How Best To Share Our Information

A bit of information that might come in handy when using masterbuilders.co.za is that we have included an application that makes it very simple to share the page you are viewing, with somebody else.

If you click on the SHARE/PRINT THIS PAGE OPTION you will notice that a window pops up giving you a whole host of options which include the social mediums. Whether communicating using Facebook, Twitter or simply via e-mail, the choice is yours. It’s also worth noting that the print option on the menu prints in a readable format, very often web pages print all over the show.

You are also most welcome to forward on any information you find on our site, to anybody whom it will serve a purpose.

On a non-related note and seeing that I’m handing out useful tips today, for those who are laptop users (just about everybody at Master Builders KwaZulu Natal), herewith five pointers on how to conserve battery life, courtesy of Michelle Govender.

• Conserve battery by reducing screen brightness.
• Remove external devices when not in use e.g. USB devices, flash sticks etc.
• Run off a hard drive rather than a CD/DVD - As power consuming as hard drives are, CD and DVD drives are worse!
• Don't multitask! Rather than working on a spreadsheet, letting your email client run in the background and listening to your latest set of MP3's, set your mind to one thing only.
• Optimize your power settings. By choosing a power plan (called a power scheme in Windows XP) you can extend your battery life.

There you have it!

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

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Middle Class Takes The Pain

For those who fall into the middle class bracket, I can’t imagine that yesterdays Sunday Times front page storey “Cash Crunch Nails Middle Class” came as a revelation. The piece simply articulated what most are experiencing first hand, and are desperately trying to navigate a way through.

The strap-line beneath it read “Middle class can't cope with high bills and Punitive Taxes” and what they are saying is, Millions of debt-ridden wage earners across the country - including those fortunate enough to have got a salary increase in the past year - are in financial dire straits.

It really is a doom and gloom article which notifies us that the number of people seeking counseling from debt related depression, has increased dramatically.

Although experts are saying that we are seeing signs of an economic recovery, the Times reports that consumers from Paarl to Polokwane (as they put it) are still struggling to put food on the table once the taxman has taken his crippling cut. The key numbers they provide to illustrate the scale is as follows:

• A 25% increase next month in the price of electricity, which will double by 2012;
• Rising petrol prices - from R4.41 a litre two years ago to R7.91 now;
• School fees, up this year by between 8% and 15%; and
• Medical aid contributions, up by about 11% this year after a 12% hike last year.

As a result:

• Nearly three million consumers are over three months in arrears on their bills; and
• An estimated 250000 middle-income earners have lost their jobs in the past two years.

For persons who may have missed it yesterday and are interested reading the full Sunday Times spread click here and visit our Forum to post your comments.

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.
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For Woman Over The Age Of 30.

Below is another lighthearted commentary that found its way into my mailbox, we publish it in celebration of woman over the age of 30.

This Has Been Written By A Man.

This is for all you girls 30 years and over.... and for those who are turning 30, and for those who are scared of moving into their 30's...AND for guys who are scared of girls over 30!!!!... This was written by Andy Rooney from CBS 60 Minutes.

Andy Rooney says:

As I grow in age, I value women who are over 30 most of all. Here are just a few reasons why:

A woman over 30 will never wake you in the middle of the night to ask,"What are you thinking?" She doesn't care what you think.

If a woman over 30 doesn't want to watch the game, she doesn't sit around whining about it. She does something she wants to do. And, it's usually something more interesting.

A woman over 30 knows herself well enough to be assured in who she is, what she is, what she wants and from whom. Few women past the age of 30 don't give a damn about what you might think about her or what she's doing.

Women over 30 are dignified. They seldom have a screaming match with you at the opera or in the middle of an expensive restaurant. Of course, if you deserve it, they won't hesitate to shoot you, if they think they can get away with it.

Older women are generous with praise, often undeserved. They know what it's like to be unappreciated.

A woman over 30 has the self-assurance to introduce you to her women friends. A younger woman with a man will often ignore even her best friend because she doesn't trust the guy with other women. Women over 30 couldn't care less if you're attracted to her friends because she knows her friends won't betray her.

Women get psychic as they age. You never have to confess your sins to a woman over 30. They Always Know.

A woman over 30 looks good wearing bright red lipstick. This is not true of younger women.

Once you get past a wrinkle or two, a woman over 30 is far sexier than her younger counterpart.

Older women are forthright and honest. They'll tell you right off if you are a Jerk if you are acting like one! You don't ever have to wonder where you stand with her.

Yes, we praise women over 30 for a multitude of reasons. Unfortunately,it's not reciprocal. For every stunning, smart, well-coiffed hot woman of 30+, there is a bald, paunchy relic in yellow pants making a fool of himself with some 22-year-old waitress

Ladies, I apologize. For all those men who say, "Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free". Here's an update for you.

Nowadays 80% of women are against marriage, why? Because women realize it's not worth buying an entire Pig, just to get a little sausage!

CAN I HEAR AN AMEN LADIES...........

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

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Find-a-builder Update

As Paula mentioned in her Zululand Regional Round up, the uploading of findabuilder.co.za member pages is an ongoing process which is now fast gaining momentum. I have this week spent time on the South Coast and have since the last Find-a-builder update, uploaded several new pages.

For those who don’t already know what findabuilder.co.za is, and are interested in finding out CLICK HERE.

Pages recently uploaded include:

Stewcon
R&R Construction
GG Glass
Exland Air Conditioning
Ikhaya Lakho Construction
Anthony & Basson
Borwa Development
JT Ross
Khonastone Projects
Dicks Construction

As always, if you wish to jump the queue, you are welcome to contact me on 083 704 0441.

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.

WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU !

Send Us Your Press Release

A reminder to members that should you have a press release you would like uploaded to masterbuilders.co.za; you are welcome to forward it to us. Articles are permanently archived in our news and information section and will also, for a period of about two weeks, feature prominently as a click through link on our home-page.

A member that has taken us up on this offer is JT Ross, who has on two occasions, forwarded us some excellent content:

Blackburn Pedestrian Bridge
Top Quality Building Completed on Umhlanga Ridge

What are the Criteria?

1. It must be newsworthy
2. It must be reasonably well written

The two JT Ross articles serve as great examples of this.

Submissions can be forwarded to ernest@masterbuilders.co.za and please keep in mind, this offer only extends to Full Members of Master Builders KwaZulu-Natal. Content received will be reviewed and providing it’s of a high enough standard, we will happily upload it.

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.
WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU !

Association History - A Visual Tour

I have throughout the last year on several occasions, made mention of our historical time-line “soon to feature on masterbuilders.co.za”.

When we began the exercise, I had no idea it would take as long as it did and admittedly, had moments when I considered scrapping it. The process required a fair amount of research, lots of scanning from old publications, and because of its time consuming nature, we took the decision not to prioritize it.

The good news is, after a year of chipping away at it, it’s finally been uploaded. Click here to view: Master Builders KwaZulu-Natal: History Time-Line

It encompasses eleven decades of Association history, featuring 5 images per segment with a short commentary on each, which makes an appearance when clicked upon. This particular project did become a labor of love, and I thank Pieter Rautenbach, a font of information, who gave freely of his time.

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.
WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU !

HIV Awareness

Taking into account that I am in the employ of the Association, the teenager in the home who is currently writing matric, brought home work she was reasonably certain I would be able to assist her with. It forms part of a project for her social science class and essentially, she needed to ask an organization the following questions regarding their HIV policy:

1. How does your company inform employees about the causes of AIDS, how to prevent it and how to treat it?
2. What counseling opportunities do you provide?
3. What test facilities of HIV do you provide?
4. How do you encourage workers to learn of their HIV and AIDS status, and how is confidentiality ensured?
5. What information regarding medical treatment is provided for people suffering from HIV and AIDS?
6. What is the policy on how to interact with people diagnosed with HIV and AIDS?
7. Does your company support any corporate social investment programmes in the community to address the issue of HIV and AIDS? If so, please tell me more about these programmes.

A very special thanks to the member (who shall remain nameless) who assisted me with the appropriate answers for her. The thought did cross my mind that if this is what they are teaching youngsters in school today, the future does look somewhat brighter.

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.
WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU !

About Our President

I’ve just finalized the details pertaining to our historical time-line so it should, after many months of talking about it; go live on masterbuilders.co.za within the next day or two.

On Friday I did a post regarding the incredible list of accomplishments past President Aubrey Short managed to notch up in his time, this morning I discovered that our current serving President is not that far behind him. I have always known that he is a busy man, his profile on the CIDB website did however put it into proper perspective for me.

“Gavin Strydom, Managing Director of KwaZuluNatal-based Edstan & Sons Group, is an eminent leader in construction. He is President of the Master Builders Association KZN, a Board Member of Master Builders Association South Africa (MBSA) and Board Chairperson of the Construction Education and Training Agency (CETA). He has contributed to the development of the Construction Charter as a representative of the MBSA on the Construction Transformation Charter Group.

He is passionate about education, training and development, leading the Building Industry Standards Generating Body (SGB) as Chairperson and also serving on the SGB for the Quantity Surveying Profession and the NSB12 Inter SGB committees. Gavin is a qualified quantity surveyor, a member of the Association of South African Quantity Surveyors, and of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. He is also a registered project manager.”

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.
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Mr. W.A.H (Aubrey) Short: Legend

Mr. W.A.H Short: top left

Past President Mr. W.A.H (Aubrey) Short, was kind enough to visit our offices this morning to assist with information required for a project I have been working on for some time, soon to feature on the history pages of masterbuilders. co.za.

Aubrey is one of those exceedingly interesting characters you meet in life who has enjoyed his successes and given much back to the industry.

As a young man he qualified in Quantity Surveying and saw active service in the Airforce in World War II. With his brother Wallace, the family firm Short and McDonald became pioneers and proponents of Industrialised Building Systems.

Aubrey served as President of the Association during 1970 and 1971 and received an Honorary Membership of the Natal Association. Since his retirement he has been active as an Arbitrator and to this day remains an Association Stalwart.

His many accomplishments include:

• Past President - Natal Master Builders Association
• Honorary Member -Natal Master Builders and Allied Industries Association
• Past Member of the Executive of the S.A. Building Industries Federation
• Past Chairman of the S.A. Building Industries Recruitment and Training Fund
• Past President of the S.A. Industrialised Builders and Component Manufacturers Association
• Past Member of the National Building Research Institute of C.S.I.R.
• Past Member of the Building Industries National Development Fund
• Past Regional Director of Natal Building Society
• Past Chairman - L.C. Johnson Technical College
• Past Member of the Natal Training College
• Past Vice Chairman of Pinetown Technical College
• Associate Member of the S.A. Association of Arbitrators
• Consultant to the Consumer Council
• Past Chairman - Highway Aged Council – Pinetown
• Past Chairman - Pinehaven Society – Pinetown
• Member of: Morton Hall Board and of Doone Village Board
• Past Chairman - Durban Round Table No. 2
• Past Chairman - Rotary Club of Pinetown
• Past District Governor - District 9270 Rotary International
• Past Member of 1992 Council on Legislation - Rotary International
• Past Chairman - National War Memorial Health Foundation
• Past Chairman - Bellhaven Society
• Chairman - Rotary in Africa. Magazine for Southern Africa

A Living Legend Indeed !!!

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.
WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU !

Website Package For Building Contractors

In conjunction with Master Builders KwaZulu-Natal, Black Square Web Solutions have developed a website package tailor made for building contractors. More than just a presence on the internet, this package will get you a striking, easy to use, flexible website that can showcase your construction projects, list your capacities and will enable you to effectively market your business on-line.

Features include:

Your logo and branding:
Striking design based on your logo will ensure that you stand out from the crowd.

Easy to use, flexible navigation:
Clear Navigation allows your customers to find what they want quickly and easily. Add pages and grow your site through a simple content management system. (CMS)

Featured Projects:
Use the CMS to add projects with text as well as a mini photo gallery. You will be able to expand your site by creating full pages for each project with downloadable documents, full job specs and additional images.

The Association has negotiated an excellent price for its members so if you are interested in finding out more, give Clare a call on 031 266 8305.

Ernest Roper
Webmaster

CONSULT YOUR ASSOCIATION.
WE ARE HERE TO HELP YOU !