NEWS
9
Technical advisory committee
meetings mull over standards
It is a common occurrence whereby the application of some elements
of the South African National Standards (SANS) vary due to differing
interpretations.
By Benjamin Brits
According to the Plumbing Industry Registrations
Board (PIRB), being a professional plumber means
adhering to the practices, principles and compliance
required by legislative bodies within South Africa. It
is the plumber’s responsibility to therefore ensure
that they comply legally in all plumbing work that
is undertaken. The importance of compliance
and striving for quality assurance can never be
underestimated when working with a precious
resource such as water.
In 2018 the PIRB established a technical advisory
committee (TAC) to evaluate possible interpretations
or misinterpretations of the SANS. This was based on
the challenges that were found through subsequent
installation practices, as well as the auditing process.
The role of the TAC is to discuss such interpretations
and then to determine the possible appropriate
recommendation(s) per instance of what would be
acceptable variations. This is based on the committee
member’s knowledge and experiences in various
specialities of the plumbing industry. The committee
members are considered ‘industry experts’ to fulfil this
role, but they also consult with other experts as may be
required on specific details or elements of a standard to
determine the most accurate outcomes.
mandate to create and review any industry standards
for the country.
“The TAC has been in the process of reviewing a series
of SANS elements (these include clarification of the
conflicting requirements for the maximum geyser size
to be wall mounted, shut-off valves before geysers
and more) and the outcomes of these reviews will
be made known to the industry in a transparent way.
It must be primarily noted that the role of the TAC is
not to scrutinise the validity or function of any SANS
regulations or requirements, but to rather ensure
that where ambiguity may exist that clarity may be
established for all stakeholders”, said TAC chairman
Herman Strauss. The outcomes of the TAC will further
be communicated to the relevant SANS committees for
consideration, so as to improve the standards.
Important note: The function of the PIRB TAC is not a
call centre to address complaints related to any SANS.
However, should there be any queries about the TAC or
you would like to suggest a specific review, please contact
the PIRB, or view the website link for updates: http://pirb.
co.za/technical-advisory-committee/ PA
The technical advisory
committee met on the
25th April 2019 for their
seventh meeting since
inception. Back row From
left: Liz-Anne Swanepoel,
Adriaan Myburgh, Steve
Brown, Herman Strauss,
Marius van Wyk. Front
row from left: Martin
Coetzee, Herman Weber,
Richard Bailie.
It is important to keep in mind that the role of the
PIRB’s holistic interpretation through the TAC, is
aimed at finding the best way to comply with the
standards and is not above the standards, nor does
the PIRB have a say in what the standards govern.
Standards are established and implemented through
the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), which
is the only establishment in South Africa with the
www.plumbingafrica.co.za
The agreed outcomes of each topic or standard requiring
a review by the TAC (if an agreement is reached), are then
proposed to the PIRB for implementation. All rulings would
be notified to industry, and consistently applied throughout
for both the plumber and auditor.
June 2019 Volume 25 I Number 4