Progress Photos - Sioc-CDT (Rammed Earth)

This project is unfolding in Kathu in the Northern Cape in South Africa.
InSynch is constructing the Sishan Iron Ore Companies (SIOC) new Head Office's Rammed Earth walls in partnership with the local community and affecting a skills transfer..

Here are some photographs of our progress on site:

Some of the local community Under-Training.

SiocCDT Project - 1st Rammed Earth Walls Appear

New InSynch Project Kicks-Off - SIOC-CDT

InSynch has just started on-site with a project that has been in the pipe-line for some time now.
It is the construction of a new Head Office for the Sishan Iron ore Company (SIOC) in partnership with the Community Development Trust (CDT) in Kathu.
Kathu is in the Northern Cape, South Africa.

InSynch's role is as specialist sub-contractor and on-site consultants for the Rammed Earth walls integrated into the building. The project is known as the SIOC-CDT project.

Here is the Architects (Cube Architects) colour impressions of the completed building with the beautiful and very prominent Rammed Earth walls in full view...

More pictures and progress posts on this project to follow...!

Spine Rammed Earth Wall - Monaghan Farm, JHB

This home uses a central spine wall made from Rammed Earth to regulate internal temperatures. The beauty of the wall is also visible from outside the house as the walls are parapet type walls, thus they extend beyond the roof line.

The borrow pit clearly visible, where the soil used for the walls was excavated from. Walls were stabilised with Portland Cement to NHBRC specification.

Wall Dimensions: 54m long x 5.5m high x .45m wide.

The construction of the Rammed Earth walls was done by InSynch Sustainable Technologies (Pty) Ltd.

The soil science on this project was challenging due to blinkered view by NHBRC on structural tolerances and crush tests expectancies for Rammed Earth.

Never the less the walls are compliant with the project engineering specification and with NHBRC regulations.

Albeit the cement content is way over what it could have been.

Project completed Feb 2011.

For more info on Rammed Earth or InSynch: info@insynch.co.za

Alastair

Finished Product - Rammed Earth Reception Desk

Here is the completed wall, in use at the Green Design Centre in Kyalami at Waterfall Estate.

Wall sealed, courtesy of B-Earth Paints (see: http://www.b-earth.co.za/).

B-earth Eco-Paints are 100% breathable, have zero VOC's, are extremely hardy and have been especially formulated for Rammed Earth.

InSynch worked with B-earth in designing a suitable sealer for Rammed Earth walls.

Contact: InSynch or B-earth for more details.

Outback FlexPOWER 2 Installation - Piet Retief

Off-Grid PV, SHW & Gas System, Design & Supply by AM Solar and InSynch:

• Inverter/Charger - Outback FlexPOWER 2 (2 x 3KW)
• Charge Controller - Outback FM80
• PV Panels - 8x SetSolar 200W
• Batteries - M-Solar 350AH (48V)
• Solar Hot Water - 200L Thermo-siphon System
• Backup - Generator and Gas Manifold

[Picture: The Outback FP2 installation]

Rammed Earth Reception Desk - Green Design Centre - Century Properties

(Thank you to David Christer, for some of the photos.)

A Quick post of some photos taken while de-rigging the formwork this morning.

This is at the Green Design Centre, at Waterfall Estates in Kyalami, by Century Properties, JHB, South Africa. (see: http://www.century.co.za/waterfallcountryestate/index.html )

All comments welcome!!

Yours 'In-Green'

Alastair

Residential, Large Solar PV Installation - Meyersdal

Photos taken during final stages of installation and initial commissioning of the system.

This is a new development, home.

Specs on the system:

1. Design by InSynch and AM Solar.
2. PV Bank = 24 x 210w Sanyo Solar Panels.
3. Battery Bank = 24 x 1200AH Tubular Cell 2v Cells (Raylite).
4. Inverters = 2 x 3kw Grid-Tied Outback FX Inverter/Chargers (in parallel).
5. Charge Controllers = 2 x Outback FM80's and 1 x MX60.
6. Protection = multi DC circuit breakers and fuses. Note these are 100% DC breakers, not AC breakers with a DC rating. A common mistake made by our competitors.
7. Communications = Outback MATE2 and HUB10.
8. Load: +- 70% of the home is off-grid.
9. Backup = ESKOM grid connection
10. Commissioning and Operator training and manual = AM Solar - Professional Solar Solutions and Off-Grid Energy Specialists.

Pavillion Dalrymple - Rammed Earth Wall (Top Floor)

This is the ground floor or top storey to the Pavillion.

The feature Rammed Earth wall has the following specs:

1. Stabilised with Lime (10%).

2. User +- 7 different colour mixes from 4 separate soil colour deposits.

3. Length of Wall = 27m.

4. Height of Wall = 5.5m (including basement wall = 8.5m).

5. Width of Wall = varies from 150mm to 550mm.

6. Hand rammed.

Enjoy. It was an awesome project fro InSynch.

Architects: Silvio Rech and Leslie Carstens

This is the bottom wall, now with some of the fixtures added.

Insych are just doing some last minute touch ups.

Bathabile School - Straw Bale Classroom (JHB)

Cool.... more info to come..

Keep watching this space..

Off-Grid Solar PV System (Mozambique)

Designed and commissioned an off-grid solar power, photovoltaic (PV) system in an upmarket lodge in Vilancoulas, Mozambique.

InSynch and AM Solar worked with the client to take the existing solar system which was

under-capacity and was under-performing and to get it to a point where the lodge could be 100% dependent on the solar power.

Additional solar charge via Sanyo 210W PV panels and Outback FM80 charge controllers were bolted onto the system.

Also additional storage was put into the system by means of Raylite 1375AH Tubular Cell, flooded cell batteries, now giving 2 full days of autonomy (i.e. 2 days of power storage).

The system includes an MLT-Drives 6kW off-grid inverter and a 3rd and 4th bank of SetSolar 70W PV Panels.

The system has been programmed and optimised to function as efficiently as possible and to extend the life-span of the system, by means of load measurement and prioritising and by programming in specific hardware related set-points.