BUILDING TECHNOLOGY

JAMAHIRIYA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (JUST)

Faculty of Engineering
Department: Civil Engineering

BUILDING TECHNOLOGY (CE412)

BY:
ALI MUSSE HASSAN
2021
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 Objectives

➢ To assess the general suitability of the site with the proposed works

➢ To determine possible delays that may arise during construction period due to ground
and other local conditions

➢ To predict possible changes that may occur/cause of all changes in site condition

➢ To identify special problems and concerns

➢ To maximize potential of the site

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 Site investigation & Type of ground

➢ Site Investigation is the gathering of the information about the proposed location of a
project, e.g. highway or buildings.

➢ It is important to conduct a site investigation to determine whether the proposed land is

suitable for its intended purpose.

➢ This will generally include sub-surface ground investigation (GI), which needs to be
focused on the particular project needs and unknowns.

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 Main forms of site investigation
There are two main forms of investigation: The desk study and The physical or site study

Desk study:

The desk study is the first stage of the site investigation process which involves researching the site to gain
as much information as possible, both geological and historical.

➢ Before even venturing onto the site it is possible to find out a great deal of information about the land
being considered.

➢ By consulting geological maps of the area it is possible to determine the predominant type of soil or rock
for the land being considered.

➢ Desk study can save time and resources directed toward primary data collection in the field. 4
Desk study investigation

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 Physical or site study investigation

➢ It will also be useful to note the orientation of the land (i.e. in which direction it faces) the prevailing
climate in the area, the direction of wind speeds, the level of rainfall, the amount of frosts in the area and
the amount of sunshine and average daytime and night-time temperatures.

➢ Much of this information can be obtained from a desk study before arrival on site.

➢ It is also important to walk over the site and note the general topography (i.e. the shape of the land) and
changes in level of the land.

➢ If the land has previously been developed it is important to discover whether any services or old
foundations remain on the land.
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 Type of the ground

➢ The type of ground that the building is being constructed upon can be basically
classified into two categories:

➢ Rocks – hard, rigid and strongly cemented deposits with a high loadbearing capacity,
but difficult to excavate.

➢ Soils – soft, loose and uncemented deposits that are easier to excavate than rocks, but
generally have a lower loadbearing capacity.

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 Type of the rocks

➢ Rocks are generally of three distinct types:

➢ Igneous rocks: These are formed by the solidification of molten material. They have the highest
loadbearing capacity, which is 2–3 times that of sedimentary rocks and 25–50 times that of soils

➢ Metamorphic rocks: They are hard, but subject to faults that can allow movements, which can affect the
stability of any building constructed above them.

➢ Sedimentary rocks: These are formed by deposits cemented in layers or strata. The quality of the rock is
dependent upon the quality of the cementing material. Large cavities can be caused by the passage of
water through soft rock.
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 Soil information
➢ Soils consist of individual mineral particles that surround spaces or voids.

➢ These voids may be filled with air or water.

➢ The mineral particles can support load and resist shear stresses.

➢ The water in the voids can support some load but cannot resist shear stress and may be
squeezed out of the voids under heavy pressure.

➢ Air in the voids cannot support load and will be squeezed out of the voids under
relatively light pressure.
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 Soil information
➢ Topsoil will generally make up the top 150–300 mm of soil on a site.

➢ This soil contains a large amount of decaying plant matter and is also highly
compressible.

➢ Although it is good for growing plants in, it is not suitable for bearing loads.

➢ It must therefore be removed and stored on site for later landscaping purposes before
construction work can commence.

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 Soil investigation

➢ Soil Investigation or geotechnical investigation is a procedure that determines the stratigraphy (study of
rocks) and relevant physical properties of the soil underlying the site..

➢ Information from the desk study and the site walk over should provide useful information concerning the
nature of the ground on the proposed site.

➢ Where the land has previously been built on it may well be possible to ascertain the nature and
engineering characteristics of the ground without further costly investigation.

➢ Further information on the type of ground and its engineering characteristics will need to be obtained
from tests on the ground itself.
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 Purpose of soil investigation
➢ Selection of the type and the depth of foundation suitable for a given structure.

➢ Evaluation of the load-bearing capacity of the foundation.

➢ Estimation of the probable settlement of a structure.

➢ Prediction of lateral earth pressure for structures like retaining walls.

➢ Determination of potential foundation problems (for example, expansive soil, collapsible soil, and so on).

➢ Establishment of ground water table

➢ Establishment of construction methods for changing subsoil conditions.

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 Excavation

➢ Excavation is the process of moving

earth, rock or other materials with
tools, equipment or explosives

➢ Excavation is used in construction to

create building foundations.

➢ construction is one of the most

common applications for excavation
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 Excavation
➢ Before foundations can be prepared for the construction of a building, excavations will
need to be dug to accommodate them.

➢ The size of these excavations will be dependent on three factors:

✓ the type of ground;

✓ the type of foundation;

✓ the type of building.

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 Excavation

➢ In every construction project, whether it be residential, commercial, or

industrial, excavation service is crucial.

➢ It serves many purposes, especially on the foundation.

➢ Before excavation can commence the shape of the building needs to be established on
the site and the position and depth of excavations needs to be ascertained.

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 Setting out
➢ It is the process of developing the physical positions of corners and walls of a building, and it’s done by
transferring dimensions from the layout plan (also called as setting out plan, separation plan) to the
ground.

➢ Setting out involves transferring details of the positioning of the building from a drawing onto the site.

➢ It requires a number of setting-out lines and pegs.

➢ The pegs are positioned away from construction activities in order to ensure that they remain
undisturbed.

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 Setting out

➢ This can be set out by taking offsets (measurements at 90º) from the road.

➢ Corners of the building are denoted by pegs, which are set out by use of surveying
instruments, such as a theodolite.

➢ A favorite technique for establishing a right-angled corner with the use of a tape is to
use the 3–4–5 rule. This uses Pythagoras’s theorem that a triangle having two sides of
three and four units length, respectively and with a hypotenuse of five units length,
must have a right angle that is opposite to the hypotenuse.
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Steps of setting out

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Steps of setting out

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 Excavation
➢ Most excavation undertaken on building sites nowadays is carried out by machine.

➢ Hand excavation is extremely slow and expensive and particular care needs to be exercised with the
safety of construction personnel within excavations.

➢ However, there may be certain situations where hand excavation is more suitable than excavation by
machine.

➢ Excavations are often required for residential or commercial projects to bring the land to the right level
to build foundations and structures on.

➢ There are three main types of excavation on building sites:

➢ General earthmoving, Trench excavation and Bulk excavation. 20

 Excavation
✓ General site clearance operations such as removal of vegetation and rubble.

✓ Stripping of topsoil and mounding it for later use in landscaping operations;

✓ Reduced level dig to reach the formation level for the start of construction;

✓ Cut-and-fill operations where the topography of the site varies.

➢ These operations require a machine that can move soil, vegetation and rubble from a
relatively large area and either push the material into a mound in the corner of the site.

➢ The depth of excavation is relatively shallow and not likely to exceed 300 mm. 21
Equipment of excavation

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 Trench excavation
➢ Trench excavation involves digging in long lines. The depth of the excavation is
generally greater than its width.

➢ On housing sites trenches are dug for the installation of linear foundations or service
pipes and cables.

➢ The depth would generally not exceed 2 m and the width would generally not exceed
600 mm for residential development projects.

➢ Suitable machines are the backhoe, a tractor with a rear bucket having a mechanism
similar to the human arm. 23
Trench excavation

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 Bulk excavation

➢ This involves deeper and wider excavations than those required with trench
excavation.
➢ On a residential development project this form of excavation would be used for the
construction of single-storey basements.
➢ Bulk excavation mostly using by machine.

➢ If the excavation of the basement is not too large, a backhoe may be able to undertake
the excavation, otherwise a backactor would be used.

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 Earthwork supports

➢ Earthwork supports are used to retain the sides of the excavation to prevent them from
collapsing during the period of the work.

➢ Safe conditions for any construction personnel to work within the excavations;

➢ Prevent damage to adjacent structures that could be caused by the excavations;

➢ Enable work to proceed within the excavations without interruption.

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 Factors need to be taken into consideration
➢ The nature of the soil – generally non-cohesive soils require more support than
cohesive soils do
➢ The depth of the excavation – shallow excavations need less support than deep
excavations
➢ The method of excavation – hand excavation will require more support than machine
excavation
➢ The moisture content of the ground – soils will require different amounts of support
as changes in their moisture content occur

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COMMENTS

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