UNDERPINNING OPERATION: ANOTHER BUILDING COLLAPSE AVERTED -Engr. Osaz' Enobakhare

UNDERPINNING OPERATION: ANOTHER BUILDING COLLAPSE AVERTED by Engr. Osaz' Enobakhare

In my decade of practice, I have seen that most buildings or structures that have been poorly built across the country have been those that suffered from either owner-contractor syndrome (OCS), the multi-contracting approach or the sentimental management model. This prevails due to the absence or lack of enforcement of an effective regulatory system for the industry. While owner-contractor syndrome simply refers to the system where the project owner who is not a construction professional doubles as the contractor or the direct handlers of their project or directly overbears on the activities of the project handlers, the multi-contracting approach happens when project owners engage too many hands on the job without proper co-ordination or construction management system in place. 

The sentimental approach is very common especially with project owners based abroad where they are either by virtue of personal relationships or other reasons than merit or professionalism compelled to engage persons in the handling of their project who simply have no business doing so -the outcome is quite often a mess! You hear things like -My in-law or my cousin was the one handling my project, then you discover the in-law or cousin being referred to is only a stylist, a banker or perhaps a travel agent. Yes ‘trust issues’, I can relate but then the building begins to strike an awkward pose causing funny stares from passers-by, the columns seem to be ‘travelling away’ from the building frame, the bulging walls make people wonder if money was stacked inside them and suddenly you remember that a professional broker is not the same as a professional builder and that construction professionals are just few blocks away.

Having been involved with a couple of underpinning operations to save buildings from imminent collapse or sick building syndrome (SBS), these aforementioned items are often the predominant causes of poor-quality jobs that liter our landscape. Since the deed have been done, we cannot be crying over spilt milk. There are quite several buildings begging for urgent attention before they finally ‘bow to the cold hands of collapse’. What do we do? We save them like we have done in Ketu, Gbagada, Lakowe, Victoria Island, Lekki, Ajah, Magodo, Arepo etc. How about you know that sometimes these building begin to fail or show signs of weaknesses or symptoms of SBS even before they are completed or occupied? This is often the best time to solve them. Once occupied there is another dimension to it, but it can still be done. Differential, tipping or excessive settlements are common issues with most of the defective buildings I have worked on, and my team and I have dealt successfully with all cases handled. In all, we have saved several lives and properties or investments worth millions of dollars. Before embarking on the structural salvation journey, it is important to first understand and appreciate the root cause of the defect so that you know the right approach to solving it.

Underpinning operations require expertise, and a defective building can be returned to normalcy to meet its original life span. The cost of underpinning is generally not as expensive as demolishing and putting up a new structure and flip and sell developers can see an opportunity here -few are already taking advantage of it but that’s a discussion for another day.

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WHY THE SUDDEN FIXATION ON FLIP AND SELL PROPERTIES IN NIGERIA?

 Why The Sudden Fixation on Flip and Sell Properties In Nigeria? - Osaz' Enobakhare 

If wishes were houses, tenants would lord.

If you live where I live, you are likely to have one or two old or ‘moribund’ buildings on your street and sometimes you wish something could be done about them at least to improve their appearance; you may also worry about the health of the occupants, if occupied and for construction professionals like me, the health of the building itself.

There is barely undeveloped land in the core city centers yet most people’s dream is to live and work there; even the communities in proximity are largely occupied and bare land is scare there too. When working from home doesn’t apply to you, the other cool option would be to work closer home. Before now there was a crave for working far from home, so you don’t get too familiar with your work environment and become bored. You want to drive or ride through different routes or use the public transport systems while you enjoy the scenery as you travel to and from work on workdays -there seem to be a special inspiration or spice that comes from/with it. Today the cost of living is on the rise, not often commensurate with income levels, and people are very weary of spending large chunk of their income on transportation; then the other risk factors and if you live in a city like Lagos, the unpredictable and seemingly unexplainable and frustrating traffic. Smart developers are catching in on these opportunities to flip old houses and sell them to the teeming population who still want to live very close to where the good paying jobs are -the city centers because the interests in those properties are often more direct and thus easily closable than in areas where there are a lot of options.

Another reason developers are keen on the flip and sell model these days is the shorter time of completion of such projects especially at a time when the cost of financing is high. If you are lucky to find one that won’t require you to demolish the entire structure, bravo! You can complete in few months and sell at an incredible price. The cost of renovating or remodeling an existing building is generally far lower than building from scratch. It is also faster and cheaper, from experience to process a renovation permit than a building permit. Having been directly involved in flip and sell projects from scratch, I can tell you for sure that after completion it is almost impossible to tell that those buildings were once old and dilapidated -that’s if you work with the right team. We have flipped a very dilapidated abandoned residential building into a very classy and highly functional hotel in Lagos in barely six months that sold for more than double the cost involved in purchasing and flipping it. Investors can buy defective buildings at relatively cheap ‘distress sale’ price in sweet locations and flip them into spectacles to behold -sold off before they are even completed.

Furthermore, an operation called ‘underpinning’ can help strengthen an existing foundation by adding weight to it or taking it to a more stable depth without having to demolish the building and it doesn’t really cost as much as demolishing the building and putting up a new structure. This way you can take advantage of the newly strengthened foundation to add a floor or two to an existing building as the structural strength permits but you must engage a professional structural engineer especially one with such expertise. Developers understand that an increase in the number of floors or units normally translates to an increase in the property value.

In Lagos for instance, while you sleep, flip-and-sell properties are springing up in Oworonshoki, Surulere, Yaba, Ikoyi, Lagos Island, Ikeja GRA, Ogudu, Omole, Oshodi, Magodo, Berger and environs because of their proximity to the commercial districts of Victoria Island, Lekki and Ikeja as applicable.

Osaz’ Enobakhare also manages real estate investment portfolios for foreign and local investors through or in partnership with his company -Heavens Group. He is open to more partnerships in real estate development across the world and opportunities to co-create large construction and real estate footprints in the metaverse. +2347001113333 / engineerosaz@gmail.com