Quality is vital for reliable and durable pipes

TOGETHER with the country’s networks of roads, railways and electrical grids, pipelines form a key part of SA’s long-term infrastructure development.

And because plastic piping is a strategic industry, hardware needs to be reliable for extended periods of time, says Jan Venter, CEO of the Southern African Plastic Pipe Manufacturers’ Association, which is a non-profit organisation.

“Long-term product quality is fundamental and quality plastic pipe should be good for a minimum period of 50 years, according to industry standards,” says Venter.

“The plastic pipe industry is dynamic and due to high-level research and development by polymer manufacturers, the properties of pipe materials are continually improved. This is reflected in its popularity all over the world, with dominant market shares in many applications.”

Plastic pipes are produced in SA for a wide spectrum of markets such as civils, mining, building, agriculture, telecommunication and industrial. This represents sales of about R3bn, according to latest available statistics. Of this, the water market is arguably the most important, says Venter. He says quantity and quality are under severe pressure, aggravated by rapidly increasing demand, severe pollution and huge losses in distribution.

“However, not many people spare a thought for the thousands of kilometres of plastic pipes that supply rural communities across Africa with clean drinking water.”

The association represents more than 80% of the pipe produced in SA.

Venter says that in an effort to ensure that superior quality is constantly delivered by its members, the association recently launched a series of sampling exercises. During these quality surveys, a selection of pipes are typically obtained from different merchants and tested in an independent laboratory in accordance to SABS standards.

“We are confident that independent tests such as these will increase the public’s awareness of quality issues, which will ultimately raise the level of responsibility of manufacturers,” says Venter.