Sustainable Solutions

Quality Assurance is at the core of everything we do at Viva Engineering. This is why we have incorporated quality management into every process at Viva Engineering, from the time client drawings are received to the time site installation is complete.

At the outset of each project a Quality Control Plan (QCP) is drawn up in conjunction with our clients ensuring that all team members at Viva Engineering are aware of the requirements and minimum standards set for each project.

During the execution of the project a Data Book is compiled. The Data Book is your assurance of quality through every stage of production. The Data Book will typically contain the approved drawings for the project, project specifications, fabrication plans, welder’s qualifications, material certificates, Non Destructive Testing (NDT) procedures and outcomes, inline inspection reports and final inspection report at cleaning and dispatch. The Data Book will also contain all quality assurance documentation of any processes that may be external to our workshop.

A project is only released from one phase of production to the next after the quality team has conducted a complete check of the work completed and conducted non-destructive testing, if necessary. This ensures the quality of processes and materials, each step of the process.

At Viva Engineering, we’re proud of our 0.2% site comeback rate, which stands as a testament to our hard work and precise project execution. We also diligently maintain our ISO 9001 certification, which ensures that our projects exceed the expectations of both local and international clients.

The people of Viva Engineering are our greatest assets, and so health and safety is a top priority in everything that we do. Safety is our ultimate core value and nothing takes priority over the safety of our staff.

We have implemented a holistic approach to safety. Our safety systems ensure that work is conducted within the guidance of our safe working procedures which are continuously improved with onsite inspections and task observations.

All our staff undergo regular safety inductions and safety training. Job specific training is conducted by industry leading training companies to ensure that our staff are well trained for the tasks they perform daily. Day and night shifts have appointed safety personnel in place.

To ensure that Viva Engineering’s equipment, machinery and vehicles are safe to use, we have implemented daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly inspection routines which are strictly adhered to. A colour coded system is in place so that operators have peace of mind that their equipment has been routinely inspected and repaired.

Our health and safety management systems are ISO 45001 compliant, and our full-time health and safety officer and our independent safety consultant have successfully fostered a mindset that safety is a collective effort and is everyone’s responsibility.

Globally and across all industries, there has been a move toward implementing solutions that have a reduced impact on the environment, and the steel fabrication industry is no exception. To help our clients meet aggressive sustainability targets, and to set an example within the steel industry, reducing our carbon footprint and environmental impact is a key focus for Viva Engineering.

We’ve taken significant steps to reduce our impact on the environment, introducing a number of sustainable practices into our business:

• We’ve installed a PV Solar Power system with 340 panels that run 45% of our manufacturing operations off-the-grid during the day. The PV Solar Power system will be expanded and upgraded over the coming years and once complete, our operations will be 90% off the grid. View our environmental counter to see the direct positive impact that our PV solar system has had on the reduction of carbon emissions.
• A program has been initiated to reduce our energy consumption. This started with a review of workshop lighting and energy loads and included the replacement of a number of welding machines with new modern machines which were substantially more energy efficient.
• We recycle 100% of the remnants of our fabrication processes. By implementing effective recycling processes, we have significantly reduced energy consumption, lowering our carbon emissions and minimizing our waste production.

At Viva Engineering, we are committed to making important shifts that will drive our business forward sustainably and effectively using the engineering and innovation at our disposal to do so and we’re committed to helping our partners to achieve the same. Every client is issued a ‘Sustainability Certificate’ as part of the project close-out process, offering full peace of mind that their project has had a significantly reduced impact on the environment than before.

Transformation has always been a key driver for Viva Engineering, and we’ve taken active steps to bring about change in our business. Today, Viva Engineering is proudly 51% black owned and 30.6% black woman owned.

Our clients have realised the positive impact that our black woman ownership has on their preferential procurement scorecard. The current generic scorecard has measurement criteria for B-BBEE procurement spend with empowered suppliers that are at least 30% black woman-owned – Viva Engineering’s black female ownership results in 214% more points in your preferential procurement scorecard. We’re proudly B-BBEE Level 2, while our enterprise development partner, Batho Pele, is B-BBEE Level 2.

More than just a scorecard
While we acknowledge the procurement benefits of contracting with a B-BBEE certified supplier, we are motivated to bring about real change to the daily lives of people in our company, our industry and our nation

Batho Pele
Born out of Viva Engineering’s enterprise development program, Batho Pele is now a stand-alone company, partnering with Viva Engineering on various projects. Batho Pele has matured to handle large, complex and fast-tracked projects.

Batho Pele is a certified B-BBEE Level 2 company, offering a Procurement Recognition of 125%. This successful company remains an integral part of Viva Engineering’s Management and Quality systems, receiving continued mentorship and support from Viva Engineering.

Viva Engineering is committed to developing and enhancing the skills of its people so that both our company and our community can continue to grow and develop. By creating jobs in the steel fabrication and construction industry, we are transferring valuable skills in the industry.

• Supplier development partnerships
  Assisting entrepreneurs in the steel industry, Viva Engineering has facilitated the development of many young enterprises that benefit from dealing with Viva Engineering. Support for these suppliers includes unsecured loans, quality system development, safety system development and ongoing mentorship.
• Skills Development
  Viva Engineering’s skills development plan spans the breadth of the company. Skills are developed through various external and internal training programs to grow and enhance the abilities of our staff.
• YES Program
  Viva Engineering recently employed its first Youth Employment Scheme candidate – an exciting addition to the Viva Engineering team, and an opportunity to contribute to the development of responsible and hardworking youth in South Africa.
• Female Representation
  With women making up 30% of our management team, we have experienced first-hand the business benefits of female representation at management level. While this figure is much higher that the industry standard, we’re committed to achieving greater gender parity and have set aggressive targets for female representation across our business over the coming years.

A key driver at Viva Engineering is how we manage and run our business so that we have a positive impact on society. We care passionately about our people and the South African community as a whole. We’re committed to playing our part in helping our nation move forward, and we continuously invest in initiatives that we believe are critical to creating a better future for our local communities and society at large.

Our Corporate Social Responsibility programs include:

• Employment Equity programs
  Over the years we have adopted the philosophy of developing our talent internally before bringing in new talent. Many of our staff have flourished as the company has grown.
• Sponsorship of learnerships
  We have sponsored four disabled learners studying Supply Chain Management. Once graduated, these students would possess the skills necessary to embark on exciting careers in their chosen field of expertise.
• Bursaries for Secondary Education
  We sponsored the education and boarding of previously disadvantaged students at the historic Jeppe High School for Boys in Johannesburg. The school’s motto “Forti Nihil Difficilius” – “For the brave, nothing is too difficult” – deeply resonates with our very own Jeppe Old Boys as well as the Viva Engineering team as a whole.
• The Refilwe Kwena-Molapo Pre-School redevelopment
  The preschool in this impoverished area of Johannesburg was in desperate need of a complete upgrade. Classrooms, library, ablution and kitchen areas received a bright refurbishment to create beautiful spaces in which the lives of 75 children can now be enriched each year.
• The Refilwe Self-Sustaining Farming Program
  We have forged a partnership with the Refilwe community to implement a self-sustaining farming program. Currently in its early stages of implementation, the project, with complete solar-powered irrigation, will feed in excess of 150 people using sustainable farming methods. We’re excited to announce that the training and empowering of farmers has already started.
• Rays of Hope
  We collaborated with Rays of Hope as part of our purpose to provide a sustainable future for our team, their family, and our community. Rays of Hope is a Non-Profit Company (NPC) and a Public Benefit Organisation (PBO), which manages a large number of social outreach programmes in Alexandra Township (Alex) in northern Johannesburg.  The organisation focuses on children and their families to improve all aspects of their lives, journeying with them from vulnerability to independence. This creates a lasting impact on the broader Alex community.