Blog - Page 179 of 196 - SANRAL Stop Over

Your career starts here

5Jan2016

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A new year, a fresh start. Is this the year you reach new heights with a set career path? Perhaps we can help steer you in the right direction with our scholarship, bursary and internship programmes.

It is known that there is a shortage of technical skills in South Africa. This is not only a challenge to us at SANRAL but is a general problem in both developed and developing societies. The problem is exaggerated in South Africa due to our history of inferior education for the majority, our fast-growing economy, extra demands within the industry and competition from overseas employers.

SANRAL offers internal and external bursaries to assist aspiring engineers and technical staff in entering the field of road construction. We also encourage skills development in related fields: community and economic development, project management, marketing, communication and general administration.

Kick-start your career, today, and start 2016 on a high note, here.

Building roads through bursaries

5Jan2016

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Helping others ends up as helping yourself, could be a way to describe what the country’s road agency does in the field of education. Roads – education? Indeed, SANRAL needs engineers, so does South Africa. The agency has stepped in to assist with full bursaries, but also internships. So, in this way SANRAL helps itself but also the country.

Mercy Masia

One such full bursary is enabling Mercy Masia to pursue her dream of becoming a civil engineer.

The senior student at Wits University says she thoroughly enjoys the workshops arranged by SANRAL that provide her with the practical insight and experience required for her future career path.

For Mercy, the biggest challenge facing her as a student is to ensure all her work is done in time. Although she enjoys recreational reading in her spare time, she often reads her textbooks for the upcoming semester during the holidays, so that she can get ahead and be prepared.

Thus, her advice to anyone who wants to follow her path is to “use every minute”. She emphasises that it is very important to do as much as possible, and that time must never be wasted if it can be used in a constructive manner.

The combination of hard work and using all available opportunities, abilities and resources, will hopefully lead Mercy to establish a successful career as an engineer. Her ultimate goal is to gain international experience and explore other cultures and work opportunities in the global environment.

SANRAL provides internships to engineering students at various tertiary institutions in South Africa to equip them with practical work experience as required by the degree curriculum. This programme is implemented in cooperation with contractors and consultants working with SANRAL.

In the 2014/2015 financial year, 217 students received internships and vacation jobs from SANRAL – the equivalent of 74% of the staff complement. In terms of a performance agreement between SANRAL and the Minister of Transport, the number of internships offered should be equal to 10% of the staff complement.

However, because of the high demand for practical experience within engineering fields, SANRAL has exceeded this requirement and now offers internship opportunities equivalent to 74% of the agency’s staff complement.

Sesethu Tywabi

Sesethu Tywabi was offered an internship by SANRAL while studying for her National Diploma in Civil Engineering at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.

This was a most enriching experience for the young assistant resident engineer who hails from Umtata in the Eastern Cape. During the one year internship, she was placed with two major companies working on SANRAL construction projects on the N7, N1 and N12 roads.
You quickly gain experience in all aspects of road construction, she recalls.

“Your studies at university provide you with a solid theoretical background, but it is only when you are on the site of a construction project that you fully understand how this is implemented in practice.

Your knowledge is broadened by working with so many experienced engineers on projects and it provides you with a great start to your own future career.”

Sesethu says she is very grateful towards SANRAL for giving her the internship. The knowledge gained while working on projects also translated to her studies and enabled her to achieve distinctions in a number of subjects when she returned to the university.

“This experience helped to make up my mind to continue pursuing a career in transportation engineering.”

To find out more about our bursary programme, click here.

Changing a road to save plants

5Jan2016

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Realigning a road and ramp is how far SANRAL will go to save indigenous and endangered plants. As a result, the road turned out more expensive but it saved some of the country’s precious plant heritage.

These far-reaching steps were taken by the national roads agency when it upgraded the N7 in the Western Cape between Melkbosstrand Road and Atlantis. Conserving the Swartland Shale Renosterveld was a significant environmental challenge as both were affected by the widening of the road and the construction of new interchanges.

An environmental assessment had found that the vegetation was deemed to be vulnerable to critically endangered and that mitigation measures would not reduce the loss of these highly valued conservation species.

The only way was to realign the road, despite the cost implications. At Melkbosstrand the alternative alignment crossed over the existing road before looping back to reduce the direct impact on the vegetation in question, thereby saving some 25,000 square metres of these endangered species.

But not all could be saved, so the rest were relocated to a site identified in consultation with the City of Cape Town.

The loop of a ramp at the Atlantis Interchange was reconfigured to a larger radius, thus maximising the area to be conserved within the interchange. The roads agency has taken responsibility for their long-term conservation too.

Particular attention was paid to the drainage mechanisms to ensure that the hydrological regime of the area will not be significantly altered by the road.

Dreams built by SANRAL

5Jan2016

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Keeping vehicles safe on excellent roads is what SANRAL does. Less known is that it also gives people a leg-up and it is happy to help women grow into what is, too often, seen as a male environment – road building in its many facets.

Two individuals who can attest to this, are Kerisha Govender and Nonkululeko Nzimande.

Kerisha Govender

While on vacation, work on road construction projects has helped Kerisha make up her mind about a future career. Transport engineering beckons for this final year student at the Howard Campus of the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

She is especially grateful towards SANRAL, who not only provided her with a bursary to fund her tertiary education but also helped her to find work over the holiday periods with various civil engineering companies.

Together with other SANRAL bursary holders, she’s also provided with opportunities to take field trips to road construction projects where they are briefed by project managers and civil engineers about the nature of the work being done. This has helped to strengthen her resolve to continue with her studies for a Master’s degree and specialising in transport engineering.

Kerisha attributes her academic progress to a combination of hard work and perseverance.

“The key is to stay focused and not to be influenced by potential negative aspects of university life.”

But it is not all work and no play for the diligent Kerisha. In her spare time, she enjoys relaxing with family and friends, reading novels and playing the guitar.

Nonkululeko Nzimande

Equally diligent is Nonkululeko whose maxim is: “Never give up”.

She is a SANRAL bursary holder at the University of Pretoria. She is in her final year of studying towards a degree in civil engineering.

SANRAL has made a significant impact on Nonkululeko’s studies, granting her a bursary that covers course fees, accommodation, as well as an allowance. She has had this bursary from her second year and says:

“When I was in first year, I really struggled without the bursary. Since I received support from SANRAL, it has allowed me to focus on my studies rather than stressing about finances – especially the allowance that did not seem important, but helps more than I expected”.

In her spare time, Nonkululeko enjoys hanging out with friends and watching movies. She has also joined several organizations on campus that enable her to be more involved in general society. The various student societies allow her to do community work, including speaking to high school students in disadvantaged areas, inspiring and motivating them to take the next step in their education.

She says that an engineering degree, like life in general, is not easy, and everyone is bound to struggle and sometimes fail. When something goes wrong, Nonkululeko emphasises that it is vital to try again until you reach your goal. In addition, she advises that it is vital to love what you do, because if you don’t you are not always going to give it your all.

It is this passion that drives her towards her goal of success. When she graduates, she wants to pursue a career in Pavement Design. After completing an MBA, she wants to be a senior engineer and then, one day, will be aiming at being a director in a top firm.

Dreams, built by SANRAL!

Find out more about vacation work and building your career through SANRAL by clicking here.

Maths + Science = SUCCESS

5Jan2016

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How do you ensure success? Boost skills in maths and science. SANRAL has made this a little easier with its recent joint launch of a new chair in science, mathematics and technology education with the University of the Free State.

The roads agency‘s R30 million endowment over five years is seed money used to establish the SANRAL Chair to help improve the quality of teaching in these vital subjects at township and rural schools. It will form part of the university’s Schools Partnership Project (SPP), a flagship initiative launched by the vice-chancellor, Prof Jonathan Jansen.

Education is one of the key priorities of the South African government and SANRAL has for many years been offering scholarships and bursaries to high school learners and university students.

The success of the government’s National Infrastructure Plan, which promises to create thousands of jobs and boost empowerment, will hinge on skills dependent on mathematics and science.

Infrastructure is critical to strengthening key value chains across our economy by advancing service delivery, bolstering job creation and expediting economic transformation.

By partnering with the University of the Free State and establishing the chair in science, mathematics and technology education, SANRAL will help to ensure that South African students can measure up to international standards in the mathematical world. And pave the way for personal success.

If you are interested in SANRAL’s scholarship, bursary or internship programmes, click here for all the information you need!

Are you what we’re looking for? Our bursary programme could shape your future.

5Jan2016

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SANRAL is committed to developing skills of students who express an interest in studying and building a career within the Road Infrastructure Administration Environment and Civil Engineering industry.

We, therefore, invite candidates studying towards a University degree in Civil, Electrical, Electronics, Computer, Environmental and Transport Engineering to apply for bursaries.

Consideration will be given to needy students who have successfully completed their first year of undergraduate study or those currently registered for 2nd, 3rd, 4th year and postgraduate studies.

However, strongly motivated applications from matriculants with at least 70% for Mathematics and Science and students studying towards the above Engineering fields while being registered with a university will also be considered.

Students interested are required to apply between 1 July to 30 September for each academic year.

Our requirements for a bursary are as follows:

The bursary awarded to each student will cover:

For more information and application forms, click here.

E-tags Take You Further

17Dec2015

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Existing tag holders were the first to benefit from the rollout of the automated payment system on key toll routes. This system comes at no additional cost to motorists.

Most significantly it offers convenience as road users will not have to stop to pay at the following plazas from December 2015:

• N3 – Mariannhill toll plaza near Pinetown
• N1 North – Kranskop, Nyl, Sebetiela, Capricorn
and Baobab toll plazas
• N1 South – Verkeerdevlei, Vaal and Grasmere
toll plazas
• N17 linking Gauteng with Swaziland through
Mpumalanga – Leandra Trichardt and Ermelo
toll plazas
• N2 South – Oribi toll plaza
• N17 – Dalpark & Gosforth toll plazas.

The difference between this system and open road tolling of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) is that on the GFIP network vehicles pass under overhead gantries on the freeway and the tolls fees are automatically deducted. With automated electronic payment motorists will still have to pass through the existing toll plazas but choose the dedicated lanes with equipment to recognise the electronic tags in the vehicle.

This system has the following benefits:
– it will cut down on travel time
– lead to improved safety and comfort on the road
– and best of all: road users need not do anything to have a smooth and easy passage through the toll plazas. They are automatically opted in. Motorists must have a positive balance in order for the boom to lift.

Look out for the sign that says TAGS ACCEPTED!

SANRAL Raises Funds For Charities

17Dec2015

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SANRAL Western Region and its contractors, suppliers and consultants recently raised the impressive sum of more than R100 000 at its annual Imbizo held near the Huguenot Tunnel at Paarl – all for a good cause.

Every year, SANRAL hosts this event to build relation- ships with industry related stakeholders, create an opportunity for companies to network and give back to the community.

SANRAL selects specific charities that benefit from the Imbizo. In 2015 funds raised were donated to the GH Starck Frail Care Centre in Hanover Park; the Lily Haven Place in Bonteheuwel; and Huis Zonnekus in Milnerton. The teams also helped to pack ‘pamper packs’ for the senior citizens at the three homes.

Twenty-nine teams participated in various games including tug of war, relay races, wheelbarrow race and obstacle courses.

Stand-up comedian Wayne Mckay, who was a laugh a minute with his witty comments, kept everyone on track and in good spirit.

During the day the teams prepared dishes at their stands as part of a cooking competition and presented their best culinary delights ranging from chicken kebabs, fish to potjiekos to the judges. The team of Mott MacDonald came up tops. The team from Aurecon SA won the Team Spirit award.

The overall winner on the day was the team of Mott Macdonald, followed by Aurecon SA and Element Consulting Engineers.

Comments from the teams:

“This was a great day and we had a tremendous time enjoying the vibe and people around.

The music, the stand-up comedian kept everyone entertained and there was lots of laughter, fun and games. At the same time it was rewarding to know that all our efforts were in aid of a good cause.”

Alta Groenewald, who heads up the event organising committee, said it was amazing to see the positive spirit of all the participants and how generously they gave to the less privileged.

Kobus van der Walt, Western Region Manager, said it was heartening to see not only the enthusiasm with which the teams competed, but also the support given to the auction to reach the amazing amount of R106 000.

“People really opened their hearts and we would like to say a big thank you for all who made the day such a huge success.”

Amanzimtoti congestion to be eased

17Dec2015

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The upgrade planned for the Adams Road Interchange at Amanzimtoti is necessary to alleviate the congestion currently being experienced by road users in this area. The aim is to improve the traffic capacity, which will reduce delays that motorists experience.

The upgrade has been planned jointly with Ethekwini Municipality as substantial upgrading is required to the local road network adjacent to the interchange.

SANRAL has no plans to use any of the overpass bridges or pedestrian bridges for camera installations related to Open Road Tolling or traffic violations enforcement purposes. The red dots on the bid documents indicate the positions of bus and taxi lay-bys, not toll infrastructure as alleged by some.

At this stage the Adams Road Interchange upgrade is awaiting the completion of the detailed design plans and obtaining the necessary environmental authorisations. The construction phase is currently not budgeted for but further discussions will be held with the Ethekwini Municipality to possibly provide a share of the construction cost similar to how the Umgeni Interchange was funded.

It has to be noted that upgrading of the interchange is separate from the N2 Wild Coast Toll project.

The Adams Road upgrade is required due to congestion and safety concerns, which are expected to worsen significantly in the short term.

The upgrade has been considered as part of the wider metropolitan road infrastructure upgrades to support local and regional economic activity. It is expected that the upgrades will encourage the free flow of traffic within Amanzimtoti with reduced congestion, which will encourage local economic activity.

Drainage design forms a major part of the technical development of the interchange upgrade project and specialist engineers are engaged to ensure that the local drainage systems are upgraded where required so as not to pose a safety and operational risk to the interchange and the surrounding areas.

Off The Beaten Track – The Free State

17Dec2015

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It is slap-bang in the middle of the country, borders Lesotho and six South African provinces – and is easily accessible along some of the best roads in the world – SANRAL roads: the N1, N3, N5, N6 and N8.

The Free State, previously the Orange Free State, has Bloemfontein as its capital and is also the country’s judicial capital. It is also the only province where Sesotho is the most spoken language with Afrikaans a close second.

Its eastern border nestles against the Drakensberg and Maluti mountains with relatively flat grassy plains stretching westward. With its rich soil, it is not surprising that it is South Africa’s biggest grain producer. While agriculture and mining are the heart of its economy, high-tech industries are growing apace, with tourism also a factor.

There are several places to see in the Free State and one of its attractions is the number of small towns which are all quiet and friendly – places to go to when you intend doing very little but relax.

Should you need more when you go on a road trip, you can have that too.

1. Gariep Dam Nature Reserve

Such as the Gariep Dam Nature Reserve on the similarly named river (previously the Orange) on the border with the Northern Cape at the town of Colesberg on the N1 which runs from Cape Town to the border with Zimbabwe.

It is a haven for all sorts of water sports, angling, game and bird watching, horseback rides, hiking. There is accommodation to pick and choose from but if you travel with a young family the adjoining Aventura Resort is the place to go to – there is swimming, tennis, mini golf, again water sports and play areas for the children.

Fully rested, you can continue on the N1 to Bloemfontein which has much to offer. It is probably the only city which has a rural feel to it. It houses the Supreme Court of Appeal, the Anglo-Boer War museum, the National Museum and, if you’re in town on Saturday, go to the Boeremark in Langenhoven Park.

2. Naval Hill

A must-see is Naval Hill where the Franklin Game Reserve of 250 hectares is – the only one right in the middle of a city, with a wide range of game and birds. Entry is free and the reserve offers spectacular views of the Free State capital.

3. Vredefort Dome

Continue north until you are close to Parys and turn off to see the Vredefort Dome, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was formed two million years ago when a meteorite the size of Table Mountain hit the earth. It is the largest impact crater and was 300 km across when it was formed.

The centre of the crater is 40 km in diameter and is still recognisable – small hills in a large dome shape with beautiful valleys in-between. A visit will probably only take half-a-day but stay on. There is excellent local accommodation available and much to do – from river rafting to mountain biking, archery to abseiling.

4. Clarens

Another option would be to take the N5 at Winburg and on to Clarens, famous for its art galleries, arts and craft shops, excellent accommodation and a variety of eateries. If you’re into the arts, this is the place to be.

But there is more to do – 4×4 safaris, hikes in the spectacular landscape, horse trails and white water rafting.

5. Golden Gate Highlands National Park

Nearby, nestling in the foothills of the Maluti Mountains near the Lesotho border is South Africa’s only grassland national park – the Golden Gate Highlands National Park, with abundant game and extraordinary views.

It has exceptional sandstone cliffs and outcrops which are coloured in multi-hued bands, eroded by sand and rain. Visit the biggest of many caves, Cathedral Cave, where San, Basotho and Anglo-Boer War refugees found shelter over time.

This is for those who love wide open spaces, breath fresh mountain air and nature to restore their life balance.

The Free State – wide horizons, blue skies and a mix of cultures, farmland and goldfields and really warm South African hospitality. With excellent roads to take you through the province. But, stop, visit and enjoy what it has to offer.