I build and run the technology that keeps factories moving — cloud, security, networks, and the software on the floor — across South Africa, Kenya & Nigeria.
I'm IT Manager at GZ Industries, one of Africa's largest aluminium can manufacturers. I run technology operations across South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria — everything from cloud infrastructure and cybersecurity to SCADA systems and factory-floor applications.
I started as an electronics technician, became a triple-certified Citrix engineer, spent years at Dimension Data deploying enterprise solutions across the Middle East and Africa, then moved into manufacturing IT where I found my calling: building systems that make factories smarter.
When I'm not managing infrastructure, I'm building full-stack applications. I wrote a complete manufacturing operations platform from scratch — 58 modules, 416 pages, 414 API endpoints — in Next.js and TypeScript.
The best IT leaders stay hands-on — whether it's racking servers, writing code, or soldering GPIO pins at 2am.
"If you can't explain it in the simplest form, you don't understand it."
Hybrid cloud across 26+ Azure VMs, three-tier Cisco switching, 13 VLANs, 8 VPN tunnels and 150+ edge devices — designed, deployed and run end-to-end across three countries.
A full SOC built from scratch: Wazuh SIEM/XDR, Sophos on 500+ endpoints, FortiGate firewalls, Conditional Access + MFA, and DLP via Purview. Layered defence, not checkbox compliance.
A 416-page enterprise MES/QMS built solo in Next.js/TypeScript/Prisma — production, quality, maintenance, HR, finance and an executive command centre, live in production across plants.
Enterprise platforms, security stacks and tools running in production across three countries.
A complete manufacturing operations platform built from scratch. Production tracking, quality (NCR/SCAR/SPC/5S), maintenance, HR, finance, legal, procurement, warehouse, energy and an executive command centre — multi-database, multi-auth, role-based, real-time.
Designed and run the full IT estate across SA, Kenya & Nigeria — 26+ Azure VMs hosting the SAP ERP landscape, 4 FortiGate firewalls / 8 VPN tunnels, three-tier Cisco switching with 13 VLANs, 150+ CCTV/access devices. Migrated 200+ users to M365 at 40% cost reduction.
Built the entire security stack from the ground up. Wazuh SIEM/XDR with 36+ agents, Greenbone vulnerability scanning, Grafana dashboards. Layered defence: FortiGate, Sophos XDR on 500+ endpoints, CrowdSec, MS Defender, Conditional Access with MFA, DLP via Purview.
Integrated AI agents into daily IT operations. A personal knowledge graph of 11,400+ memories on FalkorDB + Qdrant, 15+ Python automations interfacing with Zabbix, Wazuh, Docker, Uptime Kuma and MS Graph, plus a custom MCP server for SharePoint.
A complete pipeline from physical gauges through PLCs to Ignition SCADA, into MariaDB, rendered as real-time OEE dashboards — with automatic SPC control-chart analysis and NCR auto-generation on out-of-spec conditions.
Incremental sync pulling 15 SharePoint lists across two sites into SQL Server using CDC watermarks for efficient delta sync — cutting query latency from 300–800ms API calls to 5ms database reads across 3,939 work orders.
From cloud architecture to the factory floor — the full stack, in the real world.
26+ Azure VMs · hybrid cloud/on-prem · $15K–50K/mo spend
Full SOC stack, designed and deployed from scratch
Built a 416-page enterprise platform from scratch
Bridging IT and OT — where factories meet software
644 Prisma models · complex data pipelines
Three-tier Cisco · 13 VLANs · 8 VPN tunnels · 50+ APs
AI agents · offline local models · knowledge graphs
Full MS stack admin · M365 migration for 200+ users
From Namibian tech support to multi-country enterprise IT leadership.
Promoted to lead all IT operations across two countries. Managing 500+ users, 26+ Azure VMs, multi-site networking, cybersecurity, and building an enterprise MES/QMS platform from scratch. Driving AI integration into manufacturing operations.
Built and managed the entire IT infrastructure for GZI's South African operations. Led M365 migration for 200+ users, deployed a full security operations stack, and architected a hybrid cloud environment integrating Azure with on-prem systems.
Level 3 technical support and architecture guidance across the MEA region — Azure environments, Citrix deployments and VMware infrastructure.
Deployed and managed enterprise Citrix XenApp/XenDesktop environments for major clients across the Middle East and Africa. Specialised in VDI, Windows Server and data centre solutions.
Delivered Citrix XenApp/XenDesktop for SMB and enterprise clients. Earned triple Citrix certification alongside CompTIA A+, Network+ and Security+.
Broad IT support, networking and hardware services for schools, government departments and businesses across the Northern Cape, Angola and Namibia.
Before tech. The Kalahari, wildlife and hospitality — where resourcefulness was forged.
War stories from manufacturing IT, infrastructure at scale, and building in Africa.
A 48-hour marathon — 17 deploys, 1,973 routes, 644 models, 65 new tables in a single session, with AI agents orchestrating the build. No vendor kickoff, no 18-month timeline.
Read full article →Millions spent on foreign ERPs that can't handle load-shedding, multi-currency or local compliance without expensive consultant workarounds. Software for a context it was never built for.
Read full article →On integration as the real work of enterprise IT — and why the systems that connect everything else are the ones nobody sees until they break.
Read full article →Infrastructure architecture, full-stack development, manufacturing IT or cybersecurity — I'm always open to interesting challenges.