Assessing maintenance practice of public residential buildings in Ghana, a case study of Ghana fire service and Ghana health service buildings in Bolgatanga Municipality of Ghana

Abstract

Wear and tear in buildings and other fixed equipment is inevitable; for this reason periodic attention is required to keep them in good state so that they can continue to perform their required functions. One of the ways to achieve this is the adoption of maintenance as essential practice. Due to the neglect of maintenance of buildings in the country a lot of public and private sector buildings are in very deplorable conditions. The aim of the study is to evaluate the maintenance practice of the public residential buildings in Bolgatanga Municipality. The field investigations focused on 58 out of 68 residential buildings of GFS and GHS nurses’ quarters. Opinions of maintenance officers and tenants were solicited. These officers were purposively selected and questionnaires administered to them. The data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics. The survey revealed that the most prevalent maintenance problems with respect to the building elements are dirty paint, crack/peeled off floors, leaking roofs, cracks in walls, exposed foundation, and partly broken windows and doors. Also, majority of the facilities in the households are in fairly good conditions and thus need attention. The study also established the following factors as being responsible for the poor maintenance of the public buildings surveyed: Lack of maintenance culture, Inadequate funds and high maintenance cost, Pressure on building facilities by number of users, The age of the buildings, Frequent transfer of occupants, Apathy and lack of patriotism on the part of some public employees occupying government bungalows, and lack of preventive maintenance plan, absence of a national maintenance policy. The study concludes that management of public institutions’ buildings surveyed should embrace preventive maintenance practice as a high priority; also occupants of the public residential buildings who exhibit poor maintenance should be strictly sanctioned.