Central University of Technology, Free State (CUT), is the foremost higher education institution in the heartland of SA. With two campuses – in Bloemfontein and Welkom – the university offers education opportunities in a number of technological fields, including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM); management sciences; humanities; and education.

As a university of technology, CUT embodies excellence and innovation, aiming to provide technological solutions to current societal challenges. Having achieved numerous social and technological innovations, staff and partners have been the backbone behind these successes. CUT continues to empower current students through entrepreneurship education to think creatively and approach challenges with innovation.

At the helm

Professor Pamela Dube was appointed as CUT’s first woman vice-chancellor and principal in 2023. Since commencing her term, Dube has entrenched herself in the CUT community through engaging and collaborating with relevant stakeholders, as she continues to work towards building strength and excellence within the university’s core business – teaching and learning, research, innovation and community engagement; and forging new alliances that will be more significant to the communities it serves.

CUT made history with this appointment, demonstrating its commitment to universal values of diversity, inclusivity and a sense of belonging and love to everyone associated with the university. Dube believes the current period in the history of CUT can be characterised as a transition to a more rapid phase of transformation that will propel the institution to greater heights.

‘A university is first a place of contestations not just of ideas; it is also a place where there is a continuous contestation about the values of our society, the kind of future we want for our country and for posterity,’ she says. ‘We must empower the students with the tools, not only to understand society and interpret it, but to change their conditions for the better.’

She adds that a university is a place of learning in which the focus is not what to think but how to think.

‘Our economy is dependent on the skills produced by a university for it to grow. We yearn for ideas to be generated from these institutions to guarantee our place to be on the cutting-edge of science, driving human progress,’ says Dube.

‘Universities are better placed for this because it is a place where pedagogy is steered towards “inciting doubt and stimulating the imagination” of the students. In its true and correct form, university education is supposed to encourage students constantly to question prevailing circumstances and challenge dominant consensus and viewpoints. It is this form of education that engenders students’ capacity for “creative and critical thinking”, which Wally Morrow says is “clearly distinguished from maverick and anarchic thinking”.’

More than 3D printing: CRPM – Centre for Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing

As the first centre in SA and on the continent to receive the ISO 13485 certification for 3D printing of medical devices, the Centre for Rapid Prototyping and Manufacturing (CRPM) at CUT in Bloemfontein incorporates the notion of the University being on the forefront of impactful innovation by providing technological solutions to current societal challenges.

The centre was established in 1997 as part of a research initiative, at a time when ‘additive manufacturing’ – also commonly known as 3D printing – was in its infancy worldwide. CRPM has been the leading SA university in the application of medical 3D printing. 3D printing is the consecutive layer-by-layer process where powder or liquid material is bonded together to form a three-dimensional part.

For SA to compete internationally, the local medical device industry needs to be supplemented with the latest technology, infrastructure, expertise and skills.

In 2019, CUT – in partnership with the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation – established a technology demonstrator called MedAdd (additive manufacturing of medical devices), which has since helped SA compete internationally by aiding the local medical device industry with the latest technology, infrastructure, expertise and skills.

The collaboration saw the first ceramic 3D printer installed at CUT. Lithoz GmbH, a world and industry leader in ceramic 3D printing, based in Vienna Austria, installed a CeraFab Lab L30 ceramic 3D printer at CUT’s CRPM, where it is currently being used as an important tool in providing access to this ground-breaking healthcare technology to benefit ordinary people who may not have access to private health facilities.

MedAdd is a vital part of the department’s CSI strategy to assist people who require advanced medical solutions with 3D printing to improve their health and quality of life.

The project has already positively impacted more than 3,500 patients, and that number continues to grow. Its pioneering efforts in the medical field are truly inspiring and testament to the power of innovation.

The CRPM has embarked on a journey to assist patients in public/private health facilities who are disfigured by cancer or traumatic incidents by providing prosthetics or reconstructive surgery, with state-of-the-art technology thus restoring their dignity and quality of life – and, in some cases, saving lives.

Bloemfontein Campus: +27 (0) 51 507 3911
Welkom Campus: +27 (0) 57 910 3500
www.cut.ac.za
www.crpm.co.za