BUSINESS AND TRAINING
The curtain continues to drop !
17
By
Rory Macnamara
Plumbing Africa continues its discussion with Charles Jerome and Gavin Atkinson of Sunridge Importers and Wholesalers – the new kid on the block , which , as we learned in the previous issue is making waves in the industry with great quality products at very competitive prices .
Plumbing Africa : “ At our last session , you suggested there would be new developments . Are you able to tell us about them yet ?”
Charles : “ Thank you for the opportunity , Rory . But before we get to the exciting news , we should perhaps dwell on the very sad events in KZN over the past few weeks . The floods have been devastating and the official statistics are for 435 deaths .
As the search and rescue teams are still very active , we can expect this to rise . Not only were main arterial water supply pipes swept away but many homes , industries and estates found their stormwater systems unable to cope , destroyed or washed away . Our thoughts go out to those who have lost families , friends , and properties .
KZN is susceptible to floods such as these every twenty-five / thirty years , this is the third significant storm since 1956 . But we also have a very intense rainfall season . We experience more rainfall than the UK per annum but most of it falls in summer and autumn and even in normal years we experience wash-aways , flooding and major dislocations to water and electricity supplies . These problems are going to be exacerbated by climate change and the current practice of building homes and especially informal units on unsuitable terrain . More recently , the Department of housing has indicated that high rise buildings are the solution to the urban sprawl created by single level homes .
In these circumstances , developers , engineers , bodies corporate and individual property owners should ensure that they plan accordingly and incorporate the optimum storm and wastewater systems in their assets .”
Gavin : “ Although we didn ’ t plan it like this , we could not have found this superb product at a more opportune time . We have been appointed as the exclusive distributor of Aliaxis Akatherm HDPE Soil & Waste drainage water products manufactured in Holland for South Africa and Southern Africa .
Akatherm is a 50-year-old business manufacturing Specialist Drainage systems for Soil and Waste solutions in HDPE with the products being sold around the world . The business has a number of international certifications , including SANS ISO 8770 through AENOR . We will offer an extensive range including piping and fittings .
This product has exceptional status in the plumbing world and will prove to be a far superior product to standard piping , especially cast iron and PVC . It has great application in the three “ H ’ s ” – hotels , hospitals , and high-rise buildings . It can withstand high heat – 95C vs 65C for PVC , it is much less prone to clogging and the system does not require a vent pipe when using the Stack Aerator , reducing space to improve the investment and its returns .
Akatherm HDPE is largely assembled in the factory thanks to their prefabrication system , thus avoiding on-site damage during assembly , in addition it has a life of between 50 to 100 years , with minimal maintenance requirements . HDPE is slightly flexible which allows it to accommodate movement in the soil below ground without cracking and it can withstand impacts . It can be embedded in concrete while it is sufficiently robust that it can also be fitted above ground or suspended . Akatherm HDPE can be welded for the best results or simply pulled tight for leak free joints .”
Plumbing Africa : “ What applications do you see for the product in SA and KZN particularly ?”
July 2022 Volume 28 I Number 5 www . plumbingafrica . co . za