The ultimate countdown to the opening of the Mall of Africa has started… 28 April 2016 is D Day. Project Manager Mike Woodruff gives some behind-the-scenes insights into Atterbury’s ground-breaking retail giant.
Mall of Africa is set to be a landmark, not just in Gauteng, or South Africa, but in Africa. What sets it apart from the top malls already in existence?
The size and scale of the mall, at 131 000m² it’s the biggest mall ever built in one go in South Africa. The height and width of the malls and the level of finishes will be of a scale only seen in malls internationally.
In a construction project of this scale there must have been unforeseen challenges?
When the building was set out in the east to west direction the curvature of the earth had to be taken into account! Also, the rate of concrete production has probably never been seen in South Africa before. There are two concrete batch plants on site to meet this production. The production has reached 30 000m² of suspended slab per month.
What was on the land before? Did it present any particular geological challenges?
It was built on a hill with very variable rock formation. This resulted in a significant amount of blasting. A total of over 200 individual blasts were required during the bulk earthwork activity, which took about a year to complete.
Can you share some of the big facts?
The mall will have the largest ETFE (Ethylene Tetrafluoroethylene) roof in South Africa and probably on the continent. This roof consists of pillows which are kept inflated by means of small pumps. ETFE has very low levels of embodied energy and excellent environmental characteristics which result in an ecologically benign climatic envelope.
What did it cost to construct something so massive?
The construction cost is around R3.5 billion… with the Mall of Africa value on completion around R5 billion.
How many cranes used on the site?
Twelve tower cranes and up to eight mobile cranes.
How many workers/man hours were used?
There are just shy of 2 000 personnel on site at the moment and to date 5.2 million man hours have been expended.
What still has to be completed in this final year?
Some of the structure, including the roof and structure of the parkades, the building services and finishes; things like ceilings, tiling, shopfronts are now commencing with the tenant fit-outs due towards the end of the year for the larger shops.
Has load shedding impacted on construction at all?
Two of the larger generators that will be eventually be installed on site were procured early and supply power to the site when there is a power outage. They will be fully refurbished before final installation.
And have the heavy rains and flooding we’ve experienced in Gauteng impacted in any way on the construction?
Last year at the end of March we had two solid weeks of very heavy rains when the works were still in the ground doing foundations and sub-structure. This did cause problems with progress but an allowance was made in the contract for what can be considered average rainfall.
How did the NUMSA Strike affect you?
The strike started on 1 June 2014 and ended on 28 June – a period of 20 working days. In consultation with WBHO/Group 5 and the structural engineer, bending schedules were issued earlier than required in an endeavour to obtain delivery before the strike took effect. In the most part this was successful and the effect of the strike was greatly reduced.
What has been the most rewarding aspect of the project so far?
Tenants have had to take cognisance of the scale and grandeur of the centre and all the national tenants are coming to the party by revisiting their standard designs to deliver shop designs that have never been seen in South Africa before. In addition a number of international tenants have been attracted to take space which will rival some of the most prestigious malls abroad.