Technology and asset management – amid the introduction of the Internet of Things – have become a necessary component of civil engineering and construction projects in South Africa.

Asset management allows for greater efficiency in civil engineering and construction projects in terms of cost control, safety, documentation and reporting, says software company Citadel House of Technologies building services and research and development engineer Nyiko Chabalala.

Citadel launched Fortress Solutions – a web-based digital project and asset management solution that enables practitioners to manage projects and assets over the entire life cycle of a project – in 2022.

The technology monitors the capital costs of a project, allows for the scheduling of preventive maintenance and can help to plan maintenance activities. It can also capture data and extract reporting in terms of the cost of maintenance activities and the life cycles of all the equipment.

“Fortress can be implemented in different areas, such as construction, mining, transportation and hospitality, where assets need to be maintained on a regular basis. It is important to maintain equipment routinely rather than waiting for it to fail, and this can be achieved only by implementing a maintenance management system such as Fortress,” Chabalala argues.

Citadel implemented Fortress for a Gauteng-based five-level parking basement in July. The project was multidisciplinary, whereby the company integrated Fortress with the building management system, to indicate when a failure is imminent.

Further, amid deteriorating infrastructure, owing to a lack of adequate maintenance, Citadel, through Fortress, aims to work with the public sector to assist in maintaining infrastructure, thereby positively contributing to the local economy. The software company also aims to expand its global footprint and its product offerings.

“We are expanding to reach international customers and provide our solutions globally. We do not want to stick to one solution – we are living in an ever-changing world and technology is moving at a quick pace. As a result, we are able to expand in terms of the solutions that we provide within our organisation,” Chabalala concludes.