ASSE T MANAGEMENT Following 10 years of little to no proactive maintenance on the bulk supply system, Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM) transformed its approach. Transitioning from a lack of systems to a futurism approach, the municipality has significantly improved the operation of the system. By Chandre Barnard*
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MBM is a Category A municipality, with a population of over 1.3 million. Current potable water production is approximately 280 Mℓ/day. The bulk supply pipelines are up to 100 years old, vary in size from 225 mm to 1 400 mm in diameter, and consist of several different pipe materials. These pipelines, with an estimated value of over R5.5 billion, are crucial to the supply of potable water to residents and businesses in NMBM, as well as the neighbouring Kouga Municipality.
Inadequate resources
Since the formation of NMBM in 2000, there has been no review of the institutional arrangements of the organisation. The environment has changed significantly in terms of water demand and geographical extent but, due to a moratorium on the filling of vacancies, the staff complement of the Bulk Water Supply Division has dwindled over time. The approved organogram dated June 2005 indicates 211 approved positions and 98 vacant posts in the division – a 46% vacancy rate. However, even at 100% occupancy, the organogram will not be able to satisfy the needs of the
NMBM bulk water resource map
The story of Nelson Mandela Bay’s bulk water maintenance current system. Added to this is an insufficient budget. During the 2016/17 financial year, just R2.178 million was available for the maintenance of NMBM’s 700 km of bulk pipelines. With the cleaning up of budgets and prioritisation, the 2018/19 budget for maintenance to pipelines was more than R9.5 million. While this is a tremendous improvement, it is still inadequate to eradicate the backlog. According to the CIDB’s maintenance budgeting guidelines, NMBM should have an annual maintenance budget of at least R220 million for bulk water pipelines.
Problem identification
NMBM had also fallen into the trap of becoming completely reactive in its operations, with a maintenance backlog in excess of 10 years. Pipe bursts and
disruptions to supply were the alarms for duty. Similar to the majority of municipal infrastructure in South Africa, very little was replaced proactively before a component ultimately failed. This makes repairs more expensive and increases safety risks. The lack of systems was a large contributor to a general lack of maintenance and the failure of infrastructure. The main storage building for all bulk supply materials was found to be in a state of utter neglect, indicating a clear lack of systems implementation. A neglected storage space means that repair materials are presumably only purchased when needed, if not found after a long search through the clutter. This delays repairs, in turn disrupting supply and increasing consumer frustrations. The store was cleaned, a stock list created, and sufficient stock levels procured for a
Before and after photos of the Linton bulk supply store
J ULY / A UGU S T 2020
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