Success Story - Barrow Construction Mike Makhudu

My name is Michael Makudu.

I'm a Barrow contract director.

I've been with Barrow since 1998 when Barrow was still in New Duofontein.

So I met John barrow, probably 12th of January 1998 and got cracking on a site in Empire Road.

So it's.

Yeah, it's been quite a journey.

So I've basically grown in my position since then from being a very raw young learner to now older, greyer and performing all sorts of tasks in the company, just adding value that way to the whole sort of process.

I mean, we've done this lots of times.

We understand how to get things done efficiently and we can sort of foresee problems, due to the experience we have.

we look after our own buildings.

So we've learned a lot from our own mistakes.

I was sort of given the ball to run with, when I started off with John and he said, well, you know, get out there and do.

You'll determine your own destiny.

And I kind, of like that.

And the freedom, the responsibility, the teamwork, the family environment, it's not so corporate, which is quite nice.

You know, you want to do things because you enjoy it and you're passionate about it.

And I think the, the environment sort of feeds that need for me.

So Paragon architects are involved and, Anthony Relovets has obviously got a great name in the industry for the many buildings that he's designed.

He designed 110 Oxford Road too.

Very, creative.

So a new floor level has been added on the roof which, creates the sort of almost panoramic view around the building.

It's got the clear stories as a building, so there's a lot of lights coming in through the building, through the facade and through the roof.

Concrete floor.

So it makes it quite easy to kind of just add another floor onto the top.

The structure being very strong, that's not an issue.

It is a steel and glass construction.

Lots of sort of entertainment areas on either wing on the western side and the, eastern side.

So it's quite, quite challenging, but quite, quite fun.

I mean, it's nice to do something like this.

Yeah, it's a proper revamp, and one can feel it already.

You know, there's a lot of lights coming through already on the sort of entrance lobby in the ground floor.

And I think it's going to be even more connected to the outside with the new outdoor area that we're sitting at the moment.

The seating area is where you could probably go and have your tea or coffee during working hours.

Pods and fire pits.

So one could probably have a very entertaining sort of office culture environment, because you obviously producing power and you're getting a lot of light into the building.

So I think it will perform quite well from that point of view.

Climate inside the building and the feel of just being out here and experiencing your work environment like that is absolute pleasure.

You know, it's not, it's not like being stuck in an office block where you have tiny little holes and you, you're not kind of part of the environment.

You know, I think here you are very much at work but also enjoying yourself.

It's the way of the future.

It's the way that we should all work, you know, and do what we enjoy and how we enjoy it.

And hopefully a lot of production comes with that.

No, thank you.

I was so nervous.

Now I can go sleep.