| By Leonard Gildarie The holidays are almost over. Just New Year’s to celebrate and then it all starts again…the countdown to another season. On Christmas Day, like so many others, I wondered whether it was all worth it. All in all, it went well.This week,cheap nfl jerseys sale, I have received some good news and then what I consider some bad news in relation to the housing sector. The good news first.Building the columns before the blocks are laid is not advisable, according to some contractors.The Ministry of Housing,Cheap NFL Jerseys, during its annual review of the year on Friday, announced that it is embarking on a programme to establish a core group of skills that it will work with to develop the many programmes. Masons, carpenters, labourers,Wholesale Jerseys 2017, electricians and a host of others will be sought. That is good news for the unemployment statistics for Guyana.According to the Housing Minister, the move will allow the skills to be available on demand for the Ministry’s operational arm…the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA). I am happy with this. We have a serious problem with the skills available. There is a shortage.In addition to migration, many of the workers in the industry have shifted to other areas, including the ‘dreaded’ goldfields. The irony of the situation is that house lot owners are still complaining of the hardship to find a good contractor. It is not surprising. A labourer working for $50,000 each fortnight, can double this in the same time in the goldfields.The Ministry will be providing training and year-round employment. In the short term, this is not so much good news for the new house lot owner who is in search of a crew.The Ministry is badly in need of labour. It has several programmes with its turn-key homes at Providence and Herstelling. It is now preparing for 1,000 of these homes in Perseverance, a new area that is being developed behind Providence, East Bank Demerara. There are several of these programmes in the hinterland, in Linden and in Region Seven.So yes,Wholesale China Jerseys, one can imagine that the skills pool will become less for the individual house lot owners. It will send construction (labour) costs up. However, the long-term benefits of having the Ministry develop a core group of contractors and skilled workers will bode well for the country. There may be others who will disagree on thisLet me explain. Currently there is very little monitoring, by the authorities, of contractors and their work. There is very little recourse for bad work unless you have a big mouth like me. Many of the contractors and their workers learn on the job. This last statement is truly a nightmare…it is like somebody taking your mortgage and gambling with it at the casino or on the chic-chic board.Conversely, in the long term, these skills will be available to Guyana. The strict monitoring by the CH&PA to ensure its homes are up to par will serve to develop some form of discipline. Contractors hired by the Ministry will have to adhere to some form of standard.Now the bad news. And I hope this part will see some feedback as I am no expert.You know those cracks that appear on your new concrete wall? There may be a reason for it other than settlement cracks. I had some contractors visiting over the weekend. They work in the Eastern Caribbean islands where homes have to be built to withstand up to 150mph hurricanes.They were stunned to see how homes are being built.I did not know that the practice of laying your columns (posts) before the blocks are laid may not have been such a good idea. Currently,Cheap NFL Jerseys Stitched, more than 90% of the homes I have seen were built first with the foundation being poured and then the columns erected.After that, the blocks are laid. For the new homeowner who would be as inexperienced as I am, this was how I knew it to be.However, according to the contractors, this is bad building. The columns are built using forms or a box-like structure which is poured with mixed concrete after a steel framework would have been built.What happens is that contractors would build the columns, and then lay the blocks. When it is being attached to the columns, the practice is to fill the gaps with mixed cement to attach the concrete blocks to the columns. It is the attachment that is the problem. How do you bind the columns to the blocks? Using some cement? It will not be enough,Nike Air Max Sko Herre, I am told.The visiting contractors said that is definitely a no-no. The columns are poured last, AFTER the blocks are laid. How else will the blocks be attached? The columns are poured in such a manner that it allows the mixed concrete to trap the blocks at the same time. The steel in the column also have to protrude to be part of the blocks. This is very important as the idea is for the columns to bind firmly with the blocks. The idea is build strong. If there is a shift in the foundation for some reason, the blocks will definitely be a little more stable. Food for thought.Please continue to send your feedback to [email protected] or call me on 2258491.We have a number of issues to deal with including maintenance and building if you are overseas. Of course, I expect some feedback from the issue with the blocks and columns.A new year is coming. I pray that it brings good tidings and little more wisdom.Happy New Year! |
