THE EXTENT TO WHICH PREVIOUS PROJECTS CONTRIBUTED TO THE SUCCESS OF THE PROJECT

Lessons learnt from previous projects contributed to the success of the project as follows:

5.1.4.1 TASK DETERMINATION

 The excavation task was set at 3.5 m³/task at a rate of R35 per task.

This amount was not changed as all labourers who worked on the pilot project continued to work on this project.

 Payment per task ensured that stronger, more energetic labourers were rewarded for their efforts as they could complete several tasks per day although the task completion rate depended on the geotechnical conditions of the area in which they were working.

 Lessons learnt at the research and development stage were that, for future projects at the pilot-project stage, different people should be used to determine the task to those who will be involved at the programme‟s implementation to ensure that the scope of the task is correctly assessed.

 Even though the scope of the task was too small, considering the geotechnical conditions of Phagameng, the fact that the wage rate was also low (below the provincial rate) resulted in a saving and the project being cost-effective.

5.1.4.2 TEAM BALANCING

 The success of the team-balancing exercise that took place at the beginning of the pilot project played an important role in the efficiency of this project.

 The reason the labour force was increased by multiplying the number of labourers in a team by three (3) was that the pilot project worked well with a team consisting of 40 labourers. Thus, to increase the task completion output, one simply multiplied the number of labourers in a team by a predetermined multiplier. For this project, three (3) was chosen as the multiplier because a team of 120 labourers could be supervised effectively by two (2) supervisors.

5.1.4.3 SKILLS TRANSFER

 The pilot project was successful because the knowledge acquired in the pilot stage could be, and was, taken forward to project implementation.

 It was found during the implementation of this project that those who worked on the pilot project were more skilled than the newly recruited labourers, even when it came to interpreting the drawings and the specifications.

 The introduction of a project manager with extensive experience on labour-intensive construction methods also played a big role, with regard to skills transfer.

5.1.4.4 PAYMENT OF LOCAL LABOURERS

 During the implementation of the pilot project, all the labourers were paid in cash at the Municipal Stores. Payment was made fortnightly.

 With the team having increased threefold from the pilot project, fortnightly cash payments were no longer feasible so payment was made electronically into the bank accounts of the labourers. The labourers were still paid fortnightly.

 The Finance Department was also familiar with the task-based timesheets that were used. Council temporary workers‟ timesheets were adjusted from a daily-paid basis to paid-per-task basis, which was also introduced at the project pilot phase.

5.1.4.5 RETENTION OF SKILLS

 Council had a long-term goal of making this programme work. They adopted a policy to recruit from Letšema water and sewer projects whenever vacant posts were to be filled in their Water and Sewer Section.

 Council also adopted the principle of “training the trainer” so the retention of these skilled labourers also played a major role in training new technicians from the Universities of Technology.

 This strategy worked well, because the Project Manager, who was head-hunted from Gundo Lashu (Sections 5.1.3.2 and 5.1.3.4) ended up heading the Housing Section in the Technical Department, while the three students from the Universities of Technology (who were also recruited for in-service training) were appointed permanently as technicians in the Water and Sewer Section of the municipality.

5.1.4.6 HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES

 With the current Government emphasis on safety at the workplace and compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act, Act No. 85 of 1993 (RSA 1993) and its amendments, Council showed their intention

of not compromising safety by prioritising training on occupational health and safety.

 In addition to training, the involvement of a professional service provider of Dombo, du Plessis & Partners (Africa) (Pty) Ltd‟s calibre as a safety consultant indicated that Council was serious about implementing projects using labour-intensive methods.

 This project was completed without any injuries or near-miss incidents.

5.1.4.7 TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

 Hand-held compactors were manufactured locally by a steel company, and were used to compact the soil to each side of the pipes that had been laid.

 Compaction on top of the blanket layer and up to the top was also done using a small hand-held steel compactor and/or a Wacker, which was labour intensive.

 To obtain the correct moisture content of the soil for compaction a small water trailer, hooked to and pulled by a light delivery vehicle (a

“bakkie” in South African terminology) was used to dampen the soil.

The same vehicle was used when pressure testing the water lines.

 A dynamic cone penetrometer test was used to check the compaction.

 For pressure testing the water lines, a water pump was used which was not labour-intensive but it was the only way the water lines could be pressure tested.

 For rock excavation, jack hammers with compressors were used to break rocks, which was also labour-intensive.

 The only plant that was used on this project was a Tractor-Loader/Backhoe (TLB), which was necessary to lift the concrete pipes on the main outfall sewer line.

 Dumpy levels were used for marking levels and placement of profiles for excavations. After levels were set on the profiles, fishing line attached to rods was used to control and check the levels.

 All small tools and equipment were sourced from local suppliers, including the TLB.

5.1.4.8 INVOLVEMENT AND CAPACITATION OF EMERGING CONTRACTORS

 Because the Client adopted a client-based method of construction, the use of SMMEs was not successfully implemented in line with Council‟s IDP. Thus, although the IDP recommends the use of SMMEs, it was decided that the use of labour-intensive construction methods was so innovative that it needed to be demonstrated first using in-house capacity (“force account” system).

 No sub-contracting of local sub-contractors took place on this project as labourers were sourced locally from the community and the Client retained the administration of the entire project.

 Although there were opportunities for sub-contracting other parts of the work (such as the construction of Erf connections, for example) to local and emerging contractors, this was omitted or overlooked as more emphasis was placed on direct employment.