"I don't want to turn around and count the wheelbarrows," says Build Change construction cost estimator Chen Ting, as we come to a stop by the concrete mixer. “Let’s just stand here chatting, so they don’t notice us watching them,” she suggests, drawing me into her subterfuge.
We are in Minle, a village in Sichuan, China, that was hard-hit by last year’s earthquake. Most of the villagers’ homes have been destroyed, and many have only now begun to break ground on their new houses. Foundations have been dug on either side of the dirt road on which we’re standing, and the contractor’s crew is at work laying a base of concrete and stone.
“Three wheelbarrows of sand and gravel to one bag of cement,” Chen Ting surreptitiously observes, satisfied that the contractors haven’t changed the mix since she arrived earlier in the day and openly watched the contractors at work.
Daily site inspection is a key aspect of the technical assistance package that Build Change provides to homeowners in developing countries who have lost their homes in earthquakes. “As part of our monitoring, we’ve developed a checklist that site inspectors complete on a daily basis, to make sure contractors are following Build Change guidelines,” says Build Change founder and CEO, Dr. Elizabeth Hausler.
Since Build Change began working in Minle two-and-a-half months ago, it has provided homeowners with other aspects of that technical assistance package, including a training about proper construction practices and how to sign a good contract with a contractor.
Build Change has also offered homeowners the option of having Build Change draw the layout for their new homes, a process that allows homeowners to articulate their preferences and needs for their new home, as well as ensuring that earthquake-resistant design aspects will be incorporated. Drawing layouts for homeowners further allows Build Change to estimate construction costs rapidly, which assists homeowners in budgeting for a house that meets their space requirements, as well as being earthquake-resistant and affordable.
Build Change is just beginning its roll out of its on-site inspections and, in advance, Chen Ting is conducting scaled down monitoring of the construction already underway. Chen Ting’s monitoring has a two-fold purpose: (1) to make recommendations to the contractor if the work doesn’t meet Build Change guidelines and, if it does meet guidelines, (2) to reassure the villagers, already traumatized by last year’s earthquake, that their house construction meets minimum standards.
In addition to checking the contractor’s concrete mix, Chen Ting inspects the house foundations already dug, measuring their depths to ensure that they’re deep enough and their perimeters to ensure that the contractor is adhering to the Build Change layouts selected by the homeowners. “I’ve never worked for a non-profit before,” says Chen Ting, “but I feel like, at Build Change, I have an opportunity to do good work and help people.”
We pass a homeowner standing by her partially built house. An older woman, she hails Chen Ting to complain that the contractor is using broken bricks in the masonry in her walls. Chen Ting calms the woman, telling her she’ll test the bricks. She lays two bricks parallel to each other, almost a brick’s length apart, and then she places a third brick perpendicular to, and on top of, the other two. She then stands on the third brick, balancing on one foot.
“Elizabeth [Hausler] taught me this,” Chen Ting says, “if the brick can withstand the weight of your body, it’s strong enough for a single story building.” Chen Ting reassures the woman that the contractor is using durable bricks, and the woman accepts her assessment.
“Of course, Build Change’s assistance is excellent,” says Xiao Qianghui, a villager whose house foundation was among those that Chen Ting measured. “We welcome their suggestions and help.”
“Now that we’ve been trained about good construction practices,” says Yang Shifu, another villager who benefited from Chen Ting’s monitoring of the work on his foundation, “we can inspect the site ourselves, and if we have questions, we can ask Build Change.”
Empowering homeowners to drive the process of rebuilding an earthquake-resistant house with their own funds and technical assistance from Build Change is Build Change’s ultimate goal. That homeowners in Minle are doing just that is extremely gratifying. “When we see villagers taking responsibility for good construction of their houses, we know we’re achieving that goal,” says Hausler.
