“GSV geprüft” quality seal guarantees product quality and safety at work
Güteschutzverband Betonschalungen e.V. promotes independent certification at BAUMA 2013
Among the greatest successes of Güteschutzverband Betonschalungen e.V. has been the “GSV geprüft” (GSV-tested) quality seal, which was introduced in 1995. It has established itself on the market as a symbol for high-quality and safe formwork products. At this year's BAUMA, the association strove once more to draw the attention of national and international manufacturers and users in particular to the need for this type of seal and campaigned for independent certification.
“The challenges facing our association as an authority seeking to inform and promote quality are more important today than ever before,” maintains the association's chairman, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Christoph Motzko (TU Darmstadt). “Formwork manufacturers from various regions are an increasing threat with their inferior-quality formwork and copied products on the formwork market.” This product piracy damages not only the reputation of respectable manufacturers. Worse still: on construction sites, the use of inferior formwork products also leads to flagrant safety risks and quality issues.
The “GSV geprüft Güteschutzverband Betonschalungen” quality seal, which enjoys international trade mark protection as an EU collective mark, can be of help here. Compliance with the GSV guideline “Guideline for granting the GSV quality seal for frame formwork for vertical components” is an essential step in obtaining the GSV quality seal. The award is granted on a product-by-product and system basis after the successful completion of an application procedure and testing in accordance with consistent guidelines by an independent expert. Construction drawings, material composition and structural calculations must be submitted for examination. The quality seal gives the user the assurance that the use of the certified formwork will result in compliance with the required dimensional tolerances in building construction.
Independent testing process
The requirement criteria of the certification tests specified by GSV are appropriately high. In a “performance datasheet”, the manufacturer must first collate the geometric and quality information as well as structural data for the key elements of the formwork system to be tested. After this follow verifications of load capacities and serviceability in accordance with DIN standards. These involve a close examination of all the factors that affect the formwork system: fresh concrete pressure, strength of the steel or aluminium frame and facing.
The performance datasheet, structural calculations and the assembly and operating manual are then checked by an external independent structural engineering consultant nominated by GSV. Even the supervision of any testing forms part of the GSV examination, which is contained in a final test report including fully dimensioned profile drawings, material properties and guide values for material strength. Production tests are carried out by a test engineer, who selects a frame formwork panel at random from at least 100 formwork units. The panel is inspected according to the following criteria:
- Geometry of the frame formwork panel
- Geometry of the cross section
- Determination of the mechanical and chemical material properties of the metals used
- Inspection of the weld quality
As soon as the independent expert confirms compliance with all the theoretical and practical test criteria, the Extended Board of the GSV examines and checks the submitted test report and certifies the product with the “GSV geprüft” quality seal.
Safety for the user
The advantages for the user are plain to see: if the formwork being used has the GSV quality seal, the user can be sure it is a high-quality product that fulfils all currently applicable product and safety regulations. Furthermore, certified formwork used in accordance with recommended good practice provides the best conditions for the production of high-quality concrete surfaces.
“Our quality seal creates transparency and gives the user safety in a wide range of respects,” confirms Martin Hemberger, the Deputy Chairman of GSV. He adds: “All GSV members are obliged to fulfil the quality requirements set out by the association and their continued compliance is continuously monitored. This creates the basis for a safe and sound relationship between supplier and user. Product piracy, inferior-quality copies and safety critical plagiarism are given no chance by these measures.”
