By Maduka Nweke
The Nigerian Institute of Building is planning to create awareness on the engagement of professionals in building construction at its annual programme, Builders’ Day.
The 2021 Builders’ Day has as its theme, ‘Professional builders’ engagement in building production management’.
The pre- Builders’ Day programme started on Monday, March 8, 2021 with the induction of graduate students of building and inauguration of the Association of Building Artisans and Caftsmen of Nigeria (ABACON).
This was followed with a visitation to secondary schools for career talk under the programme’s ‘Catch Them Young’ initiative while on Wednesday and Thursday, were for building condition survey and press day/ lectures respectively.
The programme continues today with corporate members induction and Jumat service while the main event of community service, visit to construction sites, with strategic visits to stakeholders holding tomoprrow.
Meanwhile, a thanksgiving service will be held across state chapters of the NIOB on Sunday, March 14, to conclude the programme.
National President of the NIOB, Kunle Awobodu, said professionalism in building construction remained the first step to reducing chances of substandard building construction practices across the country.
According to Awobodu, the objective of the Builders’ Day is to create awareness on the need for stakeholders on building projects to adhere strictly to standards, codes of practice and building regulations.
He said, “Builders as the professionals saddled with the responsibility of managing building production on sites must be technically sound to ensure that the architectural, structural, mechanical and electrical designs are wholesomely integrated to form a massive product composed of various elements and parts that will work in unison and sustainable.”
He said March 13 was chosen in commemoration of the collapse of a five-storey residential building at 63, Massey Street, Ita-Faaji, Lagos Island in 2019, which led to the premature death of over 20 pupils. It was an avoidable calamity that elicited world- wide condemnation.
Awobodu said the outcome of investigation into the Ita-Faaji building collapse and supported by several similar past cases in Lagos, made the state government do the needful by stipulating in its Building Regulations of 2019 that building construction sites across Lagos State should be managed by registered/ professional builders.
“Invariably, Builders’ Day 2021 is to echo the need for other states of the federation to emulate the 2019 result-oriented Building Regulations of Lagos State,” he added.
According to the NIOB president, prevention of building collapse and its attendant losses is less expensive and superior to emergency management of collapsed building sites, which is more of a medicine – after- death approach.
To orchestrate its campaign against quackery and the ‘penny-wise pound- foolish’ mindset of some developers, he said the NIOB members in the 36 states of the federation and the FCT, would be active on building sites for community service on March 13.
Awobodu said in a social responsibility initiative, builders would provide developers/ clients unique building construction techniques pro bono.
He added that technical advice would also be given freely on radio and television stations for people who are having challenges on their building sites or occupants of buildings with technical issues.