CMA TO HOLD SEMINARS ON HOLLOW-CORE SLABS FOR ENGINEERS AND ARCHITECTS:
Article Date: 18 March 2010
The Concrete Manufacturers Association (CMA) will be staging two afternoon seminars on prestressed and reinforced precast concrete hollow-core slabs. Aimed principally at civil engineers, architects and property developers, the seminars will take place at the Bytes Conference Centre in Midrand on April 15 and in Kimberley on May 27. They follow in the wake of three very successful seminars on the same subject, attended by 370 delegates last year.
The seminars are being used to promote the CMA’s hollow-core slab information manual and hollow-core slab technology as an alternative flooring material for multi-storey buildings. They will also demonstrate how to design in situ columns and beams in combination with precast hollow-core flooring and still achieve a monolithic, structurally sound building, a process which is common to many parts of the world.
Presenters will include: Monique Eggebeen, managing director, Echo Prestress; Daniel Petrov, technical director, Echo Prestress; Victor Booth, consulting engineer; and Kgomotso Modise, operations manager, Echo Prestress.
Topics to be covered include: history and design philosophy; general design; composite floors; case studies; health and safety aspects; and alternative applications such as, foundation systems, security and retaining walls, attenuation tanks and reservoir roofs.
CMA director, Hamish Laing, observes that hollow-core slab technology offers the distinct advantages of simpler, faster construction, not to mention a more durable end-product. However, good planning and design are essential and CMA member companies offer advice and input during the conceptual stage at no charge.
“Hollow-core slabs are widely used in Europe and North America on buildings as high as 40 storeys. This is not so locally, where ignorance as to their true potential and the fear of using something unfamiliar, has led to a reluctance to specify them. However, the situation is improving and the use of the technology is spreading. The substantial interest in our seminars bears testimony to this,” says Laing.
Running to 36 pages, the CMA’s hollow-core slab manual addresses typical concerns about the use of hollow-core slabs in medium-rise buildings (two residential buildings in Gauteng using the technology were constructed recently) and demonstrates the flexibility of hollow-core slabs as a flooring material. It covers aspects such as recommended design loads for common classes of buildings and includes various load span tables and prestressed concrete design details. Other items such as structural topping, and down-lighting are also included.
“The manual also covers some of the alternative uses of hollow-core panels such as security walling, warehouse walling, retaining walls, suspended ground floor slabs, as well as walls and roofing for reservoirs,” observes Laing.
Anyone interested in attending the seminars, which are registered with SAICE for CPD points, should contact Pam Zukor on (011) 805 6742 or on main.cma@gmail.com .
DATE: March 2010
ISSUED BY: David Beer Communication Consultants
FOR: Concrete Manufacturers Association
ENQUIRIES: Hamish Laing (011) 805 6742
David Beer (011) 478 0239 or 082 880 6726. Email: bigsky@ibi.co.za
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