Cape Town a construction hub

Investments in infrastructure and public spaces – by both the public and private sector - have managed to put Cape Town on the map for more than just its beautiful scenery. It’s clear that Cape Town is determined to become even more of a world-class destination over the next couple of years with some major construction projects aimed at growing the economy.

We examine a couple of projects currently in the pipeline:

Century City Conference Centre and Hotel
Construction of the new Century City Conference Centre and Hotel is set to be completed in October this year and officially open its door next year February. The new centre, with its capacity for 1 900 guests across 20 venues, forms part of Century City’s R1bn mixed-use Century City Urban Square development. Century City is the third-largest commercial precinct in Cape Town, and its conferencing facilities will augment the expansion of the CTICC.

The centre will have flexible configurations to cater for different events and will provide efficient fibre optic and wireless connectivity.

The building has been designed to be energy-efficient in line with the new four-star, mixed-use Green Building Council of South Africa rating.

This includes attention to the air quality and indoor pollutants, thermal comfort, access to daylight and natural lighting, and sound levels. Pedestrian access is paramount and the centre has been designed to create a seamless interface between the buildings and the public square.

Radisson Red Hotel at V&A Waterfront
The Radisson Red in the Silo District is on track to welcome its first guests towards the end of 2016. This hotel will be the first new-build since the One & Only in 2009. The Radisson Red will be tech and design-savvy, relevant and pragmatic, and focus on creating an experience that is truly guest-centric. The hotel’s offerings will include flexible, functional guest rooms, paperless check-in, and 24/7 deli and bar, and will total 235 rooms.

The new Radisson Red hotel will focus on its offering to millennial travellers, offering mid-range to luxury suites. Radisson's new upscale lifestyle select brand will provide guests with convenient features and services. These will include flexible and functional hotel rooms as well as paperless check-in. One aspect of Radisson Red that is both well-designed and very useful is the Red app. This is a concierge app that guests may use to check-in, check out, pay their bar tab, order their room service, and receive information about the hotel’s amenities. The hotel will also have free Wi-Fi and the fantastic ability to view movies on room walls.

Portside building
Standing a proud 139m tall, the building came with a hefty R1.6bn price tag. The new Portside development is the culmination of decades of planning. The site was acquired by Old Mutual Investment Group in two transactions nearly 20 years apart. The Brian Porter property in Bree Street was originally bought on a sale and leaseback basis in the mid-1980s, and the rest of the block was bought from the City of Cape Town in 2007. However, with 52,000m² office space, spread over 32 floors, 1,200m² retail and banking space and 1,382 parking spaces. It is a wonderful building, with bicycle lockers and shower facilities for bicycle commuters. The parking area has special parking for hybrid vehicles complete with battery chargers. The building is the only high rise building in South Africa to be 5 Star Green Star rated.

Despite all the challenges, it’s clear that there is still a huge opportunity in the construction sector in South Africa. If you are working on helping to build Cape Town and require the right Engineering staff, we can assist. Communicate Recruitment represents a range of experienced, skilful engineers in various fields such as civil, electrical, structural, mechanical and electronic. Contact us today!