The new, five-storey building houses 33 court rooms and replaces the smaller Magistrates’ Court in Alberton North that previously served the area. 

The old court building will close down and employees will be relocated to the new 18 000m2 building in Palm Ridge. The development includes one level of basement parking for staff, as well as an open air public car park.

High-tech security features, including biometric access control, place the new court building leaps ahead of its predecessor. Liviero CEO Neil Cloete elaborates: “Members of the public could move about quite freely in the old court house. This new building has been designed with secure, private areas for the Magistrates, with fingerprint readers controlling access to these, as well as their secure basement parking, private lift and stairwell.” Prisoner security has also been beefed up, with the new court house featuring a separate prisoner staircase that leads directly from the basement cell block to the holding cells on each level. The building includes 30 holding cells in the basement and a further 13 secure holding cells located on the different levels, alongside the court rooms.

Job creation, training and community involvement were important elements of Liviero’s R253-million contract for the Department of Public Works, Cloete states. Since the contract fell under the Department’s “Expanded Public Works” programme, it featured stringent requirements in terms of community involvement, empowerment, training, skills transfer and the use of targeted enterprises such as SMMEs and black-owned businesses. Local bricklayers, plasterers and general labourers were used wherever possible. At the contract’s peak, more than half of the 696 workers on site were local people from Palm Ridge and the surrounding communities of Eden Park, Zonkesizwe and Thokoza, he says. Liviero’s commitment to training and skills development also saw 88 students from these areas receive training in a range of construction disciplines. This included a classroom based element, as well as practical training. Most of the trainees were women, and Cloete reports that 10 of the students were subsequently offered employment by Liviero.

The weather posed the biggest challenge on this project, Cloete says. “It kicked off in wet weather, and not long after this, we experienced the wettest January ever – January 2010.”

The project included 6 500m³ of bulk earthworks. More than 10 300m3 of concrete was used, with the largest pour being 240m3. Reinforcing totalled more than 1 000 tons, and there was 20 367m2 of formwork.

Earlier in the year, The Department of Public Works awarded two other contracts to construction group Liviero.

At Roodeplaat Dam, near Pretoria, Liviero has started a R134-million contract to build bigger, better quarters for the SA Police Service’s canine crime fighters. CEO Neil Cloete elaborates: “Our contract to upgrade and extend the SAPS Dog School at Roodeplaat entails building new dog kennels, offices and a bulk food store. Repairs to the existing buildings will also be undertaken.”

With the site located at Roodeplaat Dam, environmental management is high on Liviero’s agenda, and Cloete stresses that a stringent environmental management plan will minimise the construction project’s impact on this ecologically sensitive area.

More than 1.3 million bricks will be used in this contract, along with 6 681m3 of concrete. It is scheduled for completion in February 2014.

A R131-million contract for the construction of a new police station at Madadeni, near the northern KwaZulu-Natal town of Newcastle, has also been awarded to Liviero, and will be undertaken in a joint venture with local building company River Queen Trading.

This project includes the construction of a new double storey police station, as well as a cell block, storage block and accommodation comprising married and single quarters. It is due for completion in August 2014. The structures being built are face brick, with timber roofs and steel roof sheeting. A total of 4 400m3 of concrete, 2.2 million common bricks and 848 000 face bricks will be used.

Cloete says that Liviero is pleased to be working with local firm River Queen Trading on the new police station. “River Queen brings local knowledge to the party and Liviero brings the experience of more than 29 years in the construction industry, forming a formidable partnership to ensure the successful conclusion of the project.”

Job creation and training are important elements of Liviero’s new contracts, which, Cloete explains, fall under the Department of Public Works’ “Contract Participation Goal” (CPG) and “Expanded Public Works” programme, and feature stringent requirements in terms of community involvement, empowerment and the use of targeted enterprises such as SMMEs and black-owned businesses. “Liviero will achieve a CPG of 40% on both these contracts, which means that 40% of the contract works will be carried out by targeted enterprises,” he explains.

At Roodeplaat, the training of youth has been identified as a priority, and Liviero has set a target of 84 youth workers to be trained during the course of the 20-month contract in various construction disciplines.