An Urban Centre for temporary workers in Hatfield, Pretoria

Abstract

This thesis elaborates on the relationship between work and time and how it relates to quality architecture. Quality is a degree of excellence. The project proposed is aimed at promoting quality in the built environment through workmanship. Pretoria, in the Tswane Metropolitan area, is in Gauteng, the province responsible for most trade in South Africa. Hatfield in Pretoria is home to many students of various institutions, including the University of Pretoria. Many workers live in Pretoria and commutes daily between Pretoria and Johannesburg. The world is characterized by ever-changing aspects today, and especially in South Africa uncertainty prevails. Fluctuations in the economy have resulted in a feeling of insecurity. An unemployment rate of approximately 40% has caused many South Africans to become temporary, and often migrant, workers. This uncertainty also reflects in the built environment, where buildings have become "temporary", displaying a lack of workmanship in the planning and construction. The project discussed in this thesis is a result of intensive planning on the site, in collaboration with the proposed Hatfield Gautrans Station by Bernard Roccon (thesis proposal for MArch(Prof) degree, 2003), implemented to provide an efficient public transport link between Pretoria and Johannesburg. The functions of the project; a stable centre acting as a datum point and haven for temporary workers, is a result of this planning process. This thesis aims at re-establishing a trust in the built environment through quality architecture, by promoting work and workmanship.