Trade, Industry and Competition Deputy Minister Andrew Whitfield has said government will support the tooling, die and mouldmaking (TDM) sector as “the engine room of manufacturing”.

He was speaking at the official opening of the Intsimbi/Production Technologies Association of South Africa (PtSA) Centre of Excellence in Pinetown, Durban, on November 6. Other Intsimbi training centres of excellence have been opened in the Eastern Cape, Gauteng and the Western Cape.

The Intsimbi Future Production Technologies Initiative (FPTI) is a national, multi-stakeholder programme established by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic) and the PtSA to implement a turnaround strategy for South Africa’s distressed tooling industry.

“The Intsimbi Initiative is enabling government and industry to cooperate on the large-scale interventions required to rehabilitate the South African TDM sector for the benefit of our manufacturing sector,” Whitfield said.

Government would continue to support the Intsimbi Initiative to ensure sustained growth and impact in the TDM sector, in acknowledgement that the TDM industry was the engine room of manufacturing, he added.

Initiatives such as this were critical – by providing citizens with critical skills to enter the workforce and contribute to the reindustrialisation of the economy – to the realisation of the goal of helping businesses to grow and create jobs, and for people to get jobs, Whitfield said.

Since its inception, 1 462 students have completed the programme with occupational certificates in toolmaking or part qualifications. A further 190 students are currently in the programme and an intake of 120 students is being processed.

“Many of these graduates are employed in the automotive industry, with some starting their own businesses, or moving into management and supervisory positions. This strongly demonstrates the success of this transformative public-private partnership,” he emphasised.

Government will also continue to advocate for increased local content, particularly in the automotive sector, as it is one of the largest consumers of tooling.

This strategic focus is essential for creating a robust market that can drive the recovery and growth of the TDM sector in South Africa, which will spill over into other sectors, Whitfield highlighted.

Further, ongoing government support of the TDM industry is also essential to maintain and expand the reach of such initiatives, which play a critical role in developing skilled professionals and fostering innovation in key industrial sectors.

“This [Intsimbi FPTI] programme has the potential to be expanded to serve as the central hub of manufacturing skills development clusters and enterprise development in South Africa,” he noted.

To date, government has invested more than R700-million and the private sector has invested more than R300-million into the programme to build the necessary capacity to deliver internationally and domestically recognised trade and part-qualifications, and toolmaking capacity, that are in line with industry needs.

The training centres of excellence in the Eastern Cape, Gauteng and the Western Cape are fully equipped and include accredited trade test facilities for the Occupational Trade Qualification in Toolmaking.

Whitfield also announced that the dtic would advocate for a Southern African Development Community manufacturing hub with South Africa’s capability at its core.

“This will grow manufacturing capacity and African Continental Free Trade Area-inspired investments, which is an opportunity we must take full advantage of,” he said.