A couple of weeks ago, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat declared a temporary halt on all building demolition and excavation permits in the wake of a number of incidents at different sites, until new regulations were put in place.
Now, the Maltese government has decided on new regulations for construction sites, one of which states that site managers will need to be architects... though several people in the field have expressed their reservations.
From their end, the Chamber of Architects has insisted that the new role of ‘site technical officer’ should be the responsibility of the contractor, who should be sufficiently knowledgeable to carry out the architect’s instructions.
The new regulations will allow for the site technical officer to be a different architect to the one who drew up the plans, but must still be a warranted architect, and will have to be nominated by the contractor. The new regulations will require architects to present a condition report taking into account neighbouring sites and aspects such as the geology of the area - a measure aimed at keeping construction sites safe.
What do you think of the new regulations?