BUILDING COLLAPSE AND HOLISM BY ENGR EKE AUGUSTINE

The frequent stories and associated pains and grief of building collapse seem not on the decline. Infact, it has become too frequent that the phenomenon is no longer attracting the level of emotions that should.

The unfortunate thing, however, is that developers and state are yet to give it the right attention. Chances are that developers contract their building out without engaging the services of an Engineers. When problems arise, Engineers are the first set of professionals to receive tongue-lashing. In essence, Engineers receive the responsibility for such failures.

The usual thing is to contact an Architect who makes an architectural design and gives it to Engineers to append their seals in their various disciplines. Other competences are also called to play their various roles by the Architect, who assumes leadership of the team. In their ignorance, some of these Architects treat Engineers as mere rubber-stamps and over-rate Masons as well as Bricklayers instead. By the time there is failure and collapse, the Engineer receives the blame. It is like a subordinate receiving responsibility for the failure of his boss.

Engineers that specialize in holism, either by occupation or profession, are responsible to properly coordinate the building team to its full realization and manage the life cycle of the building until disposal

In recent times, the rate of these collapses are becoming rather embarrassing. The frequency of such occurrences goes to show that something is fundamentally wrong.

Much as there are so many professionals, competences, trades, as well as crafts in the built industry; a most critical constituent is missing. There is an aspect of buildings that are not given the right consideration, the whole. Holism is an aspect of buildings that is never considered.

Different people did one or two things to erect a building, but the whole of it requires special engineering attention like the varous parts. This is so important to the extent that all these collapses owe their occurrences to it.

Engineers that specialize in holism, either by occupation or profession, are responsible to properly coordinate the building team to its full realization and manage the life cycle of the building until disposal. Systems or Holistics Engineers, as they are called, are so subtle in any technical venture but can no longer continue to remain for granted. What is actually happening is called emergence and due to wrongful coordination of the building team and/or management of the building's life cycle. One of such wrongful coordination is an Architect treating team-Engineers as mere rubber stamps and delegating their responsibilities to craftsmen and labourers. A consequence of life cycle mismanagement is the Synagogue incident.