This was an Institution of Engineers, Malaysia (IEM) excursion on Saturday 23 October 2004 to Southern Steel Mesh Sdn. Bhd. Klang factory.
Southern Steel Mesh exports its products to several countries. Projects shown on the video presentation include the KL Sentral and KL Monorail Project. A subsidiary of Southern Steel Mesh is Southern Wire Sdn. Bhd which is in Shah Alam. Some of the products manufactured by Southern Wire are steel ropes and steel wires for mattresses. Another subsidiary of Southern Steel Mesh is Southern PC Wire which manufactures steel for the prestressed industry.
Brisk Steel Products Sdn. Bhd. was the factory which we visited. Brisk Steel Products (BSP) was incorporated in 1980 and is a subsidiary of the listed Southern Steel Berhad and is the leading steel fabric manufacturer in the country with its production plants strategically located in Klang, Prai and Pasir Gudang. Southern Pipe manufactures steel pipes such as water supply pipes.
The Technical Manager of the company presented some still images with the computer and projector. Southern Steel acquired the Brisk Group 2 years ago. Before that they were under Hong Leong. BRC is actually a brand name. However most contractors referred to the welded steel mesh or the welded steel fabric as BRC. The company was incorporated on 27 December 1980 and there are 3 plants in Malaysia being at Prai, Klang and Pasir Gudang.
The meshes are made of line (main) and cross wires electrically resistance welded together. This was introduced to Malaysia in the 1950’s. There are 4 types of standard mesh being types A, B, C & D. The properties of each type are as follows:
1) Type A Square fabric with 200 × 200 mm spacing
2) Type B Rectangular fabric with 100 mm main wire spacing and 200 mm cross wire spacing
3) Type C Long fabric with 100 mm main wire spacing and 400 mm cross wire spacing
4) Type D Small square fabric with 100 × 100 mm spacing
The table below shows the BSP Standard Fabrics which are manufactured by the company.
Click images to enlarge.
For the BSP reference number, the digit after the alphabet indicates the wire diameter in the main direction, for example A9 indicates a square mesh with a 9 mm diameter wire in the main direction.
BSP also manufactures special fabrics. BSP Special Fabrics refers to various combinations of wire spacing and diameter for the main and cross wires. The table below gives three examples of special fabrics. The first digit after the alphabet refers to the wire diameter in the main direction. The second digit after the slash refers to the wire diameter in the distribution direction.
Steel cages will be the company’s new product. An example of steel cages are the reinforcement cages for beams or columns.
The standard dimension refers to BSP Fabric manufactured either in sheet form which is 6 m length by 2.2 m width or in roll form which is 40 m length by 2.2 m width. However roll form fabric can only be produced for wire diameter of 6 mm and below. In Australia the standard width is 2.4 m. The reason that the standard width is 2.2 m in Malaysia is because if the fabric is 2.4 m wide it may not fit into the lorry. BSP Fabric is exported to Australia and other countries.
The term “cut-to-size” refers to BSP Fabric manufactured to any required dimensions to suit the intended purposes subject to the dimensional limitations of the fabricating machine or transportation. These mesh are tailor-made to eliminate wastage of material. Cut to size fabric can be used for two-way slab panel reinforcement.
Ribbed Fabric has been widely used as reinforcement for concrete structures in Malaysia. As stated on page 5 of the BSP Fabric Technical Handbook which we were given, advantages of ribbed fabric are:
Ribbed and plain fabric wire.
The company’s production process flow chart is reproduced below.
MS 144 and MS 145 stipulates that the minimum requirement for the characteristic yield strength of welded fabric is to be 485 N/mm2 (Grade 485) and 500 N/mm2 (Grade 500). We were told that fabric with a yield stress of 500 N/mm2 is now available. It was asked how it is possible to make the yield stress 500 N/mm2. It was asked whether it is the technology or the formula. We were told it is the formula. Steel is made from phosphorus (P), sulphur (S), manganese (Mn) and carbon (C). 10K steel has a carbon content of 0.08%–0.13% while 12K steel has a carbon content of 0.1%–0.15%. 10K steel is more ductile due to having less carbon content. The characteristic yield strength of reinforcement is shown below.
Yield strength of steel.
Previously only Southern Steel made mesh. However Amsteel is now also making mesh. Perwaja Steel is now under Maju Holdings and they are also planning on making mesh and that BSP would be facing more competition.
Some new products which BSP are manufacturing are BSP Fence, Twin-Wire Mesh and Engineered Mesh. Beam and Column Cages and Pilecaps are currently in the development stage. BSP Fence was compared to chain-link fencing. BSP Fence is very durable because it is galvanised against corrosion and guaranteed for long life. Chain-link fencing is usually PVC coated for rust protection.
Engineered fabric is specially configured to suit design requirements. Engineered fabric is not defined with a fabric notation. Each engineered fabric sheet will require a configuration drawing.
Bar-mats are prefabricated steel sheets consisting of high yield strength bars welded together with small diameter cross wires. The cross wires are spaced typically at 1000 mm centres or to design requirements. If main steel are needed in both directions bar-mats can be laid at 90o to each other. Bar-mats can usually be placed by two people without the need of a crane.
The raw materials come in the form of wire rods. These are rolled up like electrical wiring. The wire rods are then cold-rolled to reduce their cross-sectional area. According to the BSP Fabric Technical Handbook it is stated that in general the higher the stress in the steel the higher the deflection. If the steel fabric is loaded to a stress greater than 460 N/mm2 a higher deflection can be expected than with using normal reinforcement bars. In BS 8110 the yield stress for bending reinforcement is taken as 460 N/mm2.
We were taken to the material testing room. A testing machine was linked to a PC. The fabric rods were tested in tension and also in compression. The display on the PC showed the load versus elongation graph. After the material had failed, two points were indicated on the load vs. elongation graph. They were the yield point and the failure point. Two rods were tested to failure. Due to the many people who were present it was not possible to see clearly but I presume one could have been a tension test while the other was a compression test.
A device was then fitted to the testing machine. A welded joint was then tested to failure. The load was reported as kg force by the computer. The steel and welding were much stronger than required.
The Southern Steel Mesh office building.
Southern Steel Mesh exports its products to several countries. Projects shown on the video presentation include the KL Sentral and KL Monorail Project. A subsidiary of Southern Steel Mesh is Southern Wire Sdn. Bhd which is in Shah Alam. Some of the products manufactured by Southern Wire are steel ropes and steel wires for mattresses. Another subsidiary of Southern Steel Mesh is Southern PC Wire which manufactures steel for the prestressed industry.
Brisk Steel Products Sdn. Bhd. was the factory which we visited. Brisk Steel Products (BSP) was incorporated in 1980 and is a subsidiary of the listed Southern Steel Berhad and is the leading steel fabric manufacturer in the country with its production plants strategically located in Klang, Prai and Pasir Gudang. Southern Pipe manufactures steel pipes such as water supply pipes.
The Technical Manager of the company presented some still images with the computer and projector. Southern Steel acquired the Brisk Group 2 years ago. Before that they were under Hong Leong. BRC is actually a brand name. However most contractors referred to the welded steel mesh or the welded steel fabric as BRC. The company was incorporated on 27 December 1980 and there are 3 plants in Malaysia being at Prai, Klang and Pasir Gudang.
The meshes are made of line (main) and cross wires electrically resistance welded together. This was introduced to Malaysia in the 1950’s. There are 4 types of standard mesh being types A, B, C & D. The properties of each type are as follows:
1) Type A Square fabric with 200 × 200 mm spacing
2) Type B Rectangular fabric with 100 mm main wire spacing and 200 mm cross wire spacing
3) Type C Long fabric with 100 mm main wire spacing and 400 mm cross wire spacing
4) Type D Small square fabric with 100 × 100 mm spacing
The table below shows the BSP Standard Fabrics which are manufactured by the company.
Click images to enlarge.BSP also manufactures special fabrics. BSP Special Fabrics refers to various combinations of wire spacing and diameter for the main and cross wires. The table below gives three examples of special fabrics. The first digit after the alphabet refers to the wire diameter in the main direction. The second digit after the slash refers to the wire diameter in the distribution direction.
Steel cages will be the company’s new product. An example of steel cages are the reinforcement cages for beams or columns.The standard dimension refers to BSP Fabric manufactured either in sheet form which is 6 m length by 2.2 m width or in roll form which is 40 m length by 2.2 m width. However roll form fabric can only be produced for wire diameter of 6 mm and below. In Australia the standard width is 2.4 m. The reason that the standard width is 2.2 m in Malaysia is because if the fabric is 2.4 m wide it may not fit into the lorry. BSP Fabric is exported to Australia and other countries.
The term “cut-to-size” refers to BSP Fabric manufactured to any required dimensions to suit the intended purposes subject to the dimensional limitations of the fabricating machine or transportation. These mesh are tailor-made to eliminate wastage of material. Cut to size fabric can be used for two-way slab panel reinforcement.
Ribbed Fabric has been widely used as reinforcement for concrete structures in Malaysia. As stated on page 5 of the BSP Fabric Technical Handbook which we were given, advantages of ribbed fabric are:
- Higher bond and anchorage characteristics of the ribbed wire
- Ribbed wire is cold-rolled which gives rise to uniform plastic flow in the material. This gives more consistent material properties and better ductility.
- Crack widths in concrete elements are controlled to the minimum because the force is well distributed through the bond effect of the ribbed wire when compared to plain wires.
Ribbed and plain fabric wire. The company’s production process flow chart is reproduced below.
MS 144 and MS 145 stipulates that the minimum requirement for the characteristic yield strength of welded fabric is to be 485 N/mm2 (Grade 485) and 500 N/mm2 (Grade 500). We were told that fabric with a yield stress of 500 N/mm2 is now available. It was asked how it is possible to make the yield stress 500 N/mm2. It was asked whether it is the technology or the formula. We were told it is the formula. Steel is made from phosphorus (P), sulphur (S), manganese (Mn) and carbon (C). 10K steel has a carbon content of 0.08%–0.13% while 12K steel has a carbon content of 0.1%–0.15%. 10K steel is more ductile due to having less carbon content. The characteristic yield strength of reinforcement is shown below.Yield strength of steel.Previously only Southern Steel made mesh. However Amsteel is now also making mesh. Perwaja Steel is now under Maju Holdings and they are also planning on making mesh and that BSP would be facing more competition.
Some new products which BSP are manufacturing are BSP Fence, Twin-Wire Mesh and Engineered Mesh. Beam and Column Cages and Pilecaps are currently in the development stage. BSP Fence was compared to chain-link fencing. BSP Fence is very durable because it is galvanised against corrosion and guaranteed for long life. Chain-link fencing is usually PVC coated for rust protection.
Engineered fabric is specially configured to suit design requirements. Engineered fabric is not defined with a fabric notation. Each engineered fabric sheet will require a configuration drawing.
Bar-mats are prefabricated steel sheets consisting of high yield strength bars welded together with small diameter cross wires. The cross wires are spaced typically at 1000 mm centres or to design requirements. If main steel are needed in both directions bar-mats can be laid at 90o to each other. Bar-mats can usually be placed by two people without the need of a crane.
The raw materials come in the form of wire rods. These are rolled up like electrical wiring. The wire rods are then cold-rolled to reduce their cross-sectional area. According to the BSP Fabric Technical Handbook it is stated that in general the higher the stress in the steel the higher the deflection. If the steel fabric is loaded to a stress greater than 460 N/mm2 a higher deflection can be expected than with using normal reinforcement bars. In BS 8110 the yield stress for bending reinforcement is taken as 460 N/mm2.
We were taken to the material testing room. A testing machine was linked to a PC. The fabric rods were tested in tension and also in compression. The display on the PC showed the load versus elongation graph. After the material had failed, two points were indicated on the load vs. elongation graph. They were the yield point and the failure point. Two rods were tested to failure. Due to the many people who were present it was not possible to see clearly but I presume one could have been a tension test while the other was a compression test.
A device was then fitted to the testing machine. A welded joint was then tested to failure. The load was reported as kg force by the computer. The steel and welding were much stronger than required.
The Southern Steel Mesh office building.
Inside the Brisk Steel Products factory building.
The wire rod raw material which is rolled up.
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