SASFA supplement May 2017

12

TRAINING – A CRUCIAL ELEMENT IN SASFA’S SUCCESS

The extensive training undertaken by SASFA over the years is certainly one of the reasons for the growth in the awareness of light steel frame building as an environmentally friendly and sustainable building method in Southern Africa. Recently, when SASFA conducted a 5-day training course to SANDF contractors, it was the 23 rd time the course had been run. This time the aim of the course was to qualify SANDF foremen and artisans in LSFB, in preparation for a building project comprising five three-story blocks of flats and offices. More than 300 people have been certified through the contractors training course and it has been key to the growth of LSFB in this country as it teaches contractors how to build with the product! Training course for light steel frame building (LSFB) contractors • Steel frame materials, components, and erection (4 days). This includes: steel making process and properties of coated steel sheet, foundations, manufacturing of light steel frames and trusses, construction tools, wallframe set-out, handling, loads, floor and wall framing, roof structures, planning and the installation of services. • Internal lining, external cladding and insulation (1½ days). This covers the properties, manufacturing and benefits of glasswool insulation, acoustics, energy efficiency, environmental issues, storage and handling of glasswool and tools and installation methodology. This is followed by a section on gypsum plasterboard, covering properties, storage and handling, cutting, tools and application for walls, ceilings and finishing. Finally fibre cement board for external cladding is addressed, including the installation of the vapour permeable membrane, sizes and availability of fibre cement – boards and planks, fixing accessories, installation guidelines, and door and window frame installation detail is presented. The other core training programme is a series of CPD- accredited courses – SANS 517 Light Steel Frame Building and Cold-formed steel and LSF design to SANS 10162:2 – which have become increasingly popular in line with the excellent growth in popularity of LSFB in South Africa which is estimated to be worth about R1-billion per annum. The SANS 517 1-day code course consists of an introduction to LSFB, as well as an overview of the development of this building method and industry in Southern Africa. The course is split into two main sections:

The advantages of LSFB are discussed and explained – ranging from speed of construction, enhanced insulation and the resulting energy efficiency, low mass and the corresponding logistical cost advantages, through to accuracy, ease of installation of services and durability. The correct terminology is dealt with, the major LSF elements described and the properties of the major materials used in LSFB are presented. The second 1-day course, Cold-formed steel and LSF design to SANS 10162:2 , is aimed specifically at design engineers who have to ensure the structural adequacy of LSF buildings. The course begins with the fundamentals of plate buckling theory, and contextualises this with thin-walled structural elements as encountered in LSFB. Three buckling mechanisms are generally considered: member buckling, local buckling and distortional bucking. The second half of this course is more practical in nature, covering the design intent when dealing with LSF structures, and highlights the design criteria provided in SANS 517. Barnard says that education has been the foundation for getting the advantages of the LSFB method understood in South Africa. “It has also been essential in protecting and enhancing the quality of building through its growth phases and beyond,” he concludes.

SASFA SUPPLEMENT 2017