Abstract
M.Ing. (Engineering Management)
Realising the effects of the dearth of water infrastructure, in quantity and quality, on the economy and social wellbeing of the citizens, the government of South Africa (SA) has continued to make significant investments in the development of suitable water infrastructure. Unfortunately, the current pace of infrastructure delivery in the water sector is not complementary to the investment, due to ineffective procurement processes that produce low performance rates of the contractors. Consequently, available quality water hardly satisfies the demands of the production industries and wellbeing of citizens; sometimes resulting in community restlessness, evident in the protests related to the lack of quality water service delivery. Therefore, it is imperative to evaluate the current procurement system that produces these low performing contractors. The research focused on the Rehabilitation of the Clan-William Dam, as a case study. Semi-structured questionnaires complemented with interviews were used as instruments for data collection. The participants were drawn from the Supply Chain Management (SCM) function unit and technical staff of the Department of Water and Sanitation, consultant and as well as from the contractor. The findings revealed that the combined effects of an ineffective project execution team, an overly centralised SCM system, the selection of incompetent contractors, ineffective bid evaluation and the complicated procurement process, were key factors responsible for the slow pace of delivery of water infrastructure in SA. Therefore, the research recommended the adoption of contractors’ pre-qualification, strengthening of the project execution team, and a decentralised SCM system, as a panacea to the improvement in water infrastructure delivery.