21 Sep 2022

A Good Cause

by | posted in: General | 0

“It is not how we give but how much love we put into giving” – Mother Teresa.

There is nothing more rewarding than being able to help another being, whether it be a person, an animal or anything else that is close to your heart. In my personal experience, I’ve had the privilege of fostering dogs and it is something that I will cherish forever, probably do for the rest of my life, and always try to encourage others to try. I have never felt a more fufilled, enriched feeling in my life, knowing that I played a small positive part in another’s life.

I believe life is about giving and not taking. Giving has been proven to decrease blood pressure and reduce stress. This makes absolute sense to me, it’s a no-brainer. It feels good right down to your soul when you are able to give. Giving is an absolute selfless act and should never be done wanting a return. Giving is contagious and inspires others to do the same.

There are thousands and thousands of non-profit organisations and charities in South Africa that you can get involved in as an individual or as a company. Donations or volunteering allows companies to take interest in their own communities and can also increase team spirit and morale. If a company chooses to make a corporate donation, workplace values can improve with increased employee involvement and a positive attitude.

Take time to choose the correct organisation that your company would like to donate to. Making contributions to charities that truly mean a lot to your business, whether it be for children in need, advocating to protect the environment, or helping animals in need, is better than just doing it for the sake of making contributions. You might find more than one organization or charity that fits your business, and if you are able to, provide contributions to multiple charities.

There are various benefits of a company supporting a non-profit organisation or a charity:

  • Staff will feel good about working for a company that gives back
  • Customers/clients are more likely to feel good about supporting a company that donates to charity / NPO which could then lead to a more loyal customer base
  • Charitable giving shows that you give back to the community and are in business for more than profit
  • There is more to donating to charity than receiving tax benefits.

There are different ways that a business can donate to charity. Although monetary donations are the most common, there are many other options. Let’s have a look:

  • Volunteering: Instead of giving money, donate your time. Volunteer as a company at a soup kitchen, at an animal shelter, picking up litter on our beautiful beaches and so many more. It is often so much more rewarding giving your time.
  • Volunteer work offers many of the same benefits as a generous monetary gift, and it sends a strong, positive message to customers and your business community.
  • A charity drive: Start a collection, a food drive, a blanket drive, gathering toiletries for a homeless shelter and the list goes on;
  • Donate online: Set up a monthly debit order, which allows you to donate to a charity every month.

Charity teaches the next generation about generosity.

Generosity creates a more compassionate, community-focused world. Showing and enlightening children about the value of generosity and selflessness makes it more likely they will continue to give as they grow older. Teaching children to care about others is an important life lesson. When children see you give whether it be monetary or by volunteering, they will grow up knowing that giving back is such an important and selfless thing to do.

Charity is also important as it raises awareness of issues that many may not even know about and gives companies and individuals the power to do something about them.

In Conclusion, most people want to help those around them. If you are passionate about something, whatever it may be, get involved. We often think about how can someone as small and insignificant as ourselves can make a difference, but if everyone did something small in some way, it will then make an enormous difference. Change happens when people stand together! Charities need your help to continue their selfless initiatives and giving can feel just as good as receiving!

Sources:
Business News Daily
Cone Health
The Important Site
Canada Helps

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
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About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

30 Nov 2021

Construction Trends for 2022

by | posted in: Construction Chat | 0

What is the definition of a trend? A general direction in which something is developing or changing or something that is popular. While a trend usually refers to a certain style in fashion or entertainment, trends can be found in any industry and seeing as we are in the building and construction industry, we thought it would be fitting to have a look at some Construction Trends in 2022…so let’s go:

1. Updated safety measures – The wearing of face masks is not a new thing at construction sites, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. It is now the standard to wear face masks on-site as well as having your temperature scanned, workplace cleanliness on a stricter level, coronavirus testing, social distancing and a few other safety regulations. Safety-related technology is also on the increase, which includes a few of the following:

  • Drones – which can access hard to reach areas.
  • Robots – which can handle tasks that bring about injuries such as scaffolding construction and bricklaying.
  • Environmental Sensors – which can detect wind, heat and noise and provide warning signs/signals to evacuate workers and in case of an emergency or natural disaster, move high-cost construction equipment.
  • Wireless Sensors – Construction workers’ personal protective equipment such as vests, hard hats, gloves will have sensors and trackers instilled in them, and keep track of workers vital signs, movements, slips or falls. This ensures the safety of workers and immediately notifies safety managers when workers are at risk of injury.

2. Green Building – What is Green Roofing? A green roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium that is planted over a waterproofing membrane.

Green roofs are becoming more and more common. They offer huge environmental benefits, such as Reducing temperatures of the roof surface and surrounding air, providing shade, improving stormwater management, insulating the building reducing the need for air conditioning in summer and providing insulation in winter, improving air quality, and lasts two to three times longer than a normal standard roof.

3. 3D Printing – Definition: Using an automated machine (3D printer), the structure of a construction project is automatically printed on a layer-by-layer basis.

3D printing of homes hasn’t been done on a big scale as yet but there is definitely growth in it. 3D printing is mostly used for building low-cost and emergency housing is usually more affordable and faster than the conventional methods. A few more advantages are reduced material costs, cheaper construction overall, reduced injury, and many more. This is definitely a construction trend to look out for as it also reduces waste, has exceptional turnaround times and has the capacity to mass print designs without changing machinery.

4. Finding and Retaining Workers/Labourers – A shortage of workers is nothing new according to many in the construction industry. Not having enough workers can slow down the construction process hugely, which then affects customer satisfaction and poses consequential risks to companies when taking on new construction projects. So the way of solving the problem and tackling this challenge will include paying competitive wages and benefits, offering bonuses and incentives, worker development, training programs, better tools, etc. These are just to name a few.

5. Smart Cities – In general, a smart city is a city that uses technology to provide services and solve city problems. A smart city does things like improve transportation and accessibility, improve social services, promote sustainability, and give its citizens a voice. A few advantages of smart cities are more job opportunities, better transport services, efficient public services, the decline in crime, improvement of infrastructure, and a few more. However, there are also a few disadvantages of smart cities such as Social control and limited privacy. Smart cities have been defined as “high-tech intensive” urban developments that can link people and data to improve a city’s economy and quality of life.

Sources
Ace Work Gear
Method. me
Wikipedia
Green Builder Media

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
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About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

17 Nov 2021

Staff Spotlight: Bianca Edgcumbe

by | posted in: Staff Spotlight | 0
BE STAFF SPOTLIGHT - doc

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit Leads 2 Business.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit Leads 2 Business Wiki.

About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

30 Jul 2020

Electricity in Africa

by | posted in: General | 0

Africa’s people don’t have access to electricity – why and what is being done?

So I was a bit worried about the topic of this blog and I’m not going to lie…doing research on it gave me a bit of a wake-up call. It made me realise how easy and often we take things for granted. I have realised that the small things in life are what truly counts and that without them people’s lives can be really dim 😉

The first question…WHY?

Some countries don’t have enough resources to provide electricity to the citizens. If those countries don’t have the resources or if they don’t have the money to buy or build the resources that generate electricity, the country, unfortunately, can’t provide it to their citizens. Today, one in three Africans do not have access to electricity, which means they have to make use of paraffin or spend their lives in darkness. Power providers are financially unable to provide electricity and often suffer from old infrastructure, which then means they can’t deliver their services to customers. If this does not change, there will be more people without power by 2030 than there are now.

One of the major barriers to electrification is the cost of a grid connection. A grid connection in Kenya, for example, is estimated at USD 400 per household…I mean, really!

Another big reason…Some households won’t be metered as they do not have a formal address, or people live in an area that is difficult to access – for example near flood plains or in informal settlements.  So then again how would these families be able to afford USD 400 to be connected to electricity???

And then probably the biggest reason…Corruption…between service providers, power theft and the establishment of electricity cartels also upset and limits electricity access.

So, let’s look at some statistics:

The number of people without access to electricity globally has dropped, from 1.2 billion in 2010 to 840 million in 2017. It is predicted that by 2030, there will still be about 650 million people without access to electricity, and 9 out of 10 of them will live in Sub-Saharan Africa…how scary is this!

Which country has no electricity? – South Sudan is the country with the worst level of electricity access in the world, with a minimal amount of 4.5% of the population connected to the power grid as of 2014. Only 7% of those living in Burundi have access to electricity, while in Chad this figure is 8%.

The 15 most under-powered countries are all based in Africa. In Sierra Leone, the situation had gotten worse since 1990, down from 18.4% to 13.1%. Same situation in Angola – down from 47% to 32%, Djibouti – down from 63.4% to 46.7% and Kiribati – down from 95.2% to 48.1%.

Across most of central Africa, the overall percentage who have access to electricity averages less than 21.22%. Many clinics and hospitals lack access to reliable electricity as well as half of the secondary schools in sub-Saharan Africa do not have power.

The below graph is a good illustration of the percentage of households in various countries who have access to electricity:

With this all being said, what can be done to improve this situation for millions of people on the African continent?

A very important recommendation is that households must be encouraged to have individual meters to measure their electricity usage. Installing prepaid meters can be very beneficial whereby it gives low-income households the option of paying in smaller amounts instead of a bigger amount at the end of the month this allows poorer households to budget and pay for electricity as and when they can.

A study found that the above option can be very beneficial and affordable to the poorer households. However, service providers must minimize technical and commercial power system losses due to activities such as meter tampering. Increasing tariffs, which are the rates consumers pay for electricity, are also necessary but should aim at large- and medium-size consumers first and in line with service quality improvement.  Sharing the initial cost of connection across all electricity users, including large- and medium-sized firms, could also help take away the burden of upfront connection costs for poor households. However, a more efficient billing system should be implemented to ensure revenue is collected on a broader scale and not always just focus on large and medium-size consumers.

Millions of people still living without access to electricity live in urban areas. Most are within a stone throw from existing power grid infrastructure. So, why aren’t these consumers connected to the formal grid?

Urban communities also often face many challenges in obtaining access to electricity. These range from extremely high costs of a connection, to informal housing, power theft and many more.

Decentralised renewable energy technologies (solar, wind, small hydro) offer an important solution for “under-the-grid” electrification. They are simple, fast and easier to set up. They have short installation times, and also offer a reliable electricity service for informal settlements. The willingness to pay for decentralised renewables is much higher than a grid connection because they are seen as more reliable. People are looking for new ways to create a more reliable and efficient system to produce electricity.  Another advantage of decentralised renewables is that they are much easier to maintain than current grid systems in place and also contribute to factors such as job creation.

Access to reliable, safe, and affordable electricity can improve so many lives in Sub-Saharan Africa—people can work longer and be more productive, children can study at night and hospitals can provide reliable healthcare to those who need it.

In conclusion, there is light at the end of the tunnel…60% of the newly connected population were in rural areas, where it is more difficult to connect people. The urban electrification rate increased from 72% to 74% and rural electrification increased from 16% to 23% in the same time frame. These solutions show that with the right approach, and simple innovations, Africa’s prospective urban customers can finally get access to electricity. This, in turn, will boost countries’ economies and will hopefully provide a brighter future for all!

Sources:
Worldbank
WRI
Economist
QZ
The Conversation
Brookings
Express

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
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About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

7 Mar 2019

Jumpstart your spread with L2Q

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Jumpstart your spread with L2Q

I must be honest…when I first started working at Leads 2 Business, the department that “freaked me out” the most was by far L2Q. I knew the only way I would overcome my fear was to get myself into L2Q and learn as much as I possibly could. And here I am.

So firstly, what does L2Q stand for? Leads 2 Quotes (L2Q) is an electronic pricing platform used by buyers to send out requests for quotes to their preferred suppliers.

You have the following benefits:

  • One system – which makes it easier and more efficient for you so you don’t have to try and find vendors to provide pricing. It is all right there for you – just by a click of a button;
  • Trade Mapping – where we will code the trades according to your company’s needs;
  • L2Q has the ability to transfer a bill of quantity into various electronic formats;
  • Easy access to a database of vendors / suppliers within different regions;
  • Time saver;
  • We have a support team who will follow up on the requests for quotes and update you accordingly on their response;
  • We upload any drawings that you may have.

The L2Q process is super simple and straight forward and is as follows: Buyers / main contractors will do an L2Q Bill Request on the L2B system, which guides you through the steps such as contract number, description, respond by date, closing date, then on to the trade mapping, attaching files, etc as below:

The bill of quantities can either be attached on the request or the contractors can send it to us directly via e-mail. From there, we will convert it, make it “pretty”, code it into the correct trades and upload it onto the buyer’s L2Q Desktop, for you to begin the process of electrically requesting quotes. This process does take some time, our turn-around times are as follows: Excel bills is a minimum of 24 hours and PDF a minimum of 48 hours.

We then also have Trade Mapping available which is where we will code the trades according to your company’s needs.

You will have the option of selecting your preferred suppliers/vendors. You can earmark the businesses that have given you the best response, service and pricing. Our pricing platform will also start recognising the vendors on our system who have given you the best response to the requests for quotes. So should you not have dealt with a company before, their rating will give you a guideline on their response rate. You can then generate a Control List report which will show you the vendors you have sent to as well as your engagement with them, how they are responding to you as well as the follow ups done by our Control List team.

We understand the time constraints and therefore our directory of over 90 000 companies is expanding and updated on a daily basis which then gives you even more options to your business and ultimately more competitive pricing when submitting a tender.

The e-mails that are sent to the vendors through the L2Q system include your company branding, drawings, addendums, terms & conditions and specifications which bring clarity to the vendors when responding.

In conclusion, Leads 2 Business’ biggest and strongest point of differentiation is our Leads 2 Quotes platform – our very own. I hope that my explanation of the L2Q system has been useful as well as beneficial to you, and that those who have been a bit weary of it, will now grab it by the horns 😉

 

To view more articles, please visit the Leads 2 Business Blog.
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To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit the Leads 2 Business Wiki.

About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

14 Aug 2018

3D Concrete Printing

by | posted in: Did You Know | 0

3D Concrete Printing


Wow…so looking at pictures of 3D concrete printing, I was like:

Is this even possible…and yes, it is.
So let’s have a bit more of an in depth look at exactly what 3D Concrete Printing entails.

Definition: 3D Concrete Printing refers to various technologies that use 3D printing as a core method to fabricate buildings or construction components.


So basically, construction units such as walls or columns can be pre-fabricated off site by means of 3D printing. The completed wall parts will then be transported to the construction site, installed on traditional foundations and reinforced with traditional steel structures or cement. The unpolished walls can then be supplemented with different finishes.

There are numerous 3D printing methods used on a construction scale, which include the following main methods:

  • Extrusion (concrete, cement, wax, foam, and polymers),
  • Powder Bonding (polymer bond, reactive bond, sintering)
  • Additive Welding.

3D printing at a construction scale will have a wide variety of applications within the private, commercial, industrial and public sectors.

Advantages of these technologies include:
• Faster Construction
• Lower labour costs
• Increased complexity and/or accuracy
• Greater integration of function and less waste produced
• Could improve the quality of the end product
• Another advantage is the freedom of design, whereby buildings can be tailored to suit customer needs.

Demonstrations of these technologies have included fabrication of housing, construction components, bridges and civil infrastructure. This technology has increased in popularity in the recent years as new companies have emerged onto the market, such as Yingchuang Building Technique (Shanghai) Co. Ltd or Winsun as it is known. Their entry into 3D printing started in 2005, with the intervention of the spray nozzle, one of the main elements of its first 3D printer. The spray nozzle was used to experiment with cement and other materials. Winsun also set up the world’s biggest 3D construction printer, which is 10 metres wide, 6.6 metres high and 150 metres long…pretty awesome hey 
In 2013, Winsun successfully printed a batch of ten 3D residential houses, whereby they used a special ink made of cement, sand and fibre with a proprietary additive. Winsun has increased productivity and made it possible to save costs, a standard house can now be built for plus minus $30,000. Then the increase in the speed of construction is a huge factor as well, for example, the construction of a two-storey 1,100 sqm mansion took one day to print and two days to assemble…yes I know, incredible right!!

Winsun’s technology is also a lot more environmentally friendly. They source 50% of their ink material from construction waste and mining tailings.
The company’s most important showcase project was the company’s first 3D office. It opened in May 2016 in Dubai for the Dubai Future Foundation. The building was printed in Suzhou, cut into pieces for shipping and transported to Dubai. It was assembled and finished within a few weeks.

Now, the main challenge that faces 3D printing is the scepticism of designers, governments, project developers etc. For some it seems just too good to be true. Winsun then realised that they can win clients over by inviting them to their factory to view the prototypes with their own eyes. They are also collaborating with architects such as Cornell Design Institute, Tongji Design Institute and Jiaotong University to educate designers to incorporate the 3D-printed design into their work, as well as training architects with its textbook on 3D printing.
Below are a few amazing 3D buildings that have been built

Europe’s first residential 3D printed house
World’s first 3D hotel

And that is 3D concrete printing as I understand it and a bit of background into one of the world’s biggest 3D concrete printing companies, Winsun.

I hope your mind is as blown away as mine at the moment 😀

Now get cracking on your new 3D printing building.

Sources:
Lifegate
CNET
Wikipedia
Future of Construction

To view more articles, please visit the Leads 2 Business Blog.
If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit Leads 2 Business.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit the Leads 2 Business Wiki.

About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

12 Mar 2018

Did You Know #DYK: Fire Escape Rules in South Africa

by | posted in: Did You Know | 15

Fire Escape Rules In South Africa

So, after reading many different articles and doing some intense researching regarding fire escape rules in our beautiful country, I have come up with the following and hope it will somehow assist you, should you catch yourself in a heated situation 😉

Just a bit of history…Did you know that one of the very first fire escapes was invented in the 18th century in England? David Maseres invented the machine in 1784 called the “Fire Escape”.

This machine was fastened to a window which allowed a person to descend to the ground, as per the below picture.

 

Abraham Wivell then created an improved design, which included an escape chute.

Furthermore, the “Enclosed Tubular Chute Fire Escape” became accepted in schools, hospitals and other institutions in the 1930s. It was a very easy form of escape as people would literally just slide down it.

And as time went by, it evolved and became more modernised, such as a modern type of evacuation slide which is the vertical spiral escape chute and is commonly used for bigger buildings and structures. Buildings are getting taller and new fire escape techniques are developing. Elevators have been thought of as a possible fire escape for high-rise buildings. Further high-rise fire escape methods include parachutes, external collapsible elevators and slides.

 

Now that we’ve looked at the history and where and when fire escapes came into place, let’s have a look at what it means today.

No one wants to see their house or company go up in flames, therefore there are very strict rules and regulations when it comes to fire safety in South Africa. According to SANS 10400: Part T – the Fire Protection Act says the following: “In order to protect your property and the people in it, South Africa has implemented building regulations to ensure that the buildings are designed, constructed and equipped adequately in the event of a fire”. The Fire Protection Act states the following:

  1. The occupants of the building, including disabled people will be protected;
  2. The spread of fire within the building and to other buildings will be minimised;
  3. Sufficient stability must be insured so there is no major failure of the structural system;
  4. The spread of smoke shall be controlled and minimised; and
  5. Adequate means of access for detecting, fighting, controlling and extinguishing shall be provided.

The SANS Act 10400 Part T can be divided into 4 categories:

  1. Safety Distances;
  2. Fire Resistance: Relating to building material such as structural walls.
  3. Requirements for effective fire protection include:
    • General requirements,
    • Regulations relating to safety distances,
    • Fire performance
    • Fire resistance
    • Fire stability of structural elements or components,
    • Protection of openings,
    • Provision of escape routes,
    • Exit doors,
    • Feeder routes,
  • Emergency routes, dimensions of components of escape routes,
  • The width of escape routes,
  • Basements,
  • Stairways and other changes of level along escape routes,
  • Ventilation of stairways in emergency routes,
  • Pressurization of emergency routes and components,
  • Openings in floors,
  • External stairways and passages,
  • Marking and signposting,
  • Provision of emergency lighting,
  • Fire detection and alarm systems,
  • Provision and maintenance of firefighting equipment,
  • Water reticulation for firefighting purposes,
  • Hose reels,
  • Hydrants,
  • Automatic sprinkler and other fixed extinguishing systems,
  • Portable fire extinguishers,
  • Mobile fire extinguishers,
  • Fire-stopping of inaccessible concealed spaces,
  • Protection of services shafts,
  • Smoke control,
  • Air-conditioning systems and artificial ventilation systems,
  • Lift shafts,
  • Lifts,
  • Firemen’s lift,
  • Stretcher lift,
  • Access for fire-fighting and rescue purposes
  1. Rational Designs: Designing of a structure to ensure the level of safety is sufficient by a qualified person.

 

Now, I think it is very important to have the correct fire safety equipment in your building.

We probably walk pass some of the above items at work every single day and don’t even realise it, but it is vital to know that they are there, where exactly they are and how they are used. It is good to have the necessary equipment to protect the building as well as the people inside it. Therefore, the following equipment will always be helpful:

Alarms – Whether they are heat detectors, smoke alarms or even panic buttons. Heat detectors are generally slower to detect fire than smoke detectors; they are preferably used in smaller spaces where there are higher risks of fire. Smoke alarms are recommended by experts as they detect fires and heat much quicker. Different types of smoke alarms are used such as ionization smoke alarms, which responds to raging fires; photoelectric smoke alarms which respond to a light source; and lastly a combination alarm which is the best recommendation. Ensure that you know where your panic buttons are.

Fire Reels – When outdoors these are generally connected to fire engines or fire hydrants and when inside it is attached the building’s plumbing system.

Fire Extinguishers – Always ensure that you know where these are kept in your workplace as you never know when you might actually have to use one. There are different types of fire extinguishers and the number and type you require would depend on certain circumstances in your building.

Sprinkler Systems – According to Wikipedia, over 40 million sprinkler heads are fitted in buildings each year. Buildings that are completely protected by fire sprinkler systems, over 96% of fire were controlled by fire sprinklers alone. There are different types of sprinklers such as wet pipe systems, dry pipe systems, pre-action, deluge, foam protection, just to name a few.

Fire Exit Signs and Doors – Fire exit signs are a crucial part of an emergency. Proper signage is critical for all fire exits and fire doors. Fire Regulations have stated that fire exits are very clearly marked and should show even when there are power outages.

In the case of an emergency, the last thing you want is for people to run around hysterically. The calmer the people, the calmer the entire situation. Next, let’s have a look at what precautions we can take in the event of a fire:

  • Plan your escape plan. Learn your building’s evacuation plan and ensure that fire drills are done regularly;
  • Ensure that your building’s evacuation routes are displayed;
  • Never lock or block fire exits or doorways, halls or stairways;
  • Know the sound of your building’s fire alarm;
  • Display emergency numbers near telephones;
  • Know where your assembly point is.

 

In conclusion, ensure that you follow all the rules and regulations required by the government and that your fire equipment and systems are regularly tested and serviced. If you ever do find yourself in a heated situation, always be prepared, react immediately, get out of the building and stay out…

Sources:

sans10400.co.za/fire-protection/

www.fireco-sa.com/south-african-building-regulations-fire-protection.html

https://www.westerncape.gov.za/general-publication/fire-safety-workplace

 

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To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit our Wiki site.
To view more articles, please visit our blog.

 

About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

26 Jun 2017

Did you know #DYK: Project Role Players

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Project Role Players

Project Role Players

So, Project Role Players… this one got me thinking, a lot… jeepers 🙂 Leads 2 Business works with various of these role players on a daily basis as our Private Projects department goes hand in hand with these project role players. So, I will be giving you a run down of our Private Projects Department and where these project role players, in my understanding, generally fit in.

There are various stages that the projects follow and there are different professionals involved in each stage:

  • Conceptual
  • Procedural
  • Design
  • Tender
  • Awarded
  • Underway

Let’s have a look at each stage and who does what, when and where.

 

Conceptual:

This is the beginning phase of the project: the “Idea” 😉 This is the very early stage whereby an idea could become reality. The following could take place here:

  • Client / Private Developer come into play. They are responsible for the costs of the project and receive benefits of / from completed projects. Their aim is to generate a profit. Without a client, there would be no project.
  • Open Developer are generally for public organisations and would be aimed at social and welfare reasons.
  • Feasibility Study would be done
  • Securing of funding.
  • Depending on the client and the project, some of the professionals could be appointed at this stage already.

 

Procedural:

This stage involves various approvals and authorisations such as:

  • Licensing,
  • Whether Geotechnical Studies have been completed,
  • Whether an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has been completed (EIA is a process of evaluating the likely environmental impacts of a proposed project or development, taking into account inter-related socio-economic, cultural and human-health impacts, both beneficial and adverse).
  • Property Rezoning, which a Town Planner would be responsible for. Is any rezoning required? Town planners are responsible for obtaining the town planning approvals and rezoning the land according to your development if required.
  • Specialist consultants (eg Heritage consultant, Traffic Impact Assessment Consultant, etc could also be appointed in this stage).
  • The professional team could already be appointed

 

Design:

This stage involves detailed design of the development. Majority of the professionals could have been appointed by this stage. For a building project, a Quantity Surveyor and an Architect would be appointed. For a roads or infrastructure project a Civil Engineer would be appointed. Lastly, a project for a bridge, a Structural Engineer would be appointed. A quantity surveyor would be appointed to draw up the bill of quantities and determine what is required to complete the construction of the development. An architect would be responsible for the actual design and work hand in hand, as well as the civil or structural engineer, with the quantity surveyor in order for the QS to compile the BoQ . We like to call the bill of quantities “the shopping list”. The following professionals could be appointed at this stage:

  • Civil Engineer – An engineer who designs roads, bridges, dams and similar structures.
  • Structural Engineer – This is a speciality within civil engineering. They create drawings and specifications, perform calculations, review the work of other engineers, write reports and evaluations, and observe construction sites.
  • Project Manager – The person in charge of planning and execution of a specific project / development.
  • Electrical Engineer – Someone who designs and develops new electrical equipment, solves problems and tests equipment.
  • Mechanical Engineering – This is the branch of engineering that involves the design, production and operation of machinery, and could also involve the air conditioning of a building.
  • Health and Safety Consultant – The person responsible for the health and safety of the workers on site during construction.
  • Fire Engineer – The application of science and engineering principles to protect people and their environments from the harmful and destructive effects of fire and smoke.
  • Estate Agent – A person who sells and / or rents out buildings and is responsible for securing tenants.
  • Interior Designer – Mostly has to do with enhancing the interior of buildings, sometimes including the exterior as well. They work hand in hand with the architect and may even be the architect in some cases.
  • Landscape Architect – Person responsible for the design of outdoor areas, landmarks and structures.

Once the quantity surveyor has drawn up and completed the BoQ, it heads to the client for approval to start getting ready for the tender process.

 

Tender:

This stage pretty much speaks for itself. This is when the tender is released, whether it is an open or an invited tender. If it is an open tender, it will be publicly advertised and if invited, specific contractors are requested by the client to submit their prices. In this stage, the contractor would send out requests for quotes to sub-contractors to obtain prices and then submit their best prices to the client.

 

Awarded:

In the stage, the client chooses the most successful proposal and the main contract is awarded for construction and they are referred to as the main contractor. He would appoint the sub-contractors as and when required. In this stage the main contractor would start getting ready to move onto site and start setting up for construction.

 

Underway:

Construction has started, contractors and subbies would be on site together with the project manager, quantity surveyor, architect, various engineers, estate agent, interior designer as well as the landscape architect.

So… this is my understanding of where project role players fit into the various project phases and hopefully I have cleared up a few things for you too…and as Doris McCarthy says: “You are actually constructing what your head understood about what your eyes saw” and that is how I feel about this topic… so get involved and get cracking Project Role Players 😉

 

References:

https://www.cbd.int/impact/whatis.shtml
https://www.sokanu.com/careers/electrical-engineer/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanical_engineering
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_protection_engineering
seaoc.org/what-structural-engineer

If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit our website.

To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit our Wiki site.

To view more articles, please visit our blog.

About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.

23 Jan 2017

Did You Know #DYK – Simplify and Focus your Leads: How to clean up your Inbox and Old Projects

by | posted in: General, How To, Uncategorized | 0

Simplify and Focus your Leads: How to clean up your Inbox and Old Projects

Simplify and Focus your Leads: How to clean up your Inbox and Old Projects

Simplify and Focus your Leads: How to clean up your Inbox and Old Projects

The last thing you want is for your inbox on the Leads 2 Business system to be overloaded and inundated with e-mails, so to make your life easier, be organised.

We tend to leave things to pile up, and emails flow in faster than they can be sorted out, this could often lead to missing important e-mails….. That is why Leads 2 Business gives you options – To simplify and focus your leads. It will only take a few seconds every now and then, to just systematically arrange your emails into the correct folders provided.

How to clean up your Inbox: Let’s get started

Your inbox can be accessed in 3 different ways on the site:

  • Top right hand corner under your name;
  • Small envelope on the top right hand corner; or
  • On the left hand side just under the Leads 2 Business logo

Once you have opened your inbox, different folders are provided:

 

 

 

  • Compose – new e-mail;
  • Inbox – where your e-mails are received and from here you can categorize them into the various folders under the green Actions button;
  • Important – If you have marked your e-mails as important, they will be saved here;
  • Trash – If you decide to delete e-mails, they are moved to Trash and from here you can also Restore them and they are moved back to your Inbox,
  • RFQ notices – Once the buyer has made changes to a RFQ that was previously sent to you, you are automatically notified via email which you will receive in the RFQ Notices received.

Sent:

  • Monitors – Emails that you have sent to your monitors as well as tenders or projects that you have assigned to your monitors will be displayed here,
  • Professionals – E-mails that you have sent to professionals as well as via the directory,
  • RFQ Notices – E-mails or amendments made to RFQ’s that you have sent as a buyer to the vendors.

Your Team:

A list of your monitors are displayed here and in order to send them an e-mail, just click on the preferred monitor.

Next Step – Cleaning up Projects

Private Projects consists of predominantly large privately funded projects which follow the progress from the procedural stage right through to the completion stage. Our private projects subscribers receive a private project advisory (PPA) whereby they can also monitor the projects of interest in order to receive any notes and updates made to the specific project. Leads 2 Business gives you the option to “Clean up your Projects”, so again, you can be a bit more organised and not have projects floating around that you might not need at that stage.

This is how:

Hover your cursor over your name (top right hand corner) and select Profile Settings, proceed to the last option which says “Cleanup Projects”, and it takes you through to the following page:

Basically this function allows you to remove monitored projects at any stage and if, some time in the future you needed any of them again, there is another option to reinstate them. Select which of the project statuses you want removed, click on “Remove Selected”. If you want to reinstate them, select your choice and click on “Re-Instate Selected”. As easy as that…another great way of getting yourself organised.

Getting organised is a daily struggle. In my humble opinion, it will be easier to get into a daily routine of clearing and organising your inbox 🙂 So…what are you waiting for?

 

If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit our website.

To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit our Wiki site.

To view more articles, please visit our blog.

About Bianca Edgcumbe

I started working at Leads 2 Business in May 2013 in the Africa Tenders Department. I worked my way to the Leads 2 Quotes Department in September 2016 and have been there ever since.