Social & Affordable Housing

A new addition to Joburg’s inner city

The refurbishment of Union Square, a 19-storey block at 80 Plein Street in the heart of Johannesburg’s original CBD, is well under way and scheduled for completion in the last quarter of 2020.

The project is being completed by Raubex Building, part of the Raubex Group’s infrastructure division, for the Johannesburg Social Housing Company (Joshco).

While the ground floor at street level will be used as retail space, each floor from level 1 to 19 accommodates 18 residential units. These include 19 m 2 bachelor flats, 35 m 2 one-bedroom units, 43 m 2 two-bedroom units measuring, and 94 m 2 four-room communal cluster units. There are three basements for parking.

Renovation innovation

Load-bearing considerations led to the selection of the lightweight Imison walling system, achieving a significant weight reduction compared to bricks and mortar. The system is applied as a series of interlocking wall panels made from high-quality Neopor insulating material. A total of 15 500 m 2 of Imison panels were used, along with 32 600 m 2 of Fibrecote plaster.

Some 33 000

l of the specialised BASF MasterEmaco S 5410 CI – a fibre-reinforced structural repair mortar with active corrosion inhibition – was used in the repair of the building’s concrete façade.

For safe façade refurbishment, scaffolding for the full height of the building had to be engineered and installed. In addition to being

Scaffolding the full height of the building had to be engineered and installed

tied into the building, the 350 t of scaffolding also had to be back-propped into the basements to accommodate its weight. Netting was also installed to eliminate the risk of any falling materials. There were several of these businesses from Johannesburg’s Ward 59 involved, as part of Raubex Building’s local participation programme, and this included PC Builders, a 30% QSE partner on this project.

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