The April 2019 inauguration of the Tshwane Regional Mall in Mamelodi Township, Gauteng Province, South Africa, fills a vital need in the region’s infrastructure. Penetron crystalline technology was used to waterproof all below-grade concrete to ensure a durable structure that will last for decades.
The Tshwane Regional Mall is located in Mamelodi, a township with a population of around 340,000, just northeast of Pretoria in Gauteng Province. The mall is part of the R850-million (US$ 62 million) Denneboom Station Public Transport Interchange (DSPTI) project - a 60,000 m2 construction site - which comprises not only the Tshwane Regional Mall, but also the Tshwane Rapid Transport (TRT) train station, a bus station and taxi facility for seven taxi associations (serving Mamelodi and the surrounding region) - in all, a 60,000 m2 construction site. Now complete, the complex provides much-needed public transportation services and will help alleviate local traffic congestion.
The new mall construction provides space for 600 trader stalls and features well-known brands such as Woolworths, Pick ‘n Pay, Spar, Clicks, Gym Company, Big Save, Nando’s, African Bank, and KFC. The Tshwane Regional Mall tenants include food shops, clothes stores, food courts, other retail businesses, government service offices, a medical facility, and banks.
Meeting Concrete Mix Performance Needs
“This Tshwane Regional Mall is a hugely important part of the development effort to provide the previously underserved Mamelodi township with better access to public and private services,” explains Clive Leader, Director of Penetron South Africa. “The Penetron team worked with the project engineers to ensure the performance parameters for the concrete mix were completely met.”
Penetron crystalline technology was used primarily in the crucial below-grade concrete structures, which include the retaining walls and the elevator pits. PENETRON ADMIX was mixed into the concrete to waterproof and protect the elevator pits and all the exposed concrete elements on the ground floor and first floor slabs. PENETRON was applied topically as a slurry to the retaining walls underlying the mall’s outer perimeter. PENEBAR SW-55 swellable waterstop strips were used to seal the construction joints throughout. A combination of PENETRON and PENECRETE MORTARwas used to repair cracks and honeycombing, as well as filling the numerous tie holes.
Concrete Resistance to Chloride Diffusion and Sulfate Penetration
Penetron products are formulated to react with key concrete components to produce an integral network of crystals that seal the micro-cracks and capillaries in concrete. Penetron-treated concrete shows vastly improved resistance to chloride diffusion and sulfate penetration, permeability, drying shrinkage and freeze-thaw cycles. The service life of Penetron-treated concrete is about three times that of conventional, untreated concrete.
“Because the Tshwane Regional Mall project timeline had suffered a number of delays, the project engineers were very pleased with the performance and reliability of the Penetron products,” adds Clive Leader. “We’ve had great success with such large infrastructure projects, and we had the right solution for this one too.”
Providing durability:
Penetron crystalline technology was used primarily in the crucial below-grade concrete structures of the Tshwane Regional Mall: the retaining walls and the elevator pits.
Built with Penetron:
With space for 600 traders, the Tshwane Regional Mall helps provide better access to public and private services to the previously underserved Mamelodi township.
