Chemical Technology November 2015

MINERALS PROCESSING AND METALLURGY

buried services, etc. • Responsibility of setting up and operating an off-site labour bureau to obtain suitable local skilled and un- skilled labour. Using citizen resources of the country in which the project is being executed could have an impact on the project’s cost, schedule and quality. Firstly the project has to be properly estimated and materials and equipment can generally be done with rea- sonable accuracy if the scope of work is well defined and proper estimating processes are adhered to. The difficulty will come in estimating the contractors’ productivity factors. Most of the large engineering and construction companies use the Gulf Coast Factors as a reference against which to adjust the factors for projects in different parts of the world. Africa as a whole is not nearly as efficient as the Gulf Coast and therefore more manhours and resources are generally needed to complete the work in a reasonable time. But there is also a limit to the number of workers that can work in an area without causing congestion, which becomes unproductive and unsafe. Competent and experienced site supervision is a key requirement which is not always found amongst the local citizens and without which there will be a lack of leader- ship and team work, neglect of safe work practices and a drop in quality, all resulting in schedule slippage and cost increases. Acknowledgements The author wishes to thank his Fluor South Africa (Pty) Limited colleagues for their assistance and input in the writing of this paper. Editor’s Note This article was written in 2012 and thus references to matters such as tax implications and dealings with the countries’ rev- enue services, import controls and duties at borders, security risks due to war zones, cross border attacks and unstable gov- ernments, labour laws, residential and work permits, etc, may well be different now; however, the content remains relevant related to project and construction management in mining, petroleum, power and other projects.

• Customs clearance and customs restrictions. • Security services and liaison (police and military). • Quality, safety and security of hotels and guest houses. • Emergency support services for victims of theft or crime, unsubstantiated detention and medical emer- gency and evacuation capabilities. • Public health facilities (hospitals, trauma units, site clinics and ambulances). • Electricity availability, reliability and capacity. • Condition of access roads to the site for use by heavy vehicles. • Petrol and diesel qualities, capacity and availability. • Telecommunication type, availability, reliability and capacity. • Water supply (drinking water, waste water/sewage, stemming of surface water in swamp areas). • Food availability and average costs from outlets that sell basic commodities. The results of the above assessments will indicate the ex- tent of detail required in the Security Management, Disaster and Risk Mitigation, Business Continuity and Emergency Response Plans. Evaluating different contract risks Contracts can be any of the standard types, eg, FIDIC, NEC or a client contract, but nevertheless it is the content of the contract that needs to be properly reviewed and understood in order to determine the risks. Evaluation of the following should be done: • Law of the contract • Currency of the contract and exchange rate risks. • Which taxes apply. • Allocation and understanding of responsibilities for deal- ing with the country’s revenue services. • Understanding the country’s laws and penalties. • Labour laws and their interpretation (handling disputes, dissatisfaction and strikes, standard work week and overtime, minimum pay rates, etc). • Understanding the specified contract deliverables or get them properly defined. • Discovering old grave sites and how they should be handled. • Dealing with the local community on issues such as ob- taining land for water, fuel, electrical and road servitudes. Preferably the Client should be handling this. • Responsibility for “Gifts” for the surrounding community chiefs or leaders. • Security of the construction site and the project personnel in a warring country. • Responsibility for supplying medical facilities, medical personnel and their quality and competencies. • The responsibility for the provision of communication and data transfer systems if they are not available and, if they are, what is the capability and reliability. • Availability of construction materials, eg, structural steel, electrical and instrument cable, cement, suitable backfill material, etc. • Responsibility for the accuracy of site information on brownfield projects, ie, survey beacons, bench marks,

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Chemical Technology • November 2015