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Construction of the state-of-the-art primary healthcare Orchards Clinic in Orange Grove has once again been suspended after the main appointed contractor, Fikile Construction, failed to meet the September 2019 deadline to complete construction.
The Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA), on behalf of the City of Johannesburg, has been implementing the construction the clinic and appointed Fikile Construction, who took over site in April 2019, after a specialist subcontractor was appointed to create a design solution for construction as a corrective measure following allegations of structural under-design by the previously appointed engineer.
Remedial works were undertaken by the specialist subcontractor and all efforts were focused on ensuring that the structure complies with the new structural design.
Additional steel beams and columns were added throughout the building to create a stronger structure and the remedial works were completed in March 2019.
Since the remedial works completed, Fikile Construction was appointed in April 2019 to ensure the completion of the project by September 2019. With the September 2019 deadline missed, the JDA placed the main contractor on terms for failure to complete the new clinic.
This resulted in Fikile Construction submitting a recovery programme for the construction of the clinic, which also resulted in a failure to complete the clinic as part of the recovery plan.
The JDA had issued Fikile Construction with a final warning, with Fikile proposing to bring a credible contractor to undertake the completion of the clinic on their behalf. Negotiations between Fikile Construction and the new contractor were completed by end of January 2020.
The JDA exercised due diligence in respect to the management of the contract with Fikile Construction, as it stands Fikile Construction has now ceded the construction to another contractor and work at the clinic has resumed.
