The Accord and Alliance, two platforms of American and European Union retailers, are going to hold a meeting with the engineers of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) tomorrow to resolve the disputes created over inspection of the RMG factory buildings.
As there is a dispute over the outcome of the ongoing factory inspection between the local engineers and the engineers of Accord and Alliance, a tripartite meeting will be held to settle the dispute, said a member of the review committee on condition of anonymity.
The review panel suspended inspection of the apparel factories recommended either by Accord or Alliance as soon as the rift surfaced.
Both the Accord and the Alliance used to recommend the review panel to further visit and scan the factories if they find any risky building. Being a neutral body, International Labour Organisation (ILO) will mediate the meeting to reach a consensus over the required concrete strength of a RMG factory building.
According to the Buet engineers, the concrete strength of a building is to be 2,400 pound per square inch (PSI) for stone-made structure and 2,100 for brick-made structure, while Accord considered the concrete strength should to be 1,750 PSI for brick-made structure.
“Evaluation of the existing RMG buildings is the toughest job although the inspection is going on in a hasty manner, Sheikh Sekender Ali, Professor of Civil Engineering Department of BUET,” told the Dhaka Tribune.
He also said there were some disagreements with the Accord’s method in calculating the concrete strength and others standards.
“The Accord should consider the Buet’s recommendation on the required concrete strength of RMG factory buildings, otherwise, 50% RMG factories will face closures,’’ said an official.
From my personal experience, I can assure that the engineers from Buet are better than the engineers employed by Accord as they have more practical experiences than the graduate engineers hired by the Accord, he added.
“All the stakeholders Accord, Alliance and Buet should reach a consensus on the concrete strength as it is a must for smooth and successful execution of the factory inspection for the sake of RMG sector,” Inspector General of Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments Syed Ahmed told the Dhaka Tribune.
