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CONSTRUCTION WORLD
NOVEMBER
2016
The Concrete Manufacturers Association
Certification Services (CMA CS) has undertaken
its first complete initial assessments and certified
a number of products on behalf of its maiden
client, Bosun Bricks.
Garth McMillan, divisional general manager of Bosun Bricks, receives the
CMA CS Mark of Approval from executive director, Frans Minnaar.
Initial assessments were undertaken to test compliance with SANS
specifications on a number of different precast concrete products
that are manufactured by the company and that need to be certified
to meet engineering and architectural specifications. The CMA CS Mark of
Approval is the first non-SABS mark to be used in the concrete industry since
legislationwas changed to allowmultiple certification authorities to undertake
certification of SANS standards.
Born from the need to professionalise the certification of products within
the precast concrete industry, CMA CS was established under the wing of the
voluntary members’ association for the industry, the Concrete Manufacturers
Association (CMA). This was in response to undue delays in the issuing of
SANS certification from the current certification body that had the potential
to harm member companies whose products needed certification in order
to meet customer requirements.
Peg in the ground
Speaking on acceptance of the Mark of Approval, David Wertheim Aymes,
managing director of Bosun Bricks said that adherence to standards is critical
and that the establishment of CMA CS is a step in the right direction for the
concrete industry.“At the end of the day, standards are all about putting a peg
in the ground as a measure of what is acceptable and what is not.
“SANS specifications are compiled by industry experts who deem them
suitable for the type of product being manufactured. Thereafter it is the
role of the certification agency to measure and certify that a product meets
these standards, where after a Mark of Approval can be issued as proof to
customers and end-users.
“We are pleased to have been the first to be certified and found the
process to be similar to our previous SABS audits, but much more in depth.
The actual audits took three days rather than a few hours that we were used
to. The auditor was comprehensive and the process from start to finish was
considerably quicker than it had been traditionally,” said David.
Quicker turn-around
He added that Bosun Bricks will heavily advertise its newly acquired Mark of
Approval in the media, on packaging and all other areas of business where
it needs to be visible.
CMA CS general manager Christo van Zyl, concluded that the new certi-
fication process also marked an improvement over traditional certification
as it is completely comprehensive, is undertaken by system auditors with
industry knowledge and is done timeously to avoid manufacturers losing
out on deals while waiting months for certification that should be done in a
matter of days or weeks.
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PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
Manual blending of a mortar is labour intensive and time consuming,
and requires careful attention to ensure the correct ratios of sand and
cement are used. Incorrect blending or mixing will certainly affect
the final product and in the case of plaster result in cracking.
This Class II mortar has been specially engineered as a dual purpose mix
that can be used for both mortar and plaster work. It will achieve a minimum
strength of 5 MPa at 28 days.
SANS 50197 compliant AfriSam All Purpose Cement was selected as this
cement offers a spectrumof functional attributes that provide customers with
guaranteed quality performance in concrete, mortar and plaster applications.
This advanced composite cement contains milled clinker as well as advanced
mineral components and additives, and therefore the ideal component for
the AfriSam Dry Mortar product.
The innovative AfriSam Dry Mortar solution is being produced in part-
nership with Stick a Tile at a bespoke plant in Meyerton. Sand, quarried on
the site, is dried to the requisite level, and blended with AfriSam’s All Purpose
Cement in a controlled environment to produce this quality mix.
The fully automated plant has a 400 ton per day capacity and batch
printouts are produced to verify consistency and ensure optimum quality.
Samples of the dry mortar product are taken at regular intervals and tested
at AfriSam’s Centre of Product Excellence to ensure compliance with the
required specifications.
The AfriSam Dry Mortar product is supplied in either 10 ton or 20 ton
silos offering optimum flexibility as customers can then decide on the size
required based on individual project requirements.
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AUTHORITY AWARDS FIRST
MARK OF APPROVAL
DRY MORTAR OFFERS
NUMEROUS BENEFITS
The AfriSam Dry Mortar solution offers contractors
a number of benefits in addition to time and cost
savings. Using a pre-blended mortar mix will ensure
optimum product integrity and subsequently
quality construction on a project.
The Class II mortar has been specially engineered as a dual purpose
mix that can be used for both mortar and plaster work.
BELOW:
AfriSam’s Dry Mortar product can be delivered in 10 or 20 ton silos
to meet customer and project requirements.
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