The two volumes of these Proceedings contain about 200 conference papers and 10 keynote papers presented at the First International Conference on Construction Materials and Structures, held in Johannesburg, South Africa from 24 to 26 November 2014. It includes sections on Materials and characterization; Durability of construction materials; Structural implications, performance, service life; Sustainability, waste utilization, the environment; and Building science and construction.

Based on information obtained from a review of the literature and from liaison with committees concerned with the development and revision of voluntary standards, it was found that there is a dearth of research information contributing directly to the development of test methods. Most of the research conducted on building components has been carried out either to observe the behavior of a sample of a particular type of construction or to evaluate the performance of a specimen against some performance requirements. However, helpful inferences can be made on the basis of some of the documentation, especially that contained in reports of full-scale tests on housing. An up-to-date status report of voluntary test standards activities (in the U.S.) was prepared through verbal and written communication with members of the technical subcommittees of ASTM Committee E-6 on Performance of Building Construction.