Current Edition >> Archive Section >> Special Features >> May 2004

Building and constructing sector 2004 in the Free State

Mainly due to the low interest rates, the building and construction sector also in the Free State is presently riding high. It would appear that retailers in building materials are doing particularly well and although figures for the Free State have not been obtained by the Free State Business Bulletin, it is estimated that the building retail turnover for Bloemfontein only is in excess of R280 million per year.
As for South Africa as a whole, the latest annual report of the Building Industries Federation of SA (Bifsa) states that the price of building materials rose by some 9.3% in 2003, forcing building contractors to raise their tender prices.
Bifsa quotes the Reserve Bank as stating that building demand grew by 2,2% in real terms in 2002 to about R33 billion. The housing sector increased by 4% and the non-residential sector by 1%. The non-residential sector was affected by an overhang of office space in many centres.
Employment levels in the building industry plunged from 255 000 in 1990 to just below 160 000 in 2002. However, Bifsa points out, many people are employed informally and about a million people and their dependants rely on the building industry.
Of concern to the industry are sporadic labour shortages and insufficient new entrants. “This can lead to labour piracy and a general drop in the quality of labour, with detrimental effects on labour productivity and profitability,” the report says.
Liquidations in the industry declined from 554 in 2001 to 371 last year and a total of 1 400 in the past three years. With increased input costs and very keen tendering, profitability has come under pressure, says Bifsa.
The relatively low demand for building in South Africa has forced several construction companies to seek work offshore, with some saying up to 30% of their income was derived from foreign countries.
It would seem that house prices are beginning to stabilise, with prices expected to level out at between 12% and 15% over the next two years, which should still give home owners a real return of about 8%.

NHBRC calls for nominations

The Regional Director of the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) in the Free State and Northern Cape, Mr. Chris Slabber, points out that the NHBRC is at present calling for National Home Builder Awards nominations from registered home builders for the national awards.
The prestigious event takes place annually to promote improved quality standards in the home building industry and will be held this year at Gallagher Estate on Tuesday 5 October. Judging will initially take place in all nine provinces and nominations are invited in each of the following categories :

Home Builder of the Year up to R500 000
Home Builder of the Year from R500 000 to R1,5 million
Home Builder of the Year above R1,5 million
Best Woman Home Builder of the Year
Best Historically Disadvantaged Home Builder of the Year
Best Subsidy Home Builder of the Year

Provincial nomination forms can be obtained from the NHBRC offices in each province or the NHBRC website (www.nhbrc.org) or toll free number 0800 200 824.
Entries close on 18 June 2004.

SA's entrepreneurial ratings

According to a survey by the 2003 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, South Africa rates as follows in entrepreneurship standings :

South Africa dropped from 19th to 22nd out of 37 countries.
South Africa scored only 2 points in the entrepreneurial activity rate, contributing much less to employment creation and economic welfare than is the norm in other developing countries.
R4 billion is spent in SA on publicly-funded R&D, but issues only 2,5 patents per million people a year, compared with 75 in Australia and 770 in South Korea.
Gauteng's total entrepreneurial activity rate of 9,9% contributes as much as 5,4% of the country's GDP.
President Thabo Mbeki has cited entrepreneurship as the key to having the country's 31% unemployment rate by 2010.
In Thailand 18,9% of adults have started their own businesses, India is second at 17,9% and Chili third with 15,7%. South Africa, by comparison, has seen only 6,5% of adults successfully starting their own businesses.

Buitelandse valuta as loopbaan

Geleentheid om plaaslik opgelei te word vir 'n loopbaan in die verhandeling van buitelandse valuta, het 'n realiteit geword met die opening van MTI Tertiary Education in Bloemfontein. Cassie van Wyk en Dennis du Plessis het vir die hoogaangeskrewe VSA-gebaseerde Market Traders Institute Inc. sodanige diens begin lewer te Westdene, Bloemfontein en volgens Van Wyk is hulle aangenaam verras met die sterk belangstelling in hierdie tipe beleggings.
Hy sê in die era van werkloosheid, regstellende aksie, mense wat vroeë pakkette geneem het, swak rentekoerse en pensioenuitkerings, asook veral jongmense wat Suid-Afrika verlaat vir beter werksgeleenthede, bied hierdie 'n natuurlike oplossing.
Hul opleiding en ondersteuning word op 'n volhoubare basis aangebied en vir meer besonderhede kan Van Wyk of Du Plessis geskakel word by (051) 430 0191 of by marketing@mtiafrica.co.za.

Redundant Harmony facilities for training

Speaking at a recent meeting of the Bothaville Sakekamer at Bothaville, the CEO of Harmony Mining, Mr Bernard Swanepoel, said that redundant buildings and facilities of Harmony on the Goldfields are available for the training of small, micro and medium entrepreneurs at a nominal rent of R1 per year. Such training should just be suitably planned and structured, but Harmony is open for proposals and joint venturing.
More info in this regard could be obtained from Ms Hettiënne von Abo of the AHI Free State and chairperson of the Bothaville Sakekamer at (056) 515 3549 or 083 439 1140.
At the Bothaville meeting Mr Swanepoel also commented as follows on rumours that new gold mining shafts are to be sunk at Bothaville : “One day there will be gold mines around Bothaville, but definitely not within the next five years.

Reliable advice in an increasingly complicated field

Whereas the SA financial services arena has recently seen an unprecedented proliferation of products, services and changes in legislation affecting individual financial planning and corporate employee benefits, the field has become tremendously complicated and often confusing for the private individual. In addition to exchange control legislation changes, investors must keep track of changing legislation regarding capital gains tax, estate duty and personal income tax, while investors are also faced with the swing from defined benefit to defined contribution funds. Moreover, access to and affordability of health care services have become a critical issue in both corporate benefit planning and individual financial planning.
The upshot of all this is that given the wide range of investment products, health care deliveries, offshore structures and investment alternatives, as well as the effects of the economy, interest rates and inflation, a holistic view of long-term financial planning is necessary. This is where Advance Wealth Management (Pty) Ltd (“AWM”), a nationwide consulting, asset management and distribution practice which recently opened an office in Bloemfontein, comes in. According to the regional manager of AWM, Mr. Ryno Smith, the aim is to provide objective and professional advisory services to private and corporate clients, particularly with regard to financial planning and corporate benefit requirements. He says he and his staff base their service delivery on stringent risk management and controls, with strict adherence to quality control and service delivery, thus providing the best possible advice and service.
For more info, Smith can be contacted at (051) 409 6560 or cell 082 453 3320.

Moenie moed opgee nie!

Moenie moed opgee nie, veral nie wanneer jy voel dat jy geen tree meer vorentoe kan gee nie. Want dalk, net die volgende oomblik, keer die gety om, sien jy die land, sien jy die volgende baken. Beweeg daarheen en soek van daar af na die volgende baken. As jy daar kom, sal ook die volgende een wel in sig kom. Gaan van baken tot baken, één op 'n keer.
Môre moet my elke keer verder vind as wat vandag my agtergelaat het. Verder uit die depressie. Ook die storms en die muitery van jou gees sal verbygaan. Moet net nie die seile laat sak nie. Moenie dat vrees en dadeloosheid jou oorrompel en beetpak nie. Seil voort ! Verder uit die moedeloosheid. Verder uit die dryfsand of die pakys van jou mikrowêreld. Verder uit die uitsigloosheid. Net ná die laaste eb keer die gety en word dit hoogwater. Seil voort ! Strek jou uit na wat voor is. Ná laagwater kom weer hoogwater. As jy vandag daardie één tree gee, sal môre jou verder vind as waar vandag jou agtergelaat het. Die toekoms is nie 'n hopelose einde nie, maar eindelose hoop ! Seil voort !
Daar is merkwaardige en aangrypende voorbeelde van mense wat besef het dat die pad na die sporte van die lewe en sukses nie met 'n hysbak is nie, maar met trappe wat geklim moet word :

Beethoven was so lomp en onhandig met 'n viool dat sy pa nie wou luister toe hy as jong seun die musiek wat hy self gekomponeer het, wou speel nie. Sy musiekonderwyser het sy komposisies “hopeloos” genoem. Hy het aanhou komponeer.
Die wêreldberoemde operasanger Enrico Caruso se sangonderwyser het gesê die kwaliteit van sy stem is só power dat hy enige gedagte aan 'n sangloopbaan uit sy kop moes sit. Hy het aanhou sing.
Charles Darwin, vader van die evolusieteorie, kon nie sy mediese studie baasraak nie en moes dit staak. Darwin sê in sy outobiografie dat sy pa hom as “baie gemiddeld” beskryf het. Sy onderwysers het hom “heelwat onder die gemiddelde intelligensievlak” genoem. Dit het hom nie ontmoedig nie.
Walt Disney was so “onpersoonlik en sonder nuwe idees” dat hy ontslaan is by die koerant waar hy joernalis was. Nadat hy met sy strokieskarakters begin het, is hy vier keer bankrot verklaar voordat hy Disneyland gebou en 'n multimiljoenêr uit sy rolprente geword het. Hy het gegló in sy tekenprente.
Die uitvinder Thomas Edison se onderwysers het sy pa aangeraai om hom uit die skool te haal, want “hy is te onnosel om ooit enige vordering te maak”. Hy was die skepper van die gloeilamp.
Die briljante denker en skepper van die relatiwiteitsteorie, Albert Einstein, het eers op vier jaar begin praat en op agt begin lees. Sy onderwysers het gesê: “Hy is verstandelik agterlik, asosiaal en hopeloos verdwaal in sy belaglike droomwêreld.” Hy het bly droom.
Louis Pasteur, uitvinder van die destydse wondergeneesmiddel penisillien, het nooit uitgeblink op universiteit nie. Sy chemiepunte was onder die gemiddelde, maar hy het 'n ideaal gehad.
Die pa van Frankryk se beroemde beeldhouer August Rodin het gesê: “Ek het 'n volslae idioot vir 'n seun; hy is heeltemal 'onopvoedbaar'.” Op skool was hy bekend as “ons swakste leerling” en hy is drie maal toegang tot 'n kunsskool geweier, maar hy was mal oor beeldhou en het volgehou.
Leo Tolstoi, skrywer van onder meer die beroemde romans Anna Karenina en War and Peace, het op universiteit gedruip en toe opgeskop. “Hy is nie gewillig óf in staat om akademies te presteer nie,” was sy enigste getuigskrif. Hy het bly glo dat hy kan skryf.
Henry Ford het jare lank geen vordering gemaak met sy ontwerp van 'n “outomobiel” nie. In dié tyd is hy vyf keer bankrot verklaar. Hy het sy droom bly najaag.
Richard Bach se boek Jonathan Livingstone Seagull is deur vyftien uitgewers afgekeur voordat Macmillan dit aanvaar het. Sewe miljoen eksemplare daarvan is uiteindelik in die VSA alleen verkoop.
Winston Churchill, beroemde staatsman, het matriek gedruip. Hy het eers op die ouderdom van 62 premier van Engeland geword ná talle mislukkings en terugslae. Hy het vasgebyt.

Bid dié bede :

“Ek vra nie om ver te sien nie, Heer, net tree vir tree, nog net een tree. Bly by my Heer.