Careers
Dan Pillay
I am employed by Controlled
Irrigation CC with the title of
Information & Internal Sales
Manager.
Controlled Irrigation (established
in 1968) was originally a pure
Landscape Irrigation Company,
specializing in the design of landscape and turf irrigation
systems and the supply of irrigation equipment.
It has since evolved into a company with a major share
in the Golf Course and Landscape Irrigation industry, with
the ability to provide irrigation design plans for just about
all forms of irrigation in the Landscape, Sport Fields and
Agricultural markets, supplying local South African and
African Continent clients.
The company has branches in Johannesburg, Cape
Town, Port Elizabeth, Durban, Bloemfontein, Pretoria
and Nelspruit, employing the greatest number of LIA
Certified Landscape Irrigation Designers. Major clients of
the company include golf course developers, landscape
architects, municipalities, members of the South African
Landscape Institute (SALI), D-I-Y outlets and some irrigation
retail outlets.
My background in the irrigation industry began as a
draughtsman in 1974, being accepted as the first “NonWhite” Associate Member of SABI in 1981 (most certainly a
feather in my cap!). From there on I progressed to being an
irrigation designer (trained in-house by Agriplas), irrigation
salesman, business owner, irrigation installer, branch
manager, and national training officer. I had the privilege
of being seconded to Tate & Lyle Engineering during the
development of The Royal Swaziland Sugar Corporation
estates (1978-1980) and assisted in the installation of Bell
Mare Plaige Golf Course 2 in Mauritius in 2002.
I consider major attributes for success in irrigation or any
industry to be: perseverance, dedication, people tolerance,
product knowledge and knowledge in one’s specialized
field. Business ethics and honesty are a must in any
endeavour. The quality I require of an employee is honesty,
loyalty, dedication and eagerness to progress.
A starting point to enter the irrigation industry should be
the SABI basic irrigation course (hopefully enough product
knowledge is included). I have most certainly experienced
(in my early days) that my association with SABI assisted me
in being successful in the Irrigation market.
10
SABI | DECEMBER 2015/JANUARY 2016
Etienne Erasmus
Netafim
South
Africa
was
established in 1992 and has grown
to become the market leader in drip
irrigation systems in Southern Africa.
Netafim’s drip manufacturing facility
at its head office in Cape Town is
ISO 9001:2008 certified and all
products are manufactured to the
most stringent quality standards. The company employs 80
people and covers a region extending north up to Angola,
Zambia and Mozambique. The distribution of our products
mainly takes place through irrigation companies with
qualified irrigation designers. The company has significant
technical and agronomic infrastructure to