All measures should be taken by Government to ensure specifiers and engineers insist on quality assured building products sourced from suppliers belonging to regulated and accredited industry organisations in order to avoid costly rebuilds of sub-standard housing and infrastructural projects.
Johan van Wyk, general manager of the Southern African Readymix Association (Sarma), says government’s repair bill for poorly built low cost houses alone peaked at R50-billion recently and that poorly constructed infrastructural projects similarly account for substantial losses. As a result the time has come for Government and private contractors to put a premium on quality and to procure materials only from organisations that can display credentials that are in keeping with the overall requirements to produce quality structures.
An effective way of doing this is to insist that service providers and material suppliers be registered with credible industry associations that regulate members and carry out quality audits. In this way all Government departments from municipalities to provincial and national government can be assured that requirements are being met in terms of quality and sustainability.
Managing inputs
“Sarma members, for example, are compelled to adhere to a number of key criteria governing the manufacturing of concrete to ensure customers get what they pay for. It also proactively seeks ways of ensuring the highest quality products are delivered by its members on a consistent basis. A good example is the association’s world class quality management system (QMS) that was developed specifically for the readymix industry.
The QMS is world-class and sets certain minimum standards for the manufacture of readymix concrete, from supplier management to policies and procedures to final delivery of the mixed product. Verification is required along the way and accountability is assigned at each step in the process. Annual audits are also undertaken to ensure Sarma members adhere to the association’s set codes of conduct.
For more information call Sarma, Nico Pienaar, on (011) 791 3327, or fax 086 647 8034. Email: nico@sarma.co.za, Web: www.sarma.co.za
By Media Savvy Communications, Raymond Campling, Tel: (011) 979 7207, Email: media@mediasavvy.biz
