BUILDING DEFECTS

Building Defects Caused by Natural Elements in Saudi Arabia

Building Defects Caused by Natural Elements in Saudi Arabia

Introduction

The term "failure" besides structural collapse, encompasses several cases of nonconformity with design expectations or requirements such as foundation settlements, member deformations, cracking, corrosion and leakage. Many of these building failures can be traced to design errors, sloppy construction practices and/or inadequate construction supervision. This study presents extracts of building failures caused by natural elements in Saudi Arabia of various kinds from 125 case histories and identifies their major causes and the resulting consequences. It also points to the shortcomings of the prevalent construction practice in fulfilling the minimum safety and serviceability requirements.

The extent of failure in concrete buildings constructed in recent past (within two decades) is so large that retrofitting and restoration operation runs into hundreds of millions of Saudi Riyals. A significant portion of this is spent on restoration of structural adequacy. The term "failure" besides structural collapse, encompasses several cases of nonconformity with design expectations or requirements such as foundation settlements, member deformations, cracking, corrosion and leakage.

Many of these building failures can be traced to design errors, sloppy construction practices and/or inadequate construction supervision. The term "human error" is defined as the departure from specified code of practice or engineering practice acceptable to the profession.

This study presents extracts of building failures of various kinds from 125 case histories and identifies their major causes and the resulting consequences. It also points to the shortcomings of the prevalent construction practice in fulfilling the minimum safety and serviceability requirements. This information , it is hoped, is of educational value to engineering profession.

Analysis

The reasons and causes of construction defects in homes and condos can also be based on the products and building materials the builder selects. Housing developments are going up with at such a rapid rate that builders and developers have a tendency to cut corners when they can. One area to do this is with building materials and/or products they use in the house. This could be appliances, plumbing equipment, dry wall material, and so on. This also goes for the contractors they choose to use. Again, some contractors cost more than others. This is clearly based on their qualifications and whether they are licensed or not. Poor workmanship frequently causes construction defects.

Construction defect liability generally is based on the decisions the builder and/or developer makes. First, they are in the position to decide what construction strategy they will use. The need to analyze the soil and prepare it adequately before breaking ground to build is an example of a decision. Second, the developer has a choice where to build and if land with bad soil is chosen, it is both the builder's and developer's responsibility to choose the best construction strategy that will prevent building issues and construction defect to occur (as much as possible).

When a builder chooses an area of land to build on, it is important they do some sort of soil analysis and ...