ELAZIG GUNISIGI NEWSPAPER – January 2014
THE PRICE OF WISDOM
You’ll probably remember, the 2008 World Olympics were held in China.
For a special building resembling the letter "M," China spent nearly 800 million dollars. Around 40 million dollars of this (about 5% of the total construction cost) was for consultancy services.
In today’s modern world, seeking expert advice on every issue from the project to the construction phase has become a way of life.
In developed countries, the process of preparing a project is long and painstaking because every potential detail that might arise during the application phase is thoroughly considered, aiming for a problem-free implementation. As a result, there are minimal problems during construction, and time is saved.
Here, preparing a project is much easier (some might even say it’s child’s play!!!). But construction is much more challenging and, as a result, often costs more than originally planned.
We often find ourselves asking, “Why did this happen?”
I’m saying this from experience: Every year, dozens, maybe hundreds, of private projects are made in Elazığ. For these, opinions are not sought from the Civil Engineering Department (although there are exceptions to this rule, I don’t encounter many of those exceptions, but anyway…).
Why aren’t they asked?
Because the work is always urgent, it must be started immediately or the opportunity will be missed???
With construction come problems, and only then do they think about consulting. Every new move increases the cost. And safety?
This city has 45 years of project and construction history, and yes, it has a university and a civil engineering department.
So, what should be done?
Planning and design are crucial.
Before making any investment, whether in the public or private sector, the project needs to be prepared in detail. During the project preparation phase, opinions, and if necessary, consultancy services should be sought from relevant individuals, institutions, and organizations. The project timeline might be extended, but nearly all potential issues will be preemptively addressed.
The implementation will then be smooth and completed on time.
Here, however, the project is often treated as just a piece of paper, and signatures are simply a decorative element. If there’s a mistake, don’t worry — we’ll fix it on-site!!!
RESULT:
Those who have plenty of money to waste will NEVER realize the importance of smart investment, and in the end, they will pay the price of WISDOM.
No renovation is free, and every renovation increases operational costs.
Operational costs are significant expense items for countries.
Projects that have been engineered and professionally advised tend to have lower operating costs.
Institution and organization officials can understand the importance of this by reviewing their annual operating costs.
The losses caused by poor planning and design are losses to national wealth...
First, planning, then execution.