Civil and Structural engineering team praised for work in South Africa

ESBi engineering and Facility Management (ESBIefm) continues to work for Eskom in South Africa on a number of projects that will result in a significant increase in the country's electricity generating capacity. The projects are being delivered in two phases, the first of which, known as OCGT, is now complete. The second phase, known as Gas 1, involves projects associated with the implementation of 2,000MW of open cycle gas turbine plant (OCGT). Gas 1 is split into two sites, namely Ankerlig in Atlantis, 60km North of Cape Town, and Gourikwa in Mossel Bay, 400km east of Cape Town.

The Gourikwa project is largely complete apart from minor closeout work. Three out of five 150MW units in Ankerlig have been handed over to Eskom Generation with the remaining two units expected to be completed by the end of March.

C&S team make significant contributions
The Civil and Structural (C&S) team in ESBIe-fm has contributed significantly throughout the OCGT and Gas 1 projects. As well as having a fulltime presence on the original OCGT projects, C&S engineers have also been involved in both Gas 1 sites from the outset. Colm Hegarty, Marcus Pull, Brian Murphy, Declan Feerick and Eric Lynas have been based on-site for Gas 1, with back-up support from Finbar Quigley, Brendan Haugh and Joe Nolan in ESBI Head Office. The ESBI engineers are fully integrated into the Eskom site organisational structure, with responsibilities for adherence to design and quality requirements and monitoring costs and schedules.

The C&S team has also had a role in mentoring Eskom engineers and delivering technical presentations to site staff outlining key challenges associated with the construction works.

As with all ESBIe-fm engineers assigned to the Gas 1 projects, ESBI's Civil and Structural team actively promote a site health and safety culture within Eskom, and encourage the concept of Near Miss reporting.

C&S have been closely involved in the resolution of a number of major challenges arising from the projects including: the development and implementation of adequate pile installation and testing procedures; the availability and quality of steelwork delivered; erection procedures; and meeting design requirements. All challenges have been met while assuring project quality.

Eskom feedback praises excellent performance of C&S team
"These were very challenging projects, and their progress to date reflects the commitment and hard work of the C&S team as evidenced by the very positive feedback we have received from Eskom," stated Eoin O'Brien, Engineering Manager, Civil & Structural, ESBIe-fm.

Eskom praised the ESBI team particularly for the "high standard" of interaction with project teams, the ability to "balance the engineering requirements with the project needs" and the "excellent performance" and "valuable contributions made".