Construction World September 2024

COVER STORY

Public structures need to be protected by using durable construction materials.

THROUGH NINE DECADES, AFRISAM serves each phase of SA’s growth Throughout its 90 years, construction materials leader AfriSam has been an active champion of leading edge technology and global best practice in South Africa; from high performance materials and durability standards to advanced mixes and sustainable solutions, it has over the decades become a pillar of the construction sector.

“O ur evolution as a business has mirrored the changing needs and opportunities of our markets,” says Amit Dawneerangen, AfriSam’s Executive Construction Materials: Sales and Product Technical. “As South Africa has grown, we have built our expertise and technology base to take the lead in applying world class standards, so that our construction industry could make the best possible contribution to the country’s infrastructure.” Each era of South Africa’s economic development has been able to benefit from AfriSam’s presence. In the early days after its inception in 1934, the then-Anglovaal Portland Cement Company supported reconstruction efforts after World War II. In the 1950s and 1960s, the country’s urban areas grew

quickly, demanding construction materials for residential housing and other projects. The decades of the 1970s and 1980s saw the pace of infrastructure projects ramp up further, with highways, dams and bridges needing a new generation of high performance construction materials. “The pressure to complete larger and more projects meant contractors increasingly wanted to fast track their work,” says Dawneerangen. “The performance of construction materials had to evolve, and AfriSam was proactive in developing solutions that would give customers flexibility to work more productively.” The vital factor of quality and durability now also came under the spotlight, as this determined the expected lifespan

14 CONSTRUCTION WORLD SEPTEMBER 2024