A Week of Construction in the UAE
What happens in a typical week across the vast landscape of construction projects in the UAE? Or even more pertinent to the topic of this blog, what goes on in the Dubai Marina? The latest issue of Construction Week reports Another worker dies on the JBR site, which adds one more to a tally of two killed in the previous month.
Another story announces, DAMAC flooding fiasco provokes tenants’ fury in which developer DAMAC's newly completed Marina Terrace tower suffered its second major pipe-bursting incident in four weeks, causing tenants potentially thousands of dollars in damages. Advice to tenants from the developer's chief executive, Peter Riddoch, was to take up damage claims (if any) with their individual insurance firms.
These are certainly the kind of reports that make you wonder--how many deaths and injuries go on (mostly unreported) at construction sites across the city and country, and of what quality are the towers and other structures being built?
Also, whose responsibility is it when things go wrong? Apparently, DAMAC's cheif executive doesn't believe it his company's responsibility, even in a newly commissioned tower. Will the insurance providers readily take up the task of paying out when blame can be so clearly assigned to the builder?
Further afield in the wider Dubai environment was news of the 4-5 day strike by the 8,000-10,000 laborers of building contractor Besix. This was apparanlly the largest and most organized strike ever in the country, yet the outcome for those involved suggests their efforts were in vain. The latest issue of Construction Week goes into some detail in several different articles on laborers' issues.
The bigger question is what such stories say about the building phenomenon taking place across the city and country. Accidents do happen--but why? Is there enough accountability? Are workers needlessly dying and being injured, and are investors and homebuyers being handed structures of inexcusably poor workmanship?
(The articles referenced above are also posted in this post's comments.
Go to DM Blog latest posts, Dubai Marina Communities or MAG 218 Community homepage.
Another story announces, DAMAC flooding fiasco provokes tenants’ fury in which developer DAMAC's newly completed Marina Terrace tower suffered its second major pipe-bursting incident in four weeks, causing tenants potentially thousands of dollars in damages. Advice to tenants from the developer's chief executive, Peter Riddoch, was to take up damage claims (if any) with their individual insurance firms.
These are certainly the kind of reports that make you wonder--how many deaths and injuries go on (mostly unreported) at construction sites across the city and country, and of what quality are the towers and other structures being built?
Also, whose responsibility is it when things go wrong? Apparently, DAMAC's cheif executive doesn't believe it his company's responsibility, even in a newly commissioned tower. Will the insurance providers readily take up the task of paying out when blame can be so clearly assigned to the builder?
Further afield in the wider Dubai environment was news of the 4-5 day strike by the 8,000-10,000 laborers of building contractor Besix. This was apparanlly the largest and most organized strike ever in the country, yet the outcome for those involved suggests their efforts were in vain. The latest issue of Construction Week goes into some detail in several different articles on laborers' issues.
The bigger question is what such stories say about the building phenomenon taking place across the city and country. Accidents do happen--but why? Is there enough accountability? Are workers needlessly dying and being injured, and are investors and homebuyers being handed structures of inexcusably poor workmanship?
(The articles referenced above are also posted in this post's comments.
Go to DM Blog latest posts, Dubai Marina Communities or MAG 218 Community homepage.
posted by B.D. at
Friday, June 02, 2006
2 Comments:
Full text (below) of the two referenced articles:
Another worker dies on the JBR site
Another worker has died on Arabtec’s Jumeirah Beach Residence site.
Last month, two more workers were killed when the cradle in which they were working, collapsed.
The man died on building 62 of the massive Dubai construction site.
He is understood to have fallen to his death at some point during the nightshift of 13 May. His body was discovered at around 5am the following morning.
A company spokesman confirmed that an investigation was underway but that its findings had so far been inconclusive.
DAMAC flooding fiasco provokes tenants’ fury
DAMAC’s Marina Terrace tower has been hit by a second major pipe burst, which caused panic among residents as fire alarms were triggered and water cascaded down the building’s stairwell.
It comes less than three weeks after Construction Week revealed a catalogue of construction problems on the developer’s first tower in Dubai — still in ‘snagging’ 14 months after it was due to be completed.
And it is less than four weeks after another pipe burst set off fire alarms in the middle of the night.
Several apartments received water damage between the ground floor and the 21st floor — where the pressurised mains pipe that supplies the building’s fire sprinkler system, ruptured.
Furious residents are demanding that DAMAC compensate them for water damage caused to their apartments.
One said: “I was unaffected by last night’s catastrophe, but I am extremely sorry for all residents below the 21st floor who I understand have substantial damage from the major water leak last night.
“This is totally unacceptable in a new building.” Another resident said: “It is unacceptable and disgraceful the way things are being handled around here.
“Our other unit was severely damaged along with the others; the preliminary estimate is in the thousands, and this is not what we signed up for.
“Coincidently, our unit had a pipe burst in February and was completely flooded.”
Now DAMAC has commissioned a consultant to investigate why two mains pipes have burst in the building within the space of weeks.
Alan Gammon, vice president of customer care and facilities management at DAMAC, said in a memo to residents: “Please be assured that this matter is being thoroughly investigated by both the on-site team and independent consultants. We will of course be advising our residents of the outcome of the report and any remedial action that may be required.”
Marina Terrace contractor Al Habtoor Engineering declined to comment on the incident, but an insider blamed the burst on a gasket failure.
He said: “The problem was that it took them one and a half hours to shut the water off.”
DAMAC chief executive, Peter Riddoch, said in a statement: “This was an isolated matter and an independent report will be made after investigating the cause. All residents will have to take up damage claims (if any) with their individual insurance firms.”
By
B.D., at 03 June, 2006 07:02
hi
very useful blog.
recommend others to read it.
tks
By
Anonymous, at 22 November, 2008 18:25
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