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Assignment 2 Reader Response #2


In the article “Hotel New World Collapse”, Lim (2009) discussed the events leading up to the collapse of Hotel New World, which was caused by a series of engineering faults and poor building management.

Hotel New World was a multi-story building that was constructed by Lian Yak Realty in 1971 and was located at Owen Road. According to Lim, the collapse of Hotel New World in 1986 It was so devastating that it did not leave any walls and columns standing. After the collapse, rescue teams consisting of both local and foreign specialists were dispatched. Lim states that former president Wee Kim Wee arranged “a commission of inquiry” to inspect the source of the collapse on 22 March 1986. Lim states that according to the investigation report, the primary reason for the collapse “was due to inadequate structural design of the building”. The additional installation on the roof also contributed and accelerated the collapse. The investigation report also mentioned that visible “cracks in the column, wall, and floor” were observed before the collapse. Further investigation showed that the team behind the construction consisted of unqualified personnel. The tragedy of the Hotel New World could have been prevented if there were proper construction guidelines to follow and management of the building was carried out regularly. From the article, I can conclude that adequate structural design and systematic management procedures are important aspects of a building as they determine the structural integrity and longevity of it.

According to Thean, Vijiaratnam, Lee, and Broms (1986), there were no super-structural left standing in the aftermath of the collapse. This fact led me to form an opinion that the structural calculations were significantly unsatisfactory and there was no supervision during the design and the construction stage of the building by a qualified professional engineer. The structural design of a building should be carried out by a qualified engineer and approved by a professional engineer. In the article “Findings likely to affect industry professionals”, Straits Times (1986) it was mentioned that the Development and Building Control Division, which was responsible for the “processing and approving development project” approved the construction of Hotel New World after examining that the structural designs were endorsed by the “registered personal”. However, Lim states that uncertified personals were involved in the construction of the Hotel New World. In the article “Untrained man drew the plans”, Straits Times (1986) it was mentioned that unqualified draughtsman drafted the building plans of Hotel New World. This showed that authorities in the Development and Building Control Division were not competent as they failed to identify the building plans they had validated were drawn by an uncertified draughtsman.

Despite numerous attempts made by the renovation contractor to inform the building owner about the deteriorations of the building, the owner did not make any amendments (Thean, Vijiaratnam, Lee and Broms 1986). The article “Untrained man drew the plan”, also mentioned that there was further installation of a water tank on the roof endorsed by the building manager even though the building was only designed to carry one water tank “in the building’s motor room”. This showed that the management of the building was poor and lack the knowledge of the consequences that could cause by neglecting to make the amendments and the additional installation. This could have been prevented if there were regular inspections done on the building by a professional engineer. According to the article “How to avoid another Hotel New World disaster”, Straits Times (1987) government issued new laws that enforced the building owners to perform “five-yearly checks by a professional engineer to the areas of the building which were opened to the public”. Also, the government was required to double-check the structural calculations and drawings which were submitted to the authority. By implementing these laws, the government was able to keep a close watch on the construction industry post-Hotel New World tragedy. In my opinion, laws such as the Building Control Act and Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act made a positive impact on the construction industry as the incidents relating to structural failure of buildings were hugely reduced after the implementation of these new laws.

Professionals who are involved in the construction and owner of the building shall work as a team while the government ensures that the construction guidelines were being followed to prevent such a disaster in the future. 

References:
Lim, T.S. (2011). Hotel New World Collapse. Retrieved February 10,2020, from https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_783__2009-01-02.html


STRAITS TIMES. (1986). UNTRAINED MAN DREW THE PLANS, p. 1. Retrieved from https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/straitstimes19860918-1.2.2




Thean, L., Vijiaratnam, A., Lee, S., & Broms, B. (1987). Collapse Of Hotel New World (pp. 28,34). Singapore.

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