Price rise in construction materials hit school and kindergarten repair contracts

Major repairs in numbers

The financing of major repair programmes that have been in force since 2012 in educational establishments has remained unchanged in 2021 — at 3 billion rubles, said Tatarstan Vice Minister of Construction Ildus Nasyrov admitted on 7 July. The republic has spent a total of 24 billion rubles on these programmes in the last nine years. Also, new programmes have appeared: major repairs in functional areas in schools, the construction of toilets, the organisation of hot meat points. A college major repair programme has been in force since 2014.

The major repair programme implies eight types of works in schools and 10 types of works in kindergartens: facade repairs, roof repairs, window replacement, entrance repairs, concrete apron, replacement of taps, replacement and repair of engineering internal networks. Also, tents are set up, the territory is improved and fenced for kindergartens.

Last year, 172 facilities were repaired in the programme: 39 schools, 89 kindergartens, 44 functional areas in schools were renovated. This year, 213 educational establishments are planned to be repaired: 33 municipal schools, 10 special schools, 48 preschool educational establishments, restoration of a kindergarten, renovation of a municipal school.

Functional areas are repaired in 116 facilities. Works are done in four facilities within The Accessible Environment programme. The total funding is 2 billion rubles. Nowadays 51% of the works have been done. 59% of the works are complete in kindergartens.

Big repairs in schools are 71% complete, added Ildus Nasyrov. They are scheduled to end by 20 August.

Hot meals in schools

A school hot meal programme has been fulfilled since 2020. It is planned to repair 198 facilities for a billion rubles: repairs in food units, canteens, purchase of necessary equipment to organise hot meals at a due level. The vice minister noted that gas equipment isn’t used in schools and kindergartens to prepare food, only electricity, and the purchase, assembly or replacement of such equipment is included in the price of works.

Works are done in 176 facilities. 20% of them have been finished. All works will end by the beginning of the new academic year. Money for the programme is distributed in accordance with every school’s individual requests to equip hot meal zones.

Big repairs in resource centres

Since 2014, the ministry has been fulfilling a programme of big repairs at resource centres — it is organisations created in colleges. The centres were created due to WorldSkills. Their main task is to train mid-level specialists to work in different sectors of the industry and economy of the republic.

Repairs have been done in 82 establishments for about 5 billion rubles in seven years. Last year, 17 facilities were repaired for 680 million rubles. This year, nine have been for 500 million. 52% of the works are done. One facility was commissioned.

The task is to complete major works by 1 September. The vice minister noted that they mean major works because not only eight of the above-mentioned works are done in big repairs at resource centres but also major repairs — all the problems a building has will be solved. Repairs in these buildings will start in June-July because the educational process goes on until 31 May, while exams are taken in early June. All the works will end till the end of the year, the vice minister assured the audience

Also, residence halls are repaired. Last year, three residence halls for 190 million rubles were repaired. This year, it is planned to do works in six facilities for the same amount of money, three of them will have only design and survey works.

A programme designed to provide educational establishments with heated toilers has been fulfilled since 2020. 271 rural establishments have had heated toilers — toilets used to be outdoors. Now toilets are provided with water, heating.

Wood and metal become more expensive, contracts too

In late 2020, there was a rise in the value of construction materials noted the vice head of the republican Ministry of Construction. The price for metal products, round timber and other construction materials increased too. Due to this, a lot of facilities have a shortage of money to fulfil the programmes, Nasyrov noted.

He didn’t reveal the scale of the programme: at this moment, information about the shortage of construction materials is being collected, a report will be sent to the republic’s government. After that, measures allowing finishing the works will be created.

For the same reason, the ministry started to prepare regulatory acts to be able to increase the value of contracts by up 25% without tender if further financing of facilities is possible.

“A construction contract used to include fixed digits, now we are waiting for changes in regulatory acts. The issue is considered in the Russian Ministry of Construction,” Nasyrov claimed.