Editor's Choice


Women taking the lead in engineering

31 August 2020 Editor's Choice News

Alaris Antennas, an engineering company, has developed and grown its business in South Africa with the help of a number of female leaders.

Alaris Antennas is an engineering company specialising in the design and production of (often) customised antennas for electronic warfare. This is not an industry that typically attracts women to steer and manage important aspects of the business. However, Alaris Antennas has managed to woo a number of female leaders to help develop and grow its business in South Africa.


Ruenelle Ramnath, HR manager and executive director of Alaris Antennas.

Amongst them are Gisela Heyman, managing director of Alaris Antennas and executive director of Alaris Holdings, who has a vision to expand the company’s footprint globally. Coupled with that vision come the passion and drive that make Alaris Antennas a major player in this industry.

Ruenelle Ramnath, human resources manager and executive director of Alaris Antennas, ensures that having the right people will drive the business to achieve results that are over and above the industry norm. Employee engagement is high, and the Alaris technical team is staffed with high-calibre engineers.


Claire Nitch, head of sales and marketing.

Head of sales and marketing, Claire Nitch, has the experience, passion and knowledge that has taken the business to new heights. She has been involved with the expansion of its customer base with specific focus on the USA and has played a big role in promoting cross selling opportunities between Alaris Antennas and the acquired subsidiaries. She always has a robust plan that is executed with precision.

Alaris Holdings is proud to be associated with Alaris Antennas which has empowered women to take the lead. Elsie Muller, chief financial officer of Alaris Holdings, says “Women’s Day is a reminder of the progress of women in South Africa. I am pleased to see that having women in the boardroom has become the norm for most South African companies”.

“I am a firm believer in a diversified management team. It tends to be much more balanced and it benefits the workplace environment,” said Juergen Dresel, CEO of Alaris Holdings.

Alaris Antennas hosts an annual Women’s Day event where health and wellbeing topics are discussed. However, due to the pandemic and guidelines around social distancing, funds for the planned event will be donated to CHOC.

CHOC Childhood Cancer Foundation is in dire need of support to cover essential services at the moment. The economic situation in which it finds itself is due to a large percentage of individuals being currently unemployed or temporarily without an income, a reality that many families are facing. Without any form of income, these families are unable to transport their children to and from the hospital for treatment, and are unable to provide the necessary nutritional requirements the child needs to stay healthy. The coronavirus has greatly increased the needs of many of these families and they have seen a significant increase in the demand for some of these essential services, especially food parcels and transport funds.

In order to help CHOC ensure that the children are safe and are able to attend treatment and that the parents and caregivers are relieved of the financial

stress of having to provide food, protection and support to their sick children, it was decided to provide CHOC with a donation from Alaris Antennas.




Share this article:
Share via emailShare via LinkedInPrint this page

Further reading:

The ‘magic’ of photovoltaic cells
Editor's Choice
Everyone knows that solar generation converts sunlight to electricity, but what comprises a solar panel, and how do they actually work?

Read more...
Analysis of switch-mode power supply: inductor violations
Altron Arrow Editor's Choice Power Electronics / Power Management
Common switch-mode power supply (SMPS) design errors are discussed, and their appropriate rectification is specified, with details on complications that arise with the power stage design of DC-DC switching regulators.

Read more...
Bridging the gap between MCUs and MPUs
Future Electronics Editor's Choice AI & ML
The Renesas RA8 series microcontrollers feature Arm Helium technology, which boosts the performance of DSP functions and of AI and machine learning algorithms.

Read more...
Accelerating the commercialisation of the 5G IoT markets
Altron Arrow Editor's Choice Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
Fibocom unveils Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) module MA510-GL, enabling satellite and cellular connectivity to IoT applications.

Read more...
Hardware architectural options for artificial intelligence systems
NuVision Electronics Editor's Choice AI & ML
With smart sensors creating data at an ever-increasing rate, it is becoming exponentially more difficult to consume and make sense of the data to extract relevant insight. This is providing the impetus behind the rapidly developing field of artificial intelligence.

Read more...
Demystifying quantum
Editor's Choice
Quantum, often called quantum mechanics, deals with the granular and fuzzy nature of the universe, and the physical behaviour of its smallest particles.

Read more...
Service excellence with attention to detail
Deman Manufacturing Editor's Choice
The vision of industry pioneers Hugo de Bruyn and Charles Hauman led to the birth of Deman Manufacturing, a company that sets new standards for innovation and performance within the industry.

Read more...
What is an RF connector?
Spectrum Concepts Editor's Choice Interconnection
If you look across the broader electromagnetic spectrum, the selection of the 3 kHz to 300 GHz frequency range for RF signals is a result of a balance between propagation characteristics, data transmission requirements, regulatory allocations, and the compatibility of electronic components and devices.

Read more...
Make your small asset tracker last longer
Altron Arrow Editor's Choice Power Electronics / Power Management
This design solution reviews a typical asset tracking solution, and shows how the MAX3864x nanopower buck converter family, with its high efficiency and small size, enables longer battery life in small portables.

Read more...
The power of Matter
Editor's Choice Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
Matter offers a reliable, secure, seamless way to interconnect devices from different manufacturers, allowing a new level of interoperability to be enjoyed.

Read more...