BUSINESS AND TRAINING
Approved products – what is the low-down in 2023
15
By
Herman Strauss
This is the first in a series on the SA Watermark , established some years ago to list SANS accredited product and systems .
Unfortunately , in South Africa there simply is no single point of reference that lists all compliant products .
Over time much has been said about the need , or better yet , requirement to use what is called approved products in all plumbing installations . The question is , why does this topic keep coming up ? Is it because we ( and I use the term very loosely ) don ’ t really know what approved means or is it because we are lately struggling to identify what is approved and what is not .
Let ’ s get to the point straight away . It is all about terminology and what different people understand when the word ‘ approved ’ is used . We can unpack the formal definition of approved within the standards and follow the intended application across a platform of multiple acts and regulations . It even becomes important then to test the regulations against the constitution and the legal principles of our country to confirm to what extent the standards and regulations can and should be applied . To this extent it became interesting and even a bit concerning that there are different interpretations of what is really required and enforceable .
There is a golden thread that runs through all the arguments . One of the key factors to consider when analysing legislation , and especially legislation that appears unclear at face value , is to consider the intent of the legislation . In the case of plumbing components , the intent of all the different sets of legislation seems to be that whatever plumbing component is used , it must comply with the SANS standard for that product .
What does this mean for the plumber , the developer and the consumer ? It means you do not have to break your head trying to understand exactly which set of legislation says what , all you need to do is to make sure the plumbing component complies to whatever SANS standards exist for that product .
At this point one should note however that some of the municipalities in our country may keep a register of products that may or may not be used in their areas of jurisdiction . During recent checks we found that less than 10 of the 258 local authorities actively manage such a register . It is important that you make sure what the requirements are for the area where you do work .
This again brings up the question on how to make sure that the product you use complies to the SANS standard for that product .
One method that can be used to verify this is to confirm if a product carries accredited certification . This topic has been elaborated on in various articles in this magazine , so we will not repeat all of that in this article . We have received numerous comments on the fact that it is difficult to identify and confirm that validity of such accreditation . Some are more difficult to verify than others .
On the positive side , there are two registers of compliant products that could be used as a point of reference . Both registers allow products to be listed if the supplier of the product can provide traceable evidence that the product does comply with the requirements of the SANS standard for that product .
The Joint Acceptance Scheme of Water Services Installation Components ( JASWIC ) is a municipal entity that allows products to be listed on a voluntary basis . Some of the municipalities in SA use this register as the list of approved products for their areas . The list of products can be downloaded from their website www . jaswic . co . za .
The South African Watermark ( SA Watermark ) is a national register of plumbing components that comply with SANS standards . The SA Watermark was established under the leadership of the Institute of Plumbing of South Africa . The rules for listing on this register were developed by industry representatives .
The rules for listing a product on the register were compiled to ensure that it is aligned with all National Legislation , that it supports local innovation and industry and that it remains aligned with international agreements such as the World Trade Organisation agreement , International Laboratory Cooperation agreement and the International Accreditation Forum .
Any product that complies with these rules may be listed on the SA Watermark . The rules and processes are described in more detail on the website www . sawatermark . co . za .
For the consumer , plumber or developer it remains important to know that the responsibility remains yours to ensure that the product you use complies . The supplier of the products should be able to provide you with evidence of what standard the product does comply with , and which body confirmed this . If the product is listed on either the JASWIC or SA Watermark registers , you can rest assured that checks and balances are in place to confirm that the product design complies . PA
June 2023 Volume 29 I Number 4 www . plumbingafrica . co . za