Up until recently South African Architects had no reason to consider seismic activity when crafting their drawings. However the 5.5 magnitude earthquake on August 5 2014 has basically changed all of that.
In a recent article in allafrica.com, Jae Uk Chong, professor of architecture at Dankook University, South Korea discussed how South African Architects need to change their perspective in regarding earth quakes and that they now need to consider these kind of factors in their drawings.
“Cities in South Africa are very densely populated and architects in the past have not really needed to consider disaster proofing structures, but events like this earthquake force ideas in that direction,” Chong was speaking at the International Union of World Architects Congress, currently being held in Durban. A large portion of the Congress was focused on the 5.5 magnitude quake that rocked the country and how industry specialists need to work towards creating safer cities. Nationally, seismologists agree that we should expect more seismic events in the future.
For us at Steel Studio we feel this new shift only further reinforces the importance of SANS compliance and the need to follow legislation to the tee. Substandard building projects stand no chance of withstanding a small to moderate seismic event and if seismologists are correct we can expect more earthquakes in the future.
By ensuring that you specify building products that comply with the South African National Standards and by choosing to work with competent sub-contractors that take liability for their products and installation and offer SANS complaint products, you are ensuring that your buildings are built better. All of Steel studio’s balustrades either meet or exceed SANS 10160 and SANS 10400. This means that the balustrades are safe for all that utilize them in all applications possible.