Lafarge Gypsum have introduced an innovative alternative to the traditional brick and mortar house structure, with the launch of Lightweight Steel Framed Housing solution which cuts construction time by a third. Lafarge Gypsum have received positive feedback from architects who have had exposure to the product in the form of accredited training.
The steel frames are manufactured and supplied by Lafarge Gypsum using the proven Frame Master technology from New Zealand, which has been installed and commissioned at Lafarge Gypsum’s Alrode plant site in Johannesburg.
According to Lafarge Gypsum, an architect’ house plan is fed digitally into the FrameCAD Frame Master machine’s CAD program provided by FrameCAD Solutions to create an optimised frame design. From this, the Frame Master manufactures cut-to-length galvanised steel sections.
The sections are assembled to form a complete house frame, including door and window frames, plus the roof trusses. Among the many reasons for the new structure being viewed by architects and developers as an attractive alternative, are fast construction times and flexibility. The components of the frame can be partially or fully assembled in the factory and delivered directly to site leading to a quicker assembly on site. Once a section of the frame is in place, the builder can then move directly to exterior and interior cladding.
Braam de Villiers, Vice President, Pretoria Institute of Architects (PIA), sees Lafarge filling a big gap in the market with its Light Weight Steel Frame Housing solution, which provides an innovative alternative to the traditional brick structure and offers speedier construction times.
Lafarge Gypsum and the PIA recently co-hosted a technical accredited training course to co-incide with the launch of the new product themed ‘Creating innovative spaces with Lightweight Steel Frame housing’, for 65 leading architects who got exposure to the new concept and trained on the technical aspects of the product.
Braam de Villiers also stated that the training on the technical aspects of the Light Weight Steel construction solution was well received by the architects, who found it valuable and informative and the product innovative. The course enabled the architects who participated to obtain a 0.1 Continuous professional development (CPD) credit.
These credits are a necessity for the architects to maintain their registrations with the South African Council for the Architectural Profession (SACAP). Lafarge Gypsum recently attained the Continuous Professional Development (CPD) accreditation from the PIA. The accreditation is important as it ensures Lafarge Gypsum can work collaboratively with architects to provide systems and products for their latest designs.
Lafarge Gypsum train architects, designers and contractors and get them trained on products, installation and quality. Lafarge Gypsum run a specific programme aimed at architects and interior designers every two months in all the geographic areas where they are corporate members of the Institute of Architects.