Nthavela Makondo transforms her Golelo Trust Bursary into a shining career at SKF South Africa

SKF South Africa is driven by the ethos of empowering women in engineering and passionately advocates for greater gender diversity in the field. This commitment is embodied in the creation of the Golelo Trust in 2016, with the primary objective of “advancing the education and economic development of black women in South Africa by providing educational bursaries for the study of mechanical engineering at tertiary level”.

Nthavela Makondo, junior application engineer at SKF South Africa, exemplifies the inherent transformative and empowering qualities of the Golelo Trust. With bursary in hand, she successfully completed her BEng in Mechanical Engineering Science at the University of Johannesburg APK, proudly earning a few distinctions along the way!

Machines always held great fascination for Nthavela who, from a tender age, helped her father fix his old car and assemble new appliances. “I love cars, trucks and planes, not just for their looks but also for the marvel that they are –- they show human capabilities!” comments a passionate Nthavela. “I always wanted to create something marvellous and so I eagerly jumped on the best route to get me there: studying mechanical engineering at UJ.”

However, with financial restraints hampering her education path, she admits her studies were overshadowed by her focus on trying to secure funding. In a fortunate turn of events, a friend, who was part of the UJ SAIMechE leadership, sent Nthavela the link to the Golelo Trust Bursary offering.

Nthavela believes her financial challenges won the hearts of the Golelo trustees who granted her a bursary. “Now, having financial peace of mind, my grades improved, and I was able to successfully complete my studies in the field I love, and ultimately pursue career at a company I hold in high esteem, namely SKF.”

She defines the Golelo Trust as “a great initiative that fosters opportunities for women in engineering and assists young black girls to achieve their dreams of becoming mechanical engineers. The bursary transformed my life, as it has done, and indeed continues to do for many South African black women.”

Nthavela is a strong advocate of hard work; during her school holidays, she volunteered as a waitress at the local restaurant in her home village. Determined to graduate with relevant industry or work experience, she reached out to SKF’s head of People Experience and BBBEE, Corlé Grobler, enquiring about vacation work opportunities.

With mission accomplished, she completed her final exam and started vacation work at SKF at the end of November 2022, returning in January 2023 after the December holidays and working until the end of February. Nthavela explains that due to unsustainable living arrangements, she needed permanent employment to gain financial independence and secure her own place. “Unbelievably, a permanent position opened at SKF; I applied and the rest, as the saying goes, is history!”

Nthavela officially joined the SKF team in April 2023 as a junior application engineer under the leadership of Janus Bezuidenhout, AE manager, where she proudly still works today, assisting customers with technical enquiries such as bearing and grease selection. Applying her skills, she conducts industrial and agricultural bearing damage analyses and manages projects for remanufactured and locally manufactured components.

As the designated engineer responsible for supporting the agricultural industry in Africa, Nthavela collaborates closely with and assist the agricultural sales team with technical support. “Along with my team of technicians and apprentices, we perform quality checks and laser-engrave part numbers on wheel bearing retaining collars for the automotive industry,” she adds.

Nthavela also efficiently navigates the training space, having facilitated four training programmes: WE201-bearing basics, basic bearing mounting and dismounting, and WE204-bearing damage analysis. Honing her own skill set, she has successfully completed WE201, bearing damage (online), train the trainer (online) as well as multiple distributor college courses. The importance of caring for others and the environment prompted Nthavela to take the role of first aider.

With her thirst for studies far from being satiated, she has enrolled for her master’s degree in Engineering Management and Professional Engineering Certification.

Nthavela shares why she finds her job path at SKF so fulfilling: “I love the exposure to different industries and the fact that I can work autonomously; I’m encouraged to think, and I’m given opportunities to do challenging tasks; and I find it rewarding to see projects succeed!” She describes her work at SKF as “an amazing experience”, adding that the company motivates and supports her education and career growth. “I’ve grown in my knowledge of bearings and machinery and gained people skills in such a short period. I’m able to think on my feet when interacting with customers with whom I’ve developed strong relationships, to the point where they now depend on myself and SKF for all their rotation machinery needs.”

Nthavela says she connects with SKF’s values of Collaboration, Courage, Curiosity and Care as being the true definition of Ubuntu and aligning with how she was raised as a South African. “Our Collaboration among departments, countries and continents enables us to offer customers holistic solutions. We don’t just sell a bearing, we offer an entire solution: bearings, condition monitoring, lubricants, lubrication systems and maintenance products. We are Courageous in the way we do things, taking on challenges and daring to be different, unafraid to speak up and make our voices heard. Our out-of-the-box thinking is fuelled by our Curiosity to discover better methods and generate unique solutions to engineering challenges.”

Attributing the Care value to customers, colleagues and the environment, Nthavela says they encourage remanufacturing and tailor solutions for customers and the environment. “Being open-minded, receptive to challenges and putting my hand up for assignments outside my comfort zone have been key to my journey. Embracing these principles has propelled me forward and fostered my continuous growth as a proud engineer at SKF,” she concludes.