For the first time our readers had the opportunity to follow up the construction of the new Day Care! From the sod turning to opening ceremony you will find all photo galleries and information about the progress of the institution whose construction costs were sponsored 100% by Primavera.

Almost one year has passed since the opening of the Kopano Day Care Center in Brits. Just recently, the 2nd building phase of the Primavera-funded project has been completed. The day care now has 3 class rooms, as well as a community kitchen and bathrooms.

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Successful opening ceremony of the new daycare center in Brits, South Africa! Many guests from the community, from the Bosch location and the day care center had appeared to inaugurate the new building consisting of 2 living rooms, 1 kitchen and sanitary facilities for 38 children. "The children are fostered in a way that they could not obtain otherwise." states Dr. Helmut Schwarz, Representative Chairman Primavera, in his visits report from the opening ceremony on site. Start image gallery...

Now, the construction is making great strides! Inside the school, the kitchen was installed and the children have a playground surrounded by trees and grass. On top of the roof, the solar system was installed to have hot water inside of the house and to save energy. A good prognosis for the planned opening ceremony on 25th November 2013! Start image gallery...

Unfortunately, there are some constructional defects that have to be fixed. The edges of the paving cracked on the edges and the pipes of the toilets are leaking. The problem was reported to the contractor already so that some people can be sent to fix it. Start image gallery...

The round walls outside of the house were completed including plastering, thus the paving of the walkway can be started. Inside of the house the painting of the walls, doors and window frames will be continued. Start image gallery...

The second layer of paint was applied to the inner and outer walls, the electrical system completed and the installation of sanitary facilities was begun. Start image gallery...

The first coat paint has been done on the inside and outside and some of the doors have been installed. The process of installing the fascia boards and ceilings is still ongoing. Start image gallery...

This week no work was done, as the roof issue remains unresolved. The Maintenance Manager was on leave this week and he will attend to it when he is back on Monday. Start image gallery...

Significant progress was made this week! The plastering inside and outside of the house is almost done. Next week the installation of the plumbs and related activities can be started as well as the roof.Start image gallery...

This week the brick work of the two classrooms, the installation of the window and the door frames were completed. Even the plastering in one classroom was started. If everything works as planned, the roofing can start next week. Start image gallery...

This week's progress mainly consisted of brickwork and the installation of door and window frames. The brickwork of the two classrooms should be complete by the end of next week and the installation of the roof trusses should be starting next week. The waterproofing of the bottom brickwork will also be done next week. Start image gallery...

The door frames of classroom 3, ablutions and office were basically built in. The concrete floors for classroom 1 and 2 were also poured this week. We hope to complete the brickwork of classroom 2, 3 as well as the ablutions and office. The roof trusses and the sanitary ware have been ordered and should arrive within the next week.
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The past two weeks were spent bringing in filling material and compacting the area around the walls as the geotechnical reports showed that a clay layer goes down to almost 5 m. Therefore, extra material was needed to provide a solid base for the building and prevent future cracks.
Last Thursday, the concrete floor for the first classroom, toilets and offices was poured. Having 3 brickwork teams now, the brickwork for the walls will now speed up and the roof should be done within 3 weeks. Start image gallery...

The construction work went ahead this week without any concerning issues. On one section of the structure, the basement was compacted completely and teams are now busy with the steel fixing work to prepare the pouring of the floor. Start image gallery...

We finally got the approval from council! The week was spent completing the foundation brickwork, compacting the external areas around the building, importing the required filling and starting the filling of the internal surfaces. Layersworks as prescribed by the engineer is an integral part of the building process to ensure a crack-free concrete base. The actual brickwork will take no longer than 8 working days before the roof will be erected. All necessary materials have been ordered to ensure there are no further delays. Nevertheless, the completion date has unfortunately been shifted to the end of June. Start image gallery...

Good news from South Africa!
The last amended plans have been approved and it is confirmed that the construction work will resume next Monday. The contractor indicated that they will arrange more teams on the construction site to expedite progress. Let's keep the fingers crossed that it does not start raining again...

It finally has stopped raining in South Africa...
Nevertheless, the construction work cannot continue, because the requested changes to the architect's plan have to be approved first and peronally signed by the Land Owners again. That's why our colleagues from RBSA were busy again with completing formalities. But they successfully managed bringing land owner Chief Motsepe to the Madibeng Municipality for signing. We hope that there will be no further delays and wish our collegues a lot patience and persistence!

It still rains in South Africa...
Due to the inclement weather from last week, the ground is wet and slippery, so that continuing working would be unsafe. The maintenance manager, Mr. Aldo Nardari, Mr. Aseza Makhabeni and Mr. Dumani Mali have visited the site this week and had brief discussions with some of the Community Committee members. The Local Municipality has made minor additions to the plans. For example, the ablution facility for adults and the rest area for the children were changed slightly. We now have to verify, if this has any financial impacts.

It's raining in South Africa...
Unfortunately, so severe that the construction work can not be continued. Even so, the foundations have already been completed. Start image gallery...

The project is gaining momentum. The builders are very enthusiastic and the team spirit is high. The base was done last week concretely. This week, they started with the foundation wall and its reinforcement. Start image gallery...

This week the contractor finished digging the trenches and also the next materials were delivered already. Start image gallery...

The first working steps began. According to the ground markings, the contractor started digging the first trenches. Impressive impressions of a hopeful project... Start image gallery...

The floor plans of the school have been approved! And already the first working steps began. The construction company has already built the fence to keep both children and visitors away from the site and the ground markings of the future foundation are visible already. More images...

Yesterday, Johanna went to the local municipality regarding the approval of the floor plans. Unfortunately, there are still some information missing regarding the architecture of the building.
Now it is our turn again to complete our homework and to deliver the missing information as fast as possible until February 19th, 2013.

Since the Sod Turning Ceremony last week not much has happened. This Friday the committee will meet with the architect to double-check, the availability of all employees who are needed to start with the construction work.
We are still waiting for the approval of the floor plans by the local municipality and the mayor.

Joyous and relaxing atmosphere at the Sod Turning Ceremony! The guests invited, enjoyed this special day, which was an important step for the children of Thetele Village. After welcoming the guests, the Director of Robert Bosch South Africa Mr. Hoffmann introduced the guests into the details of building the school. The choir and several other speakers provided a ceremonial context until the sod was turned finally. When the official part was over, all guest used the chance to chat during a relaxing lunch. A good start from a small shack to a solid building!
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The materials are ordered, the blueprints are provided to the municipality, the mayor of Brits and the members of the municipality committee are invited to the Sod Turning Ceremony.