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SUMMER
2012
9
rably showed much self-restraint. As
the deadline of October approaches and
everything is going as planned, he seems
undeniably relieved.
There have been unexpected problems.
The ground, for one thing, turned out to
be rockier than expected. Delay. Later on,
some cavities were discovered.The shor-
ing system had to be redesigned to sta-
bilize the ground. The delay would have
been minimal except that the excavators
should have had - but did not have - the
proper resources on hand. More delay.
“It’s a chain reaction,” he said. “If one
thing gets delayed then everything else
gets delayed. It was very frustrating.”
The good news, however, was that no
archeological finds were discovered. Al-
though exciting, an archeological find (a
possibility in a city continuously inhabited
for more than 5,000 years) would have
caused a significant setback.
Finally, the excavations were over and
Abi Abdallah sighed with relief. Unfortu-
nately, the delay in the excavation means
that there will be a delay in the construc-
tion of one of the buildings. Fortunately,
that building– South Building – is for
recreational purposes. Classrooms will not
be affected. Now, he can focus on imple-
menting the design.
Fortunately, the chosen contractor proved
to be efficient and well-equipped. “Of
course we encountered problems,” he
said. “But they are normal construction
problems you may have in any construc-
tion site.”
Any glitches that suddenly appear in the
process were effectively the contractor’s
domain now. Except for the South Build-
ing, it is up to them to deliver the build-
ings as planned on 1st October, 2012.
And the clock ticks…
In his makeshift white cubicle, tucked
into the corner of the construction site -
just one of many spread over two floors
and comprising the projects’ engineers, ar-
chitects, safety inspectors, secretaries, and
project managers - Richard El Cham,
the site’s project manager from MAN
Enterprise, seems – well – stressed.
The center of his world at the moment is
the looming and ever approaching deadline.
The clock ticks.
“All engineers must report to work on Sun-
days from now on,” he suddenly declared.
He and his team are basically in charge
of the project from A to Z, including
indoor finishing.
“We’ll make it, we’ll make it,” he said
nodding emphatically. Still, he admitted,
it’s been “stressful”.
In a volatile Middle East region, ‘sur-
prises’ can be common but even he didn’t
foresee half of his construction workers
disappearing when the uprising in Syria
began. A large number of the Syrian
workforce suddenly fled from Lebanon
at one point leaving El Cham with barely
a handful of laborers. Lebanese workers
apparently refused to replace them.
The clock ticks.
In desperation, El Cham considered em-
ploying Indian workers. Fortunately, after
some monetary incentives, El Cham man-
aged to lure his workers back. (Ironically,
as the Syrian uprising continued, he later
found himself inundated with laborers).
To rush things along, he was granted
permission to extend working hours until
8pm (instead of 6pm). But neighbors
complained and El Cham had to stop.
But that clock keeps ticking.
More unforeseen problems were encoun-
tered. Materials coming from or through
Syria could no longer be delivered.
The clock ticks.
El Cham looked elsewhere. Finally, a sea
shipment of much needed gravel just ar-
rived from Greece.
He quickly initiated a recovery plan and
his 400 or so laborers were put into action.
“We’re all on edge now,” he said. “If we were
driving a plane before we are driving a rocket
now. We are in full acceleration mode.”
And the clock ticks…
What excitement?
Unperturbed by the excitement around
them, the workers continue their daily
tasks. Syrian national Ibrahim Bardawil,
26, shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.
As long as he does a good job here, he
knows that MAN will hire him again. “I’ll
just move on to another project when this
is done.”
As for Hassan Sharidi, 32, the end of any
project means that he can take a longer
holiday in his Syrian hometown with his
wife and three children. “But I just have
to finish here first,” he said.
It’s just another day’s work.
According to the master plan, subsequent
phases include the renovation of the existing
buildings and the construction of a new
middle school, scheduled to begin in 2013. The
Ain Aar campus will have its own master
plan, which includes the building of an
indoor recreational center.
For donations to the Partnership for Excel-
lence Campaign, contact Moufid Beydoun at
mbeydoun@ic.edu.lb or call: 961 1367420.