JM Vassallo Vibro Blocks Ltd (Malta)

Technological Advancement and Construction

The Times of Malta - Construction & Real Estate Supplement

Feb 2007

Readers old enough to remember will recall the times when building was carried out utilising basic mechanical tools and equipment. Those were times when owning a mobile concrete mixer and taking it on site was considered to be a great improvement on the way builders went along with their jobs. Together with the concrete mixer, the two-wheel lifting winch was another interesting piece of equipment.

Owning a tower crane was unheard of and the sight of a mobile telescopic crane at work signified that its owner was on a higher platform than his competitors, whose team of two or three workers used only their hand tools to work.

Since time immemorial, the construction industry in our country has provided a living for one generation after another. The industry, which has been our economy's motor over too long a period, has never been taken for granted by the planners of our economy. Plot the graph of periods of affluence in our history and you will find a canny coincidence will major construction programmes. Some of us remember this from our school days - how successive governments injected funds to create public works, to create progress and employment.

Interventions of this kind raised their share of controversy. One thing was certain. Construction projects over the years have contributed directly to technological advancement. Building programmes became more efficient.

Contracts reached millions. Development zones expanded. New methods and techniques have been imported. New skills were learnt. Some even managed to take their skills and resources overseas.

All this took place in the name of progress. This, in itself, is a subject which can be debated endlessly and goes beyond the scope of this message, as we see it.

What stands clearly in front of us all is the reality that, as happened in other countries, the construction industry has continued to expand in proportion to the island's limited size, in all directions, but mainly in technology advancement and in the way it has operated to achieve higher levels.

Merit to all this is the ability of the local entrepreneur to keep abreast with innovations and opportunities and to learn how to exploit them. We know all the rest. The way in which work on site is carried out nowadays, is pre-planned and meticulously organised.

No stone is left unturned in ensuring that what can be done today will not be left for tomorrow. Stakeholders have learnt from foreign counterparts that efficiency is a key word and anybody not in tune to this state of mind is bound to suffer as a result of stiff competition.

Whether construction is producing what we actually do require remains a controversial point. The fact remains that the industry affects every dimension of our life, whether we like it or not. It remains a double-edged knife.

J.M. Vassallo strives to live in tandem with people in the construction industry. The company works hard to offer clients a direct efficient service, providing cost-effective solutions that make construction work easier and safer, and improving facilities and products in order to offer a comprehensive service to contractors.

J.M. Vassallo produces and supplies reinforcing bars to technical specifications, cuts, bends and assembles steel beams including piles. The company is well stocked with steel beams, channels, steel plates, a wide range of merchant bars, roof cladding and waterproofing membrane, galvanised grills and a good selection of building accessories, including splicing and glass fibre reinforcement.

For more information, visit the Website www.jmvibro.com, phone 2146-7421 or 2146-6228, or e-mail info@jmvibro.com. One can also visit the company offices in Mdina Road, Zebbug.