Construction World May 2016

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CONSTRUCTION WORLD MAY 2016
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COMMENT
EDITOR
Wilhelm du Plessis
ADVERTISING MANAGER
Erna Oosthuizen
LAYOUT & DESIGN
Lesley Testa
CIRCULATION
Karen Smith
TOTAL CIRCULATION:
(Fourth Quarter ’15)
4 688
PUBLISHER
Karen Grant
PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY
Crown Publications cc
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The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher.
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Tandym Cape
@ConstWorldSA
The Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA)
has announced that its ninth Green Building
Convention will take place in Sandton. Over
the past eight years, this has been the coun-
try’s flagship green building and sustainability
event – it will now take place in the heart of
the country’s highest concentration of green
building developments.
Brian Wilkinson, CEO of GBCSA, says that
research has shown that South Africa has the
largest percentage of green building projects
underway in the world (with the largest concen-
tration being in Gauteng) and it is this demand
that has influenced the GBCSA’s decision to host
the convention in Sandton.
This year’s theme is ‘Build a better world
NOW’. The function of the theme is to stimulate
awareness, ambition and action to design, build
and operate environmentally friendly buildings.
This year’s keynote addresses range from
Dr Ian McCallum who has authored Ecological
Intelligenceto John Elking who is regarded as
an ‘advisor from the future’ and who will illus-
trate the concepts of people, planet and profit
to Paul Clements-Hunt who is an authority on
clean capitalism, value-based infrastructure
and sustainability.
When it comes to sustainable
construction, Sandton is featuring
high on the agenda of green
building: it is the venue for the
2016 Green Building Convention
(26 to 29 July) while the broader
Sandton node is the epicentre for
green building in Africa.
At its Annual General Meeting on 30 March
2016, Hanlie Turner was inaugurated
as the Concrete Society’s new National
President for 2016/2017. Turner, who is
a technical information specialist with
cement company PPC, has been a member
of the Concrete Society for many years and
has held several voluntary positions in the
organisation including chairperson of the
inland branch andmore recently as national
vice-president.
Perfect venue
Sandton is an epicentre for green building in
Africa. It is home to an extensive list of completed
or soon to be completed green buildings.
The Sandton node has the largest collection
of green rated buildings of any CBD in Africa, with
more than 20 certified projects by the GBCSA.
The first ever Green Star SA rated building in the
country to be officially certified by the GBCSA
back in 2009 was Nedbank Phase II – in Sandton.
Several ground-breaking green office build-
ings are under construction in Sandton Central.
This includes the new Discovery head-office,
Sasol’s new global headquarters and Alice Lane
Phase III.
The Gautrain and other eco-mobility proj-
ects, like the Rea Vaya Bus Rapid Transit System
play a crucial role – green building projects are
undertaken in close proximity to these.
Wilhelm du Plessis
Editor