Despite the gloom and doom spread by the recent recession, the motoring sector has thrived, beating its own predictions for growth Although the South African motor industry is a relatively minor player as far as global vehicle production is concerned, its recent growth was something to behold and it continues to be an economic mainstay of the country.

 Fuelled by a better outlook, competition to attract graduates with technical or business-related qualifications to the motoring industry is fierce Graduates who are under the impression that all the motoring industry wants is engineers, should think again.

BLUE IQ, the Gauteng provincial government’s infrastructure investment arm, injected R100m into training and skills development for the vehicle manufacturing sector. CEO Amanda Nair said a new training facility would benefit Blue IQ subsidiaries, the Automotive Industry Development Centre and the Automotive Supplier Park, which view the automotive industry as the primary growth sector in SA.

The production line at VWSA's factory in Uitenhage, Eastern Cape Graduates willing to work hard, stay positive and believe in themselves can thrive in this industry   The past year of global financial turmoil and instability has made ‘soon to be’ graduates wonder if their qualifications can still get them a job.

Much of the motoring industry is gearing up for expansion and new investment, despite the fact that local sales of motor vehicles have slumped this year. One of the main reasons for this is that in South Africa this sector has become an integral part of the global industry.

Radley, ex-NMMU student, says… Radley Conner, a graduate trainee in corporate sales and marketing at Volkswagen SA (VWSA), is a very resolute man. This he says is one the keys to his success.