EVENTS AND EXHIBITIONS
21
Reynolds concluded with thanks and encouragement to
participate in the industry, saying, “Be the change you
want to see.”
Lea Smith, president of IOPSA, took to the podium
after starters were served. A discussion of earlier in the
afternoon took the executive committee back around four
years to a decision that was taken to “go big or go home”.
“Words are just things spoken of the tongue, but actions
are what speak the loudest. IOPSA has certainly lived up
to the words of ‘go big or go home’ by putting all decisions
and planning into action. Looking back over the past four
years, turnover of the organisation has grown by 300%.
The staff complement has grown from three people to 13.
The organisation’s membership continues to grow [with
currently over 700 members] and the word on the ground
is that everyone is pleased with the positive changes
that IOPSA has brought about in the industry. The goal is
always to be valuable and once you are valuable, instead
of chasing the success, success will attract itself to you.
As the leading body of the plumbing industry, there is little
doubt in my mind that over the past four years, we have
created this value by the positive actions of IOPSA. We
have owned our industry by showing true leadership that
will continue to manage the changes we want to see in our
industry,” said Smith.
1
2
3
No business can be successful without the input and
working together of a team, and the IOPSA team
continues to perform excellently in an ever-changing
environment, adapting to all the industry challenges.
Smith continued and thanked Reynolds for his leadership
of the IOPSA team, and special thanks went to Steve
Brown for his endless efforts and the time he dedicates
not only to IOPSA but to the industry in general.
“Only an industry working together and pulling in the
same direction can be successful, and as we move
forward to greater things, we need to strongly unite
as an industry and continue to uplift the industry as
a whole. Coming together is the beginning; keeping
together is progress and working together will lead
to great success. I would like to urge all industry
stakeholders involved throughout the entire value chain
to continue to work with IOPSA to uplift and take the
industry forward,” Smith concluded. “I was privileged to be a part of the start of this journey in
1989, having joined the industry in 1988. I can tell you it
wasn’t an easy trip because at the time when we started
the organisation, the industry was not as representative
as it is today. The industry has changed tremendously
and looking around the room today, I am rather surprised
to say the least because of the different types of people I
see in our company tonight,” said Naidu.
Vinesh Naidu, the keynote speaker for the evening,
gave the audience a walk back in time to 30 years
ago when he first got involved with IOPSA. At the
time, there were just five members who shared lifts
to get around and sat on toilet pans as their chairs at
member evenings. He continued, “When we began, a lot of people said
this is not going to work, you guys are wasting your
time and so on, and money and sponsorships in those
times were not so simple — we had to sell meat
packs, we had to arrange golf days, go-karting, action
cricket, and so on, just so we could raise the funds
www.plumbingafrica.co.za
1. The annual awards is a
prestigious black-tie event
attended by industry players
from around South Africa.
2 and 3. The Plumber of
the Year (Left: Deon Nel)
and Auditor of the Year
(Right: Robert Schoeman)
both also received a
sponsored trip to the World
Plumbing Conference in
Melbourne, Australia, in
September this year.
May 2019 Volume 25 I Number 3