[Inside Chodong] LH's Lack of Management and Supervision Led to the Rebar Omission Crisis

The nationwide issue of ‘rebar omission’ at apartment construction sites commissioned by Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) was ultimately caused by a ‘comprehensive failure’ in all processes from design to construction and supervision. Including the Incheon Geomdan LH apartment where the underground parking lot collapse occurred last April, the situation was serious enough that rebar omission was confirmed in 16 out of 92 complexes.

On the 31st of last month, LH officially apologized and bowed their heads. They also stated that they would take responsibility and carry out reinforcement work to alleviate residents’ concerns. However, they still showed ambiguous positions regarding the direct accountability for the cause of the incident.

LH pointed to the causes of rebar omission as either structural calculations not being properly done, or even if calculations were done, the omission in the design drawings, or omissions during construction due to communication issues with the site. They also announced that disciplinary actions and legal measures would be taken against the design, construction, and supervision personnel responsible for the omission of essential design and construction elements such as shear reinforcement bars.

However, LH itself cannot be free from responsibility. In fact, it should bear the greatest responsibility. As the client, LH instructed the use of the problematic flat slab structure to build the buildings (parking lots). Moreover, this project was carried out at 92 sites over six years starting from 2017.

LH had the obligation to give final approval on the design documents and to review and propose alternatives together with the construction companies. Yet, it is hard to accept that they knew nothing until the collapse of the Incheon Geomdan LH apartment occurred. At the very least, if they had thoroughly inspected the site immediately after the collapse accident at the Gwangju Hwajeong I-Park, which was under construction with a flat slab structure last year, they might have identified the problem.

The flat slab structure requires a more advanced construction method than wall-type or column-type structures. It consists of columns and slabs (concrete ceilings), where the slab’s load is transferred to the foundation through the columns, and it is made up of non-load-bearing walls rather than load-bearing walls. Therefore, perfect execution of design → construction (including materials) → technician skill level → supervision is essential. Only then can safety be guaranteed. Leaving this solely to the construction company is risky.

In the past, poor design and construction of flat slab structures have directly led to major disasters. Numerous casualties occurred in the collapses of Sampoong Department Store (1995), Nasan Department Store (2008), and Gwangju Hwajeong I-Park (2022). For this reason, LH should have established a system to manage and supervise these projects internally and examined them meticulously.

Fortunately, the Incheon Geomdan LH apartment, where the underground parking lot collapse occurred, was still under construction, and the accident happened in the early morning hours, so it did not result in casualties. However, if the collapse had occurred after residents moved in, a terrible accident could have happened. It is a great relief that the problem was discovered before occupancy without any human casualties.

LH is a public corporation under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. It carries out dozens of projects related to the stability of citizens’ housing every year. Naturally, it is in a position to be involved in various issues. Each time, LH has called for identifying causes and preventing recurrence. They have done so again this time. We hope that LH will prepare a comprehensive innovation plan to strengthen management and supervision as the client to ensure that these calls are realized.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.