The emergence of new cement companies in Ghana has resulted in the production of substandard cement products.
Information gathered on standard cement quality on the market lately revealed that some of the companies are producing far below the approved standards of Ghana Standards Authority (GSA) in order to beat competition and gain market share.
The situation, if not quickly addressed by GSA, could see the collapse of more buildings, particularly in the Ashanti Region, Brong Ahafo and some parts of the three regions in the north, according to a concerned architect.
Per the approved standards, a good cement grade of 32.5R that is used for general construction works is expected to attain a minimum full strength of not less than 32.5MPa, 28 days after testing.
However, one of the companies recently established in the Ashanti Region, from an independent test conducted, failed this strength development test and fell below the minimum approved standard.
Also, initial setting time of a good cement is expected to be about 75 minutes after use, but the company in question is producing cement with setting time of 247 minutes, which is also far below the approved standard.
There could be a rise in the collapse of buildings in the near future due to the availability of substandard products on the market.
It is evident that the cement industry in Ghana is fast growing following the emergence of new manufacturing companies such as CIMAF, LarfargHolcim (CBI) and Xin-An Cement.
The old established companies are GHACEM and Diamond Cement.
It would be recalled that President Nana Akufo-Addo recently laid the foundation stone for the construction of a cement factory at the Tema Free Zones enclave to be operated by CBI Ghana and produce cement under the name Supacem.
Also, Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia cut the sod for the construction of another cement factory under the ‘One District, One Factory’ initiative in the Dawa Industrial City in Accra.
The $30 million Ilam Cement factory is 90 percent owned by Iran and 10 percent by a Ghanaian individual, and will be completed in two years.
Furthermore, the rise in cement companies is expected to bring stiff competition in the industry in the coming years and possibly force down prices due to the different technologies used to produce the cement.
Sources revealed that the substandard cement products are flooding the afore-mentioned regions, and would need to be checked.