Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Ramodisa project ÔÇô beating the odds

Frederick Ramodisa shuffles a sheaf of papers on his desk and his chubby face split into a smile as he mumbles “here take a look.”

The smile is because of glowing recommendations from happy clients. The papers he wants me to look at are a pile of certificate from different government departments proving that his construction company, Ramodisa Projects has completed projects on time and with exceptional workmanship.

“This serves to inform your office that the above stated Construction Company undertook and successfully completed works for the Ministry of Education and Skills Development under the supervision of the Department of Technical Services….. The company was when performing the above works, found to be well organised, well resourced, had very serviceable plant and equipment, well trained workforce resulting in high quality workmanship” reads one letter from the Ministry of Education dated January 2013.

For many years, Botswana was the fastest growing economy in the world and the country was one huge construction site with cranes darting the skyline and buildings mushrooming everywhere. The construction was flush with money, attracting all sorts of players, from big multi-national to small and shady fly-by- night investors. As the government began cutting down on expenditure, the steady flow of cash in the construction industry has petered down to a trickle and the crowded industry has turned into the wild wild west.

Pitted against big international corporations, some with the backing of their home government, most citizen contractors fell by the wayside. Ramodisa Projects was one of the few citizen contractors that managed to ride out the storm. Ramodisa credits his staying power on the quality of his workforce, his workmanship and a culture of ethical business practice.

Bucking the trend among local contractors who are wont to cut corners, Ramodisa Projects (Pty) Ltd senior personnel are registered with internationally recognised professionals’ bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Building and “are therefore very familiar with acceptable codes of practice in the building and construction industry” explains Ramodisa.

After successfully completing its first project in 2002 which involved the maintenance, structural, mechanical, electrical and civil maintenance of existing schools in Mochudi and Molepolole, Ramodisa projects has grown by leaps and bounds and currently handles much bigger and challenging projects.

In the face of a hostile environment to citizen contractors, a sceptical public and fierce competition from big international, Ramodisa Projects now counts on its tract record and quality control procedures to stay in the game. That probably explains the smile on Freddy Ramodisa when he handed me his company documents with a “here take a look.”

Ramodisa explained that his company “has formulated procedures and programs in quality control. The General Manager delegates responsibilities for overall quality control management system to contract managers and project managers within the organisation. These procedures are designed to the site Engineers and Site supervisors who will in turn relate the procedures to the general staff for implementation all under the supervision of the senior staff.”

He further explained that, “Ramodisa Projects (Pty) Ltd ensures that all specifications are adhered to and samples approved accordingly before proceeding with particular works.”

The extent to which the company goes to ensure quality workmanship explains why Ramodisa, the Managing Director takes issue with being tarred with the same brush as other citizen companies accused of taking government money to buy expensive cars and abandoning projects before they are complete.

Instead, his company has often times been called in to clean up the mess after other companies had failed to complete projects. Hardly two years after winning their first government in 2002, Ramodisa Projects was called in 2004 to complete school kitchens at Ramogobi, Tlhakame, Raditladi and Dikgonnye which had been abandoned by the previous contractor.

The company also prides itself with its clean safety record. Ramodisa, stickler for safety standards says “Ramodisa Project adheres and observes to the letter the requirements of the Factories Act on Occupational Health and safety. These are procedures adopted in developing and implementing the health and safety plan. All employees on the project are made aware of their rights and duties pertaining to the observance of the project. For the purpose of any project we allow a period of three weeks to develop a construction phase and safety plan” he explained.

In 2007 after five years through the hustle and bustle of the dog eat dog industry, Ramodisa Project which is one of the few citizen companies that survived through it all began to cash in on its impressive record. The company was listed by PPADB as a beneficiary of the 30% citizen Reservation policy.

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