IESL and UltraTech Cement Lanka sign MoU to expand Building Clinics

From left: President – Elect Eng. Wimalsena Gamge, Building Clinic Team Leader Eng. S.M. Santha Madawalgama, President Eng. S.B. Wijekoon, IESL Executive Secretary Eng. Arundathi Wimalasuriya, CESC Chairman Eng. Proboda Jinasena, UltraTech Cement Lanka CEO Kiran Redkar, CESC Secretary Eng. M.N.A. Samad, UltraTech Cement Lanka GM Technical Sandeep Holey

UltraTech Cement Lanka and the Institution of Engineers of Sri Lanka signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen their partnership and expand their existing Building Clinic programs across the island. The Building Clinic, an initiative of the Institution of Engineers of Sri Lanka, was taken directly to the public by UltraTech Cement Lanka earlier this year and will expand its reach across the island. 

Signatories at the signing ceremony included Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka President Eng. S.B. Wijekoon and UltraTech Cement Lanka Chief Executive Kiran Redkar. 

The MoU commits the two institutions to share knowledge, resources and expertise in order to expand the reach of their Building Clinic programs. 

Redkar said: “Both UltraTech Cement and the IESL have a shared vision of contributing to the country’s construction industry and are committed to its development. UltraTech Cement has always aimed to strengthen the potential of the home building industry and take building knowledge to the general public – we are glad that IESL shares our vision and hope that the Building Camps will continue to have a positive effect on the public.”

Commenting on the partnership, Wijekoon said, “Our previous Building Clinics have received a tremendous response from the general public – hence the decision to expand the reach of the Building Clinic for the benefit of the public. Lower and middle-income home builders tend to waste large amounts of materials when building their houses and through these Building Clinics, we hope to raise awareness of these issues and promote the importance of sustainable and affordable designing. By taking engineering knowledge to the general public, we also highlight the importance of consulting a professional for advice. 

UltraTech Cement Lanka Technical Q&A General Manager Sandeep Holey elaborated about the progress of the Building Clinic since its inception and its reach across the island. “The Building Clinic offers construction related advice on areas such as land selection and geo-technical issues to building services, structural designs, electrical and plumbing. To date, three Building Clinics have been conducted in Colombo, Galle, and Matara. What makes the Building Clinic unique is its commitment to enhance the quality of house building in Sri Lanka and level of personalisation. Instead of dispensing generic advice, the IESL-UltraTech Building Clinic scrutinises the construction problem at hand and provides personalised expert construction advice tailored to individual building issues and specific concerns, completely free of charge,” he said. 

The panel of professional engineers involved in the Building Clinic is headed by the Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka’s Civil Engineering Sectional Committee which is chaired by Eng. Prabodha Jinasena. “The lack of proper construction knowledge and spread of misinformation about homebuilding is a problem which needs to be addressed. Individual home builders, contractors, masons and any interested persons can avail themselves of expert advice by a panel of professionals that they may otherwise not have the resources to gain access to through an initiative such as the Building Clinic,” said Eng. Prabodha Jinasena adding that plans are also underway to open a Consulting Centre at the IESL for the benefit of those unable to readily access construction information.