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  • CHINA: Hong Kong uses bamboo, an ancient contruction material, to scaffold and build its signature skyscrapers

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CHINA: Hong Kong uses bamboo, an ancient contruction material, to scaffold and build its signature skyscrapers

Hong Kong's skyscrapers proudly dot its shores, giving the island its glossy, modern image. Yet the structures, which are being built higher and faster everyday, owe their identities to one of the oldest construction materials in history -- bamboo. Advances in engineering and construction have not been able to outdate bamboo -- a tried and successful material used to construct buildings in China for more than a thousand years. Till this day, light and cheap bamboo mostly from southern China, helps Hong Kong's builders sheathe entire buildings in a matter of weeks and is constantly in high demand. Tang Sung-yuen, a scaffolding works instructor at the Construction Industry Training Authority, says bamboo scaffolding has played a major role in Hong Kong's overall prosperity. "We can build (scaffold) in very narrow space and in difficult environments, and it (construction) is quick, which is suitable for the construction industry in Hong Kong. The most important thing is the low cost and that's why the industry likes to use bamboo scaffolding," Tang said. Hong Kong has around 4,000 scaffolding workers who dangle outside some of the world's tallest buildings. The skills and traits required of a scaffolder have kept the profession relatively exclusive and well paid, despite a recent construction slump. Wages range from 350 Hong Kong dollars (45 US dollars) per day for apprentices to 100 US dollars for masters or "sifu". "In the beginning, I was really scared of the height and I could not even move when working on the scaffolding. But later, I just focus on my work and now I am used to it," Said Yan Ho-yin, a student learning construction scaffolding works. The craft, which dates back centuries to mainland China, isn't exclusive to Hong Kong. It is practised across China and countries in Southeast Asia, including Thailand. A quirky story.

ITN Source | February 23, 2007Watch more videos from ITN Source

Tags:. .successful. .space. .skills. .masters. .island










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