British automotive business expert Professor Garel Rhys will be talking about the challenge of change in the motor industry at the CAR conference, in association with CARtoday.com, at Auto Africa in October.
Rhys holds the SMMT Chair in Motor Industry Economics in the Cardiff Business School at the University of Wales, and is also Director of the Centre for Automotive Industry Research at the University.
Rhys says the motor industry is entering a period of change. “If one tracks the motor industry from its earliest times, it is apparent that this dynamic industry is subject to cycles of fundamental change every 30 years or so. The industry is entering one of those cycles of change now,” he said. “How the industry adapts to the challenge of this change will determine its shape in the future,” he explains of the topic he will be speaking about at the conference on October 23 at the Expo Centre in Johannesburg.
He is well qualified on the subject, as he is a Fellow both of the Institute of Transport Administration, and of the Institute of the Motor Industry, of which he is also a vice-president.
He has produced reports on the motor industry for various UK Government departments. Rhys is also a regular radio and TV broadcaster, and has presented videos and TV series on the history, business organisation and economics of the motor industry.
He has been lead adviser to the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation on the place of the motor industry in developing countries, and is chairman of the Welsh Automotive Forum.
Rhys was awarded the OBE for services to the motor industry and education in June 1989. He travels worldwide speaking on automotive matters.
Meanwhile, the conference organisers have announced that delegates wishing to take advantage of the early registration discount have less than a week to sign up. Those who register before July 31 will pay R1 140 (including VAT) per delegate. Delegates who register before August 31 will be charged R1 425 each, while the registration fee after this date will amount to R1 710 per delegate.
The conference is essential for those involved at management level in any aspect of automotive marketing, exporting or manufacturing. That includes vehicle finance, fleet managers and buyers, insurance executives, dealer principals, sales and service managers, human resources managers and shop stewards.
The 2002 Auto Africa Expo promises to be the most comprehensive automotive industry event ever to be staged in Africa. More than R50 million is being invested in the Expo, and more than 300 exhibitors are likely to participate.
Some of the latest models from around the world, as well as a number of advanced concept vehicles offering a glimpse of future automotive developments and technologies, will be showcased at the Nasrec Exhibition Centre.
Compared to the first Auto Africa Expo, which devoted a single hall of the Nasrec complex to passenger and leisure vehicles, this year’s exhibition has grown dramatically. The same vehicle categories will take up almost three full halls at this year’s exhibition, showcasing the latest offerings from every local manufacturer and importer in the country.
CARmag.co.za will update you weekly on all you need to know about the conference.
