Several large warehouse floors have been constructed maximising the benefits of fibres over conventional reinforcement.
CHRYSO Southern Africa offers outstanding solutions when it comes to fibre reinforced concrete. A mutually beneficial partnership with Oxyfibre has resulted in world class products being available locally, supported by expert fibre technology development and consultancy capabilities.
Izak Louw, general manager at Oxyfibre, says that CHRYSO’s presence and established infrastructure in Southern Africa made them the partner of choice for making Adfil fibres available in Southern Africa.
CHRYSO® EasyFinish, as a macro fibre, optimises speed of construction by eliminating the need for costly placement of rebar and ensuring adequate cover to reinforcement. Added benefits include smooth surface finishes, maximum bond, greater tensile strength per fibre for enhanced residual flexural strength and toughness in the concrete.
For micro fibre applications, CHRYSO® Fibrin XTserves as alternative to crack control mesh. The use of micro fibres in concrete product manufacturing has proved to enhance the surface properties and durability, significantly reducing the occurrence of plastic shrinkage and plastic settlement cracking.
Recent projects where these fibres have been used include the placing of 7000 m2 of concrete in very thick surface beds and several large warehouse floors. Other applications have been in coastal defence structures and shotcrete in the Western Cape, as well as for the construction of floors in the farming and food processing industries where harsh chemicals and other deleterious substances could potentially affect the concrete. All these projects reported noticeable cost and time savings.
Louw says that ongoing research has resulted in new fibre solutions that will be available shortly. These include Ignis, a micro fibre specifically designed for its fire protection benefits, and a macro fibre that will address problem areas in the precast industry.
Fibre technology is used extensively in readymix concrete, but the ease of transport, storage and handling of these fibres also makes them ideal for smaller projects and on-site mixing.
The CHRYSO Southern Africa / Oxyfibre partnership has created a win-win solution for all stakeholders providing concrete reinforcement solutions for construction projects to be undertaken safely and rapidly with reduced waste and reduced impact on the environment.