34 TECHNICAL
David : I can imagine that after working for hours and hours paperwork is the last thing you feel like doing .
Leon : That ’ s right , but I ’ m holding this ship together and like I said , the most important thing for me is my staff and making sure they ’ re being looked after , because without my staff I have no business .
David : I think that ’ s the best style of leadership , one who looks at things holistically and has the vision to guide the operation forward effectively .
Leon : Well , I wouldn ’ t ask any of my staff to do anything that I myself haven ’ t done or wouldn ’ t do . I definitely keep up with all the latest developments and innovations in the market . I ’ m an absolute tool fanatic – I like buying tools , looking at new tools and making sure that my staff have all the best equipment available . I don ’ t believe in hiring or renting , I make sure each team has their own set of everything . But more than that , we ’ re a family . All my employees know that I have an open door policy , if you want to come and talk to me I ’ m always ready to listen . But the industry is changing , there ’ s a lot less work for a lot of hungry lions and everyone is fighting over the same jobs . As I ’ m sure you ’ ve heard , the CoCs have now dropped .
David : Yes I heard about that . What are your thoughts ?
Leon : So for us , that ' s a big problem because that opens the door to unregistered plumbers using inferior and non-compliant materials as well as a lack of understanding of standards so it has negative consequences for home owners and it definitely hurts the more qualified plumbers like us .
David : Agreed , it can lead to some shoddy work and even cause severe damage .
Leon : So personally I ’ m not against unregistered plumbers , I just think that the standards which IOPSA and PIRB set in place are very useful and they ’ re great as watchdog institutes but you can ’ t enforce something where you don ’ t have any backing . Times are changing however , and another development we are seeing is that things are definitely moving towards greener materials , away from things like galvanized and copper and instead towards HDPE and composites , among others . In fact , whenever the option is available on a job we will always go green where possible . We also handle the correct disposal of materials after the job and arrange for cardboard to be collected by Mondi and so on – we usually have a four or five green star rating on our completed jobs .
David : That makes me very happy to hear that , it ’ s always great to see professionals who take recycling and the environment seriously . Last question , do you have any advice for apprentice plumbers out there who are just starting out and beginning the same journey ?
Leon : This game has become so difficult at the moment , but young people must not be deterred and they must take up the challenge and persevere . I think if you can persevere it is a very rewarding industry . I wouldn ’ t still be here after 33 years if I didn ’ t enjoy what I do . I enjoy waking up every day because every day is different and each job has its own challenges and you always learn something new . You ’ ve got to be willing to commit yourself to something and if you have the motivation and you believe you can do it , then you will . PA
www . plumbingafrica . co . za @ plumbingonline @ plumbingonline @ PlumbingAfricaOnline September 2022 Volume 28 I Number 7