The role of JASWIC
By
Rory Macnamara
The Joint Acceptance Scheme for Water Services
Installation Components (JASWIC) came into being
out of a number of towns’ by-laws requiring approval
of plumbing products. This was a painful task for suppliers and
municipalities as the whole stock of items had to taken, and a
rudimentary test process followed. Coupled to this was the fact
that each municipality had different by-laws.
ASSOCIATIONS
11
Appreciating there was a role for a more organised
and national listing based on standards approval,
JASWIC was formed and an Executive Committee
was established. This committee is currently made
up of representatives from various municipalities
(Water Service providers): Tshwane (Pretoria),
Ekurhuleni, Joburg Water, Ethekwini (Durban), Buffalo
City (East London), Nelson Mandela (Port Elizabeth)
and Cape Town. Also included are SA Bureau of
Standards, Water Research Commission and the
Institute of Plumbing SA (IOPSA).
The committee was (and remains) responsible for
publishing an Acceptance List and any local authority
may subscribe to the list. This Acceptance List would
enable local authorities to work off one list when it came
to water components.
This worked in one of two ways:
1. If the product held the SABS Mark it could be included in
the JASWIC list (if applied for by the applicable applicant)
2. If the product did not bear the SABS Mark, then a full
specification test report (against the current SANS
standard by the SABS) was required.
This provided the local authority with the confidence that
minimum standards were being met.
SABS had a major wobbly a few years ago and the short of
it was that this opened the doors for test centres to expand
their offerings to include certain plumbing components in
addition to SABS.
With the new dispensation the floodgates opened, and
all sorts of non-compliant product reached our shores
with unscrupulous traders bringing these in to sell to
unsuspecting consumers, only to disappear when the
products failed – leaving the consumer out of pocket.
This resulted in JASWIC having to follow the changing
world of testing and certification which they did by
enforcing that all tests and reports to the required SANS
JASWIC
specification and must be carried out by SANAS-accredited
testing laboratories.
JASWIC does not enforce standards, and never has, and
it is up to the manufacturer/supplier, plumber, engineer/
architect to establish who at the local authority has the
power to act on by-laws be they the water engineer, building
control officer, OHS inspector and in the case of fire, the Fire
Department inspector.
JASWIC can and will act when misrepresentation or
fraudulent claims are made in relation to their listings. The
offending company will be advised to cease and desist the
practice and the local authorities informed of this action,
and in the event of them failing to act on this instruction,
the media.
JASWIC has a Constitution governing its activities, is
financed by application and renewal fees and meetings are
generally hosted by the local authority where the meetings
take place. Attendance by delegates to meetings is for the
cost of the individual representative body. The Executive
meets every four months and an Acceptance sub-committee
discusses new applications (application driven) to ensure
lists are up-to-date. PA
Figure 1: The listing comprises several headings.
“JASWIC does not enforce
standards and never has and it is
up to the manufacturer/supplier,
plumber, engineer/architect to
establish who at the local authority
has the power to act on by-laws.”
October 2020 Volume 26 I Number 08
www.plumbingafrica.co.za