The Civil Engineering Contractor March 2018 | Page 20

ON SITE
Rock breaking – drill and blast as well as hydraulic breaking for lateral support wall construction .
Forming a biological barrier to the adjoining wetland , hay bales filter the run-off from the site after the rains , preventing silt from entering the sensitive wetland .
Specifications and professional team
Lateral support wall construction – wick drains allowing groundwater behind the wall to escape
increased optimism in the property industry , which should lead to an increase in enquiries and an upturn in construction business confidence . Chapman adds : “ It has been a difficult time during the slowdown , but it is positive to hear that there has been a pickup in the market . There are a lot of players in our industry and the pricing is becoming increasingly aggressive ,” he notes . This price war has led to a different approach when awarding tenders , Du Plessis says : “ Where before we would have put numerous contractors on tender lists for say , the bulk earthworks , we have substantially reduced the number of companies invited to tender to ensure only companies with the required skills , integrity , and financial backing are considered , with the goal not to jeopardise quality over cost .” As the two metropoles of Johannesburg and Pretoria edge slowly towards each other , developments such as the new Deloitte HQ will ensure that the merge is smooth and hopefully , not too big a culture shock to either city .
“ We had to be sensitive to the environmental impact of the construction on the wetland area and so too , to our LEED rating .”
– Karien Coetzee at Aevitas Group and Empowered Spaces Architects JV
Project : Commercial Configuration : Ground + 6 + 4b Gross lettable area : 42 500m ² Principal contractor : Group 5 Infrastructure : Bamboo Rock Construction Development manager : Atterbury Property Developments Architect and principle agent : Aevitas Group Quantity surveyor : NWS Civil and structural engineer : Dekker & Gelderblom Consulting Engineers Electrical engineer : Claassen Auret Mechanical engineer : Adaptive Resource Engineers Fire consultant : WSP Group LEED consultant : Eco Centric Landscape architect : Danie Rebel Landscape Architects Start date : October 2017 Earthworks end date : February 2018 Occupation : April 2020 nn
18 - CEC March 2018