OUR HISTORY
EARLY DAYS FOR SVA
Founder of SVA International, Hellmut Stauch, emigrated from Germany to South Africa in 1935. Stauch opened his own practice in Pretoria in 1943 which expanded to satellite offices in Pietersburg (Polokwane) and Mmabatho. He had a major influence in bringing modern movement principles to South African architecture.
A SEASON OF AWARDS
In the formative years of SVA Stauch won a competition for the Windhoek Library, Archives & Museum which instigated the opening of the Windhoek office and then, in 1953, the design of low-cost housing which were modular in plan and easily expandable.
REACHING NEW DIMENSIONS
Several people with unique skills contributed to the growth and success of SVA .Notably Robin Vorster for his unification of the practice and effective management principles as well as Bryan Prisgrove for introducing high levels of expertise in professional practice . A Johannesburg office was established in 1959 to service two new commissions, the Netherlands Bank & President Hotel.
ONWARDS & UPWARDS
An amalgamation with the office of Ian Park Ross and new projects enabled a Durban office to open which later joined with ‘Piet Bakker Architects’.
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
The practice was commissioned to design the major Green Acres retail project and the Port Elizabeth office was established. This office later expanded to open an East London office. Construction began on the President (now Protea) Hotel in Sea Point and the Cape Town office was set up in 1965
A NEW DIGITAL AGE
With the introduction of CAD, SVA opened a central computer bureau in Midrand, where all working drawings in the practice were done centrally.
JOURNEYS INTO AFRICA
Expansion into Africa provided valuable experience with projects across the continent and in Mauritius.
GROWTH ABOUNDS
Amalgamation with 'Mwamuko O'Malley Moses' (MOM) created combined offices in Johannesburg for the entire Gauteng region.
STRATEGIC MOVES
A strategic decision was taken to amalgamate all the SVA entities into a single international company.
PARTNERING WITH PURPOSE
SVA partners with GIBB and transforms into a strong majority Black-owned company with a qualified B-BBEE rating.
80 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE
After 8 decades, SVA International continues to be a leader in the industry.