Construction World December 2021

SPECIALIST CONTRACTORS OR SUPPLIERS

LUBEKSDAL

A new development that wi l l provide accommodat ion for a large internat ional contract ing team that has been appointed to work on an industrial project in Limpopo i s progress ing ahead of schedule. Thi s i s only two months af ter the bui lding contractor, Projects 2000, broke ground on thi s R32-mi l l ion bui lding project . The impress ive progress made in such a short t imef rame bears testament to the vast ski l ls and experience of the ent i re profess ional team, which also includes Cosmoplan Archi tects & Industrial Des igners ; Fanoy Consul t ing, the consul t ing engineer ; MVM Af rica Electrical Engineers and Quanto 2000, the quant i ty sur veyor. The company’s suspended slab solut ion played a cri t ical part in helping the contractor to s igni ficant ly accelerate the works programme. A total 1 170 m 2 of hol lowcore slabs were instal led by Coreslab in only four days . Thi s enabled the contractor to commence fi tt ing out the rooms below and wi th the brick work above almost immediately af ter they were instal led. The hol lowcore slabs are manufactured to the highest qual i ty and cut-to-s i ze at Coreslab’s factor y. They are then transported to s i te where they are pos i t ioned onto the load-bearing wal ls and grouted into place according to the bui lding plan. The contractor would have never achieved thi s impress ive product ion rate i f i t had used convent ional cast- in-place methods to construct the floor slabs . Thi s i s cons idering that i t takes up to 28 days for concrete to cure before the shutters can be stripped so that work can commence above and below the slab. The use of hol lowcore slabs also did away wi th the need to instal l tons of support and scaf folding in preparat ion of the concrete pours for tradi t ional in- s i tu slab construct ion. Extens ive propping underneath the slab also restricts trades f rom working below on a convent ional bui lding project . The use of hol lowcore slabs also provided a safer solut ion by doing away wi th the need to work at heights on scaf folding. The precast concrete elements are manufactured at ground level in the factor y and instal led on s i te by a smal l team of ski l led and experienced workers . Thi s includes a foreman, sur veyor, rigger and crane operator. Coreslab undertook i ts fi rst s i te vi s i t on 2 June 2021 when Projects 2000 was st i l l at foundat ion level for the three structures . By 27 June 2021, Coreslab had sur veyed the three blocks , completed al l i ts inspect ions and manufactured the precast-concrete

PROJECT INFORMATION

• Company entering: Coreslab • Project start date: 21 May 2021 • Project end date: 30 November 2021 • Client: Lubeksdal Farming • Main Contractor: Projects 2000 • Architect: Cosmoplan • Project Managers: Projects 2000 • Quantity Surveyor: Quanto 2000

elements . The fi rst slab was placed on 2 July 2021 at 13:16 and the ent i re instal lat ion was completed on 3 July 2021 at 9:01. Projects 2000 has been construct ing concrete floor slabs in thi s manner for many years and, in most instances , has rel ied upon Coreslab to provide the company wi th the ser vice. The company was appointed as the principal contractor for thi s development based i ts more than 20-year- long legacy del ivering qual i ty real -estate development assets in the larger Limpopo province. They include mal ls , as wel l as commercial and industrial space. The two two-storey sleeper blocks together house 80 rooms , whi le the lodge includes admini strat ive space, a ki tchen, lounge and bar, in addi t ion to a swimming pool . The project also provided ample opportuni ty for Projects 2000 to innovate. Among the chal lenges was complet ing a R32-mi l l ion development in the four-month contractual period whi le also working in an extremely out lying area of the province. The construct ion s i te i s located on a game farm wi thin vicini ty of the industrial project . To mi t igate delays , s i te sur veying started many weeks prior to the contractor breaking ground to commence working on the project . The des ign incorporates many cost-ef fect ive green elements to reduce the bui lding’s energy use. Heat pumps were speci fied as they only use a quarter of the electrici ty requi red by a geyser, whi le also being a more af fordable al ternat ive to solar water heaters . The bedrooms and entertainment areas have been pos i t ioned to receive di rect sunl ight and take advantage of cool ing breezes throughout the day. Aerol i te in the cei l ings also lowers the natural exchange of heat that occurs in the bui lding. 

48 20 th Best Project Awards 2021