Anmane Eckard
Refilwe Mabe
Two months into the renovations of the Sanlam Auditorium and the process still has some way to go.
The Sanlam Auditorium was last renovated in 2003, hence the need for the renovation now. According to the policy of the North-West University (NWU), every ten years a building on the campus has to be renovated.
As part of the upgrades the foyer will be painted, new flooring will be installed in some areas, the air conditioning will be serviced. Sound and electrical work will also be updated. The biggest change will be fixing the leaking roof.
Retha Kooij, the contract manager and principle agent of construction at the NWU said that the renovation will be completed within three months. “The renovation will be finished on 12 June and then the building will be inspected for mistakes, the contractor is given an additional 21 days to correct and improve where necessary,” said Kooij
The estimated budget for the project is over R5 million. This budget first had to be approved by the management. The funding does not only come from the university, but also from the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). Kooij said: “The DHET comes and looks at the building to be renovated and give funding to cover a portion of the costs.”
Delays are always a possibility when renovating. “Unavailable resources and rain can cause the project to be delayed,” said Kooij. In case of delays they would rearrange the schedule to get back on track.
The auditorium is used for big events such as Mr and Miss campus and campus musicals hosted by PUK Arts. Glenn Cunniff, a studio manager said that new locations such as the Totius hall are temporarily being used for events. It is unclear where the new locations are, but to find out, PUK Arts can be found at Heimat building on the NWU Potchefstroom campus.
The auditorium is not the only facility being renovated but also the Vergeet-My-Nie residence. Every 23 years a residence undergoes renovations, and because there are 22 residences the extra one is used by the residence which undergoes renovations. It is better known as the Kom en Gaan residence.
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