Imiesa November/December 2013

The official magazine of the Institute of Municipal Engineering of Southern Africa

2012

WINNER Non-professional n pro rof ofess ssion ional io al w wri writer i of the year HIGHLY COMMENDED Publishing Excellence

IMESA

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT • MAINTENANCE • SERVICE DELIVERY

CSM CONSULTING SERVICES

Innovative renewal of mining hostels SAFCEC Conference 2013 An industry transformed

Technology in Consulting engineering Engineering 3D design | Smart metering

Abe Thela talks to IMIESA

“The only OEM in South Africa to offer a complete bus (body and chassis)” Bruce Dickson, CEO, MAN Truck and Bus South Africaa I S S N 0 2 5 7 1 9 7 8 V o l u m e 3 8 N o . 1 1 • N o v e m b e r / D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 3 • R 5 0 . 0 0 ( i n c l VAT )

in the

HOT SEAT

MEDIA MEDI EDIA EDI DIIA

South Africa

CONTENTS

VOLUME 38 NO 11 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2013

78

40 Disaster management

14

Water purification

in 46 Technology engineering

Housing Africa roundup

Infrastructure news from across the continent 16

TECHNOLOGY IN ENGINEERING

Transforming road management

Industry insight Consulting engineers Interview: Abe Nyeleti, vice president, CESA

23

Water & wastewater The largest PKW system in the world 26

SEPHAKU

S A R M A

Regulars

Innovative funding

3 5

READYMIX

Roads and stormwater

ASSOCIATION

Practical road cost recovery methods 64

Readymix Special Feature Sephaku – Certainty Certain in cement SARMA: Readymix and the environment Prefab roads Dispute resolution Designer readymix Concrete in municipalities SARMA directory of members

Rural drought management

6

Affordable housing Bridging the housing gap

in th he

HO OT SE EAT

28 30 32 34 36 37 38

Geomatics A new model for City of Johannesburg Information

14

The purification of Mkhomazi River

78

Housing Integrated housing boost for Cape Town

83

Transport 40

Connecting the tracks

87

Events 89

Products and services Vermeer digs deep at Bauma Africa

“The only OEM in South Africa to offer a complete bus (body and chassis)” Bruce Dickson, CEO, MAN Truck and Bus South Africa

72

Water treatment

SAFCEC sees the fruits of its labour

Cover article Merriespruit – a benchmark for rental housing

57

SOUTH AFRICAN

Disaster management

Editor’s comment President’s comment

Sophisticated road technology 44 Smart modelling for new and upgraded infrastructure 46 Solving the water crisis with AMR 50

Municipal Feature – Tshwane

Changing the face of the South African cement industry

CSM Consulting Services has shown that it can deliver on all aspects of social housing investments, leading to positive outcomes for all participants – not only in terms of the number of units delivered, but also in the quality of living environments and the sustainability of these human settlements. The Merriespruit social housing project in the Free State province tells a story of real transformation.

Technology in engineering – Special Feature

19

90

10 IMIESA November/December 2013

1

r Se

eI vic lu Va eI s Re ib ns po

y i l it

Renewable, efficient and abundant

Using desalination solutions,

create fresh water resources for industrial and domestic use.

Develop your own desalination programme.

South Africa’s largest seawater desalination plant: Mossel Bay Both the city’s residents and industrial customers benefit from sufficient highquality fresh water. With a desalination capacity of 15 mega litres per day, we helped address water shortages throughout the region, and helped to secure continued economic development.

Find out how: 011 663 3600 info.southafrica@veoliawater.com www.veoliawaterst.co.za

EDITOR'S COMMENT | Nicholas McDiarmid

PUBLISHER Elizabeth Shorten EDITOR Nicholas McDiarmid HEAD OF DESIGN Frédérick Danton SENIOR DESIGNER Hayley Mendelow DESIGNER Kirsty Galloway CHIEF SUB-EDITOR Claire Nozaïc SUB-EDITOR Patience Gumbo CONTRIBUTORS Candice Landie, Louw Kannemeyer, Jacques Smith, George Evans, Prof WJ Pienaar, Serena Coetzee, Dinao Tjia, Dewald Potgieter CLIENT SERVICES & PRODUCTION MANAGER Antois-Leigh Botma PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Jacqueline Modise FINANCIAL MANAGER Andrew Lobban MARKETING AND EVENTS COORDINATOR Neo Sithole ADMINISTRATION Tonya Hebenton DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Nomsa Masina DISTRIBUTION COORDINATOR Asha Pursotham SUBSCRIPTIONS subs@3smedia.co.za PRINTERS United Litho Johannesburg +27 (0)11 402 0571 ___________________________________________________

Out of the doldrums When IMESA wrapped up its 2013 conference, one thing was clear: construction-related industries have had a tough time of it over the past two years.

G

ETTING PROFESSIONALS BACK into local government is no longer an option. Critically, professional representation on council matters – including tenders – must be depoliticised and practical. The issues that have been tarnishing contractors, consulting engineers and civil engineers alike spring from a general malaise – or sense of hopelessness – in getting a fair chance, from a fair committee, for a fair fee.

For an industry that has been listing in the doldrums, much common ground exists between its participants, and herein lies its strength. Despite challenges, the overall atmosphere at the conference was very upbeat indeed. Presentations demonstrated some wonderfully ingenious projects that can only make you smile. Oliver Ive of Amanz’ abantu made a brilliant point in his presentation: In many cities in Africa, you can buy a tank of petrol and a soft drink, but for some reason, the water supply is either contaminated or erratic or both. Why? Shortfalls in skills and management. Why then not use franchising in the water sector? Ive, along with several other experts in the field – including Dr Kevin Wall – initiated a case study of a sanitation franchise in the Eastern Cape. The simple concept of creating a system and process for sanitation maintenance, accomplishable by a relatively small grouping, headed up by a franchisee as a stand-alone business model has achieved remarkable results. In one of the pilots, a school in Butterworth now has functional sanitation, leaving the children free to use the facilities without fear of exposure to germs or other contamination. This has all been achieved by social franchising and is but one example of inspired, lateral thinking.

ADVERTISING SALES Jenny Miller Tel: +27 (0)11 467 6223 ___________________________________________________

PUBLISHER: MEDIA No. 4, 5th Avenue, Rivonia 2056 PO Box 92026, Norwood 2117 Tel: +27 (0)11 233 2600 Fax: +27 (0)11 234 7274/5 E-mail: nicholas@3smedia.co.za www.3smedia.co.za ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION: R530.00 (INCL VAT) ISSN 0257 1978 IMIESA, Inst.MUNIC. ENG. S. AFR. © Copyright 2013. All rights reserved. ___________________________________________________ IMESA CONTACTS IMESA Administration Officer: Narisha Sogan P O Box 2190, Westville, 3630 Tel: +27 (0)31 266 3263 Fax: +27 (0)31 266 5094 Email: admin@imesa.org.za Website: www.imesa.org.za

Turning the ship around While positive work is being done at the micro level – where metrics of capacity, skills and competencies provide base points at which municipalities must function, at the macro level, something else is afoot.

Frank Stephens, president of IMESA, announced that the institute had signed a MOU with the South African Institution of Civil Engineering (SAICE) to work together on the Civilution project. This partnership makes perfect sense for South Africa, focusing on the responsibility engineers play – not only in building society but in shaping it too. Civilution aims to create cooperation between civil engineers and government – and IMESA is the nexus of that relationship. There were several themes that suggested a commonality of perception and response. Namely, a certain depression in the industry, that it is time to turn that around, and that only through cooperation will this be possible. It involves better engagement with government, a revisiting of the procurement process focusing on quality as well as price and BBBEE.

BORDER BRANCH Secretary: Melanie Matroos Tel: +27 (0)43 705 2401 Fax: +27 (0)43 743 5266 E-mail: melaniem@buffalocity.gov.za EAST CAPE BRANCH Clarine Coltman Tel: +27 (0)41 505 8019 Fax: +27 (0)41 585 3437 E-mail: clarinec@africoast.com KWAZULU-NATAL BRANCH Secretary: Rita Matthews Tel: +27(0)31 311 6382 Fax: +27 (0)31 701 2935

It can only get better And it will. The role of young engineers was top of mind at this year’s conference. Besides providing an inspiring and very entertaining presentation to a busload of enthusiastic schoolchildren, this year also saw the youngest presenter ever to face the delegates. Sarel van Baalen, a master’s student in engineering management at the University of Stellenbosch, made a very confident presenter, representing what this industry needs – a passion for municipal engineering.

So… there is a plan, there is healthy competition, there is enthusiasm and there are practical issues that must now be addressed.

Everyone at IMIESA and 3S Media wish you all the best over the silly season. And, of course, drive safely.

NORTHERN PROVINCE BRANCH Secretary: Rona Fourie Tel: +27 (0)82 742 6364 Fax: +27 (0)86 634 5644 E-mail: imesanorth@vodamail.co.za SOUTHERN CAPE KAROO BRANCH Secretary: Henrietta Oliver Tel: +27(0)79 390 7536 Fax: 086 536 3725 E-mail: imesa.southcape@gmail.com WESTERN CAPE BRANCH Secretary: Erica van Jaarsveld Tel: +27 (0)21 938 8455 Fax: +27 (0)21 938 8457 E-mail: erica.van_jaarsveld@capetown.gov.za

Nicholas McDiarmid

FREE STATE AND NORTHERN CAPE BRANCH Secretary: Wilma Van Der Walt Tel: +27(0)83 457 4362 Fax: 086 628 0468 E-mail: imesa.fsnc@gmail.com All material herein IMIESA is copyright protected and may not be reproduced either in whole or in part without the prior written permission of the publisher. The views of contributors do not necessarily reflect those of the Institute of Municipal Engineering of Southern Africa or the publishers.

To our avid readers, check out what we are talking about on our website, Facebook page or follow me on Twitter and have your say.

@infrastructure4 2012 ye r e year iter of theelllencce writer sionall wri xcc E Excellence n professiona blishing Non-profes Publishing WINNERCOMMENDED HIGHLY

Institu te Africa ern ine of the l magaz eering of South The officia ipal Engin of Munic

INFR ASTR

UCTU RE

DEVE LOPM

he in th

ENT • MAIN

TENA NCE

IMESA

ion: Job creat -box out-of-the solutions

Cover opportunity In each issue, IMIESA offers advertisers the C opportunity to get to the front of the line by placing a company, product or o service on the front cover of the journal. Buying this position will afford the s advertiser the cover story and maximum exposure. For more information on a cover bookings contact Jenny Miller on tel: +27 (0)11 467 6223. c

DELLI VERY D C E DELI ICE VIC V RV SER • SERV

lsooonn Nels Nel ay elaa BBay Manddela

ng in uildiing Build uturee fu futur

Biogas to fuel

National ty? opportuni

ou itss ted by our itated ita fa facilita is facil mentt is pment lop ve Paave eveelo yyPave develo ayPave d de praay pr Spr SprayPa rr,, SSp h and or, to ecto reec irrec dir di directo researcmanagi ngg d ging (incl quality R50.00 13 • tment to Steven Single, ber 20 • Octo “Our commi No.10 laboratories.” me 38 the-art 8 Vo l u 57 197 2 ISSN 0

Infrastructure News

MESA IMESA

fofstatestate-o VAT )

MEDIA

IMIESA November/December 2013

3

An innovative family company Ammann manufactures asphalt mixing plants and mineral processing plants, together with compactors and pavers, at eight of its own production locations.

Over 100 agencies and sales partners work directly for our customers throughout the world. Expert round-the-clock service and a high-quality spare parts service are guaranteed.

Ammann means asphalt mixing plants with market-oriented solutions and customised services. Well over 3300 Ammann asphalt mixing plants are in operation every day under tough conditions – a figure that speaks for itself.

For more information : www.ammann-group.com Ammann Construction Machinery South Africa 229 Hull Road │ Rynfield I Benoni │ Phone 011 849 3939│ 078 488 2945 rocco.lehman@ammann-group.com

In memory of

PRESIDENT’S COMMENT

THE 2013 IMESA CONFERENCE HELD IN PORT ELIZABETH

Meeting people’s needs I am sure that delegates who attended the 77th IMESA Conference will agree that they benefitted handsomely by attending this event.

Frank Stevens, president of IMESA

T

HE THEME ‘Meeting people’s needs’ was well chosen and its purpose was upheld throughout the three days by the presentation of carefully chosen papers presented by speakers of a high calibre.

I’ll illustrate the above by picking a few words from some of the paper titles: • “Optimising South Africa’s Infrastructure Programme” • “Deliver y for the Community by the Community” • “Water Sector Skills Audit” • “Public Transport Ser vices in Smaller Municipalities” • “Innovative Remedial Stormwater Management” • “Geosynthetics in Pavements” • “Hot Mix Asphalt in Low Volume Roads” • “Emergency Stormwater Upgrade” • “Benchmarking of Water Ser vices in Harare” • “Refurbishment of Large Diameter Prestressed Concrete Pipelines” • “A New Look at Sanitation in a Developing Countr y”.

Session themes included Institutional Roads and Stormwater, Water and Sanitation as well as

Infrastructure Rehabilitation and Management.

The vital role played by the local organising committee I attended the “Only two weeks to go!” meeting of the local organising committee (LOC) in Port Elizabeth and left

delegates input to the preclosure panel discussion on day one.

What better way to attract and expose bright youngsters to municipal engineering than the scholar programme. Teachers and 120 scholars from some 10 local schools attended.

I am passionate about the need for IMESA to work more closely with its sister organisations inspired, impressed and convinced that IMESA members were about to enjoy a very successful conference.

Willem and his team were very ably supported by Debbie Anderson, the conference coordinator from our head office, Lindsay Mooiman, whose EXCO portfolio is Operations Director Conferences, and Diane McGown of Imagine.

Thinking out of the box Innovative ideas used this year included a successful preconference press and media launch (a number of reporters' comments suggested that engineers must sell themselves more), the use of handheld tablets for registration and CPD point recording and obtaining

I believe that having the presidents of SAICE, CESA and IMESA together on stage for the closing session was also a first.

It was such an honour to share the stage with Peter Kleynhans President (SAICE) and Naren The LOC team

Wilem Hofmeyr

Bhojaram President (CESA).

You will have gathered over the past year that I am passionate about the need for IMESA to work more closely with its sister VA organisations.

Closing thoughts I remain convinced that IMESA’s annual conferences will continue to be one of the jewels in our institutes’ crown. There can be few similar events held in this country that offer the equivalent value for money with ample knowledge sharing and networking opportunities. This year, I was particularly pleased to note an increased number of younger people present.

Thank you Eastern Cape Branch and the City of Port Elizabeth – you did IMESA proud!

Chairperson

Gerrie van de Merwe

Finance

Barry Martin

EXCO – opening function

Zirk Buys

Transport

Drikus Bester

Programme committee

Dup van Reenen

Programme director

Gert Kruger

Golf Day

Anton Crouse

Technical programme

Dave Turner

Logistics and signage

Marius van Jaarsveld

Programme

Clarine Coltman

Secretary/companion programme

IMIESA November/December IMIESA IMI IM MIIESA M IES ESA E SA S A Oc O October cttob to ob o ober beerr 2013 201 20 201 01 3

5

COVER STORY

CSM

MERRIESPRUIT

A benchmark for mining

6

HE MINING SECTOR in South Africa has had a long history of providing migrant labourers with old-style hostel accommodation. Since 1994, the country and the mining industry have seen a fundamental shift in policy and delivery of social housing solutions to its citizens, including in urban areas that owe their existence to the mining industry.

T

1994. The tailings dam failed and flooded the suburb of Merriespruit after a thunderstorm occurred in the late afternoon and about 50 mm of rain fell in 30 minutes. When the dam failed, 600 000 m³ of liquid flowed for 4 km. Eighty houses were destroyed in the disaster, and it is a positive development that almost 20 years later, a new project will be constructed in this area.

Continental and local context Continentally, resource nationalism is a tendency that crops up more and more in the growing extractive industry sector. There have been some instances in Africa where employees and local communities have engaged with or protested against the fact that the perceived benefits of strong growth in the resource sector are passing them by.

The tragic events at Marikana in the North West province of South Africa have shown the negative side of this trend. There are, of course, success stories to be told as well, and CSM Consulting Services is proud to be at the cutting edge of one of these success stories. After successfully delivering a Rental Housing Project at Masimong, Welkom, in 2012, CSM Consulting Services, government and Harmony Gold Mining Company are at it again in Merriespruit, in the Virginia municipal area of the Free State province.

The name Merriespruit also became infamous for the Merriespruit tailings dam disaster that occurred on the night of 22 February

The project Harmony Gold Mining Company has made land available for the transformation of hostels into community rental units (CRUs) in line with government's Rental Housing Policies. The Merriespruit project will provide rental accommodation to low- and moderate-income households.

The innovative design of the project will create a totally transformed neighbourhood with various commercial and social amenities available on the property.

This initiative will directly contribute to the rental housing objectives of government. According to the Depar tment of Human Settlements, housing delivery has until recently consisted largely of individual ownership detached houses on individual stands, often situated in distant locations with limited social and economic infrastructure. The Merriespruit Project is a departure from this individual ownership only option, towards a more holistic approach based on actual needs. In this innovative public-private

IMIESA November/December 2013

partnership (PPP), government and the private sector have allocated R156 403 445 for the construction of 448 CRUs. The development will consist of 96 one-bedroom, 192 two-bedroom and 160 three-bedroom units.

The development will also make provision for various amenities including a crèche, shopping centre and recreational infrastructure.

As the appointed consultant on this project, CSM is responsible for all professional ser vices required in this project. These services include architecture, civil, structural, electrical, electronic engineering, quantity sur veying and professional construction project management. Through its multidisciplinar y excellence, CSM ensures that both the state and the private sector’s investments are better used for quality long-term social housing deliver y. These types of solutions not only have application in South Africa, but are also expected to feature on the African continent where, according to KPMG’s ‘The Role of Cities in Africa’s Rise’ report, 50% of Africa’s population will live in cities by 2030, growing to more than 60% by 2050.

The Merriespruit CRUs will target tenants earning approximately R3 500 a month.

Monthly rentals are expected to range between R800 and R1 400 a month, with subsequent annual increments pushing rent up by a small amount.

Harmony Gold Mining Company and the other partners hope to provide an important benchmark for future PPPs in the social

COVER STORY

rental housing FROM FAR LEFT Ruins from inside other ancillary buildings Architect’s image of Merriespruit ruins after completion

should tenants start installing their own antennas at a later stage • solar geysers and energy efficient lighting to reduce electricity cost • the layout of the development ensured easy service delivery in terms of emergency and other services like refuse control • a package water treatment plant will be installed, allowing for on-site treatment of sewerage.

Services, Harmony Gold Mining Company as well as the Matjhabeng Local Municipality, has been set up and has been running since the inception of the project. This committee will be responsible for the implementation of the PPP arrangement.

The first phase of the project is expected to be completed by the end of March 2014 and the second by the end of October 2014.

Demolishing has started on existing buildInnovative engineering ings and is about 90% complete. Construction Consideration into ongoing maintenance of on the show units has started and is expected the estate after construction is a key aspect Benefits to the community to be completed in the last quarter of 2014. of the design. It is a condition of the design The appointed contractor is Reder New roofs have been put onto about 30% of brief that maintenance will not be performed Construction. The company has a BEE the buildings and all roofing is expected to be by the local authority, but by the appointed Level 2 rating and at the height of construccomplete before the end of property manager. The propThe innovative design of the project will 2013. Construction on the erty manager’s agent theresewer and water mains has fore took part in all design create a totally transformed neighbourhood decisions ensuring that easy with various commercial and social amenities also started and is about 30% complete. maintenance formed part of available on the property CSM Consulting Services the team’s design decisions. has shown that it can deliver on all aspects Successes reached in terms of planning and tion will employ up to 800 people from the of social housing investments that lead to designs consist of: local community. Most of the supplies into positive outcomes for all the participants in • stormwater the project will be sourced locally, injecting a the Social Housing PPP – not only in terms of • safety of tenure – biometric access control considerable amount of money into the local the number of units delivered, but also in the will be used at the main gate, contributing economy. The small shopping centre will, quality of living environments and the sustainto a safe living environment among others, provide local entrepreneurs ability of the human settlements.

• prepaid water and electricity meters will be opportunities, and the crèche will also coninstalled for residents, allowing sustaintribute to local job creation. able management of the water and electricity accounts The future • TV antennas and network to each unit to A project steering committee, which includes be installed as part of the project to lessen the Free State province, national Department the effect on the aesthetics of the building, of Human Settlements, CSM Consulting t 0861 276 266 • www.csmeng.co.za housing space, as it is looking at creating sustainable communities beyond the life of mines in the region. The overall objective of the partnership was to upgrade existing units into sustainable and acceptable tenancy, thereby providing high-quality living environments to qualifying beneficiaries in the Welkom area.

IMIESA offers advertisers an ideal platform to ensure maximum exposure of their brand. Companies are afforded the opportunity of publishing a two-page cover story and a cover picture to promote their products to an appropriate audience. Please call Jenny Miller on +27 (0)11 467 6223 to secure your booking.

IMIESA November/December 2013

7

I M E S A A F F I L I AT E M E M B E R S

IMESA

AECOM siyanda.ngebulana@aecom.com AJ Broom Road Products ajbroom@icon.co.za Arup SA rob.lamb@arup.com Aurecon danie.wium@aurecongroup.com Aveng Manufacturing Infraset cgroenewald@infraset.com Bigen Africa Group Holdings otto.scharfetter@bigenafrica.com BMK Consulting brian@bmkconsulting.co.za Bosch Stemele bsdbn@boschstemele.co.za Bosch Munitech info@boschmunitech.co.za Brubin Pumps sales@brubin.co.za BVI Consulting Engineers marketing@bviho.co.za Civilconsult Consulting Engineers mail@civilconsult.co.za Concrete Manufacturers cma@mweb.co.za Corrosion Institute of Southern Africa secretary@corrosioninstitute.org.za Development Bank of SA divb@dbsa.org.za DPI Plastics mgoodchild@dpiplastics.co.za EFG Engineers eric@efgeng.co.za Elster Kent Metering keith.bailey@za.elster.com Engcor Engineers masham@engcorengineers.co.za Fibertex South Africa (Pty) Ltd rcl@fibertex.com GIBB yvanrooyen@gibb.co.za GLS Consulting nicky@gls.co.za Hatch Goba leratom@goba.co.za Herrenknecht schiewe.helene@herrenknecht.de Huber Technology cs@hubersa.com Hydro-comp Enterprises dan@edams.co.za I@Consulting louis_icon@mics.co.za ILISO Consulting hans@iliso.com Integrity Environment info@integrityafrica.co.za Jeffares and Green dennyc@jgi.co.za Johannesburg Water rtaljaard@jwater.co.za Knowledge Base info@knowbase.co.za Lektratek Water general@lwt.co.za Makhaotse Narasimulu & Associates mmakhaotse@mna-sa.co.za Maragela Consulting Engineers admin@maragelaconsulting.co.za

Mhiduve cgroenewald@infraset.com Mott Macdonald PDNA mahomed.soobader@mottmac.com Much Asphalt john.onraet@murrob.com Nyeleti Consulting ppienaar@nyeleti.co.za Odour Engineering Systems mathewc@oes.co.za Pumptron info@pumptron.co.za Pragma nicojobe.mabaso@pragmaworld.net Rocla karen.devos@murrob.co.za Royal HaskoningDHV francisg@rhdv.com SABITA info@sabita.co.za SARF administrator@sarf.org.za.co.za SBS Water Systems terri@sbstanks.co.za Sektor Consulting cradock@sektor.co.za Sight Lines sales@sightlines.co.za SiVEST SA garths@sivest.co.za Siza Water Company tionette.bates@sizawater.co.za SMEC capetown@smec.com SNA temple.d@sna.co.za Southern African Society for Trenchless Technology director@sasst.org.za SRK Consulting jomar@srk.co.za Sulzer Pumps Wastewater sales.abs.za@sulzer.com Syntell julia@syntell.co.za Thm Engineers East London thmel@mweb.co.za TPA Consulting roger@tpa.co.za UWP Consulting craign@uwp.co.za Vetasi south-africa@vetasi.com VIP Consulting Engineers esme@vipconsulting.co.za VOMM commerciale@vomm.it Water Institute of Southern Africa wisa@wisa.org.za Water Solutions Southern Africa ecoetzer@wssa.co.za Wilo South Africa Tracy.vanderLinde@wilo.co.za WorleyParsons chris.brandsen@WorleyParsons.com WRP ronniem@wrp.co.za WSP Group Africa dirk.hattingh@mbs-wsp.co.za Zebra Surfacing andrew@zebrasurfacing.co.za

HOT SEAT

INTERVIEW | BRUCE DICKSON, CEO, MAN TRUCK AND BUS SOUTH AFRICA

Delivering to Tshwane A well-worn phrase has it that “…a developed country is one in which the wealthy use public transport.” In metaropolitan areas, hundreds of thousands of commuters rely on the informal taxi system, while single occupancy vehicle transport is the standard for those who can afford it. In 2009, South Africa launched its first Bus Rapid Transport System in Gauteng as a first step towards providing a first-class service that could appeal to a diverse community.

10

IMIESA November/December 2013

HOT SEAT

A

LTHOUGH A LOT of new infrastructure, including transport, was a requirement for the 2010 World Cup, reliable transport remains key to South Africa’s efforts to continually address the legacy of poverty and a dual economy state.

Leading bus manufacturer MAN Truck & Bus played a critical role in rolling out this public ser vice. In this inter view, MAN Truck and Bus's CEO, Bruce Dickson, focuses on the company’s recent work with the City of Tshwane and its Tshwane Rapid Transit tender.

B

RT systems are relatively new to the South African market. How does rolling out a BRT system in this country compare to doing the same in Europe?

BD In my opinion, it is far more complex and challenging as we have the added factor of existing service providers in the form of bus operators and minibus taxis.

Taking the example of the tender for buses linked to BRT system in Tshwane, how well were the tenders specified and what challenges did they pose to MAN Truck & Bus? Generally the tenders are well specified, with a lot of detail provided on what exactly the customer requires in terms of specification, etc. In the case of the Tshwane Rapid Transit tender, MAN experienced little or no challenges in meeting the required specifications, as we are well covered in respect to requirements for low-floor buses with low emissions or compressed natural gas (CNG) propulsion systems. In fact, MAN is the market leader in Europe in the CNG and hybrid market segments.

How customised are these buses and what makes them unique? The most unique feature of this type of buses is the large passenger entrance doors

challenges. For example, dedicated bus lanes are indeed important to an efficient transport system, yet the common minibus taxi has been around for decades, still with no lanes. In cities like Sydney, Australia, taxis are given rights to share some bus lanes. What are your

between 1 000 and 1 200 units per year. This is mainly due to most operators being on monthto-month as opposed to long-term contracts, which results in a reluctance to invest in new fleets.

The differentiator – or opportunity – is BRT, with most metropolitans having commenced the roll-out of their various BRT operations. It is important that MAN distinguish

that are positioned down the right hand side of the vehicle.

They also have a high level of intelligent transport management systems and various seat layout configurations, depending on the BRT system. Universal access is also an extremely important feature and includes boarding ramps for wheelchairs as well as dedicated seating for elderly passengers or for those with visual or hearing impairments.

In your view, what are the key points in establishing a successful BRT system, and how well can this

MAN is the market leader in Europe in the CNG and hybrid market segments be achieved in South Africa from the following criteria: busway alignment, off-board fare collection, level platforms and traffic management? In my opinion, it is important to have an integrated system that includes other modes of transport. It’s also very important to involve the various stakeholders (taxi operators, community, passengers) if one is to roll out a successful BRT system, broken into trunk on the main routes and feeder support via minibus taxis, etc.

South Africa has some unique transport

thoughts on this important issue, and how best can it be dealt with from a social, economic and political perspective? There definitely is a place for the taxi across the integrated passenger transport network as feeders to the BRT. I also believe that the inclusion of the various stakeholders from concept stage will go a long way in ensuring the smooth layout of BRT and its ultimate success.

How important is the BRT roll-out in South Africa to MAN Truck & Bus’s strategy in the country? The South African bus market is fairly stagnant, with total volumes of

itself not only as the preferred supplier for commuter type buses in South Africa, but also as the preferred supplier for BRT products. So to answer your question: It is a very important component of our strategy.

What are the fundamental elements of a truly modern, sustainable bus? Low fuel consumption, low emissions, reliability, lowest possible total cost of ownership (TCO) and a service and parts network dedicated to keeping the wheels rolling and offer highest uptime.

What makes MAN Truck & Bus vehicles so successful in this country? In my opinion, it’s a combination of the following: • being the only OEM in South Africa to offer a complete bus

IMIESA November/December 2013

11

HOT SEAT

(body and chassis); customers prefer dealing with one point of contact as opposed to two suppliers – a one-stop shop, so to speak • although MAN is a premium product, it has proven itself repeatedly to have the most competitive TCO in the various segments that MAN competes in • an extremely experienced and dedicated bus team that understands our customers and their requirements and strives for superior customer service and added value.

How are BRT systems developing in the rest of Africa? BRT is still relatively new to the rest of Africa, with

12

Tanzania being “Although MAN is the most positioned as a premium advanced, with apparent product, it has proven itself ongoing plans repeatedly to have the most for a system competitive TCO in the in Dar es various segments that MAN Salaam. To my competes in.� Bruce Dickson, knowledge, other countries CEO, MAN Truck and Bus South Africa considering the option of BRT to alleviate Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, traffic congestion are Nigeria Malawi and Mozambique. and Egypt.

Although these are important markets for MAN, the country with the highest volume in the Which African markets region is Kenya, which has a does MAN Truck & Bus see strong manufacturing culture as having high potential? and is the hub for the rest of the Mostly sub-Saharan Africa, East African Union. where the South African product North and West Africa are offering is also suitable for also considered as having high these markets. These include

potential, with Morocco, Egypt and Nigeria being the focus areas for MAN.

t + 27 (0)11 928 6800 www.mantruckandbus.co.za

IMIESA November/December 2013

LET YOUR BRAND AND

WITH 3S MEDIA

‡ 1HHG WR UHDFK \RXU QLFK KH WDUJHW PDUNHW" ‡ :DQW PD[LPXP H[SRVX XUH" ‡ :DQW D KLJK SHQHWUDWLRQ Q IRU \RXU PHVVDJH" Then 3S MEDIA’S products are forr yo you. u.

Our brands reach the infrastruc cture and serv vic ice e delivery, water, waste manage ement, mining and conferencing industries.

WE OFFER YOU ‡ %UDQG DGYHUWLVLQJ LQ print mag gazines, buyers’ guides, directories and supplements ‡ %UDQG DGYHUWLVLQJ LQ exact replica plica online magazines with limited animation and hyperlinks yp to y your website ‡ 3UHVV RIÀFHV with multimedia functionality on websites accessible via computers or mobile phones, harnessing the power of video and animation ‡ Banner adverts RQ ZHEVLWHV DQG LQ QHZVOHWWHUV WR GULYH WUDIÀF WR \RXU SUHVV RIÀFH your own website event or job listing ‡ Event sponsorships and exhibition stands.

MEDIA Scan here to go to website

FOR MORE ABOUT 3S MEDIA’S OFFERINGS VISIT www.3smedia.co.za or e-mail enquiries@3smedia.co.za

THINKING OF INVESTING IN THE AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING MARKET?

CONSTRAINED BY FUNDING CHALLENGES? The Solution - The Gauteng Partnership Fund (GPF) is the ideal partner for companies

seeking to develop affordable residential properties for rental to cater for households with income up to R15 000.

Who Are We - Mandated by the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements to accelerate

the provision of affordable housing, the GPF has leveraged over R2.2 billion in private sector funding for developers and investors in the affordable housing market. The GPF seeks to share financing risks with debt funders and developers for affordable housing projects.

Opportunity exists - To access GPF funding from a dedicated Rental Housing Fund that aims to assist rental housing developers with equity-type loans for the affordable housing rental market. The GPF equity enhances the bankability of projects to enable senior lenders to finance on favourable terms.

For more information or to apply for funding contact: Maki or Phetsile Tel: 011 685 6600 or Email: immaculates@gpf.org.za & phetsilek@gpf.org.za www.gpf.org.za

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

BRIDGING THE HOUSING GAP

Integration and

affordability There has been good progress in South Africa in the field of affordable housing, but much work remains to ensure that it gets the prominence it deserves. IMIESA speaks to Vuyi Hlabangane, managing Principle at GIBB, about the complexities of this market, touching on issues related to financial models and options for public and private sector housing.

M

ORE THAN HALF of South Africa’s six million residential properties registered in the Deeds Office are worth less than R500 000. Currently, 3.5 million or 58% of these properties fall in the so-called affordable category – properties under R500 000, and indications are that 47% of these are in former townships. South Africa has a GDP in excess of US$467 billion (R4.67 trillion) and a population of over 51 million people.

The affordable segment of the population is 88.14%. It is estimated that between

14

IMIESA November/December 2013

800 000 and 1.3 million households fall within the affordable housing segment, largely representing individuals or households earning less than R16 500 per month.

Since 2004, an average of 70 000 new affordable units, including state-subsidised houses, have been registered at the Deeds Office per year, compared with 65 000 in the category of houses costing more than R500 000. Although fewer new houses in the above R500 000 market have been built since 2007, the figures have remained constant in the affordable housing market.

The demand for affordable housing has drastically increased, resulting in a growing housing backlog and situations where demand for housing outstrips current supply.

This is due to rapid urbanisation and empowerment – both educationally and in terms of employment. The affordable housing market is seen as the fastest growing market in terms of volume and value, and indications are that more affordable homes worth less than R500 000 are being built each year than expensive houses.

The Klarinet Housing Project In this interview, Hlabangane focuses on the Klarinet Housing Project in Mpumalanga to demonstrate a number of key principles involved in this market.

“It is a well-known fact that South Africa has a housing and infrastructure shortage problem. Where there is property development, there is an issue with access to finance and infrastructure, says Hlabangane. “The Klarinet Housing Project, which is a National Priority Sustainable Integrated Affordable Housing development of over 12 400 units, has contributed towards providing muchneeded homes for communities within the Emalahleni Municipality,” he states.

However, it should be noted that the performance of the housing sector as a whole relies on a stronger working relationship and partnership between the public and private sectors.

“Given the mounting challenges ahead, limited resources and the need to increase the rate of housing delivery, the industry must continue exploring and implementing mutually beneficial arrangements between the public and private sectors as seen in the planning and implementation of the Klarinet Housing Project,” he notes.

Affordable housing applies to people earning between R3 500 and R16 500 per month.

This is a wide margin and encapsulates a gap market as well. The figure is linked to inflation and includes worked and first time homeowners, often graduate professionals.

“Empowerment as a whole tells a positive story within this market. Education and jobs have indeed had an impact and created a new segment. There is a housing backlog, making demand high, but there is also the issue of over-indebtedness and bad credit ratings that create a very high barrier to entry in this country. Almost half of this segment is affected – largely incurred through unsecured credit,” continues Hlabangane.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

The debt challenge Hlabangane notes that personal financial literacy is a major challenge for the affordable housing market. For those with debt, rehabilitation is obviously the goal, but it is not that simple. Many rehabilitated consumers become recidivist, creating a negative situation all over again. Another problem in this market is the notion of the payment culture – being aware of rates and taxes, and in complexes, levies as well. “South Africa sees a very low approval rate on home loan applications. Debt to income level is high and the National Credit Act is very specific in terms of how banks should act in granting credit. Anyone buying a home for the first time should go through financial literacy training. This would include managing a budget and understanding the ancillary costs of home ownership.”

The Klarinet Housing Project “This project has a number of stakeholders, aside from the public. These include the developer (ABSA as implementing agent), provincial government as well as the local council,” says Hlabangane. “It also has a range of financial contributors, including government funding, some rental market and the open mortgage market.

As a public private partnership (PPP), the municipality as well the province had some prior work, including conducting the public participation process. It is always an excellent contribution to a project when local government is able to take care of these matters prior to breaking new ground. Other assessments and interventions included an assessment of the market to see if there would be adequate uptake of the project.”

Making the case In addition to the above assessments, further desktop studies can reveal the number of employers in the area, the salary ranges of the people living there already, as well as people who might be living there purely for work purposes, with no intention to buy. In this way, the types of housing and services supplied can be tailored to fit the budget.

“This is not just a housing project, you must remember. It includes road, ser vices, a clinic and a school. We are building an entire

A unique development bank ABSA is the only bank in South Africa that has its own development company. The bank owns half the land and government provided the rest. The ABSA Development Company invested in the provision of ser vices and provided the development capital. Government did its part and enabled a positive business case by setting the cost of the land at an affordable level.

Hlabangane explains: “This project was what is known as a BNG (breaking new ground) project. Most developments with a mix like this consist of really basic ser vices.

The cost of the land allowed us to provide an even quality of ser vice and construction across the whole mix: those receiving houses through government subsidy, those renting and those who bought on the open market.

“There are some differences – notably in the size of the properties – but fundamentally, we felt it was important to develop the whole project with quality throughout. This “One really is much a psychological facrelies on the tor as it is one of construcinstitutional and tion. Dignity is dignity, after administrative all. In a typical RDP housing knowledge of the development, the quality of raids is poor, the electricity local government infrastructure is overhead and to keep a there are other marked differprocess like this ences. In an affordable housgoing.” Vuyisile ing project like this, ever ything Hlabangane, Managing is uniform. You won’t find any Principal, GIBB Capital obvious differences between the housing types.”

community, where people live, work and play.

A very critical factor in developing the business of the project was the willingness of government to release the land to ABSA at a good price.

“This land needed to be suitably allocated, with some services already reaching its border, and with the correct zoning parameters.

This is where the local council play such a pivotal role during the PPP process. One really relies on the institutional and administrative knowledge of the local government to keep a process like this going. A clear risk is a change of council during the planning stage that may not see the value or understand the timelines of the project,” notes Hlabangane.

This project had the input from provincial level from the get go, as well as the support of the municipal manager, along with sufficient technical skills in the municipality to see it along and advise the developers on certain issues. Hlabangane observes that in

rural areas, this is not always feasible, which makes projects like this almost impossible in far-flung areas.

Building a sustainable community “In this project, we were looking at the provision of a clinic, a school and a business zone. This added to the sustainability of the project and its status as a mixed-use project,” continues Hlabangane.

Another factor that was required from its partnership with local government was job creation. The Klarinet Housing Project is very large and was built over a six- or seven-year period, incorporating many people on the ground. Local contractors were utilised and, depending on their size and capacity, built anywhere from two to ten houses, under the supervision of the main contractor.

Conclusion The Klarinet Housing Project is a wonderful example of a successful PPP delivering housing to people across quite a wide socioeconomic range. Projects like these are complicated to arrange, but there is assistance – in this case, large consulting groups like GIBB, and a well-equipped financial ser vice provider, such as ABSA Bank. The will of the people – as represented by council – and national and provincial spheres of government make the success of such a venture highly likely.

Home ownership is one of those critical economic factors that truly offer scope for intergenerational progress and empowerment, and ultimately lead to far more equity in a countr y so marked by disparities between poverty and wealth.

IMIESA November/December 2013

15

AFRICA ROUND-UP

INFRASTRUCTURE NEWS FROM AROUND THE CONTINENT ANGOLA Lauca Dam estimated at over 280 billion kwanza The Angolan government has invested at least 280 billion kwanza (R278.73 million) in the execution of civil works related to the construction of the future Lauca Dam, located in the middle course of the Kwanza River in the municipality of Sao Pedro da Kilemba, Kambambe district, in northern Kwanza Norte province.

Project director Elias Estevao mentioned this during a visit to the project by vice president Manuel Domingos. The project, which was started in July 2012 with a projected completion of 2017, is partly operational, with phase one already diverting river flow. Civil works have begun and power generation has been installed.

Also in Angola, the redevelopment of the municipality of Cazenga in Luanda is progressing well, with the creation of streets, rainwater drainage as well as water and power supply projects taking priority.

The water supply network and rainwater drainage is 80% complete, sewers 83%, road 71%, and electricity and telecommunications 55%.

RWANDA Rwanda’s rail and hydroelectric projects on track A US$13.5 billion (R132.94 billion) line between Kigali and Mombasa in Kenya is one of several African projects aimed at improving infrastructure and connecting Africa. Hundreds of lorries pass slowly through

16

IMIESA November/December 2013

the Rwanda-Tanzania border ever y hour, damaging Rwanda's narrow hilly roads. The project linking the Kenyan port of Mombasa to Kigali, the Rwandan capital, is expected to yield massive results.

The 2 935 km line is one of several big infrastructure projects on the continent that reflect major policy improvements and intergovernmental trust.

Rwanda is also involved in the Rusumo Falls hydroelectric project to increase power supply of electricity to the national grids of Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania – a project backed by the International Development Association, the World Bank's soft loan arm, and the African Development Bank.

KENYA Power plant halfway complete Construction of the US$6.5 million (R63.94 million) power sub-station by the Kenya Ports Authority is 55% complete. The Kipevu project, which commenced in August last year, is expected to be complete by Februar y 2014.

The plant, which is being implemented jointly by Consolidated Power Projects of South Africa and Kenya’s PowerGen Technologies, is expected to boost power supply to the port from 11 to 132 kV. Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) is responsible for the design and super vision of the project, which includes installation of two giant stepdown transformers. KPLC head of corperate affairs, Bernard Osero, has stated that the upgrade will save the port and related activities against frequent power outages.

In September 2013, KPLC lost millions in business revenue following a three-day power blackout that hit most parts of Mombasa. Cranes at the 24-hour operational port remained motionless for over 75 hours. No cargo was loaded or offloaded from the container vessels during the blackout.

GHANA Public-private partnership the new solution for Ghana?

GH¢1.5 billion [Ghanaian Cedi] (R6.75 billion) annual infrastructural deficit in Ghana, the government is capitalising on the public-private partnership (PPP) model to provide solutions for the infrastructural needs of the countr y.

To this end, the government has held a number of stakeholders' consultative meetings on the PPP draft document, before it is passed into law by the parliament. The law will give government the legal power to join forces with firms in the private sector to undertake numerous projects in the countr y. This is in line with government's policy to partner private businesses to carr y out infrastructure and other projects.

The minister of state in charge of PPPs, Alhaji Rashid Pelpuo, told some private sector leaders at the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG) Annual Marketing Conference in Accra that the government had identified energy, infrastructure, and agriculture as its top priority areas for PPP arrangements.

In a bid to address the huge

NAMIBIA Tsumeb smelter's sulphuric acid plant progressing A sulphuric acid plant at the Tsumeb Smelter project is progressing, with engineering works about 60% completed.

The earthworks component of construction is also finished and all long-lead items having been purchased too. “The installation of the acid plant is expected Kenyan port of Mombasa to Kigali

AFRICA ROUND-UP

to complete our major environmental upgrades at the smelter and our obligations to the government, thereby minimising the environmental and political risks to the smelter,” Dundee Precious Metals’ (DPM) president and CEO, Rick Howes, said in a recent media statement.

In addition, the key aspects of the plant upgrades, which address smelter fugitive emissions, are complete and the second oxygen plant, which allows for increased, cleaner production, is expected to be producing oxygen by the end of October, he added. Howes said the company expects the government to then be in a position to confirm compliance with its directive and workplace air quality standards, and support a return to full production.

In March 2010, DPM completed the acquisition of Namibia Custom Smelters, a smelter that was constructed in the early 1960s to process concentrate from the Tsumeb copper mine, and is one of only five commercial-scale smelters in Africa.

As part of its long-term strategy to bring the Tsumeb Smelter to internationally accepted environmental standards and consistent with directives issued by the Namibian government, DPM entered into a lump sum turnkey (LSTK) contract with Outotec for the engineering, supply, construction and commissioning of a facility to treat smelter off-gas and produce sulphuric acid. Outotec Namibia provides leading technologies and ser vices for the sustainable use of earth's natural resources, while also providing innovative solutions for industrial water treatment, the utilisation of alternative energy sources and the chemical industr y.

The Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara) has received a second batch of 40 motorised graders

The CAA plans to expand Entebbe International Airport by building a domestic terminal and airport terminal

At this stage, the total capital cost to complete the acid plant currently under construction, including owner's costs, is estimated at US$240 million (R2.36 billion), up from the initial estimate of US$204 million.

Howes noted that this increase is primarily attributable to higherthan-expected costs associated with site preparation, including demolition, earthworks' excavation, foundation preparation, larger construction camp infrastructure and related operating costs, unanticipated expenses relating to the removal of asbestos encountered during demolition, and a stronger euro currency.

UGANDA Plans under way for Kampala Airport Uganda’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has mooted plans to construct an international airport in Kampala to complement Entebbe International Airport.

David Mpango Kakuba, the CAA deputy managing director, notes that the authority wishes to boost domestic air travel as well as tourism. With a price ticket in the region of US$100 million (R984.42 million), the considerations are great and likely to be lengthy.

Considering aviation is one of the world's most expensive

industries, Kakuba states that starting an international airport will cost at least US$100 million. Under a 20-year Civil Aviation Master plan, CAA plans to expand Entebbe International Airport by building a domestic terminal, airport terminal, aeroplanes maintenance hangers, a second parallel runway and taxiways. Preparation for the US$300 million expansion has kicked off with the acquisition of 66 acres of land formerly owned by the agriculture ministry. Although Entebbe Airport requires 2 000 ha for expansion, its land at Kigungu adjacent to the runway has been encroached on.

ZIMBABWE Roads agency receives 40 more graders The Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara) has received a second batch of 40 motorised graders, purchased at a cost of US$8 million (R78.74 million) from China under the Road Authorities Recapitalisation Programme.

The first batch of 40 motorised graders was commissioned by President Robert Mugabe in July

2013, in a bid to improve roads in the country’s rural areas.

Thus far, a total of 2 937 km of the countr y's road network has been rehabilitated using the first batch of graders.

Initially, the Road Authorities Recapitalisation Programme had come up against a decadelong road maintenance backlog that led to the deterioration of the national road network. Poor road infrastructure has severely hampered national development. Meanwhile, Zinara has introduced a new vehicle licence disc with more security features as part of efforts to curb the illegal reproduction of the permits. In 2012, the road utility lost up to US$15 million in potential revenue through rampant printing of counter feit discs. The road administrator last year collected US$25 million from vehicle permit fees against potential revenue of US$40 million in a countr y that has an estimated vehicle population of 800 000 with only 478 000 licensed authentically.

MALAWI Lilongwe council effectively completes road rehabilitation Motorists in Lilongwe have hailed the city council for maintaining and rehabilitating some of the feeder roads, saying this will improve mobility of vehicles and the looks of the city. Previously, roads in Lilongwe were in a pathetic condition, creating major problems for road users.

Many of these roads had worn-out edges, which made it impossible for motorists to cross or overtake each other.

IMIESA November/December 2013

17

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

ECONOMIC AND CAPACITY SURVEY

Inclusive futures Consulting Engineers South Africa’s (CESA) latest Biannual Economic and Capacity Sur vey (BECS) – Januar y to June 2013 – has just been released and indicates conditions in the first six months of 2013 were not as bad as expected, considering the better-than-expected increase in earnings, alongside a healthy increase in employment.

T

HE INDUSTRY CONTINUES to have to adapt to a low growth environment as the outlook for infrastructure spending continues to be hampered by poor economic mic growth, lower-than-expected revenue u by ue government, international all economic instability and price volatility, as well as low private sector confidence.

“We shall continue to track the economic activity of the countr y via this economic and capacity city repor ting tool for our members’ benefit. CESA intends to be the adviser of choice to the three tiers of government in order to harness and harmonise the consulting engineering ser vice for the benefit of quality of ser vice to the nation at large, bearing in mind global standards as set by the International Federation of Consulting Engineering (FIDIC) of which CESA is a member,” states Lefadi Makibinyane, CESA CEO.

“The way that infrastructure projects are planned and packaged requires a concerted effort by government and the inclusion of

consulting engineering firms at this initial planning stage needs to be emphasised,” he contends. Makibinyane adds that going for ward “CESA shall share the strategy of how to achieve this with government and state-owned Enterprises through continuous state bilateral meetings”. bila 

CHART 1 Profile of respondents by size of firm (based on full and part ttime employment GRAPH 1 Fee income earned by sub-disciplines

IMIESA November/December 2013

19

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

GRAPH 2 Fee income earned by economic sector

Industry confidence In spite of this, confidence levels improved by 20% to a level of 84 (compared to an expected 76), and is expected to be relatively stable in the next 12 months, with a slightly better outlook for the industry in the first six months of 2014. The confidence index increased to an expected level of 94 for June 2014. It just didn’t materialise into the expected earnings. The relationship between confidence levels of consulting engineers and civil contractors deteriorated from 2009 onwards, as consulting engineers seem to remain busy, while work opportunities for civil construction deteriorated, or otherwise put, did not keep up with the pace experienced during the pre-2010 World Cup preparation phase. That trend between confidence levels among consulting engineers and contractors have, however, shown some improvement, as contractors are slightly more optimistic. Confidence in the consulting engineering sector generally lags behind business sentiment. Business sentiment recovered to a level of 50 (neutral) but is unlikely to be sustained or even improve, considering the current economic turmoil in terms of the expected negative impact of strike action during the month of August on the economy. (See Chart 1)

the first six months of 2013, after slowing down in the last half of 2012 but that real annual fee earnings are lower on the back of higher inflation. Added to this, approximately 9.9% of fee earnings were outstanding for longer than 90 days, compared to 8.3% in the December 2012 sur vey and 24% in

Industry equity Black (including Asian and Coloured) equity, including executive directors, nonexecutive directors, members and partners, increased to 35.5% from 30.1 and 28.1% in the previous two surveys. This shows real significant progress in terms of industr y transformation. Women (all races) represented 8.3% of total equity, compared to 7% in the June 2012 sur vey.

Capacity utilisation Capacity levels improved in the June 2013 sur vey to 91%, after deteriorating to a level of 87% in the previous two sur veys. A level of 91% is the highest level reported by participating firms since the December 2008 sur vey, when it was at 95%.

There was a notable increase in employment during the first six months of 2013

Fee income Member firms’ fee income earned accelerated at a faster pace than expected in

20

IMIESA November/December 2013

December 2011. This translates to an estimated R2 billion outstanding in fee earnings (See Graph 1 and 2).

Human resources There was a notable increase in employment during the first six months of 2013 – it increased by 22% to an estimated 24 356 as at June 2013, translating into a positive outlook for the recruitment of engineers. The employment of African (Black, Coloured and Asian) professional engineers increased by 14% in the first six months compared to the December 2012 sur vey.

The appointment of African unregistered engineers, however, fell by 8%. Tr ying to conform to BBBEE requirements means demand for black engineers will continue to put pressure on firms as there are simply not enough black engineers available to fill the positions.

Industry challenges Fraud and corruption are affecting the ethos of our society, with a lot of talk and little action accompanying the growing evidence of corruption. CESA established a R1 million anti-corruption fund in order to take to take legal action against municipalities and private companies that it suspects of having acted illegally in the award or securing of contracts. In July, CESA took steps to lodge its first case with the regional office of the Public Protector, which involves a district council. CESA is also engaging with National Treasur y to include the concept of an “integrity” pact into the Public Finance Management Act and the Municipal Finance Management Act. Ser vice deliver y, especially at municipal level, remains a critical burning issue. The consulting engineering industr y is threatened by incapacitated local and provincial governments. As major clients to the

There is nothing easier than speaking to ELB’s inhouse specialists who can offer you customised asset finance on all ELB products. Terms and conditions apply.

The World’s Best from a Single Supplier CONSTRUCTION DIVISION: • Compaction Equipment • Backhoe Loaders • Motor Graders • Chain Trenchers • Trenchless Technology • Skid Steer Loaders • Telescopic Handlers EARTHMOVING DIVISION: • Excavators • Front-end Loaders • Bulldozers

ged Rug n a d ble Relia

MINING AND QUARRYING DIVISION: • Static & Mobile Crushers • Excavator Attachments • V.S.I. Crushers • Trommel Screens • Rock Drills • Static & Mobile Screens • Pedestal Boom Systems • Hydraulic Breakers • Telescopic Conveyor Systems • Optical Belt Scales • Minerals Processing Systems • Modular Plants • Heavy Duty Static & Mobile Rotary Barrel Screens • Washing Plants H/OFFICE: 14 Atlas Road, Anderbolt, Boksburg Tel: t Fax: (011) 918-7208 e-mail: &MC!FMCRVJQ DP [B t Website: www.elbequipment.com BRANCHES & DEALERS RSA: BLOEMFONTEIN: (051) 432-3594 • BRITS: (012) 250-1565 CAPE TOWN: (021) 933-2383 • DURBAN: (031) 464-6522 EAST LONDON: (043) 748-1469 • GEORGE: (044) 878-0874 KIMBERLEY: (053) 841-0040 • MIDDELBURG: (013) 246-2312 NELSPRUIT: (013) 755-1003 • WOLMARANSSTAD: (018) 596-3032 POLOKWANE: (015) 293-1978 • PORT ELIZABETH: (041) 451-0232 SOUTHERN AFRICA: BOTSWANA: (00267) 240-4320 • NAMIBIA: (00264) 61-234-052 SWAZILAND: (00268) 518-5348 • ZAMBIA: (00260) 212-210-642 ZIMBABWE: (00263) 448-5771/5

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

industr y, it is important that these institutions become more effective, more proactive in identifying needs and priorities and more efficient in project implementation and management. Pravin Gordhan made it ver y clear that underspending of infrastructure budgets is a serious concern for the industr y, where only R177 billion of the R266 billion was spent during 2010/11.

A further challenge to the industry is to find a way to standardise the procurement procedures applied by the different government departments. Procurement procedures should be standard for the country, or at least for the specific tier of government. The involvement of non-CESA members in government tenders and procurement continues to threaten the standard and performance of the industry. Non-CESA members do not seem to comply with the same standards

and principles as members of CESA. Whether this is linked to complaints of “below cost� tendering during 2009 is not certain, but CESA members should be better informed

is left to deteriorate to such a state that maintenance becomes almost impossible.

In addition to this, the quality of technical personnel is argued by some firms to have deteriorated, putting greater risk on the built environment sector.

CESA has on numerous occasions shown support for both the National Development Plan and Vision 2030 of South Africa, which aim to enhance the economy and eradicate unemployment, poverty and inequality.

More work has to be done at the Strategic Infrastructure Projects level to break down these programmes into tangible and costed projects so that a proper capacity towards deliver y can be measured in terms of skills and capital resources.

Lack of attention to infrastructure maintenance poses a serious problem for the industry

22

about engaging in below cost tendering.

Lack of attention to infrastructure maintenance poses a serious problem for the industry. Not only is it much more costly to build new infrastructure, but dilapidated infrastructure hampers economic growth potential. The cost of resurfacing a road after seven years at current prices is estimated at R175 000 per kilometre, compared to R3 million per kilometre to rebuild, less than 6% of the construction price. In many cases, infrastructure

Published with permission of the Consulting Engineers of South Africa

IMIESA November/December 2013

Our Services include: Mining I Geotechnical I Environmental I Hydrogeology I Water Hydropower I Transportation I Structural I Data Management

Web: www.knightpiesold.com Email: rivonia@knightpiesold.com Tel: 011 806 7111

engineering and environmental consultants

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

INTERVIEW WITH ABE THELA, SOON-TO-BE PRESIDENT, CESA

Procurement gone wrong For the consulting engineering industr y to thrive, it needs to be free from corruption, subject to holistic tendering processes and able to attract and retain young talent. Vice president of Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA) – Abe Thela, looks at the bigger picture and makes a whole lot of sense.

T

he anti-corruption fund was established by CESA earlier in the year.

How has this progressed?

AT The fund is still active and the anti-corruption hotline is active. People are encouraged to use this to report any corruption. It has been used – but the reported issues were largely ones which were not related to corruption in the procurement process of consulting engineering services.

We had our first case reported in Ehlanzeni District Municipality in Mpumalanga, but the project was almost complete so it was fruitless for us to move on it.

However, CESA reported this case to the Public Protector and it’s currently being investigated to establish if corruption did take place. Also we have teamed up with attorneys Moore Stephens, which specialises in

forensic investigations. They are currently manning the hotline on a trial basis and will provide legal advice on reported cases that are worthwhile for CESA to pursue. I must emphasise that it is important for people to report cases as soon as they can; preferably while the process is still at tender phase.

South Africa retains strong institutions, such as the Public Protector. Is there cooperation between CESA and that body?

Indeed! Many things are at stake – the public’s money must be safe, quality infrastructure must be built and basic services need to be provided. Corruption stands in the way of all of that.

A culture of honest business – an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay – is something intrinsic

to a culture. What can be done to raise this again?

I strongly believe that CESA consulting engineers are an ethical group of business people.

Last year, our president, Naren Bhojaram, was determinedly focused on the unquestionable ethics of CESA consulting engineers. If there were any signs of corruption in our member firms we would want to route them out. As such CESA has a long established disciplinary committee that deals with our members’ conduct. We welcome anyone to approach CESA to report any cases of misconduct or unfair or corrupt practices. I am encouraged to report that to date the disciplinary committee has not received any reports of substantiated cases of corruption by our members.

What else is a challenge to the industry right now? The biggest issue affecting consulting engineering at the moment is how our services are procured by government. Consulting engineering services are now procured primarily on price and BBBEE with quality only used as a minimum threshold. This

considered and multiple options and technologies investigated before a final solution is provided.

CESA is advocating for quality to be reintroduced as part of the procurement points calculation.

This was the case before a case brought by a contractor some years back attracted a court ruling that removed quality from the procurements points calculation.

The result is that tenders are now almost exclusively awarded on price and BBBEE. This is extremely damaging and a threat to quality, sustainability, the community and the consulting engineering industry.

How is CESA going about achieving this? CESA has made presentations to Treasury and our procurement concerns were one of the top concerns we raised. The other item we requested was for the procurement of professional services to be separated from procurement of goods and other services. We design from scratch and incorporate an extremely broad spectrum of the totality of the project and procurement of our services should take cognisance of that. We are

“Tenders are now almost exclusively awarded on price and BBBEE” is fine for routine projects with established standardised design processes and whose scope of work is adequately defined at tender stage. When one considers the complexity of some specialist projects, they demand the kind of creativity, innovation and foresight that comes only with exceptional expertise and experience. In such cases alternatives must be

ultimately responsible for the natural and built environment we live and work in. In procuring other goods, you’re simply picking it out of a catalogue.

We are also excited about the appointment of the creation by Treasury of a dedicated office to deal with procurement and the subsequent appointment of Kenneth Brown as Chief

IMIESA November/December 2013

23

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

Procurement Officer. CESA met with him in mid-October 2013 to present our concerns to him.

How did Treasury respond?

The response we are receiving from Treasury is positive. Its process is exacting in the sense that it must take it account all submissions made and assess how the proposed changes might impact on other regulations but it is committed to reviewing the procurement system. We hope we will get what we are asking for. The other issue we raised is that committees that deal with the procurement of consulting engineers in government must have professional engineers in them. To adjudicate engineering tenders, you need experts on board playing a significant and influential role. Without experts, all that is focused on is the

24

bottom line, instead of value for money. This is killing our industry. People tender lower and lower and you end up in a price war. The current situation in the industry is that we cannot train people – we don’t have the funds to train or innovate, we can only do the basics with no other better alternatives investigated. We believe consulting engineering as the front runner of any infrastructure development requires special attention than what it gets at the moment. An extremely serious consequence of the status quo is that awarding tenders by treating consulting engineers as commodities is ignoring lifetime costs of structures. This is not sound economics.

Should tenders not include life cycle costs?

The tendency is to look at the input of consulting engineers in relation to the construction costs of projects and yet our input also impacts the costs of operation and maintenance of infrastructure. The cost of consulting engineering services on any project is about 2% of the total project life cycle costs.

If you reduce our services to commodities and make awards based largely on price, you are then not able to impact positively on the life cycle costs of projects, which could escalate to millions of rands with inappropriate choice of solution/technology at planning and design phases.

This affects so many things – quality and cost of running infrastructure.

If we don’t change this direction, we will drive away good engineers.

If we can’t train our engineers

and pay them well, younger engineers will look for greener pastures outside our industry.

They make good managers in other industries and, if we can’t compete, we will lose them. We need them badly, not only for the National Development Plan (NDP) but also to maintain the existing infrastructure of the country.

Without engineering skills, there is no NDP. For the economy to function you need power supply, roads, water – why else are we building new power stations?

Without a critical number of consulting engineers, this infrastructure will not get built.

Are these issues properly understood at national government level? I think our government understand these issues. The Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan,

IMIESA November/December 2013

Hatch Goba (a member of the Hatch Group of Companies) is an employee-owned, multi-disciplinary professional services firm that delivers a comprehensive array of technical and strategic services, including management consulting, information technology, engineering, process development, operational performance, environmental services and project and construction management to the metals and mining, energy and infrastructure sectors.

Our Group has served clients for over 80 years and has project experience in more than 150 countries around the world. With 11,000 employees globally, in over 65 offices, we have more than US$35 billion in capital projects currently under management.

www.hatch.co.za

Infrastructure

Energy

Mining

Buildings and Structures Infrastructure Services Ports and Marine Terminals Rail Roads and Transportation Water and Tailings

Oil and Gas Renewable Power Thermal and Nuclear Transmission and Distribution

Coal Industrial Minerals Iron Ore Iron and Steel Light Metals Mining and Mineral Processing Non-Ferrous

+27 (0) 11 239 5300

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

touched on almost all of them in his 2013 Mid Term Budget Policy Statement and the NDP highlights some of them.

Turning to global companies operating in the South African market and using the country as a springboard to other African countries, what impact does this have on local companies?

With globalisation the world has become smaller and foreign consulting engineering companies are already moving in South Africa, with a strong local base and partnering with local companies. An advantage for this move is that it opens markets for South African firms that were previously not accessible to them. Apart from African markets, it also opens up markets overseas and for exchange of skills we might not otherwise have.

How does the local industry compare to overseas one? Our consulting engineers are as good as any other consulting engineers elsewhere in the world. And of course, if we didn’t measure up, they would not be partnering with us as they are. We see senior engineers taking on key positions within overseas firms – so we are up there with the best of them.

What we would like to see is some of those personnel in the public sector!

vocational. The contract terms need to be made more viable, however, with job security beyond five years. There is much that can be done to make the vocation more attractive.

How can we invite more engineers into the public sector? It is important that the working environment is conducive for professional engineers to do their work without undue political pressure. For example, a municipal engineer makes that decision as a career – it’s

CESA Conference 2013 is fast approaching; what outcomes are you hoping for? The theme of our conference is “Leadership is key to sustainability”.

Issues of sustainability are becoming increasingly important. This does not only

How has the introduction of the Integrity Pact gone?

We wanted it to be part of every tender. We did not achieve this yet, but it is still alive and we will not stop until it is ingrate into regulations or tender documentation.

refer to environmental issues.

We want to look at enterprise sustainability – the procurement system affects our sustainability as an industry. We will look at environmental sustainability as well, as South Africa has committed itself to a green economy. This can only be achieved by making sure that everything we design allows our environment to survive us. It must sustain life – sustainability incorporates every aspect of what we do.

We will also be looking at the National Development Plan.

Our members really want to know where the country is going with regard to infrastructure development, so that is high on the agenda.

We anticipate a fine conference and a lot of key decisions will emanate from it.

IMIESA November/December 22013

25

WATER & WASTEWATER

Hazelmere Dam

WATER MANAGEMENT

SA to boast the world’s largest PKW system Within the next two years, South Africa will boast the largest piano key weir (PKW) in the world. This structure will be designed and implemented by Ingerop South Africa at the Depar tment of Water Affairs’ Hazelmere Dam in KwaZulu-Natal.

I

N 2011, Ingerop South Africa was appointed by the Department of Water Affairs to raise the wall of the Hazelmere Dam in order to increase its yield. Initially, the original design for this project was to make use of radial crest gates to raise the full supply level (FSL) of the dam by 7 m in order to meet the increasing water demands of certain Durban North areas that are supplied with water exclusively from the Hazelmere Dam. However, the hydrological characteristic of the catchment area for the dam has a seriously restrictive limitation in

Civil Engineering Structural Engineering Electrical Engineering Mechanical Engineering Project Management

www.bvigroup.co.za

HEAD OFFICE: BLOCK C - Menlyn Corporate Park C/O Garsfontein Road & Corobay Ave. MENLYN - PRETORIA Tel: +27 (0) 12 940 1111 FAX: +27 (0) 86 743 3100 E-

that the time of concentration for floods is only six hours. A characteristic of this nature could ultimately result in operating staff being unable to open the gates timeously in the event of a flood. This risk led to the designers considering the use of an uncontrolled PKW spillway, which was found to accommodate flood waters efficiently and eliminate the extremely onerous task of making operating decisions under pressure because of the very restricted time limitations imposed by the six-hour time of concentration of floods. In addition to the above benefits, the efficient routing of the flood waters through the PKW resulted in lower headwater levels, with a consequent reduction in hydraulic forces on the existing structure, thus minimising the required stability improvements.

The PKW is a form of labyrinth spillway and the use of labyrinth spillways is not a new concept in South Africa as they have already been used to raise dams like Midmar and Bospoort. This project, however, with the particular parameters described above, has very specific requirements that could only be met by the extreme discharge features of the PKW. As a result, Hazelmere Dam will be South Africa’s first recipient of the new PKW spillway technology, which is a relatively new concept developed in France.

This significant project consists of the design and construction of the PKW spillway as well as the associated stability improvement infrastructure required as a result of the raising of the dam full supply level. The stability improvement work involves the installation of ground anchors through the existing dam wall and into the rock strata beneath the wall. The extent of anchoring required will position this project as one of the larger contracts of this nature in the world and will certainly be the only project of this size and application in South Africa. Further to this, the structure of a new concrete PKW on the existing dam spillway will be 7 m in height, making it the largest PKW spillway in the world.

A further reason for the choice of a PKW is that the required additional spillway capacity can be efficiently obtained, which in turn allows for maximising the level that the existing dam can be raised without increasing the level of the non-overspill crest. This is particularly so when the length of an existing spillway is limited as is the case with Hazelmere Dam. In total, this project is valued at over R400 million and the impounding of the additional water storage is planned to commence in September 2015.

26

IMIESA November/December 2013

SEPHAKU

S A R M A

Changing the face of the South African cement industry

SOUTH AFRICAN

READYMIX ASSOCIATION

SARMA | COVER STORY

BUILDING SUCCESS

Certainty in cement A Building our cement operations from the ground up has taught us more than just the technicalities of constructing a plant. It has entrenched a camaraderie in our people, a certainty that nothing will get in the way of us entering the market, writes Pieter Fourie, chief executive of Sephaku Cement.

S OUR DELMAS cement plant comes online early in 2014 and Aganang plant in the North West becomes operational during the year, the face of the country’s cement industry will change, and there will be no turning back.

We have navigated our way through building leadership and operational teams from scratch, securing investors and safeguarding their investment, connecting with and involving communities, all the while designing and building the two plants.

Sephaku’s entry into the market is based on its belief in the long-term sustainable growth of cement. South Africa may have relatively good infrastructure, but there is still a lot to be developed. Added to this, ageing production facilities have made production static at a time when it needs to be cost efficiently increased. Great competitiveness and cost efficiency lies in the state-of-the-art technology backing Sephaku Cement’s plants.

Determined journey Our company, a 64% owned subsidiary of Dangote Cement and an associate company of LEFT Gypsum store BELOW Sephaku Cement Delmas plant

28

IMIESA November/December 2013

SARMA | COVER STORY

JSE-listed Sephaku Holdings, was established in 2006. Sephaku Holdings secured limestone resources and invested the initial seed capital required for the project to get started.

By late 2010, the projects were fully funded, having attracted the largest inward investment in South Africa by an African company, Dangote Cement.

With tenacity and determination, we navigated our way through the global recession, emerging with increased investment from Dangote Cement and backing from local market financial institutions, Nedbank and Standard Bank. With this heavyweight backing, the largest single cement plant in the country, our 6 000 tonne per day clinker facility with a total cement capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per annum, is en route to being completed.

which the clinker is transported to the Delmas milling plant, is more cost effective through transporting clinker rather than cement. In addition, our fly ash beneficiation plant at the Kendal Power Station, Emalahleni, adds to the economies of scale, with our plant being just 35 km from Delmas.

Community connection Since the early days of our journey to market, we have made a concerted effort to invest in areas where the needs of Verdwaal, Itsoseng

People focus Sephaku’s sales and customer service team is a cement force of experts. We want to ensure that every customer gets the best from our product. From the very beginning we will assist technically in designing mixes and selecting the optimal cement for customers’ requirements. We are also adding to the value through support provided by our Sephaku Cement Technical Laboratory.

Looking back over our six-year journey, we have overcome some serious challenges. But we have never lost belief in why we are coming to market or the definitive belief that we will enter this market.

Success is the only option for us as we remain committed to making South Africa’s cement industry all about the needs of the people who make the end product a reality.

Through taking a more high-tech, progressive and passionate approach to the business of cement production, we will change the face of the industry. As Delmas becomes operational early in 2014, followed by Aganang, we look forward with confidence to the next steps of our journey.

Sephaku’s entry into the market is based on its belief in the long-term sustainable growth of cement

Strategic Delmas The construction of our 155 tonne per hour cement milling plant in Delmas, Mpumalanga, is well on track to begin cement production early in 2014. Our operations here give us a distinct advantage. Not only are they close to Gauteng but, through efficiencies enabled by the latest technology equipment in this plant, we can secure a respectable share of the inland market.

From a process perspective, our cement process, which begins in Lichtenburg after

and Springbokpan are supported. These communities are situated near our flagship plant and work done with the people here includes initiatives in education, employability, enterprise development and health care.

We work closely with the leadership of these communities and have an open door approach to finding out how we can help. This year has seen the company fund a Grade 10, 11 and 12 Winter School, which was hosted by the Tswelelopele High School in Itsoseng and attended by three additional high schools. We are also setting up five small business initiatives in the transport, logistics and pallet sectors.

t +27 (0)12 684 6300 • www.sephakucement.co.za

ABOVE Clinker conveying LEFT Cement mill BELOW Water tower

IMIESA November/December 2013

29

SARMA

Readymix and the environment

W

HEN CONSIDERING THE lifetime environmental impact, readymix concrete is an excellent choice.

SARMA is aware that there are growing environmental and economic forces that see architects, engineers, developers and owners seeking efficient and innovative building solutions that conserve non-renewable resources. Readymix concrete is increasingly being recognised for its strong environmental benefits in support of creative and effective sustainable development.

Produced locally The primary ingredients of readymix concrete – crushed stone or gravel, sand and water – account for approximately 90% of the volume of the mixture and are plentiful in most locations. Cement, which accounts for most of the rest of the mixture, is usually produced

30

IMIESA November/December 2013

and available regionally as well. As the only building material that is always produced in proximity to its use in buildings and infrastructure, readymix concrete greatly reduces the environmental impact of material transport

by minimising fuel requirements, energy consumption and emissions for transportation and handling. In addition, as a made-to-order material, concrete construction results in less building waste.

The benefits of concrete • concrete is produced locally from abundant natural resources • recycled materials in concrete reduce embodied CO2 and landfill use • pervious concrete percolates stormwater into soil, recharging aquifers and preventing polluted runoff from overwhelming streams and lakes • use of insulating concrete forms for above-grade wall systems provides for increased R values [thermal resistance], reducing heating, cooling and infrastructure costs • concrete’s thermal mass reduces temperature swings in buildings and conserves energy • concrete’s light colour reduces the heat island effect, lowering urban energy use • concrete’s light colour reflects more light at night, reducing lighting infrastructure and energy costs • concrete can be made with reclaimed industrial materials that would otherwise burden landfills • at the end of a concrete building or pavement’s usable life, concrete can be recycled • impervious concrete roofs support green landscaping, reducing water runoff and reducing heat island effect.

Nico Pienaar Director : SARMA

Which company offers you CONCRETE SOLUTIONS and quality placing and finishing?

It’s LAFARGE!

WHETHER IT’S ALLOWING WATER THROUGH OR KEEPING IT OUT, EASY PLACEMENT OR SHEER GLAMOUR you need to complete the project, LAFARGE HAS THE SOLUTION FOR YOU! Lafarge South Africa: Tel: 011 657 0000, Fax :086 631 0006, Web: www.lafarge.co.za

SARMA

PREFAB ROADS?

Building roads off-site Technologies in concrete may soon enable the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) to build precast concrete roads off-site and ship them wherever they are required in the country.

A

S UNBELIEVABLE AS it may seem, the technology is being investigated by the roads agency and forms just one of many new technologies being carefully studied by experts around the country.

Speaking at the Southern Africa Readymix Association (Sarma) conference in Broederstroom recently, Louw Kannemeyer, roads network manager for Sanral, said that

32

concrete remains a viable alternative to traditional asphalt pavements and new techniques are constantly being investigated.

Advantages The advantages of precasting road sections is

Sanral roads network manager, Louw Kannemeyer

that the manufacturing process can take place within a factory environment without the challenges normally associated with road construction on-site, such as weather extremes, traffic etc. This enables consistently high-quality surfaces to be produced, which are simply shipped to the site and secured onto the base materials. Apart from technical advantages, the manufacturing process can speed-up the actual time spent on-site as surfaces can be quickly secured one after the next.

IMIESA November/December 2013

Human Settlement in South Africa Readymix concrete for infrastructure development

Use SARMA accredited plants BENEFITS: t

Speed

t

Quality

t

Durability

t

Reputable readymix concrete supplier

SARMA VISION: To make readymix concrete the construction material of choice.

For more information on becoming a SARMA member or to find a SARMA accredited plant, call (011) 791-3327 or go to www.sarma.co.za

SARMA

Ultra-thin concrete Apart from futuristic plans, the agency has already begun using other high-tech concrete technologies on the roads. Kannemeyer explained that at present more than 200 lane kilometres of ultra-thin reinforced concrete has already been used on freeways around the country, especially on Gauteng’s freeway improvement project.

“This technique makes use of readymixed concrete containing a locally refined recipe of high strength concrete (containing fibres and metal hooks), which is poured over a specially designed steel reinforcing mesh. It enables the surface to be poured to a depth of only 70 mm – even on high usage freeways around Johannesburg.

Ultra-thin concrete also has the advantages of being labour intensive, and saving on construction materials. It is also durable and strong.” He added that the technique is constantly being refined by the agency

Scale of road infrastructure “South Africa has a vast network of 746 000 km of roads, with 153 000 km paved and the rest being gravel or dust roads. Overall, we have the tenth longest network in the world, with an estimated replacement cost valued of more than R2 trillion. In addition, we have a huge network of unproclaimed roads, mainly in the former homelands, that span about The country’s road maintenance backlog 140 000 km different types of roads. in 2010 as current data “Our biggest challenge though is maintesuggests plus sustain nance.

Throughout the country, preventative R65.9 billion just to maintenance has been lacking, and simple maintain the roads in the same condition. tasks like crack sealing, cleaning drainage, exist for concrete suppliers to innovate and cutting of grass, etc., have not been done. work with Sanral to develop new products As a result, we have a major backlog and the and techniques. Simultaneously, he added price we need to pay is huge.” that quality issues that have dogged some He concluded that Sanral’s responsibilities readymix supplied to Sanral projects needed extend only to national roads and it is less to be addressed. Associations like Sarma affected by maintenance issues than provinwould therefore play an important role in cial and local authorities. This is largely as a regulating the industry in future, as “just one result of its strict preventative maintenance bad experience can taint the entire industry”, schedules that are undertaken on a conhe said. stant basis. and remains a viable construction method that will be considered wherever roads are being constructed.

Currently, readymix concrete is mainly used for structures, side drains, retaining walls and concrete barriers, and opportunities

R149 billion

IMIESA November/December 2013

33

SARMA

CONCRETE DISPUTES

Avoiding a minefield of blame Disputes arising from incorrect readymix concrete being delivered to a customer’s site can be tricky, particularly where large sums of money are required to remove or remediate concrete that has already set.

T

ESTING BEFORE, during and after delivery is usually seen by both parties as a fail-safe method of ensuring quality, but other factors can play an equally important role in deciding liability and ensuring the success or failure of a claim against a readymix manufacturer.

Claims expert Jacques Smith of Go Consult explains that the claims procedure is not always a straightforward process. Often, claims worth millions of rand are lost by either

Africa Readymix Association (Sarma), it will be governed by codes of good practice and should be able to provide a paper trail and relevant tests to indicate compliance with a customer’s requirement.

It is always preferable to work to the written specifications of a client, in which mix ingredients are discussed, as well as horizontal and vertical strengths and other requirements being stipulated. Readymix companies should not deviate from these requirements, and need to ensure the “Firstly, no claim will stick necessar y tests without the necessary paperwork, are conducted and recorded as and secondly, always treat any required by law. dispute as a court case.� Jacques It is important to Smith, Claims expert, Go Consult remember that only Sarma-accredited members are audited party due to the smallest of technicalities. for quality and are less likely to deliver poor quality products in the first place.

Detailed advanced agreements Concrete claims can become a minefield of blame with different interpretations of Serious matters standards, legislation and testing methods.

General principles to remember are firstly, However, provided the readymix company is that no claim will stick without the necessary reputable and is a member of the Southern paperwork, and secondly, always treat any

34

dispute as a court case – then it probably won’t go to court. “There must be a specification and proof of breach,� says Smith. “If you require something special, specify it, otherwise you have no proof of breach. If you do have proof then the next step is to be involved in every process. Nobody, including the customer, contractor or readymix supplier can be excluded from the process. Costs cannot be chased up, nor can the process be delayed so that losses can be mitigated. “Readymix companies usually have a disclaimer that protects them from consequential losses. Claims therefore can usually only be made for direct losses as a result of faulty concrete, provided that all other remedies have been exhausted,� Smith adds.

Strength investigations The burden of proof remains on the customer to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the concrete is not according to specification. All tests must therefore be conducted correctly according to SABS procedures. Failure to follow these procedures will almost certainly lead to the case being thrown out.

IMIESA November/December 2013

^ƾƉƉůĹ?ÄžĆŒĆ? ŽĨ YƾĂůĹ?ƚLJ ŽŜÄ?ĆŒÄžĆšÄž

Plants Situated in Durbanville, Philippi and Stellenbosch

email : sales@ciollireadymix.co.za Phone : 021-5571111 / Fax : 021-5570206

WE DIDN’T CRY TEARS OF PRIDE AS HER SON RECEIVED HIS DEGREE We didn’t cheer wildly at HERÒSONgSÒµÒRSTÒFOOTBALLÒGAME We didn’t cut the cake on her wedding day We didn’t spot her future husband in the crowd at the annual town dance

WE DID HELP CREATE THE COMMUNITY CENTRE WHERE IT ALL STARTED CREATING POSSIBILITIES

With the planet as one of our core values, we assess the carbon footprint of each and every one of our operations and products while actively striving to drive down our impact on the environment.

www.afrisam.com

SARMA

CONCRETE INNOVATIONS

Designer readymix is coming Readymix concrete suppliers will need to innovate if they are to remain relevant in a fast-changing industr y.

N

EW PRODUCTS AND techniques – but only if they are prepared to innovate,” are constantly pushing the Evans said. boundaries of construction. Top concrete and cement consultant Designer mixing George Evans of PPC addressed delegates He added that in order to meet future expecat this year’s Southern tations, readymix Africa Readymix manufacturers need Association conference to begin moving held in Broederstroom towards supplying recently, with words custom-made mixes of advice for readymix that meet specificamanufacturers to get tions ranging from more involved with onexact composition site requirements of and aggregate sizes their customers and to to strength tests for innovate and adapt their the kind of structure offering to meet everto be built, for examchanging demands. ple, floor, retain“In future, you will ing wall, pool, etc., need to look at the overincluding vertical and all fitness for purpose of horizontal strength Jacques Smith, the concrete you deliver and other special Claims expert, Go Consult to site and try underrequirements. stand the other requirements that your cus“Remember there are about 150 types of tomers might have. The world is becoming cement and equally many aggregates that more technical and it is time to look at changcan be used to give concrete unique charing requirements with engineers, in order to acteristics. Stones and sand are also vital drive the kind of change that is required to components and we can even use previously transform our construction industry. used waste products like crusher sand as “On the Green Star rating, for example, long as they comply with requirements,” 13% of the construction is judged on materiEvans advised. als, of which 8% is down to innovation alone.

“To make ‘green concrete’ we can also That is proof that readymix companies can look at extenders, bearing in mind that help developers to get better star ratings extenders should never be used on top of

“New test methods had been developed to determine aggregate suitability”

36

IMIESA November/December 2013

others in manufacturing readymix. Most importantly, we need to carefully understand what the customer needs in terms of strength, price and green building.”

Innovating together “This will require closer working relationships between customers, engineers and the readymix supplier. Depending on the application, either the supplier or the user will need to assume overall responsibility for the concrete – and depending on applications – it is best to find out who that will be,” Evans continued.

He said new test methods had been developed to determine aggregate suitability, as well as new tests relating to fresh, hard, cured, concrete, etc. These could be used to ensure quality of the product before, during and after deliver y to clients.

Quality and safety Evans concluded that all innovation should take place with the driving factors being quality and safety of the product and project in mind.

“Poor quality is defined by an industr y.

Good quality is a measure of excellence or a state of being free from contaminants, defects, deficiencies and variations. Quality is meeting the customer’s needs in a way that exceeds the customer’s specification and is best defined when the customer returns and the product doesn’t.”

SARMA

ONLY THE BEST

Concrete solutions for municipalities Concrete plays a bigger role than any other material in shaping our countr y. In fact, structures built yester year with the labour of our forefathers bear testimony to their skills in working with concrete.

T

HE ADVENT of readymix concrete several decades ago has also transformed the construction industry, making widespread use of concrete more viable than ever before. As a result, construction is easier and faster than site-mix concrete and ensures better quality and more workable concrete is available on-site whenever and wherever it is needed.

Our municipalities are major users of readymix concrete and are increasingly reliant on suppliers to provide concrete for everything from waterways to roads and a wide variety of other buildings and construction projects. Apart from quality and convenience factors, the use of readymix also ensures more productive use of manpower, better environmental controls and access to specialised designer mixes of concrete for non-standard applications.

Ensuring quality Despite the importance of readymix concrete, unfortunately, not all suppliers have what it takes to produce the kind of quality concrete that is required by municipalities to build longterm infrastructure. Unscrupulous suppliers can provide concrete that does not conform with specifications, which may lead to the premature failure or even the collapse of the entire structure.

For this reason, the Southern African Readymix Association (Sarma) was established to regulate and formalise the industry and to accredit only readymix suppliers who comply with all the requirements necessary to produce quality concrete. For this reason, stringent audits are conducted on all Sarma

member plants on an annual basis to ensure compliance with quality standards, as well as health, safety and environmental standards.

The plants are also operated with the safety of workers as a top priority and are meant to have a positive influence on surrounding communities. Considering the size and number of mixer trucks, road safety forms an integral part of the annual audits and helps prevent unnecessary accidents on the road.

where scant regard is paid to their long-term health and safety. Or you lived in a township near one of these plants that pollutes your water and covers your house in dust every time the wind blows,” says Sarma’s general manager, Johan van Wyk.

Only use Sarma members Van Wyk advises municipal managers and engineers to be aware of this practice and urges municipalities to work with Sarma to formulate strategies that ensure access to the highest quality concrete. After all, legacy projects constructed today should still be around in 100 years’ time when our grandchildren’s children look toward their roots and origins, he states.

“As yet, there is nothing stopping municipalities from using non-Sarma accredited suppliers, only the conscience of the municipal buyer.

In future, we hope to work with all municipalities and IMESA to ensure formal agreements are made to specify that readymix concrete may only be supplied by Sarma-accredited companies,” Van Wyk concludes.

Price not the issue In future, all municipal tenders should stipulate that readymix be obtained from an accredited Sarma member company. Tenders awarded to non-accredited suppliers on price alone are not only detrimental to the project, but also contribute to the encouragement of poor treatment of workers at unscrupulous plants, unhappy communities and damage to the environment.

“Often the only advantage that these suppliers have over our members is the ability to cut corners by reducing the amount of cement in their mixes, driving their workers like slaves or using unsustainable means SARMA FAST FACTS to obtain materiSarma members undergo rigorous annual audits to ensure quality, als, such as sand health, safety and environmental procedures are followed. Members also have to: and stone. Their • follow set testing methods to ensure correct mixes, strengths, etc. drivers are often • comply with SABS standards relating to all aspects of manufacturing readymix concrete poorly trained • comply with rigorous requirements relating to road and vehicles not safety and usage well maintained.

• comply with all legislation, work ethically and charge fair prices “Imagine your Members are able to provide quality concrete to brother or mother any building site in South Africa. They operate near every town and city in South Africa and worked at one throughout most of Southern Africa. of these plants

IMIESA November/December 2013

37

SARMA

SARMA MEMBERS COMPANY

38

TELEPHONE

POSTAL ADDRESS

COMPANY

TELEPHONE

POSTAL ADDRESS

3Q Concrete

014 592 2202

PO Box 20641 Protea Park Rustenburg 0305

NPC Concrete (Pty) Ltd

031 450 4401

PO Box 15245 Bellair 4006

Afrimat Concrete Products

OMV Crushers (Pty) Ltd

018 484 4388

PO Box 823 Stilfontein 2550

034 980 9411

PO Box 941 Vryheid 3100

Afrimat Readymix Cape (Pty) Ltd

021 917 8688

PO Box 5278 Tygervalley 7536

PC's Transport

017 811 1411

94 Van die Plaas Oudtshoornstroom IT 261 Ermelo 2550

Ciolli Readymix (Pty) Ltd

021 557 1111

PO Box 28 Milnerton 7435

Portland Readymix

021 972 1111

PO Box 605 Durbanville 7551

Raumix (Queenmix)

045 857 0284

PO Box 2577 Komani 5322

Concrete 4 U (Pty) Ltd

041 501 5400

PO Box 5064 Walmer Port Elizabeth 6001

Eastern Readymix (Pty) Ltd

012 807 0212

PO Box 75573 Lynnwoodridge 0040

Rocktuff Readymix

013 696 8900

Portion 25 308 JS Schoongezicht Old Witbank/ Pretoria Rd Witbank 1035

Nelspruit Crushers

Sandscape Trading (Pty) Ltd

031 500 8688

PO Box 60879 Phoenix 4080

013 755 2321

PO Box 5071 Nelspruit 1200

Independent Concrete Supplies CC

043 745 1014

PO Box 1765 East London 5200

Laman (Pty) Ltd

047 565 4700

PO Box 52798 Mthatha 5099

Scribante Concrete (Pty) Ltd

041 406 7900

PO Box 2179 North End Port Elizabeth 6056

Lategans Sementwerke (Edms) Bpk

021 873 1154

Versailles Str 19 Wellington 7655

Stallion Readymix

017 801 1930

PO Box 2765 Ermelo 2350

Megamix (pty) Ltd

021 845 8189

PO Box 3302 Somerset West 7129

Wearne Readymix (Pty) Ltd

011 459 4500

PO Box 1674 Cresta 2196

IMIESA November/December 2013

AFFORDABLE | RELIABLE | AVAILABLE

Manufacturers of Footwear since 1872 The management system governing the manufacture of these products is SABS ISO 9001:2008 certified.

Toll Free: 0800 204 864 | www.bagshaw.co.za

HERCULES

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

RURAL DROUGHT MANAGEMENT

Self-reliance in times of change

A pilot project, based on a series of community and local authority workshops, has focused on Tsengiwe village near Cala in the Eastern Cape.

Njabulo Matshoyana, a Tsengiwe village resident on the monitoring and evaluation steering committee and the water supply development team, during hydrocensus training

C

in the seasonality of events, with very serious implications for cropping and livelihoods.”

APE TOWN-BASED ear th sciences and water consultancy Umvoto Africa is undertaking a two-year study funded by the Water Research Commission (WRC) to examine rural attitudes towards climate change and how the company can increase its resilience.

Tsengiwe, like many other rural villages, is vulnerable to seasonal drought. Climate change can be seen in a shift from summer-dominated rainfall to more autumnal rains; this is often associated with episodic downpours. The shift of the wet growing season has placed demands on summer crop selection and created an agricultural

40

IMIESA November/December 2013

drought condition. The situation is exacerbated by poor infrastructure and a lack of municipal services.

The community leads Initial work identified and prioritised the hazards facing the community and its coping mechanisms, leading to the next stage: community development plans for climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction.

“At the first workshop, it was striking to note the local recognition of the problem we are addressing – that the climate is changing,” said Umvoto Africa’s MD, Rowena Hay. “Most visible to local people is a major shift

Practical training Training the youth has been an important component of the project. Thirteen young people were in monitoring and evaluation, which covered basic research principles and ethics and how to conduct a survey and an interview. In addition, the Umvoto team trained two young people in hydrocensus work – how to follow the quality management systems procedure to fill out hydrocensus forms correctly and record data in a report. 

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

reticulation, agriculture and crop cultivation, animal grazing management, soil erosion and school greening. These ser ve as a road map to guide the community and local mentors through procedure and process.

The persons trained to monitor and evaluate will monitor the implementation of these plans, as well as the routine water ser vice deliver y by the local municipality, says Hay. For the duration of the project, this information will be given to Umvoto, which can facilitate as needed to ensure ongoing progress.

“In due course, this will not be necessary, as constructive relationships are built between the community and relevant government officials,” she says. “In the event of informed and objective feedback on failure to deliver, the community has the information on who to approach in the various hierarchies in order to motivate for improved service delivery.

“Failing acknowledgment of community considerations and positive inter vention by government, it would be necessar y to engage in either conflict resolution approaches or media pressure. The frustration of unfulfilled expectations, poverty and not being heard can lead to protests, and efforts need to be made in advance to avoid this.”

Development projects that could be implemented by the community include land care and rehabilitation, accessing groundwater supplies, building a small dam to supply food gardens and water for stock, catchment rehabilitation and the selection of new crops with a short growing season to suit changing climate conditions.

Work with what is available, have long-term goals and interface constructively with official channels and processes

TOP Young people from Tsengiwe village in discussion ABOVE Project leader Paul Lee and Luphumzo Dasheka, a Tsengiwe village resident on the monitoring and evaluation steering committee and the water supply development team, during hydrocensus training RIGHT Sinawo Jack, an Umvoto trainee hydrogeologist, inspects vegetables in a Tsengiwe community garden

Resource mapping Umvoto also held a participatory mapping exercise, based on a GIS map that staff had created. The community mapped resources and land uses they felt were important for their development plans, including communal land, water sources and infrastructure and major agricultural projects, as well as vulnerable areas with large dongas, areas with alien vegetation, flooding zones and major soil erosion.

42

IMIESA November/December 2013

Support The third workshop in August was attended by the extension officer from the Eastern Cape Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform (DRDAR) and the institutional and support officer from the Department of Water Affairs (DWA). This enhanced the people’s knowledge of government support.

There are now five community development plans based on water supply and

Planning is empowerment “The take-home message is to work with what is available, have long-term goals and interface constructively with official channels and processes,” says Hay. Risk management promotes self-mobilisation and active participation, leading to empowerment (especially of women) and the ability to hold government accountable for ensuring rights are met.

It supports the move to responsibility and constructive engagement by all role players.

An informed community cannot be misled by empty or unrealistic promises. Risk management can secure sustainable service delivery, and operations and maintenance in the water services sector.”

TECHNOLOGY IN ENGINEERING

Transforming road management

VNA | COVER STORY

VNA CONSULTING

Sophisticated road VNA Consulting was formed with a vision to not only transform the process of construction, but to be part of a process that enhances the needs of individuals. IMIESA caught up with Rakesh Maharaj of VNA Consulting to find out why the company prides itself on professional client service and to learn more about its road construction technology.

H

ow does VNA's Pavement Management System technology work? What benefits does it offer clients? RM Our Pavement and Road Asset Management technology is based on an integration of hardware and software from Denmark and Australia. Pavement and Road Asset Management depends on data, and the integrity of data is very often questionable. We are mindful of the need to collect and collate objective data and find that the equipment offered by our international partners is perfectly suited to the needs of our industry. Our fleet consists of the Hawkeye Network Survey Vehicles, Digital Laser Profilers, Falling Weight Deflectometers and the Ground Penetrating Radar. The equipment is mounted on and within high-

44

IMIESA November/December 2013

performance commercial vehicles for comfort and safety, and is the nerve centre for data acquisition.

Data is then transferred to a control room where our highly skilled and trained staff extract digital and analytical data, and transfer these into a database programme that is fully integrated with any commercially available pavement management system.

We pride ourselves on the accuracy of data obtained from the fully calibrated equipment, and the element of repeatability.

This implies that we can test the same section of road a number of times and will get the same results each time, as opposed to a manual measurement, which is subject to human error, fatigue and subjectivity.

Does VNA have specialist staff on hand to handle the assessment of data

generated from the Pavement Management System? Please explain the skills set required. VNA has a team of trained technicians with the necessary skills to operate the motorised equipment as well as undertake data capture and network modelling. The technicians are certified to operate the equipment and are given refresher courses annually.

The specialist skills possessed by our technicians are unique to the equipment, and training therefore involves equipmentspecific and on-the-road training.

With regard to road construction, what challenges do data collection companies face and how does VNA's technology overcome these challenges? Scientific data removes the human

Hawkeye 2000 Digital Laser Profiler

component, thereby making data non-subjective, with a high level of repeatability. Large volumes of surface information can be collected at highway speeds, making the process safe and quick. The information is stored electronically and accessed at the office, with the advantage of going back and forth through the data without having to revisit the site.

Images are captured at intervals of every 20 m while profiles (IRI, RUT, TEXTURE) are recorded between 1 and 25 mm intervals.

All data is geo-referenced with submeter accuracy. The Hawkeye is also used to identify and record roadside inventory for asset management. Apart from the data being scientific, it is also nondestructive, so layer thickness and bearing capacities can be

tested by the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) as opposed to the conventional method of digging up test pits.

Does the company offer technological systems that are best suited for use on heavy traffic pavements?

The Hawkeye 2000 is the equipment of choice when it comes to imaging under heavy traffic conditions. The Hawkeye can capture images at a driving speed of up to 100 km/h. The

Trailer-mounted Surface Friction Tester

road management. What surveillance technology systems does VNA offer?

The Hawkeye Network Survey equipment is best suited for road surveillance as it offers a 360-degree view of the road and assets. The Digital Laser Profilers offer non-subjective information relating to road texture and rut measurement.

The FWD is used to predict the deflection of the road pavement layers under varying impact load

ACCORDING TO MAHARAJ The high-speed data collection and use of an effective pavement management system, which is maintained on a regular basis, is a valuable tool that serves best to inform clients, particularly government, of the state of the road network and to predict the cost of road rehabilitation at present and in the future, using its unique in-built predictive modelling tool.

in such equipment? From our experience in assessing the 7 300 km of the paved road network, it was observed that the network that was maintained post-1994 by the KwaZuluNatal Department of Transport (DOT) has since deteriorated to an extent where a high degree of rehabilitation is required. The limited budgets put into infrastructure have exacerbated this problem and have even elevated some roads to revert back to gravel status. In initiating the Pavement Management System for the KwaZulu-Natal DOT, we have utilised all our

technology images are captured at 10 m intervals. The equipment can also collect data on road roughness, texture, microtexture and rutting. Since it is operated under traffic, there is no need for any lane closure during the road survey. Our GPR can also measure road layer thicknesses at a driving speed of up to 60 km/h, which alleviates the need to close off sections of the road, and to carry out intrusive testing.

What system is recommended for everyday practical road quality assessments, and why?

The Hawkeye Network Survey and Digital Laser Profilers are best suited for everyday practical road quality assessments, for ease of usage and high speed applications. These advanced and sophisticated equipment offer the advantage of carrying the data acquisition at high speed under traffic conditions, while the process of data collation and interrogation is carried out in the control room.

Road surveillance is an important aspect of

conditions. Our FWD is now built into a specialised commercial vehicle. This offers the added advantage over a trailer-mounted vehicle, which comes with its own traffic hazards and danger to the road users.

Does the Pavement Management System carry a stamp of approval, e.g. SABS, SANS? Our Pavement Management System is based on the Technical Recommendations for Highways (TRH) series that has been developed by a task team.

The TRH series talks back to international guidelines and standards, including the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. All equipment used is from suppliers that are accredited for ISO 9001.

of their design life (25 years), government’s priority should be focused on conserving the network by ensuring that adequate funding has been set aside for maintenance and upkeep.

Is your client base open to both the public and private sectors? Our client base is mainly the public sector, as government is primarily responsible for the primary, secondary and tertiary road networks. However, certain of our equipment is offered to the private sector, which does not involve the road network.

These include the mining industry for ground penetration radar testing and private airports for runway assessments.

Large volumes of surface information can be collected at highway speeds, making the process safe and quick

In terms of road maintenance, management and rehabilitation, how important are technologies such as the Pavement Management System? Why should government invest

asset management equipment to obtain scientific data to validate the condition of the road network by inputting this data into RoSy, which is a Pavement Management System that optimises the network and produces a report on prioritisation of repair. This output is then modelled around budget constraints and repair strategies developed accordingly.

We believe that government should endeavour to utilise such systems to ensure the longevity of its network. Based on the fact that most of the paved road networks across all provinces have reached the end

In terms of engineering and construction, what consultancy services does VNA offer? Our services are limited to the built environment consultancy environment. We offer project management, programme management, engineering design, pavement management systems and specialised road rehabilitation design.

For further information please contact : Vikash Narsai – vikash@vnac.co.za Rakesh Maharaj – rakesh@vnac.co.za t +27 (0)31 207 8121 www.vnac.co.za

IMIESA November/December 2013

45

TECHNOLOGY IN ENERGY AND INFRASTRUCTURE

3D SUBSTATION DESIGN

Smart modelling for new and Working smar ter rather than harder and longer is the key to staying at the top of an increasingly sophisticated and competitive engineering design market.

3D

DESIGN technology has been evolving over many years, and its application in highly complex design is illustrated well in the design of substations. Paradoxically, the more sophisticated the technology, the simpler the results, and from creating novel 3D images, the technology is now able to deliver a complete design package, including development, specifications and costing, down to the most minute detail.

Exceeding client expectations Instead of swamping customers with large amounts of drawings and specification sheets, they can now be shown one single model that embodies all of the equipment, fully specified with respect to dimensions and working clearances to meet the required standards. Degrees of details can be expanded and revealed at the touch of an on-screen button. “Information on cable works, trench depths, cable spacing, backfilling, danger tape and crossing of other ser vices, including drainage and oil pipes, can now clearly be indicated below ground TOP Degrees of detail can be revealed and expanded at the touch of an onscreen button RIGHT A single model embodying all of the equipment

46

IMIESA November/December 2013

TECHNOLOGY IN ENERGY AND INFRASTRUCTURE

upgraded infrastructure

Templates for single and multiple lighting mast components for a typical substation

level,” explains Barr y Grib, project manager at Aurecon.

“More advanced features also enable design aspects such as the lightning protection arc from the various steelworks and lightning masts in the substations to be displayed. The substation model can also be turned in different directions to help ensure that all equipment is covered by the protection.”

All of these designs can be exported to PDF documents to be discussed with the client, enabling enhanced client interaction and a better understanding of the design by all parties.

Accuracy and cost-effectiveness Other benefits of using 3D design technology for electrical substations include:

• enhanced accuracy through increased exposure and reviews of every portion of the design • design refinements can be made to the manufacturing drawings for steelworks using accurate, detailed 3D models; this will ensure parts fit together • the detailed 3D design can be used to generate drawing numbers as well as all the relevant manufacturing drawings needed for the manufacture of parts • the programme can generate the detailed bill of quantities set to the particular client’s specifications and document needs • detailed templates can be set up according to the client’s needs, including number ranges or sequences. This will then be generated each time a new project is designed

for the same client, adding to the consistency and quality expected by the client.

Flexibility “Project scope changes entail only one model to be updated and the impact on all levels and sections can easily be reviewed and assessed for immediate implementation.

Material quantities can readily be linked in

IMIESA November/December 2013

47

Manage the entire urban water lifecycle

The world’s most comprehensive software solution for urban water infrastructure.

Bentley’s fully-integrated water and wastewater software solution addresses the needs of owner-operators and engineers who manage the urban water infrastructure lifecycle, while saving design, project, and operating costs, and improving safety.

Isn’t it time you learned how Bentley can help improve the performance of your water infrastructure?

For more information, please visit:

www.bentley.com/ZA © 2013 Bentley Systems, Incorporated. Bentley, and the “B” Bentley logo are either registered or unregistered trademarks or service marks of Bentley Systems, Incorporated or one of its direct or indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries. Other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.

TECHNOLOGY IN ENERGY AND INFRASTRUCTURE

A terrestrial laser scan of legacy infrastructure can be integrated and rendered with new 3D designs

real time to accurately give a bill of materials for the project,” says Grib. The use of a single model minimises duplication errors.

The correct quantities and manufacturing drawings can be issued with every design, customised for the project. Parts can be designed and linked to specific manufacturers and part numbers for every item needed. At any stage of the design, associated material and labour lists can be generated and accurate costing can be done with relative ease.

Enhanced productivity “3D design has significant efficiencies linked to it. The initial setting up and establishment of the models can be time consuming; however, once the plant is modelled, its replication is almost a cut and paste exercise. Integrated services are all on one model, removing significant risk from multidisciplinary engineering services. For example, transformer oil drainage pipes are modelled together with cable trenches for the primary or control plant on one 3D drawing,” continues Grib.

Programmable safety Safe design is non-negotiable, and 3D software can allow programmable restrictions to ensure that the required electrical clearances are not compromised. Similarly, underground cables crossing at the same level can be detected and rectified, thereby avoiding costly design modifications and adjustments during the construction phase.

3D display of legacy infrastructure and terrain By integrating a terrestrial laser scan of an existing substation, plant or network with 3D designs of refurbishments or expansions, a combined 3D display of the completed works can be rendered. This allows for an extremely accurate design of legacy plant upgrades where existing drawings may be inaccurate or non-existent. There can be a significant risk mitigation where electrical clearances are a risk issue and constructability is difficult. Similarly, for greenfield sites, a digital terrain model is incorporated into the design from the start.

Integrated manufacturing catalogues “Realising the maximum benefits of 3D substation design requires the active participation of manufacturers and equipment suppliers,” cautions Grib.

Some steel manufacturers, and even high voltage equipment manufacturers, are showing willingness to contribute to the software

IMIESA November/December 2013

49

development and are supplying detailed drawings to be incorporated into the software’s design blocks. The advantage for these participants is that their trademarks and catalogue numbers can be linked into the items designed and they can be provided with information on future orders much earlier in the whole process, including a detailed list of their material used in the design.

The way ahead 3D substation design is constantly pushing the boundaries and Grib emphasises that companies like Aurecon are working closely with the software suppliers to realise the true value of efficiency, accuracy and enhanced safety that can be derived from its usage. “Innovative 3D design is spearheading a future generation of substation designs, which benefit clients by providing reliable, high-quality designs that can be produced speedily and cost effectively,” concludes Grib.

TECHNOLOGY IN ENGINEERING

THE X FACTOR

Solving the water crisis With a water shortage predicted by 2020, leaking pipes, ageing infrastructure and poor municipal administration is exacerbating South Africa’s water crisis.

W

ITH BILLIONS OF rands of public funds being wasted annually, Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa has recently revealed that a quarter of the country’s water was being lost due to leaking water systems.

Current deficit According to a survey conducted by the Department of Water Affairs that looked at the

long-term water requirements for all the municipalities, 30% of towns in South Africa are currently running at a water deficit. The minister also warned that a water shortage was a reality by 2020 if South Africans do not work together to conserve this precious commodity.

Advanced metering infrastructure Among the many solutions available to address this problem –such as pipeline refurbishment, anti-theft campaigns and leak

detection – advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) holds massive potential in both the industrial and domestic markets. Water engineering specialist WRP Consulting Engineers (WRP) has responded to the leakage issues by launching a remote, web-based, automatic meter reading (AMR) solution for large water users.

Water AMR is the technology of automatically collecting consumption, diagnostic, and status data from water meters and transferring

A typical large-volume water meter, retrofitted for automated readings

50

IMIESA November/December 2013

, (

( - +

!" #! "$

( ) & &'

*+

.

/ 0

! !

%%%& & &'

"

!

!

# $ "

! %&

'''((

)

TECHNOLOGY IN ENGINEERING

with AMR that data to a central database for billing, troubleshooting, and analysing. This technology mainly saves utility providers the expense of periodic trips to each physical location to read a meter. Another advantage is that billing can be based on near real-time consumption rather than on estimates based on past or predicted consumption. This timely information coupled with analysis can help both utility providers and customers to better control the use and production of water consumption.

AMR technologies include handheld, mobile and network technologies based on telephony platforms (wired and wireless), radio frequency (RF), or powerline transmission.

WRP’s solution offers sophisticated machineto-machine (M2M) technology that effectively

Web-based reporting system

allows industrial clients to access daily monitoring and control of their water consumption in terms of flow, pressure and usage.

Communications and data management “We have par tnered with XLink Communications, which provides us with the M2M platform, product installation and

ongoing portal support and maintenance services. These enable us to transmit the data from the reader logger, which is retrofitted to the client’s water meter, through to a base station and ultimately to XLink’s ‘Insight’, an internet-based data acquisition and display facility,” says Ronnie McKenzie, MD at WRP. “The resulting product is a unique solution based on our expertise in water conservation

IMIESA November/December 2013

Typical problems identified include inaccurate or broken water meters, on-site leaks, unexpected pressure variations, and even hidden connections

51

TECHNOLOGY IN ENGINEERING

and demand management, together with XLink’s proven track record in seamless M2M communication platforms and support services. The solution will tie in with virtually any existing GSM/GPRS logger, although we are working closely with Technolog from the UK, which has developed the Cello range of loggers widely recognised for their reliability and proven five-year power supply.” Technolog’s Cello range is able to transfer recorded data, meter readings and alarm messages to a host computer or enterprise management system and is self-powered for five years.

Technolog reader

52

IMIESA November/December 2013

Early warning system Grant McGlashan, executive head of new business development at XLink, comments: “This M2M water management solution replaces the need for monthly manual meter readings by providing clients with direct access to graphical reporting of their water consumption, as well as early identification of system, infrastructure or water meter problems. Automated alarm notifications via SMS or e-mail alert the client to system defects, such as leaks or meter reading errors, which can then be addressed immediately.”

Roll-out of this M2M solution is expected to play a crucial role in helping the industrial, agricultural, mining and mixed-tenant commercial

TECHNOLOGY IN ENGINEERING

sectors to improve their water consumption and management. The public sector, which is now under mandate to drive efficiencies in all public buildings, would also benefit from the system.

which contribute to water loss in one way or another.

the system was employed on the compant’s main water meters and immediately indicated a possible leak somewhere on the internal pipework within the warehousing facility.

Distell quickly investigated the problem and found a leak of almost 2 m³/h under a concrete slab, which it subsequently repaired.

Without this form of ‘real-time’ monitoring, a leakage of this kind is often overlooked and can run for months if not years. As water becomes more expensive and scarce throughout South Africa, the need to implement continuous monitoring and evaluation will increase. The XLink/WRP solution has been specifically designed to assist customers with monitoring water consumption and identifying problems as soon as they occur, thus reducing wastage.

In one case, the cost of water lost due to a leak was over R6 million over a period of three years

About the WRP/XLink pilot project A pilot phase designed to test the product and the reliability of the equipment was launched several years ago and has delivered highly successful results. Various installations were commissioned throughout the countr y, including municipalities and large industries. The results are provided to the customer via the internet and can be accessed on any PC, smartphone or tablet device. Typical problems identified include inaccurate or broken water meters, on-site leaks, unexpected pressure variations and even hidden connections, all of

The benefits from the system are often underestimated and even a small leak of only 2 m³/h will result in an additional R17 000 each month to the customer’s water bill.

Many leaks were identified on the customer’s premises; in one case, the cost of water lost due to a leak was over R6 million over a period of three years.

Generally, however, a leakage is much smaller, but can typically cost a mediumto large-size industrial customer between R20 000 and R50 000 per annum. In the case of Distell in Wadeville, Germiston,

IMIESA November/December 2013

for

53

ASM LXH 15mm Brass

ASM LXHS 15mm Plastic

ASM LXH 20mm Brass

Meter in a Ground Box

The above meters are all NRCS TYPE APPROVED APPLICATION: Measures the volume of cold potable water passing through a pipeline.

FEATURES: • Accurate registration across a wide flow range.

• Mechanical drive for maximum reliability.

• Corrosion resistant body.

• Clear, easily read, liquid sealed 8 digit counter.

• Registering begins at low flow rates.

• Internal non return valve and strainer.

• Each meter has a unique serial number.

• Pulse prepared.

• Inlet & Outlet threads compatible with I.S.O metric sizes.

• Plastic Body Meters UV Stabilised.

• Plastic Body exceeds 48bar.

MAXIMUM PERMISSIBLE ERRORS: • In the lower zone from (qmin) inclusive up to but excluding (qt) is ±5%.

• In the upper zone from (qt) inclusive up to and including (qs) is ±2%.

WORKING CONDITIONS: • Water temperature: 2°C ~ 40°C. :DWHU SUHVVXUH 03D EDU

COMPLIANCE STANDARD: • Conforms to ISO4064 Class C Standard.

• Conforms to SANS 1529 - 1.

INSTALLATION REQUIREMENTS: • May be installed on a horizontal or vertical pipeline (horizontal recommended).

• Pipeline must be constantly full of water during operation.

We also have a range of Bulk Water Meters: LXLC 50A (mm) ~ 500A (mm) and HHD Electromagnetic flow meters 15 (mm) - 2600 (mm) - Brass tail piece sets 15mm - 40mm as well as Brass ferrule valves 15mm - 25mm

Cape Town: Tel: 021 510 4266 | 510 8408 Fax: 021 510 8759

Johannesburg: Tel: 011 609 6336 Fax: 011 609 9531 LEVEL 2

E: info@precisionmeters.co.za | W: www.precisionmeters.co.za

PROFILE

AUTODESK

Simplified solutions through technology Building information modelling (BIM) expert Autodesk reinvests 25% of its annual revenue in technology development to ensure it remains the leader in design innovation technologies. IMIESA chats to the company’s major accounts manager, Marius Esterhuyze (pictured right), for more insight.

E

STABLISHED IN 1982, Autodesk currently operates in 95 different locations worldwide, with a staff complement of over 7 200 and an impressive revenue achievement of US$2.3 billion (R22.55 billion) in the 2013 fiscal. Esterhuyze, who is responsible for managing large multinational customers, explains that reinvesting 25% of the company’s annual revenue in technology development ensures that the company remains the world leader in design innovation technologies.

managing your project data, too,” he adds.

Cloud security today is at least twice as secure as the current security systems many customers have in place.

With Autodesk 360, customers can extend and connect workflows on the desktop to the virtually infinite computing power in the cloud, helping them rapidly design, visualise, simulate and share their ideas almost anywhere, anytime. “In the case of Autodesk, we’re saying: let’s leverage the infinite computing power

world – home, office or construction site – the cloud and Autodesk mobile technology make design more accessible to all members of the project team.

Client satisfaction “The general feedback through Autodesk shows that clients experience extremely accurate results from the software,” he continues.

“The proof is in the fact that our technology is being used on award-winning mega projects globally.” Mega projects require greater accuracy, particularly because their designs are extremely challenging and carry a lot of risk.

“The proof is in the fact that our technology is being used on awardwinning mega projects globally”

Multiple products, one solution Two years ago, Autodesk introduced the market to its Design and Creation Suites, with the Autodesk Infrastructure Design Suite specifically designed for infrastructure projects. “Autodesk Infrastructure Design Suite is a BIM for infrastructure design solution that combines relevant, intelligent, model-based tools in one portfolio to support infrastructure projects throughout the complete project life cycle, ensuring no information is lost as one transitions throughout the project phases.” The Autodesk Design and Creation Suites help customers to rapidly explore and visualise multiple design ideas, analyse and test ideas digitally, predict real-world performance at a fraction of the cost and access designs through the web or mobile devices.

In the cloud “When it comes to the cloud, a lot of people are concerned about security,” Esterhuyze points out. “If you are able to trust the cloud with your own personal money (when doing online banking or tax submissions), you should be able to then trust cloud technology with

of the cloud, upload designs to the cloud, run your analysis and simulation in the cloud, and take the strain off our desktops. Where some analysis and simulation jobs took days and weeks before, it can now be done in a matter of hours in the cloud.”

Anytime, anywhere But there’s more to the cloud than just using it for computational intensive tasks. It also enables the use of mobile technology on a project. Through mobile applications, users can communicate design data between the office and the construction site, and vice versa. “The data is up in the cloud and a project manager can assign access to that data to specific people in the team. Some people may be assigned read-only privileges and some read-write privileges, allowing them to make comments and add changes to the design,” Esterhuyze states. He reiterates that irrespective of where a user is in the

Beyond 3D At Autodesk, they consider designing in 3D to be somewhat ‘mainstream’. “Designing in 3D can no longer be considered a competitive edge and a differentiator from your competitors.”

At Autodesk, the approach is 4D and beyond.

“We talk about 4D when we add the component of time, 5D when we add the component of cost, and 6D when we add the component of operation and maintenance to the design model. So, if a customer really wants to be on the forefront of technology and differentiate themselves from their competitors, it’s no longer about 3D designs only.” Ultimately, this is what differentiates Autodesk from its competitors: the ability to help people imagine, design and create a better world through world-leading technology.

t +27 (0)12 664 8115 • www.autodesk.co.za

IMIESA November/December 2013

55

Partnering our skills with the public sector to manage, support and maintain the projects that move our country forward.

As primary banker to major players in the public sector, Standard Bank is providing world-class expertise to finance local progress. This allows the industry to deliver the solutions that will uplift our country.

For more information visit www.standardbank.co.za/business

Authorised financial services and registered credit provider (NCRCP15).

The Standard Bank of South Africa Limited (Reg. No. 1962/000738/06). SBSA 147102 06/13 Moving Forward is a trademark of The Standard Bank of South Africa Limited.

TM

Moving Forward

MUNICIPAL FEATURE

INNOVATIVE FUNDING

Creative solutions to complex challenges the city closed the request for qualification (RFQ) of potential bidders at the end of August 2007. This article tracks the complex process and presents intimate findings from both the project arrangers and the council in order to present a basis and framework for other municipalities considering such a venture.

The City of Tshwane has launched its Vision 2055 and is positioning itself as the African capital city of excellence, with investments in infrastructure delivery and maintenance being the foundation of this process.

F

IVE YEARS AGO, the city reached the implementation phase of a pioneering public-private partnership (PPP), which was first registered with National Treasury in 2004. By the time implementation phase was reached, a valuable process had been completed and a bespoke form of PPP had been achieved.

Earlier this year, the capital city announced a bold move into the debt capital markets in order to finance its projected capex programme. With Standard Bank appointed as lead arranger, two bonds were issued, raising a total of R1.39 billion. As Megan MacDonald, Standard Bank’s head of Debt Capital Markets, noted at the time, the amount of capital raised was remarkable and a good indicator of

positive investor sentiment. Both of these ventures indicate something important at work: public sector ingenuity and private sector confidence. This article looks further into both projects to provide insights into the process and also to show how perceived obstacles can be – and are – overcome.

The City of Tshwane ventured to register the first municipal PPP at National Treasury in 2004; the journey through this process requires patience and determination.

Eventually, a model was born.

This accommodation PPP was intended to build, maintain and operate a new municipal headquarters (MHQ) complex for the municipality over a period of 25 years. Council approved the feasibility study in 2005 and

The first regulated municipal PPP under the MFMA Capacity and financial constraints will force many local governments to engage in their own PPP processes in order to deliver basic services. Although this PPP does not consider basic services, and is perhaps on a grander scale than most, it delivered results and crossed not only the public/private divide, but also that which can exist between administrators and politicians. Much of the information that follows was summarised from an initial report generated from a case study authored

by Chene Swart, with updates from remaining participants.

The background of this PPP The Munitoria rebuilding project originated with the massive fire of 3 March 1997 that completely destroyed the west wing of the then Pretoria City Council’s head office (Munitoria), an L-shaped structure housing the bulk of the city’s staff and council in a highly centralised manner. The south wing, though massively damaged from smoke and water, retained its basic structural integrity and was refurbished and reoccupied. The rest of the staff members were moved to whatever CBD spaces could be found in 13 buildings, which was not only an ineffective outcome, but resource inefficient as well. This dilemma resulted in extremely inefficient service delivery and a high level of public frustration. Several initial studies were done before embarking on the feasibility study with the current transaction advisers.

Inception The project was registered with National Treasury as the first municipal PPP on

IMIESA November/December 2013

57

MUNICIPAL FEATURE

Treasury’s PPP forward book for MFMA7 PPPs in December 2004. In South Africa, through the establishment of the PPP unit within National Treasury and the introduction of a respective regulatory framework, government actively aims to attract private sector engagement in national, provincial and local service delivery, with a special focus on infrastructure.

National Treasury’s project adviser is part of the process until its completion and will be at most of the meetings. The regulatory role of National Treasury is to provide views and recommendations while the municipal council gives approval. The regulatory role of National Treasury continues until contract management process and monitors the systems and the processes that need to be in place to manage the contract and occasionally interact with the team, providing support and guidance.

Feasibility study The transaction advisers conducted a PPP feasibility study, designed to comply with the form and content of National Treasury’s guidance documents according to the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) of 2005. The city concluded that it did not have sufficient capital or technical capacity to undertake the challenges of the Munitoria rebuilding project.

A PPP model mobilising private sector capital, with significant transfer of appropriate project risk to the private sector was its only viable option for completing the project. The council of the City of Tshwane passed a resolution adopting model 5 of National Treasury guidelines for PPP procurement process and, with this

resolution, the council approved progression of the project to RFQ stage. New and dormant relationships were catalysed as part of the structured 60-day consultation period required for the project. The results of the first report were made available online and in print. The timing of the first mandatory 60-day period was ideal as the project’s official report on the consultation process results was shared with the candidate shortlist bidders prior to actual short listing and issuance of the RFP. The public comments report was part of a mandatory response package to the RFQ/RFP bidders.

Public participation Tumi Moleke from the PPP unit argues that this public participation process is overdone on municipal level as councillors represent and interact with the people and that in this instance there was not much value added.

Elsa Strydom supports this view and explains that the level of participation was not as much as the project team expected. She puts this down to the fact the project did not involve infrastructure intended for service or use by the public. The PPP approach received council endorsement. During the RFQ stage, bidders were advised of the city’s preferential procurement targets and elements.

The scorecard The city has developed its own policy on BBBEE for PPPs, having regarded the guidelines developed by National Treasury in terms of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA).

The mayoral committee of the city passed a

The City of Tshwane sought to create a sustainable working and service delivery environment that will enable it to cost efficiently and effectively achieve the service delivery targets of the city

resolution adopting the document on BBBEE for the city’s PPP projects, namely BBBEE policy on public and private partnership, which will be included in the RFP. During the RFQ stage, the bidders had to submit a range of information about their consortia, enabling the city to select those that were indeed suitably qualified to prepare bids. Subesh Pillay, Member of the Mayoral Committee responsible for Economic Development and Planning in the City of Tshwane, describes the progress of the procurement phase as follows: “We now approach the RFP phase where only bidders that have been identified and scanned through the RFQ process are allowed to go further. In the RFQ phase, we looked at the technical and financial ability and capacity of the bidders to deliver the MHQ project. Once we go through that, we will issue the RFP in a closed bid only to bidders who have come through the RFQ. Then the emphasis in terms of adjudication and evaluation is around the social aspects, typically compliance to the BBBEE scorecard and value-add in terms of social investment of the project. That would obviously go to council at those key points.”

The RFP was highly detailed and a transaction adviser was appointed. But the city took the extra step of appointing an independent value for money assessor as an additional safety net. This step was significant and groundbreaking: a belt and braces approach, one could say.

The aims and objectives of the MHQ project More than a simple rebuild, the City of Tshwane sought to create a sustainable working and service delivery environment that will enable it to cost efficiently and effectively achieve the service delivery targets of the city as defined by its Integrated Development Plan.

The MHQ project took the opportunity to remobilise and redeploy the city’s human resources assets around more modern notions of administration and service delivery, around which facilities are designed as tools of the work itself, not just places where work is done.

What next?

Beyond the BBBEE requirements described above, the city also required evidence that all black shareholders had been given an opportunity to avail themselves of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) facility, or Ditsong National Museum of Natural History, Pretoria

58

IMIESA November/December 2013

MUNICIPAL FEATURE

similar facilities emerging in the market. The full particulars of that facility formed part of the RFQ documents, along with available references to other available instruments of the same purpose.

Socio-economic outcomes As the MHQ project is at its core a disaster recovery rebuilding on the site of the former buildings, socio-economic outcomes are a matter of restoring the already accrued economic contributions in place before the fire, as well as creating a set of output specs and commercial requirements that build on that base. That the new construction will create new jobs fuelled by massive apex flows over the construction period, is an obvious consequence of the project.

The city placed a high weighting on the goals of empowerment and socio-economic enhancement through the MHQ project and prequalified respondents who exhibited a willingness to embrace this philosophy. The project constitutes a significant investment of the city’s resources and needed to advance the municipality’s policies with regard to empowerment.

The PPP transaction budget The term budget requires definition: • historic or currently available spend (affordability in PFMA terms), for service delivery activities as currently organised and supported by formal budget or otherwise discoverable cash flows • third-party revenue streams to be generated by the project • proceeds of sale or lease of city-owned facilities made redundant in respect of the preferred option • take back of Urban Development Zone (UDZ) cost reduction benefits available to the private sector party under the Inner City UDZ programme approved by National Treasury • a conservative estimate of the proceeds of auction sale of furniture not moving to the new, largely open plan, higher density environment • an amount to fill the gap between basic affordability and the vetted shadow bid cost of building a mini campus that can sustainably support the service delivery requirements of the city.

At the time of the RFP, growth of the city’s remuneration budget was constrained under the terms of a restructuring grant from National Treasury to achieve a reduction of payroll burden on total operating expense from 32 to 28% by 2009. This was intended to inhibit growth in headcount going forward and without the need for retrenchments.

PPP transaction management budget Approximately R15 million was spent or budgeted for the cost of procuring the transaction through Phase 2 of the project cycle. The cost included fees to the transaction advisor, external legal advisor, the project officer, client side technical work, and associated travel and administrative costs. These costs were carried by and reported to council as part of the total cost of the project, but the city will not seek to capitalise these costs by seeking reimbursement at final close, noting that capitalisation will lead to an increase in unitary payable over the full duration of the project.

External funding “The MHQ project provides that any revenue generated through the project would fund the redemption of the capital investments made by the winning consortium and so enhance the return on Cape Recife WWTW such an investment,” says Pillay. “By way of example, one of the

IMIESA November/December 2013

59

MUNICIPAL FEATURE

considerations is the construction of a parking bay funded by the concessionaire out of own reserves for which a return will be generated through parking tariffs. Other than this, the city will not be expected, nor does it intend to provide any further funding through external sources.”

Sustainability “The city has incorporated the impact of the payment of a unitary fee into its long-term financial strategy. Given the relative financial stability of the city, underpinned by a very flattering long- and short-term credit rating, coupled with the ongoing need for accommodation by the city, the project appears to have all the ingredients for a sustainable project,” states Pillay. “In addition to these factors, the fact that all bids that fell under review had the backing of reputable financial institutions, construction companies and facilities managers also add to the anticipated sustainability of the project.”

Significant achievements These are multilayered. Primarily, this was a complex and creative project, which has steered a changing set of regulatory frameworks, all of which were different by the end.

Although PPPs under the MFMA require expressions of views and recommendations from National Treasury as opposed to approvals, the project used the PFMA that was awaiting

promulgation by Treasury of an MFMA PPP project cycle and a set of milestone acronyms of its own choosing. A rigorous and ultimately extraordinarily challenging effort was undertaken to ensure complementarity between the pre-existing procurement processes of the city and PPP procurement processes, with particular attention to compliance with the MFMA and regulations with respect to Section 120 of that Act, Parts 1 and 2.

Teamwork was another hallmark of the project, allowing it to be finished within seven months, including approvals. Another reason this was possible was the level of pre-existing institutional knowledge.

Another significant achievement was the level of detail provided in the RFQ. This helped the bidders submit very comprehensive proposals and commitments to bidders upfront.

Lastly, Pillay also notes the upfront involvement of public sector lenders, like the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and the DBSA. “We were discussing with both the PIC and the DBSA around the possibility of the two entities funding the black equity of the deal.

It often happens, as we have seen in a number of transactions that because the equity of the black partner is funded by the lead investors, the equity partners are basically not able to exercise their independence and ensure that the issues of economic transformation take.

Tshwane Message from the executive mayor

O

UR VISION IS A City of Tshwane that in 2055 is liveable, resilient and inclusive; whose citizens enjoy a high quality of life; have access to social, economic and enhanced political freedoms; and where citizens are partners in the development of the African capital city of excellence.

Tshwane Vision 2055 is about our future

capital city; it is about your future capital city. Together with the people of Tshwane, we have journeyed far since the dawn of our democracy. As part of South Africa’s transformation, the City of Tshwane has made progress in reversing the exclusion and marginalisation of the majority of its residents. This has been achieved through the establishment of a legitimate, transparent, and accountable metropolitan local government and broadening access to socio-economic opportunities and infrastructure services.

We have transformed the city and it is a FACT that Tshwane is better today than when we inherited it in 1994. While noting the progress made in the past 19 years in terms of expanding access to social and economic

A rigorous and ultimately extraordinarily challenging effort was undertaken to ensure complementarity between the pre-existing procurement processes of the city and PPP procurement processes

infrastructure, the City of Tshwane, like many other cities in South Africa and globally, is confronted by a number of economic and developmental challenges. While poverty levels have declined, inequality has increased and the gap between the haves and have-nots continues to grow.

Further, the challenges include rising unemployment, urbanisation, population growth, inequality, poverty, an accommodation conundrum, huge infrastructure backlogs and continued spatial imbalances of the past, among others. The City of Tshwane anchored the collaborative strategy development process – Tshwane Vision 2055 on the Freedom Charter clause: “The people shall govern.” This principle was at the centre of the formulation of the Tshwane Vision 2055 to provide a platform for Tshwane residents and the people of South Africa to exercise their power and rights by participating in the vision to remake South Africa’s capital city.

Through this groundbreaking participatory

60

IMIESA November/December 2013

MUNICIPAL FEATURE

Vision 2055 process, we have collectively clarified and

investors, propel growth, deracialise space

articulated our long-term aspirations on how

economy and build on the capacity for

we want to see the City of Tshwane in the

inclusion and partnership so as to reduce

future – Tshwane Vision 2055 – Remaking

the cost of delivering services.”

South Africa’s capital city. Furthermore, the

In the short to medium term, we will

Tshwane Vision 2055:

innovate the basics, expand access to

• provides the city with a broad logic to guide

infrastructure and primary health care

growth and development and a programme

facilities, master the art of doing and

of action on how to current imperatives of

reorientate our collective energies to

provide high quality of living experiences

our goals of improving service delivery

for the present generation and plan for the

performance and pave the way for the long-

future generational needs

term realisation of Tshwane Vision 2055.

• serves as a point of reference for the city

Through the collaboration with institutions of

interventions, priorities and strategic actions

higher learning and research that currently

over the next 40 years

reside in our city will be key in unlocking

• detail the city’s interventions that are aimed

innovation, growth and sustainability of the

at breaking the cycle of generational poverty,

city’s economy over the next few decades.

inequality and underdevelopment

We will also focus our energies to increase

• provides us with a platform to establish

opportunities in the agricultural sector, which

strategic partnerships with communities and

has the greater potential to benefits of our

stakeholders to imagine, transform, remake,

communities and support our battle against

and build a cohesive and adaptable society

hunger and food security.

• is redressing apartheid-bound experience

We further commit ourselves to

of settlement patterns, social and economic

accelerating land reform to support

exclusion which continues to define the

restitution and redistribution. We will also

city space

implement progressive programmes that are

• is about the remaking of South Africa’s capital

Tshwane moved into the debt capital markets in order to finance Tshwane Vision 2055, an innovative development programme.

T

HE LEAD ARRANGER was Standard Bank, and two bonds were issued, raising a total of R1.39 billion.

Megan MacDonald, Standard Bank’s head of Debt Capital Markets, noted at the time that the amount of capital raised was remarkable and a good indicator of positive investor sentiment. This bold funding exercise initiates the Tshwane Vision 2055, which is a truly innovative programme of development and municipal managing that goes beyond the expected.

Transparency beyond legislation Tshwane executive mayor, Kgosientso Ramokgopa, later confirmed the city’s intention to issue more bonds in its efforts to

aimed at supporting the realisation of the

city, creation of a new identity and ensure

Gauteng City Region because we know that

that our city becomes a “well connected, well

a single metropolis has a greater potential

governed and managed city”.

to accelerate socio-economic development

We also appreciate that the realisation of the

and improve competitiveness at global level.

Tshwane Vision 2055 is depended on our

We are, however, aware that as the city

collective ability and energies to steer our

is undertaking this journey, the future is

interventions towards the realisation of our

unknown and unpredictable but we will need

set objectives. The journey of remaking South

to make strategic choices and trade-offs

Africa’s capital also requires strong executive,

that will have a broader impact on what we

administrative governance that is innovative and

seek to achieve. We also know that there are

receptive to new ways of knowing and doing

many development paths that we can follow

things and premised in public interest, and

to achieve our 2055 vision and outcomes.

ability to lead, direct and engage with various

These choices of action to influence the

stakeholders is critical. In this regard, we have

future will have to take into account the

adopted a planning process and a road map

following options:

that allows us to adopt a series of detailed

• Playing the game better: implementing

“Our vision is a City of Tshwane that in 2055 is liveable, resilient and inclusive.” Kgosientso Ramokgopa, Tshwane executive mayor competitiveness of the economy and

plans and actions underpinned by interrelated

incremental changes using the current

concepts liveability, resilience and inclusivity.

rules of the game and becoming more

It is with great pleasure that I present to you

efficient and effective.

Tshwane Vision 2055 – Remaking South

These integrative cluster programmes and plans detail our flagship programmes/projects

• Playing the game differently: lessons from

strengthening the city’s sustainability capacity.

Africa’s Capital City. Let us all become ‘game

and delivery agendas for both medium to

two decades of democracy therefore a

changers’ and play our part in creating a

short term.

need rapid implementation.

better future for all.

We are also of the view that our interventions

• Playing a different game: implementing

must be “transformative, bold, ‘disruptive’ and

strategic actions that are aimed at

Councillor Kgosientso David Ramokgop

capitalise on the economies scale, crowd in

driving development, increasing the

Executive mayor

IMIESA November/December 2013

61

MUNICIPAL FEATURE

Conclusion Tshwane is without doubt pushing ahead with development. It is interesting to note that the city issued its bonds at the same time as Detroit, in the US, went bankrupt, and became the first big city in the developed world to default on its bond holders. Bonds are traditionally seen as low-risk investments, and generally yield a return only slightly higher than you would find in bank savings or money market account. Bond purchasing is an exercise as much in financial investment as it is a patriotic one – purchase of these bonds is exhibiting confidence in South Africa’s capital city. This is highly significant. It could also open doors to other South African cities hoping to explore funding from free market financial instruments.

Institutional investment Keeping a watchful eye on this confident move, the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) announced a R750 million subscription to the city’s bonds just a few short months after they had been floated.

Adding to the R1.39 billion already raised, this closed the gap on the city’s annual borrowing requirement of R2.134 billion. Noting that Tshwane had its own unique infrastructure requirements, DBSA group executive for South African Financing Division, TP Nchocho said: “We are delighted to be part of this capital expansion programme, which signifies the bank's commitment to contributing towards

Tshwane Vision 2055 Positioning itself as the African capital city of excellence, investing in infrastructure delivery and maintenance is an absolute requirement, and with this viable funding model operating in real time, the city will be drawing on local expertise from the full range engineering, consultancy, technical, mechanical, materials

62

the development of social and economic infrastructure in the City of Tshwane, which is much needed to improve the quality of life of its 2.9 million residents."

and equipment suppliers involved in delivering public infrastructure and services. The level of opportunities is therefore vast and a welcome injection of capital into the sector. Going in the right direction according to the National Development Plan, Tshwane could not have delivered a more confident start.

raise R10 billion for medium-term infrastructure development. “As the bonds will be listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and publicly traded, this will place the city in public scrutiny, both locally and internationally, providing greater transparency on all policy positions and decisions that the city makes,” he noted. This commitment to transparency can’t be compromised and is a bold indicator of the direction of local government in South Africa. This is transparency beyond legislation; it is demanded by investors in a classic free market scenario and the city’s sustainable development depends on it.

IMIESA November/December 2013

CPD PONITS 3 POINTS

4th Annual

(1 PER DAY)

OMEN IN ENGINEERING CONVENTION DATES: 26, 27, 28 November 2013 VIA LIVE VIDEO LINK Aerospace Engineer NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER

INTERNATIONAL GUEST SPEAKERS President SOCIETY OF WOMEN ENGINEERS USA

t t t t

MPA CONSULTING ENGINEERS SOUTH AFRICAN WOMEN IN ENGINEERING (SAWomEng) ENGINEERING COUNCIL OF SOUTH AFRICA TSHWANE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

t t t t t t t

INTENS ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS AON SOUTH AFRICA (Pty) Ltd SKA SA RUBICON SOLUTIONS ESKOM GROUP TECHNOLOGY SOUTH AFRICAN AIR FORCE MERISOL RSA

KEY STRATEGIES TO BE DISCUSSED

VENUE: Gallagher Estate, Johannesburg

Integrating And Costing Sustainability In Projects Retrofitting And Its Effects On The Modern Day Engineer The SKA Project – Where To From Here?

Making A Difference: A Women’s Perspective On The Evolution Of Engineering (QJHQLXV (PSRZHULQJ 5ROH 0RGHOV 7R ,QVSLUH *LUO /HDUQHUV *URZWK $QG 7UDQVIRUPDWLRQ 6WUDWHJLHV :LWK 5HJDUG 7R (PSRZHULQJ :RPHQ Engineering Looking At Trends In Professional Liability And Risk Engineering Perspectives In Nuclear, Military, Civil, Energy, Construction And Many More Being True To Yourself As A Women And Succeed In A Man’s World

GOODIE BAG Register and pay by 30 September and UHFHLYH DQ ,7& *RRGLH EDJ ¿OOHG ZLWK W JUHDW VXUSULVHV ,I \RX ZHUH WKHUH ODVW year expect even more…)

GUEST SPEAKER ALLISON BOTHA SURVIVOR

PRACTICAL WORKSHOPS A JOURNEY TO UNDERSTANDING HUMAN BEHAVIOUR Carol Potgieter HPD CONSULTANTS LABOUR RELATIONS- A KEY COMPONENT TO BUILDING SUCESS IN YOUR TEAMS Vanessa Henry HENRY ATTORNEYS

For more information contact Amrita on 011 326 2501 or email amrita@intelligencetransferc.co.za Quote WIP-IEMS to claim your 10% discount

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT Íť MAINTENANCE Íť SERVICE DELIVERY

JOIN THE INFRASTRUCTURENE.WS COMMUNITY FOR FREE

Have your say or get the conversation started about anything and everything related to the infrastructure and service delivery industries.

The official magazine of the Institute of Municipal Engineering of Southern Africa

Winner of the 2011 PICA Non-professional writer of the year

Think water, think WISA! T

IMESA

MEDIA

The official magazine of the Water Institute of Southern Africa T

:DWHU 6DQLWDWLRQ Complete water resource and wastewater management

Africa

INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT Íť MAINTENANCE Íť SERVICE DELIVERY

Water storage solutions for Africa

Scan here to go to website

SEMBCORP Vital partners, essential water solutions MUNICIPALITIES Water metering reference guide WATER REPORT Cradle of Humankind

LQ Q WKH

Water

Ekurhuleni

Litter

Looming crisis

Urban infrastructure

Lurking danger

Dirk Meyer, managing director of Corobrik: ÍžDƾŜĹ?Ä?Ĺ?ƉĂů Ĺ?ĹśÄ¨ĆŒÄ‚Ć?ĆšĆŒĆľÄ?ĆšĆľĆŒÄž

Ä?ŽŜĆ?ĆšĆŒĆľÄ?ĆšĹ?ŽŜ ŚĂĆ? Ä‚ĹŻÇ Ä‚Ç‡Ć? Ä?ĞĞŜ Ä‚Ĺś Ĺ?ĹľĆ‰Ĺ˝ĆŒĆšÄ‚ĹśĆš ĹľÄ‚ĆŒĹŹÄžĆš Ä¨Ĺ˝ĆŒ Ĺ˝ĆŒĹ˝Ä?ĆŒĹ?ĹŹÍ˜Í&#x; ISSN 0257 1978 Volume 37 No.5 R40.00 (incl VAT)

S

THE HOT SEAT

Dean Mulqueeny, managing director y''s NCP Chlorchem, discusses the company's water treatment solutions P12 P1 12

MEDIA

0D\ -XQH ‡ ,661 ‡ &RYHU SULFH 5 ‡ 9RO 1R

Infrastructurene.ws brings together the communities from our three magazines – IMIESA, Water&Sanitation Africa and ReSource. It is a leading news hub, with in-depth articles, videos and podcasts, an events calendar, and full social media functionality.

STAY IN TOUCH A weekly newsletter keeps you up to date Sign up online for our FREE weekly newsletter and get an instant summary of the latest news, events and developments in the infrastructure and service delivery industries.

VISIT

The @infrastructure4 tweets will keep you updated on all the latest, exciting and, of course, interesting happenings in the infrastructure and service delivery industries.

www.infrastructurene.ws TODAY

READY FOR MORE? To advertise on infrastructurene.ws, contact Jenny Miller jennymiller@lantic.net Tel: +27 (0)11 467 6223 Fax: 086 587 6247 For editorial enquiries contact Chantelle Mattheus chantelle@3smedia.co.za Tel: +27 (0)11 233 2600 Fax: +27 (0)11 234 7275

ROADS, BRIDGES AND STORMWATER

A STEP AWAY FROM LOAN FUNDS

Practical road cost This article is the first article in a two-part series dealing with road cost allocation and recovery. The second article, which will appear in the January 2014 edition of IMIESA, will provide an overview of (a) the criteria for and methods of road cost allocation, and (b) objectives and principles of road cost determination and recovery.

This article deals with practical road cost recovery methods.

FINANCING OF ROADS Potential sources for the financing of roads can be divided into six groups. These groups are as follows: 1. Taxes on vehicle use • fuel tax • tyre tax • levies on vehicle spare parts and lubricants • mass-distance taxes • road maintenance charges • direct road pricing systems.

2. Taxes on vehicle ownership • import, customs and excise duties on vehicles and vehicle components • vehicle licence fees • insurance tax • turnover tax • transfer tax • axle or wheel tax • miscellaneous (e.g. vehicle registration fees, weighbridge fees, roadworthy test fees).

3. Taxes on place of use • supplementary licensing • parking charges • toll systems.

4. Taxes on employers and businesses • company car taxation • tax on parking space and road access and development charges • business property tax • corporate profit tax • tax on road transport businesses • payroll tax.

5. Taxes on the local community • property and land taxes • local sales and fuel taxes • utility tax.

6 General revenue sources • direct allocation from government funds • subsidies • earmarked funds • loan funds.

The above-mentioned groups are subsequently discussed, commencing with specific taxes on vehicle use and ownership, moving gradually towards general taxes that are levied on society as a whole. The list is not exhaustive and confined to methods commonly applied, both in South Africa and abroad (Freeman, 1981: Pienaar, 2005).

TAX RELATING TO VEHICLE USE 1. Fuel tax Fuel tax, the most important levy on road users, is found in almost every country in the world. Its popularity is due not only to its simplicity, the ease of levying the tax and its general cost efficiency, but also because of its basic characteristics:

64

IMIESA November/December 2013

ROADS, BRIDGES AND STORMWATER

recovery methods • it is paid for every kilometre travelled • it varies with the nature of the vehicle, e.g. with mass and power • it varies with the speeds at which vehicles travel and the manner in which they are driven • it is easy to differentiate the charge between petrol- and diesel-driven vehicles.

The main advantage of fuel tax is that it provides a good measure of road use, which relates to both benefits and needs satisfaction. Because of the comparatively direct relationship between fuel tax and road usage, it provides an attractive basis for a roaduse charging system. Fuel tax avoidance is virtually impossible and administration costs are low in proportion to total revenue. It is, moreover, acceptable to the public, because it is paid in small quantities at frequent intervals to satisfy immediate needs. Even so, it is not perfect because it cannot recover the full costs associated with heavy vehicles. A possible solution would be to impose differential taxes on petrol and diesoline, whereby diesel consumers (mostly heavy vehicles) have to pay more than petrol consumers. By doing so, the greater fuel efficiency achieved by diesel-driven vehicles in comparison with petrol-driven ones of similar size and characteristics can be addressed. Diesel-driven cars, for example, are approximately 20% more fuel efficient than petrol-driven ones. Therefore, a 20% surcharge on the levy included in the price of diesel would rectify this imbalance for cars. Further, the diesel consumption rate of the largest goods vehicle combinations is four to five times higher than the petrol consumption rate of cars, while the comparable road pavement damage caused by these heavy vehicles is more than five times higher than the pavement damage caused by small cars.

In this case also, a higher diesel charge would assist in reducing the present cross-subsidy being paid by the users of light vehicles in favour of the users of heavy vehicles.

Two disadvantages of this method are firstly that users are not realistically charged according to the geographic distribution of their trips.

Approximately two-thirds of all vehicles travel within urban areas in South Africa, while less

than two-thirds of road lane kilometres in are found within these areas. Secondly, fuel consumption on a high-quality road, which costs more to build, is less per vehicle at similar speeds than on a low quality road.

to fuel tax to compensate for the shortfall in revenue recovered from heavy vehicles.

Whereas such deficit can be made good from heavy vehicle licence fees, these do not make allowance for distance travelled, with the result that an articulated truck travelling 10 000 km per year is charged the 2. Tyre tax Tyre tread wear (and hence same fee as one travelling 90 000 km. While taxation) is progressive and related to use; fuel tax will to some extent compensate for tyres wear more quickly in urban traffic this difference, conditions where distance travelled frequent stops, must somehow speed change also be taken into cycles and corners increase An increase in the price of account to ensure an equitable friction and cause tyres could induce vehicle distribution. From a tread abrasion. users to prolong the use theoretical point of Tyre levies, of existing tyres, thereby view, mass-distance unfortunately, tax provides a much have serious reducing their safety better solution disadvantages. and will achieve a First, the demand better allocation of for tyres is not resources. Progressive rates are established invariably price inelastic. An increase in for vehicles classified by mass (or, more the price of tyres could induce vehicle correctly, according to road damage caused). users to prolong the use of existing tyres, The distance travelled by a particular thereby reducing their safety. The prices vehicle is then recorded and the appropriate of tyres in South Africa do not at present tax paid. include a dedicated road levy. The only form The drawback of the mass-distance tax is of government levy is a duty on certain that it increases administration costs for both imported additives to the materials some the government and the taxpayer. On the one tyres are manufactured from, as well as on hand, auditors, inspectors and enforcers have the imported steelbelting, which is used to to be appointed to combat evasion, while strengthen certain tyre types. on the other hand this form of tax involves additional administration and expenditure on 3. Levies on vehicle spare parts Duties recording equipment for operators. The quescharged on vehicle spare parts are relatively tion therefore is whether this extra cost insignificant compared with levies on new burden is justified by the savings achieved vehicles. They are not a very good measure of in terms of equity and economic efficiency. road usage since much depends on the vehicle Mass-distance taxes are not imposed in age, type and make in each case. The total South Africa. However, there is no reason why revenue from levies on lubricants is likewise mass-distance charges or simplified charges insignificant and it is not really suitable as a on graduated distance should not be dediroad user charging instrument. No dedicated cated to a road maintenance fund. road fund levies on these commodities exist in South Africa and the customs, excise and import duties that do exist are regarded as TAX ON VEHICLE OWNERSHIP general government income.

1. Duties on new vehicles Levies on new vehicles comprise (a) import duties designed to protect and promote the local 4. Mass-distance tax These levies have vehicle manufacturing industry, and (b) excise been designed as supplementary charge

IMIESA November/December 2013

65

EST. 1981

Leaders in manufacturing, supply and application of Bituminous road binders, emulsions, primes, pre-coats and modified binders throughout Southern Africa

:

With more than 30 years’ experience, we offer a wide range of products for all your surfacing needs

Penetration grade bitumen Cutback bitumen (blending of MCs offered at our KZN and nd Cape Town branches) Cationic and Anionic Emulsions Polymer modified binders (SE-1 & 2, AE-1 & 2) Modified emulsions ( SC-E1 & 2) Environmentally friendly primes and invert primes (OptiPrime and SP1i)

Environmentally friendly pre-coating fluid (Opti-Cote) Supply of all products in bulk or drums Application of all products with our fleet of bitumen distributors Hire of on-site static tanks On-site production with our mobile plants Quality assurance and product testing in our fully equipped and calibrated laboratories

HEAD OFFICE PO Box 674, Alberton, 1450, JHB 7 Evans Street, Alrode South, Alberton t 011 868 5451/2 f 011 900 1470 KZN PO Box 674, Alberton, 1450112 Old Main Road, Bothas Hill, 3610 t 031 777 1905 f 031 777 1800 CAPE TOWN (opening early 2014) PO Box 674, Alberton, 1450 15 Spin Street, Parrow Industria 7493

www.spraypave.co.za

duties (or purchase tax), which are imposed on domestically produced vehicles. Excise duty is a steady source of revenue, which can be varied to encourage or discourage use of a particular type of vehicle (for example, in the interests of safety, the reduction of air pollution, or fuel conservation). Both types of tax apply to new vehicles only. This distinguishes them from annual licence fees, which are payable by owners of all vehicles, old and new alike. Although the main purpose of import taxes on motor vehicles may be to protect the domestic vehicle manufacturing industry, it is customarily regarded as general government income.

3. Axle or wheel tax This type of tax, if based purely on the number of axles or wheels involved (and not on axle mass as well), is counterproductive, since heavy vehicles with a large number of axles might cause less damage to roads than heavy vehicles with fewer axles. It does, however, distinguish to some extent between light and heavy vehicles. This form of taxation is not applicable in South Africa.

TAX ON PLACE OF VEHICLE USE 1. Supplementary licensing Supplementary licensing is a system whereby vehicle entry into a designated area during specified hours is restricted to vehicles displaying an appropriate area entry permit.

2. Licence fees Licence fees are charges This type of road user charge effectively per period of time (normally one year) for the constitutes a restrictive measure well suited right to operate a vehicle on public roads. to densely populated cities. To date, however, Although licence fees do not vary with the its permanent distance travelled by use has been a particular vehicle, Licence fees are levied on confined to they can vary with the cities of almost anything tare mass, with scant regard Singapore else, including mass, for the real costs imposed (since the size, engine output, by each vehicle type middle 1970s) type of vehicle, and London value, and vehicle (since the owner’s address. beginning Next to fuel tax, of 2003). licensing is the most The chief advanpopular method of road tage of supplementary licensing as a restricuser charge. Licence fees recover not only tive traffic method lies in the power of the the administrative expenses of the licensing licensing authority to control the issue of authority, but are usually also applied in part permits and, therefore, to some extent also to recover the fixed costs of roads. However, the level of traffic congestion in the restricted because they do not vary with use, they have area. The system also has the advantage no disincentive effect on marginal trips.

In South Africa, each province determines of producing revenue, although it should be annual licence fees independently. They are pointed out that revenue maximisation (by levied on tare mass, with scant regard for maximising permit sales or not using the revthe real costs imposed by each vehicle type. enue to promote public transport as an alterAdmittedly, there has, since the late 1980s, native means of travel) will defeat the primary been moves to increase licence fees to more restraint objective (Pienaar & Nel, 2009).

Fourie and Freeman (1980) discuss the merrealistic levels, such as to base it on gross vehicle mass. However, these prospect moves its of supplementary licensing in South Africa. have been met with serious criticism from They have serious reservations about the especially the agricultural sector and the introduction of such systems in South Africa.

Considerable opposition to such a move might bus industry.

In addition to paying the conventional annual occur because historically road facilities were licence fee, freight carriers wishing to convey not provided in accordance with supply and goods to and from beyond the country’s bor- demand, and existing land use patterns were ders, and all professional passenger transport influenced by the road system. A sudden operators must apply for a permit to conduct change of course may possibly be seen as such business. These permit fees are gen- a threat to liberty and equity, and deprive erally not regarded as a form of road cost marginal private transport users of mobility. recovery and also have no bearing on the Residents of outlying suburbs are generally forced, because of a lack of convenient public characteristics of the vehicle.

IMIESA November/December 2013

67

STRATEGIC PARTNERS

Born and bred right here - Bell is Africa’s very own global equipment supplier. With Bell you get machines built tough for our harsh environment and support from Africa’s most comprehensive network of people dedicated to your success. Best of all, while you are creating infrastructure and jobs, so are we.

Choose Bell as your equipment partner and enjoy the pride of knowing you’re not just boosting your business but helping make Africa a better place too.

Tel: +27 (0) 11 928 9700 E-mail: sales@bell.co.za www.bellequipment.com

uppe marketing A09481

INFR SET

Aveng Manufacturing Infraset produces a diverse range of precast concrete products to world-class quality standards and actively contributes to SADC infrastructure development.

Our range includes concrete pipes, culverts, manholes, special precast products, various types of pre-stressed railway sleepers, turnouts, maintenance-free railway electrification masts and poles, paving blocks, retaining wall systems and roof tiles.

Aveng Manufacturing Infraset’s admired heritage is founded on innovation, technical and service excellence.

Aveng Manufacturing Infraset Steeldale House TEL: +27 (0)11 876 5500 FAX: +27 (0)11 872 1713 EMAIL: infrasetinfo@infraset.com www.infraset.com

nj nj ƿ GAUTENG – TEL: +27 (0)11 876 5100 CAPE TOWN – TEL: +27 (0)21 908 1156 KWAZULU NATAL (PIETERMARITZBURG) – TEL: +27 (0)33 387 2236

ÇŚ ĘŽ

NATIONAL – TEL: +27 (0)11 813 2340

SWAZILAND – TEL: +2682 518 4236 | ZAMBIA – TEL: +260 21 131 1838

ÇŚ

ÇŚ

ROSSWAY (MIDRAND) – TEL: +27 (0)12 652 0000 KWAZULU NATAL (EFFINGHAM) – TEL: +27 (0)31 569 6900

ROADS, BRIDGES AND STORMWATERS

transport alternatives, to commute by car.

Those most likely affected by supplementary licensing are marginal users who can only just afford to run a car, which means that such schemes are regressive.

2. Toll systems Toll systems involve the levying of a charge for the use of a facility.

The purpose of a toll system can be to: • finance costly facilities on a “user pays” basis (e.g. bridges, tunnels and high standard roads) • reduce traffic congestion • provide an equitable method of charging users of a facility according to the damage caused by use.

Tolls are contentious, mainly because: • toll collection systems are expensive, especially on roads that carry low traffic volumes, in the latter case thus constituting an inefficiency • if a sufficient number of other forms of road user charges exist to cover the total road cost responsibility, there would be an over-recovery or double-recovery of road user costs each time a vehicle uses a tolled road section • toll systems discriminate against people living near the toll facility who have no choice but to use the facility and thus pay the toll, compared with residents of other areas who have a similar degree of access to the road system without having to pay a toll.

A general principle in toll fixing is that the toll charge should be smaller than the saving to the user of the toll facility; obviously toll charges should not be higher than the perceived saving of using the best alternative route.

Since the operating costs of heavier vehicles are higher, differential charges can nevertheless be used to some extent, as is done on South African toll roads. Also by equipping roads with axle mass measuring devices, overloaded vehicles can be apprehended.

This method of road financing has since the early 1990s been gaining ground in South Africa.

LOCAL COMMUNITY TAXES 1. Property and land taxes Property tax is commonly deemed to be a general source of local government revenue. The use of local taxes to finance local roads (streets) is advocated, generally because: • streets afford accessibility to all fixed property • streets accommodate mobility of the entire community

and fines payable for traffic offences and • streets are evenly distributed other contraventions.

• property taxes are fairly simple and inexGeneral revenue sources which are applied pensive to administer towards road building are transferred to road • property taxes are roughly proportionate building authorities in the form of (1) direct with wealth. allocations, (2) subsidies and (3) loans. In Property taxes are therefore simultaneously the case of a direct government allocation, efficient and fairly equitable. Inequities that the revenue may derive from either an earmay exist are attributable mainly to varymarked (or dedicated) fund, in which case ing dwelling occupancy rates and varying the revenue can be used only for a specified family incomes. purpose, or from central government general The financing of roads by local authorities revenue. Dedication of a fund is usually comcompetes with the provision of amenities and other essential ser vices such as local public A general principle in toll fixing is that health services.

the toll charge should be smaller than the saving to the user of the toll facility

2. Service charges Well over half of local authority income in South Africa derives from service charges levied by the utility departments, especially electricity, public transport, water and sewerage charges.

These are usually fairly proportional to the service provided and cross-subsidisation is therefore not rife. Since it is efficient to finance such facilities as far as possible out of the charges levied for each service, it cannot be recommended that cross-subsidisation be used to finance road provision. On the other hand, road provision could also be regarded as a service and in this case parking charges or levies would be appropriate measures for recovering costs.

GENERAL REVENUE SOURCES The general revenue from which governments finance road provision derives from different sources of income. This is obtained from all kinds of economic subjects. Examples are: corporate income tax, personal income tax and value-added tax. The general state revenue that derives directly from South African road users (it does not necessarily emanate directly from road usage per se) include, among others, income tax paid by professional transport operators, value-added tax on vehicles and other transport input commodities, fringe benefit tax on vehicles supplied to employees for their private use, customs, excise and import duties on commodities associated with the transport process,

bined with the creation of a trust fund such as the (now defunct) National Road Fund.

This has the advantage that road authorities have a secure source of income, as opposed to the alternative where taxes are paid into the general state income account and allocations are then made to roads by government on a year-to-year basis.

The latter is often preferred by Treasury officials as it permits flexibility in responding to changing priorities of roads and other public needs. In addition, road budgets are subject to a predetermined policy rule and the associated delegation of road financing policy decisions to the executive rather than the legislative arm of government may result in an allocation of resources, which does not reflect the public’s priority in values (Dehlen & Mitchell 1980).

Although a convincing case cannot be made out for dedicating the capital costs of roads, since nowadays the decision to invest must generally be justified by the return from the project, (as compared with rates of return or benefit/cost ratios in other sectors), there is a strong case for dedicating expenditure on

IMIESA November/December 2013

69

TJDR 55456

efficient Deliveries Intelligent deliveries for better building project management.

More Value Improved mix ratios make every bag go further.

TECHNICAL SUPPORT LINE THE PPC BUILDER’S APP Call 0800 023 470 and speak to one of our helpful technical experts.

*HSJ\SH[L X\HU[P[PLZ HUK ÄUK your nearest seller of PPC Cement. Download your free App at www.ppc.mobi

As a builder, your customers demand a lot from you. That’s why you need a cement company you can rely on. At PPC, we’re always exploring new possibilities and solutions that we can offer our clients so they can do the best job for all their projects. From a unique Builder’s App for smartphones to on-site deliveries and our technical support line, PPC always gives you strength beyond the bag.

Our strength, Your vision.

ROADS, BRIDGES AND STORMWATER

road maintenance. It can be argued that it will ensure the preservation of investments in existing roads and that a “saving� in maintenance expenditure could entail increased future capital expenditure.

Capital subsidies from general state funds present more difficulties than maintenance subsidies. The subsidy issue is more complicated. Subsidisation takes place on two levels: direct subsidies by local or central government and cross-subsidisation between individual users, between different classes of users, and between users and non-users.

In South Africa, direct subsidies are generally regarded as indispensable for the support of public transport, especially commuter transport, while road users are expected to be more or less self-supporting. Crosssubsidisation between various classes of road users, on the other hand, is considered detrimental to proper resource allocation (i.e. inefficient) and should be minimised. Local authorities have thus far made extensive use of loan funds. Toll facilities lend themselves

ideally towards the use of loan funding, especially if the government is in a position to guarantee repayment, should the future stream of toll revenue be inadequate to fully repay the loan. Such a situation might occur in the initial years of road operation when substantial over-capacity might be prevalent, rendering the revenue stream temporarily inadequate to meet repayment requirements.

The South African National Roads Agency (Sanral) makes substantial use of loan funds to finance the construction of certain tolled sections of the national inter-urban road system. The inherent danger of loan financing is overcommitment. However, loan

financing can be beneficial if handled judiciously, because it facilitates the provision of higher level of infrastructure at an earlier date, regardless of whether or not inflation is a factor. In an inflationar y situation, the use of loan funds is further justified by the fact that the loan is effectively repaid with “cheaper� money when the applicable interest rate is lower than the inflation rate.

When building a facility that is expected to last several decades, loan financing means that expenditure payments are spread over time in such a way that the current generation does not subsidise the next generation to any serious extent.

REFERENCES Dehlen, G.L. & Mitchell, M.F. 1980. Road financing in South Africa. Proceedings of the Rustenburg Transport Conference. Johannesburg: South African Institution of Civil Engineering.

Fourie, S.A. & Freeman, P.N.W. 1980. Road pricing and supplementary licensing: the current position. NITRR Technical Report RT/9/80. Pretoria: CSIR. Freeman, P.N.W. 1981. The recovery of costs from road users in South Africa. DComm dissertation. Pretoria: University of South Africa.

Pienaar, W.J. 2005. Road cost allocation and recovery. Working paper WP 1/03. Stellenbosch: Department of Logistics, Stellenbosch University.

Pienaar, W.J. & Nel, J.H. 2009. Mathematical principles of road congestion pricing. Orion. Journal of the Operations Research Society of South Africa. Volume 25 (1), pp. 45 – 51.

IMIESA November/December 2013

71

Not all kerbs are the same...

Introducing the Bosun Castle Bottom Kerb.

1BUFOU 1FOEJOH ;" /P

t &BTJFS UP IBOEMF t 2VJDLFS UP JOTUBMM t #FUUFS BEIFTJPO XJUI MFTT NPWFNFOU "WBJMBCMF PO 'JHVSF BOE $ NN LFSCT Advantages of Castle Bottom Kerb, Compared to Conventional Kerbs t 5IF DBWJUJFT QSPWJEF B HSJQ GPS JOTUBMMFST XIFO MBZJOH UIF LFSCT 5IJT FOBCMFT NVDI FBTJFS IBOEMJOH t 5IF DBWJUJFT NBLF UIF $BTUMF #PUUPN ,FSC NVDI RVJDLFS BOE FBTJFS UP JOTUBMM 8IFSF VOMFWFM TDSFFE TVSGBDFT GPSDF JOTUBMMFST UP VQMJGU m MM VQ BOE SF MBZ DPOWFOUJPOBM LFSCT JU JT FBTJFS UP NBOPFVWSF B $BTUMF #PUUPN ,FSC JOUP QMBDF XJUI UIF TDSFFE CFJOH EJTQMBDFE UP UIF DBWJUJFT JO UIF LFSC t 5IF $BTUMF #PUUPN TJOLT JOUP UIF TDSFFE QSPWJEJOH NVDI CFUUFS BEIFTJPO BOE NBOZ NPSF QPJOUT PG TVSF CPOEJOH t 5IF $BTUMF #PUUPN JT MFTT QSPOF UP NPWFNFOU UIBO DPOWFOUJPOBM n BU LFSC TVSGBDFT PODF UIF CFEEJOH IBT DVSFE t 5IF n BU CPUUPN PG DPOWFOUJPOBM LFSCT EP OPU IBWF DPOTJTUFOU TVQQPSU GSPN UIF TDSFFE BT UIF TDSFFE JT OFWFS B QFSGFDU NBUDI UP UIF CPUUPN TVSGBDF PG UIF LFSC 5IF FOUJSF CPUUPN TVSGBDF NJHIU UIFSFGPSF OPU CF JO DPOUBDU XJUI UIF TDSFFE SFTVMUJOH JO LFSC CSFBLBHFT PODF XFJHIU JT BQQMJFE GSPN BCPWF 5IF SFHVMBS QPJOUT PG TVSF CPOEJOH PG UIF $BTUMF #PUUPN ,FSC BOE UIFJS QSPYJNJUZ UP FBDI PUIFS OFHBUF UIJT QPTTJCJMJUZ

E+I 18075

www.bosun.co.za Tel 0860 267 862 info@bosun.co.za

TECHNICAL PAPER

LAND ADMINISTRATION

A new model for the City of PART ONE The application of the Land Administration Domain Model (LADM) to the City of Johannesburg Land Information System is based on the fact that different organisations have different responsibilities in data maintenance. Part 1 of this paper is published here, with Part 2 to be published in January 2014. by Serena Coetzee, Centre for Geoinformation Science, University of Pretoria, and Dinao Tjia, City of Johannesburg

72

IMIESA November/December 2013

T

HE LADM IS A conceptual schema that facilitates the exchange and maintenance of different data sets by different organisations, especially in distributed systems, and was published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as an International Standard on 19 November 2012 (ISO 19152:2012).

A number of countries considered the adaption of the LADM to their local needs.

Examples documented in ISO 19152:2012 are the countr y profiles for Por tugal, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Hungary, the Netherlands, the Russian Federation and the Republic of Korea. Elia et al (2013) investigated the adaptation of Core Cadastral Domain Model (LADM’s earlier version) in

TECHNICAL PAPER

Johannesburg Information the Cyprus Land Information System (CLIS) with the aim of improving its data model. In Portugal, an object-oriented conceptual model based on LADM has been developed for the Portuguese Cadastre and the Portuguese Real Estate Register (Hespanha et al, 2009).

Pouliot et al (2013) used the LADM in a comparative case study between condominium/ co-ownership in Quebec (Canada) and Alsace Moselle (France).

This research presents an initial exploration of the LADM application within the South African context.

City of Johannesburg Land Information System (COJLIS) The vision of the City of Johannesburg (COJ) is to develop a unified repository of property information within its jurisdiction.

Historically, the COJ departments that dealt with property information operated separate databases and systems (Tjia & Coetzee, 2012). This mode of operation made property information maintenance and sharing

across departments virtually impossible and resulted in data duplication and misinterpretation. The lack of integration of property data and systems negatively affected service delivery turnaround times for development applications (i.e. township development, subdivision, consolidation, etc.). This in turn affected the economic growth of the city. Because various depar tments used independent databases, customers often had to be referred from one department to the other in order to obtain a complete set of property data. This impacted negatively on the customer experience. Figure 1 shows the old COJ Property Value Chain Model on which the city’s Land Information System (LIS) is based.

The creation of a property in the COJLIS begins at the stage when an applicant submits a development application (e.g. township establishment, subdivision, consolidation, etc.). Different processes can be followed: the township establishment process is conducted in accordance with the town

planning ordinance, an alternative process is done in accordance with the Less Formal Township Establishment Act (LFTE), or a third alternative process is conducted in terms of the Development Facilitation Act (DFA). The LFTE and DFA processes were popular over the past decades; they were used to fasttract development post-1994.

A number of entities within and outside COJ are involved in the development application process. The utilities, agencies and corporatised entities (UACs), such as Johannesburg Water, City Power, and Johannesburg Water comment on ser vices in the proposed development. The Surveyor General Office approves the survey plans of developments.

The Deeds Office provides the registered property ownership information. The COJ GIS division captures the Surveyor General approved plans and allocates street addresses. The Valuation division determines the FIGURE 1 COJ Property Value Chain (Tjia & Coetzee, 2012)

IMIESA November/December 2013

73

Electric Motors Variable Speed Drives Soft Starters Transformers Low & Medium Voltage Switchgear Diesel Generator Sets Power Generation & Energy Solutions

0861 00 ZEST |

www.zest.co.za

Packaged Switchgear Solutions Containerised Substations Electrical Instrumentation & Control System Installation 24 Hour Back-up & Support

Coralynne & Associates +27 (011) 422 1949

Training

TECHNICAL PAPER

FIGURE 2 COJ property value chain of events

property value. The Johannesburg Property Company (JPC) supplies the Valuation division with the city’s lease properties. The Rates and Taxes (R&T) department captures the change of ownership from the deeds ownership data. The Customer Liaison division updates the change of address and also maintains the postal address details.

R&T uses the ownership data (new owner’s address) to generate the tax clearance certificates. R&T creates a customer billing account. The Revenue division collects the revenue from the property assessment rates and services charges (e.g. water, sewerage, electricity, etc.). The COJ property value chain of events is presented in Figure 2.

Comparison between the LADM basic classes and the COJLIS The LADM provides a conceptual framework and the actual implementation of the LADM is dependent on the development of an application schema. The application schema needs to be tested for conformance with the LADM in terms of package and level (ISO 19152:2012). The LADM specifies three levels of conformance. For the purpose of this paper, the first level was examined, which is limited to the basic classes off the LADM. For the first conformance level in the LADM, the following classes are relevant: VersionedObject, LA_Party, LA_RRR and its specialisation LA_Right, LA_BAUnit, LA_SpatialUnit and LA_Source and its specialisation LA_AdministrativeSource. In this section, the results of the tests for the classes, attributes and associations in the LADM are documented by showing a mapping between the LADM elements and the elements in the COJLIS data model. Subsection 4.1 shows the class mapping, subsection 4.2 the attribute mapping and subsection 4.3 the mapping of associations. The data in the COJLIS was inspected as a means to understand the model but it was not tested against the LADM requirements.

CGIS Cadastre Capt p ure

Deve v lopment n

planning

Deeds Owners O r hip

v a l u e c h a i n L IS

G IS c a p tu re s c a d a s tra l d a ta , zo n in g & s tre e t a d d re s s s p a tia l in fo rm a tio n

D e v e lo p m e n t a p p lic a tio n in fo rm a tio n (s u b d iv is io n s , c o n s o lid a tio n , consent use, to w n s h ip s ) a n d b u ild in g in fo rm a tio n (b u ild in g p la n s , s ite p la n s , o c c u p a tio n a l c e rtific a te s , e tc .)

Deeds in fo rm a tio n (re g is te re d o w n e rs , s e lle rs & b u y e rs , title d e e d s n u m b e r, e n d o rs e m e n ts )

FIGURE 3 LADM and COJ LIS basic classes

L a n d v a lu e s (e .g , s ite v a lu e , im p ro v e m e n t v a lu e , ra te a b le s ize , n o ta ria l tie d s ta tu s , e ffe c tiv e d a te .)

data from the COJLIS database. For readability purposes, the stereotypes are displayed to group the related attributes. The COJLIS look-up tables are shown as enumerations in Figure 3. 

corresponding COJLIS entities. The COJLIS geodatabase schema was exported into the Enterprise Architect modelling tool using its ArcGIS workspace functionality. The information represented was extracted from sample baunitAsParty 0..* VersionedObject

«featureType» LA_Party + + + + +

VersionedObject

extPID :Oid [0..1] name :CharacterString [0..1] pID :Oid role :LA_PartyRoleType [0..1] type :LA_PartyType

0..*

«featureType» LA_RRR +party

unitRrr

0..1

+rrr 0..*

constraints ::VersionedObject { endLifespanVersion (n-1)=startLifespanVersion (n) }

+ + + + +

0..*

0..* VersionedObject

description :CharacterString rID :Oid share :Fraction [0..1] shareCheck :Boolean [0..1] timeSpec :ISO8601_ISO14825_Type [0..1]

«featureType» LA_BAUnit +rrr 1..*

+unit unitRrr

+ name :CharacterString [0..1] + type :LA_BAUnitType +1 uID :Oid constraints {sum(RRR.share)=1 per type if RRR.shareCheck} {no overlap RRR.timeSpec per summed type} ::VersionedObject { endLifespanVersion (n-1)=startLifespanVersion (n) }

constraints ::VersionedObject { endLifespanVersion (n-1) = startLifespanVersion (n) }

+baunit

suHierarchy

0..* +su2 0..1

+su1 0..* VersionedObject

«featureType» LA_SpatialUnit

+su suBau0..*

+ + + + + + + +

extAddressID :ExtAddress [0..*] area :LA_AreaValue [0..*] dimension :LA_DimensionType [0..1] label :CharacterString [0..1] referencePoint :GM_Point [0..1] suID :Oid surfaceRelation :LA_SurfaceRelationType [0..1] volume :LA_VoulmeValue [0..*]

+ + + + + +

areaClosed() :Boolean volumeCosed() :Boolean computeArea() :Boolean computeVolume() :Boolean createArea() :GM_MultiSurface createVolume() :GM_MultiSolid

constraints ::VersionedObject { endLifespanVersion (n-1)=startLifespanVersion (n) }

Basic classes of the City of Johannesburg Land Information System (LIS) Land parcels (cadastral bondaries)

«ObjectClass» LIS.OWNER

RESTRICTIONS (Mortgage, notarial serv itude, etc.)

UNIT_TYPE (Types of Land Rights)

« ld» + OWNER_KEY :esriFieldTypeDouble «p partyyType» + OWNER_TYPE_CODE :esriFieldTypeDouble «extPID» + OWNER_ID :esriFieldTypeDouble «fullNames» + OWNER_NAME :esriFieldTypeString «naturalPersonName» + OWNER_TITLE :esriFieldTypeString + OWNER_FNAME :esriFieldTypeString + OWNER_SNAME :esriFieldTypeString + OWNER_INITIALS :esriFieldTypeString «nonNaturalPerson» + OWNER_ORGANISATION :esriFieldTypeString

«Polygon» LIS.SP_PROPERTY

«ObjectClass» LIS.ENDORSEMENT

TITLE_DEED_NO (identifier of rights in land)

«Field» + PROPERTY_ID :esriFieldTypeDouble «r rictionTyp ype» yp + ENDORSEMEN_CODE :esriFieldTypeString + ENDORSEMENT_DESC :esriFieldTypeString «mortg gag ge» + BOND_HOLDER :esriFieldTypeString + BOND_AMOUNT :esriFieldTypeDouble + BOND_NUMBER :esriFieldTypeString

0..*

1

1

«ObjectClass» LIS.UNIT 0..*

«ObjectClass» LIS.UNIT_OWNER «Field» + UNIT_KEY :esriFieldTypeDouble + OWNER_KEY :esriFieldTypeDouble «RRR» + TITLE_DEED_NO :esriFieldTypeString «beg ginLifesp panVersion» + REGISTRATION_DATE :esriFieldTypeString + ACTIVATION_DATE :esriFieldTypeString «saleTransaction» + PURCH_PRICE :esriFieldTypeDouble + PURCH_DATE :esriFieldTypeString

0..*

1

«rig ghtTyp Type» + UNIT_TYPE :esriFieldTypeString «Field» + UNIT_KEY :esriFieldTypeDouble + PROPERTY_ID :esriFieldTypeDouble + DOOR_NO :esriFieldTypeString + LIVING_UNITS :esriFieldTypeDouble + STATUS_SUBTYPE :esriFieldTypeDouble «sectionalScheme» + UNIT_NO :esriFieldTypeDouble + SCHEME_NO :esriFieldTypeDouble + SCHEME_NAME :esriFieldTypeString + PART_QUOTA_PERC :esriFieldTypeDouble + FLOOR_NO :esriFieldTypeDouble + SCHEME_YEAR :esriFieldTypeString «area» + LEGAL_AREA :esriFieldTypeDouble

0..*

1

«suID» + PROPERTY_ID :esriFieldTypeInteger + RE_TOWNSHIP_IND :esriFieldTypeString + RE_SUBDIVISION_IND :esriFieldTypeString + SCHEME_IND :esriFieldTypeString «label» + LAND_TYPE_CODE :esriFieldTypeInteger + STAND_NO :esriFieldTypeString + TOWN_NAME_KEY :esriFieldTypeInteger «beg ginLifesp panVersion» + ACTIVATION_DATE :esriFieldTypeDate + REGISTRATION_DATE :esriFieldTypeDate «endLifesp panVersion» + DEACTIVATION_DATE :esriFieldTypeDate «extAddressID» + SG_ID :esriFieldTypeString «Subtyp typeField» + STATUS_SUBTYPE :esriFieldTypeInteger «area» + LEGAL_AREA :esriFieldTypeDouble + LEGAL_UNITS :esriFieldTypeString + AREA_SQMT :esriFieldTypeDouble «sp patialSource» + DIAGRAM_HOTLINK :esriFieldTypeString

1

0..*

+ BUILDING_AREA :esriFieldTypeDouble «Field» + UNIT_KEY :esriFieldTypeDouble + STATUS_CODE :esriFieldTypeString + EFFECTIVE_DATE :esriFieldTypeString + BUILDING_NAME :esriFieldTypeString + LIVING_UNITS :esriFieldTypeInteger

0..*

«ObjectClass» LIS.BUILDING_PLAN

«enumeration» OWNER_TYPE Attributes + 1 = Individual + 2 = Company + 3 = Government + 4 = CloseCorporation + 5 = LocalAthority + 6 = Financial Insti... + 7 = Church + 8 = Trust + 9 = Estate + 10 = Parnership + 13 = Association + 21 = BodyCorporate + 23 = Union

«enumeration» UNIT_TYPE Attributes + F = FullTitleStands... + ST = SectionalTitleU... + L = LongTermLeases + S = Servitudes (Not... + PC = ProspectingContract + M = MiningStands + RM = CessionOfRights...

«enumeration» ENDORSEMENT_CODE Attributes + NS = NotarialServitude + RM = Cession of Righ... + OTH = OtherEndorseme... + MP = Mynpachte + PC = ProspectingContra... + DL = Deeds of Lease

«Polygon» LIS.ZONING_PROPERTY

1

1..*

«Fi ld» + PROPERTY_ID :esriFieldTypeInteger + ZONE_RATIO :esriFieldTypeString + ZONE_AREA :esriFieldTypeString «descrip ption» + ZONE_CODE :esriFieldTypeString + ZONE_DESC :esriFieldTypeString + TPS_CODE :esriFieldTypeString «useRig ght» + ZONE_TYPE :esriFieldTypeString

«ObjectClass» LIS.PROPERTY_USE

1..

1..*

«Field» + PROPERTY_ID :esriFieldTypeInteger «useRig ght» + USAGE_TYPE :esriFieldTypeString «descrip ption» + USAGE_CODE :esriFieldTypeString + USAGE_NAME :esriFieldTypeString «timeSp pec» + REGISTRATION_DATE :esriFieldTypeDate + EXPIRED_DATE :esriFieldTypeDate

«ObjectClass» LIS.PROPERTY_BUILDING

1

Class mapping Figure 3 shows the cross-mapping of the LADM basic classes against the

Revenu nue e

V luation Va

+ BUILDING_AREA :esriFieldTypeDouble «Field» + UNIT_KEY :esriFieldTypeDouble + PLAN_TYPE_CODE :esriFieldTypeString + EFFECTIVE_DATE :esriFieldTypeString + BUILDING_TYPE_CODE :esriFieldTypeString + LIVING_UNITS :esriFieldTypeInteger

«ObjectClass» LIS.SG_PLAN «Field» + PROPERTY_ID :esriFieldTypeInteger + IM_PLAN_KEY :esriFieldTypeInteger + IMAGE_NAME :esriFieldTypeString + DOCUMENT_NO :esriFieldTypeString + PAGE_NO :esriFieldTypeString + SG_TOWN_CODE :esriFieldTypeString + SG_ERF :esriFieldTypeString + SG_PORTION :esriFieldTypeString «medium» + PDF_IMAGE_NAME :esriFieldTypeString

«enumeration» ZONING_TYPE

«enumeration» USAGE_TYPE Attributes + PrimaryRight + PermissableUse + ConsentUse + NotPermissableUse

Attributes + Residential + Industrial + Business + Commercial + Educational + Institutional + PublicGarage + Parking + PrivateOpenSpace + Agricultural

«enumeration» STATUS_SUBTYPE Attributes + 1 = Registered + 2 = SG_Approved + 4 = Withdrawn + 7 = History + 8 = Deleted

«enumeration» LAND_TYPE Attributes + 1 = Erven + 2 = Farm + 3 = AgriculturalHolding + 4 = Park + 5 = TownshipRemainder + 6 = SubdivisionRemainder

IMIESA November/December 2013

75

TECHNICAL PAPER

The COJLIS includes information corresponding to the LA_Par ty, LA_RRR, LA_Right, LA_BAUnit and LA_SpatialUnit classes. VersionedObject, LA_Source and LA_AdministrativeSource are not represented in the COJLIS. Table 1 shows the mapping between the LADM classes and the COJLIS entities.

VersionedObject is the superclass of all classes in the LADM. Its attributes store historical data, i.e. inserted and superseded data are given a time-stamp. In this way, the contents of the land administration data can be reconstructed, as they were at any historical moment. The COJLIS data model contains lineage data (not included shown in Figure 3) for the spatial units only. There is a one-to-many relationship between LIS.SP_PROPERTY and the LIS.LINEAGE entity. The lineage includes descriptive information about the property development processes. COJLIS does not include timestamps for each individual entity and therefore does not conform to the LADM.

Attribute mapping In this subsection, the attributes of the mandatory classes (see Table 1) in the LADM are mapped to corresponding attributes in the COJLIS data model.

LA_Party and the corresponding COJLIS OWNER class The attributes of LA_Party are: extPID (identifier of party in an external database), type of party (e.g. natural and non-natural persons), name of party, the role of party, and the identifier of party (ISO 19152:2012). Table 2 shows the LA_Party and LIS.OWNER comparison.

The LIS.OWNER entity class contains information about the owner(s) of a property in the role of ratepayers or developers.

The OWNER_TYPE_CODE attribute stores the code that represents the type of owner: individual, company, close corporation, trust, etc. The owners in the COJLIS are identified in OWNER_ID by using the identity numbers as captured in the national population register. Passport numbers are used for foreign nationals. The OWNER_NAME attribute stores the registered legal full name of the owner. The OWNER_TITLE, OWNER_INITIALS, OWNER_FNAME and OWNER_SNAME, as well as the OWNER_ORGANISATION attributes are populated by the Revenue department TABLE 2 LA_Party and LIS OWNER attribute comparison

TABLE 1 The LADM basic classes and their corresponding COJIS entities

LADM Basic Class

COJIS Entity

La_party

Lis.owner

La_right (LA_RRR)

through the SAP billing system. The OWNER_ ORGANISATION attribute represents the organisation’s name or names of non-natural parties, such as companies, close corporation, trust, etc There is duplication of owner names in the COJLIS data model. The OWNER_NAME and OWNER_ID attributes are populated through the COJLIS interface, while the OWNER_TITLE, OWNER_INITIALS, OWNER_FNAME, OWNER_ SNAME and OWNER_ORGANISATION attributes are populated through the SAP billing system. There is a one-way flow of information from the COJLIS to the SAP billing system, implying that the OWNER_TITLE, OWNER_ INITIALS, OWNER_FNAME, OWNER_SNAME and OWNER_ORGANISATION attributes are available but empty in the COJLIS data. This duplication results in discrepancies in owner information, for example, when the new owner is filled into the OWNER_NAME attribute but the SAP billing system does not yet reflect the new owner in the other five attributes.

The COJLIS data model conforms to the LA_Party attribute requirements of the LADM. The OWNER_ID attribute corresponds to the extPID attribute, the OWNER_KEY attribute to the pID attribute and the OWNER_TYPE_CODE attribute to the type attribute in LA_Party. The name attribute in LA_Party is represented by more than one attribute in the COJLIS data model. There is no attribute in the COJLIS data model that corresponds to the role in LA_Party. However, this attribute is optional in the LADM. The COJLIS is designed to store information about owners of proper ty with the

Lis.unit_owner Lis.endorsement Lis.property_use

La_restriction*

Lis.zoning_property Lis.building_plan

La_responsibility*

-

La_baunit

Lis.unit

La_spatialunit

Lis.sp_property

La_administrativesource (La_source)*

Lis.sp_property.

Diagram_hotlink

La_spatialsource*

Lis.sg_plan

Versionedobject

-

purpose of collecting revenue from property rates and service charges. However, there are a number of other parties involved in the development process at the COJ. The key parties include an applicant or developer who submits an application for development approval, the surveyor who prepares the layout plan for the land proposed to be developed, and the conveyancer who collects rates clearance from the municipality and prepares the deed of sale and deed of transfer, certificate of title, etc. Adding the role of the party to the COJLIS data model would enable representing the fact that parties may play different roles in LA. The current labelling of all parties as owners in the COJLIS data model restricts inclusion of other parties who are not necessarily the owners but are involved in the development process and property value chain.

In Part 2 of this article, corresponding classes are considered, as are endorsements, zoning and a useful summary.

La_party

Lis.owner

Lis.owner Attribute Description

Extpid*

Owner_id

The Id Number (Or Company Registration Number) Of The Owner

Name*

Owner_name

The Full Names Of The Owner (From The Deeds Office)

Owner_title

The Title Of The Owner

Owner_initials

The Initials Of The Owner

Owner_fname

The First Names Of The Owner

Owner_sname

The Surname Of The Owner

Owner_organisation

The Organisation Name

Pid

Owner_key

The System Generated Unique Identifier Of An Owner.

Role*

-

The Cojlis Model Contains Only The Owners Of Property.

Their Role Is Not Distinguished. However, The Owner Of A Property May Be A Rates Payer, Buyer Or Seller

Type

Owner_type_code

The Type Of Party (I.e. Individual, Company, Trust, Etc.)

* Optional attribute

IMIESA November/December 2013

77

WATER TREATMENT

PROCESS DESIGN AND PLANT UPGRADE

Pure water solution Ixopo is situated on a tributary of the Mkhomazi River in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands. Working with the local water utility, Umgeni Water, Water Purification Chemical & Plant have successfully completed a comprehensive upgrade, on time and without hitch.

78

IMIESA November/December 2013

WATER TREATMENT

for uMgeni I XOPO FALLS WITHIN the Izantaba Sisonke management system of Umgeni Water and buys its bulk water directly from the water body. Umgeni also operates the Ixopo Wastewater Works.

The main water source in Ixopo is the Ixopo Dam, which has a capacity of 3.1 Mℓ/d and is currently 109.4% full. Umgeni Water is responsible for the management of the dam. The current water demand in Ixopo is estimated at 1 Mℓ/d (plant capacity is 2.5 Mℓ/d).

Water is stored in concrete reser voirs, which do not have adequate capacity, with a further 200 000 ℓ storage needed to address this issue. Water is currently treated at the wastewater treatment works in Ixopo by means of flocculation and disinfection processes. The plant capacity is 2.5 Mℓ/d. The majority of the water infrastructure in the urban area of Sisonke is in excess of 30 years of age and needs to be refurbished and upgraded.

This is one of the major issues and areas of concern for future development.

The main type of sanitation in Ixopo is a reticulated waterborne sanitation system, with a wastewater purification plant, which is managed by Umgeni Water. The current capacity of the sewerage treatment works is 1.0 Mℓ/d. The sewerage system is in a generally functional condition, although some sewer lines require frequent attention due to ageing infrastructure. General problems seem to be sewer lines, blockages, pump failures and pipe bursts. Another issue that needs urgent attention is leakages and illegal connections. The capacity of the plant also needs to be upgraded in order to accommodate future developments.

The Ixopo River catchment is an important source of water in Ixopo. The Ixopo River rises in an area south-west of the municipal area. It is fed by various perennial streams

within the study area, which drain into the Ixopo River. Much of the water that feeds the Home Farm Dam comes from the streams located within the area. Moreover, the wetlands associated with these streams are home to a number of indigenous species, and with careful planning, they can ser ve as the basis for “knitting together” the presently fragmented land uses through the use of open spaces.

The area derives most of its water resources from the Home Farm Dam, which is situated towards the north-eastern boundar y of the study area.

might take place will necessitate the upgrading of the supply of water • increasing of the capacity of the concrete reser voirs by a further 200 000 ℓ storage • the water infrastructure is old and needs to be refurbished and upgraded • water reticulation problems such as air locks in the system, water blockages and pressure problems.

Mkomazi system The Ixopo System is a stand-alone system located in the town of Ixopo in the Sisonke District Municipality. Umgeni Water owns and operates this bulk supply system, which comprises of sur face and groundwater resource infrastructure, raw water pipelines and the water purification plant. The Ixopo Dam is the primar y source of raw water supply to Ixopo. Raw water is gravity-fed from the dam over a distance of 418.4 m to the raw water pump station (located at the entrance to the Ixopo Wastewater Works) and then pumped a distance of 1.382 km to the water purification plant.

Background to the water purification plant The capacity of the water purification plant has been upgraded a number of times.

The initial capacity on commissioning was 364 kℓ/d. It was then upgraded to 2 Mℓ/d in 1999. The commissioning of the new Ixopo

The upgraded plant, with three new pressure filters, now has a filter capacity of 2 Mℓ/d The following needs to be addressed in terms of water infrastructure in Ixopo: • upgrading of the water supply source is necessar y. Although water supply is currently efficient, any development that

Pressure filters at Ixopo Water Purification Works

IMIESA November/December 2013

79

WATER TREATMENT

FIGURE 1 Schematic of the Ixopo System

Clarifier in September 2007 increased the capacity to 2.35 Mℓ/d. Water purification at the plant was predominantly via a sand filtration process but, with the recent upgrade to the filters to include pressure filters, the increased capacity of the Ixopo Water Purification Plant is now 3.1 Mℓ/d. However, the plant currently experiences difficulty producing more than about 2.7 Mℓ/d.

Potable water is sold “at the fence” of the water purification plant to the Sisonke District Municipality, which is responsible for reticulation within the town of Ixopo and the adjacent peri-urban areas within uBuhlebezwe Local Municipality. The Ixopo Potable Water Reser voir is located at the water purification plant and acts as a balancing ser vice reser voir.

Average daily sales from the water purification plant, as at October 2010, amounted to 2.5 Mℓ/d with a year-on-year increase of 15%.

An analysis of the daily historical production (November 2009 to October 2010) of water for the Ixopo Water Purification Plant has shown that for 7% of the time, the plant was operated above a capacity of 2.7 Mℓ/d, while 85% of the time, it was being operated above the optimal operating capacity (80% of capacity).

Purification upgrade for Umgeni Water

80

IMIESA November/December 2013

Specialist Waste Management Consultants Sustainable and appropriate engineering solutions with integrity and professionalism.

Stanford Drop-off Vissershok Waste Mana gement Facility

Gansbaai Recycling Centre

Velddrif Transfer Station

t t t t t t t t t t t t

Integrated Waste Management Plans Waste Disposal Strategies Identification and permitting of landfill sites Design of General and Hazardous Waste sites Design of Solid Waste Transfer Stations Design of Material Recovery Facilities Optimisation of Waste Collection Systems Auditing of Waste Management Facilities Development of Operational Plans Closure and Rehabilitation of Landfills Quality Assurance on Synthetic Liners Waste Recycling Plans

Herman us Materials Recovery Facility

Botrivier Dr op-off

Jan Palm Consulting Engineers Tel +27 21 982 6570

/ Fax +27 21 981 0868 / E-mail info@jpce.co.za / www.jpce.co.za

WATER TREATMENT

Water Purification Chemicals & Plant (WPCP) recently completed a water purification plant upgrade project, as mechanical and electrical contractor for Umgeni Water.

“Due to the expansion of the population in the greater Ixopo area in KwaZulu-Natal, the local water purification plant had been experiencing serious water shortages,” says Martin Overy, WPCP’s MD. “Outdated filtration equipment aggravated this problem and the urgency of the situation required that the upgrade be completed in a tight three-month period.

“The challenges of this contract, which entailed the refurbishment of the filtration capacity of the Ixopo Water Purification Works, included a contract to strip the existing non-functional pressure sand filters and replace them with new coated steel sand filters.”

WPCP, with the assistance of the Umgeni Water plant personnel at Ixopo, process technicians and design engineers at Umgeni Water process evaluation facility, ensured the contract deadline was met – with only half a day’s downtime.

The upgraded plant, with three new pressure filters, now has a filter capacity of 2 Mℓ/d. According to stringent Umgeni Water specifications, the water quantity is 90 m³/h and the quality is less than, or

equal to, 0.2 NTU (Nephelometric Turbidity Units – the measure of the clarity of a liquid).

Dedicated backwash and backwash recovery pumps, air blowers, piping and valves, as well as a full set of instrumentation enhance the new filtration plant.

Computerised automation The plant, which needed to become fully computerised, required the automation of the entire pressure filter system, including the design, programming, installation and commissioning of a new motor Programmable Logic Controller and human-machine interface data visualisation solutions. This also included valve actuation, pump automation, cabling and the compilation of a functional design specification for the system. Electron Natal supplied this equipment while Umgeni Water’s process evaluation facility undertook all the process design.

WPCP is a multidisciplinary water treatment specialist that offers a range of services encompassing the chemical aspects of drinking water treatment, the latest filtration technologies and the design and upgrades of water purification plants.

IMIESA November/December 2013

81

HOUSING

MEETING THE DEMAND

Integrated housing boost for Cape Town Situated in the south peninsula district between Strandfontein and Zeekoevlei is the City of Cape Town’s 80 ha housing project: Pelican Park. On 12 June, the first residents of this integrated development received their keys. IMIESA takes a look at the multimillion rand project.

C

OMMISSIONED BY THE City of Cape Town's Department of Human Settlements, the Pelican Park Phase 1 project arose from an extremely high demand for various housing types in the area. What makes this project particularly exciting is that 3 200 families will receive homes in one of the mother city’s first integrated housing developments, with home ownership being the most significant economic achievement, especially for low-income families.

This environmentally friendly project will include over 2 100 statesubsidised houses, 696 single-storey semi-detached GAP houses and 63 double-storey house shops, which will enable residents to operate small businesses. Also on the plans are two school sites, a clinic, library, community centre and four commercial sites. Keys for the first completed GAP and open market houses were handed over by City of Cape Town’s mayoral committee member for Human Settlements, Councillor Tandeka Gqada, earlier this year. There are plans to hand over another 340 low-income units in late 2013.

Overview Pelican Park consists of five construction phases, and 100% of the civil ser vices for Phase 1 has already been completed, while 50% is complete on Phase 2. The engineering design includes internal roads; internal civil ser vices such as stormwater, sewer, water, electrical and telecommunications; and external stormwater disposal.

In addition, biological stormwater treatment/detention ponds were constructed to polish water before being discharged into Zeekoevlei.

IMI IM IMIESA MIIESA M ES E SA No SA N November/December ove vem vem embe ber b er er//De /D Deecem D ece ccem eem mber beer b er 220 2013 01133

83 83

HOUSING

Stormwater is diver ted into a detention pond, equipped with reed beds, before it flows down a small pipe and eventually released into the Vlei.

Challenges Like most construction projects, Pelican Park was not without its share of challenges, the biggest being the elevated water table requiring extensive dewatering for the installation of services. Another obstacle encountered was the bulk sewers crossing the site. During tender stage, it was envisaged that the bulk sewers were deep enough to allow for gravity connections but, unfortunately, it was only

TABLE 1 Housing units available In Pelican Park

84

during the construction phase that it was found this was not possible due to the level of the bulk sewers.

“Even though the bulk sewers were 3 m deep, they were only about 1.8 m in diameter. Originally we thought we would connect to those just by gravity, but when we got to site that wasn’t possible, so we had to go either over them or under them – and only a portion of the site was able to connect to the crown of the pipe,” explains Zwingli Visser, engineer at Royal HaskoningDHV (RHDHV). “As a result, we had to construct a sewage pump station to cater for the houses that couldn’t gravitate into the existing bulk sewers as originally planned.”

But what accompanies this is the issue of stormwater. “For the stormwater aspect, we

couldn’t go underneath the pipe because we had to gravitate to Zeekoevlei, so we had to alter the bulk earthworks to raise the whole of the site to enable us to get the stormwater pipe and ser vices over those bulk sewers,” he continues. As a result, alternative arrangements were required. A sewage pump station needed to be designed and constructed, and additional bulk earthworks were required in order to raise the platform levels to allow for stormwater drainage over the bulk sewers.

Densification These houses are semi-detached or up to four in a row, so the construction is as dense as reasonably possible. Compare this design to a subsidy housing scheme in Langa, for

Breaking New Ground (BNG) BNG units are 40 m² in size and appeal to people earning less than R3 500/month per household

Single storey, semi-detached: 260 Single storey, 3-row houses: 639 Single storey, 4-row houses: 688 Double storey, semi-detached: 238 Double storey, 4-row houses: 80

GAP – 765 units The GAP market consists of people who earn between R3 500 and R10 000 (household income) per month. Within this bracket, they do not qualify for state housing subsidies but also don't earn enough to participate in the competitive property market in Cape Town, which escalated dramatically over the past five years. People who earn between R3 500 to R7 500 will qualify for a subsidy deposit from government – about 50% of the required deposit

Single storey, semi-detached: 440 • Double storey, 2-row houses: 98 • Double storey, 3-row houses: 111 • Double storey, 4-row houses: 116

Market related – 423 units Appeals to households with an income of more than R10 000/month

Single storey, single houses: 359 • 3-bedroom single-storey house, single garage: 60 m² • 3-bedroom single-storey house, single garage: 75 m² • 3-bedroom single-storey house, double garage: 90 m²

Mixed use erven

64 units

TOTAL RESIDENTIAL UNITS

3 201

IMIESA November/December 2013

HOUSING

instance, where land is much more scarce and the difference is significantly noticeable.

The low-cost houses in Langa are double storey, so each house is only about 4 m wide and there are rows of houses in close proximity to each other. But in the case of this project, the city decided that adopting a similar design would be pushing the envelope a bit too far.

Project team RHDHV has been appointed civil, electrical, mechanical and structural consultant to the developer, Power Construction. RHDHV completed the related designs, funding applications on behalf of the client, and is also involved in site supervisory activities.

The project team consists of the following key players: • Power Construction: civil/building contractor • RHDHV: civil, electrical, mechanical and structural consultant • Adenco: electrical contractor • DJ Environmental Consultants: environmental consultant • Urban Development Solutions Africa: landscape architect • NuPlan Africa: town planners • Marais Muller Yekiso: conveyance attorneys • Johan Christiaans Land Surveyor: land surveyor • RR Housing Management: verification of waiting lists, completion of subsidy applications and all related sales documents.

Unique model Power Construction is both the developer and the contractor on the project, in partnership with the City of Cape Town in terms of land availability and development agreement. “Part of Power Construction’s agreement with the city is that the construction company can purchase the land from the city and then develop it for the market/bonded houses,” says Peter Oscroft, senior project manager: Department of Human Settlements, City of Cape Town. With regard to development of the BNG houses, he explains that the city pays the developer the subsidy amount. “The trick is, because the developer has to sell the GAP and Open Market houses to make its profit, it must make the BNG houses look pretty good,”

Additional bulk earthworks were required to raise the platform levels to allow for stormwater drainage over the bulk sewers

Oscroft further explains. “We can’t change people but we can change the urban design.

For instance, all the houses have tiled roofs unlike the sheet roofs commonly found on RDP houses. All electrification runs underground so there are no overhanging wires. In addition, each one of the BNG houses has a wall on the street boundary, which offers two advantages: firstly, it delineates public space from private space and, secondly, it also prevents sand blowing or being washed off the property and onto the roadway.” More than R12 000 is being pumped into each house by

IMIESA November/December 2013

85

HOUSING

The project includes statesubsidised houses, semidetached GAP houses and double-storey house shops

the developer in order to better integrate the design with the GAP and Open Market houses.

Oscroft goes into more detail around the agreement with the developer, confirming that the project demanded multidisciplinary inputs from both parties. The detailed design required the experienced commercial interests of private developers to maintain their interest and commitment in order to implement the project. As such, the development is being implemented on a turnkey basis, with the

86

City of Cape Town’s only requirement being the delivery of 2 000 subsidy houses, with an agreed list of enhancements to the urban landscape such as buried electrical reticulation. It is also important to note that the procurement process applied in the project has been extended to all subsequent housing development projects. The Request for Proposals Turnkey nature of the procurement process afforded maximum input by the developer, which is central to the development. The

sum of the values of the enhancements and the prices offered for the land was used to determine the bid most favourable to the City of Cape Town.

The total initial project budget was R550 million, but due to unforeseen circumstances on-site such as the construction of a bulk sewer station and four electrical substations, additional design and construction is required, which will escalate the project budget. Cape Town provincial government is contributing R240 million of the project cost, which includes the subsidy amount on the BNG houses and the internal services, contribution to water and sanitation sewers located in the main roads, and contribution to the bulk stormwater. The contract runs until December 2016 and civils is expected to be complete by July/August 2014.

IMIESA November/December 2013

The world needs fewer engineering companies.

Rebranded as Royal HaskoningDHV, SSI Engineers & Environmental Consultants believes in being more than an engineering company.

Our rebranding to Royal HaskoningDHV ushers in a new class of engineers and consultants, offering solutions for the sustainable interaction between people and their environment, ultimately enhancing society together.

www.rhdhv.co.za www.royalhaskoningdhv.com

TRANSPORT

DIVERSIFYING TRANSPORT

R

Tracking costs of an underutilised asset

AIL VOLUMES IN South Africa have remained flat for the past 20 years while road volumes have increased steadily. This is not a sustainable trend. If a shift from road to rail does not start to take place, the cost of transportation will continue to rise at greater levels than inflation,” says Dewald Potgieter, technical executive at GIBB. Potgieter says South Africa has about 21 000 km of railway track – 90% of which was built before 1925.

“While the track has been maintained and expanded since the 1920s, there has been negligible railway infrastructure capacity expansion.”

them to offer competitive tariffs for transportation because they have to maintain their assets as well,” he explains.

Potgieter says that the answer lies in policy. “It’s a debate that dates back to the days of Spoornet. There’s also a school of thought that suggests the fuel levy and taxes road users pay are more than what’s required to maintain the roads. Even if that’s the case, the largest contributors to those levies are private car users and not freight transport companies.”

Less than half our railway infrastructure is being used, South Africa’s roads are bearing the cost.

Out of balance South Africa has one of the longest railway networks worldwide (about the 11th longest among the top 25 countries), with the leaders being the US, Russia, China and India.

“Of our 21 000 km of railway track, however, we are currently using about half. As the road network has expanded over the years, it has brought about a reduction in rail freight transportation and long distance passenger rail usage,” states Potgieter.

Because rail freight volumes have been static for the past 20 years, South Africa’s position as the tenth largest carrier of rail freight worldwide is on the decline. “South Africa has been transpor ting just under 200 million tonnes of freight by rail per

annum for the past two decades. Other countries have increased their freight volumes via rail, for example Russia transports about 65% of all its freight on rail while South Africa transports about 15% on rail.

“Looking at roads by way of comparison, 20 years ago, roughly 600 million tonnes of freight was being transported by road in South Africa. This has increased significantly and today close to 1 400 million tonnes of freight is transported via road annually,” continues Potgieter.

Unfair economic bias Admittedly, it is difficult for rail to compete with trucks. “Truck operators/owners do not pay directly for maintenance of roads.

Their contribution is through tax, fuel levy and tolls. Rail operators, on the other hand, own the railway infrastructure and have to maintain it. This makes it more difficult for

Going the distance Passenger rail in South Africa is dominated by short distance commuter trips. “In relation to the rest of the world, we have a fairly high number of commuter trips per annum (about 500 million) – which places us about 10th or 11th globally, but as soon as distance is brought into the equation, we fall off the scale completely. The level of ser vice required to attract people to long distance rail travel is simply not in place. PRASA is, however, looking at ways to improve this.

A new R123.5 billion rolling stock procurement process forms part of this strategy and involves the introduction of more than 7 200 new passenger coaches over next 20 years.”

Making rail more hospitable Potgieter says the infrastructure will be upgraded to accommodate the new coaches.

“Capital projects include modernising priority passenger corridors – in Gauteng, Cape Town and KwaZulu-Natal – which will involve upgrading the permanent way, 20 of the

IMIESA November/December 2013

87

TRANSPORT

demand, with the emphasis on partnering with clients to ensure the various long-term capital expansion projects are sustainable.

An example is the Transnet and Eskom collaboration for transporting coal to the Majuba Power Station,” says Potgieter.

Partnering for premium freight Impor tantly, says Potgieter, proper “We support feasibility investiinfrastructure spend gations need to be being weighted conducted for all protowards rail and jects. “In addition, predictability needs are positioned to to become a priorassist government ity. If a freight cusand parastatals tomer puts his conin a professional signment on a train, partnership capacity.” he wants to know it Dewald Potgieter, technical will arrive in time.

Japan does it best. executive, GIBB Statistics show that less than 2% of its passenger trains arrive “On the freight side, Transnet is conductlate, and it makes in excess of 20 billion ing similar projects, with the focus on people trips per year.” creating additional capacity and achieving greater operational efficiency – to the tune of R200 billion over the next seven years.

Hidden benefits The issue for Transnet is freight demand.

Besides the obvious reduction of congestion Its capital expenditure planning has idention the roads, a shift from road to rail makes fied projects that will respond to market sense from an environmental responsibility busiest stations and the signalling system at a total spend of about R14.5 billion. GIBB is currently involved in the Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal projects.”

88

IMIESA November/December 2013

point of view. “Numerous studies show carbon emissions emitted by railway transportation are about half the emissions per tonne kilometre of goods transported via road,” says Potgieter. There is also the safety issue. “There is no comparison between road and rail with regard to accidents and fatalities. Most fatalities linked to rail are as a result of illegal pedestrian crossings rather than train accidents.”

GIBB is involved in numerous rail projects throughout South Africa. “We’re conducting feasibility studies for a number of new railway lines and are involved in basic planning, railway route alignment and economic evaluation for the Baralink line in Johannesburg and the Mother well Corridor in Port Elizabeth. We are also on the design, construction and monitoring team for the new Bridge City Link in KwaZulu-Natal.

“We support infrastructure spend being weighted towards rail and are positioned to assist government and parastatals in a professional partnership capacity. As a company of professional engineers who subscribe to a professional code of conduct, we are obliged to act on behalf of the public and know it is in the long-term interest of society to find the right balance between road and rail usage.

EVENT

AN INDUSTRY RENEWED

SAFCEC sees the fruits of its labour With a dynamic new CEO and a focused keynote speech from the Minister of Public Works, Thembelani Thulas Nxesi, the South African Federation of Civil Engineering Contractors’ (SAFCEC) annual conference, which took place at the Wild Coast Sun, was a resounding success with a record number of delegates.

T

AKING PLACE OVER 13 and 14 October, themes such as the renewal of the industry, uncompromised safety levels and hugely improved stakeholder relations emerged.

Webster Mfebe Before joining SAFCEC, Mfebe was executive director: stakeholder relations at construction company Basil Read between October 2009 and March 2012, and also served as a non-executive director of TWP. Between March and December 2012, he was managing director of his own company, Phendula Consulting.

Mfebe has declared as being the alignment of Webster Mfebe, CEO, SAFEC SAFCEC’s mission with the current trends in civil engineering as his main focus.

SAFCEC SAFCEC is the leading voluntary employers’ organisation for the civil engineering contractors industry in South Africa and is registered under the Labour Relations Act.

The organisation offers specific support to its members in the way of training, transformation, safety, hygiene, environment, risk and quality, human resources and industrial relations, economic affairs and contractual advice. This extremely broad portfolio was represented in the presentations, which were well chosen to meet the demands of South Africa’s environment.

As the SAFCEC conference began, it became clear that this federation of the nation’s builders has turned a corner and is looking at transformation from a very high level. Mfebe, in his maiden speech, made a firm commitment to stand for the ethics of the industry and do whatever it takes to ensure that all members – big and small – not only have access to best practice in all their affairs, but that membership of the organisation is contingent on their adherence.

This goes beyond rhetoric: health and safety in the construction industry is regarded by the organisation as non-negotiable, and Mfebe pointed out: “Take health and safety. South Africa does not have a brilliant record, but SAFCEC practises zero harm. I am happy to say there have been great improvements and our goal is within

reach.” This is borne out statistically with the Federated Employers’ Mutual Assurance Company (FEM) indicating a drastic reduction in fatalities within the civil construction sector in the past 10 years. It is worth noting that in 2008, with 23 603 employees, the industry accident frequency rate (IAFR) stood at 5.29. This has continuously declined, and this year with 24 410 workers employed by the industry, the IAFR stands at 2.81.

“SAFCEC continuously assists and guides its members in complying with legislation and good practice,” noted Mfebe.

Many themes emerged during the presentations that bore these stats out. BuildSafe – an industry initiative that aims to improve health and safety – has done much to live up to its mandate, and furthering this commitment, SAFCEC has represented its members in the development, signing and commitment to the Construction Sector health and safety Accord.

This accord is proof of SAFCEC’s commitment to addressing health and safety within its sector in the context of a tripartite collaboration between organised business, organised labour and government.

Compliance Members’ levels of compliance are monitored by means of inspections and audits, and member companies are actively involved in these activities by means of established health and safety and human resources committees.

Safety accord Last year, SAFCEC signed the Construction Health and Safety Accord – an agreement between government, organised labour and organised business to improve the status of occupational health and safety in the construction sector. The organisation is also witnessing a much greater than usual cooperation between major stakeholders, notably the big unions and other employer organisations.

Industry renewal In the closing of his speech, Mfebe pointed to the new power stations, and projects coming out of Transnet and Sanral, as bringing renewed growth to civil engineering: “We are looking forward to a number of civil engineering projects that could come from renewable energy projects. The strategic infrastructure projects and improved budget spend that the government has planned will hopefully see tenders awarded in a more efficient and fair manner, with contractors able to deliver on time and within budget.”

IMIESA November/December 2013

89

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

Vermeer digs deep at Bauma Africa

Vermeer Equipment Suppliers opened its doors in Johannesburg, South Africa, in December 2004, establishing a dedicated dealership focused on the Vermeer range of specialised product lines and the markets it serves across Southern Africa.

1

T

HIS YEAR SAW the company participating at Bauma Africa, the biggest mining and construction equipment in the world. Listed are some of the products the company promoted at the event.

3

4

5

1 T1255 Terrain Leveler Surface Excavation Machine The Vermeer T1255 Terrain Leveler surface excavation machine (SEM) is designed for mining, quarry, site prep and civil work operations, and puts more control in operators’ hands for precise, high-production material excavation. Vermeer developed top-down cutting drums that allow the cutter teeth to gain penetration without using the machine’s tractive effort to drive the teeth into the material. As the machine travels forward and the drum rotates, the teeth on the drum are positioned over the material surface. As contact is made, the topdown cutting action of the teeth instantly creates a consistent-sized product, which can be handled more efficiently than product generated by drilling and blasting.

The Vermeer T1255 SEM is built upon the Commander 3-track trencher, which provides the power needed for the demanding work in mines and quarries. The machine offers a 447.4 kW CAT C18 ACERT Tier 3 engine and Vermeer exclusive TEC Plus operating system, which interfaces with various modules throughout the machine. A load control system automatically adjusts ground speed to use maximum engine power, and also protects the engine from operator error, preventing stalling of the engine under load.

2 The RTX550 utility track trencher The RTX550 is the only 48.4 kW utility tractor to offer the innovative rubber quad-track system that provides improved flotation, reduced surface damage, increased tractive effort and greater stability. The RTX550 also features the Vermeer exclusive TrenchSense electronic control system that actively monitors engine rpm and chain operation. If a sudden drop in engine rpm occurs or chain operation stops, the tractor automatically pauses forward creep and slightly backs up, and the trencher chain slightly reverses to dislodge any material – all occurring within a couple seconds.

3 D220x300 by VBM Navigator horizontal directional drill Powered by a 298 kW Xi’anCummins engine, the D220x300 HDD is

90

IMIESA November/December 2013

2

designed for large installations with 99 790 kg of thrust/pullback and 40 675 Nm of rotational torque. The D220x300 offers the strength to meet a wide range of project specifications.

Closed loop hydraulic circuits power the main functions of rotation, push/pull and drilling fluid flow, giving exceptional performance and efficiency, and providing contractors increased productivity. If a jobsite requires a steep entry angle for a tough crossing, the D220x300 has a drill entry angle up to 24 degrees. A standard, climate-controlled operator’s cabin improves comfort and productivity by centralizing all major drilling functions.

4 BC230XL Powerful performance in a small package. The BC230XL brush chipper combines a 49.2 kW Stage IIIB Kubota diesel engine with a 23 cm x 35.5 cm infeed opening to provide superior feeding performance for dealing with heavily branched material. The twin horizontal feed rollers, with an offset 40 cm diameter upper roller, allow large short lengths to be fed without kickup reducing the workload and effort for the operator. Dual springs create 420 kg of crushing force between horizontal feed rollers.

The SmartFeed system, in combination with twin hydraulic motors, pulls in and processes difficult material reducing preparation time. A 180-degree rotating upper structure allows the operator to place the infeed where the material is.

5 S800TX mini skid-steer The S800TX is one of the most versatile mini skid-steers on the market, but doesn’t sacrifice an ounce of performance. With an arsenal of easy-to-replace attachments and intuitive controls, the S800TX is ready to take on anything. Its 26.1 kW engine won’t back down from the job – and Vermeer backs it up with a three-year or 3 000 hour limited warranty coverage on the mainframe and boom loader arms. www.vermeer.com • salesinfo@vermeer.com.

SUBSC R IB E Subscriber contact details

• TRADE & TECHNICAL PUBLICATIONS ZAR

SADC Int. US$ US$

530 110 120

Surname Name Designation Company

Hard Copy + Digital

360

80

90

Digital only

Type of business Address Code Tel

290

60

80

Fax

Cell Email

Hard Copy + Digital

200

40

60

VAT Reg. No Order #

Digital only

Payment options 190

40

60

150

30

40

EFT Deposit

Bank details Nedbank Branch code: 128405 Acc. number: 1284129934 Acc. type: current Acc. name: 3S MEDIA

Hard Copy + Digital

Please use Ref #

Digital only

Mastercard

420

80

100

200

40

60

Visa

American Express /

Expiry date Credit Card Number

Hard Copy + Digital

Digital only

290

60

80

200

40

60

Digital only

290

60

80

200

40

60

200

40

60

Hard Copy + Digital

Digital only

Hard Copy + Digital SINGLE COPY SALE R40 INCL VAT (EXCLUDING SA CONFERENCE)

Date Contact person for payments Email

• BUSINESS & CONFERENCING PUBLICATIONS

directory

Debit order — Please contact Accounts on +27 (0)11 233 2600 to arrange I have read the terms and conditions below and I agree to abide by them Authorizing signature

Hard Copy + Digital

SACONFERENCE

Last 3 digits on back of card

Sub total: VAT: Total:

Terms & Conditions • All rates include postage and VAT. • Foreign subscriptions include airmail rates • The subscription will be activated when we receive receipt of payment.

• The subscription form can serve as a pro-forma invoice with a tax invoice to follow.

• Proof of payment to be sent with signed copy of the subscription form.

• Unpaid invoices will be cancelled after 3 months, thus cancelling the subscriptions.

• Renewal subscriptions are automatically renewed on payment of invoice and cancelled if not paid within 3 months from date of invoice.

• Electronic return of this form is deemed as an authorized purchase.

Fax or e-mail proof of payment to activate your subscription.

SUBSCRIPTION SALES XOLANI NGWENYA t+27 (0)11 233 2600 • f+27 (0)11 234 7275 xolani@3smedia.co.za No.4 5th Avenue, Rivonia 2191 PO Box 92026, Norwood 2117

Tel: +27 (0)11 233 2600 Share Call: 086 003 3300 Fax-to-email: 086 556 5267 www.3smedia.co.za

MEDIA

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

Imported cement offers no advantage Concrete manufacturers should think again before buying cut-price imported cement, as it offers little –if any – advantage in the marketplace and contributes nothing towards the local economy.

T

HIS WAS SAID BY Grant Neser of AfriSam, while addressing the Southern Africa Readymix Association annual conference, held in Broederstroom recently.

He added that any small price advantage that imported cement suppliers may offer is usually negated by underweight bags and lack of technical support and technical expertise.

“In the case of high-value building and construction projects, imported cement manufacturers offer no backing in the event

that a problem is experienced. This leaves all the risk on the contractor or concrete supplier should things go wrong, whereas our established manufacturers locally have all the expertise and equipment to provide support should the need arise.”

Opportunistic market According to Neser, there is even a case for antidumping charges to be brought against overseas manufacturGrant Neser ers who are

flooding the market with their products at a price that is below the selling price in their home countries.

He explained that the first large-scale imports of cement began in 2007 when temporary shortages took place as a result of massive pre-World Cup infrastructure projects. Readymix demand followed similar trends, peaking in 2009 when nine million cubes were sold locally. Apart from imports, local independent cement blenders also proliferated in the lower end of the market and filled a gap in the domestic and small building market. Today, these blenders supply about 1 600 000 t of blended cement per annum.

“With the estimated 759 000 t of imported cement sold last year, this puts a lot of pressure on cement manufacturers. Those at the coast are especially most prone to being flooded by cheap imported cement due to the proximity of harbors. Readymix suppliers should look at who they are supporting. Debagging imported cement can be a challenge and it is a reality that supply of imported products may not always be reliable. This may provide little chance to build relationships with suppliers in future and may lead to shortages in the short term,” Neser concluded.

INDEX TO ADVERTISERS 4th Annual Women in Engineering Convention

62

AfriSam

35

Ammann Construction APE Pumps

85

Aquadam

81

Autodesk

55

Aveng Manufacturing Infraset

68

Bagshaw Footwear

39

Beier Safety Footwear

41

Bell Equipment

67

Bentley Systems International

49

Bosun

71

BVI Consulting

26

Ciolli Ready Mix

34

CSM Engineering

OFC

ELB Equipment Esorfranki

92

4

IMIESA November/December 2013

21 9

Gast International

82

SBS Water Systems

Gauteng Partnership Fund

13

Sephaku Cement

Hatch Goba

24

SIKA

33

INGEROP South Africa

IFC

Southern Mapping

76

Jan Palm Consulting

80

Krohne SA

59

SprayPave

66

Knight Piesold

22

Standard Bank

56

Lafarge Industries

31

The Concrete Institute

30

MAN Truck & Bus

10 - 12

UWP Engineering

25

50 27 - 29

Microsoft SA

51

Model Maker Systems

49

Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies South Africa

National Asphalt

38

VNA Consulting

Nyeleti

18

Water Purifications and Plant

52

PPC

70

Water & Sanitation Services

OBC

Precision Meters

54

WRP Consulting Engineers

IBC

Royal HaskoningDHV

86 Xlink

53

ZEST WEG Group

74

Southern Africa Readymix Association

32

2 43 - 45

A Mi M Miy Miya iya G Gr rou oup C Company Co o Group

Water Demand Management and Water Resource Specialists Providing quality support to the South African water industry since 1997 • Pressure Management Specialists • WDM Training and Support • Data acquisition & Monitoring (GSM /GPRS) • Water Loss Reduction

For further support contact Tel:+27(12) 346 3496, Fax: +27(12) 346 9956, Email: wrp@wrp.co.za • Internet: www.wrp.co.za