Homes & Building
Tell the insurer before major renovation begins
Alterations can change occupancy, security and risk while the existing policy assumes normal use.
Author
Amber Ibrahim
Contributor to Built Report. A verified biography has not yet been supplied.
Latest News
Cape Town combines southern electricity upgrade into October outage window
The City scheduled a single major interruption to complete critical work across parts of the southern and far-south network.
Latest News
R192m Lilian Ngoyi Street reconstruction passes 75% mark
Johannesburg is rebuilding the 1.8km transport precinct and underground services damaged by the 2023 gas explosion.
Latest News
Night works advance MyCiTi construction on AZ Berman Drive
The three-month programme covers the section between Nduli and Wespoort roads in Mitchells Plain.
Latest News
R11bn N1 Wingfield Southern Upgrade enters flagship programme
The freeway scheme is one of three major transport projects highlighted for 2026.
Latest News
Three new MyCiTi station projects move onto the Cape Flats programme
Sesame, Hanover Park and an expanded Mitchells Plain station form part of a ten-station package scheduled through July 2027.
Technology
Public project dashboards should show decisions as well as percentages
A dashboard is useful when residents can connect a figure to scope, evidence and responsibility.
Business
Training investment should be measured through competent work
Attendance certificates alone do not show whether a worker can perform a task safely and consistently.
Latest News
R12.5m Steinkopf community clinic reopens
The refurbished facility serves more than 9,000 people in Steinkopf and surrounding areas.
Latest News
Delmas wastewater upgrade reaches 68%
Capacity is being increased from four to 12 million litres a day.
Latest News
Limpopo redirects festival funding to infrastructure repairs
The 2026 Marula Festival was cancelled so funding could support roads and essential services.
Latest News
Three rural bridge sites pair safer access with local work
The Besterspruit, Ngcengeni and Excelsior crossings combine connectivity goals with EPWP participation.
Latest News
R426.7m P372 heritage-tourism road establishes site
Site establishment has reached 90% for the tourism-route programme.
Latest News
R760m Johannesburg water-infrastructure upgrade moves ahead
The phased programme responds to failures, leaks and pressure instability across the city.
Investigations
The R27-billion water debt chain: how unpaid municipal bills reach pumps, pipes and treatment works
Municipal debt to water boards rose sharply as ageing networks continued to lose treated water. The pressure travels through the…
Latest News
R410 Komani–Lady Frere corridor set for road investment
The province has identified the route as a priority for major works.
Latest News
Road rehabilitation updates should identify the layer being built
A percentage cannot explain whether crews are repairing drainage, rebuilding layers or applying the final surface.
Opinion & Analysis
Apprenticeships need real supervised work
Attendance records do not prove that a learner gained competence.
Projects
Clinic backup power tests must include the real patient-care load
A generator start proves little unless essential circuits, fuel, changeover controls and clinical priorities operate together.
Technology
Digital site diaries turn daily events into usable evidence
Consistent daily records help teams explain delay, labour, weather and instructions.
Investigations
Rail-station accessibility claims tested from pavement to platform
A lift installation or ramp photograph cannot prove an accessible journey when gates, ticketing, outages and platform gaps remain.
Homes & Building
Timber decks need drainage below the boards
A durable board will still fail when the supporting zone remains wet and inaccessible.
Projects
Defect close-out needs proof of correction
A defect register can shrink because rows were marked complete even when the physical result was never checked.
Investigations
Emergency construction contracts followed into permanent assets
Urgency may justify a faster route, but scope, authority, price and completed work still need a durable public record.
Infrastructure
A borehole yield test should inform the operating rule
Drilling success is only the beginning; sustainable abstraction depends on test data, water quality and recovery monitoring.
Business
Working capital limits should shape the construction programme
A programme can be technically achievable and financially impossible when procurement and payroll peak before certified cash arri…
Technology
An asset register should be built during construction, not after it
Serial numbers, locations and maintenance data are easiest to capture when equipment is installed.
Opinion & Analysis
Affordable housing should never mean disposable detailing
The households least able to fund repairs are often given the details most likely to fail early.
Business
A small contractor needs a weekly committed-cost report
Bank balance alone cannot show orders already placed, work completed but unbilled or retention still at risk.
Homes & Building
Natural ventilation needs an air path not only a window
A room with one blocked or rarely opened window may not achieve useful ventilation.
Latest News
Why an occupancy certificate is more than a moving date
Furniture and tenants can be ready while fire, drainage, electrical or planning matters remain unresolved.
Projects
Flood-damaged roads need separate emergency and permanent scopes
Restoring access quickly is different from rebuilding a resilient road.
Opinion & Analysis
Community consultation belongs before the excavator
Engagement after mobilisation asks residents to accept decisions they had no chance to shape.
Business
VAT records should follow the same project trail as costs
Missing or incorrect tax documents can distort project reporting and delay legitimate claims.
Projects
Permit trackers should show more than submission dates
Approval risk remains hidden when a tracker records only that an application was lodged.
Projects
Site handover must record the ground before the first excavation
Boundaries, services, access and existing damage should be agreed before plant changes the evidence.
Homes & Building
Movement joints need continuity through finishes and façades
A structural joint cannot work when tiles, plaster or sealant bridge it incorrectly.
Infrastructure
Wastewater blower upgrades must be measured in oxygen and uptime
New aeration equipment matters when it delivers the process conditions operators need across normal and peak flows.
Infrastructure
Water-treatment chemical stores need ventilation, separation and containment
A treatment plant can meet its process design and still expose operators when chemicals are stored without compatible rooms, drai…
Homes & Building
Foundation trenches should be checked before concrete
Concrete permanently hides the condition of a foundation trench.
Investigations
When a wastewater upgrade is complete on paper but not in operation
Completion certificates, payment records and photographs must be tested against process performance, staffing and the condition o…