FIRSTLY, I thank you for giving me this opportunity for penning this letter to you as I believe that the content should  be of maximum importance to readers, as tax payers hard earned monies are involved.
Referring to KN article by Mr. McRae dated 6th Jan, 2012, I am inclined to add my comments to the subject matter. With regards to Mr. McRae letter, I must commend your interest in science and technology which leads to the Institute of Applied Science and Technology being the government of Guyana premier institution for science and technology.

In a fast growing economy such as Guyana, development is noticeable in every sphere of life, as you drive through the coast and inland areas, you will notice the boom in construction and building of magnificent homes that meets the pocket of an ordinary man. I must commend the government and the private sector for providing  opportunities for more Guyanese to own their own homes by making more house lots,  easy access to loans and affordable building materials available. More people are taking pride in constructing their homes that suited their pocket. That brings me to the point on IAST clay project which I am told involves producing building blocks from clay that can be used for building homes “particularly low income bracket” and construction of roads from clay aggregates.
As rightly stated on the institute’s website, this type of technology was used in Guyana since in the 1800 century on the plantations as road surfacing materials. But as times went by, modern approach has been adopted in all spheres, particularly in the building sectors. Guyana has moved from the mud huts to steel and concrete buildings. My question is why would IAST want to revert Guyana to those unsavory days, when building materials have now become affordable and  accessible by all, even those in rural areas? Isn’t this project which I am sure cost the Government a fortune, a waste of time? Instead of focusing on innovative research and development that can improve the livelihood of Guyanese, it seems as the Institute is reinventing old age technology
As a known fact in Guyana, many houses in low income areas are built flat on the ground surface, which has become prone to flash floods for increasing periods, therefore, more people are opting to build higher structure. As I am aware, the model house which was built by IAST, is a flat structure which cannot be suited for the coastal areas, therefore the rational, for wanting to introduce this model of housing in coastal areas cannot be rationalized. If the technology used is as those in the UK to produce these blocks, then maybe, the structure would be more ideal for hinterland areas, but yet again the question of cost and accessibility to the technology and materials will be a limitation. My question then is why would the government spend millions of tax payers dollars on a project that is riddled with uncertainty.

It would be interesting to learn whether studies or experimental works are, or were done to determine the durability of these block to withstand these severe weather patterns we are currently experiencing. I hope that the GNBS and tax payers are taking note.

As a builder, a cost analysis would show us that a ton of cylindrical clay aggregates is 60-90 percent more expensive than regular commercial stone sold on the market.

As Guyana is moving forward, the demands for more cost effective and technological approach is increasing, then why would anyone even “low income bracket”  want to construct their home using clay block when traditional cement block which is more durable, accessible and cost effective is readily available?. If the government wants to invest tax payers monies into innovative and cost effective building materials for building homes that suits even the ordinary man, why not focus on actually building houses that are earthquake, flood, tsunami proof and self sufficient at the same time. How about a house that is off the grid so we don’t have to cope with utility  bills that goes up every month. IAST need to be more innovative in order to become the flag carrier for science and technology in the Caribbean once again and stop reinventing.