Is the UAE construction industry collapsing?

The building that collapsed in Deira

The United Arab Emirates has some of the most complex construction projects in the world currently underway, yet despite the masses of workmen and skilled labourers the region has been hit by a series of accidents over the last few months.

These accidents have seen a number of buildings under construction collapse whilst work was being carried out. Last month, an under-construction building in Deira collapsed whilst a building that fell down in Ajman injured five. However yesterday, the situation was further highlighted when a multi-storey car park being built for Sharjah Municipality partially collapsed, injuring six people - two of them seriously.

So why are these buildings collapsing? Is it lapsing safety standards? A lack of quality control?

The building that collapsed in Deira last month was attributed, according to Dubai Municipality, to poor quality materials. In an interview to the Khaleej Times, municipal Director-General Hussain Lootah said there had been faults in the iron poles used to support the concrete in the building, and that an "unorthodox" structural style had been used.

It has been put forward that the collapse of the car park yesterday could also be attributed to substandard materials. Witnesses stated they saw the building's steel structure cave in under the weight of wet concrete, causing the first floor of the building to collapse under the weight of the falling debris.

According to a site engineer, the building under construction consisted of the ground and first floor, and was 90 metres high and 61 metres wide. The building was intended to be a nine-storey car park with an area of approximately 5,300 square meters, offering a total of 1,681 parking spaces.

"Construction started in July and we had almost finished with the first floor," he said, adding that construction of the building was originally expected to continue for another 60 months.

Brigadier Humaid Al Hudaidi, director general of the Sharjah Police, officially stated that an investigation in cooperation with the Sharjah Municipality had been launched to determine the cause of the building's collapse. What is disturbing however is that building inspectors are said to have visited the site at about 8.30am, a few hours behind the accident, and stated that it had been in good condition.

One must wonder if it's not just one factor causing these accidents but a plethora of substandard safety measures and materials resulting in a 'perfect storm' for collapses to occur.

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