75
December 2013
CONSTRUCTION WORLD
Professional Services
C
UNISA Florida campus: mechanical services
for new laboratories
R
oyal HaskoningDHV was appointed for the design, documenta-
tion, tender and contract administration for all the mechanical
services in UNISA’s new laboratories on the Florida Campus, and
also the civil, structural, electrical and electronic components of this
R467-million project.
The resulting university campus represents the most advanced
learning facility on the African continent and will make a meaningful
contribution to the educational development of thousands of tertiary
students both here in South Africa and to students from other coun-
tries that choose it as their place of learning.
The Mechanical Services contract was chosen as a Best Projects
entry due to its inherent complexity which necessitated using the lat-
est computer aided design technology –VDC – of which the company
are the pioneers in this country and the only consulting practice to
have a fully operational iRoom.
What makes the mechanical services network so complex is the
requirement for multiple services to be installed throughout different
buildings, all of which impose different operating characteristics that
are largely independent of each other.
The plotting and routing of all the different services required
special care, skills and attention to avoid conflicts with each other
and yet have to operate as designed within the confines of the
overall structure.
As the construction took place in an established urban area, the
environmental impact was low and considerations were limited to
conforming to local bye-laws in terms of waste streams and air qual-
ity precautions.
In laboratory areas where experiments were likely to involve the
emission of noxious fumes, specially designed fume cupboards are
installedwith purpose designed extraction systems which handle the
emissions to health and safety standards.
Health and safety issues during constructionwere the responsibil-
ity of the contractor who reportedonlyminor andnegligible incidents.
The design of the buildings’services and BMS however ensures a
safe environment for those working and learning with in its confines.
Contamination, fire and gas leak detection has been designed and
installed with all standard safeguards, which is coupled to the build-
ing’s PA and evacuation systems.
The success and satisfactory conclusion of this project is a tribute
to the skills, ingenuity and tenacity of the professional team in over-
coming themany challenges this project presented.This is especially
so of the design and supervisory team fromRoyal HaskoningDHV and
a contractor (WBHO) willing to go the extra mile.
Project information
• Name of project: UNISA Florida Campus –
mechanical serives for new laboratories
• Company entering: Royal HaskoningDHV
