Experts in the building industry have said that proper planning and solid foundation would go a long way in reducing the rate of building collapse in the country.
In an interview with our correspondent, some architects in Port Harcourt noted the remote causes of building collapse and the way forward for the building industry.
The managing partner of Block Base Engineering and Contracting Services Limited, Port Harcourt, Mr. Temple Nwichi noted that majority of house owners do not carry out soil test to determine the type of foundation before erecting the building of their choices on their property.
Nwichi who expressed worry over incessant building collapse in Nigeria said that the result of soil test “reviews the bearing capacity and suitable foundation to be carried by the builder.”
He also noted that the standard of building materials has been “lowered, adjusted and compromised compared to what it used to be in the past.”
“Property owners should erect the building they can afford. It is the finance available for a building that should count and not the type of building the owner dreams of.”
Another Architect, Mr Chima Nwodinma Noble of NOBECH Group, Port Harcourt, told The Tide that property owners in a bid to reduce cost, most times compel their builders to use sub-standard materials which have negative effects on the building.
Noble reiterated that whenever the integrity of a building is compromised, the building is bound to collapse, the time notwithstanding.
He said that many property owners also patronise quacks, knowing fully well that professionals would not compromise standards and risk the withdrawal of their certificates.
In his own contribution, Architect Samuel Effiong of Insight Visualization Company said building collapse is caused by “faulty design, negligence, incompetent personnel, extraordinary loads on buildings and corruption among other reasons.”
On the way forward, Effiong stressed the need for serious supervision and monitoring of construction activities by professional agencies.
He called for a review of existing building laws in the country to guide the standard code in the building industry, adding that professionals should maintain their integrity, especially when they work for ignorant clients.
“The building industry professional body should enforce control of building works in their localities as laid down by urban regional planning Decree 88 of 1992. Also, section 13 of national building code 2006,” he said.
“When buildings collapse, lives, time materials, finance and many other things are lost, so all hands should be on deck to reduce the rate of building collapse in the country,” he said.