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CONSTRUCTION WORLD
AUGUST
2017
60
PRODUCTS & SERVICES
As with every aspect of building, timber roof trusses must be
manufactured and erected in line with the National Building
Regulations and SANS 10400, which provide for fire safety.
Building regulations, set in place by bodies such as the South
African Bureau of Standards (SABS) after extensive research and
consultation with industry experts, consider all aspects of a given
building material’s composition and properties to ensure that it meets
the same safety and performance standard as any other building
material in the same application.
Fire regulations relating to timber roof trusses state the following:
• Each independent dwelling unit situated on either side of a fire wall
must have its own bracing system within its roof structure, regardless
of the fire wall projecting above the roof covering or not.
• The fire regulations do not state the size of a permissible gap
between timber members bearing on either side of the fire wall.
However, trusses passing through a fire wall must be split into
separate trusses.
• The regulation states that “No part of the roof assembly, made of
wood or any other combustible material shall pass through the
separating wall.”
• No tile underlay or insulation may pass over the fire wall.
The Department of Public Works’ revised Guide to Architects on the
subject of fire safety (1998: pp. 3), addresses the matter of fire walls in
roof spaces as follows:
“Fire walls, where required, shall be carried up tightly against
the underside of the floor except that combustible minor structural
members, such as battens, to which roofing material is directly
fastened, may be permitted. Purlins must not penetrate a fire wall for a
distance greater than 80 mm, but if they penetrate from both sides of
the wall, at least 80 mm of non-combustible material must
separate them.”
While the Institute for Timber Construction South Africa (ITC-SA)
does not make the regulations governing timber construction in South
Africa, as part of its endeavours to promote and protect the industry,
its players and the general public, it interprets and disseminates them.
It is the responsibility of all players, from the manufacture to erection
and inspection of timber roof trusses to enforce the regulations; even
engineers who sign off on a non-compliant roof structure could well be
put to task by the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA).
Professor Walter Burdzik of the Department of Civil Engineering at
the University of Pretoria confirms, “Any failure of a truss plant or roof
inspector to insist on the separation of roofs per fire regulations needs
to be reported to the ITC-SA. The same principle applies to low-cost
housing; just because a roof is over a low-cost house does not justify
deviating from National Building Regulations.”
Aesthetics and finishes have to reflect the lifestyle that
owners have invested in, and Technicrete paving is con-
sidered to be the leading choice when it comes to paving at
the estate.
Technicrete’s Trojan paving, well known for its durability
and appearance, was recently used at a Broadlands Estate
residence for the driveway, house perimeter and carport
areas. The home owner chose the Trojan design after looking
at the quality of the Technicrete brick product that was
installed at a neighbouring residence in 2016.
Andre Buitendach, owner of Adri Projects said, “The
random shaped edge bevels of the Technicrete Trojan
Autumn coloured 60 mm square paving has given an
aesthetically smart final finish to the driveway and other
paved areas. We installed 1 200 m
2
of the Trojan squares,
which we had to install in batches due to time availability
of the client.
“We appreciated the fact that Technicrete understood
our predicament with delivery of product to the estate. The
estate’s Body Corporate does not allow vehicles over eight
tonnes on the property. Technicrete salvaged the situation
by supplying all the paving we required in more lightweight
delivery vehicles in a series of shuttles to and from the
estate,” said Buitendach.
“Technicrete’s Trojan squares and slab formations are
ideally suited to residential applications as well as municipal
parking areas and pedestrian walkways due to their
durability and lifespan. So, we were pleased to have been
contracted for further paving installation work at Broadlands
Estate. The finish of the paving on this residence, and the
previous five projects, is very elegant and befitting of this
upmarket estate, and offers owners a long lifespan due to
the innate quality of the product,” said Peter Hilton, sales
representative for Technicrete ISG in Polokwane.
Technicrete’s Keystone paving was installed at five
private residences at Broadlands Estate in 2016.
Broadlands estate
residence paving
Upmarket residential estates like Broadlands
Estate in Polokwane require residents to ensure
that any additions or refurbishments done to their
properties conform to the high existing standards.
Timber roof trusses and
fire regulations
While there are a few misconceptions around timber’s
fire performance, structural timber for roofing is both
commonplace and performs well under fire conditions.
Typical fire break between house and garage trusses
must be in two parts.