Survey of Nigerian Pre-Independence Buildings

in Akwa Ibom State

COMMENTARY

By Bldr. Idongesit O. Bassey

Akwa Ibom state, Nigeria

Building surveying is a specialized technical service designed and developed to take care of maintenance and consideration of existing buildings with a view to retaining their structural stability and functionalities. Building surveying therefore, is a prerequisite for building maintenance, repairs, alteration, conversion; refurbishment, renovation, and conservation of existing building stock. It involves undertaking site visits to carry out detailed inspections, covering all elements/components of the building such as windows, doors, floors, roofs, electrical wiring, walls, fittings, plumbing installation, mechanical and drainage work; thereby identifying defects, carrying out analysis and proposing appropriate remedies.

Infrastructural development with well planned maintenance is one of the major characteristic of a developed nation and plays a great role in the socio-economic growth. Adequate building survey has been practiced and appreciated more in the Western world and other nations such as Britain, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, and South Africa than in developing nation like Nigeria.

Many developed nations invest on infrastructure and depends on it as a source of revenue for their economy. A country like Dubai use infrastructure to attract tourist to their nation and this in turn yield revenue for the country. However, in Nigeria, routine infrastructural maintenance has been a problem on many erected buildings due to poor funding, misuse of facility by occupants, bribery and corruption during the process etc.  Many Building owners / occupants do not see the need for building survey, as they feel that the enlistment of the various professional in such a demanding task is a waste of time and resources which results in shoddy maintenance, renovations and or rehabilitation plans and execution. Therefore, most of our Public buildings such as schools, hospitals, markets, police stations and army barracks etc are allowed to dilapidate to unusable levels before maintenance plans are made to restore its economic value and durability.

Just like human body that seeks timely medical checkup in order to keep the system healthy, fit and functional at all time. Buildings as a system which incorporate various elements/components also need a routine attention and a follow-up action so as to assess the functionality level as well as lifespan of these elements/components.

The major benefit of building survey is to ensure that the physical assessment of both external and internal conditions of the building are carried out to ascertain its defective level as well as recommending both preventive and corrective measures for the affected building. A professional saddled with this responsibility is the professional builder as enshrined in the Builders’ Act “ACT CAP 13. B LFN 2004”.

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How to cite this article: Bassey, I. O. (2024).  Building Survey of Nigerian Pre-Independence Buildings in Akwa Ibom State, commentary, PM World Journal, Vol. XIII, Issue X, October/November.  Available online at https://pmworldlibrary.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/pmwj146-OctNov2024-Bassey-survey-of-pre-independence-buildings-in-Akwa-Ibom-State-1.pdf

About the Author

Bldr. Idongesit O. Bassey

Nigeria

Idongesit Okon Bassey, MNIOB, QAA hails from Akwa Ibom state, Nigeria. He specializes in construction technology, construction management, building maintenance, building services and project quality management and assessment. He is working with Akwa Ibom state Polytechnic Ikot Osurua as lecturer 1 in the department of building technology.