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WATE R MANAG E M E NT
LIBRA MANUFACTURERS TO INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS Local Manufacturer Libra has recently started producing a range of shower products for its international sister company GROHE, which is renowned for its winning design and world class quality in sanitaryware. In March 2018, JJ de Waal, General Manager of Libra was approached by GROHE Germany to produce extralow-profile GROHE shower trays with design accents that can ultimately increase a property’s value. “We pride ourselves on our high-quality standards and world-class production processes that create carefully hand crafted pieces delivering on creative excellence and functional design,” says de Waal. “The GROHE shower tray request was for both rectangular and square models that adapt seamlessly to all designs in seven different dimensions. We initially designed three different size shower trays at the beginning of July 2018. We recently have loaded seven, 40-foot
containers to be delivered to Europe and the surrounding regions, totalling over 5 000 shower trays,” adds de Waal. The shower trays are manufactured according to the European standard, EN14527 and are particularly low profile, with a depth of only three centimetres. Made of highquality cast acrylic, with a non-porous and smooth surface, these shower trays now have
increased slip resistance during showering, while their solid full surface base features stability and longevity. Designed as PerfectMatch, they not only match any of the three design lines – GROHE Bau, GROHE Euro and GROHE Cube – but can also be optimally combined with GROHE bathroom accessories. “As a premier South African manufacturer and leading
supplier of acrylic baths and shower trays globally we will continue to innovate and make a design statement in your bathroom catering to all global and local needs. We are honoured to play a vital part in local manufacturing and skills transfer in South Africa and are optimistic about LIXIL Africa’s future in the country,” concludes de Waal. www.lixil.com
NO MORE AWFUL SHOWER EXPERIENCES WITH KOBOLD What usually happens when hotel guests all start to shower at the same time? The water temperature suddenly changes from pleasant to horribly cold or unbearably hot! Sometimes there is less water flowing, sometimes there is more… This annoyance is avoidable, however, if you install Kobold’s REG flow restrictors/regulator to keep constant quantities of liquids in pipework systems. The REG rate regulators are ideally suited for the simple restriction to a pre-set value of throughputs of water, or of liquids similar to water. The flow restrictors ensure equilibrium,
particularly in systems with many users and resulting pressure fluctuations caused by random flow conditions. In other words, the desired throughput is not exceeded. The REG valve operates without power supply, keeping the flowrate of fluids constant with great accuracy (about 0.2 L/min), regardless of fluctuating inlet pressure. The principle is impressive, yet uniquely simple. The constant flow is generated by two stainless steel spring plates of the regulating orifice, riveted together across each other, and which, depending on
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the differential pressure, open or close to a greater or lesser extent the ring or regulating funnel thus created. For the most extreme differential pressure (around 10 bar) the flexible regulating orifice is in complete contact with the regulating funnel so that only the rivet hole crosssection is available for flow, and from this point the valve operates as a fixed orifice. The REG flow limiter can be used wherever a constant flowrate is required, despite pressure fluctuations in the system, for example switching a consumer unit on and off.
BENEFITS • No auxiliary power required • Easy to assemble • Compact design • Reliable – no wearing parts • Energy-saving • Easy to fit Unwanted fluctuations in flow and temperature also occur in many areas of general industry and plant construction. Kobold’s REG valves are available in brass and stainless steel. www.instrotech.co.za