1. Who we are and what these terms cover
This website, www.aavs.co.za (the “Site”), is operated by Absolute Actuator and Valve Sales (Pty) Ltd (registration number 2020/807636/07), trading as AAVS and South African Controls (“AAVS”, “we”, “us”, “our”), a private company incorporated in South Africa. Our full statutory details appear on the Company & Legal Information page, as required by section 43 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (“ECT Act”).
These Terms of Use apply to your access to and use of the Site, including the product catalogue, quote-request and contact forms. They do not govern the purchase of goods or services — that is dealt with in our Terms of Sale. How we handle personal information is described in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy, both of which form part of these terms.
By using the Site you agree to these terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Site. If you use the Site on behalf of a company or other organisation, you warrant that you are authorised to bind it, and “you” includes that organisation.
2. Catalogue information is an invitation, not an offer
The Site is primarily a technical catalogue and quotation service. Product listings, specifications, stock codes, availability and any prices displayed are an invitation to do business only — they are not binding offers. A contract for the supply of goods comes into existence only as described in the Terms of Sale, once we have issued a formal quotation and you have accepted it.
Product data (dimensions, pressure classes, materials, temperature ranges, certifications) is compiled from manufacturers’ published documentation and is provided for general guidance. Although we take care to keep it accurate and current, manufacturers revise their products and documentation from time to time and errors can occur. Always confirm critical specifications against the formal quotation and the manufacturer’s current datasheet before ordering.
Nothing on the Site constitutes engineering, safety or other professional advice. Selecting a valve, actuator or other component for a specific application requires an assessment of the operating conditions by a suitably qualified person. If you need help with selection, contact our sales engineers — formal application advice is given only in writing against your stated operating conditions.
3. Acceptable use
You agree not to:
- use the Site in any way that breaches applicable law, including the ECT Act and the Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020;
- attempt to gain unauthorised access to any part of the Site, its servers, databases or connected systems, or probe, scan or test their vulnerability without our written authorisation;
- interfere with the Site’s operation, including by transmitting malware, flooding forms or endpoints with automated requests, or circumventing rate limits and security controls;
- scrape, harvest or systematically extract the catalogue, pricing or other content for republication or for building a competing dataset, beyond what search engines do in the ordinary course of indexing;
- submit enquiries containing content that is unlawful, defamatory or deliberately false, or impersonate any person or organisation.
We may suspend or block access (including by IP address) where we reasonably believe this clause is being breached, and we may report unlawful conduct to the authorities.
4. Intellectual property
The Site and its original content — including text, page designs, graphics, photographs we have taken or commissioned, the AAVS name and logo, and the selection and arrangement of catalogue data — are our property or licensed to us, and are protected by South African and international copyright and trade-mark law. You may view, download and print pages for your own internal business use (for example, to circulate a datasheet within your procurement team), provided you keep all proprietary notices intact. Any other reproduction, distribution or commercial use requires our prior written consent.
All third-party product names, trade marks, logos and part numbers appearing on the Site are the property of their respective owners and are used for identification purposes only. Their appearance does not imply endorsement of AAVS by the owner, or of the owner by AAVS. AAVS is an independent supplier of genuine products and is not an authorised distributor of any manufacturer unless expressly stated.
5. Third-party links and services
The Site links to services we do not control — for example the PayFast payment gateway used to pay approved quotations, and WhatsApp for chat enquiries. Those services are governed by their own terms and privacy policies, and we are not responsible for their content or conduct. A link from the Site is not an endorsement.
6. Availability of the Site
The Site is provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. We work to keep it online, accurate and secure, but — to the extent permitted by law — we do not warrant that it will be uninterrupted, error-free or free of harmful components, and we may change, suspend or withdraw any part of it (including the catalogue) at any time without notice.
7. Liability
Please read this clause carefully — it limits our liability. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, AAVS, its directors and employees are not liable for any loss or damage — direct, indirect or consequential, including loss of profits, business interruption or loss of data — arising from your use of, or inability to use, the Site or from reliance on information published on it.
Nothing in these terms excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited, including liability arising from gross negligence as contemplated by section 51 of the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (“CPA”), or restricts any right you have as a consumer under the CPA, the ECT Act or — where it applies to you — overseas consumer-protection legislation that cannot be contracted out of. Where liability cannot be excluded but may lawfully be limited, our total liability arising out of the Site is limited to R1 000 or the amount you paid us in respect of the matter giving rise to the claim, whichever is greater. Liability in connection with goods you purchase is dealt with in the Terms of Sale.
You indemnify us against claims by third parties arising from your breach of these terms or unlawful use of the Site.
8. Changes to these terms
We may revise these terms from time to time. The current version, with its “last updated” date, is always published at this address, and applies to your use of the Site from the moment it is published. Material changes will be highlighted on this page for a reasonable period. If you keep using the Site after a change takes effect, you accept the revised terms.
9. Governing law and jurisdiction
These terms, and any dispute arising from the Site, are governed by the law of the Republic of South Africa. You consent to the jurisdiction of the South African courts, including the jurisdiction of the Magistrates’ Courts even where the amount in dispute would otherwise exceed their limit. If you access the Site as a consumer from another country, this clause does not deprive you of any protection granted by provisions of that country’s law that cannot be derogated from by agreement.
10. General
If any provision of these terms is found to be unenforceable, the remainder continues in force. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of it. These terms, together with the documents they refer to, are the whole agreement between us regarding use of the Site. Notices to us may be sent to admin@aavs.co.za; data messages (email) are accepted as valid notice as contemplated by the ECT Act.