South Africa - Leading South African fire, security and transformer door producer, Bitcon Industries, has intensified its export drive into Africa with the procurement of several new sub-Saharan fire door contracts recently. Bob Vollmer, director of Jet Park-based Bitcon, says the highest profiled among the new orders for Bitcon's Rubidor fire doors, placed by Winsen International Trading, is for the expansion of Victoria Falls International Airport in Zimbabwe. The US$150 million project entails the construction of a new four kilometre runway, new international terminal building, new fire station, new control tower and installation of state-of-the art specialist aviation equipment.
Financed by a loan from the Export-Import Bank of China, the project is being carried out by a Chinese construction company, Jiangsu International Economic and Technical Cooperation Group. The project is aimed at raising the airport’s passenger capacity from the current 500 000 up to about 1,5 million annually, with the ability to accommodate long-haul aircraft from abroad.
Other new Bitcon export orders to African countries include:
- The refurbishment of Barclays Bank premises in Port Louis, Mauritius;
- Century Bottling Company in Entebbe, Uganda (order from Roko Construction);
- Instituto Nacional de Petrolea in Maputo, Mozambique (order placed by Elandi Trading);
- Cosmopolitan Mall in Lusaka, Zambia (ordered by Total Mining for contractors, Thor Developments):
- SA High Commissioner's headquarters in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania (Holtan East Africa is the main contractor);
- New phase of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (ordered by Lesotho Highlands Development Authority); and
- A new Coca-Cola high-tech plant in Matola Gare, on the outskirst of Maputo (order placed by Star Contractors).
Bitcon’s Rubidor Class A, B & D hinged fire doors meet the requirements of SANS 1253:2003. The door cores are constructed from a magnesium-oxychloride monolithic-reinforced insulating material with exceptional fire resistance and mechanical strength. Compliance with the national standard is based on successful tests for stability, integrity, insulation and impact resistance. The doors are clad with a variety of finishes including Masonite, timber veneers, galvanised sheeting, Formica laminate, and edged with hardwood lipping. Double doors are fitted with rebated stainless steel meeting stiles.
The company also produces sliding fire doors in the Class A, B and D categories which fulfill the national test standard. The doors are available in single, bi-parting, or double direction format. Bitcon was established in 1967, initially specialising in the manufacture of door and window frames. It then entered the fire door manufacturing market in 1975, subsequently expanding its product range to include security doors, lead lined doors for areas exposed to radiation, as well as electrical transformer room doors.