Housing in Southern Africa August 2015

Creating colourful finishes

M ore architects around the world have lost their fear of coloured concrete and there is a definite lo- cal trend towards greater acceptance of coloured concrete. Interestingly, the use of pigment always has a correlation to the developmental stage of a particular country. Thomas Pfeiffer, Vice President Marketing and Sales, EMEA Lanxness Inorganic Pigments says, “We have ob- served that when people reach a certain income status, they seek out beauty in addition to functionality. This often takes the form of using appealing and consistently high quality colours.” Lanxness pigments distributor, Chryso Southern Africa is geared up to accommodate the growing trend towards colour adoption in buildings and infrastructure. Pfeiffer points out, “Coloured concrete products have, in fact, been available for several decades. Simply consider the use of coloured roof tiles and concrete paving blocks. It’s the way that colour is used that is significant. Notably, South Africa at present echoes the trend towards black, variations of black shades and red that is so apparent in countries like Germany.” ■ Colour pigments are becoming increasingly popular across a broad spectrum of products in the built environment where colour is required for enhanced aesthetic appeal. Applications are diverse and include the precast industry, roof tile manufacturers, civils contractors and construction companies.

August 2015