With the skills deficit widely recognised as one of the greatest challenges facing the supply chain profession, Sapics (The Association for Operations Management of Southern Africa) is committed to making its comprehensive range of education offerings accessible to individuals from shop floor to executive level, in companies across the spectrum of African industry, says Sapics president Ken Titmus. In the field of warehousing, Sapics offers an accredited warehouse management programme and is also currently developing a new learnership programme that will include an elective focused on warehousing, as well as others devoted to planning, inventory control and manufacturing control. The new “Introduction to Supply Chain Operations” learnership that is currently being created by Sapics will be a basic-level addition to the association’s education offerings and will be targeted at NQD level 3, says Titmuss. “Lower-level operations training is one area that requires particular attention, and it is at this level that the new education offering will be aimed.” Sapics’ accredited “Warehouse Management in Practice” programme provides graduates with an understanding of the objectives, principles and techniques of warehouse management, he added. “It provides an understanding of warehousing in sufficient detail for these principles and techniques to be applied in the workplace to improve a company’s profit and customer service,” he told FTW. “Among other elements, the programme examines the various transactions driving a warehouse on a daily basis, and gives graduates the skills required to plan an effective, economical warehouse layout, plan the effective routing of vehicles and understand the principles behind effective cycle counting.” Sapics currently offers a range of training programmes in the fields of manufacturing, logistics and distribution, as well as materials management. The association is also the South African custodian of two internationally recognised certifications – the APICS CPIM (Certified in Production and Inventory Management) and CSCP (Certified Supply Chain Professional). “The “Fundamentals of Materials and Operations Management” provides a strong educational base from which to approach these certifications. These programmes are offered by Sapics in association with its American associate, Apics,” he said. Sapics’ affiliation to Apics – The Association for Operations Management in the United States – enables Sapics members to participate in international conferences and exhibitions. The organisation’s education programmes are offered throughout South Africa and as far afield as Namibia, Zambia, Nigeria and Tanzania, through a growing network of Authorised Education Providers (AEPs).
