Builders tasked on innovative materials, construction technology

Professional builders have been urged to up their games in order to deliver quality buildings and affordable housing through a mixture of innovative building materials and construction technology.

Leading the call at the 47th Builders Conference and yearly General Meeting of Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB) in Bauchi State, Bauchi State governor, Mohammed Abubakar, said there is need for builders to revitalize the ailing economy and fight corruption as well as reform the building industry with needed package to increase Gross Domestic Product (GDP) .

The governor, who was represented by the speaker of Bauchi State House of Assembly, Kawuwa Shehu Damina said attaining this required that builders in the industry be focused despite the present economic challenges confronting the country.

According to him, “today offers opportunity for builders to provide platform of understanding, relationship between the construction sector which account for 40 percent to 60 per cent of Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF).”

NIOB President Tijani Shuiab called on the federal government and professionals in the built construction industry to take a holistic view on activity going on in the fields of construction .

The conference, he said is aimed at providing essential reading for built environment business leaders, policy makers, researchers and community influences to adopt advanced construction technology which requires an appropriate design, commitment from the whole project with suitable procurement strategies, good quality control, appropriate training and careful commissioning.

Shuiab opined that for built construction industry to grow in Nigeria , it will required advanced construction technology which cover a wide range of modern techniques and practices that encompass the latest development in materials technology, design procedures facilities management, services, structural analysis, design, and management studies.

“Incorporating advanced construction technology into practice, can increase level of quality efficiency, safety, sustainability and value for money therefore is often a conflict between tradition industry methods and innovative new practice and this is often blamed for the relatively slow rate of technology transfer with the industry”, he said.

He further outlined that the global competiveness of Nigeria’s construction industry will give concrete design and construction practices of today which is set to look into broad range of challenges faced by the performance of the materials to environment and safety issues, relating to materials and properties.

The Chairman, Marketing and Corporate Affairs Committee, Prof Y. Izam , said the institute has adopted a major resolutions, which include committed leadership, synergy between professional bodies and deliberate policies on institutional training and capacity building in the building information modeling, designers of building should utilize tourism potentials of the environment with respect to materials, culture and construction technologies.

Izam, who doubles as the second vice president of the Institute, stressed the need for a paradigm shift from conventional waste management practices to modern waste practices such as construction material recycling.