Disaster Management and Recovery Plan: B&C Company - Case Study Example

DISASTER MANAGEMENT AND RECOVERY PLAN Student’s Name Course Professor’s Name University City (State) Date Word Count: 3,028 Disaster Management and Recovery Plan Table of Contents 1.0 B&C Company 3 1.1 B&C Company Activities 3 1.2 Disaster Threats on Building and Construction Industry 4 2.0 Literature Review 4 2.1 Disaster Management Systems 4 2.2 Disaster Recovery Systems 6 3.0 Discussion 7 3.1 Disaster Prevention through Construction Life Cycle 8 3.2 Disaster Response 9 3.3 Disaster Recovery 10 4.0 Guidance and Standards 10 4.1 Building Codes 10 4.2 Evolution of Building Codes 11 4.3 Building Codes, Resilience, and Risk Reduction 12 5.0 Conclusion 12 Reference List 13 Appendix 14 Appendices 1: Assumptions 14 Appendices 2: Outline of Proposed Plan 14 1.0 B&C Company B&C Company is a building construction company in Hong Kong abbreviated as BCC. The company was started in October 2000 and since then has engaged in developing some of the high profile and recognizable commercial buildings in Hong Kong. B&C Company has also engaged in the development of industrial projects and road construction in some parts of China. However, the company specialized in the industrial, private and public projects. B&C Company offers exceptional expertise in general construction, construction management, build-to-suit lease-back and design or build. It also has experience in industrial, entertainment and hospitality, retail, education, senior living, healthcare and corporate markets. Throughout the history of the company, it has received praise for the quality of its work and service, its ability to work within the stipulated budget of the project, and its time consciousness. B&C Company prides itself for meeting the industrial challenges that include tight schedules and budgets, and difficult, unique designs and site conditions. 1.1 B&C Company Activities The company has got seven main services that it offers to its clients. First is the preconstruction activities that entail project conception processes. Second, the company engages in comprehensive construction activities starting from cost and schedule to building performance, safety, quality, and procurement. Third, the company engages in life cycle analysis that allows the investors to determine suitable options to invest. The company also engages in quality assurance activities that entail balancing appearance, workmanship, durability, maintenance, and image with aspects such as material compatibility, availability of labor resources, and cost effectiveness. It also ensures speed to revenue activities that entails ensuring that construction schedule issues the greatest value to the clients. In addition, the company also conducts an active campus planning that entails analyzing of the daily activities to ensure minimum disruptions to the operations. Lastly, the company engages in economic inclusion services that provide opportunities to locally owned businesses, women and minority to all its projects. 1.2 Disaster Threats on Building and Construction Industry During disasters, structures such as synagogues, churches, factories, stadiums, apartment buildings, condominiums, offices, and homes can take life or preserve life. Natural disasters such as earthquake, cyclones, rains, and wind can cause loss of lives. However, it is argued that it is not the disasters that take lives but the building that collapse and kill people (Bilham and Gaur 2013). For instance, the major cause of deaths during an occurrence of a tornado is the flying debris. Therefore, the main cause of death during tornados and earthquakes is the structural collapse or damage. On the other hand, during the occurrence of floods, people tend to seeks refuge on buildings and homes that survived the disasters. Structures that remain intact and survive during disasters can help protect lives during disasters. 2.0 Literature Review 2.1 Disaster Management Systems According to Sabur (2012), the people living in Bangladesh have been the worst hit victims of natural disasters. As a result, the people have faced and learned to live with the disasters as an ancient preoccupation. The disaster management systems in Bangladesh have been developed over years and have received concreted challenges. The challenges has seen Bangladesh develop a more workable disaster management system that integrated suitable set of processes and mechanisms. In addition, the system has several means and ways for disaster management. The article discusses the Bangladesh’s disaster management system with an overview of the past disasters. It discusses the disaster management system of Bangladesh in reference to the focus on theories and concepts, institutional and legal framework structure. It is out of the past events that the outlook of the future is projected. Disaster management and disaster intersect and transcend geographical regions and national boundaries. Since the disaster management in Bangladesh takes consideration of the nature of disasters, it is important that it is imitated in other parts of the world. In agreement, Rahman (2015) indicate that people tend to adapt to the disaster mechanism after and before the occurrence of the disasters. The people take structural and non-structural measures to adapt to the disasters. The structural measures include the construction of roads, raising of the homestead platforms, and repairing of the embankment among others. The non-structural measures include dissemination of the news on imminent disasters, preserving the food products for the future, taking shelter in the cyclone centers during the occurrence of the disasters, planting trees that are disaster resilient, using strong trees to build houses, and creating awareness among the people. According to the study, early warning system is critical in minimizing the effects of disasters. In addition, the study indicates that community participation limits the losses associated with disasters. It is, therefore, important that all the players including non-governmental organizations and government take the initiative to recover the catastrophic situation. As per the case of Bangladesh, the government takes consideration of both the non-structural and structural mechanism for combating disasters whereas the non-governmental take only the non-structural mechanisms that include creating awareness, capacity building of the locals, and providing of the material services. On the other hand, Perry (2003) argues that the future of disaster management is based on incident management systems. An incident management system is a tool used to marshal pre-assembled and pre-identified resources so as to respond to a disaster or emergency. It is more useful when resources and personnel from many jurisdictions and agencies are needed to manage the disasters or incidents successfully. Even though the incident management systems have been devised over years, its use is still low. 2.2 Disaster Recovery Systems According to Shropshire and Kadlec (2009), disaster recovery systems have been gaining popularity in several fields including information and technology. In most of the businesses such as information and technology, disaster recovery system has become an important part. For firms to ensure continued provision of services, they must engage in the disaster recovery planning. However, some field such as information technology has not fully conceptualized the information and technology research at the mainstream level. Cervone (2006) argues that disaster recovery and business continuity planning are important element in the planning process of a system. 40 percent of the organizations that experience an occurrence of the disasters find it impossible to permanently recover. However, developing a recovery and continuity plan prior to the occurrence of the disasters can improve the possibility of sustainable recovery of the institutional resources. System developers and managers should, therefore, plan for the unexpected disruption of the organization and its activities. In agreement Prazeres and Lopes (2013) indicate that disruptions of businesses are paramount despite the time and place of the firm and cannot be foreseen as to when and what they may hit. Organizations, therefore, have no alternative but to develop disaster recovery scenarios. Business continuity planning has become a vital element in running of firms with the increased use of traditional and electronic services. 3.0 Discussion There have been several calls for the construction industry to integrate the disaster resilience practices. In explanation, the construction professional need to be taken through the importance of integration of the concepts of disaster resilience. Furthermore, there are still opportunities that could enable the expansion of the construction education and further research on the areas related to disasters (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). There is need to explore on how the construction industry can contribute to the improved resilience against the disasters. It is important that a more suitable approach need to be taken into consideration that will give the construction life cycle a more comprehensive view. The view should entail the need to assess, anticipate, prepare, prevent, respond, and recovers from the disruptive nature of the disasters (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). In explanation, a framework should be developed that integrates the usual construction cycle to the cycle of disaster management. The construction lifecycle entail planning, design, construction, operation, and decommissioning while the disaster management cycle entail pre-disaster prevention and mitigation, the disaster, and post disaster response and recovery. The key stakeholders in the building and construction industry are the clients, developers, engineers, and architects need to be engaged in disaster management and response. Focus should not only be on the on the preventive and mitigation measures but also recovery and response upon the occurrence of the disaster. The education of the engineers should focus on the 3Rs of resist, respond, and recover (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). In regard to response and recovery, the construction professional should focus on the operation of the infrastructure during the response to an emergency and recovery from the infrastructure so as to have a normal operation upon the occurrence of the disaster. The civil engineers should also be involved in the emergency response team that traditionally had only the ambulance, fire, and police services. 3.1 Disaster Prevention through Construction Life Cycle Disaster prevention and mitigation at the project-level starts with the selection of sites for development and enforcement of the building codes and planning regulations throughout the design of the infrastructure, construction, and the utilization. The enforcement of codes is not just for legal purposes but one that illustrates the understanding and communication between specialists that are well informed and the academicians that developed the practices and codes and the personnel engaged in construction as an implementation mechanism. Disaster risk reduction is one of the bases for the building codes. As a result, consideration has of late been given to the design of the critical facilities such as hospitals and infrastructure (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). Such considerations have aimed to ensure that they withstand the catastrophic failures and resist extreme loading. The most greater challenge compared to the incorporation of the reduction measures into new developments is the increase of the resilience of the existing structures. Surveys in the infrastructure stock and current building including vulnerability assessments, multi-hazard appraisals, and design and implementation of the retrofit solutions are needed urgently (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). In addition, deferred maintenance has been considered a significant contributing factor to the impacts of disasters since it reduced the reduction of capacity. The multi-project programs also need to ensure that prevention mechanisms are developed in the plans. It is appropriate that consideration is given to appropriate land-zoning and building regulations in the disaster mitigation process. The absence of these frameworks in most of the projects has been a contributing factor to the disasters, more so, in the developing world (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). Due to the increase in hazards, even the best of the current codes, regulations, and preparations and practices need to be revised so as to ensure that sustainability is maintained. There is need for a better understanding between the infrastructural systems and the links between the built environment and the social system to which it is contained. The design of the built environment and its implications calls for multi-hazard and multi-disciplinary approaches and regular review of the building codes and urban planning policies. It also calls for continuous assessment of the vulnerability of the assets that exist and re-assessment of the design guidance. Even though there have been increasing yearly losses linked to disasters, there has been deficit in resilience investment in the most hazard and richest of countries (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). Most of the investors are still not willing to invest more on disaster reduction measures with only a small portion of the disaster-related property damage considered under the insurance cover. The reluctance has been due to the regulations of the government as opposed to the initiative of the owners. Therefore, there is still more efforts that need to be put in place to ensure that the stakeholders are aware of the hazards and their vulnerability. The disaster resilience interbentions should also be evaluated in terms of economic and financial aspects and the culture of resilience engendered. 3.2 Disaster Response At the multi-project level, the construction industry firms need to deploy their expertise and assets in case a disaster happens to support the relief and response efforts. The construction companies can contribute equipment, materials, and labor as well as organizational and structural engineering, existing networks, and temporary work expertise to aid and relief (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). It is important that the emergency response training is incorporated into the operational training of the infrastructural system and the protocols of the first responder. In context to specific projects, the civil engineers have a lot of roles to play in responding to disasters. First, they can monitor, assess, and identify the structural hazards and routes that are safe for the response personnel. Second, the engineers can design and implement the structural mitigation measures through activities such as shoring and bracing unstable structures. They can also identify the priority search for the victims that are trapped in the collapsed buildings (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). In addition, they can provide advice in the operation and placement of heavy equipment and management and coordination of the contractors. 3.3 Disaster Recovery The building and construction firms can help in the reconstructions after the disasters. The construction sector has much to offer in terms of networks, resources, and expertise. They need a transparent and explicit terms of engagement for the partnership in disaster recovery. At the project level, the price of construction might increase upon an occurrence of a disaster (Witt, Sharma, and Lill 2014). The firms can help in the development of temporary shelters, management of debris, and training of the public on safety measures. 4.0 Guidance and Standards 4.1 Building Codes The main tool for guidance and standards for the building and construction industry is the building codes. Building codes are the collection of ordinances, regulations, and laws or other statutory requirements that the government’s legislative authority uses to determine the conditions of the building sites and buildings including other physical structures (Zimmerman 2015). If developed properly, building codes can reduce the structural damage and save lives during the occurrence of disasters. Over the years, the building codes continue to be developed and improved. As a result, there has been improvement to the building design and materials that enable them to withstand the natural disasters. Building codes have enabled the building of the design features and materials that are more resilient to disasters. However, having a comprehensive building code is just the first step of the three steps that leads to an sustainable building industry. The second step is that the areas that are impacted by natural disasters such as Asia need to adopt the building codes that will enhance resilience. Finally, the regional authorities should ensure that the building codes are enforced. 4.2 Evolution of Building Codes The building codes can be traced back to the Code of Hammurabi. During the rule of Hammurabi, from 1792 to 1750 BC, he developed the Code of Laws to govern the building of structures in Babylon (Zimmerman 2015). He made the code to be written on a stone eight-foot tall that was later discovered in 1901 by the Archeologists. The Sections 229 to 233 illustrates the consequences that a builder would face incase his or her building leads to casualties or of poor quality. The repercussion ranged from financial to life loss on part of the builder depending with the negative attributes or effects of the failed building. Today, the building codes to not direct the repercussions to the builder incase a building fails. The main aim of the building codes is to ensure that the communities using the structures are safe. Structures that are developed based on sound codes can be resilient to disasters. In most instances, the local governments are the ones that adopt the appropriate building codes since the disasters are locally based. 4.3 Building Codes, Resilience, and Risk Reduction Occurrence of disasters will automatically lead to physical losses. However, with good building codes, the destructions can be minimized significantly. Good engineering practices are guided by sustainable and comprehensive codes. The same way, good engineering studies ought to lead to the building of sound codes when enforced and employed properly. Such comprehensive building codes make the structures more resilient thus prevent or minimize failures. For instance, the importance of building codes can be considered through a comparison of the difference between the effects in Haiti and Chile earthquakes of 2010. The Haitian quake caused a great destruction to the community while the Chilean damage was relatively minimal. According to the Insurance Australia Group (In Zimmerman 2015), the building codes were what made Chilean buildings more resilient compared to the Haitian. Haiti had poor structures and that’s why an earthquake of 7.0 magnitude killed about 230,000 people which is 2.4 percent of the total population (In Zimmerman 2015). On the other hand, the earthquake in Chile was of 8.8-magnitude and killed only 562 people that is equivalent with 0.01 percent of the total population. 5.0 Conclusion In conclusion, B&C Company is a company located in Hong Kong. It engages in preconstruction activities, construction activities, life cycle analysis, quality assurance, speed to revenue activities, active campus planning, and economic inclusion services. The main threat to the company is the natural disasters and their frequency due to the change in climatic conditions. However, B&C Company has a role to play as a building and construction company. First it can help in the prevention of the significant impacts of disasters through its structures and plans. Second, it can help in the response process upon the occurrence of the disasters. Lastly, the company can assist in the recovery process to ensure that the community affected gets their livelihood back. All these practices should be done according to the guidance and standards of the industry and the regulations of Hong Kong. The main standards, however, are the building codes that have evolved over years to become better and more sustainable. The building codes help in ensuring the resilience of the infrastructures upon the occurrence of the disasters. As a result, they help reduce the risk associated with the use of the infrastructures. It is, therefore, important that firms such as B&C take into enforce the building codes into their policies and practices them in their day-to-day activities for they are not only a regulatory framework but also a means to ensure safety of the public. Reference List Bilham, R and Gaur, V 2013, ‘Buildings as weapons of mass destruction’, Science, vol. 341, no. 6146, pp.618-619. Cervone, HF 2006, ‘Disaster recovery and continuity planning for digital library systems’, OCLC Systems & Services: International digital library perspectives, vol. 22, no. 3, pp. 173-178. Perry, RW 2003, ‘Incident management systems in disaster management’, Disaster prevention and management: An international journal, vol. 12, no. 5, pp. 405-412. Prazeres, A and Lopes, E 2013, ‘Disaster recovery–a project planning case study in Portugal’, Procedia Technology, vol. 9, pp.795-805. Rahman, M 2015, Indigenous coping mechanism for combating disaster in Bangladesh (Doctoral dissertation, University of Dhaka). Sabur, AA 2012, ‘Disaster Management System in Bangladesh An Overview’, India quarterly: A Journal of International Affairs, vol. 68, no. 1, pp.29-47. Shropshire, J and Kadlec, C 2009, ‘Developing the IT Disaster Recovery Planning Construct’, Journal of Information Technology Management, vol. 20, no. 4, pp.37-56. Witt, E, Sharma, K and Lill, I 2014, ‘Mapping construction industry roles to the disaster management cycle’, Procedia Economics and Finance, vol. 18, pp.103-110. Zimmerman, RL 2015, Building codes and resilience to natural disasters in the Asia-Pacific. Available from: < http://www.anser.org/ba-brief-building-codes >. [11 September 2016].\ Appendix Appendices 1: Assumptions B&C Company is a virtual company that does not exist. It is just used in the report as a sample for educational purposes. All the services of the company are also assumptions. Furthermore, the study assumes that the industry is run by a group of professional including engineers and safety, health and environment officers. Appendices 2: Outline of Proposed Plan For disaster prevention, there is need for: 1. Revising the codes, regulations, practices, and preparations of the construction projects. 2. Capacity building the professional on a more comprehensive way. 3. Identification for suitable site for development of projects. 4. Integration of the disaster management and recovery plans into the projects plans 5. Enforcement of planning regulations and building codes. For disaster response, there is need for: 1. Integration of the construction industry to the disaster response 2. Deployment of assets and expertise by the firms in case of a disaster For disaster recovery; the firms can help in; 1. Reconstruction of the structures 2. Development of temporary shelters 3. Capacity building the public on safety challenges for disaster recovery and reconstruction. 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