NBRRI : Our Achievements till date

Achievements

Achievements in Hardware Technology

Brickmaking Machine

NBRRI in its early years, developed a mechanical press for the production of stabilized and unstabilized bricks and blocks from locally abundant clay deposits in Nigeria. The machine imparts a compressive effort of not less than 3/Nmm2 on 4% cement-stabilized laterite blocks to achieve a strength of not less than 1.6 N/mm2 which is suitable and adequate for cost-effective bungalows. The machine is light-weight and can readily be transported and used at sites especially in rural areas.

Manual Brick Making Machine

The operation is simple and requires a three-man operational team. The production capacity is 600 to 700 bricks per an eight hour working day. Two bricks are produced in one operation and the standard size of the product is 190 x 140 x 100 (mm) size. During the production and use of cement-stabilized bricks and blocks, great economy is achieved because less cement than would normally be required in sandcrete blocks is used. However, in the production of burnt bricks and blocks, the machine produces unstabilized bricks which are then burnt in clamp kilns. An appropriate level of technology is applied in the construction of clamp kilns using unskilled and semi-skilled labour with the advantage of utilizing communal self help spirit of the rural areas.

Fibre Concrete Roofing Tiles (Mador Tiles)

An appropriate technology for producing durable and cost-effective roofing tiles at any required site was developed at NBRRI. For this, a vibrating table was designed and fabricated from local resources. The Fibre Concrete Roofing (FCR) tiles developed and produced by NBRRI are referred to as Mador-tiles. They are produced from coir fibre (from coconut husk), cement and sand in suitable combination. Rama fibre which is abundantly available in Northern Nigeria and washed palm fibre abundantly available in Eastern Nigeria are equally suitable for making fibre concrete roofing tiles.


NBRRI Fibre Concrete Roofing Tile Technology		WAZOBIA House Built with Cement- Stabilized Bricks and FCR (Mador) Tiles

These Fibre Concrete Roofing (FCR) tiles are durable, water resistant, cost-effective and are suitable alternatives to the now expensive conventional galvanized iron, asbestos and aluminum roofing sheets. The production capacity in an 8-hour working day is 150-200 roofing tiles. Efforts have been initiated to improve on the performance of the machine especially in the area of automation.

Electrohydraulic Brickmaking Machine

With the desire to improve on and mechanize the brick production process, NBRRI developed an electrohydraulic brickmaking machine which produces two bricks in one single operation. Due to its semi-automatic nature, the machine allows for mass production of bricks to meet the high demand required on sites over short periods. This is in addition to ensuring

consistency in the size and quality of the building bricks produced. The prototype machine has been fabricated and has a production capacity of 1,000 bricks in an 8-hour working day. The machine has the advantage of reducing the druggery of human effort exerted in the use of the manual brickmaking machine during brick production and guarantee high quality bricks.

Electrohydraulic Brickmaking Machine

Electrohydraulic Interlocking Blockmaking Machine

This is a hydraulically-controlled machine which produces two interlocking blocks in one operation. The cement-stabilized laterite blocks are used for the construction of walls without using mortar except at the first course layer, the gable layers and the ring beam. The first generation of interlocking blocks


	NBRRI Interlocking Blockmaking Machine		Building Constructed with NBRRI Interlocking Blockmaking Machine

produced are of high strength in laying since the axis of moulding coincided with the axis of laying the interlocking blocks. With this, the compressive strength is mobilized. In the second generation of NBRRI Interlocking Blockmaking machines, the axis of moulding is perpendicular to the axis of laying the interlocking blocks. The production capacity in either case is 3,000 interlocking blocks in an 8-hour working day. The machine, equipped with interchangeable moulds for versatility can readily support small to medium scale entrepreneurship in local building materials production. Also, it can be deployed for use in mass housing schemes such as estate development. At the moment, there is a great demand for this machine from the public especially the construction industry. Plans are in top gear to mass produce these machines for local consumption and export.

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