Housing in Southern Africa May 2016

Roofing, Ceilings, Insulation & Cladding

The SPS712 roof tile extruder was developed specifically for the African market by PMSA and ABECE of Sweden. Semi-automatic roof tile extruder

T he product is a collaborative ef- fort between PMSA and ABECE of Sweden. The SPS712 has a dual start/stop function that requires the operator to use both hands to either start or stop the machine has enhanced safety significantly. This is an example of the attention to detail that has been brought to the development of the SPS712 for the African market, where skill levels are lowand proactivemaintenance is not a priority. In order to ensure maintenance, as well as keeping themachine clean, the extrusion head flips upwards. All working parts are easily repairable and do not require special tooling to be removed. The SPS712 utilises an aluminium palette to shape the tiles. This semi-automatic extruder can manufacture up to 5 000 concrete T he judges had no hesitation in awarding the concrete cladding of No. 1 Silo at Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront the Aesthetics Commer- cial Trophy. Besides its striking visual appeal, which showcases the beauty of precast concrete construction at its best, the project also involved high levels of skilled precast concrete engineering. Similarly, the judges were un- equivocal in awarding the Gouda Wind Farm concrete tower project the Technical Excellence Trophy. It is the first time that a South African wind farm used precast concrete segments in the construction of its towers, which in this instance were 100 m high. Not surprisingly, the project was also entered into the In- novation category where it prevailed as a Commendation Winner. CMA Executive Director, Frans Min- naar, said that although this year’s entry crop was generally of a very high standard, the judges felt that none of the entries in the Aesthetic Residential category stood out suf- ficiently to merit a trophy award; a single commendation winner was all it could muster. This year’s five trophy winners: Concrete Units - the Aesthetics Com-

unit. Aluminium pallets are placed manually on the support rails that guide the pallets through the ex- truder. A hydraulic cylinder pushes the pallets through the release oil spray system and the making head in order to shape the concrete tile. Thereafter the automatic knifeunit cuts and shapes the tile. This knife unit is kept clean by a water-spray system. The manufacturing process only requires three to five labourers, depending on the level of automation and the skills level of the staff. “Combined with the fact that concrete roof tiles are such an eco- friendly product, the SPS712 extruder is the ideal machine for African condi- tions,” says PMSA Sales and Market- ing Manager, Quintin Booysen. ■

tiles in a nine-hour shift, depending on the specific plant configuration. This equates to about ten tiles amin- ute. The main benefits are that it is easy to install, operate andmaintain, which are important considerations in remote project sites in Africa. The extruder features aheavy-duty design that incorporates high-quality material and components in its man- ufacture. It has a 1.5 kWmotor power roller and a 5.5 kW hydraulic power pack for the pusher movement. A stand alone depalleter is also available, as well as ridge and trim tile manufacturing equipment. ABECE AreaManager Fredrik Tofte- mo explains that concrete is fed from a conveyor into the concrete hopper above the slipper and roller

The winners of the CMA Awards for Excellence competition were announced at a gala dinner function in Johannesburg in April. CMA Awards for Excellence winners

mercial trophy for casting the precast concrete panelling for No. 1 Silo at Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront. Shu- kuma Bricks – the Community Uplift- ment trophy for providing concrete pavers for the paving of gravel roads in Walmer Township, Port Elizabeth. Concrete Units – the Technical Excel- lence trophy for manufacturing 782 precast concrete wind tower seg- ments for the Gouda Wind Farmproj- ect in the Western Cape. Bosun – the Innovation trophy for introducing the CastleBottomKerb. SmartStone – the Precast for Life trophy for supplying Fan Cobble paving blocks for the Waterfront at Knysna Quays project in Knysna. The Aesthetic Commercial com- mendation winners were: Smart- StoneMidrand and Bosun, the former for supplying pavers and coping for the Thaba Moshate Hotel Casino and Convention resort in Limpopo, and the latter for providing drycast pav- ing blocks for the courtyard of BMW’s head office refurbishment project in Midrand. C.E.L. Paving Products and Hydraform each won a Com-

munity Upliftment commendation. C.E.L. produced 6 400m² of paving for surfacing gravel roads in Kassiesbaai/ Arniston in the Western Cape, and Hydraform supplied concrete block making machines for the Radway Green Housing project in the same province. The two Technical Excellence com- mendation winners were Concrete Units and Aveng Infraset. Concrete Units won the award for manufactur- ing precast concrete rock print panels for the Mouille Point Sea wall Project in Cape Town and Aveng Infraset for providing non-standard portal cul- verts for the Tweefontein Optimisa- tion project in Mphumalanga. Concrete Units’ precast concrete expertise was rewarded a fourth time, in this instance an Innovation commendation award for the Gouda Wind farm towers for which it also won the Technical Excellence trophy. The other Innovation commendation award was won by Rocla for cast- ing 128 precast concrete cabins for housing photovoltaic equipment in the Free State and Northern Cape. ■

May 2016