Large engineering projects in the construction industry and in the expansion of the province’s two ports has led to an expansion of this sector in recent years. Water schemes in rural and urban areas are a current priority for planners.
The construction of the King Shaka International Airport and the Dube TradePort created a lot of work for engineers, and the associated transport infrastructure expansion will continue this trend.
The Transnet Engineering (TE) plant in the Port of Durban is one of the biggest engineering enterprises in KwaZulu-Natal: it hous- es six business units and has 3 555 employees. The Coach unit upgrades coaches and the Auxiliary business is the main supplier of rail wagon tarpaulins to Transnet Freight Rail. The Port Equipment Maintenance unit and units specialising in wheels and locomotive overhaul are other entities. There are a further six depots located around the province.
Fluor Corporation has been awarded the engineering and design contract to work on Sapref Refinery’s project to make its fuel-production processes more environmentally friendly. Fluor is based in the US, is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and has a big presence in KwaZulu-Natal, especially in Richards Bay.
The transport and infrastructure sectors have been attracting the most recent attention but all of the province’s biggest industries require sophisticated engineering skills: aluminium smelters in Richards Bay and steel works in Newcastle Richards Bay and Cato Ridge. There are also chemicals and plastics-production plants, and the large automotive industry needs qualified engineers.
The opening by K’Enyuka, specialists in the mineral and chemical industry, of a Richards Bay branch is indicative of the growth of this busy port. According to SA Mining, the company will be looking to expand beyond coal mining and mineral concentrators into the pulp and paper, sugar, agriculture and infrastructure sectors.
Bateman Africa was appointed as the coordinating contractor for the expansion of the Richards Bay Coal Terminal, as it was for the large new NPC-Cimpor cement plant built on the South Coast, while Group Five and Stefanutti Stocks did civil works such as dams, bridges and roads. SKP was involved in civil design and Siemens was responsible for electrical design and supply.
The multi-product pipeline from Durban to Johannesburg is a complex operation involving multiple suppliers and contractors, Arup and Group Five among them.
Providing clean drinking water to communities is a perennial problem that engineers need to tackle. Dealing with too much water after storms is something that SRK Consulting is helping eThekwini Municipality with. Inland flooding and the battering of coastal areas by high seas are among the challenges to be faced.
The iLembe District Municipality called on Black Balance Projects to design and manage its R1.4-billion bulk-water scheme, one of several that the engineering firm is working on in the province.
Eskom is building a major pump-storage facility at Ingula and bulk-water supplies from the Midmar Dam are being piped to Durban. The Western Aqueduct Joint Venture comprises Naidu Consulting, SSI and Knight Piésold Consulting.
DCD Group has expanded its capabilities in ship repair with the purchases (in 2012) of Elgin, Brown & Harmer (EBH). DCD Marine’s annual turnover is expected to top R1-billion as a result.
Dormac, which is headquartered in the Bayhead area of the Port of Durban, is best known for its marine engineering but it also offers specialised services to the sugar industry and provides machinery for industrial giants like Toyota and Defy. The company has machine and fabrication shops in Durban and Richards Bay.
In the bridge-building field, Group Five’s Pandev joint venture has won accolades for the outbound viaduct of the Warwick Triangle Viaduct. The sweeping road that seems to fly high above the extraordinarily busy taxi rank below, was designed by GOBA Consulting Engineers with Royal HaskoningDHV acting as the consulting engineer and project manager.
