June 2013
CONSTRUCTION WORLD
36
ABB, the leading power and
automation company, recently
announced that they will
be inaugurating their new
offices in Milnerton, Cape
Town, to better meet the
infrastructure needs of the
expandingmarket in the region.
ship building but also in terms of fittings and
finishes. There were a few challenges at the
new dealership one of which was the ellipti-
cal curve to the showroom with the entire
showroom façade being cladwith aluminium
– waterproofing the cladding and establish-
ing a neat finish was a painstaking exercise.
The showroom bulkhead pattern and
drift line had to be perfectly executed due
to it being closed offwith a stretching ceiling
material which was unforgiving material to
work with, as once it has been cut to drawing
measurements it cannot be altered”.
ABB HAS GROWN
its business through
targeting electricity utilities and industry
customers.Their five divisions include; power
products, power systems, discrete automa-
tion and motion, low voltage products and
process automation.
The new facility, which forms part of an
environmentally sensitive park, was generally
built in line with the energy efficient nature
of the internationally acclaimed ABB brand
and boasts some of the latest technology and
energy saving concepts.
Situated on over 10 000 m
2
, the building
is divided into an administration block and
workshop facilities.
The admin block houses all five the ABB
divisions and the workshop facilities house a
turbo charger workshop, a medium voltage
services facility, and a low voltage/drives
distribution centre.
ABB Turbocharging solutions provide
long term economical resolutions and field
experience accumulated through the world-
wide ABB Turbocharging service network
ensure that customers benefit from continu-
ous product development and improvement.
While the ABB Medium Voltage Services
provide for the maintenance, retrofitting,
installation and commissioning of new and
legacymediumvoltage equipment and solu-
tions tomunicipal, industrial and commercial
projects & contracts
AS MUCH STREET
frontage for the ve-
hicle showroom and pre-owned vehicle
showroom is one of the pre-requisites for
a KIA dealership with the service reception
needing to be as close to the service drop-off
area as possible. The servicing area should
be linked directly to the showroom, thereby
enabling new models to be visible to entice
an existing customer-base.
Guilherme Pereira da Silva, senior archi-
tectural technologist at GL Architects said,
“KIA Motors have high design standards not
only for the construction of the entire dealer-
Cape Town offices inaugurated
customers for the provision and distribution
of electrical power.
ABB has been a pioneer and leader in
electrical engineering and industry automa-
tion solutions and systems. Innovation and
quality are key characteristics of their service
and product offering.
“With the steady growth in the market
and the move to Milnerton from Paarden
Eilandwas strategic and our employees have
adjustedwell.The investment in the new facil-
ity highlights our commitment to theWestern
Cape region. As more companies are steadily
steering towards resource efficient buildings,
our Milnerton facility serves as our commit-
ment to the environment to lower our carbon
footprint,” says recently appointed ABB CEO
South Africa and Cluster manager, Southern
Africa, Leon Viljoen.
The new premises are situated at No.1
South Precinct, 4Topaz Boulevard, Montague
Park, Milnerton.
●
Trendy new dealership
The motor vehicle market is tightly contested with all major brands
revamping their showrooms and facilities to make the customer’s
experience mutually beneficial. KIA Motors, which recently opened
their 3 500m
2
dealership near Clearwater Mall, west of Johannesburg,
have strict corporate identity specifications which has resulted in very
bold, bright and airy KIA dealership showrooms.
The design of KIA showrooms cater for a
handover bay and a delivery bay with the
inclusion of a separate entrance for new
vehicle deliveries to be placed in the show-
room for immediate display purposes.
It is important that customers are afforded
