That’s according to Fluke’s Regional Marketing Manager for Export, Hans
de Laat, who was in South Africa for a whistle-stop visit during which
he saw a broad cross-spectrum of Fluke dealers, value-added resellers
and end users. Following visits to SA Tech Craft, Communika, Tycom,
Brittan Healthcare and the Measurement Group, De Laat said they all had
one thing in common: they were extremely satisfied with the service
they had received from Comtest, the sole authorised distributor of
Fluke industrial and electrical test tools in southern Africa. He said
they particularly liked the constant flow of communication that they
received from Comtest pertaining to new products, special offers and
demonstrations and that the technical support they had received thus
far was fabulous. Asked to comment on future opportunities in the South African market, De Laat said that more educational institutions could benefit from Fluke’s initiative to make its tools more affordable to training providers so that learners can receive training on Fluke tools from the outset. He also sees much potential for intrinsically safe instruments in South Africa, where increasing attention to workers’ safety requires the use of proper tools. He added that the thermal imaging and infrared non-contact thermometers also had a place in the South African market and hopes to see this market grow as more companies shift from reactive to predictive maintenance.