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S A S O L D I E ReventsLaunch of theDefence Works FormationFacilities and wellmaintained infrastructurewere an importantelement of preparing,employing anddeploying forces.By Cpl Ally RakomaPhotos: S Sgt Lebogang TlhaoleOn 20 April 2011 the Departmentof Defence launched theDefence Works Formation bymerging Project LEBAKA, theService Corps, DirectorateFacilities and DirectorateFacilities Support Management underDOD Logistics Division, Maj Gen JusticeNkonyane at the DOD WorksCapability, situated in the then Group 15HQ in Thaba Tshwane.As part of the Department of Defence(DOD) fine-tuning for greater innovation,the Minister of Defence andMilitary Veterans, Ms Lindiwe Sisulu, inher Budget Vote speech on 13 April 2011alluded to the DOD's discussion withthe National Department of PublicWorks on the establishment of theDefence Estate Management mechanismwhich will lead to the National DefenceForce progressively exiting fromProperty and Facility Management. Thisshows that the DOD has undergone astrategic shift in terms of its coredeliverables.She said: "Now that we have laid downthe systems for self-maintenance andmanagement of our properties, theWorks Regiment will intensify the main-The unveiling of the plaque by Lt Gen Temba Matanzima, the thenActing Chief of the SANDF (left), and Brig Gen David Masters, theGeneral Officer Commanding of Defence Works Formation.tenance and upkeep of all properties.We have completed a strategy to establishour own Real Estate Agency tomanage our property portfolio of morethan 430 000 hectares of land, approximately35 000 buildings and more than12 million square metres of surface areawithin buildings that is currently managedby the Department of PublicWorks."Lt Gen Temba Matanzima, the thenActing Chief of the SANDF, said thatfollowing the statement by MinisterSisulu and the Military CommandCouncil, the opportunities of membersof the SANDF to maintain the DODfacilities were considerable for both theRegular Force and the Reserves. Hesaid: "They will be utilised in the followingcapacities: facility maintenance,including repairs and construction thatrequire architects, civil engineers, estatemanagers, quantity surveyors, artisans(electricians, carpenters, bricklayers,mechanics, wall and floor tilers), environmentalmanagers, occupationalhealth and safety managers and all themilitary command and managementskills inherent in the military fraternity."Owing to decentralisation and ongoingstructural reforms over recent years,there has been a growing trend towardsprivatisation of services and activitiesthat traditionally were functions of theDepartment of Public Works and theExpanded Public Works Programme.SA Soldier conversed with a panel ofleading experts who highlighted someof the opportunities of the DefenceWorks Formation at the dawn of a newera. They mentioned that facilities and18• J U N E 2 0 1 1
eventsS A S O L D I E Rwell maintained infrastructure were animportant element of preparing,employing and deploying forces.Brig Gen David Masters, GeneralOfficer Commanding Defence WorksFormation, in clarifying the achievementsmentioned that a research into acase study was undertaken and an ideawas planted in the SANDF that anopportunity needed to be granted toour own members to help solve thismassive problem of the 12 billion randsmaintenance backlog which had beenconfirmed by the entity responsible forthe facility management of the DODinfrastructure, but there was no solutionin sight.He said that in order to achieve thisobjective it was necessary to recruitSANDF members guided by our "OneForce Concept" from all our Services(the SA Army, the SA Air Force, the SANavy and the SA Military HealthService) to be trained in differentlabour-based construction and maintenancetrades, site supervising, engineers,technologies and technicians inthe workforce from different rankgroupings, including both men andwomen.Brig Gen Masters said: "Most importantly,in terms of driving this projectwe aligned ourselves with differentindustries in mainstream construction,such as Murray and Roberts, Multi VoltLaden, GDD Irons, Afrit and PelmaTrucks, WBHO and Group 5. It was avitally important and potentiallyrewarding area in detailing a successfulinitiative."He added that the Defence WorksFormation had been mandated to providethe following functions for theDOD: Operational Level FacilityManagement Facility Maintenance and Repair Facility Construction Facility Skills Development Military Integrated EnvironmentalManagement General Support Services, andMaj Abe du Preez, the Training Officer (left) and WO2 LekwanaNyokong, the Training Warrant Officer, provide support and assistancein piloting the training programme for artisans at Murray andRoberts. Research and Development.Brig Gen Michael Mdletye, DirectorOperations (previously Director FacilitySupport Management), pointed out thatperhaps more important was the shift infocus beyond simply addressing thefacility management problem, but infine-tuning our approaches in providinginspiration for greater DOD innovationand creating a sense of collective responsibilityfor some pressing challenges thatface us to achieve concrete outcomes.He added that this kind of a project hadthe added dimension of being able toperform the increasing amount oflabour-intensive work and provide highqualitysolutions to infrastructure developmentand in so doing creating skilledmembers who could compete in theopen market once they left the military,thus strengthening the general communityskills base.Brig Gen Getrude Mngadi, DirectorFacilities (Level 2), said that through thepower of the collective everything waspossible and demonstrated how commitmentand tenacity worked hand in handto realise a vision. She pointed out thekey to the realisation of the Minister'sstated vision in the area of infrastructure,planning, design and constructionmanagement.Brig Gen Kefilwe Mathibe, DirectorSkills Development (former GeneralOfficer Commanding Service Corps),said that as we moved into the 21st century,skills development continued togather pace. She said that another aimwas to impart knowledge and skillstransfer and provide inspiration forthose who wanted to expand theirskills, e.g. Military Skills DevelopmentSystem (MSDS) members and Reservesacquiring skills in labour-intensive construction,artisan training in areas suchas electrical maintenance, air-conditioning,painting and carpentry.She concluded that the intensive programmewould boost the organisationalcapacity to keep up with the operationand maintenance requirements of DODassets. This would also assist in continuouslymonitoring the well-being ofour assets so that they did not fall into astate of disrepair.J U N E 2 0 1 1 • s 19
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