Construction World December 2022

Some of Crown Publications’ staff at the Best Projects awards in Sandton. From left: Wilhelm du Plessis (Editor - Construction World); Shaun Smith (Digital Editions); Karen Grant (Publisher – Crown Publications); Karen Smith (IT Manager – Crown Publications) and Erna Oosthuizen (Advertising Manager - Construction World) .

COMMENT

Welcome to the Best Projects 2022 issue. In the issue you will not only find overviews of the projects that earned accolades in the recent Best Projects awards, but also see which projects were entered for the awards. As such, this issue represents the best the South African built environment has to offer and emphasises that, no matter what the economic climate, excellence always triumphs.

Even though a few R1b+-projects were entered, projects were smaller while the Building Contractors category was dominated by WBHO. This is by no means an indication that there are no other significant building projects – it is indicative that smaller contractors do not feel that their projects can be entered or will stand a chance. Excellence does not equate to the value of a project and I want to encourage contractors to enter deserving projects as this is a way for Best Projects to become a barometer of the South African built industry – more than it already is.

In the 13 years I have project managed Best Projects, we have only had three changes in judges, which speaks to consistency. In addition, Best Projects has been held for 21 consecutive years – even in 2020, a year fraught with uncertainty. I have seen how the number of entries in the Civil Engineering Contractors went from 20 to nothing two years ago. The awards mimic what is happening the South African construction industry, albeit with a lag of about a year. Up until eight years ago, we had a category for Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) – something that has, for the most part, come to a halt in South Africa. The National Development Plan states that infrastructure investment as a percentage of GDP needs to grow

from 21% in 2015 to 30% by 2030. This requires the public and private sectors to work together to fund and build infrastructure. It indicates how vital PPPs are for South Africa’s development and I hope that the complicating factors for such projects in the past – such as the inhibiting red tape – will become less. This year we had 64 entries in five categories and had a healthy number of entries in the Civil Engineering Contractors category – an indication that government is coming to the realisation that infrastructure development is fundamental to the economic development of the country. What is still outstanding are the massive infrastructure projects of a decade ago when airports, stadiums and major freeways were constructed.

Enjoy this display of excellence. Wilhelm du Plessis Editor

@ConstWorldSA

www.facebook.com/construction-worldmagazinesa

EDITOR & DEPUTY PUBLISHER Wilhelm du Plessis constr@crown.co.za ADVERTISING MANAGER Erna Oosthuizen ernao@crown.co.za LAYOUT & GRAPHIC ARTIST Katlego Montsho CIRCULATION Karen Smith

PUBLISHER Karen Grant PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY Crown Publications P O Box 140

TOTAL CIRCULATION: (Third Quarter '22) 15 719

BEDFORDVIEW, 2008 Tel: 27 11-622-4770

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher. PRINTED BY Tandym Cape

www.constructionworldmagazine.co.za

2 21 st Best Project Awards 2022