DRAINAGE
CHANNELLING THE RIGHT CLASS
Sam Booke, commercial director at EBP Building Products talks drainage load classes
O
n the road to becoming an experienced salesperson one’s success is relative to the product knowledge gained along the way, but can we be expected to know everything from the start? In a data-rich world, the skill is knowing where that staring point is and which nuggets of wisdom to retain.
This usually comes through experience but there’s always a good point to entry and from a channel drainage perspective that would be its load class, aka an indication of the loading force achieved during its manufacturer testing, this determines its classification.
For the average customer to part with their hard-earned cash they may require technical sales advice when making an informed choice. With the sale of drainage channel products this often involves seeking advice that pivots around load class, so having an awareness can make a big difference not just in terms of making the sale but in terms of the customer avoiding a costly mistake if they were to buy the product that they may
have initially thought was suitable for their project application.
Arguably one of the most important considerations from a merchant’s point of view, is the load class, the industry standard method of classification as laid out in BS EN 14333. Every stage of the supply chain refers to load class so it is a common point of reference that can ensure that we’re all on the same page when talking about channel drainage and its intended application. There are many ‘places of installation’ for channel drainage systems, each with their own constraints and conditions. Levels of demand, ranging from domestic garden patio areas subject to foot traffic, while at the other end of the scale airport runways trafficked by jumbo jets and fuel takers. Are all places of installation that have their own unique demands and while a heavy-duty channel may serve a domestic area trouble-free, broadly speaking the same can’t be said of a domestic duty product subjected to industrial uses, where trafficking from heavy weight vehicles and plant would lead to critical failures and big problems.
These ends-of-the-scale examples are the more obvious, however it’s the load classes in between that can be less familiar territory for most, so it’s always useful to have a guide to refer to.
Above: Two completely different drainage channels but with the same C250 load class, one is manufactured from polymer concrete, the other from a polypropylene composite: a way to achieve higher loading classes from materials not traditionally associated with achieving comparative load class.
The classes are: Group 1 (min. class A 15) Areas which can only be used by pedestrians & pedal cyclists. Group 2 (min. class B 125) Footways, pedestrian areas & comparable areas, private car parks or car parking decks. Group 3 (min. class C 250) Kerb sides & non-trafficked areas of hard shoulders & similar; Kerb units are always group 3. Group 4 (min. class D 400) Carriageways of roads (including pedestrian streets), hard shoulders & parking areas, for all types of road vehicles.
Group 5 (min. class E 600) Carriageways of roads (including pedestrian streets), hard shoulders & parking areas, for all types of road vehicles.
November 2024
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net
Above: Some channel ranges have several grating options to choose from. The grating load class is equally as important as the load class of the channel itself and in order to achieve the full load bearing capacity of the channel, as intended, the grating ‘s load class will need to match that of the channel.
Below: Site knowledge and product application is key to understanding an appropriate load class for a project, ULMA’s MultiV+ D400 is suitable for pedestrian areas, commercial areas and car parks. Alternatively, ULMA’s Civil-F channel drainage range would be a suitable option for areas used by vehicles such as fork-lift trucks and side- loaders. Understanding specifications and making consideration for over specifying on load class will probably be more cost effective in the long run.
Group 6 (min. class F 900) Areas subjected to especially high wheel loads such as aircraft pavements .
Not all channel drains are created equally, and key features may determine whether a particular drainage channel and grating combination are suitable for the intended project, the manufacturer’s datasheets can be a useful resource for specific data and product features in this regard. If in doubt always ask a channel drainage specialist who can provide technical advice. BMJ
25
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40
