Collapsed buildings: Labour calls on FG to establish Specification Board

Organised labour in thecivil engineering and construction sector has called on the Federal Government to establish a Specification Board to halt incessant cases of building collapse and failed projects in the country.The union said the board, when established should comprise various professional bodies, including related labour unions to set standards for all construction projects, especially building and road projects all over the country.The General Secretary, National Union of Civil Engineering, Construction, Furniture and Wood Workers (NUCECFWW), Comrade Babatunde Liadi, who made this call, attributed cases of building collapse and projects' failure across the country to inability of the builders and contractors to use standard materials for the jobs.He said; 'The falling standard in projects and collapse of buildings is as a result of substandard materials. Most roads fail within a short period, not due to the incompetence of the contractors and their engineers, but as a result of using substandard raw materials for such roads.'Most times, these materials don't meet standard specification for the jobs or at times the quantity specification for such jobs.'He stated the major reasons why contractors and engineers use substandard raw materials rather than specified quantity for their projects are greed and corruption. He added that the contractors and engineers want to maximise profit at the expense of doing a good job.Accusing the public officers charged with the responsibility of ensuring that construction companies conform with laid down specifications, he said that they had compromised their jobs, hence the need for a Specification Board to be set up to monitor closely the activities of the construction firms.He said, 'We know that some public sector officers are already charged with the responsibility of ensuring that building and other construction projects are in conformity with laid down specifications. The failure of these officers, especially engineers on site, to discharge their responsibilities as expected necessitates the establishment of a Specification Board.'He listed some of the responsibilities and functions of the board to include; setting specification standard for raw materials used for construction projects, setting specification standard for quantity of material used in any construction project and inspection of project site (either private or public).
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