Questioning the reversed schedule: Achieving early completion and operation – where lies the scientific approach?

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A 100-million-yuan office building in Luoyang, Henan, reported to have a collapsed foundation (photos) http://www.sina.com.cn December 25, 2007, 08:10 Western Net, Luolong District ** The administrative center in Luolong District, Luoyang, with a total investment of 190 million yuan, has encountered some minor problems. 　　The problem lies with the 15-story administrative complex building, which cost 80 million yuan to build and is 67.7 meters tall; the district’s four main leadership teams as well as many government departments have their offices there. Recently, some netizens reported that the administrative service center on the first floor was closed due to a \"foundation collapse\". 　　A staff member from the Luolong District Government Office declined to use the term “foundation collapse” to describe this issue in an interview with our newspaper yesterday. He said that the suspension of operations on the first floor was caused by water leakage resulting from underground pipes, and there were no serious quality problems with the building itself. 　　The lobby on the first floor is no longer used for office purposes. On the 22nd, netizens from Luoyang Information Port posted a thread titled “The foundation of the Lolong District administrative building has collapsed – who should take responsibility?” It is said that the construction of this building cost over 100 million yuan, and shortly after it was put into use, the foundation began to collapse. Now, the staff working at the administrative service center on the first floor are unable to carry out their duties. The district head visits the site every day; he is very worried and concerned, fearing that the safety of those who work on the upper floors may not be ensured. 　　As soon as the post appeared, it attracted a lot of attention from netizens, as well as various doubts and speculations. 　　At first, many people did not believe that such a thing could happen to the **building; some netizens commented to question the authenticity of the post. However, various netizens gradually confirmed this news. Another netizen who claimed to work in that building said that all the staff in the administrative hall on the first floor had gone home, and suggested that those who were skeptical go and check for themselves. Another person aware of the situation said, “I checked today; the hall is indeed closed for repairs, as it’s being renovated and reinforced. But it’s not a serious issue – the ring beams are just slightly deformed.” 　　Nevertheless, many people still expressed concerns about the quality of the project, and some even questioned why a building that cost hundreds of millions of yuan would develop problems so quickly. 　　There are no issues regarding quality or safety. The Luolong District Administrative Center is composed of 6 separate buildings; the district government, procuratorate, court, industry and commerce authorities, and local tax office each have their own building, while other agencies are mainly located in the comprehensive administrative office building. The administrative center covers a total area of 220 mu, with a total construction area of over 90,000 square meters, and the estimated investment amount is 190 million yuan. The comprehensive office building has 15 floors above ground and 1 floor below ground, with a construction area of 40,000 square meters; the estimated investment amount is 80 million yuan. Construction began on August 23, 2004, and it was put into use on October 8, 2005; it has been exactly two years since then. 　　In September this year, the comprehensive office building, along with 76 other projects, received the 2007 Construction Project \"Zhongzhou Cup\" awarded by the Henan Provincial Department of Construction. 　　Why would a building that costs so much have quality issues? Staff from the Office of the Luolong District Committee and the Publicity Department also expressed surprise in interviews with reporters, saying they needed to learn more about the situation. 　　The claim that the administrative hall on the first floor is closed has been confirmed. Yesterday afternoon, a staff member from the Luolong District Government Office told our newspaper’s reporter that the reason for the suspension of operations in the first-floor lobby was water leakage. The staff member did not directly answer whether there was a problem with ground subsidence. According to her, the leakage might be caused by issues with underground pipes, and it would be necessary to dig up the ground to carry out repairs. Services that were previously provided at the administrative service center are now handled separately by various affiliated units. The other departments on floors above the second floor are also operating normally, so there are no serious quality or safety issues with the building. 　　Netizens question: A luxury office building? 　　The administrative building in Luolong District has also appeared on numerous posts about luxury office buildings that previously sparked lively discussions among netizens. 　　However, a local *official explained that the building is actually not luxurious. The anonymous *official explained that the administrative center in the new district was established to foster the development of the Luoyang New Area, by facilitating a comprehensive relocation in order to boost its popularity; this was also part of Luoyang City’s overall plan at that time. For many**, this building is far from home, making it inconvenient to commute to and from work. All departments are crammed together in one building for work; “how much would it cost if each of these departments had its own office building?” (By doing this) we save costs and it also makes things easier for the public. ” 　　Did they try every means to speed up the construction? 　　According to the Luoyang Daily, at the end of 2004, the then Luoyang Municipal Party Committee, while inspecting the construction of the Lolong District administrative center, demanded that the project be completed by the National Day holiday in 2005, so that the party and government agencies in Lolong District could move into the new office building on October 8. 　　Project 7 was indeed completed as required, and the district’s government offices moved into the new building on schedule. A press release from that time stated: “The construction command team for the Luolong District Administrative Center worked backwards from the deadline, carefully coordinating the construction and supervision teams to accelerate the progress of work and ensure the quality of the project. After a year and two months of hard work, the building was completed ahead of schedule and put into use before this year’s National Day.” ”