From providing bursaries to promising young engineering students, to offering blankets and places of haven to the poorest of the poor, the people at GIBB put their hearts into corporate social investment.

Their enthusiasm is given further impetus by Group CEO, Richard Vries, who is vocal about his commitment to CSI and the need to invest in the future growth of the African continent.

GIBB marketing practitioner, Yolande van Rooyen, says CSI is divided into two main categories – education and humanitarian aid. “GIBB is one of Africa’s largest multi-disciplinary engineering consulting companies, so it makes sense that we provide numerous bursaries aimed at building engineering capacity in this country,” she says.

In addition, GIBB supports the African Academy, which encourages disadvantaged people to move into technical careers; South African Women in Engineering (SAWomENG), which identifies female mentors within GIBB to share work experience with students and guide them through their careers; and the Thusano Learnership Programme, which introduces talented disadvantaged learners to the world of engineering.

Ever-intent on promoting engineering to young learners, GIBB takes part in various career expos and supports Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA) Job Shadow Day – in conjunction with the Young Professionals Forum – by inviting selected school learners to experience a day in the life of a consulting engineer.

Van Rooyen says perhaps the heart of GIBB pumps strongest when it comes to humanitarian work. “GIBB provides a lifeline to many institutions conducting humanitarian work around South Africa and instead of watching from the side-lines, many of our employees roll up their sleeves and get involved, whether its handing out blankets or helping build houses,” she says.

GIBB Project Manager, James Pollock, is a case in point. He lives on site at Refilwe, a community project in Diepsloot, Johannesburg, which provides a foster care program to orphaned, abandoned, and abused children in the area. In addition to helping with the project, he has adopted three children into his own home. GIBB itself is actively involved in the refurbishment of the living quarters for displaced and abused women and children at Refilwe.

Refilwe Executive Director, Jaco van Schalkwyk, says the cottage GIBB helped refurbish houses up to six vulnerable children. “Through its involvement, GIBB is investing in the lives of children and giving them the chance of a normal family environment,” he says.

Junior Project Administrator, Yondy Luke is another example of GIBB selflessness. She is co-founder of a humanitarian team called Team Leaderz. They provide clothing and blankets to the needy such as the people in Amalinda Forest, who cover themselves with cardboard to keep warm at night.

Luke says their deeds bring warmth (literally and figuratively) to the givers and the receivers. “The impact is one of gratitude and humbleness – all our projects are aimed at making peoples’ lives a little more bearable,” she says.

In addition, GIBB supports the National AIDS Bannerthon aimed at raising awareness around HIV/AIDS; Habitat for Humanity, which helps build Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) homes in disadvantaged communities; Metro Evangelical Services (MES), which provides food and basic necessities to the homeless and destitute of inner Johannesburg; and Manger Mission, a care centre in the East Rand for displaced or abandoned people.

“Due to the nature of their work, our engineers get to see the desperate plight of the poorest in our cities and rural areas,” says van Rooyen. “In addition to getting involved in GIBB CSI projects, some of our employees are involved in other humanitarian projects such as Claw, an animal welfare organisation.”

MES resource developer and event manager, Juanita van der Merwe, says over the past three years GIBB has been involved with the MES Winterhoop campaign, donating blankets to the homeless and destitute community of Hillbrow. “Lives have been touched through this initiative and we would like to thank GIBB for helping us change lives. Through changing lives we believe we can change the heart of the city,” she says.

To formally recognise GIBB employees involved in humanitarian work, the company has instituted an annual award of excellence - the Humanitarian Project Award. “The award recognises the truly selfless people at GIBB, who spend hours outside of their work time giving to communities and people in need,” says van Rooyen.

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Over the next 50 years the world’s population is expected to grow by 2.6-billion, from 6.5-billion people in 2000 to 9.6-billion in 2060. Cities will grow at an unprecedented rate, presenting a significant challenge for town planners and city authorities alike to ensure on-going service delivery and functionality.

GIBB director Urban and Rural Planning, Nico Kriek, says there are five critical challenges urban planners need to consider with regard to this growth. “The first factor is scale and size. Cities are becoming massive, for example, the population of Sao Paulo in South America is equivalent to the entire population of Australia. In 2030 the urban population of Africa will be greater than the total population of Europe,” he says.

The second factor to consider is the speed of urbanisation. “While it is estimated the world population will grow by 2.6-billion over the next 50 years, the urban population (people moving from outlying areas into the cities) is expected to grow by 5-billion over the next 30 years. Such explosive growth in cities will undoubtedly outstrip the ability of authorities to deliver services,” says Kriek.

Mobility and migration of diverse populations is a third factor to consider. Due to an increase in mobility from city to city and from one country to the next, cities are becoming increasingly diverse in terms of population and cultural mix.

Fourthly, cities are becoming increasingly complex. “Because of their diversity and the gap between various socio-economic groupings, our cities have become increasingly complex to manage – there is no universal template that applies to all cities,” says Kriek.

The fifth factor relates to unprecedented levels of connectivity. In the past people did not move around with as much ease as they do today, for example, the Gautrain allows for easy intra-city movement. Kriek says access to transport systems will have implications for how the cities will develop in the future.
 
Given these challenges, what does the future hold for cities, specifically in Africa and South Africa?

Kriek says the path to prosperity runs through cities. “In order for African cities to become global players, we have to make them work better. Companies like GIBB need to take a multi-disciplinary and integrated approach to planning cities – urban planning, roads, water etc. all need to work together,” he says.

South Africa will respond differently – spatially and physically – to other cities around the globe. Kriek says there will not be dramatic changes. “Informal areas will become larger on the periphery of the cities and there will be some informal movement into the cities. We can’t stop it, so we may as well plan for it. We can expect a decline in delivery of services, but it is here that GIBB can play a significant role in finding ways to improve the status quo,” he says.

Essentially, says Kriek, South Africa needs to bring back vital components of the city that were destroyed in the 20th century – such as complexity and density. “The 20th century was all about compartmentalisation – we had industrial areas, commercial areas, and residential areas. This is problematic because now we don’t have the required density for an effective public transport system. If you look at old cities – there is a lot of complexity. Residences, boutiques, motor dealers and supermarkets are in the same area. Cities need “messy intersections of activity” or mixed-use areas,” he says.

Kriek predicts an emergence of transport oriented development areas – parallel to growth of the public transport system. “Public transport areas will gradually become focus areas for investment and development. The cities will eventually incorporate investment “nodes” and “corridors” – like Sandton and Rosebank –connected to transport routes,” he says.

Another critical factor will be the ability to manage security in cities. “Public spaces will become increasingly hostile if we don’t manage security effectively. A high degree of crime inhibits our growth, for example, we have to over-provide parking space because leaving vehicles in the street is not an option,” says Kriek.
 
In future South African cities will experience a greater mix of formal and informal, as well as a greater income mix and cultural mix. “Physically, the cities will not look dramatically different, but their operational success will be determined by our ability to provide effective integrated planning and development solutions.”

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GIBB was contracted by the Western Cape Provincial Government to provide electrical and civil engineering expertise in the upgrading of two existing schools and the construction of three new schools in the province.

The project forms part of government’s R2-billion programme to improve education and upgrade schools in the Western Cape. Construction commenced in December 2010 and is expected to be completed early in 2012.

GIBB Electrical Engineer, Hubert Moelans, says Dawn School, a special needs school in Atlantis, received an additional hall, administration offices and 10 new classrooms, while Vista Secondary School in Bokaap needed repair work to its concrete frame structure, weather-damaged first-floor classrooms and fire-damaged administrative offices.

“The most challenging aspect of these jobs was to ensure as little disruption to the children’s daily school lives as possible. At Vista this meant constructing temporary passageways for the children to get from one classroom to the next,” says Moelans.

The major portion of the project was undoubtedly the construction of the three new schools, two Senior Secondary Schools namely Oaklands School near the Kenilworth Centre and Melkbosstrand School on Otto du Plessis Drive in Melkbosstrand and Sunningdale School, a new junior school with a Grade R facility on the corner of Tyrall and Sunningdale Drive, near Bloubergstrand Hospital.

Moelans says the existing school in Oaklands will be demolished once the new school has been constructed and occupied by the 1200 learners. “The schools in Oaklands, Melkbosstrand and Sunningdale will have identical footprints,” he says.

Lead consultant for the project architect Neill Wilson says the new schools were similar in concept to a school he designed in Gansbaai. “Provincial Government liked the concept and asked me to follow a similar approach with the three new schools,” he says.

The schools are designed around inner quadrangles incorporating trees to shelter the learners from the strong winds that are prevalent in the region. “In addition, mono-ridged roofing is sloped outwards on the outer classrooms so that winds are lifted up and over the school,” says Wilson.

Minimal paint has been used on the exteriors of the buildings. Wilson says schools don’t have a lot of money to spend on maintenance – so the buildings capitalise on the exposed aggregate colours of the face-brick, which also makes them more eco-friendly.

In addition, the buildings have been designed to incorporate separate halls and media rooms, which can be closed off from the rest of the school and used after hours by the local communities for adult literacy programmes.

Architect for the Department of Transport and Public Works, John Bethell, says the three new schools form part of a recent initiative by the Western Cape Education Department to not only provide for the usual school soccer/rugby sports field, but to ensure the grass hydro-seeding thereof, complete with the necessary irrigation fed from either a borehole or well point with water storage tanks.

“Dawn School will get a smaller version of a playing field, similarly serviced, due to the smaller area of the site. In addition, the new trees, paved courtyards and grassed areas are all aimed at lessening the wind-blown erosion that occurs due to local climatic conditions.

“The Consultant Team worked well with both the Contractor and the Departmental Professional Team. We are sure this will result in a successful project for the local communities, which we hope will take pride in their new facilities,” says Bethell.

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