Braskem will be present at the ConcreteShow South America 2008 promoting the importance of PVC for civil construction in its diverse applications. That’s because nearly 65% of the total demand for PVC is applied in the sector. The event will be held August 27-29 at the Transamerica Expo Center, in São Paulo, with more than 250 national and international exhibiters and it is projected to receive nearly 12 thousand visitors.

Braskem’s space will highlight the Designing with PVC web site communication (www.projetandocompvc.com.br), which has content dedicated to the presentation of PVC products and systems applied to civil construction, constituting a reference source about its manufacturers, performance norms and other important information for specifiers. The space will be shared with partners in the promotion of differentiated products to special or large scale projects. One of the products that will be introduced is the ConcretoPVC Construction System, together with Braskem’s partners in the development and commercialization of the Royal Building System and Vipal Casa Forte systems.
 
ConcretePVC Constructive System is a new technology developed in Canada to design and build several types of buildings in an industrial manner. Comprised of light PVC profiles, the system permits the simple fitting of modules, filled in with concrete and structural steel. In this model, the PVC panels act as molds for the concrete and provide excellent indoor and outdoor finishing to the walls.

The most prominent advantages of the new system are: high productivity with optimized teams, excellent finishing standards, clean job site, no waste and no debris, total control and management of materials and cost, high durability of materials and easy cleaning and maintenance. Versatility is one of the system’s highlights, and it is indicated for popular homes as well as in more complex projects, such as compact sewage treatment plants and warehouses for industrial and commercial use.

Applications of PVC in special projects will also be shown, such as expanded PVC plates launched by Mondiana, which have the potential of being used to replace conventional concrete plates, and also used as finishing materials. Mondiana’s expanded PVC plates are supplied in thicknesses of 2 to 10 mm in 1.22 X 2.44 mm plates. They are light (density of 0.65 g/cm3), highly resistant to water (do not swell, warp or peel) and they can be bolted, glued or nailed, facilitating application in many job situations. In their concrete forms, they have excellent finishing and waive the use of demolders while also providing countless opportunities for reuse. Since it is an inert material, it does not suffer attack from lime and cement and can be recycled at the end of use. Many application opportunities for these plates are also seen in finishing elements such as baseboards and façades, among others.

Sansuy will also be present at the Braskem/Designing with PVC’s space, where it will exhibit its line of special, flexible laminates used in many applications such as inflatable molds for concrete, geomembrane for weatherproofing soil, slabs, water tanks and tunnels; reinforced laminates for tensioned roofs, awnings, coatings for multi-sport courts and weatherproofing coatings and finishings for cold and hot water pools.

"Our objective is to demonstrate that many PVC products can contribute towards productivity in construction and in the reduction of waste, with its insertion already in the venture's design phase and not only in the acquisition of components already defined in the project, a situation that prevails today," underscores Luciano Nunes, PVC Market Development Manager at Braskem.

On Friday, a Protocol of Intentions will be signed between Braskem, the township of Capivari and the ABCP - Brazilian Association of Portland Cement. This protocol establishes Braskem’s commitment to conduct technical studies and education actions in the venture of 323 homes to be built with the ConcretoPVC Construction System, in line with the CDHU - Urban and Housing Developing Company of the State of São Paulo, the Township of Capivari and the ABCP.

The studies considered in this initiative are: verification of the ConcretoPVC System’s productivity in relation to the conventional construction system; quantification of the ConcretoPVC System’s reduction in material losses compared to the losses from the conventional system; pre-occupation orientation of residents; post-occupation assessment; and training of district school teachers in the rational use of water in partnership with the Água e Cidade NGO.