WOBO is pleased to provide a series of articles relating to construction and the built environment alongside incidents occurring during those processes.

The floods aren’t coming. They’re already here.

Heavy rain and flooding is not normally associated with the Arabian Peninsula. Think of Bahrain or Oman and you probably picture deserts and stand-storms rather than rainstorms. But in April this year a series of severe thunderstorms saw the region deluged by record-breaking rainfall that led to flash floods and unprecedented damage (in Dubai it was estimated to cost $2bn).

These events helped push global insured flood losses to above average for the first half of 2024, according to Swiss Re’s preliminary estimates. Insured losses for all natural catastrophes for the period were up to $60bn – 62% above the 10-year average – driven by a higher frequency of small-to-medium events. Thunderstorms (aka severe convective storms), particularly in the US, accounted for 70% of the overall insured losses.

We know that these types of events will happen more often due to climate change. Warmer temperatures equal more thunderstorms which equals more rainfall which equals more pluvial flooding. But Swiss Re’s half-year statistics merely underline what the images of floating cars in Dubai illustrate so vividly – this is not something that will happen in the future. It is already with us.

The higher, and increasing, risk is not just down to climate change. The rising cost of the damage is due to population growth, economic development and urbanization, leading to higher vulnerability, often in places that were not especially vulnerable before – such as the UAE.

It’s clear we are failing to adapt to the growing risks – and adapt we must. It is the only way to help prevent losses for insurers, which in turn helps close the protection gap by making affordable insurance available to more people – and ultimately help build a more resilient society.  Find out the size of the protection gap where you are, with Swiss Re’s interactive tool.

Mapping statewide flood vulnerability in Florida

Discover how, in collaboration with local engineering firms, Fathom supported the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to create a statewide flood vulnerability assessment for critical assets. Watch the webinar on-demand

Lovegrove & Cotton Lawyers

Tsigereda Lovegrove: A Journey, from Ethiopia to Australia, to Construction Lawyer.

This piece traverses Tsigereda Lovegrove’s journey from Ethiopia to becoming an Australian construction lawyer. She began her career as a receptionist at Lovegrove & Cotton  in 2011, she advanced to the roles of Office Manager and Financial Controller whilst studying and completing her law degree. Now a Construction Lawyer and Practice Manager, Tsigereda oversees the firm’s operations. Recognition of her expertise is born out in her being named in the construction section of Globe Law Experts 2024 for Australia.  Read Article

Good Practice Building Inspector Guidelines for Emerging Economies

The International Building Quality Centre (IBQC) has released the “Good Practice Building Inspector Guidelines for Emerging Economies,” designed to address the unique challenges of enforcing building standards in diverse construction contexts. Tailored specifically for emerging economies, these guidelines provide a flexible and context-sensitive framework for building inspectors, emphasizing the need for effective inspection regimes in settings ranging from modern urban centers to traditional rural areas and informal settlements. By focusing on local conditions and resources, these guidelines aim to enhance safety, compliance, and resilience in the built environment of developing regions. Access the full guidelines through the provided link for a deeper understanding.  Read Article

Adjunct Professor Kim Lovegrove outlines some reform ideas to the  New Zealand  building act for consideration.This piece canvasses practitioner registration, liability apportionment, mandatory insurance, and risk-based building classifications. Regard is had to international best practice and sustainable regulation.  Read Article

Your free guide to working safely with hydrogen from MSA Safety

Hydrogen (H₂) is the clean renewable energy source everyone’s talking about. Unlike fossil fuels which release multiple harmful emissions including carbon dioxide (CO₂), hydrogen’s combustion only by-product is water. It’s also the third most abundant element on the Earth’s surface – found everywhere from waste bio products like animal slurry, rainwater to plants.

So, it’s hardly surprising that businesses around the world are considering hydrogen as an alternative fuel source for their industrial processes and transportation. In fact, it’s predicted that by 2050, electricity, enabling hydrogen and synfuels could account for 50% of the energy mix¹.

But alongside the exciting opportunities presented by hydrogen, there are also serious risks. Although safer to handle than some other commonly used fuels, hydrogen is still highly combustible and an asphyxiant gas.

Modern hydrogen gas and flame detection technologies enable you to address these risks. But to implement them, it helps to know the basics like hydrogen’s wide flammability range and why only point gas detectors may not work very well in unconfined areas.

As one of the world’s largest and most experienced global suppliers of gas and flame detection equipment, MSA Safety is a pioneer in hydrogen detection technology. So if you’re thinking of switching to hydrogen, MSA’s new white paper Working Safely with Hydrogen is the place to start. Or, visit our website for more information on MSA’s hydrogen solutions.  DOWNLOAD NOW

Health and safety management systems – a guide

Health and safety management systems are based around the principle of ‘Plan, Do, Check and Act’. This guide goes through the stages. – Read more >>

BSI-146: Below Grade Water Management

Below grade water management is necessary for all below grade spaces.  Yes, we were here before (BSI-125: Concrete Basement Foundations – July, 2021), but we covered only two approaches – the most common approaches – above the ground water table and the “draw down” approach.  In real life, things can get more complicated.  So here we are again.

The big, big obvious thing to appreciate – approaches are dependent on the location of the ground water table.  And because Mother Nature likes to mess with us humans, the ground water table can vary with season.

Here is something not so obvious – approaches are not dependent on the foundation type (shallow:  slab, mat/raft, spread/isolated footing, basement) (deep: pile, caisson, pier).  For the record, “shallow” to foundation engineers and geotechnical engineers…means “not too deep – it includes typical residential basements…. Yes, there is more – approaches are also not dependent on climate zone.

Difficulties are common for urban sites due to the location of neighboring buildings, roadways and property lines that make it difficult to control surface water runoff and provide site drainage.  Figure 1 illustrates the “classic” traditional method of providing site drainage – a method that is limited in urban sites.  Although options for site drainage are limited in urban sites it is still important to utilize whatever site drainage is possible such as sloping sidewalks, driveways, patios, planters away from foundation perimeters.  –  .Read the entire article at  buildingscience.com.

CROSS-UK Newsletter 74 – Read the Newsletter

A positive selection of matters relating to structure and fire linked to other matters relating to building construction and buildings in use.

Safety Reports you might have missed…Visit the CROSS homepage