With the mall currently undergoing its se-cond major expansion, various upgrades are being done to existing shops in the centre, which necessitated the airlifting of four brand new condensers serving as part of the air conditioning system of Checkers.
The condensers currently in use are approximately 25 years old. "We are very excited about all the developments at our centre," commented centre manager, Jaco Karg on Tuesday.
Accoring to Karg, shoppers can look forward to exciting new ventures trading in the mall by December. Savannah Helicopters, which currently operates their hangar from Wonderboom in Pretoria, but runs an office in George, was contracted to do the job.
"We specialise in utility and logistical services and operate seven helicopters throughout Africa in countries like the Congo," says Conrad Maree, the pilot responsible for this tricky procedure he calls 'vertical reference long line work'.
"After doing a bit of homework, we realised that using a helicopter would be much more efficient in terms of time, logistics and cost than using a mobile crane to get the equipment onto the mall's roof," said Craig Jenkerson from F&A Airconditioning, who is responsible for acquiring and installing the equipment.
Despite how intricate it sounds, in the hands of a professional team, Tuesday's operation took round 45 minutes to complete, despite the heavy fog.
The new condenser is airlifted by helicopter, as the rigging
and instalment team looks on. Photos: Tersia Marais
ARTICLE: CORNELLE CARSTENS, MOSSEL BAY JOURNALIST
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