South African construction companies wait with baited breath for government to get a move on with its many promised infrastructure projects

Murray & Roberts' return to profitability, after two years of losses, comes amid the completion of projects that have caused the company major pain.

Growthpoint Properties investing R13 million to redevelop this prime site on the corner of Bowling and South Roads in Sandton for ICR Electrical

Despite predictions that 2013 will restore some of the local construction sector’s profitability, the situation is as precarious as ever.

After hitting a 4 yr. high of 42 index points in 3Q2012, the FNB/BER construction confidence index fell to 36 in 4Q2012.

Building activity in the South African market for new housing showed some improvement towards late 2012, with both the planning and construction phases recording higher levels of activity in November compared with a year ago.

The planning phase of new housing in the South African property market showed a rising trend from July up to October 2012, whereas the construction of new housing saw a contraction in September and October this year.

In today’s economy, tighter budgets mean that the demands around projects are more intense than ever before. To this end, the specialised skills of a project manager are extremely valuable when it comes to managing and controlling the variables that will influence the timeous and cost effective delivery of the project.

Although construction activity has consistently improved over the past two years, the growth in activity ratcheted up more significantly over the last six months.

At the forefront of innovation and sustainable design, Cape Town’s new Portside building is well on schedule to become South Africa’s (and perhaps even the African continent’s) first green tall building.