Architectural metalwork, structural steelwork and sheet metal contractor Rebcon Engineering took top honours at the South African Stainless Steel Development Association’s (Sassda’s) 2012 Stainless Steel Awards, walking away as the overall winner for the stainless steel fabrication work it completed on the façade of the Moses Mabhida stadium, in KwaZulu-Natal.

The company was the winner in the innovation category of the awards, which were held at the Theatre on the Track, in Kyalami, Johannesburg, on October 11.

In its awards application, Rebcon described the stadium bowl façade as a “uniquely designed system that embodies the visual simplicity and transparency of the iconic stadium structure”.

Stainless steel fittings and fixtures, such as the grade 316 Tek screws, A4-70 bolts and grade 316 stainless steel ball brackets, were used extensively as primary connectors on the façade, which took 12 months to develop, design, manufacture and erect.

Construction of the entire stadium was completed in November 2009.

Sassda executive director Bill Scurr tells Engineering News that the awards recognise and applaud exceptional achievements in the stainless steel industry, while promoting innovation and entrepreneurial development.

“Awards such as these benefit the industry by raising the profile of stainless steel, its properties and areas of application in all industry and market sectors where it can be used. “Such awards also highlight the health and vibrancy of the industry in general and demonstrate the calibre and capabilities of, particularly, the local stainless steel industry,” he comments.

Other winners included Duncan Badabili in the students category for his creative use of structure to produce a mixed-use development near Park Station, in Johannesburg.

Physical access control manufacturer Turnstar won the product category for its Turnstar Speedstile Express access-control system.

In the engineering project category, multinational corporation Metso ND Engineering’s ammonium sulphate crystalliser plant, in Madagascar, was the winner.

In the art project category, welding company Argoweld won the award for its manufacturing and installation of ‘The Mind’s Vine’ sculpture at the Tokara wine estate, in Stellenbosch. It also achieved top honours in the architecture project category for the ‘Inner City – The City Within’ sunscreen for financial services firm Absa’s new West Tower building, in Johannesburg.

Meanwhile, former Sassda executives Dave Slater and Ian Elsdon-Dew were presented with achievement awards.

Slater was a shareholder in a stainless steel fabrication company and chairperson of Sassda from 1986 to 1987 and again from 1990 to 1991. He was also the executive director of Sassda from 1994 to 2004 and initiated the Stainless Steel Awards in 1998.

Elsdon-Dew, who is credited with pioneering the introduction of stainless steel into the South African sugar industry in the 1970s, was the executive director of Sassda from 1987 to 1994.

Scurr hopes the recipients will use the awards as a platform to continue promoting their capabilities and stainless steel in general.

“I hope all the entrants, and not only the recipients of the awards, continue to strive for the execution of work in the stainless steel industry that meets the standards of excellence and innovation,” he says.