THE US$7.1 million rehabilitation work on the Arthur Chung Convention Centre is 85 per cent completed, despite major challenges with a sinking ground floor, said engineer in the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Vaniar Gutierrez.

Rehabilitation of the centre started in November 2016, after management realised that fissures in the walls and uneven floors were becoming unsafe to work in and around. The centre was officially closed on December 1, 2016, to facilitate major rehabilitation, which was scheduled to be completed within 18 months.

“We encountered some challenges during construction; the previous floor did not have reinforcement and the compaction work was poor, so the floor sunk,” said the engineer during a tour of the facility on Thursday. He said they had to remove all the old material from the floor to do compaction, noting that it was well compacted and tested.
“We have used additional loads to test it to ensure that it does not sink again…we have really accurate calculations,” Gutierrez explained.
In addition to the floors, a canopy was installed with a steel structure and new types of LED lights among other things.

Minister of Public Telecommunications, Catherine Hughes, who was also a part of the tour said the centre which was opened in 2006 was a gift from the People’s Republic of China.
Prior to be being handed over to Guyana in 2006, an agreement between the two countries was signed in 2004. Aside from the construction of the centre, the country also agreed to carry out repairs and maintenance after 10 years of use.
The company which received the contract to do the work was the China Civil Engineering company. Like the initial construction, the rehabilitative work was also funded by the Chinese Government.

Although based on the contract it was time for the rehabilitative work to be done, the minister said it was indeed needed because in addition to the floor, there were leaking pipes, uneven floor boards and concrete that could have resulted in injury if they did not close the facility for repairs.

Economic and Commercial Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in Guyana, Huiyong Shen, was pleased with the work that was done and even commended the contractors for working towards completing the facility on time. The facility, which is expected to be completed by May 27, will have modern meeting rooms and upgraded facilities, said General Manager Nandcomar Ramdial.

Some features of the centre that were upgraded include the entrance gate, external walls, electrical lighting panels and the washrooms.
“When the contractors started, they found a lot more structural and other types of damage in addition to the initial problems,” he explained, adding that even some new features were added, because of the new problems that were discovered.
Ramdial said some of the new items included a public address system in the meeting rooms, projectors, electronic screens, video-conferencing equipment and Wi-Fi.
In addition, the main conference hall has a new digital conference system that could accommodate three different languages spoken simultaneously and video-tracking capability, as well as 375 new chairs. Aside from the main hall, which has a seating capacity of 500 persons, there are two other meeting areas, one on the eastern side of the room which could accommodate 220 persons and another on the western side that could hold 120 people.

The facility also has a computer lab, the conference secretariat, a business centre, first aid clinic, a dining hall and a kitchen.
Ramdial said the rehabilitation has not been completed as yet, but they already have bookings from June into the first quarter of 2019.