Engineering

Better cooling systems also help the environment.

UKZN’s School of Engineering offers nine areas of specialisation.

for industrial giants like Toyota and Defy.

When dairy company Clover decided to consolidate its national operations into just four plants, technological expertise was needed to make sure those factories were able to cope with greater demand.

One such company was Energy Partners Refrigeration (EPR) who were contracted to tackle a number of issues, including increased power requirements to higher refrigeration load as well as increased steam demand and pressure requirements.

The upgrade of the cooling structure featured the installation of a new 10MW ammonia system and 16% of all the electricity used by the new system is generated by solar PV. An innovative aspect of the project, pictured, is that Clover has a Cooling-as-a-Service (CaaS) contract, a pay-per-use model that removes the large upfront investment cost as a barrier to improved efficiencies and improved environmental performance.

All of the province’s biggest industries require sophisticated engineering skills: aluminium smelters in Richards Bay and steel works in Newcastle, Richards Bay and Cato Ridge. There are also chemicals and plastics production plants, and large automotive works.

Marine repair and engineering are important, with established companies such as EBH South Africa offering comprehensive services at the ports of Durban and Richards Bay.

Dormac, which is headquartered in the Bayhead area of the Port of Durban, is best known for its marine engineering but it offers specialised services to the sugar industry and provides machinery

Online Resources

Consulting Engineers South Africa: www.cesa.co.za

Southern African Institute for Industrial Engineering: www.saiie.co.za

WASH R&D Centre: www.washcentre.ukzn.ac.za

One of the largest independent wire manufacturers in the country, Hendok Group, is steadily increasing its exports to other African countries. With more than 1 000 employees at the factory in the Phoenix Industrial Park in Durban, the company makes a wide variety of wires and is the country’s biggest producer of nails.

ArcelorMittalSA is Africa’s biggest steelmaker and it has a plant at Newcastle, but tough times in the steel business have meant that the company has shut down some of its facilities. The first to be shuttered was Saldanha in the Western Cape and an analysis of the profitability of other centres is underway.

A big project that has created a lot of work for engineers is the multi-year Western Aqueduct project to bring fresh water to greater Durban. The Transnet Engineering (TE) plant in the Port of Durban houses six business units and has 3 555 employees. The Port Equipment Maintenance unit and units specialising in wheels and locomotive overhaul are other entities.

The School of Engineering at University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) offers a range of degree options in nine areas of specialisation including Bioresources, Chemical, Electronic and Computer Engineering and Land Surveying. ■

Water

Solar power is a water solution.

An off-grid, solar-powered groundwater harvesting system has been installed in Ekushane.

The Mayor of eThekwini was on hand to help launch the system together with a representative from Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa (CCBSA). The Coke Ville Project, pictured, was launched at several sites across South Africa in 2020 and not only harvests groundwater but treats it as well. Water wheelbarrows are distributed as part of the project to enable residents to transport water easily.

In the Harry Gwala District Municipality, an amount of R30million has been set aside for 28 solar-powered boreholes with elevated tankstands to be constructed. In the Umkhanyakude District, Mhlathuze has been appointed as the implementing agent to install boreholes across all four local municipalities. The water infrastructure servicing the coastal areas from Southbroom to Port Edward and the inland rural areas will receive more than R40million in upgrades and repairs.

In response to loadshedding, the iLembe District Municipality and two local municipalities, in partnership with the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development and Tourism and funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, has conducted a feasibility study into using renewable energy to abstract raw water from the lower Tugela River, treat it to safe drinkable standards and pump it to consumers in the Mandeni and KwaDukuza municipalities.

A provincial Water Intervention Plan is being rolled out in hotspots where municipalities are struggling to provide consistent services. The main pipelines of Kokstad and Underberg are receiving upgrades, as are the water supply systems at Bergville, Skhemelele and Moyeni Zwelisha.

The area north of the Durban central business district is one of the fastest-growing urban areas in South Africa, with a number of large office and accommodation projects going ahead simultaneously. This is a welcome development for the economy, but the new buildings also create pressure on infrastructure.

The multi-year, R250-million Northern Aqueduct Augmentation project was initiated in 2014 and the fifth phase of the project is underway. This will provide water for Durban North, Umhlanga, Newlands, KwaMashu, Phoenix and Cornubia.

Online Resources

National Department of Water and Sanitation: www.dws.gov.za

Umgeni Water: www.umgeni.co.za

Water Research Commission: www.wrc.org.za

Sector Insight

Municipalities are upgrading infrastructure.

Umgeni Water currently supplies seven municipalities, including the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality which includes Umlazi and Durban.

Large parts of the northern part of the province are served by Mhlathuze Water. The utility has assets valued at more than R3-billion and its area of supply covers 37 000m².

New technology has been installed at the Verulam Wastewater Treatment Works of the eThekwini municipality. Murray & Roberts Water and its European technology partner, Organica Water, has installed an environmentally friendly system that uses 30% less energy and produces 30% less sludge. ■