The 18 Strategic Integrated Projects (Sips) under the National Infrastructure Plan have become a point of political contention, which is hampering progress, says former voluntary association Consulting Engineers South Africa (Cesa) CEO Graham Pirie.

“Like the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the 18 Sips are a strategic vision for the future and all parties concerned should be buying into that. The social partners and the private- and public-sector players involved need to discuss how the 18 Sips will be implemented in line with this new economic policy,” he says.

However, Pirie argues that there are three major challenges – centred on procurement – facing industry in South Africa.

“South Africa suffers from systemic corruption, which is not a problem unique to our country, however, corruption can be prevalent in the construction industry. To progress, we need strong leadership at the top and a firm anticorruption policy,” he says.

Pirie notes that government is not to blame for the problem of corruption and acknowledges that corruption is also an internal problem of companies. To curb this, Cesa has insisted that all member firms have an integrity management system in place in accordance with Cesa’s code of conduct.

He says the association has also been in talks with the National Treasury to promote an integrity pact in the procurement process for the public sector.

The second challenge is the lack of experienced personnel in key positions in South Africa’s public sector. Pirie attributes this to the new structures of government, highlighting the possible absence of experienced personnel at the various levels of the public sector and the migration of skilled personnel from the public to the private sector.

He believes that it is possible to build or nurture the necessary capacity during both the procurement of infrastructure and the roll-out of its delivery, but says this will not happen as hoped for, unless trust is established between the public and private sectors.

The final challenge is the notion that the selection of consulting engineers is based on the cheapest rates. “People don’t use the cheapest doctors or lawyers, so why would they use the cheapest consulting engineer?” Pirie asks.

“Quality and functionality need to be introduced to the procurement process because the input of professional service providers allows for new development and creativity,” he notes, adding that consulting engineers usually charge less than 2% of the total life-cycle cost of a project.

Fortunately for Cesa and the consulting engineering fraternity, the National Treasury is starting to listen, says Pirie. “The Treasury is starting to under- stand that construction and infrastructure services are different from the related professional consulting services and they should, therefore, be treated differently,” he adds.

Further, the private sector needs policy certainty from government so that the industry can grow and more employment opportunities can be made available.

“Prior to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the industry was in a 20-year decline. The event provided a major impetus for the industry and the country and assisted in growing the economy and in contributing to job creation,” says Pirie.

However, he notes that, after the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the delivery process faltered and the consulting engineers industry is currently in a hiatus and progressing slowly.

“The good news is that infrastructure programmes have now been put in place and the 18 Sips will further develop the industry, the country and the economy, which will help in providing more job opportunities,” he notes.

As a result, Pirie believes that the future of the consulting engineering industry is positive.

During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, government had an infrastructure programme in place that helped the organisation and its member companies to cope with the global economic downturn of 2008, he says. “It is well known that an infrastructure plan is a good way of countering an eco- nomic downturn and South Africa needs one now to ward against the negative impact of the current local and global economic slump.”

Pirie believes that the biggest oppor- tunity for the consulting engineering industry lies in sustainability and green technologies. However, to promote sustainability in the infrastructure space, an engineer needs to be actively involved at some stage of the supply chain and the industry must respond to the challenges involved.

“There are many untapped solutions worldwide that can be brought to South Africa, which will enable the South African consulting engineering industry to successfully contribute to sustain- ability and the use of green technologies,” he notes.

Cesa is a member of the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA) and is trying to set up a green infrastructure council initiative to complement the GBCSA. “Supporting councils like these are found elsewhere in the world,” says Pirie.

The organisation is also working on a sustainability framework and a code of conduct requirement, with which Cesa members will have to comply.

Formed in 1952, Cesa represents the interests of other consulting engineering firms. Currently, it has almost 500 members employing over 23 000 staff, which represents 80% to 90% of the consulting engineering market, Pirie explains.

He retired as CEO of Cesa after 17 years and will act in the short term as strategic adviser to the organisation to ensure the smooth transition of his replacement Lefadi Makibinyane.