Construction World April 2018

CEMENT & CONCRETE TECHNOLOGY

Limpopo’s SOCIAL DEVELOPMENTS More sports and recreational complexes are being built in poor outlying areas of Limpopo as local government departments in the province continue to prioritise the develop- ment of social infrastructure.

the balance of civil construction- and building-related work. By November 2017, as much as 80% of the project had been completed. The construction of the podium was undertaken by Corestruc, and is just one of a number of grandstands that this specialist contractor has already completed in the province and elsewhere in the country on behalf of municipalities and their professional teams. Corestruc has developed a standard system – comprising precast concrete columns, raking beams and seating benches – that can be adapted to the varying podium size requirements early on in the design phases of the project. They are manufactured at the company’s state-of-the-art factory and transported to site where they are swiftly installed by its skilled teams, starting with the accurate surveying of the site. The company also assumes full project management of this component of the works programme. Willie de Jager, managing director of Corestruc, says that the installation team arrived on site once the foundations of the structure had been completed to commence installing the precast concrete columns. Benefits of outsourcing “By outsourcing the construction of the super-structure to a specialist, emerging contractors have been able to save on construction time and mitigate most of the risk associated with the works. Corestruc arrived on site with its own mobile crane and rigger to safely lift and place each element that makes up this system,” De Jager says. This approach mitigates the need for specialised skills to accurately undertake two-dimensional surveying for precision installation of the scaffolding and formwork, as well as working at heights. One of the other advantages offered by this modular method is the very high quality of the completed structure. This is considering the unprecedented accuracies and quality that is achievable in a controlled factory environment, contributing towards a more robust final structure to reduce maintenance costs. The fabrication and installation of the structure’s roof has also been outsourced to a specialist, while Moepeng Trading 40’s teams complete the external brick works and fitting out the inside of the structure. It will comprise a changing room and ablution facilities, providing more learning opportunities for those working on this site. Corestruc also continues to work with Uranus Consulting Engineers on a number of other sports complex construction projects. Uranus Consulting Engineers’ projects are usually valued at more than R25-million and they are rolled out in up to three phases – in line with the requirements of the EPWP. As many as 50 locals can be recruited to work alongside the emerging contracting teams that have been appointed to work on its projects, and they each receive a minimum wage of R88 per day, which was increased from R83,59 in late 2017. A standard Uranus Consulting Engineer sports complex project features a soccer pitch and running tracks along the perimeter, as well as a multipurpose building and ablution blocks. This is in addition to the construction of access roads and water- supply infrastructure. The consultant ensures that the specialist subcontractor complements and adds value to the programme. Corestruc achieves this by contributing towards the completion of a high quality build and timely delivery of the facilities to the community without infringing on the ultimate objectives of the EPWP. De Jager notes that while only small teams are required to install the modular system, the precast factory is also extremely labour

I n addition to keeping members of poor communities productive members of society, this infrastructure serves other important functions, and these are very evident on one of the latest sports complex and recreational construction sites in the province’s

Mopani District. The project

Located just outside the Tzaneen central-business district, this site is providing more than 70 members of surrounding poor communities with construction-related jobs. Importantly, many are unskilled workers who are also receiving on-the-job training. They are working alongside the teams of main contractor, Moepeng Trading 40, which arrived on site to commence work on the sports facility in July 2017, and the company is well on track to completing the project on behalf of the Greater Tzaneen Municipality. Sky High Consulting joins the professional team as the consulting engineer on this typical Expanded Public Works Project (EPWP). This state initiative is driven by the Department of Public Works and is aimed at reducing poverty and unemployment by providing training and short-term to medium-term labour intensive work opportunities to South Africa’s poor and unemployed. As design engineer, Sky High Consulting has ensured that the works are as labour-intensive as possible, while the firm has also been appointed to provide site supervision services to the municipality. The project is fairly straightforward with very few technical challenges, barring a limited supply of water for building operations when construction work commenced on the project. However, this challenge was swiftly resolved by the client to ensure work continues apace. Their simplicity is essentially what makes these projects so suited to developing the competencies and capabilities of unskilled members of rural communities, including women and youth. Meanwhile, they also provide ample opportunity to expose workers to a broad spectrum of general civil construction and building activities. This increases their chances of securing employment on other construction and building projects once this project is completed. They have also been an important pipeline for emerging contractors, such as Moepeng Trading 40. Scope The complex comprises a sports centre, basketball and tennis courts, as well as a pitch, which was completed ahead of the builder’s break late last year. Moepeng Trading 40 also undertook the site clearing and bulk earthworks of the 1 500 m 2 site and construction of the access roads. This work, including the completion of the boundary wall, is being undertaken simultaneously to keep the project progressing according to schedule. The construction of the large 300-seater precast concrete grandstand was built in just under a week, providing Moepeng Trading 40 with more than enough time in which to complete

46

CONSTRUCTION WORLD APRIL 2018