Pictured: Mark Rippon, newly appointed managing director of Esorfranki Civils

Esorfranki Civils enters the New Year under the leadership of newly appointed managing director, Mark Rippon.
“South African industry is ramping up again after the global economic crisis and Esorfranki Civils is one of the few local companies in our arena to have weathered this storm without any serious effects,” says Rippon.
As the main contractor on Eskom’s Kusile Power Station project, the power utility’s second most advanced coal-fired power plant project, Esorfranki Civils was the first contractor to be recognised for achieving 1 million LTI-free man-hours in August 2012.
Package 26 was awarded to Esorfranki Civils in March 2011, involving the construction of the terrace underground facilities at the Kusile site comprising some 5 km of in-situ concrete tunnels for mechanical and electrical installations. The package works also includes the installation of 50 000 m of a range of pressure and gravity drain and feed lines throughout the plant. Forty percent of the work has been completed to date, with finalisation scheduled for December 2014, including modifications to the original scope of work.
Rippon says that based on its successful execution of Package 26, the company secured Package 25 in March 2012 which included the installation of the general service piping systems linking the bulk supply network to the main power block and plant buildings. This was after the original contractor failed to deliver work of the required standard. The scope of work covers all underground service piping and required the team to remove and replace the sub-standard workmanship undertaken by the previous contractor. The package includes excavating trenches and installation of both small and large diameter piping to carry the various services. This contract is also scheduled for completion in December 2014.
In addition, Esorfranki Civils in joint venture (JV) with emerging contractor, Khulani, was awarded Package 46, the bulk earthworks contract for Kusile Power Station, which calls for terraces to be established to the required levels. Material for the bulk earthworks is being obtained from existing sources around the site, and the company in JV with another local emerging contractor, Masibuyisane Services, tendered for and was awarded the Package 29 crushing work for this material.
Rippon says the original contract called for the crushing of 564 000 m3 to supply the backfilling needs of the company and other contractors on site. The JV is subsequently in negotiations with the client to increase this contract to 1.2 million m3 of crushing work.

“These two emerging contractors were identified as having the potential to become established service providers of quality through the Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative of South Africa and we’re proud to be associated with their upliftment,” comments Rippon.
During 2013 Esorfranki Civils intends to participate in a range of projects such as railway expansions, ports and harbours infrastructure and schools expansion projects in Gauteng.

Photo: An aerial view of the entire Kusile site

Photo: Casting of the foundation slab of the tunnel section of trench E at Kusile