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Item Open Access Importance of healthy older construction workers(University of the Free State, 2005) Haupt, Theo C.; Deacon, Claire; Smallwood, JohnEnglish: Older construction workers constitute a major proportion of total South African construction employment. Demographic changes and an apparent growing loss of interest among young people in careers in the construction industry are contributing to an increase in the proportion of older workers in the industry. There is a resultant decline in the growth of new cohorts entering the labour market. Consequently the size of the older cohort relative to the size of the younger cohort increases. Additionally, general and chronic occupational and non occupational diseases potentially reduce the overall labour force, shift the age structure due to mortality, change the skill composition of the labour supply, and increase labour turnover. This paper reports on a study that sought to establish the health status of the older worker cohort in construction. The study found that older workers had problems with several occupational and non occupational diseases and presented with a range of musculoskeletal dis orders, respiratory problems and skin infections. These diseases negatively af fected work productivity in the industry and increased absenteeism. Further, the majority of workers required referral, many for unresolved non occupational such as various skin, musculoskeletal, as well as upper and lower respiratory disorders. Recommended interventions include regular medical surveillance as part of employer driven health promotion programs.Item Open Access Efficiency in the provision of production specifications for the South African construction industry(University of the Free State, 2005) Maritz, TinusEnglish: In most developed countries production specifications are based on national standardised specification systems, such as the National Building Specification or NBS (Great Britain), the National Specification System or NATSPEC (Australia), Master Specification Systems or MasterSpec (United States of America and Canada), General Materials and Workmanship Specifications or AMA (Sweden), and the National Standard Building Specification or STABU (the Netherlands). Standard specifications are primarily designed to shorten descriptions in the texts of new projects, whether in respect of descriptions on architectural or engineering drawings and technical specifications or descriptions in bills of quantities, schedules of rates, etcetera. In some countries the development of computerised specification systems has reached the point that these systems are supplanting the traditional word processing method. These systems are also providing links or interfaces to other information systems of the construction sector, such as design, products and cost information systems, etcetera. The South African construction industry, however, lags behind these countries that have been involved in the development of construction information systems or processes over the years. A call is therefore made to improve the efficiency of providing production specifications, as inadequate project information has been identified as one of the major causes of inefficiency in the building process.Item Open Access Hostel conversion through the Institutional Housing Subsidy as affordable housing: case study of the Sethokga Pilot Project, Gauteng, South Africa(University of the Free State, 2005) Pienaar, J. S.; Cloete, C. E.English: Existing government policies and programmes promote the redevelopment of single sex public hostels to provide family units as a sustainable form of housing for the poor in South Africa. A survey was carried out among residents of Sethokga hostel in preparation of a pilot conversion project with funding via the Institutional Housing Subsidy. The survey revealed that low pay and high unemployment contributed to real fears among residents about their ability to afford rent for the upgraded accommodation, and the possibility of displace ment, and even eviction as a result. The expressed need therefore, appeared to be for flexible funding arrangements that allow for affordable accommo dation options not limited to family units, ranging from single rooms to apart ments for sub letting and sharing, an option which would not be possible with the use of the Institutional Housing Subsidy as the sole funding instrument.Item Open Access The property development challenge: creating wealth through regional and rural projects(University of the Free State, 2005) Verster, J. J. P.; Berry, F. H.English: Past experience, specifically in the regional context in South Africa, shows that development of land and the use of land for physical projects and buildings has had some negative effects on the environment. Recently developers have tended to be more sympathetic regarding the pos sible negative influence of project development. The challenge is to match economic, environmental, health and social sustainability with growth, in respect of small projects, or small benefits from big projects. Lessons from nature, wildlife and environment as well as results of a study con ducted by the department of quantity surveying and construction manage ment, University of the Free State, on rural sustainability will be discussed.Item Open Access ’n Oorsig oor boukonstruksie as vak in argitektuur aan die Universiteit van Pretoria in die tydperk 1943-2005(University of the Free State, 2005) Wegelin, HansEnglish: Boukonstruksie is tradisioneel ’n kernvak in die graadkursus in Argitektuur aan die Universiteit van Pretoria. Die vak ondersoek die vernuf van bou, en lewer ’n belangrike bydrae tot die studie van die ontwerp van geboue. Die verloop van die vak sedert stigting van die Departement Argitektuur in 1943 aan UP word beskryf, waartydens die kursus moes tred hou met ’n veranderende wêreld. ’n Oorsig oor vroeë wêreldwye opleiding in konstruksie ontbloot die draad van handwerk en vakmanskap wat deur die Middeleeue loop, die stryd en ondergang van die Kunsvlytbeweging (Arts and Crafts Movement), die industrialisasie van die Moderne Beweging, en die kommersialisme van vandag. Verandering in aanslag van doseer en leer in Konstruksie aan UP word deur omstandighede en doseerpersoonlikhede beïnvloed, en word in drie tydperke ingedeel: die tydperk 1943 1960, ’n tyd van ontwaking en die begin van ongekende groei; die tydperk 1961 1985, oorheers deur ’n wetenskaplike aanslag en groot bou aktiwiteite; die tydperk 1986 , wat volg op politieke en sosiale omwenteling en ’n ontploffing in kennis en bouprodukte.