SON tasks Ekiti block moulders on standards

By Miriam Humbe

The Standards Organisation of Nigeria has admonished sandcrete block moulders in Ekiti State to endeavor to produce in accordance with the specifications in the Nigeria Industrial Standard NIS 978:2017 to guarantee continuous patronage and expansion of their businesses.
This admonition was given by the Director General, Osita Aboloma Esq. at the opening of a workshop for the block moulders in Ado Ekiti.
Represented by the Ekiti State Coordinator, Mr. Ayeni Feyisayo, the SON Chief Executive encouraged the Moulders to embrace certification of their products to guarantee the quality of blocks being sold to Consumers as part of their patriotic contributions to the development of the State.
According to him, the current menace of building collapse in the country can be attributed to many factors including the quality of materials being deployed in construction, thus the need to ensure certification of all composite materials for building, including sandcrete blocks.
He lamented the fact that less than five percent of blocks on sale in Ekiti State have been duly certified by SON to guarantee their quality, stressing that the figure was alarming for a sector that accounts for about forty percent of the entire industries in the State.
Ayeni enthused that the workshop was put together by SON as part of its mandate to educate stakeholders on the need for supervision, continual improvement in quality and certification of all blocks on sale in State to protect Consumers and ensure that they get value for their hard earned money.
It was also to address the inconsistencies observed in the production of blocks in the by the SON factory inspection team over a period, he said.
The Ekiti State Coordinator charged the leadership of the Sandcrete Block Moulders Association to cooperate with SON in promoting self-regulation amongst its members and warned that the organization would not hesitate to invoke the provisions of the SON Act on erring Muolders after the moratorium given for all to commence the process of certification of their products.
He thanked the Ekiti State Block moulders for attending the workshop in large numbers, which according to him points at their preparedness to embrace regulations in their collective interest and the interest of Ekiti State people in general.
In his presentation on “Improved Production and Certification of Quality Blocks in Ekiti State” Engr. Adeoye Onipede emphasized the need for all sandcrete blocks in Nigeria to be certified under the Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP) for all made in Nigeria products.
He enumerated the objectives of MANCAP to include:
Compliance to the relevant Nigeria Industrial Standards specificationPromoting quality awareness and wealth creation through reduction in waste during productionPreventing production and sale of substandard and unsafe products to Consumers andEnsuring that Consumers have value for their money while also guaranteeing safety of lives, properties and the environment
In another presentation, Engr. Atozan Stephen Awar described quality as the result of deliberate and sincere efforts, intelligent direction and skillful execution of requirements of a standard which represents a wise choice among many alternatives.
According to him, a quality product or service is excellent, presentable, satisfying, efficient, safe, durable, balanced, acceptable and effective in application while a substandard product or service is the opposite.
He enjoined all Ekiti State Block Moulders to embrace standardization by commencing the process of certification of their products after the workshop.
Responding on behalf of the Block Moulders Association, the Chairman, Chief Akinwande Edward expressed appreciation to SON for its continued guidance in ensuring improvements in production of sandcrete blocks in Ekiti State. He pledged the commitment of the Association leadership to encouraging its members to voluntarily subscribe to certification of their products.