1ST
February 2010 marks the day of the workshop held for engineers and officers from
the Public Works Department Perak Branch (JKR Perak). A total of 150 JKR
participants from all over the districts in Perak and a total of 15 engineers
came to Dura Technology S/B in Chemor for a workshop organized together with the
JKR of Perak with the aim to introduce the technology of Ultra-High Performance
‘ductile’ Concrete to their practicing engineers.
The crowds start to turn up at 8.30am with the Pengarah
of Jabatan Kerja Raya Perak, Yg. Bhg. Dato' Dr. Safry Kamal Bin Hj Ahmad, which
then started off with an hour of presentation on UHPdC by Dr. Voo Yen Lei. The
primary focus of the presentation being sustainable construction, durability of
concrete structures, and the significant contributions of construction industry
to global warming were highlighted. UHPdC is a green concrete technology that
supports the effort on utilizing the remaining resources to its maximum capacity
without sacrificing the quality.
After the power-point presentation which saw many
feedbacks through Q & A, the crowds continue with the day’s agenda on the
demonstrations of DURA®. The first demonstration shows the
mixing and casting of a DURA® thin wall panel to illustrate the
superior workability and homogeneity of a very low water binding ratio mix
design. Engineers were enlighten that even with a low water/binder ratio, the
flow of DURA® still maintain and even flows better than conventional
concrete. It was described as like "molten steel’s consistency.
Then they go along with the material performance
testing. In those tests, attendees witness the high compression and the superior
flexure strength properties of DURA® versus High Performance
Concrete. Follow by a simple demonstration of the ability to bend. With 9 man of
an average weight of 70kg, all of them stand on top of a simply supported 50mm
thick by 170mm wide prestressed Dura plank which then deflected up to 150mm.
After the men came down of the plank, it recovers back to its original position.
All the participants of the workshop were amaze at the flexibility given its
thinness.
Participants were also given a chance to witness the
full scale structural test of a 22m long DURA® universal beam UB650.
The structural capacity was demonstrated in the test and many of the
participants responded well during the Q & A session. The deminar concludes
with a lunch with all the participants and the Pengarah of Jabatan Kerja
Raya.