PROFILE: This is my story - Fabio Companie

Fabio Companie a Built Environment Professional in the Public Sector shares HIS STORY about Construction Projects that have made a life long impact on him

Please give us a brief summary on your career to date

As a professional, I am passionate about projects and have an innate ability to understand construction project management. My vision is to create a safe sustainable urban/human settlement environment and productive environment for optimal learning to achieve individual, team and project success. I’ve worked as a project leader for more than 12 years on a variety of projects and my experience, through failures and successes, has taught me skill sets that make me a resilient and able to cope with the tough built industry. I am a strong believer in continues improvement. I specialize in infrastructure and property development and have experience in new infrastructure, refurbishment/maintenance of infrastructure, commercial projects, industrial projects, residential projects as well as mining projects. I am often mistaken for a Civil Engineer, but I am a true bred Construction Project Manager with a keen ability to understand intricacies of urban developments.

I have been privileged to have acted in several positions in both the public and private sectors over the past 12 years and has served in various roles. My current position is Head Construction Manager in Urban Development Implementation at the City of Cape Town. My role and responsibilities include leading and managing a professional project management and engineering construction management team toward the successful delivery of cross-cutting low to high risk and complexity community infrastructure projects and programmes throughout the project life cycle and within the stated constraints of scope, cost, time and stakeholder requirements, whilst ensuring alignment of projects to organizational strategy and in accordance with organizational and legislative policies and procedures.

My key responsibility is to provide and enhance existing project and contract management capacity within the organization by setting and improving standards and protocols, providing guidance as necessary, identifying risks and mitigation plans, quality assurance and multi-stakeholder approvals. Furthermore, I enjoy sharing my knowledge and experience including coaching and mentoring with my recent interest venturing into academia.

Give us details of a projects that made an impact in your career.

Being a passionate project manager all projects over the last 12 years have made an impact on my career. However, three projects that have made life long impacts are the Eben Donges Hospital located in Worcester, the N2 Gateway located in Cape Town and the Royal Bafokeng Platinum North Shaft Surface Infrastructure located in Rustenburg.

Map of Sites

What was your position and duties on these projects?

I was a junior (jack of all trades but master of none) on the Eben Donges Hospital project. On the N2 Gateway project, I was the Project Manager (Project Management and Quantity Surveying) and on the Royal Bafokeng Platinum North Shaft Surface Infrastructure project I was the Contracts Manager/Office Manager (Project Management, Quantity Surveying and Contract Management).

Why does these projects stand out to you?

Ooh guys, thinking back I’m reminded of a few unforgettable moments. The Eben Donges Hospital in Worcester provided me with direct practical experience of the construction industry. Humility were instilled within my professional journey as I learned crucial communication skills.

My mentor ignored my varsity status, told me he will teach me the old ways as I had to work as a cleaner, tea boy, labourer, tradesman, lead hand, storeman, health and safety rep, junior foreman, junior quantity surveyor, junior site manager, plan administrator and junior contract manager. This experience provided me with the ability to see the construction site from various viewpoints and build inviolable practical knowledge and experience.

The N2 Gateway in Cape Town provided me insight into the entire built environment spectrum, how cities infrastructure works and it offered me exposure to the urban infrastructure dynamics. The implementation complexities showed me how portfolio and programme management functions, the importance and fundamentals of strategic alignment, financial management and how communities and public participation impacts on projects. This enabled me to work with multi-stakeholders which is how I obtained my co-ordination, negotiation, and trade off skills, especially in how to cope under continues pressure.

Royal Bafokeng Platinum North Shaft Surface Infrastructure in Rustenburg have educated me on the importance of understanding your environment, teamwork and the necessity of health and safety. It showed me that if you value your team and treat them with the needed respect and inclusiveness, nothing is impossible

  

Eben Donges Hospital, Worcester

What were the important lessons you learnt from these projects?

Overall, the profound saying that one learns every day is true in this industry because all projects are unique, regardless their similarities. Also, if you pay close attention there is something you or your team can improve on irrespective of the limitations. From these projects I learned:

Eben Donges Hospital in Worcester – Not everything is black and white. Know what you are talking about before casting judgement or dishing out instructions. The absolute importance of communication and communicating effectively is key to achieving any objective.

N2 Gateway in Cape Town- Underestimating the complexity of the providing housing by public sector. Even though it is easy to construct a house, the complexities, and dynamics to implement a housing project is far more than only the technical skills. It also requires soft skills (leadership, emotional intelligence, presentation, etc.) and understanding of socio-economics and socio-politics.

Also read: THIS IS MY STORY - Nic Lepholletse

Royal Bafokeng Platinum North Shaft Surface Infrastructure in Rustenburg – The importance of understanding your environment, health and safety, including your team, as well as planning on your own and planning as a team.

 

 

 

                      N2 Gateway Site 2004                                  N2 Gateway Site 2019

What were career mistakes or regrets you experienced on these projects?

I believe regardless of good or bad lessons learned on projects it provides you with the necessary knowledge and experience to improve on the next opportunity. Even in mistakes we learn, as now we know what does not work. Some mistakes on these three projects:

Eben Donges Hospital in Worcester –not making sure everyone works on the same plan revision resulted in rework and costs. This resulted in nightmares as I saw the result if everyone is not working to one plan or objective.

N2 Gateway in Cape Town – not spending more time to understand social component, most of the project delays related to community unrest. If a project leader does not understood or grasp the community/beneficiaries issue, or attend to them it can kill your project until you attend to these issues.

Royal Bafokeng Platinum North Shaft Surface Infrastructure in Rustenburg – not understanding the impact of health and safety on the entire environment. The contractual nightmare and delays of not understanding and following procedure has taught me tough lessons.

N2 Gateway Project, Langa.

How did you overcome your mistakes/regrets?

I thought myself it doesn’t matter how dark days look; it is always temporary. Life is all about cycles and seasons, it is for me to stand firm during dark days. Something you learn the easy way and some you learn the hard way; you need to be big to admit you wrong/ made a mistake or that you need more experience or knowledge before attempting something in this industry. This self-evaluation is key in professional growth.

On the Eben Donges Hospital in Worcester, making sure that I plan and do time management myself this involved me doing checks and balances (daily, weekly, and monthly).

N2 Gateway in Cape Town, by getting involved in public meetings and public participation process and assisting NGO’s. This built my character and relationship with the communities.

Royal Bafokeng Platinum North Shaft Surface Infrastructure in Rustenburg –By admitting the mistake it forced me to study the environment. I equipped myself with the site environment, mine regulations and contractual obligations, which I then shared with the team that allow me to guide the project to success.

What has been the most satisfying thing for you personally about these projects?

The team, community and client empowerment including the local job opportunities that were created during the construction of these projects. All in all, the most satisfying of these or any project, I have worked on is to see how cultural, religious, racial, and personal value barriers are broken to reach one common goal. For me as a project manager it is satisfying to see how different individuals come together to work optimally to achieve a project goal. Everyone does not agree all the time, but they accept one point or another they must give to receive something for the greater good of the project. It is always fulfilling as project manager when your team work efficiently and effectively, with the cherry on top when you see team member(s) helping a team member under pressure or in dire need without being asked or told to do so.

Royal Bafokeng North Shaft. (Photo Royal Bafokeng Mining)

This industry is said to be one of the toughest industries, how did you manage to stay in for so long?

Well, God gives the greatest challenges to his greatest warriors. No warriors job is easy, continues training, learning, and teaching is crucial in this environment. I have learned the importance of understanding the objectivity and the subjectivity of element and activities within the industry. Being open to change brings refreshment and vibrancy to once perspective, experience, knowledge and how to stay abreast.

In your opinion what are the biggest challenges facing the industry currently and how can they be overcome?

The degrading of professional ethics and standards. We need to make this part of the industry educational curriculum and not just the professional bodies. I believe this will provide young aspiring professionals at an early stage of their career of the greater good they responsible for, the effect of this will sustain them through their career. As well as the current professional bodies need to ensure that practices (public and private owned) and professionals undertake ethic courses at predetermined intervals, this to remind them of their responsibility to the professions and greater good.

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