WITH natural disasters and maintenance issues continuing to threaten the condition and safety of South Africa’s infrastructure, one of Cement & Concrete SA’s School of Concrete Technology’s most important training courses, ‘SCT30 Concrete Technology’, deservedly should attract record enrolments in Cape Town this year, predicts John Roxburgh, senior lecturer at the School.
The five-day course – one of the most important for infrastructural preservation in the School of Concrete Technology’s 2023 Training Programme – will be presented in Cape Town from November 20 to 24 with other venues such as Gauteng and Durban also scheduled for 2023.
Roxburgh says the provision of durable new infrastructure, as well as the competent maintenance and repair of existing infrastructure, have become vital for the economic welfare of the entire sub-continent as climate change and global warming take their toll.
“Industry professionals and their employers have seen unprecedented devastation first-hand in recent years and months. A sound theoretical knowledge of concrete will enable construction practitioners to solve and prevent many problems – before it happens. They will be able to ensure that the specified concrete’s properties meet the needs of the size, shape and type of structure, and consider external ambient and internal thermal conditions. The professionals will be able to advise on placement techniques and other good concrete site practices – particularly curing requirements. Also, their concrete knowledge will help ensure that the concrete’s strength, durability and surface finish specifications are met.
“By enrolling for one of the SCT30 Concrete Technology courses, the professionals need only devote five days this year for intensive training in concrete technology to help ensure that the structures they design and build have maximum sustainability and create an improved urban and rural infrastructure throughout South Africa.”
He adds: “Technical skills in concrete are extremely scarce in South Africa and with what appears to be an increasing number of natural disasters such as flooding and a crumbling national infrastructure, there is now more than ever a dire need for competent concrete practitioners. SCT30 is an excellent medium for gaining detailed knowledge on a broad range of concrete topics.”
The five-day training course, with laboratory sessions, cover important aspects such as:
- Properties of concrete;
- Concrete mix design and production;
- Mix design for specialised applications;
- Off-shutter and architectural finishes;
- Formwork, reinforcement and joints;
- Defects, blemishes and repairs;
- Mixing water and chemical admixtures;
- Temperature’s effects on concrete quality; and
- Placing, compaction, protection, and curing of concrete.
Roxburgh says professionals who successfully completed the School of Concrete Technology’s SCT30 training course could increase their concrete skills even further with more advanced training, culminating in the globally-respected Advanced Concrete Technology (ACT) certification. But, importantly, even if armed only with a SCT30 certification, professionals will command respect in the construction industry and their services in demand both in the public and private sector. opportunities.
“Municipal and government departments dealing with infrastructural development, construction companies, cement producers, admixture suppliers, ready mixed concrete companies, concrete testing laboratories, precast concrete factories, structural consulting firms, architectural and quantity surveying businesses, as well as project development and management businesses these days cannot do without the input and services of a person competent in concrete technology. Our SCT30 Concrete Technology course could be the launching pad for all industry professionals,” asserts Roxburgh, who feels the importance of this course – which carries five CPD points – cannot be overstated.
For full details about qualification for SCT30 as well as other courses planned by the School of Concrete Technology in 2023, phone 011 315 0300, email rennisha.sewnarain@cemcon-sa.org.za or visit www.cemcon-sa.org.za to access the entire 2023 Training Programme.
