Contributed by Mr Khim Vathanak, SCAO Phnom Penh Business Dept

13 October 2022
Phnom Penh, Cambodia

After receiving positive supply source from SCIN mid of this year, SCAO Phnom Penh has promoted Bentonite for piling works to several construction companies. Meanwhile, there was an announcement from Cambodian government to build a new road system comprising three flyovers  and interchanges in Phnom Penh city. This construction project has been  awarded to a conglomerate group of construction companies called Overseas Cambodian Investment Corporation (OCIC), which is one of the major developers in Cambodia. Some of their projects included Phnom Penh New Airport. Thus, SCAO Phnom Penh has been approaching OCIC to introduce Bentonite from SCIN.

In OCIC, their piling works are being handled by their affiliate company named Koh Pich Construction Company (KPCC). KPCC has shown interest in Bentonite which is an alternative source for their upcoming projects. Now SCAO Phnom Penh, SCAO and SCIN are working together to prepare the Bentonite quotation to KPCC as an indicative purpose for their further study. This is a good showcase on collaboration and synergy across offices and business departments.

You might be wondering:

What is Bentonite?
Bentonite is a type of clay material, formed due to the weathering of volcanic ash. They are mined from the quarry and crushed into fine powder. In the construction industry, sodium bentonite is used in pile foundation works.

Why Bentonite powder is used in pile foundation works?
Bentonite has high water-absorbent properties. It swells considerably, nearly 8 times its volume after absorbing water. Sodium bentonite is thixotropic in nature, which makes them suitable for soil stabilisation work. The bentonite slurry contains cations (Na+) which bring stability to the boring soil surface due to electrically charged ions. So, bentonite slurry is used to prevent the collapse of the soil in the pile bore to a larger extent.

(*Source: https://www.paramvisions.com)

Piling work of flyover in Phnom Penh city

Architecture design of new flyover in Phnom Penh city