Who we are
SAI Futurenet was established in early 1995 - originally as two separate businesses - which subsequently merged. We grew steadily through the "Dotcom crash" of 2000/1 and continue to grow at 20% pa through our second recession.
SAI Futurenet has grown to become KZN's largest locally based ISP, and we are one of only 23 in the country (of 160) members of ISPA (and the only KZN based one) not graded "Small Member" (see www.ispa.org.za).
We have offices in Durban, Cape Town and Pietermaritzburg, and provide services to:
- Over 1,000 diverse commercial and non-profit organizations spread over the whole of South Africa, including Ahlstrom, Baker's Transport, Belgotex Carpets, Chester Wholesale Meats, Coastal Farmers, Doculam, Ecoserv, Federal Mogul Group, Golden Horse Casino, GUD Filters, Jacks Paint and Hardware Franchise Group, KZN Gambling Board, Wildlife and Environment Society SA (WESSA), and many others.
- Natal Law Society, the Natal Law Libraries in Durban and Pietermaritzburg, and many legal practices
- Eight premier private schools (including Hilton College, St Anne's, Wykeham Collegiate and Epworth) and ten public schools (including Maritzburg College, Pietermaritzburg Girls' High, Alexandra High, Carter High and Hillcrest High).
In addition to this, over 3,500 individual and small business clients use SAI to provide ADSL or dialup services.
From the above, it is clear that our focus is on the SME and SMME sized enterprise - and consequently our whole organisation is geared to providing services and support suitable and relevant to organisations with limited in-house IT expertise.
The success that SAI Futurenet has enjoyed stems from several factors, including:
- A clear focus on the type of client to whom we are most suited to providing outstanding service;
absolute dedication to clients' needs which has translated into the lowest customer loss ratio in the industry; - Careful choice of supply partnerships, which yields levels of reliability, service quality and depth and breadth of services far higher than would normally be expected from a business our size;
- Sound business principles, based on the years of experience that the management team has accumulated. MD Des Ramsay alone has over 40 years of IT experience, the majority of those managing IT businesses and including five years as Sales Director of the Dimension Data company, Internet Solutions (IS);
- Controlled and carefully managed growth, allowing us to weather the roller coaster ride that has plagued the IT industry in recent years and which has seen SAI Futurenet growing while many of our competitors have left the industry or severely contracted their operations.
Our accreditation
We hold the highest level of telecommunications licence provided by ICASA (Independent Communications Authority of SA), which are Individual ECS and Individual ECNS licences.
We are members of ISPA (Internet Service Providers Association) which is recognised by the Ministry of Communications an Industry Representative Body in terms of section 71 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, 2002, and are governed by ISPA's code of conduct. We are amongst South Africa's top 25 largest ISPA members and one of 160 members of ISPA.
