construction Archives - Kamra tal-Periti

PR 03/26 | KTP Council completes investigation into the partial wall collapse in Bulebel Industrial Estate

With reference to the press release issued on 18^th March 2025, the Council of the Kamra tal-Periti hereby gives notice that it has concluded its investigation into whether the partial wall collapse that occurred last year in the Bulebel Industrial estate was the result of professional negligence.

On conclusion of its investigation, the Council determined that the collapse was the result of incorrect sequencing of works by the contractor, including the failure to infill and seal the perimeter walls, which were designed to support a slab before being cast.

The Council also noted that the project was characterised by poor workmanship in other areas, most notably mismatched wall joints near one of the corners of the site, due to the failure to build level masonry courses.

From the evidence gathered, it is amply clear that the collapse did not occur as a result of negligent designs or instructions, or more generally due to any professional negligence on the perit’s part.

Indeed, the Council observed that the correct execution of works falls under the exclusive responsibility of the contractor and/or licensed mason, and that it is not the perit’s remit to perform quality control of works on construction sites, as this would constitute a conflict of responsibilities that would transfer the liabilities of the contractor onto the perit, and violate basic principles of impartiality and independence.

In view of the above, the Council unanimously resolved to close this investigation.

26/03/2026/by Kamra tal-Periti

PR 03/25 | KTP Council opens investigations into Sliema and Bulebel incidents

The Council of the Kamra tal-Periti wishes to inform the public that two days ago it opened investigations into the widely-reported incidents that occurred in Sliema and Bulebel constructions sites. This is standard procedure for the Council, which has decided to disclose the opening of these investigations due to the public interest that has arisen around these particular cases.

The purpose of the investigations is to establish whether there were any professional short-comings by warrant holders involved in the projects.

It is pertinent to underscore that the opening of an investigation should not be construed to constitute findings of malpractice.

21/03/2025/by Kamra tal-Periti

PR 02/25 | A historic achievement for the Kamra and the profession

Earlier today Minister Jonathan Attard formally appointed the Kamra tal-Periti as its lead consultant in the drafting of the National Building and Construction Codes of Malta.

This is a historic milestone for the Kamra, after having campaigning incessantly for the implementation of its A Modern Building and Construction Regulation Framework for Malta first published in draft form in 2019, during the rapid succession of building collapses in various towns of Malta.

Through today’s agreement, the public sector and the industry stakeholders will be brought together to work towards a shared objective – that of implementing the recommendations regarding the building and construction codes outlined in the Sofia public inquiry report and adopting European standards and best practices over a period of three years.

The formation of the National Building Council, which brought together the two principal industry stakeholders, KTP and MDA, brought with it a spirit of ambition and determination to turn a page as quickly as possible on the negative perception the industry carries and shoulder responsibility for driving the necessary change forward.

The Kamra is honoured to have earned the trust of the Government and the industry stakeholders in taking the lead on such an important and delicate task. It is committed to living up to the expectations that are being placed on it.

Read the KTP President’s speech during the signing ceremony

28/02/2025/by Kamra tal-Periti

Circulars

CIR 07/24 | Periti declarations in support of contractors’ licence applications

Many Periti will have been approached by contractors asking them to sign a declaration confirming their competences in support of their application to receive a licence to operate as contractors.

Schedule I of S.L.623.09 (Construction Industry Licensing Regulations) stipulates that all workers engaged in demolition, excavation or construction should possess specific qualifications in the respective activity “or hold any other qualifications or experience which the Committee considers to be equivalent or a suitable alternative to this qualification”.

While courses in demolition and construction do exist – leading to the masons’ licence – there is no formal qualification for excavation operatives as yet.

Thus, the BCA and Contractors Licensing Committee have approached the Kamra to discuss whether, as an interim measure, we would agree to introducing a system wherein periti would provide a reference confirming the skills of contractors.

It was clear to the Council that without our agreement to such a proposal, the entire industry would seize as very few contractors, if any, would be eligible for a licence without the alternative system being proposed.

The Kamra thus agreed to the concept in principle and proceeded to draft the wording for the eventual declarations published by the BCA.

The wording was crafted to ensure the following:

The declaration made by periti are limited ONLY to the works execution they have direct experience on.
Periti employed by or otherwise directly connected to contractors would not be coerced into signing declarations they do not feel comfortable with or which compromise their independence and integrity, and to ensure that they are not placed in a position of conflict of interest.

The statutory requirement is that contractors demonstrate the skills listed in Schedule I (and the forms) in at least three projects over a period of two years.

The Kamra was assured that this is an interim measure and will be replaced with formal training of workers as soon as practicably possible. We are also working on this through the National Building Council, which is a joint-venture between KTP and MDA.

The Council recommends that periti exercise their professional judgement in signing these forms, crossing out any parts they feel are not applicable to their direct experience be upheld. It goes without saying that you should refrain from signing such declarations if your personal experience of the contractor’s work is inadequate.

You are entitled to charge fees for the signing of such declarations.

In case of difficulty, please do not hesitate to contact the Council through our usual channels.

Perit André Pizzuto
President

Print version

27/09/2024/by Kamra tal-Periti

Letter to the Prime Minister

PR 06/23 | Kamra tal-Periti finalises its investigation into GO Exchange incident

Reference is made to the Kamra’s press release of 15^th February 2023 wherein it was stated that it was opening an investigation into the incident that occurred in the site located in Psaila Street Birkirkara formerly housing the GO Exchange buildings to establish whether there any potential breaches by any of the periti involved in the project has occurred.

The Council had stated at the time that “[i]t is pertinent to underscore that the opening of an investigation does not imply any wrongdoing and consists in a fact-finding exercise to establish whether any professional malpractice did indeed occur. If the Council determines that there is a potential breach, the perit or periti involved will be afforded the right to exculpate themselves as provided for in the Periti Act.”

The Kamra tal-Periti is now in a position to announce the conclusions of its investigation:

The demolition method statement did not instruct the contractor to execute the works as illustrated in the videos widely reported in the media;
The contractor failed to follow the demolition method statement;
The contractor failed to adhere with the instruction given on site by the STO on Thursday 9^th February 2023 in agreement with the perit-in-charge to clear the site from demolition debris to allow the setting up of a mobile crane within the confines of the site before any further demolition works were carried out. This instruction was issued since discussions were underway between the perit-in-charge, the STO and the contractor on modifications to the method statement requiring the use of a mobile crane;
The contractor appears to have decided to hastily proceed with the demolition works over the weekend as he sought fit in defiance of the instructions given by the STO instead of granting the time to the periti involved in the project to finalise the amended method statement;
Moreover, the site manager failed to enforce the provisions of S.L.623.08.

The Council has thus determined that its investigation against the periti involved in this project would be closed since no breaches of the Periti Act were established. It is regretted that the Building and Construction Authority did not cooperate with the Kamra’s investigations.

22/09/2023/by Kamra tal-Periti

PR 01/23 | Kamra tal-Periti calls for real and effective deterrent for contractors

On Saturday 11^th February 2023, the Council of the Kamra tal-Periti opened an investigation to establish whether the incident that occurred in the site located in Psaila Street Birkirkara formerly housing the GO Exchange buildings gave rise to potential breaches by any of the periti involved in the project, including the perit in charge of the project and the site technical officer.

It is pertinent to underscore that the opening of an investigation does not imply any wrongdoing and consists in a fact-finding exercise to establish whether any professional malpractice did indeed occur. If the Council determines that there is a potential breach, the perit or periti involved will be afforded the right to exculpate themselves as provided for in the Periti Act.

Regardless of any professional shortcomings, no perit, whether acting as perit-in-charge or STO, can possibly control unscrupulous cowboys with questionable competence at the wheel of heavy machinery toppling over buildings into public spaces as witnessed in Psaila Street.

The fact is that the professional conduct of periti is heavily scrutinised, and rightly so. The Council of the Kamra takes its disciplinary role very seriously and will process this case employing the principles of fairness and due process to safeguard the periti being investigated as well as the public interest.

This contrasts sharply, however, with the scrutiny of contractors. Those involved will suffer no consequences for their actions as not only is there no comparable disciplinary procedure for contractors to that of the Kamra, but there is not even a licence to lose.

Without a deterrent of a real and effective punishment, the industry is overrun by anarchy, which is tempered solely by the goodwill of those periti, developers and contractors who feel a moral and ethical obligation to uphold standards against all odds.

15/02/2023/by Kamra tal-Periti

PR 01/22 | The 74th General Meeting of the European Council of Civil Engineers convenes in Malta to discuss the challenges of Climate Change

The 74^th General Meeting of the European Council of Civil Engineers convened in Malta this morning. This was the first time this prestigious European federation convened in person since the COVID-19 pandemic began in early 2020. The event was organised with the support of the Ministry for Public Works and Planning.

Opening the general meeting, the ECCE President Engineer Andreas Brandner stated that the COVID and the war in Ukraine have caused serious disruptions to the production and shipping of materials across Europe resulting in significant inflation.

Brandner also remarked that the effects of the failure to maintain and upgrade critical European infrastructure, including water, transport and sewage systems, to cut public expenditure is becoming increasingly apparent. The measures that many European governments are now adopting, driven mainly by lobby groups, are resulting in an exorbitant waste of public funds. The ECCE president called for a more holistic approach in this regard.

Andre Pizzuto, President of the Kamra tal-Periti and host of the four-day event, spoke of the critical role of built environment professionals, and in particular civil engineers in addressing the climate emergency. Pizzuto remarked that “during these past two years, as members of society became more sharply aware of the vulnerability of humanity on this earth, the impetus to address the impending climate emergency gained renewed urgency.”

Pizzuto referred to research publications pointing to the fact that “Malta’s energy demand over the next thirty years is projected to grow significantly, as its population continues to also grow at a fast pace. By the end of this decade, buildings will account for over 50% of the energy demand. A further 30% will be consumed for transportation.”

“The dominance of cars in Malta, with 6 cars for every 5 inhabitants, further exacerbates the unsustainable energy demand in our country,” he warned.

The KTP President called on the European Commission and national governments across Europe to strengthen the engineering profession by affording it the recognition it merits and providing the necessary legislative and regulatory infrastructure for engineers to meet the challenges posed by the climate emergency in a safe and sustainable manner.

“Nobody in their right mind would have considered liberalising and lowering standards in the regulation of health professionals during the peak of the health crisis we have just been through. Then why does the Commission think it is appropriate to continue advancing the notion that dropping standards in engineering is appropriate in the midst of this environmental emergency?” he asked.

In his opening address, Minister for Public Works and Planning, Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi said that the Government, mindful of the challenges affecting the construction sector, mainly where human resource management is concerned, will be introducing new laws aimed at improving regulations in the field including those on the licensing of contractors and improving the skills of all workers in the sector. Once adopted, these laws will boost the quality and standards of the construction industry. The Minister added that it is also vital that a safe development process is also energy efficient and considers the needs of the public, particularly the end consumers. He stated that it is time for the Civil Engineers’ profession to take a more leading role in the planning and design processes. They need also to contribute towards helping the country to reach its net-zero target and climate action programmes. Minister Zrinzo Azzopardi stated that a healthy community in a resilient economy will look at these disruptions as an opportunity for change, a change for the better.