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Feb 14, 2008:
The Building and Finishings trade Expo 2008 is taking place at the Bellville Velodrome on 8 and 10 April, and a lightweight moulding company is taking part as one of the many exhibitors.
The company and the product sprung from its innovative use in Europe, which has tested well for the past 15 years. Vicro Mouldings, South Africa, started two and a half years ago with the purchase of a two dimensional hot wire cutter, a rotating turntable and a lathe attachment, allowing for the variety of panels, voids, skirtings, wall corbels, columns, interior cornices and false ceilings to be made.
Roger Hammond, founder of Vicro Mouldings states that "with the declining number of qualified artisans and the lack of apprentices in the building industry in South Africa, as a whole the concept of Vicro Mouldings as a pre-formed, pre-cutting and moulded architraves seemed to be the right path to follow".
Vicro Mouldings recently completed work on a large project at Illala Ridge in Durban for crescent construction. The project at Illala Ridge included large, lightweight three-step poly rock mouldings for the top of the building, a smaller lightweight two-step moulding for the bottom of the parapet walls and all the interior cornices.
The entire lightweight corblings (outside) are U.V and hail proof resistant, and according to Vicro Mouldings this was all installed at a fraction of the time it takes to cast or drill for heavier concrete castings.
The moulds are based on a polystyrene shell or mould that is encased by a hard poly rock coating, which in a variety of forms and shapes can withstand a range of weather conditions.
According to Vicro Mouldings the advantages of this product are:
- Regardless of manufacturing techniques, clients can use their own unique designs. - Unique, personal designs of wall corbel-cornice-architrave are available at no extra cost. - Samples are viewable before any moulds need be cast. - The product is straight when cut, due to computer generation and is accurate to within 0,5 mm over two metres. As a result, Vicro Moulds do not suffer from "wavy corbel syndrome". - And, while costs may be similar to that of other materials, the labour cost and time saving are significant, due to there being no need for employing additional labour and scaffolding for drilling and cementing the product to the wall.
Hammond adds that "the cost to the building industry would be exacerbated unless additional industries such as his were to emerge, in order to cater for the lack of skilled workers in South Africa". – James Monteiro
Vicro Mouldings staff will be on hand at the expo to discuss any queries.
For more information contact 011 873 5034 or click here to visit the website.