The South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) has recently announced the availability of new Request for Quotations (RFQs) on its website. These RFQs are for the procurement of various goods and services required by the organization to support its ongoing projects and initiatives.

SARAO is a world-class radio astronomy facility that operates telescopes and other equipment across the African continent. The organization is committed to advancing scientific knowledge and understanding through the study of the universe and its phenomena. To achieve its mission, SARAO works closely with international partners, including the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) project, which aims to build the world’s largest radio telescope.

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SARAO celebrated members of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and labourers that received skilled training during the MeerKAT+ tender at a graduation ceremony held on Saturday, 15 October 2022 in Carnarvon.

More than 10 SMMEs participated as subcontractors in the MeerKAT+ tender as a result of the Karoo Enterprise Development Program initiated by the SARAO Commercialisation Unit  to develop entrepreneurs in Carnarvon, Williston, Brandvlei and Van Wyksvlei. The aim of the Karoo Enterprise Development Program is to promote downstream employment and local economic development.

SARAO formed a three-year partnership with the Northern Cape SMME Trust to support SMMEs in the four towns. This partnership includes a full time resource based in Carnarvon to assist SMMEs with its daily needs. Through the program SMMEs are provided training, assisted with completing tender documents and requests for quotations, costing and pricing, applying for funding as well as all compliance documents. The initiative has a database of over 50 active SMMEs in the four towns from various sectors.

“We wanted to celebrate this important milestone with them as this was the first time that local SMMEs participated in the MeerKAT+ tender. We are proud of all the SMMEs and labourers that persevered,” says Apiwe Hotele, SARAO Senior Commercialisation Specialist.

SARAO celebrated members of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and labourers that received skilled training during the MeerKAT+ tender at a graduation ceremony held on Saturday, 15 October 2022 in Carnarvon.

Applicants should submit a comprehensive CV by logging to https://ess.nrf.ac.za/Account/Recruitment and apply online. Applications should be accompanied by a letter of motivation indicating the applicant’s suitability for the position. The names and contact details of at least three referees should be provided.

The NRF offers a challenging career and competitive remuneration package which is commensurate with qualifications and experience.

The NRF is committed to employment equity and redress and the appointment to the position will be made in line with the NRF Employment Equity Plan.

The NRF reserves the right not to make an appointment.

Correspondence will be sent to short-listed candidates only

Latest Positions at SARAO

    Interested in joining the SARAO community? Use our convenient job application portal, SARAO Vacancies. You can access SARAO vacancies on your desktop, laptop, or mobile device.

    Current Job Openings at SARAO

      Information:
      The website www.sarao.ac.za/vacancies provides available vacancies.

      Applications:
      Applicants should submit a comprehensive CV by logging to https://ess.nrf.ac.za/Account/Recruitment and apply online. Applications should be accompanied by a letter of motivation indicating the applicant’s suitability for the position. The names and contact details of at least three referees should be provided.

      The NRF offers a challenging career and competitive remuneration package which is commensurate with qualifications and experience.

      The NRF is committed to employment equity and redress and the appointment to the position will be made in line with the NRF Employment Equity Plan.

      The NRF reserves the right not to make an appointment.

      Correspondence will be sent to short-listed candidates only.

      The South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO) hereby invites potential BBBEE partners to express interest in collaborating with SARAO in a BBBEE equity opportunity.

      Click here to view available request for quotations

      Click here to download supplier database documents

      SARAO is pleased to announce the appointment of Keitumetse Molamu as the Head of Engineering and Technology Development with effect from 1 September 2022.

      Molamu holds a BEng, BSc IT and an MBA in Information Technology. She is currently employed as a Senior Manager at the Royal Bank of Canada.

      She has held different engineering positions in different technology and research industries such as the Airports Company SA, Ericsson and Clydebergemann Africa. She brings experience in her technical expertise base of electrical engineering, electronics and computer science to the position. Welcome!

      Zwivhuya Ramudzuli, SARAO Junior Engineer, receives the prize for the Best Poster Presentation at the University of Cape Town’s Engineering and the Built Environment Faculty 2018 Research Expo

      Zwivhuya Ramudzuli, a Junior Engineer in die Digital Backend team at SARAO, won the prize for the Best Poster Presentation at the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Engineering and the Built Environment Faculty’s (EBE) 2018 Research Expo.

      Ramudzuli (26) explains the focus of the poster, titled Investigation into a GPS time pulse radiator for testing time-stamp accuracy of a radio telescope: “In order to accurately map the skies and obtain a better understanding, the MeerKAT telescope demands exceptionally precise time and frequency standards. In order to verify how well each radio telescopes’ antenna is synchronised to the universal coordinated time (UTC), a portable GPS time pulse radiator (GTR) was proposed. The device will be used as a verification tool for testing time-stamp accuracy and beamformer delays”.

      A second year Masters degree student at the University of Cape Town, Ramudzuli’s research focuses on Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) time transfer.

      He joined SARAO in 2016 as a Young Professional Development programme recruit, working on embedded software development and hardware prototyping.

      “Within embedded software development, I am responsible for developing network based applications targeted for the linux environment. These applications allow scientists and engineers to monitor vitals of the digitiser devices that capture large volumes of data generated by the radio telescope. While working in multidisciplinary teams, I have been exposed to cutting-edge technology, through which I developed technical skills in technical solution development for radio astronomy,” says Ramudzuli.

      Each participant at the UCT EBE 2018 Research Expo received a certificate of participation and the winners received a cash prize.

      Congratulations!