The Institute for Timber Construction South Africa, South Africa’s professional body for the engineered timber construction industry, offers estimators and designers in the nail-plated timber roof truss industry access to fundamental training through its Level 1 and 2 Estimator/Designer Courses. Registration for these courses is now open.

Engineering software for roof trusses has seen rapid advancement over recent years and has revolutionized the role of the timber roof truss designer and estimator. Even so, the product of software generation is only as good as its input, making it vital that the designer and estimator understand the basics of truss design and can easily detect errors in software output.

In order to address the need for training in this area, the ITC-SA hosts its Level 1 and 2 Estimator/Designer Courses, which address the basic mathematics, calculations, general concepts and 3D visualizations that need to be fully grasped and correctly implemented in order to be a well-rounded, capable, confident and efficient timber roof truss designer or estimator.

Course delivery is through self-study of professionally prepared content supplied by the ITC-SA. A certificate of completion is awarded based on the submission of two open-book assignments (submitted via email) as well as a final written exam, which will be facilitated in KwaZulu-Natal, Cape Town, the Southern Cape, Eastern Cape, Gauteng and other areas as required. Entry into the examination will only be granted to students who have submitted both prior assignments for marking.

Course dates for ITC-SA Level 1 & 2 Estimator/Designer Courses:

First Trimester

• First assignments distributed 20 January 2020
• First assignment submitted & second assignment distributed 24 February 2020
• Second assignment submitted 30 March 2020
• Examination date: 17 April 2020

Second Trimester

• First assignments distributed 18 May 2020
• First assignment submitted & second assignment distributed 22 June 2020
• Second assignment submitted 27 July 2020
• Examination date: 14 August 2020

Third Trimester

• First assignments distributed 7 September 2020
• First assignment submitted & second assignment distributed 12 October 2020
• Second assignment submitted 16 November 2020
• Examination date: 4 December 2020

Assignment marks contribute 40% towards the final mark and a minimum of 70% final average is expected for successful completion of the course.

Enrolment and fees

To enrol for the courses, applicants are to access enrolment forms at www.itc-sa.org/designer-programme/. Completed  forms along with proof of payment are to be submitted to enquiries@itc-sa.org, whereupon the applicant will be granted access to the relevant course work in electronic format. Fees must be paid upfront and in full in order to enrol for the course.

Level 1 Estimator/Designer Course: R4134.25 including VAT
Level 2 Estimator/Designer Course: R4770.20 including VAT

Note: Mathematical content for the Level 2 course is of a fairly high level and applicants who have not yet attained a grade 12 level in the subject should carefully consider participation before payment of the non-refundable course fee.

The course notes and commentaries will be provided for home study and the fee includes the marking of written assignments and the cost of the final assessment which will be written at a suitable neutral venue.

NOTE: The SANS Code of Practice 10243 is a requirement for study purposes and can be obtained from SABS, Standard Sales, Private Bag X191, Pretoria, 0001, Tel: (012) 428-6834/6932, Fax: (012) 344-1568, if you/your employer do(es) not already have a copy.

Banking Details:

ABSA Bank – Isando
Account No.: 01029382316
Branch code: 523-142
In name of: Institute for Timber Construction (ITC)
Payment reference: Student Name and Surname

For more information, visit www.itc-sa.org or email enquiries@itc-sa.org.