Drymix mortar development in Asia
The 6th Annual SEADMA Conference, organized by the South East Asian Drymix Mortar Association (in cooperation with drymix.info) took place at the Grand Millennium Sukhumvit Hotel in Bangkok (Fig. 1). In spite of the serious flooding in this region of Thailand this event was a great success. The conference program included specialized lectures on the topics technology, chemistry and laboratory methods. In addition, the Annual General Meeting of SEADMA took place around lunchtime with speeches by SEADMA President Mr. Sujit Ghosh from Singapore and SEADMA Secretary General Ferdinand Leopolder.
Dr. Sujit Ghosh (Fig. 2) welcomed the international delegates from all over Asia, the US and Europe. Afterwards Ferdinand Leopolder opened the conference for the lecturers (Fig. 3). First Alex Yin (Elotex) gave an overview on a new laboratory method to investigate skin formation and open time performance. He was followed by Xavier Philibert (Sofraden) who talked about the role of automatic cleaning to decrease the time between formula changes and the prevention of product cross contaminations. Torsten Busch (Ashland/Aqualon) closed the first session, discussing cellulose ethers for improved hot-temperature performance in External Insulation Finishing Systems (EIFS) and external skim coat mortars. A coffee break was served in the foyer which the international delegates used as a podium for networking and professional discussions and to view the industry showcase which presented some of the participating companies.
After the break Fabien Deschryver (Kerneos) gave an insight into the influence of hectorite clays on the rheological behavior of renders for vertical applications. Then Mantian Wu (m-tec China) gave a product presentation of dry mortar machinery application solutions suitable for Asian building jobsites.
The next point on the agenda was the Annual General Meeting of the South East Asia Drymix Mortar Association during which Dr. Xiaoyan Shi was elected as the new Chairwoman of the Technical Committee and also to serve on SEADMA‘s Executive Committee. When the third session started again after lunch, Dr. Jacob Terpstra (Avebe) gave an overview on the application of starch ethers for optimizing dry mortar performance. Next, Dr. Xiaoyan Shi (Ardex Singapore) talked about the advantages and mechanisms of the use of fibres in building chemistry products. Dr. Harold Schoonbrod (Wacker Chemie Australia) showed the historic development of standards for tile adhesives in Australia and the status in Thailand. The last lecture of the day was a lecture given by Ludo van Nes (Caltra) which presented a detailed insight into the use and application of calcium sulpho aluminate cement systems.
At the end of the conference, Ferdinand Leopolder gave a summary of the conference as well as an outlook for the next one. He also shortly reported on the Thai Round Table which took place the day before in Bangkok and provided intensive market insight as well as some strategic decisions concerning the specific requirements of the local market. In addition, he reported on the SEADMA strategy for the coming year. The 7th SEADMA Conference will be held from 06.–07.09.2012 in Bali/Indonesia.
