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UFS Modular Lecture Building gets national recognition

11 May 2023 | Story Samkelo Fetile | Photo iFlair Photography

The University of the Free State’s (UFS) Modular Lecture Building on its Bloemfontein Campus recently received a National Merit Award from the South African Institute of Architects (SAIA). The awards were announced at the 2021/2022 Corobrik SAIA Awards of Merit and Awards for Excellence ceremony in Johannesburg.

The multi-functional Modular Lecture Building, considered a hub for innovative learning, was designed by Roodt Architects in partnership with GXY Architects.

The adjudication panel received a total of 42 architectural projects from around the country, including infrastructure developments in the public and private sector. The SAIA Awards programme is structured over a two-year period and is conducted in two stages. In stage one regional awards for architecture are presented by the nine regional institutes affiliated to SAIA. In stage two the winning regional projects that are consequently entered into the national awards receive either a Commendation, an Award of Merit, and/or an Award for Excellence, which recognises exceptional achievement in the field of architecture.

In their citation the adjudicators noted that the Modular Lecture Building sets a benchmark for rational planning and technical efficiency and helps complete the campus urban framework through its placing and material choices.

Multi-functional spaces for students

Nico Janse van Rensburg, Senior Director at UFS University Estates, said the recognition is a testament to the UFS’s aspirations to renew, rejuvenate, regenerate, and revisit facilities and infrastructure.

“This award proves that excellence can be achieved with a reasonable set budget,” Janse van Rensburg said. “Energy efficiency and green building principles can be achieved by careful planning and teamwork.”

The Modular Lecture Building offers a variety of much-needed flexible teaching and learning spaces. “I have been using the facilities in this building for two years now, and I can say the building is much more spacious and conducive to studying,” said Hymne Spies, a third-year BSc student majoring in biochemistry and genetics. “The many plugs make it more efficient for studying, as one can plug in his or her laptop. There is also a nice computer lab for us to make use of.”

The UFS is proud that the construction of this facility forms part of a bigger endeavour – to create a cohesive campus identity that improves core business and to further extend its innovation and excellence as per its Vision 130.

Take a tour of the new Modular Lecturing Space and Assessment Centre Building:

News Archive

Groundwater management vital for groundwater sustainability

2016-11-09

Description: Dr Yolanda Kotzé Tags: Dr Yolanda Kotzé

Dr Yolanda Kotzé, Affiliated Researcher in the
UFS Institute for Groundwater Studies, is passionate
about the management of groundwater.
Photo: Rulanzen Martin

An interest in groundwater resource management ignited the spark for a PhD research thesis by Dr Yolanda Kotzé, Affiliated Researcher in the Institute for Groundwater Studies (IGS) at the University of the Free State (UFS).

Her PhD research thesis titled, A Framework for Groundwater Use Authorisations as Part of Groundwater Governance in Water Scarce Areas within South Africa, was the result of her interest in groundwater resource management. Dr Kotzé identified the agricultural sector as one of the major water users, and a decision was made to conduct research within this sector.

Research funded by Institute for Groundwater Studies
Groundwater is water found underground in cracks and spaces in soil, sand, and rocks. It is stored in, and moves slowly through geological formations of soil, sand, and rocks (aquifers). The National Department of Water and Sanitation was indirectly the client for this research. The research project was funded by the IGS. Given the current drought, effective groundwater resource management can be achieved within all sectors through sustainable abstraction and use without over-abstraction.

“Groundwater can be effectively managed
in the agricultural sector by sustainable use,
monitoring the quantity of groundwater use,
and measuring groundwater levels,”
said Dr Kotzé.

Research addresses improvement of groundwater management
Her promotor, mentor, teacher, and friend, the late Prof Gerrit van Tonder, introduced her to the field of Geohydrology, and especially to groundwater resource management. “With my research, I made a significant contribution to the improvement of groundwater governance and groundwater resource management, as well as to the handling of groundwater use authorisations for irrigation purposes in South Africa,” said Dr Kotzé. With this significant contribution, she attempts to address the phenomenon of poor groundwater allocation and groundwater resource management by means of a framework. The development of this framework has shown the value of action research in an attempt to find a solution to a problem. “Groundwater can be effectively managed in the agricultural sector by sustainable use, monitoring the quantity of groundwater use, and measuring groundwater levels,” said Dr Kotzé.

The methodology of the research consisted primarily of action research, which has a five-phase cyclical process. The research was Dr Kotzé’s application for a PhD in Geohydrology at the UFS in 2012. The research was completed in 2015.

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