EOS together with SCGC raise awareness on the properties of the blended cement
Cairo, 28 of September 2009. As part of the ongoing cooperation between the Egyptian Organization of Standardization and Quality Control (EOS) and the cement producers, the EOS together with Suez Cement group organizes today the seminar “Technical awareness seminar on blended cement” which is the first of a series of technical seminars taking place at EOS’ premises as a proactive initiative for the consumers’ safety.
The one-day event is intended to raise awareness amongst the building community on the properties, benefits and applications of the blended cement.
“The cement traditionally used in Egypt is Ordinary Portland Cement, known as CEM I. However, there are many different types of cement using cementitious material of different kinds as slag, limestone, pozzolana or fly ashes. Which cement is best? Which cement should be used for a given purpose? There is no simple answer to these questions but CEM I is not the all round winner. Blended cements can ensure many added benefit as a better concrete workability, a higher resistance to sulfates, chloride and acids, a lower hydration heat…Moreover, through the usage of industrial waste materials those cements are ecologically less harmful and can meet the challenges of any large-scale construction project” stated Nabil Francis, Marketing and Sales Director of Suez Cement group of Companies.
Thus, the joint seminar brought together a wide range of stakeholders of the building community and involves International experts of Italcementi Group as well as local experts.
The first part of the seminar focused on the European Standard Specifications for the cement production. Therefore, the seminar presented the consumption of the blended cement in different countries and highlighted the different applications of the blended cement in major international projects like the King Fahd Causeway in Saudi Arabia, the Granite Tower of La Défense in Paris or the Gotthard base tunnel in Switzerland.
It is worth mentioning that while in Europe and in all the other countries in the world the Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) captures only 30% of the market; in Egypt the consumption of the OPC represents still more than 92% of the total.
Addressing the opening session H.E. Hany Barakat, chairman of EOS, said: “The main purpose of this seminar is to ensure that the Egyptian consumers have access to the latest, most accurate information related to the blended cement. Gather information on the properties and applications of the blended cement will allow the Egyptian consumer to enjoy the new products with confidence and use it in a safe and cost- effective way”.
Moreover, the seminar points also to the environment benefits in using blended cement. Carbon dioxide emissions are significantly reduced and it is therefore environment-friendly product.
Other keynote speakers included Mahmoud Hamza, chairman of Hamza Associates- the internationally recognized multidiscipline engineering consultancy- who presented an overview of the local application of the blended cement.
“Blended cement give exceptional results. Due to their excellent versatility the blended cements concrete have been the first choice for major national projects carried out by Hamza Associates like the Toshka project and the Ain Soukhna port” added Mahmoud Hamza.
