Razing specialist Jet Demolition says it is looking abroad for contractual work as the local commercial and industrial demolition market stagnates.
The Johannesburg-based group specialises in industrial and petrochemical demolition, mine closures, asbestos abatement and removal, dam wall demolition, bridge demolition and controlled implosions.
MD Joe Brinkmann said the company, which was established in 1994 to service the industrial sector, has been grappling with many headwinds locally including crime and the slow rollout of projects.
“It's an environment where the rule of law is dwindling, slowly slipping away,” said Brinkmann, highlighting “We see that in the construction mafia and other aspects of society”.
“They [government] tie themselves up in red tape, there’s policy uncertainty and everyone is going in a different direction.”
He said that while demand for the group’s demolition services was historically spread throughout SA, with the height of construction being the build-up to the 2010 World Cup, the need for the service was dwindling.
This points to fewer building plans being commissioned.
He said the commercial space was even more depressed after the pandemic as people shift towards working remotely.
“Johannesburg is in a sorry state. There are many buildings that need to be demolished, but it’s in a stage of urban decay,” he said.
Hindered by lack of implementation of an infrastructure delivery plan by the government and lower demand for residential, retail and commercial buildings from the private sector, growth in the sector has been subdued.
The latest Stats SA data in June showed that the value of recorded building plans passed by larger municipalities rose only 4.2% year on year in the first half of 2022.
The increases were recorded mainly for residential buildings, additions and alterations while nonresidential buildings reported a 9.4% fall.
Mines have been allowed to undertake rehabilitation processes of their own accord, he said, so “the cleanup work, demo and rehabilitation tends to get pushed to the side, unless it’s essential.”
To tackle the issue of low demand the company is now vigorously pursuing work in other parts of the developing world outside SA.
“We have to diversify our geographical footprint in order to position ourselves better for the future and that is a real change going forward,” Brinkmann told Business Day.
“We are now actively chasing work outside the country, whereas before they would find us,” he said. Chasing international work will give the group “another stream of income”.
The company has previously done work in Africa, India, the Middle East, Asia and Chile. Brinkmann said it would be fishing in those territories for more work.
In a bid to shore up mechanisation, which ensures the company remains competitive, Jet invested in more equipment to meet requirements of clients, which demand safety and high standards to be adhered to for their difficult projects, Brinkmann said.
He said there was one project Jet Demolition had been chasing since 2014, which was on the cusp of fruition and the company was well positioned to take it on having injected investment into equipment.
“We sit at the bottom of the world and getting certain equipment down here can take up to a year, so we have to be ready.”
He said Jet Demolition will also be well positioned to benefit from the state once the government begins to roll out its infrastructure plans.
“Some of that work we will be able to have a crack at,” said Brinkmann.
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