Lagos – Dr Victor Oyenuga, the former President, Nigerian Institution of Structural Engineers (NISE), on Friday urged the Federal Government to closely monitor the production of iron rods to reduce building collapse.
Oyenuga told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the wide use of iron rods required strict monitoring to ensure that the manufacturers certify their diameters and strengths and quote them properly.
According to him, close monitoring of iron rods production will ensure that the exact sizes of the rods are quoted on the products to reduce building collapse.
“Iron rod is now a major problem in construction.
“In most cases, the sizes of the rods are not correctly quoted by the manufacturers.
“On site, you will need iron rods of 12.5mm, 20mm and 10 mm and instead of getting exactly what you need, what you get are 11 mm, 18mm and 9mm respectively.
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“There is no way the strength of an 11mm iron rod will be the same as that of 12.5mm.
“The Federal Government needs to do something urgently about this situation,’’ the NISE president said.
Oyenuga noted that a look at how iron rods twisted in some building collapse sites were an indication that their strengths were in doubt.
He added that iron rods were important components of any construction be it houses, bridges, drainage systems or roads construction. (NAN)
