3rd place overall!

Back L-R: Rudi Fick (Software Development Manager), Sandisile Pambani (Technical Engineer Intern), Kallie van den Berg (Executive: Coastal Operations), Collene van den Berg (Regional Sales Manager), Nolitha Madlala (Office Administrator & Internal Sales), Dolf de Vries (Service Manager: Coastal), Natasha Hogan (Technical Administrator), Debbie Cope (Internal Sales) and Quinton Ludidi (Account Manager).

Front L-R: Morne Mennigke (Software Developer) and Philip Venter (Software Developer).

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TRAINING

Supervisory Training Supervisory Training Level 1 is a two day in-house training course. The interactive training covers six modules (see below) and learners complete the second day with an assessment where they need to achieve 65% and above for competency. Certificates are given to all learners who complete the training.

The course is as follows: Module 1 – Functions of the organisation and the role and position of the supervisor

This module looks at the functioning of a business organisation and its main objectives. It explains how a company goes about achieving its objectives through the effective utilisation and management of its money, labour, machinery and materials. The module talks about a profit, explaining what a profit is and what a company does with the profit it makes. It explains that a company must be efficient and competitive in order to sustain a profitable situation. It goes on to explain the role of the supervisor in the organisation and the part a supervisor plays in assisting the company in achieving its objectives by efficiently

managing the labour and resources at their disposal. The module explains the structure of a company and how the supervisor forms an essential link between management and the employees.

Module 2 – The Supervisor and effective communication

fy the possible reasons for resistance, to be able to verify these reasons and possible methods of resolving the problem.

This module looks at communication in a company and more specifically, in the supervisor’s department.

It addresses the causes of ineffective communication, methods for improving communication and the communication function of a supervisor.

The module emphasises the importance of the supervisor’s role as a communication link between employees and management.

Module 3 – Gaining acceptance with subordinates This module looks at methods a supervisor can use to gain acceptance from his employees in his supervisory role. The module recognises that subordinates may show resistance to the supervisor and investigates reasons why this resistance may be present.

It distinguishes between resistance caused by the subordinate, by the supervisor and in general.

By working through this section, supervisors are shown how to identi-

The module explains the difference between active and passive resistance and the importance of dealing with the problems timeously.

Module 4 – Planning work This module shows supervisors how to identify their areas of responsibility by looking at their job profiles (descriptions), by talking with their manager and by looking at themselves and what they actually do each day.

to write operational objectives showing the target/result and standard of measurement for success.

Module 5 – Job instruction This module looks at a process and method for application by supervisors in the training of their employees.

It explains why supervisors should

train their employees, why training is important to the company and to supervisors. The process itemises five steps: preparing yourself, preparing the employee, presenting the instruction, allowing the employee to try out the job and following up on the employee’s progress.

Module 6 – Controlling work

tance of follow-up and of reinforcing positive subordinate behaviour. It explains that supervisors influence their subordinates and that the supervisor’s response to a behaviour can determine whether or not that behaviour is repeated. The module content suggests possible ways to reinforce positive behaviour and so increase the supervisor’s opportunity for success on a particular task, project or in general. It also stresses the importance of focusing on the subordinate and ensuring that the positive reinforcement given by the supervisor is in fact viewed as positive by the subordinate.

The training is being rolled out in Cape Town, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal and all interested learners would need to be nominated by their respective managers.

Nominations must be submitted by 15 January 2020 to: Gauteng Ayanda Shabangu 011 474 1828 ayandas@bidpaperplus.co.za Cape Town Janet Cranke 021 507 4100 janetc@bidpaperplus.co.za

The module shows the importance of not only knowing what you do, but being able to group these functions into areas of responsibility and prioritising these.

It goes on to teach the supervisor

This module shows that even if we set objectives we need to control, manage and supervise the work to ensure that the target is reached.

The module shows the impor-

KwaZulu-Natal Nirri Govender 031 700 2577 nirrig@bidpaperplus.co.za

HUMAN RESOURCES

Parental & Family Responsibility Leave Much confusion currently exists around the entitlement to Parental Leave, as signed into law in November 2018.

It was recently announced that Parental Leave would come into practice on 1 November 2019; however, the changes to the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (Act 75 of 1997 as amended by Act 11 of 2002) have not been made and therefore employees are not yet entitled to Parental Leave as such.

It is likely that the necessary changes will be effected within the near future and in view thereof, we’ve decided to clarify some points about the practical application of this particular kind of leave.

There are a couple of important points to bear in mind when talking about Parental Leave: • Paternity leave, which was previously covered under “Family Responsibility Leave”, will not be part of “Family Responsibility Leave” anymore, and will now be covered under “Parental Leave” as per the new definitions.

• “Paternity Leave”, which previously applied only in the instances of the birth of biological children, will now under the “Parental Leave” definition also apply in instances of adoption and surrogacy arrangements, which were previously not expressly covered under the old arrangements.

• Parental leave may apply to either a male or a female employee, which leads to the use of the term “Parental Leave” instead of just “Paternity

Leave”.

What will qualify as Family Responsibility Leave and what will qualify as Parental Leave?

When the final changes to the legislation are made and the actual implementations take place, the following will happen: • Employees can apply for a maximum of 3 days Family Responsibility Leave per annum only in the following instances: - When a dependent child in the parent’s care and under the age of 18 is sick and requires the parent’s care - The death of an employee’s spouse or life partner; or the employee’s parent, adoptive parent, grandparent, child, adopted child, grandchild, or sibling • Employees cannot use Family Responsibility leave for: - Paternity Leave - The birth/adoption of a child - The death of a mother-in-law, father-in-law or other extended family members • Employees can take a maximum of ten days unpaid Parental Leave per annum, when the Employee is: - Registered as the biological father of a new born child - The parent of a child below the age of two in an adoption order - The prospective adoptive parent of a child below the age of two that has been placed in the care of the prospective adoptive parent, pending the finalisation of the adoption order - The parent of a child who has been born as a result of a surrogate

motherhood agreement • Parental leave will not apply to employees who qualify for Maternity Leave.

• Though Parental Leave is unpaid, employees will be able to claim benefits from the Department of Labour for Parental Leave. The details of payment and the like are not yet clear.

We will keep employees informed of the finalisation and implementation of Parental Leave as and when the legislation is changed to accommodate the legal requirements.

In the meantime, employees will continue to apply for family responsibility leave in instances of paternity leave as well.

The only legal matter that has not yet been finalised is that the Department of Employment & Labour needs to bring the actual leave entitlement – 10 Days Parental Leave – under the BCEA. Further information can be found on the BCEA website: https:// www.labourguide.co.za/conditions-of-employment.

ACHIEVEMENTS Congratulations to Jo-ann Cupido (Estimating & Procurement) who suc-

Jo-ann Cupido and Michael Cooper (Executive: Sales).

cessfully completed the Bidvest Paperplus Supervisory Training Level 1.

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LONG SERVICE AWARDS Bidvest Data Cape

20 Years

15 Years

Congratulations to staff who recently reached their long service milestones.

25 Years

L-R: Hennie Mentz (Chief Executive) and Deborah Jacobs (Operator).

L-R: Mervin Rossouw (Co-ordinator: Cards), Veronica Ezaus (General Assistant), Hennie Mentz and Bernadette Koopman (Despatch Clerk).

10 Years

Masterpack Cape Congratulations to Tracy van Eyssen (Business Developer) on achieving her 5 year service award.

L-R: Njongo Mbombo (Operator), Graham Moses (Laser Operator), Hennie Mentz and Iemtieyaaz Samsodien (Software Architect).

Bongi Ngoshane and Thabiso Kgomphiri who joined us as Sales Supports at the beginning of September.

Lithotech Cape Congratulations to Clara de Villiers who has been appointed as Customer Services Manager with effect from 1 August.

Clara has been with Lithotech for 16 years, first as PA to Francis Lundie and then to Alastair Gordon-Forbes (both Managing Executives).

We wish Clara every success in her new position.

Mandy Ntantiso who was appointed as our new Receptionist in mid-October.

Tracy van Eyssen with Michael Cooper (Executive: Sales).

L-R: Tyrone Everts (Laser Operator), Hennie Mentz and Euan Lamour (Programmer).

5 Years

New Appointments & Promotions Lithotech Bloemfontein Congratulations to Malepa Mapheleba who was promoted from Sales Support to Sales Representative for the Lesotho area.

Lithotech Port Elizabeth Stacey Lottering joined us as a Sales Support in May. Stacey previously worked in the retail industry (Billabong). She has fitted in well and has really been an asset to the branch since joining us.

L-R: Nenekazi Matshaya (Inserter), Samantha Adams (Inserter), Hennie Mentz, Florence Esau (Inserter) and Songezo Tana (General Assistant).

A warm welcome to the following new staff: Ben Theron who joined us at the beginning of September as a Sales Representative for the Bloemfontein and Southern Free State area.

L-R: Chante Morolong (Inserter), Rachmat Kenny (Inserter), Hennie Mentz, Rudi van den Heever (Technical Manager) and Gerald Phadziri (Technician).

Rochelle Bekker joined us as a Sales Support at the beginning of October. She spent 14 years with Sprint Packaging, but has quickly learned the Lithotech way.

Congratulations to Arjen Hordijk who has been promoted to Sales Manager with effect from 1 November.

Arjen will have three sales consultants reporting to him and will continue to manage the Truworths account. In addition to this, he has been tasked with ensuring that we find and secure other supply management customers and that we farm the accounts under his control to the maximum.

Arjen has many years’ experience in the supply management arena and as an Account Manager and we wish him every success in his new position.

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SOCIAL

Biker’s Brekkie A bright Sunday morning in the picturesque Magaliesburg welcomed the Lithotech Johannesburg biking crew, colleagues and family

members to the Black Horse Brewery. Great company, great food and a well-branded set-up on a busy Sunday morning for the establishment

delivered exposure to both Lithotech and the venue. Thank you to all involved in making this a great success!

L-R: Nolan Sandham (Bidvest Data), Trevor Hulleman (Export Manager at Lithotech Johannesburg), Brett Alexander (Sales Manager at SSC), Louis Avenant (Executive: Sales at Lithotech Johannesburg), Rudi Venter (Graphic Design Manager at Lithotech Johannesburg), Tanya Fuchs (PA at Lithotech Johannesburg), Johann Neethling (Lithotech Gauteng Managing Executive), Charl Kok (Guest) and Marie Kok (Guest).

Teambuilding & Collaboration The Bidvest Data Gauteng Development & Operations department held its first teambuilding event on 4 October. It was an amazing experience that focused on collaboration within the teams and really getting to know colleagues. The teams had to work together to solve problems to enable better communication, better relationships and ultimately, to increase productivity. It was great to spend the day out of the office and have such a fun time!

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Going Corporate The Corporate games – where different companies get together to compete against each other – take place once a year. Different activities, such as a regatta, darts, action cricket, golf and running are part of the games.

“One Movement” gave Lithotech complimentary entry to this year’s games on 7 September.

For a few years we have made our company proud. We always try to promote the company in the best way we can. Our players are disciplined and no one can point a finger at our behaviour.

The feeling is unbelievable when you see your mates dressed up and ready for action.

Lithotech Cape has about 21 action cricket players and two runners who always participate.

This year Wayne Jeneker ran 5km in 23 minutes.

The action cricket competition was tough, but we fought to the end and won two out of the four games that were played on the day – and won Bronze overall.

The event was awesome and the vibe among the people was great.

The Post: # 28 / December 2019

The Post: # 28 / December 2019

RETIREMENTS & FAREWELLS

Lithotech Cape We bade farewell to Glynis Wiseman (Creditor’s Clerk) who took early retirement at the end of October.

I briefly met Glynis during 2002 – the year that Lithotech acquired Paragon Business Communications – but had no direct contact or interaction with her till we were challenged with merging the Lithotech Cape sales and manufacturing divisions 3-4 years ago.

Glynis started her career with Lamson Paragon SA (Pty) Ltd as desk clerk in the accounts department on 11 February 1974 – yes, more than 45 years ago! She was later transferred to the position of receptionist at head office.

On 1 April 1991 she was internally transferred to Modus Products to fill the position of creditor’s clerk until the business was taken over by Lithotech. After the acquisition she was a creditor’s clerk at Lithotech

Sales Cape (Airport Industria) and was then transferred back to Epping just more than a year ago to form part of the merged Lithotech Cape admin team.

She has done her job passionately up to her retirement and we even had to “force” her to take her accumulated leave because she very seldom took leave or sick leave during her 45 years of dedicated and committed service.

It was rumoured amongst the old Paragon employees that she was quite a party girl and enjoyed the Cape Town nightlife whenever given the opportunity in her younger days.

Maybe that is why she is such a great fan of Queen and Freddy Mercury!

She has been a vital part of the admin team and we will and have already missed her unique personality, but wish her well with her retirement plans and her considered relocation to Paarl to be closer to her daughter.

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BIRTHDAYS Rotolabel S&N Labels

Happy birthday to our August babies – and especially to Rose Brunno (CSD Supervisor) who turned the big 5-0!

L-R: Sihle Mpotulo (Finance Intern), Rose Brunno (CSD Supervisor), Thenjiwe Mthethwa (Credit Controller), Donald Mokoka (Rewinder), Stephan Phiri (Machine Operator), Mawethu Mehlomakhulu (Sales Intern), Sharona Naidoo (DTP Supervisor) and Morgan Simons (Machine Operator).

ENGAGEMENTS & WEDDINGS DEATHS Bidvest Data Gauteng

Congratulations to Michael Meyer (Developer) and his beautiful wife Nicole, who got married on 20 April in Windhoek, Namibia.

Bidvest Mobility Johannesburg

Congratulations to Remofilwe Shashape (Internal Sales) who married Rakatsa Pelo on 5 October.

Births & Baby Showers Bidvest Data Cape

Congratulations to Nazley Lee (Pre-flight Supervisor) on the birth of her beautiful baby daughter, Shazia Kiarah, on 11 September.

Lithotech Bloemfontein We recently said farewell to Margie van Neel (Receptionist).

Margie joined us as our Cleaning/Tea Lady seven years ago, and through hard work and a willingness to learn, she was given the opportunity to be our Receptionist. Margie was always friendly and smiling and we are sure the customers are going to miss her dearly – just as we are!!

We would like to wish her good luck with her new adventure starting in January 2020.

Congratulations to Tania Engelbrecht (General Assistant) and Kealon Engelbrecht (Laser Contracts Co-ordinator) on the birth of their beautiful baby daughter, Kyra, on 20 September.

Congratulations to Dilan Davids (Despatch Floor Assistant) and his wife on the birth of their beautiful baby daughter, Danica, on 1 October.

Bidvest Data Gauteng

Congratulations to Sihle Tsimo (FNB Admin Clerk) on the birth of a beautiful baby girl, Zanokukhanya, on 7 June.

Lufil Packaging Our condolences to the family and friends of Thabo Monnakgatla (Quality Assurance Officer) who passed away on 30 August at the age of 40.

Lithotech Nelspruit We held a stork party for our Cleaner, Carol Thulare – and then we waited and waited and finally baby Culture Thulare made her entrance into this world on 24 September. What a perfect Heritage Day gift!

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The Post: # 28 / December 2019

Holiday Road Safety It’s that time of the year again when many people will be making their way to a holiday destination or visiting friends and family. This usually leads to an increase in traffic volumes along major routes – and the December to January period is the most dangerous time of the year, with more people involved in fatal crashes than at any other time.

If you are going to be spending a lot of time on the road during the holidays, here are a few tips: • Get your vehicle checked out in good time.

• Make sure you’re mentally prepared for your journey.

Plan your route.

• Plan your route, including stops, and ensure you make provision to stop every 200 kilometres or every two hours to rest, refuel and refresh.

• Look at the planning of your trip and avoid the rush days when there is bound to be heavier traffic on the roads. If possible, leave a day sooner, or a day later. Do the same for the return leg of your journey.

• Buckle up: this includes all passengers, including toddlers under 3 who, legally, must be in a car seat and children 1.3 metres or shorter who

need to be in booster seats.

• Obey all the rules of the road and drive to the conditions of the road. If the road is marked 120km but visibility is poor, decrease your speed to ensure clear vision of the road ahead.

Take a break every two hours or 200km.

• Be courteous of other drivers. Remember everyone has a right to be on the road.

• Make sure arrangements for overnight accommodation are done before you leave.

• Ensure your car is in good condition and roadworthy and ready to take you to your destination and bring you home again.

• Inspect the tyres (including the spare tyre) and make sure they have sufficient tread for the trip.

Tyres are a key safety feature on vehicles – they are the only thing between the vehicle and the road, and because of this, ensuring their continued good condition is vital.

Tyres that are bald or under or over-inflated can be dangerous.

Obey the rules of the road.

• Check you have all the necessary tools to change a tyre if needed, including a red warning triangle.

• Keep your AA membership card handy in case of emergency.

• Put your cellphone and other electronic devices away while driving.

Focus on the road and on other drivers. Distracted driving diminishes reaction time.

Check all your tyres including spare tyre.

• Plan a route off the beaten path and experience a bit more of South Africa than the regular routes. Take time and arrive at your destination calm and rested.

It’s important to understand that going on a long journey is not a race – arriving safe is more important than arriving in a ‘record time’.

Make the journey part of your holiday.

And preparing for a road trip by having a safe car and clear mind is as important as the holiday itself.

Drive safely!

Source: www.aa.co.za/insights