AGREMENT

SOUTH AFRICAinnovative construction products

assessment

What is “Agrément”?

The word “Agrément” is French and it means consent or approval. The Board of AGREMENT SOUTH AFRICA was established in 1969 as an objective, independent agency which evaluates the fitness-for-purpose of non-standardised construction products.

Structure of Agrément

Board of Agrément South Africa

Technical Agency Technical Committee

Experts

Why Agrément?

• Specialises in non-standard products (more than 30 years of experience)

• More than 350 certificates

• Complements SABS

• International links with WFTAO

The product life cycle

• Concept• Development• Introduction to

market• Market acceptance

and growth• Ongoing marketing

as conventional product

The product life cycle and approval

• Concept• Development• Introduction to

market• Market acceptance

and growth• Ongoing marketing

as conventionalproduct

• SABS

The product life cycle and approval

• Concept• Development• Introduction to

market• Market acceptance

and growth• Ongoing marketing

as conventional product

• Agrément South Africa

CSIR

Agrément

SABS

-ve

Market

Income

Role of CSIR, Agrément South Africaand SABS in Product Development Cycle

CSIRC

C.J.S. Date: Jun.'95

Development of standards,specifications/ codes of practice

Development

Research

criteria and test methodsDevelopment of performance

Technology

CSIR

CertificationAGREMENT

SABS Listing andMark Schemes

+ve

Certification/Specification/Guarantee

• Certificate“What can it do”

• Specification“How to do it”

• Guarantee“It will work for a certain period, otherwise you may be compensated”

Why certification?

• Facilitates acceptance of new products and saves selling time

• Supports innovation and promotional drives

• Assures customers that a QA system is implemented

• Technical evaluation may lead to product improvements

Certification ProcessProduct submitted to Agrément SA

Owner of Product

Quality ManagementSystem developedito ISO 9000requirementsEvaluation committee formed

Submitted to SABSfor adjudication

Feedback and reporting

Planning of evaluationprogramme-product classification-selection of tests-special considerations

Materials testing-material preparation-ageing/conditioning-performance testing

Feedback & reporting-discussion of results-technical report-technical summary

Preparation of certificate by Agrément South Africa agency

If satisfactory, certificate submitted to Board for approval

Checks and Balances

• Initial screening by Agency• Evaluation by experts

– CSIR and others– Different experts for different aspects– SABS

• Review by Agency• Technical Committee• Board

Quality

• Credibility

• Manufacturing

• On site

Agrément Appraisal

• Based on more than a single test result

• Takes into account many factors, including quality management

• Results in certificate of fitness-for-purpose that enables specifiers to make informed decisions

Approach to performance evaluation

• Relative rather than absolute evaluation

• Performance is compared to that of standard products

• Relies on benchmarking and expert evaluation

• Challenge: Cooperation

Why avoid absolute performance evaluation?

• Requires a validated and quantified relationship between performance and test indicators

• Indicator-performance relationships are not well validated at present

Relative performance evaluation

• Provides evaluation of performance relative to standard products

• Identifies product strengths and weaknesses

• Facilitates judgement re engineering and economic advantages/life cycle costing

Progress to date(bituminous products)

• Performance criteria established

• Test methods and indicators proposed

• Reviewed by local and international peers

• Applications invited for pilot projects

• Inertia/reluctance in the market

Current status

• Invited applications for bituminous products

• Developing criteria for bridge deck joints

• Examining possibility of introducing certification system for road stabilisers used on unpaved roads

The way ahead

• Pilot bituminous product evaluations• Authorities insist on Agrément certification for

innovative and non-standardised products – Clauses in tender documentation/project specification

• Cooperation between Agrément South Africa and Road Pavements Forum:– Regular feedback to Forum– Information sharing on products tested– Technical Committees

WFTAO

• 25 members from 21 countries

• Facilitates transfer of national products to the global market place

• Assessments accepted by all WFTAO members - but criteria might differ

• Co-operation and exchange of information

Test Report vs Appraisal

• Test report - single aspect

• Agrément appraisal - comprehensive