Master’s graduate nominated for architectural award (published February 2016)
From humble beginnings to nominee for design award, NMMU
graduate is making waves in the world.
Leon van der Westhuizen, who grew up in the small town of Piketberg in the Western Cape was surrounded by great architectural designs such as the large Dutch Reformed church built in 1881 by Carl Otto Hager in his trademark neo-Gothic style.
Van der Westhuizen has been named the Eastern Cape Regional Architectural Corobrik Student of the Year finalist for the national competition for his design focusing on regenerating the derelict Boet Erasmus Stadium into a biological water treatment and research facility.
Top-performing master’s students from each university in South Africa which offers architecture are entered into the competition. The national winner will be announced in May.
PE talent nabs "most beautiful object" (published February 2016)
Design graduate Laduma Ngxokolo, who previously won the Alumni Rising Star Award, has produced the Most Beautiful Object in South Africa 2016. This is the form of a shawl. 10 objects were nominated for this category and Ngxokolo was nominated by design, decor and styling guru Tracey lee Lynch for his knitwear shawl.
Ngxokolo plans on opening his own factory in South Africa and establish Maxhosa by Laduma as a lifestyle brand. He has also featured on television in 21 icons and is the first African designer to be invited to design packaging for Chivas Regal.
A passion for business (published February 2016)
NMMU graduate, Rush Bhana, uses his skills to expand in hometown. Port Elizabeth-born entrepreneur was exposed to the inner workings of business from an early of seven, watching his father, Vijay Bhana, build and run 17 shops in Korsten.
Bhana, who is the founder and chief executive of Johannesburg-based marketing and branding enterprise The Trump Card, honed his skills in the industry and is now expanding to develop his market in his hometown.
Bhana studied financial planning at the institution where he then started to climb the corporate ladder at financial institutions inclusing Standard Bank and KPMG.
NMMU second in global competition (published February 2016)
TWO NMMU students, completed the international FIFA/CIES Sports Management programme at NMMU last year, have come second in 2016 FIFA/CIES Network competition.
The project entitled "Green Goal: Sustainability in Football" promotes the use of solar energy to light up South African football stadiums, saw BHMS graduate Warren Hartland and Max Grunewald, named as runners up.
The plan is to pilot the project at the Parow training grounds of Ajax Cape Town Football Club, where Grunewald is the General Manager.