National Council for Cement and Building Materials Organises National Workshop on Durability Design & Quality Assurance of Concrete
New Delhi, May 14
National Council for Cement and Building Materials has organised a national workshop on concrete durability and quality standards and launched a six-month certification programme aimed at strengthening skills in advanced concrete technology.
According to the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, the workshop "Durability Design and Quality Assurance of Concrete as per IS 456:2025 (Draft)" was held on 9 May at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The workshop brought together representatives from the construction industry, academia, research institutions and Bureau of Indian Standards to discuss proposed revisions in concrete standards and industry readiness for implementation.
The programme was inaugurated by Director, CSIR-Central Building Research Institute, Pradeep Kumar Ramancharla, as Chief Guest, in the presence of Deputy Director General (Standardization), Bureau of Indian Standards, Sanjay Pant, as Guest of Honour, and Director General, National Council for Cement and Building Materials, L. P. Singh.
Highlighting the newly launched programme, the organisers said, "The 25-week hybrid programme includes weekend online sessions along with a four-day on-site module at NCB Ballabgarh, covering mix design, durability, QA/QC systems, RMC operations and advanced sustainable concretes."
The workshop also featured technical sessions on durability design, construction materials, quality control systems and prestressed concrete provisions proposed under the draft code. Experts from Indian Institute of Technology Madras and industry institutions participated in the discussions.
The concluding panel discussion focused on industry preparedness for implementing the revised standards. Experts during the session emphasised "performance-based specifications and strengthened quality assurance practices" as key requirements for implementation of the draft IS 456:2025 code.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Great initiative! The 25-week hybrid programme sounds very practical with online sessions and on-site module. Many engineers in tier-2 cities like myself can only attend weekend programmes. Hope they will also offer such courses in regional languages to reach more professionals across India.
This is much needed. Having worked on international projects, I've seen how strict quality control can prevent major failures. However, I hope the certification doesn't become just another paper exercise. The real challenge will be enforcement at construction sites across India.
Make it mandatory for all RMC plants and contractors working on government projects! Our flyovers and bridges deserve better than substandard concrete. The discussion on performance-based specifications is welcome - move away from prescriptive methods and focus on results. 👌
One concern: will these new standards make construction costs prohibitive for affordable housing projects? We need durable buildings, but also must balance with cost. The quality assurance systems need to be scalable and cost-effective for small contractors too. Good first step though.
Great to see IIT Madras and BSI collaborating on this. The prestressed concrete provisions are particularly relevant as we build more flyovers and bridges. Let's hope the panel discussions on industry preparedness lead to actual on-ground implementation timelines.
N We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.