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are left in position for a long time however, such as shoring, nylon withstands the weather better than bamboo lashings.
The author recalls taking a group of building students, in 1957, on to what was then an open building site in Central District, where the Furama Hotel now stands, to see an exhibition of tubular steel and aluminium scaffolding. Some people prophesied at the time that, before many years would pass, western style scaffolding would replace bamboo. Others, wisely, shook their heads. The author recalls as a fairly typical example, in the late 1980s and the first half of the 1990s, when many buildings along Conduit Road were pulled down and rebuilt. In almost every case, bamboo scaffolding was employed, even for buildings of 40 storeys or more. Little western style scaffolding was to be seen.
Reasons for the popularity of bamboo scaffolding are several. 26 Most contractors in Hong Kong do not have builders yards and bamboo, unlike steel or aluminium scaffolding, can be stored on a hillside with little risk of being stolen. Also, after scaffolding has been dismantled, bamboo does not have to be cleaned and oiled like steel scaffolding. It is, in other words, maintenance free and can, on average, be reused three times. Poor ventilation and dampness in storage are major factors to watch for and bamboo should not be left lying in direct contact with the ground.
Bamboo scaffolding is also flexible, and light and fast to erect. Although figures quoted naturally vary depending on conditions, a trained scaffolder, with a mate or mates to hoist the bamboo, can erect up to 20 'wells' of single scaffolding, or nine wells of double scaffolding, a day. Since the intersecting uprights and horizontal members resemble the Chinese character for a 'well'(井), scaffolding is usually costed in units of 'wells'. A well is nine 'empty' squares, divided by lengths of bamboo, with an overall size of about 10 feet by 10 feet. At lower levels however, naturally, because it is easier to climb up and hoist the bamboo, work proceeds faster.
Accidents
Bearing in mind the high-risk factor, in the old days especially, before becoming a scaffolding apprentice one would find out if one's
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