Getting approval to work on projects ahead of other competitors means that you’re being noticed and that your company has a good reputation for delivering excellent service. This is exactly what is happening with Total Property Solutions (TPS) who have recently completed the construction of a new building for Electrosales, located in Avondale, on De Noon Road just behind Bon Marche. This is the fourth construction project they’ve done for Electrosales. Besides their latest project, TPS had successfully constructed stores in Kadoma and Mutare and are currently working on the Zvishavane project.
The new Avondale Electrosales branch has ample parking for greater shopping convenience. The store is fully stocked with a wide range of quality products including agricultural inputs, building, plumbing and electrical supplies, sanitaryware, timber, vehicle spares and accessories, back-up power, outdoor living and pool care products, protective wear, gardening tools and accessories, hand and power tools, and so much more!!! They are open 7 days a week and their team of friendly staff is ready to assist.
Construction of the Avondale branch took 5 months and was completed on 30th November 2022. This was followed by the final touches such as the installation of shelving units, sales counters and display areas and setting out the stock for sales before the official opening. The branch opened on 5 December 2022.
Previously a number of small businesses were being run on the site from older residential buildings which were demolished to make way for the new structure. The soil on the site is dense black clay which was water logged so the construction process required initial drainage and specialised foundations.
Draftworx were the architectural firm contracted to draw up a simple, standardised warehouse design that suits the branch’s large volumes of stock.
The roof is Chromadek sheeting on steel trusses, with an extensive solar system appropriate for the largest of the branches, on standby for times of need such as loadshedding or unforeseen power outages. For the floor slab to cope with the waterlogged soil, the builders cast 150mm concrete on PVC sheeting, crusher run and ironstone fill. The floor finish is power floated concrete, and the interior lighting is 150w high bay lights.
The specialised foundations consist of column bases that are hard material at approximately 3.5m deep, backfilled to 2.5m with stabilized crusher run. These are supported by reinforced wall foundation beams between columns to above the water table.
All product displays are as per Electrosales standards, with 15 till points to cater for demand, especially during peak periods like month ends.
There’s a large loading bay for the convenient receiving and dispatch of goods as well as generous parking space at the front for customers. The pavers were supplied by Home Style while Secure Fencing supplied the Clearview fencing on the perimeter.
The client brief to the architect consisted of a simple sketch of their requirements including the shop floor, offices and ablutions. The building structure is 2900m2 set on the 6100 m2 site. Incorporated within the building is a café owned and managed by Pariah State.
The main contractors for the project were TPS, who also paired with SA Norton Engineers as the project managers, main contractors and quantity surveyors. Earthworks were done by Broline Transport t/a JTL Equipment, the steel structure and the roofing were supplied by Super Structures and Grapnote Steel supplied the reinforcing. Other steel suppliers for the staircase and the balustrades were Steel Warehouse and Africa Steel while Safeguard Engineering supplied and fitted the roller shutter doors.
Electrosales were able to source and supply a significant amount of the building materials from their own stock. Other products were sourced from leading suppliers like Halsteds and Marine Aluminium for the aluminium doors and windows. Bricks were supplied by Beta Bricks and concrete was supplied by Scribante. An interesting feature of the interior design is the prefabricated office structures supplied by Groundswell.
As a growing construction company TPS looks ahead to more great work and had this to say: “We are very proud to be Electrosales’ partner in their new developments and very much look forward to working with them in the future across Zimbabwe.”
The construction work done at the new branch is outstanding and notable is that the Avondale Shopping Centre has been further transformed to offer local residents a lot more hardware convenience than before.
In recent times, TPS has done projects including refurbishing the Chiredzi Tannery and turning it into Palm Tree Place, designing and building an abattoir for buffalo and other game near Chiredzi, designing and building the enlarged structure for workshops near Chiredzi, designing and building the entire extension of the N Richards shop in Chiredzi and the refurbishment of the Wild Geese Lodge Pavilion.
TPS emerged from taking over Dumbu Enterprises and Rodger Munro Contracting (Pvt) Ltd including all staff and equipment. Prior to that Dumbu and RMC had completed works primarily in the Lowveld of Zimbabwe for Triangle Ltd (1996 to 2012), Malilangwe Conservation Trust and Gonarezhou Conservation Trust (2008 to present).
TPS CONTACT DETAILS:
16 Neill Avenue, Msasa
Harare,
Landline: +263 (24) 244 7400 / +263 (24) 244 7432
Email: info@tps.co.zw
Text – Martin Chemhere
Images – Fotohaus
