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Cum laude and Dean’s Merit Award For Shantha Harilal

Cum laude and Dean’s Merit Award For Shantha Harilal

For Shantha Harilal, completing her Bachelor of Technology (BTech) degree in Textile Technology at DUT was no walk in the park.

The Technical Assistant within the University’s Textile Technology Programme would sometimes go through some days with approximately two hours of sleep while trying to find a perfect balance between school, work and family.

This difficult juggling act was however not in vain. Harilal graduated cum laude and received the prestigious Dean’s Merit Award for academic excellence when she received her qualification during the University’s Spring graduation ceremonies today (Wednesday, 03 September 2014) at the Fred Crookes Sports Centre, DUT Steve Biko Campus.
“It was definitely a challenging task balancing my professional and family life. Apart from my research (for BTech), I also had projects for other subjects required towards the course, and to find a balance between these, I most often got through the day with approximately two hours of sleep. This however made me strong willed as one has to give up certain aspects of their lives to achieve success,” she said.

Harilal is no stranger to academic excellence. While doing her diploma studies, she achieved 35 out of 39 distinctions.

Her BTech research titled: Setting up of a commission dye house that can cater for 100 tonnes of weft knitted fabric per week; the quantities of which are 40 percent cotton and 60 percent polyester/cotton blends, investigated the weft knitted fabric preparation, dyeing and finishing process routes required for setting up a commission dye house as well as potential areas of improvement.

“I conducted this research because the textile dyeing and finishing sector uses large volumes of water and substantial quantities of chemicals. Companies in this sector are facing significant challenges and would therefore need to adapt and streamline processing routes which would enable them to become more competitive and more able to respond effectively to current environmental challenges,” she said.

The research findings were that the choice of low liquor ratio machines and the incorporation of a heat recovery system reduced processing and effluent treatment costs. Machines with state of the art monitoring systems increased the right first-time methods and thus reduced re-work costs, added Harilal.

Prior to working for DUT, Harilal worked in the textile industry for 10 years. She began her career as a Textile Designer, eventually becoming a Printing Manager.

She said current dyeing and finishing companies, as well as people intending to set up a commission dye house, would benefit from her research.

“The other challenge I faced (during BTech research) was obtaining permission from textile companies to observe and investigate their set up. These were eventually granted, however in accordance with the companies’ schedule as production was ongoing. I however persevered and overcame any negativities in my path to achieve my goals. My supervisor, Mr John Keith Hanson, also assisted by using his professional and personal relations with members from the textile industry to obtain permission into companies so that I could conduct my investigations. He was my mentor and pillar of strength during this challenging time. He also imparted a world of knowledge to me, not only in the field of colouration and finishing, but also in Chemistry and colour physics,” she said.

Harilal plans to further her studies and is currently investigating possible topics for her Master’s dissertation.

– Sinegugu Ndlovu

Pictured: Shantha Harilal

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