Doctor Pius Oba
Economics, Management Science and Information Systems
Courses and Disciplines taught at WBS:
Technology and Operations Management; Digitising Operations; Operations and Supply Chain Management; Operations and Project Management.
Other Teaching Experience:
Lectured for five years in the School of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at Wits.
Research Interests:
Technology management; digitising operations; process mapping and optimisation; energy sources, energy alternatives and energy optimisation; supply chain management; operations management; large scale project optimisation.
Industry and Professional Experience:
Pius Oba started his career at Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) in 1992 as trainee engineer and progressed to senior engineer responsible for pipeline projects and new venture creation. Thereafter, he joined Wits University as a Lecturer in the School of Mechanical Engineering for about five years and from there moved to the CSIR. His experience at the CSIR and involvement within academia as a lecturer in the School of Mechanical Engineering helped him build strong research capacity and collaborations across industry. He then joined Eskom from the CSIR, where he managed a team of specialist and engineers as Section Manager and Chief Engineer and implemented knowledge sharing processes in a highly complex environment, as well as processes for optimal project management. In 2013, he joined General Electric (GE) – Oil & Gas, where he worked as African Region Manager overseeing capital drilling equipment remanufacturing. In the role, he re-engineered the machinery maintenance business model, saving the company a huge amount of money. This model was then adopted in other territories of the business. In the role he was able to create strong teams of competent individuals who were focused on delivery.
Pius is a registered professional engineer with the engineering council of South Africa (ECSA) and among the few engineers in South Africa registered in the International Register of Engineers (IntPE).
Recent Publications and Scholarly Contributions:
Oba, P. Coded welder skills in South Africa, a review. Journal of the Southern African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Submitted, 2021.
Ratshitanga, L., & Oba, P. Evaluating the benefits associated with steering South Africa towards being a cashless society. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science. Submitted, 2021.
Oba, P. N., Dorn, h. c. L, Momeni, K. (2014). Modelling dynamic resistance variable. Welding Supplement of the American Welding Journal, American Welding Society.
Oba, P. N., Nkhumeleni, M. A. (2014). Comparative study of supply chain performance management in manufacturing and service. E-Business Essentials, Special Issue of the Quarterly Journal of Electronic Commerce.
Khosa, V., Oba, P. N., Koursaris, A. (2014). Investigation of thermal spray coatings for prevention of corrosion and wear. 8th International Tribology Proceedings.
Oba, P. N., Kousaris, A. (2014). Analysis of the mechanical properties of E7018 & E6012 electrodes. South African Institute of Mechanical Engineers Journals.
Other Scholarly Contributions:
Editor: Industrial Engineering and Manufacturing, UNESCO African Journal of Science and Technology.
Technical Committee member: International Conference on Finance, Information Technology and Management, 2021.
Conference Paper Reviewer: International Use of Energy Conference, 2019, 2020.
Community Engagement:
Technical evaluator for Innovation Fund, National Research Foundation (NRF) on New Materials and Advance Manufacturing.
South African representative to China on the South African – China Relationship and Collaborations (Road & Belt Initiative).