Civil Engineering July 2021 | Vol 29 No 6

50 July 2021 Civil Engineering Ob i tuary I t was with great shock that the engineering fraternity tragically lost a respected member with the untimely passing of Tim Ter Haar on 18 May 2021 at the age of 52, as a result of a suspected heart attack. Tim leaves behind his wife Megan, and children Bjorn (22) and Chantel (20). Tim, a leader, colleague, mentor and friend was a valued member of the AECOM business for almost 30 years and will be greatly missed. His contributions to our business as well as the industry as a whole were immense. We will be eternally indebted for the sacrifices he made and the dedication he displayed throughout his career. EARLY YEARS AND TRAINING Tiemen Robert Ter Haar was born in Cape Town on 7 July 1968 to Dutch parents Bob and Ellie Ter Haar, who immigrated to South Africa from The Netherlands in 1953 and 1952 respectively. Tim matriculated from De Kuilen High School in Kuilsriver in 1986, and graduated Cum Laude from Stellenbosch University for both his BEng and MEng degrees in 1990 and 1992 respectively. His Masters thesis was on the topic “Torsional-flexural buckling of single equal-legged angle struts” for which he was awarded the Stellenbosch University H.L. Reitz medal for the best post grad- uate studies in Civil Engineering (1992). CAREER OVERVIEW Tim joined AECOM (legacy BKS) in October 1992, where his career spanned almost three decades with the same firm – a remarkable achievement. During the first two years of his employment, Tim was deployed as a resident engineer in the Roads and Structures Divisions, gaining experi- ence both on a building (Kings Park Rugby Stadium) and a road rehabilitation project. Prior to becoming divisional man- ager, Tim was a design engineer in the Structures Division from 1993 to 1997. He gained experience in reinforced concrete, post-tensioned concrete, structural steel, masonry, and timber structures. His main responsibilities were preliminary designs, including cost estimates, final designs, detailing, site co-ordination and inspec- tions. In 1995 he went on study leave in pursuit of a PhD in structural engineering at Stellenbosch University with his dissertation titled “Towards a rational approach for serviceability design criteria for light industrial steel structures”. During this time, he spent two semesters in the USA at the University of Texas as an exchange student before continuing his PhD studies on a part-time basis. He had to suspend his studies in 2004 due to BKS work commitments. During the period 1997 to 2006 Tim was the divisional manager of the Structures Division of BKS in KwaZulu- Natal. He was responsible for the financial and personnel management of the divi- sion, with a staff complement of 28, as well as business development and project management. His responsibilities also included conceptual designs, design au- dits, and specialised structural designs on a variety of structural projects. Between 1999 and 2006, Tim was the director in charge of a programme of projects for the Toyota manufacturing plant in Durban. He led a team of design consultants and project managers responsible for the design, procurement and construction management of these projects, which were fast-track and all delivered on time to the milestone dates as set by Toyota. For a period of five years from 2006 to 2010 Tim was responsible as the project director/lead principal for the design and construction management of the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban (built for the 2010 FIFA World Cup) – undoubtedly his career’s most celebrated achievement. This was a full-time role as the leader of a team of some 30 multidisciplinary design and construction management companies responsible for the develop- ment of the stadium and surrounding pre- cinct. Tim led the team for the five years starting from concept design through all the design stages, procurement of multiple contractors, management and supervision of the construction, and the successful handover of the project on time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Tim was also responsible for the development of the stadium operational plan and was re- sponsible for the full operations, stadium management and maintenance for the initial two years after completion. Prior to his appointment as chief operating officer and operations director of AECOM SA, Tim was the regional director responsible for the management of the KwaZulu-Natal region of BKS with a staff complement of approximately 170 personnel located in the main regional office in Durban, the Moses Mabhida Stadium offices and two branch offices in Pietermaritzburg and Richards Bay. In this capacity he was responsible for the full control and management of the finances, project activities and human resources Tim Ter Haar 7 July 1968 to 18 May 2021 Tim Ter Haar