Botswana Defense Force Sets Camp in Rakhuna
Construction of the new Botswana Defense Force camp in Rakhuna commenced in April 2008 and is expected to be complete by January 2010. The project is a complete infrastructure development consisting of office facilities, residential houses (low cost and medium cost), roads and parking. Included in this 100 000sq m site is a clinic which is expected to service the local and surrounding villages. The clinic will accommodate two doctors and will include minor clinical services. Civil works include 7km roads, parking lots, parade ground, water and sewerage reticulation, water ponds.
Construction Mode
The type of contract adopted was FIDIC and the construction methodology as per guidelines stipulated in the Standards Specifications of Material and Workmanship for Building Contracts (SSMWBC). Thus, there is incorporation of FIDIC contract administration and SSMWBC. Under this arrangement, the main contractor works and supervises all sub-contractors in accordance with the outlined contract drawings and documents.
Upon moving into the new R650 million head office in March 2010, the Department of Basic Education will have a modern, sleek and proudly South African design that contributes to the city’s plan of creating a ‘government boulevard’ of official buildings leading up to the Union Buildings.
Materials and finishes
The building is finished with Kalahari travertine FBX face brick (sourced from Lobatse Clayworks) on the outside and ordinary plaster coated with paint on the interior. The roof coverings consists of “brown built Kliplock 406” metal roof sheets. A dash of landscaping was also incorporated as the offices are designed to have a flower garden in front of them. Also the covered parking is to have stalls intended to accommodate the needs of the physically challenged.
Challenges
The first difficulty faced in the construction phase of this project is the fact that the buildings are built on land which was once a farm and later occupied by Botswana Railway Station. The discovery of an underlying rock posed a challenge to deep excavation. This impediment was dealt with by blasting it.
Second, there was shortage of skilled manpower (artisans, piping, roadworks, and machine operators). This meant that the available manpower had to multi-task and there was also on-site training carried out.
Third, there was also the presence of rain which slowed down progress. Since the rain was beyond the control of the project team, the only way around this challenge was to continue to work on the aspects, such interiors, which were not affected by the rain.
Project Team
Contractor: Landmark Projects
Project Manager/ Lead Architect: SECTAF Architects
Electrical engineer: M & K Associates
