Tertiary Education Council Project
Since its birth, the Council has grown significantly and as a result, has had to move its head office from the business prime spot, Fairgrounds Office Park, to larger and more spacious premises in Gaborone West, Block 7. This move is necessary to accommodate the growth which has taken place over the past few years and envisioned growth in the future.
Brief Description
The task of building the new home for TEC was undertaken by Caitec Botswana (Pty) Ltd under the management of AMA Projects Botswana (Pty) Ltd. The project comprises the construction of a new TEC head office on the remainder of Plot 60113 in Gaborone West, Extension 48, in line with the Parastatal’s mission which is to “plan, develop and co-ordinate a well resourced quality tertiary education system contributing to Botswana becoming a knowledge-based society”. The project value is approximately P38.5million (US$ 5million).
The Tertiary Education Council, as the name suggests, is a regulatory body which was founded to coordinate and promote tertiary education in Botswana. Despite having been established in 1999, the organisation only began its work in 2002 with appointment of council members and later the employment of Dr. Patrick Molutsi as Executive Secretary.
Construction on the TEC design build project commenced in December 2008 and is scheduled for completion by the end of May 2010. Since commencement, construction now stands at 62percent complete, representing a 17percent or 60 days progress ahead of schedule. At the current rate of progress, the project is expected to reach practical completion at least 2 months before the projected completion date of 31st May 2010.
Most of the building works have been completed and the contractor is currently working on both the internal and the external finishes of the building. All ducting work has been completed on the building and the electrical distribution boards are in place. First coat paint has commenced on most of the building.
Environmental Issues
In the construction of these new offices, the following issues were taken into consideration:
- The only trees that were removed were those within the perimeter of the building however indigenous trees have been conserved on the site
- The site does not have a lot of storage but the contractor has ensured that the site is kept very presentable
- No nuisance complaints have been received from the surrounding community regarding the construction related activities.
PROJECT TEAM
Project manager: AMA Projects Botswana (Pty) Ltd
Main contractor: Caitec Botswana (Pty) Ltd
Architect: Arctez (Pty) Ltd
Civil & structural engineer: ADA Consulting Engineers (Pty) Ltd
Electrical & mechanical engineer: North Atlantic Engineering Consultants (Pty) Ltd
Quantity surveyor: BWR (Pty) Ltd
