EvansWerks celebrates one-year anniversary

15 Apr 2024

EvansWerks celebrates the one-year anniversary of its Cape Town Creative Lab, a hub for techpreneurs turning concepts into reality. With a year of incubation, a diverse array of South African innovators are poised to launch their products, all manufactured and assembled within South Africa.

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Among the trailblazers emerging from the lab is a Cape Town dentist unveiling a revolutionary dental system aimed at minimising nerve pain and streamlining orthodontic procedures. Meanwhile, the head of security for the Proteas cricket team introduces ZANS FS1, a laser-assisted training system for military and police forces, which snaps onto real handguns eliminating the need for ammunition, while a visually impaired woman from the Western Cape debuts an affordable, portable accessory transforming phones and tablets into vision assist devices for the poorly sighted.

EvansWerks, the parent company of The Lab, collaborates with Mediclinic Constantiaberg and The Peninsula Hotel in Sea Point to test a groundbreaking water and air sterilisation system.

CEO and founder Justin Eugene Evans reflects on the lab's journey: "Opening The Creative Lab was a leap of faith for my family. Today, we're witnessing the dividends of that investment, proving the abundance of tech talent and entrepreneurs in South Africa. They simply lacked a facility designed to bring their ideas to life.”

Durban-born CTO Shuaib Badat, emphasises the uniqueness of their venture: "We're not just pioneers in South Africa; we're leading the charge continent-wide, fostering a team of engineers tackling some of the nation's most thrilling engineering challenges."

Equipped with machinery including CNC workstations, metal printers, and a 160-ton injection molding machine, the lab continues to expand its capabilities, fueling its mission to drive local manufacturing.

COO and in-house IP attorney Nicolé Maré, underscores their holistic approach: "We offer a turnkey solution for entrepreneurs, providing a full spectrum of expertise from concept, product design and IP to engineering and marketing, all under one roof. And, all in a Cape Town facility that generates its own power and harvests its own water from the air.”

Evans stresses the economic significance of their endeavours: "A few successful tech ventures can redefine the Western Cape's economic landscape. That's the driving force behind our lab's existence."