This contract is being undertaken in a joint venture with BEE firm Lezmin 1204 cc, which has the proud distinction of being a 100% black female-owned enterprise, notes Gary Berkland, commercial manager at Grinaker-LTA Building Cape.
"We are very pleased to be working with Lezmin 1204, which has proved itself and worked its way up through the ranks by originally working as an SMME contractor on various projects for the Coega Development Corporation," he says. "It's an outstanding achievement for the firm to have progressed to being a fully fledged joint venture partner with Grinaker-LTA on a major construction project, and we look forward to working together to deliver a quality end product here."
Grinaker-LTA has been working in the Coega Industrial Development Zone since 2006, when it built the first multi-storey office block in the IDZ, for the Coega Development Corporation. Several other projects have followed, including new facilities for Transnet at Coega's Port of Ngqura. This latest undertaking at the zone entails the construction of a new specialised warehouse with offices, ablutions and a boiler house for Cape Concentrate. It includes all electrical and mechanical services and external works, Berkland explains.
An extremely fast-track contract will see the completion of Cape Concentrate's new facility in April this year. The tight programme is among the challenges for the joint venture partners, he says, together with the stringent environmental, health and safety specifications set out by the Coega Development Corporation. Berkland elaborates: “All works undertaken within the zone are governed by an Environmental Management Plan which is specific to the zone, and by health and safety procedures which are strictly monitored and enforced at all times. Detailed method statements outlining the construction methodology and associated risks on every construction activity are required to be approved by Coega Development Corporation before works are allowed to commence.”
This contract, like all construction at the Coega IDZ, also has a strong focus on employment equity and job creation, he adds. “We are required to ensure the participation in this undertaking of various target groups, such as SMMEs, black-owned businesses, firms owned by women, local enterprises and previously disadvantaged individuals".
This construction project - which comprises a total building area of 4 125m2 - includes a two-storey office block for Cape Concentrate, 1 870m2 warehouse and 917m2 boiler house. The external works include a vast 18 235m2 concrete hardstand area.
