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| Sunday, 24 April 2005 |
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NERDC introduces cheaper cement blocks by Don Asoka Wijewardena In a bid to minimise usage of sand in view of the scarcity of sand, a cost-effective cement soil blocks are being introduced by the National Engineering Research and Development Centre of Sri Lanka (NERDC). The gravel mixed red soil (red granular soil) without any treatment has been recommended by the NERDC to the construction industry,especially to the low-income people to build houses. Addressing a media conference on "stabilised soil blocks" held at NERDC at Ja-Ela on April 21 NERDC Chairman Jayantha Ranatunge said that the time had come to use alternative sources of building materials as sand mining was being restricted due to ecological damages and added that the usage of soil blocks consisting of ordinary cement and red granular soil was a substitute for the construction industry. He explained that the soil blocks could be manufactured from easily extractable soil from any land and added that their quality was similar to that of cement/sand blocks. NERDC Civil Engineer G.S.S.K.Jayasinghe said that the NERDC would encourage all construction people,especially small-scale constructors to replace cement/sand blocks and use stabilised soil blocks which would be a substitute and added that the stabilised soil blocks could be improved by using only cement as a stabilisation material. He pointed out that stabilised soil blocks could be used as an alternative wall material in load-bearing walls of single- story buildings or for partition walls in multi-storey buildings. Referring to positive advantages of the stabilised soil blocks, Head of NERDC Civil Engineering Division G.K.K.Ariyaratne said that block manufacturing cost was less than that of cement sand blocks. There are also charges to transport. Further they are also environmentally-friendly. NERDC General Manager M. W. Leelaratne said that the NERDC had already formulated several constructive plans which would upgrade the usage of stabilised soil blocks in the country. |
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