Architects Profile
SVA International
The South African architectural industry is changing so radically
and with such speed that current business practices will be
virtually unrecognisable a decade from now. This is according
to leading architectural firm SVA International, which has been
a major industry player for the past 73 years. Formerly known
as Stauch Vorster Architects, the company rebranded after
amalgamating with engineering practice GIBB Africa last year to
become a multi-disciplinary, BBBEE Level 3 company.
SET FOR SIGNIFICANT CHANGES
W
ith designs on expanding its current continental footprint,
the new-look SVA International now has regional offices in
Johannesburg, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town with
further bases in Lagos, Maputo and Mauritius.
Speaking following the relaunch of SVA’s Cape Town offices
recently (SUBS: end March), Garth Hamilton, the new
managing director of SVA, said “digital integration” would be
the definitive driving force behind the new era of architecture
and building practice in South Africa.
“We anticipate that the changes in our industry and especially the means of production
which defined recent years are just the start. The next ten years will usher in a new and
more radical revolution.
“While innovations so far have fundamentally changed the collaborations that
underpinned our industry, the demands of the future – among these being fast
urbanising cities, increasing socio-economic volatility, the changing nature of publicprivate ownership, new financial models and systems, artificial intelligence, global
manufacturing and space travel – all present scenarios that offer new challenges and
opportunities that will add further dynamism to change in our business.”
Last month, SVA International became the first practice in South Africa to introduce the
A360 Collaboration for Revit software on a national level. Released locally in January,
the software ushered in a new era in building information modelling by allowing
multiple users to work on BIMs in a live, cloud-based environment. The software has
already enabled the Durban, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth offices of SVA to work
together seamlessly on several projects.
“The next 10 years will see even further
efficiencies and effectively make the
way we do things now obsolete”
– Garth Hamilton, SVA International
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