Hot Weather Slows Construction Work

With the mercury crossing 51 degrees Celsius in the country over the past few days, the booming construction industry in the UAE is facing a slowdown as companies reported a sharp decline in workers' productivity.Construction companies said they were struggling to meet the deadline set by the developers as the scorching sun interrupts the flow of work. K.D. Gopalakrishnan, Managing Director of Elemec Group of Companies, which employs 7,000 labourers, said even though the company arranged facilities for labourers to safeguard them from the scorching sun, productivity of workers had declined.

It definitely affects the smooth and fast-paced development of the construction industry. Even if labourers are working in shaded areas, high temperature coupled with humidity affects the productivity of workers," he said. We provide fans, medicine, salt water and other facilities to labourers at their work site during summer. It is effective to protect them against heat-related illnesses, still the output of the workforce is affected marginally. Gopalakrishnan pointed out that not only outdoor work but also indoor work had been affected by the heat. Parvani, Executive Manger of Al Sahel Contracting Company, which is engaged in many major projects in Dubai, said the construction companies have only one option to make up for the loss in productivity during summer, that is, by adding extra hours during the other months.