Business
Housing: Experts Task Govt Builders On Re-Useable Technology
Construction experts have advised stakeholders in the building industry and governments at all levels to embrace a cost saving technology that allows re-use of building materials 200 times over.
The experts made the call during a one-day seminar in Lagos yesterday tagged: “Modern Buildings, Modern Structures, the How, the Why and the Benefits of Waffle Moulds in Construction.”
The Tide source reports that the event was organised by Asico Projects Ltd., a building construction company and Atex, a Brazilian firm.
While making a presentation on reusable building technology, Atex representative, Mr Leonardo Castro, said it enabled builders to save up to 31.5 per cent of cement and 30 per cent of steel during construction.
Castro explained that Waffle Slabs, moulds and other fittings could be assembled and dismantled within a short time for reuse after the building decks, beams and columns had been stabilised.
He said the design would enable builders save money and promote construction of strong buildings because the innovation used precision.
He added that the technology would also check sharp practices and quackery during construction.
According to him, the technology has been used in commercial and residential buildings in various developed countries and in some major cities in Nigeria.
The Managing Director, Asico Projects Ltd, MrEdosaArasomwan, while delivering a lecture, said his firm imported the technology to address issues of wastages, quackery and corruption in the building industry.
Arasomwan said the innovation for concrete slab construction could be used for various kinds of buildings and was the best for storey buildings because of its precision in tensioning, which averts building collapse.
“Their invention and products allow us to cast suspended floors with hollows in them, making the slab lighter by taking out unnecessary concrete from the tension zone.
“They also retain the concrete at the compression zone which is the top part of the slab.
“With this you are able to save cost, the cost of concrete is drastically reduced by about 30 per cent or more and you can reuse the moulds severally.
“It can be used over 200 times and would crash the price of formworks in the construction industry,” he said
He added that the hollows created aesthetics by making building beautiful, and urged governments and other Nigerians to explore the technology which would make houses cheaper.
Also, DrAyodejiOgunde of Covenant University, Otta, Ogun, who said he had over 30 years experience in construction, certified that the innovation as capable of saving the environment.
Ogunde said the huge demand for plywood in construction translated to felling more trees but that the Atex innovation required just little fragments of reusable wood which would protect the environment.
“If you use plywood, you are degrading the environment by felling trees but if you use this type of Waffle Slab for construction you only need props which are small bits you can use several times,’’ he said.
He added that Waffle slabs had greater load carrying capacity and was beautiful, and that the moulds and slabs were made from tiny woods, plastics and some iron props.
“It is better to use Waffle slabs because it takes care of vibration to avoid cracks,” he said.
He said the technology also gave builders the opportunity for “standardised, clean, safe projects without the need for specialised labour.”
Ogunde said it would be impossible to cut corners using the technology because it had been standardised.
“This construction is very economical and better than the traditional methods of constructing concrete slabs,’’ he said.
Business
NCDMB Hails Tinubu’s Oil Sector Executive Orders
The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the announcement of three Presidential executive orders.
The orders, he said, are aimed at providing incentives in the Nigerian oil and gas industry, encourage new investments in the sector, reduce contracting costs and timelines, as well as promote cost efficiency in local content requirements.
According to a statement from the NCDMB’s Directorate of Corporate Communications and Zonal Coordination, the Executive Orders are the “Oil and Gas Companies (Tax Incentives, Exemption, Remission, ETC) Order 2024”, “Presidential Directive on Local Content Compliance Requirements, 2024 (EO 41)”, and the “Presidential Directive on Reduction of Petroleum Sector Contracting Costs and Timelines, 2024 (EO 42)”.
Speaking at the Nigerian Content Tower, headquarters of the NCDMB in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, the Executive Secretary stated that the policy directives had reinforced the implementation of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act and codified the Service Level Agreements (SLA), which the NCDMB first introduced in May 2017, to fast-track approvals for the Nigeria LNG Limited Train 7 project, before expanding it to the entire industry after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), and five international oil-producing companies in September 2023.
Ogbe clarified that the Presidential Executive Orders did not whittle down the powers of the NCDMB or abrogate the schedule of the NOGICD Act.
He said, rather, the Executive Order 41 mandates the Board to ensure the patronage of local companies with domiciled proven capacities and capabilities to achieve cost competitiveness and project delivery within schedule.
He also noted that Executive Order 42 re-emphasized NCDMB’s obligation to fast-track approval processes as required by the SLA and section 23 of the NOGICD Act, which mandates the Board to review projects’ documentation within 10 days and advise the concerned operating company.
The Board’s helmsman assured that the NCDMB would comply with the terms of the Presidential Executive Orders, insisting that the Board had always been pragmatic with its implementation of the NOGICD Act, and mindful of the cost competitiveness of projects and schedules.
He also stated that the objectives of the Executive Orders and the SLAs were directed to shorten the oil industry’s contracting cycle to six months or less, engender speedy development of new projects, contribute to increased oil production, and improve the national economy.
The Executive Secretary expressed delight that President Tinubu had put his stamp of authority on the noble objectives of the SLAs, and commended him for acknowledging the giant strides recorded in Nigerian Content development.
Particularly, he noted the impressive capacities built by local oil and gas service companies in key areas of the industry and the substantial benefits that had accrued to the Nigerian economy and her citizens through local content implementation.
The NCDMB boss assured that the agency would continue to serve as a business enabler and maintain the recognition conferred by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), which awarded the Board the most efficient agency amongst all Federal Government’s MDAs in 2022, and the PLATINUM rating by the Bureau for Public Service Reforms in recognition of the self-imposed reforms of the Board’s processes.
Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa
Business
Nigeria Opens Land, Air Borders With Niger Republic
President Bola Tinubu has directed the opening of Nigeria’s land and air borders with the Republic of Niger.
He also directed the lifting of other sanctions against the country with immediate effect.
A statement signed by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, said “President Tinubu has also approved the lifting of financial and economic sanctions against the Republic of Guinea”.
The statement is titled “Nigeria opens land and air borders with Republic of Niger, lifts other sanctions”.
The President’s directive has come just days after the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government lifted economic and travel sanctions on Niger, Mali, and Guinea at its extraordinary summit on February 24, 2024, in Abuja.
ECOWAS leaders had agreed to lift economic sanctions against the Republic of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Guinea.
Consequently, the President directed that sanctions imposed on the Republic of Niger be lifted immediately alongside others.
The sanctions are: “Closure of land and air borders between Nigeria and Niger Republic, as well as ECOWAS no-fly zone on all commercial flights to and from Niger Republic.
“Suspension of all commercial and financial transactions between Nigeria and Niger, as well as a freeze of all service transactions, including utility services and electricity to the Niger Republic.
“Freeze of assets of the Republic of Niger in ECOWAS Central Banks and freeze of assets of the Republic of Niger, state enterprises, and parastatals in commercial banks.
“Suspension of Niger from all financial assistance and transactions with all financial institutions, particularly EBID and BOAD.
“Travel bans on government officials and their family members”, the statement read.
Business
FG Targets Standards For Electric, CNG Vehicles
The National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) has announced plans to validate its National Occupational Standards for the conversion and maintenance of electric vehicles and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)vehicles.
The Director-General of NADDC, Joseph Osanipin, disclosed this during the validation workshop exercise for the draft of the national standards for auto gas vehicles in Nasarawa recently.
He stated that the primary objective of the workshop was to develop a blueprint for skills development and standardised operational procedures in the conversion, calibration, and maintenance of those new automotive energy sources, aligning with the government’s renewed hope agenda.
Osanipin noted that upon approval of the draft by the National Assembly, it would facilitate job creation and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as ongoing plans include the establishment of more CNG gas stations in Abuja.
He said, “If we achieve what the Federal Government wants us to achieve with autogas, it will reduce the dependency on PMS and diesel and mitigate environmental concerns. It will also create more jobs and wealth for the nation”.
According to Osanipin, the essence of the workshop was to ensure that the input of all relevant stakeholders was captured in the making of this national document.
“This is in line with international best practices. It is expected that the document will come out of this effort at international standards and help to drive the auto sector to global standards”, he added.
He emphasised the significance of the Nigerian Automotive Industry Development Plan 2023 – 2033, relaunched by the Federal Government in 2023, aimed at revitalising the automotive industry and fostering sustainable growth through technological and skills development.
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