Japie started his career with Impala Platinum as part of the old Learner Official scheme in the instrumentation/projects department. After a formal education he furthered his project career at Mosgas and later Mondi Board. A SBL diploma in Project management enabled him to be appointed as Project Manager for Anikem/AECI in the early 90's, managing projects across the Southern African continent. His expertise has taken him to projects in America, Australia, Italy and Spain amongst others in recent years.

As business owner Japie still believes in a hands-on approach, bringing his expertise to application level, being personally involved in managerial as-well-as day to day technical decisions. Corporately he is responsible for sales & marketing, project management; and if needed; still engages in design and programming. Japie has a passion for doing the job right the first time: Expertise through precise management.

What defines AS Automation? Japie says:
"An entity or organisation is as visionary as its leader, but as strong as its team members. Life has also thought us that there is no substitute for experience. We value the greatest assets of our company - experienced people forming a team, making us highly competitive and efficient in all disciplines allowing us to differentiate."

With a formal schooling in the area of Human Recourses, a later education in technical drafting and currently studying Project/Quality Management he is a great asset in several areas to the business. His recent promotion to the position of General Manager is also well supported by his peers. His commitment and dedication has also earned him a minority profit share in the company.

His areas of responsibility include BEE compliance, quality sampling, policies & procedures implementation, project costing & estimation, drafting & design and business strategy alignment. He has an attention-to-detail no-nonsense approach which fits in ideally with the company's slogan of: "Expertise, Quality, Service". He is ultimately satisfied with a product only if delivered on time, every time.

What defines AS Automation? Richard says:
"We have the expertise to do most of the manufacturing in-house which makes us a competitive force to be reckoned with. Our slogan is not just a slogan but it is a work culture embraced daily by all our employees. Our company is continuously evolving and I am glad to be part of this growing change."

Louis is passionately brilliant in the transfer of knowledge, skills and attitude through to all levels by means of facilitation, consultation and training. He will create awareness and light the fire of change that will position any individual or firm; enabling them to embrace their passion.

Louis is a highly energetic, self-starting and charismatic leader who can enthuse and motivate others through his compelling vision. His character can further be described by: him being a very resilient business minded individual with an action orientated approach and passion for people. He knows who he is and has the natural talent to stand his ground in any given situation. He chooses to base his life on a set of values and principles that he treasure and live up to. For him, life is a journey with choices and chances and he aspires to deal meaningfully with all life has to offer. Louis seeks purpose in all he does and adds purpose where he can.

As a confident and well-rounded leader, he is authentic, ambitious and courageous with good intentions and a high tolerance for pressure as well as a desire and commitment to constant-and-never-ending improvement and growth. The following words of Gandhi summarize his life philosophy and conduct: "If you want to change the world, you must be the change".

Japie Schmidt (MD) opinion: "I found him to be honest and hardworking with excellent ethics. You can rely on him to be responsible and complete any task with dedication and accuracy. He is far from perfect; in fact, he is wonderfully human! He has experienced failure. more than once. however he believes: "If you want to change the world, you must be the change"

What defines AS Automation? Louis says:
"This company is truly dedicated to positive motivation and mutual respect which incidentally forms part of their value charter. They endorse teamwork and a culture of quality; where real participation by all employees is immediately evident if you take the time to observe the work ethic of this dynamic firm. I am proud to have been of assistance to management"