PERSONALITY PROFILE
41
A mutual love
Having a job that you love and being loved just as much by the company is rare .
By
Ntsako Khosa
Lesiba Mailula , prefabrication manager at Modern Plumbing Works , tells us how Modern Plumbing Works continues to grow people .
Being a modern plumber Mailula has been with the company for 11 years , having worked his way up from an apprentice to division manager . “ After matric , the school I had attended connected me with the director of Modern Plumbing Works , Anthony Giuricich . The Giuricich family is heavily involved with the school . Getting to see how the plumbing industry works piqued my interest in being a plumber ,” he says . The connection he made was meant to take him through different companies , but he loved what Modern Plumbing had to show him so he decided to stay . “ And I ’ ve been here since then ,” he chuckles .
The company has helped him to be a qualified plumber through funding his schooling career . “ They ’ ve always been supportive in furthering my education ; I ’ m very grateful for that ,” he says . He had the opportunity to go for training in Switzerland , where he learnt the tricks of the trade and prefabrication . Geberit and Modern Plumbing sponsored his trips . “ They ’ ve invested a lot into this and it ’ s bearing fruit ,” he says .
Mailula and his team are responsible for the design , fabrication , and installation of pipework and fixtures onto plumbing frames . “ Prefabrication plumbing is a process where we design and build a frame to suit any specific project . We then attach all plumbing pipes and components onto the frame . We pressure test all pipework for quality assurance . We basically aim to do as much plumbing work off site as possible so there ’ s less labour on site .” Some of the projects he has worked on that he is particularly proud of include the five-star Hilton Hotel in Nigeria ; Time Square in Menlyn , Pretoria ; and 135 West in Sandton . “ The majority of the projects were done in our workshop , which shows that prefabrication is the way to go because you can have a lot less plumbers on site while improving quality and speeding up the installation process ,” he says .
Taking prefabrication to the rest of South Africa One of his future endeavours is to take the use of prefabrication to the rest of the country . “ To start working with other plumbers and getting them to use the system we use here . Prefabrication is for the plumbing industry as a whole . As plumbers we need to start working together to make the industry a much better place ,” he says .
Outside the boundaries of Modern Plumbing Works Mailula is heavily involved in the development of cricket in the township of Alexandra . He is the chairperson of Alexandra Cricket Club . “ I am always looking for opportunities to help the youth in our community ,” he says . He is motivated by the words of our former president , Nelson Mandela , “ Sport has the power to change the world . It has the power to inspire . It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does . It speaks to youth in a language they understand . Sport can create hope where once there was only despair . It is more powerful than government in breaking down racial barriers .” PA
Lesiba Mailula , prefabrication manager at Modern Plumbing Works .
“ As plumbers we need to start working together to make the industry a much better place .”
The Personality Profile is sponsored by Geberit
June 2017 Volume 23 I Number 4