#TOPIC: Construction Quality - Falling Apart!

[juiced]

Does anyone know about the construction quality in the projects all being built around? I heard that many are cutting corners and stuff in an effort to increase profits, apparently this happened to JBR and some Gardens Villas had cracks in them due to poor construction quality.

Anyone heard about this?

[AltinD]

I heard that it was a problems in late 90s and early 2000 residential buildings. Hope is another story on those new projects.

But who knows, lets wait and see.

[Dubai-Lover]

i also have my doubts if everything is of top quality.
are all wokers well educated? this is the main question we have to ask ourselves.
but hard to believe it will be low-quality, as companies like atkins, rmjm,... are the main designers and i also think they care about the quality

but very hard to tell.

time will tell

[juiced]

Its not just Esthimar (JBR) and Nakheel that I have heard this about, apparently Emaar has been doing it too and some Meadows units have cracks that could threaten the structure.

Oh well, only hope they realise they can't risk the reputation of Dubai like that, if 10-15 years down the line you hear of people will walls falling down in their property!

[Trances]

this worries me too
I am sure they are doign their best but with speed, methods and demands can it be top notch. It manily worries me as i dont know how apporval, inspection and responsablity works in the UAE.

[Face81]

I am sure all the companies involved in constructing all of Dubais mega-projects are cutting corners here and there, but there is no need to panic Juiced. The homes wont fall to pieces just yet! lol

I know that a $10 million building on my uni's campus had cracks in it 6 weeks after it was completed. During a seminar with the civil engineers and architects that constructed the building they explained that it was the natural settling of the building and its foundations that had caused the 'hair - line' cracks. No major damage is incurred by minor surface cracks. Its perfectly normal we were told.

Now the cracks have been re-plastered and there are no signs of any new ones and its been a year and a half since that was done.

So all of u Southerners can relax . Its absolutely normal! lol......let time take care of it for u!

-Face81

[Trances]

yer hear that all the time: “just the building settling”
but does any one where know specify how the safety ( fire, maintenances, water, storm, wind factors of current buildings are developed, put in place, accessed, aheared to and followed up ?

[juiced]

But then I wonder why Nakheel would have compensated people who had bought Garden Hill Villas? Surely that must mean they didn't consider those cracks to be normal

I wonder how big was those cracks

Knowing a person whose job is to inspect buildings for safety, I can tell you that a lot of them are approved or allowed to accept residents even if they've failed the safety inspection. It is given a pass by way of corruption even if those who inspect disagree.

There was one building approved that had wooden fire exit stairs and only one exit for the whole building.

[Trances]

oh dear you are not instilling large amounts of confidence in me with that story

[juiced]

The problem is there is no INDEPENDENT building safety inspection organisation, so with the right amount of money (and a few handshakes along the way) even the worst building could get approved

[Face81]

Originally Posted by BulldozerGirl

Knowing a person whose job is to inspect buildings for safety, I can tell you that a lot of them are approved or allowed to accept residents even if they've failed the safety inspection. It is given a pass by way of corruption even if those who inspect disagree.

There was one building approved that had wooden fire exit stairs and only one exit for the whole building.

Do u really think they would risk their reputations like that given all the money thats involved in these projects? And not to mention how Dubai is now under the watchful eye of the Worlds property buyers?

-Face81

[Trances]

Do these Worlds property buyers and world markets carry out their own inspection before investing in advertised this units in large buildings for sale ?
Or do they rely on local Certified agent to inspect ?

and having large amount of money involved only increases the chance of corruption exponentially

( sorry Dubai Property Link)

[Face81]

Originally Posted by Trances

Do these Worlds property buyers and world markets carry out their own inspection before investing in advertised this units in large buildings for sale ?
Or do they rely on local Certified agent to inspect ?

and having large amount of money involved only increases the chance of corruption exponentially

( sorry Dubai Property Link)

I guess they rely on local sources and word does travel quickly in an industry as publicized as this.

-Face81

[DUBAI]

there are a lot of people worried in the construction industry worried about the 'micky mouse contractors who bid for the Emarr-Nakeel tenders, it seems that they will except the lowet offer on the table for most project, regardless that at those prices its impossible for buildings to be up to spec.

[Qatar4Ever]

I agree there should of an independent organization to inspect these buildings. There is business opportunity in this. Sort of a small business that inspects buildings or houses at the demand of the buyer.

[Dubai-Lover]

an interesting article


New towers pile on the pressure
When it comes to piling, Dubai is probably the busiest city on Earth. “The rapid growth of Dubai as a city, the UAE as a nation, and the Gulf as a region has meant that there is probably more piling work here than anywhere else,” says Mustapha Karim, managing director, Swissboring. Despite the large volumes of work, the scramble to bag contracts remains.
“The market in foundation engineering is best described as bullish and the best it has ever been, but this comes at a price. The expansion in the market has meant that many companies have opened shop ranging from experienced professional companies with proven track records to one-man-show operations. The fast moving market has left many companies with no alternative but to grow, the question is how fast and effectively can a company grow versus how long will this bullish market last,” says Nidal N. Khoury, director, corporate management, NSCC.

When asked by CW how long the current boom period would last, Khoury says that the prospects remain healthy for the time being with many in the industry forecasting three to five years of solid growth. “There are many exciting aspects to this market in that the projects are larger, requiring more resources and supervision. This is great for foundation engineering as it allows companies to be recognised as specialist contractors as opposed to simple subcontractors.”
partners

“There are many more main contracts to be had as forward packages as well as other opportunities of partnering with main contractors on the more sophisticated projects where both our and our competitors’ skill is key to success (and not a commodity),” says Khoury. “Moreover, there are also the traditional subcontracts that allow companies in this industry to choose their path as they see fit. In the end, it is about choices and having them is always best,” he adds.

Piling work is normally undertaken as a separate main contract, a joint venture with a civil contractor or as a subcontract with each method requiring a special degree of attention. Although the work remains fundamentally the same, the piling work will be managed differently, including the risk, resource allocation and other project attributes.
difficult

The most difficult aspect when it comes to the management of a project is time. Fast track is a term that is now synonymous with construction in the UAE and piling is no exception. “Many of the projects at the moment are challenging in terms of both time and quality,” says Karim.
For the contractor fast track means that they have to deploy more resources (plant and human) as well as supervision to the site.

The range of services offered by piling contractors does vary but broadly speaking they include: bored piles (rotary) – used for the larger structures under heavy loads; bored piles (CFA) – used for the smaller buildings; retaining structures – used for underground parking mostly, sheet pile walls; post and plank walls; contiguous walls; secant walls; and diaphragm walls.

“Bored piles are preferred to driven piles in this increasingly high rise market because you can place larger loads onto a bored pile. Driven piles may be suitable for smaller structures if there is nothing to obstruct pile driving,” says Derek King, divisional manager – piling and ground engineering division, Ducto Balfour Beatty Group. “Apart from material costs, one aspect that can determine the shift from driven to bored piling is the ground conditions, and especially the known or possible presence of shallow obstructions. You usually have to get a certain minimum length of a driven pile embedded into the ground. If you have a shallow obstruction to driving, like a boulder layer or cap rock, piling becomes a lot more expensive because you have to prebore at each pile location before driving the pile,” he adds.

In city areas another consideration is noise. “Bored piling has the upper hand in city areas because driven piles require heavy equipment and hammers that produce a level of noise that is simply not tolerated close to where people live,” says Karim. One area where driven piling does command a far larger market share is marine work. “Driven piling either as tubular steel piling or driven steel beams and sheet piling are widely used and more common for marine work,” says King.
limited space

As the region continues to grow space will become more limited which means buildings will have to be taller, basements will have to be dug, all of which require more piling work. The numerous large towers under development in Dubai are a direct result of the limited space and will require extensive piling work, typically using bored piles ranging from 800 mm to 1500 mm in diameter. In other markets, piles that are 3000 mm in diameter are sometimes used where the loads are particularly heavy, for example at the core of buildings around the lift shafts. They may not be used to support the entire building, as slightly smaller piles can be used on the building’s periphery where the loads aren’t as high. These very large piles are not used as much here because building footprints are big, which means that loads can be spread onto more piles.

These buildings present considerable challenges when it comes to piling. “New technology is not as easy to come by in our industry, it is a traditional business where most of our work supports structures that are getting taller, slimmer and faster track.

Most new technology comes in the shape of machinery and the manufacturers have done a fabulous job developing more powerful and adaptable machines to suit the severe weather and working conditions in the UAE,” says Khoury.
On the other end of the scale, a significant amount of growth for the market is expected to come as medium rise buildings that did not require piling before grow taller and need more foundation work. “It’s very hard to give a generalisation because its dependent on ground conditions. But once you cross about three to four storeys you have to start looking at small piles,” says King. “Cost is another major consideration, very big raft foundations where the whole foundation is basically just a big slab of concrete can be used for smaller structures, but with concrete and steel being so expensive at the moment the piling option maybe more cost effective,” he adds.

All these trends suggest that the market for piling contractors will remain buoyant for at least the next few years. “Right now I would say there are more than 250 piling rigs in Dubai. This indicates that the market is growing very fast, and it continues to beat our expectations and forecasts in a positive way,” says Karim.

Whether the market continues on its current trajectory is anyone’s guess, but everything would seem to suggest that the conditions are good, but just as any ground engineer will tell you, there are always a few surprises.

[Dubai-Lover]

here we go once again

Construction standards warning
UAE construction firms are using substandard quality concrete with a reduced service life, a building design expert has warned. Dr Abdul-Rahim Sabouni, President of the UAE Chapter of the American Concrete Association, says the Middle East construction sector needs to take a more professional approach, with better codes of practice and quality control.

I blame the hiring of uneducated people from crap colleges who are completely unprofessional.

An example is that Dimensions firm, which SA Boy posted a link to their site. Look at their staff and their qualifications. They have diplomas. And no offense, but most of them come from countries where it's the norm to use substandard concrete.

I also don't trust "professionals" who have spelling mistakes and things of the sort on their website. As Emirates Airlines says: "It's the details that make the difference". I think even from the spelling, you can know a lot about how much a person cares about quality.