Rocla Sanitation partnered with Izandla Ziyagezana Trading to enter their Mkhondo based Community Cast Factory in the IMESA/CESA Excellence Awards 2021, in the Community Upliftment and Job Creation category. They were awarded second place for their Supply and Delivery of Waterborne Structures project within the rural Rustplaas Village in the Mkhondo Municipality, Mpumulanga.
The Rocla Sanitation/ Izandla Ziyagezana collaboration emerged as a result of Izandla Ziyagezana’s support for Rocla Sanitation’s Thuthukisa Initiative of ‘taking the factory to the people by empowering communities to be manufacturers in their own right’. Izandla Ziyagezana has specialised in community manufacturing and erection of low flush dignified sanitation since 2006 when the company was formed.
Dumisani Simelane, Managing Director of Izandla Ziyagezana commented “We are very proud to have been judged runner-up in the IMESA/CESA Awards. It is an acknowledgement of the importance of the work we are doing within rural communities”.
“The Rustplaas Project has so far created at least 23 new jobs, and we thank the Mkhondo local municipality for supporting this initiative. Projects such as Rustplaas show how job creation can be achieved in its simplest form through a transfer of skills on how to manufacture sanitation units of a good quality. The Rocla Sanitation Thuthukisa Initiative benefits both the local community and small businesses like my own,” said Simelane.
The Rustplaas Project enabled the local community to collaborate with on-site casting and stripping of 238 twin eco toilet top structures and pit structures in the 2020-21 financial year and a further 204 tops structures in the 2021-22 financial year. The Rustplaas community were also trained in the receiving and dispatching of casting kits and the associated materials from stores. Training of local SMME’s and community members was given in:
• Mixing and batching
• Casting and levelling of concrete
• Curing and aftercare of concrete
• Stripping and cleaning of products cast
• Packing of stock and yard housekeeping
• Loading and delivery of products
• Onsite training in erecting
• Administration and bookkeeping
Andre Labuschagne, Product Development Manager for Rocla Sanitation said “We are very pleased to have been placed second with Izandla Ziyagezana in the prestigious IMESA/CESA Awards. This recognition for our Thuthukisa Initiative confirms our belief that many rural communities, through skills training, enjoy the benefits of healthier sanitation facilities as well as work opportunities. This has been proven through our collaboration with Izandla Ziyagezana, who from day one, have believed that this kind of initiative is imperative to the wellness of people residing in rural areas”.
“We look forward to continuing our relationship with Izandla Ziyagezana and will be collaborating with them on an 800-unit waterborne toilet project in Driefontein, Mkhondo shortly” said Labuschagne.
A concept called ‘pancake casting’ enabled Rocla Sanitation to offer a real on-site manufacturing capability that requires only a small piece of land with almost no infrastructure needed. This process involves casting one item on top of another in frameless single use moulds of a similar size in a planar form.
The panels are continuously cast one on top of another until typically full stacks of four toilets or 4 Twin Eco Pits are reached. The product is typically left to cure for two weeks. New castings can continue to be made during this curing process at other locations, using the same tools.
Labuschagne added “The communities that urgently require toilet units are often found in rural areas of the country. Many of these areas have no infrastructure. Meaning ‘to share’ the Thuthukisa Initiative’s philosophy led to the development of the ‘Community Cast’ toilet unit that can be simply manufactured by local community entrepreneurs or SMME’s and be ready for use within two weeks”.
“We would like to see our collaboration with Rocla Sanitation grow, our aim is to roll-out the Thuthukisa Initiative countrywide” commented Simelane, adding “There is so much added benefit for local communities. The goal is to provide health enhancing sanitation units to the community through the wider impact of skills transfer to the community and to also help to fight poverty and unemployment”. The IMESA/CESA Excellence Awards is a biennial event and the awards took place in Cape Town on 11 November 2021 alongside their 84th IMESA Conference. The IMESA/CESA Community Upliftment and Job Category focuses on projects demonstrating labour intensive construction, skills development, community awareness and participation.
