UNITEN ICE STUDENT CHAPTER

TECHNICAL SITE VISIT TO THE KLANG GATES DAM AT TAMAN MELAWATI KUALA LUMPUR REPORT 4th March 2011

On the 4th of March 2011, Universiti Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN) Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) Student Chapter organized a technical site visit to the Klang Gates Dam located at Taman Melawati in Kuala Lumpur. A group of forty students with accompanying advisor, Dr Chua Kok Hua departed from UNITEN in the morning. We arrived about an hour later and were greeted by the representatives of Puncak Niaga Sdn. Bhd., the company responsible for managing the dam. They briefed us on the Klang Gates dam operations and maintenance. The briefing was followed by a session of Q&A. We got to know that the Klang Gates Dam is the first reservoir in Malaysia and was opened in 1959. With a storage capacity of 32,014 million liters of water, it is a water supply dam and one of the major sources of drinking water for residents in the Klang Valley. The Klang Gates dam also helps in flood mitigation. The visit got even more exciting when we were taken for a walk on the crest of the dam. Being able to see the dam from near was a breathtaking experience for everyone. Dams are something most of us see and read about in books or newspapers but there is only so much one can glean from the papers and most of us rarely get a chance to see them in person. Therefore, a trip like this offered a truly valuable experience as students were exposed to more in-depth information and insights regarding the general technical operation of a dam and challenges related to its maintenance and this is especially true for civil engineering students Overall, the technical site visit was a successful one and received a great response from many students of UNITEN. More visits like this should be carried out in the future as it proves to be a beneficial and eye-opening experience.

Figure 1: Slides Presentation by Mr. Fuad, Representative of Puncak Niaga (M) Sdn. Bhd.

Figure 2: Klang Gates Dam

Figure 3: Participants

Figure 4: Participants

Figure 5: Participants

Figure 6: Dr. Chua Kok Hua, UNITEN ICE Student Chapters Advisor gave a token appreciation to Mr. Fuad, Representative of Puncak Niaga (M) Sdn. Bhd.

Figure 7: Group Photo