TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF MOMBASA

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF BUILDING AND CIVIL ENGINEERING

BACHELOR OF TECHNOLOGY IN CIVIL ENGINEERING

A REPORT ON EXTERNAL ATTACHMENT AT DEEMAN BUILDERS LTD

PO BOX 47284 - FROM 06/06/2023-08/08/2023

PRESENTED BY;

Name: KAGURE GICHENGO P

Registration No: BTCE/340J/2021

Mobile No: 0741287000

Attachment period: 8 WEEKS

 DECLARATON

I, Kagure Gichengo, student of Technical University of Mombasa declare that this report describes
my two month stay in Deeman Builders Limited. In addition to that it describes my original work
and has not been submitted to any other institution. All source materials and pictures used while
compiling this report belongs to me and get fully acknowledged. I attest this with my signature.
NAME SIGNATURE

Kagure Gichengo …………….

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First and foremost, I would like to give my greatest gratitude to the almighty God, for giving me
so much strength to work on this attachment. My deepest gratitude also goes to the people within
DBL, but most of all to my supervisor Mr. Hariral Vekaria for giving me kind guidance throughout
my attachment period. Moreover I would like to extend my gratitude to Technical University of
Mombasa for providing such an opportunity for students to stretch their perception on how the real
world in the field of construction technology and management looks like. Finally I would like to
thank DBL for accepting my attachment request and for providing this chance.

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 EXCUTIVE SUMMARY

It is mandatory for civil engineering students to take part in an attachment program. The
purpose of the attachment is to introduce students to the actual working environment. Upon the
finalization of the practice, they will be required to submit a draft report to the university. This
report to be prepared and presented by the students covers all aspects of the works they have been
engaged in through the internship. Accordingly, this report covers my practice time at Deeman
Builders Limited for two months and it gives information on the activities carried out on the
building site.

The attachment report has four main parts. Introduction is the first part of my report, I briefly
describe the background of my attachment hosting company, including the history and objective
of the company, its main products and services, the overall organization and work flow etc. The
second part of the report briefly explains the overall attachment experience I have gained in my
practical periods. I started by telling how I got into the company, in which section of the company
I have been working in, the work place. I also explained clearly the general work flow in our site.
I tried to explain work procedures. Next to this, I briefly described the preparation of formwork,
rebars and about steps of concrete casting, including placing and compacting of concrete. The
challenges I have faced during my attachment period both site challenges and personal challenges
are also included in this report. The third part of my report briefly explains about the overall
benefits I gained from our attachment in terms of improving my practical skills, interpersonal
communication skills, team playing skills, leadership skills, upgrading our theoretical knowledge
and work ethics. Finally, the fourth part discusses conclusions and recommendation.

Keywords:attachment, civil engineering, formwork, casting, mixing, placing, compacting,

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Declaration ……………………………………………………………………………………..I

Acknowledgments………………………………………………………………………...........I

Executive summary……………………………………………………………………………II

List of figure……………………………………………………………………………...........V

List of abbreviation…………………………………………………………………................VII

CHAPTER ONE
1. OVER ALL ATTACHMENT EXPERIENE

1.1.1How I got into the company …………....…………………………………...……....1

1.1.2Project work flow ………………………………………………………….........…..1
1.1.3Work task I have been executing………………………………………….........…...5
1.1.4Site work observation………………………………………………………...……..5
1.1.5Shoring work……………………………………………………………...........…...6
1.1.5.1Preparing shotcrete ……………..…………………………………...……..6
1.1.5.2Anchoring……………………………………………..…………………..10
1.1.6Spacers ……………………………………………………..…………....................16

1.1.7Foundation work……………………………………………..…………………......17

1.1.7.1Isolated footing pad ..................................................................................18

1.1.7.2Concrete work for rectangular combined footing………….…............24
1.1.7.3Concrete work for mat footing…………………….………..................24
1.1.8Backfill and compaction…………………………………………….................25
1.1.9Grade beam………………………………………………………….................25
1.2.0Column……………………………………………………………....................27
1.2.1Shear wall………………………………………………………….….………..30
1.2.2Beam and slab……………………………………………………….................32
1.2.3Concrete test…………………………………………………..……...…...........34

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 1.2.4How good I have been in performing the task………………………………………37
1.2.5Challenges I have faced while performing the task………..………………..............38
1.2.6 Measures I have taken to overcome the challenge ………………………................38
CHAPTER TWO
2.OVER ALL ATTACHMENT BENEFITS
2.1.Practical skills ………………………………………………………………………...40
2.2.Improving theoretical knowledge…………………………………………………......40
2.3.Interpersonal communication skills ………………………………………………......41
2.4.Team playing skill……………………………………………………………..….......41
2.5.Leadership skill ………………………………………………………...………..…...42
2.6.Understanding about work ethics…………………………………………...…….......42
2.7.Entrepreneurship Skill…………………………………………………………….......43
CHAPTER THREE
3. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
3.1.Conclusion …………………………………………………………………….….......44
3.2.Recommendation ………………………………………………………………..........45

Reference…………………………………………………………………………………….......45

Student log sheet

LIST OF FIGURE
Figure 2.3 Project work flow…………………………………………………….........................10
Figure 2.4 steel Meshes ………………………………………....................................................16
Figure 2.5 Putting selected hardcore…………………………………………………………….16
Figure 2.6 Wefcho……………………………………………………………………………….16
Figure 2.7 Nozzle………………………………………………………………………………..17
Figure 2.8 Shotcrete spraying………………………………………………………………........17
Figure 2.9 Shotcrete wall…………………….……………………………………………..........17
Figure 2.10 Chiseled pile………………………………………………………………………...18

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Figure 2.11 spraying water ……………...…………………………………………………........18
Figure 2.12 Coring equipment…………...…………..……………………………………..........18
Figure 2.13 cored pile………………………………………………………………………........19
Figure 2.14 drilling ………………..…………………………………………………………….19
Figure 2.15 Grouting ducts………………………………………………………………………20
Figure 2.16 Tendon with spacer…………………………………………………………………20
Figure 2.17 Inserted strand………………….……………………………………………….......20
Figure 2.18 Post grouting ducts…………………………………………………………………22
Figure 2.19 Grouting……………………………………………………………………………..22
Figure 2.20 Grouting machine…………………………………………………………………...22
Figure 2.21 Stressing…………………………………………………………………………….22
Figure 2.22 Pressure measuring………………………………………………………………….22
Figure 2.23 Stressed pile…………………………………………………………………………22
Figure 2.24 Concrete spacers…………………………………………………………………….23
Figure 2.25 Marked for pit excavation…………………………………………………………..25
Figure 2.26 Pit excavation…………………………………………………………………….....25
Figure 2.27 Lean concrete……………………………………………………………………......26
Figure 2.28 Isolated footing formwork………………………………………………………......27
Figure 2.29 Bottom reinforcement……………………………………………………………….28
Figure 2.30 Column reinforcement………………………………………………………………28
Figure 2.31 Top reinforcement………………………………………………………………......29
Figure 2.32 Concrete casting………………………………………………………………….....30
Figure 2.33 Grade beam formwork………………………………………………………………32
Figure 2.34 Lean concrete …………………………………………………………………….....32
Figure 2.35 Reinforcement bars …………………………………………………………………32
Figure 2.36 Casted grade beam…………………………………………………………………..33
Figure 2.37 Column reinforcement………………………………………………………………35

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Figure 2.38 Column formwork…………………………………………………………………..35
Figure 2.39 Shear wall reinforcement……………………………………………………………36
Figure 2.40 Shear wall formwork………………………………………………………………..37
Figure 2.41 Slab formwork…………………………………………………………………........40
Figure 2.42 Tamping the concrete …………………………………………………………........41
Figure 2.43 Removing the cone……………………………………………………………….....41
Figure 2.44 Measuring the slump …………………………………………………………….....42
Figure 2.45 types of slump ………………………………………………………………………42

LIST OF ABBREVIATION

TUM A Technical University of Mombasa

PLC Private limited company

ISO International organization for standardization

DL Daily laborer

QS Quality surveyor

RC Reinforced concrete

UG Under graduate

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 CHAPTER ONE 1. OVERALL ATTACHMENT EXPERIENCE

1.1.1 How I got into the company

After I took an attachment application paper from Technical University of Mombasa at the end of
2nd year second semester , since I had no clue about construction companies, it was difficult to
select a good company that can help me to get good knowledge, a wide range of experience and
practical works for attachment. I asked some people who have a lot of work experience in the
construction industry and they recommended that Deeman Builders Ltd, in such regard, is the best.
Therefore I decide to submit my application paper to the head office of Deeman Builders, after
that they accepted my application letter. When I went to the site I was greeted and accepted by the
project engineer. Upon receiving me on the first day, I was given an ID for the attachment which
I used at the gates. Then he showed me around the project, introduced me to some of the employees
and explained work rules and regulations. Cooperativeness, punctuality and good communication
skills are expected from me and he added politeness is indispensable. After that I began my three
months stay at the project.

1.1.2 Project work flow

Workflow is very important for the project management of any site project. A good project
management will maximize efficient resource utilization, development of effective
communication and mechanization for resolving conflicts among participants and proper
coordination and control of the entire process.

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 Project
manager

Contract and Project Finance and

office Engineer Administration
administration
head

Site Finance
Nurse Guards
Office Quality Engineer head
Engineer surveyor

Forman Cashier
Data
collector

Assistant
forman

Daily
laborer

Fig 1.1 Project work flow

Project Manager

The project manager is the one who manages the whole project through the project site
organization. In new projects, he studies the plans before moving to the site in order to make him
familiar with the structures he wants to build. As of starting his duty on the project site, he divides
the site into manageable units or sections by assigning engineers or Forman, in charge of each
depending on type of work and work volume, and then allocates the resources according to the
needs. He gives special attention to avoid wastage of materials while allocating resources. Another
duty of project manager is preparing meetings, with different section heads for reviewing
schedules, evaluate performances, better understanding of problems and solutions, and recollection
of resources, removal of doubts, acceleration plans etc. he also briefs to his boss sufficiently before
the meeting between the client and the company representative. Closer monitoring is another
important task of the pm to check all progresses of the site activity at close range possibly every

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day. The pm also properly manage his time for all those activities to be monitored by him and jobs
regarding sub-contracts, which include selection, sub-contract agreement management, releasing
declarations relating liabilities to his contract. In general, the project manager:-

 Lead the project team; he/she must possess leadership quality and the ability to handle
complicated interpersonal relationships effective within an organization.
 The most important person for the failure and success of the project.
 Plan, organize and control the project.
 Receives authority from the management of the organization to mobilize the necessary
resources to complete the project.

Project Engineer

The project engineer controls the duties of the site engineer and submits work progress reports to
the project manager. Generally speaking, he acts as an assistant project manager.

Site Engineer

Control all the construction activities on the site starting from the very beginning. In construction
sites, depending on the schedule given by the project manager, the site engineer; Set out the site,
Check the excavation and earthworks according to specification and drawings, Check the
construction of all structural and finishing works, Make all necessary reports to the Project
engineer, including all activities on the site and materials used on the construction site. Strictly
follows the given times schedule in order to avoid any delaying on the project completion time.

In general, the site engineer:-

 Controls man power, works.

 Translate the drawing in to the earth.
 Plan modification.
 Makes sure that the work is done according to the design.
 Make decisions about work to be undertaken at particular times of the day based up on
the availability of the necessary resource of laborers, materials and equipment.

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 Office Engineer

Collect data’s by data collector from the site then compile and analyze these data’s to prepare take
offs. They makes detail drawings to be easy for construction and provide it to surveyor, Forman or
any concerned section. In general, the office engineer: -

 Prepare material lists for the project and ensuring deployment.

 Documentation
 Keeping contract documents and drawing.
 Keeping proper documents of corresponding variables order.
 Under taking other responsibilities assigned by the project manager.

Working under the office engineer, the quantity surveyor has similar duties. But the quantity
surveyors work is approved by the office engineer. The data collector assembles different reports
and compiles them into weekly and monthly reports.

Forman

 Supervise the work.

 Requisite material from store.
 Check the availability of materials.
 Organizes and directs the work done by the skilled and unskilled labors.
 Checks that the various construction works goes parallel.
 Checks whether skilled or unskilled labor, materials, is sufficient or not for the given
work schedule.

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1.1.3 Work task I have been executing

Some of the tasks that I was executing are listed below as follows:

• Observe and check Formwork construction for footing, grade beam and column
• Observe and check bar benders
• Concrete test: - Slump test
• preparing concrete spacers

1.1.4 Site work observation

Before I started my attachment the site already casted vertical piles in place, after 14-21 days of
pile casting, the bulk excavation commenced by the time of my arrival. Bulk excavation to build
the shoring wall between piles were done. The excavation was done in layer otherwise the soil
might overturn and the maximum depth for the excavation in one layer is 4m. Though the
excavation activity was not completed, the activity was almost done they excavate 11m below the
ground level. So I wasn’t able to see its full portion. But I asked and find out that the excavation
was done both with excavation machine by excavator and manually by the daily laborers as they
get closer and closer to the casted pile. After excavation excess soils which does not get backfilled
were removed or cart away from the site by trucks. In addition to that shotcrete and placing
reinforcement for shotcrete were also done for some piles but the activity proceeded for other piles,
so I was able to see some activities. The following are site works that I was able to see at the
national theater project: -

• Shoring work
• spacers
• foundation work and back fill
• grade beam
• column and shear wall
• beam and slab
• concrete test

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1.1.5 Shoring work

Unsupported excavations cause hazard to workers and structures. Shoring is a support which is
used to prevent returning of the retained soil during deep excavation which will cause a project
mishap. It is used only to support existing adjacent structure and soil during deep excavation; it is
not primarily used for the purpose of retaining the soil. We use shoring for excavation of 1.20m
and above level difference from the ground level. There are 5 different type of shoring I beam
shoring, secant pile shoring, contiguous pile shoring, sheet pile shoring, diaphragm walls. But in
our site the shoring is contiguous pile.

Contiguous pile: - It is a shoring which is composed of closely spaced pile wherein the faces of
the piles are almost touching with each other. This is used in areas where water pressure is very
minimal. This type of shoring is not recommended to use in high ground water table without
dewatering. Although water seepage between the gaps of the pile is more likely to occur when
used in water-bearing soils, it can be prevented by inserting pipes between the gaps and concreting
these gaps to form a tight retaining wall.

Shoring work involves: -

• pile casting,
• shotcreting
• Anchoring.

After pile casting and bulk excavation the following works were done step by step:-

1.1.5.1. Preparing shotcrete

1. Digging the soil walls between the piles and inserting pipes

Digging of the soil walls between the piles 20cm inside was done manually. The depth they bore
into the soil is 20 cm. After that pipes will be inserted in to the soil for drainage. These pipes
remove water that might be accumulated in the soil. In one shotcrete wall there will be at least 3
pipes the pipe length could be 1m-1.50m. Since it is inserted manually the pipes got filled with soil
so we should put it out remove the soil and insert it again. The pipe decreases the lateral water
pressure by removing the moist.

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 2. Preparing reinforcement bars and placing meshes for shotcrete

First the reinforcement bars will be prepared, their length between piles differ side to side for
example on the side of existing structure it is 1.75mc/c, in ras hotel side it is 2m c/c from the piles,
on the arcade side 1.85m &2mc/c on main road side 2mc/c so the bar grinder will cut the bar at
this length. The main reason that the shotcrete width differ is it depends on nature of the soil
(whether the soil is cohesive or non-cohesive) and whether or not there is existing structure present
near side. Because if there is existing structure the structure transmits its weight as a load to the
foundation, then the foundation imposes loads on the soil. These loads induce stress inside a soil
and results horizontal stress on the structure called lateral earth pressure. To prevent the lateral
earth pressure the width has to be short. And if the soil is non-cohesive, since non-cohesive soils
are highly permeable there will be high water seepage which will cause high lateral water pressure,
to prevent this width have to be short and there should be used with proper drainage. Then 1
horizontal bar will be inserted manually and horizontal and vertical bar will be tied to it as per
design, according to the design; for the horizontal bar the spacing is 15cm and the vertical spacing
is 20cm the vertical rebar is 15-20mm diameter and the horizontal bar is 15mm diameter.

3. Putting selected smashed hardcore behind the meshes

Selected hardcore were put behind the mesh bars for the reason to fill the void between two piles.
Also the mesh with rigid mass would interact well with small amount of shotcrete. If it had not
been for the hardcore, the void behind meshes would have required too many cement pastes.

4. Shotcreting

Shotcrete or sprayed concrete is concrete or mortar conveyed through a hose and pneumatically
projected at high velocity onto a surface. Shotcrete or sprayed concrete is applied on reinforced
bar and steel mesh. The main purpose of shotcrete is that it will prevent lateral pressure and also it
connects the two piles which increase the strength of the shoring. The two basic methods for
applying shotcrete are the dry-mix process and the wet mix process. In our site we use the dry form
of shotcreting.

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Dry mix concrete: - In this process, cement and aggregates are mixed without water and then
placed into a device which is connected to a compressor machine. Mixed material is pressured by
the compressed air and passed through a delivery hose to the nozzle where water is added under
pressure through a perforated ring. The water thoroughly wets the other ingredients as the mixture
is jetted from the nozzle at high velocity onto the surface to be shotcrete. The amount of water
added is under the control of the nozzle man. The combination of cement, aggregates and water
mixing at the nozzle create a highly compacted rigid wall mass. Equipment’s and materials
mentioned below are required for shotcrete membrane construction.

1. Shotcrete machine with capacity of spraying 5m3/hr.

2. Air compressor with minimum pressure of 8 Bars.
3. Reinforcement as per the design.
4. Dry mixed concrete material with composition of C-25 concrete.

Using equipment’s, the last activity is preparing C-25 concrete mix. It includes aggregate, sand,
cement and no water. Then this will be mixed in the mixer without any water after it has been
mixed it will come out, then they used a machine called compressor. This machine is the one that
helped us to spray the C-25 concrete by giving pressure. First the mixture was putted on cone like
structure also called (wefcho). In this machine there is a part that has cables that connect it to the
compressor which will give it pressure to spray, it also has a tube that will pass the concrete to be
sprayed and at the end of this tube there is a nozzle where water is added under pressure through a
perforated ring. Water hose is inserted into the nozzle for the water to meet the mixture at the end
because if there is no water the concrete won’t stay on the mesh it wouldn’t stack, it will fall on
the ground.

Fig 2.4 Steel meshes Fig 2.5 Putting selected hardcore

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 Fig 2.6 Wefcho Fig 2.7 Nozzle

Fig 2.8 Shotcrete spraying Fig 2.9 Shotcrete wall

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1.1.5.2. Anchoring

Anchoring is done in order to prevent the pile that was casted from collapsing. Piles anchored with
300 horizontally, anchoring is done in layer. The anchoring process is done in five steps: -

1. chiseling
2. coring
3. drilling
4. grouting and stressing

1. Chiseling

In our case chiseling was done manually both by carving the front face of pile with a flat steel
blade with a cutting edge until it hit the main bar and stirrup, and by cutting the main bar and
stirrup with welder. After the manual work has been done a machine called klemm bohrtechnik
will core the concrete therefore the next step will be coring.

Fig 2.10 Chiseled pile

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 2. Coring

After chiseling work was done manually the coring machine will start coring, since anchoring takes
place with 30 º angle horizontally, the machine start coring within 30 º angle. We need to ensure
that leveling equipment will come and level the machine. The machine started coring after a time
the machine came out and remove the concrete. The machine cores after spraying the water to
proceed the coring process smoothly in order to prevent the pile from cracking. The machine will
keep coring until it hit the pile main bar and stirrup. As I mentioned before since the machine
started coring at 30 º angle so the main bars and stirrups got a cut with 30 º angle, coring will
proceed until it hit the soil portion. The machine works on one pile at an average time of 45 minute.

Fig 2.11 Spraying water Fig 2.12 Coring equipment

Fig 2.13 Cored pile

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 3. Drilling

Drilling takes place after coring. It is used for making the anchor hole by removing the soil. It is
done up to the desired depth starting from 12m-18.5m with 30 º horizontally. The process of
drilling is the same as coring except the equipment which is used will be different but it will be
attached to the same machine klemm bohrtechink, one equipment has 1.50m length this equipment
will be attached to one another. In one round there will be two equipment attached one another.
Then it will be leveled with 30 º and start drilling. After it drills 3m another strand will attached
until the drills goes up to the designed length. The length is different from side to side. During
drilling we might have face some hard rocks in order to remove the rock we will change the
equipment by jackhammer. It will attach one to another to get the rock at the needed length .The
purpose of anchoring with angle is to ease the manual work of inserting the strands.

Fig 2.14 Drilling

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 4. Grouting

Preparing the strands: - In preparation of the strand first we have to cut the tendons based on the
design and extra longer to use it for stressing. Then we are going to prepare the ducts the ducts are
3 in number one used temporarily for fill grout the other 2 are used in post grout. The fill grout
ducts are open in both side but the post grout ducts are closed in the behind by bolt instead they
spray the paste through a perforated hole also known as injection pipe that is created at length of
40cm, 1.20m, 1.20m the 3rd duct will have the perforated pipe at the length of 1.20m, 1.20m,
1.20m. Then after we finish that we are going to cut other ducts to cover the tendons for example
if the tendon is 12m we are going to cover 7m of it from the top side of the borehole to prevent the
corrosion but one might ask what about the other 5m the project engineer told me that “it might
corrode but by the time they will be able to finish the structure and shoring is just temporary work.”
The covers is called cover sleeve pipe. After the tendons are covered the cover part is known as
unbounded the uncovered part is called bounded or stager. The uncovered part will have spacer
inserted on them. The spacer was inserted at length of 80cm, 40cm, 1.50m, 1.50m respectively this
means 4 spacers are used for each strand. The strands contain 3 ducts and 3 or more tendons based
on the design. Then the next step will be inserting strands. Strands were inserted on the anchor
borehole manually since it was drilled with a degree inserting the strand was easy.

Fig 2.15 Grouting ducts Fig 2.16 Tendon with spacer Fig 2.17 Inserted strand

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 Fill grout

After inserting strands the next step will be grouting the first grout is called fill grout and it is done
through the temporary duct. The grout is a mix of cement and water the mix design is 4bag of
cement which is equal to =200kg and 100L water that is measured through water meter (sewage
meter) after mixing cement and water in the grout machine the mix will be transferred to a barrel
like structure were then they will be pumped by pressure grout pump which is inserted into the
duct and start filling the anchor borehole starting from the back up to the front of the borehole until
it start flow over the anchor hole. After that removed the pressure pump from the duct then we
removed the duct. Since it is not tied with the strand it can be removed easily and can be reused
for other pile by cleaning it with water.

Break

It is the process after the initial settling of the grout mass approximately 4-5 hour clean water is
pumped through the secondary grouting ducts at the required pressure to remove the grout mass
that is in the perforated hole.

Post grout

This activity normally takes place after 24hour with cement paste ratio of 0.4-0.5 Water/cement
ratio = 100L/200kg = 0.5 and for post grout we won’t fill until it start to flow over rather the filling
is based on the grout machine reading until the back pressure of 50-60 bar is attained, bar is one
of the SI unit of pressure. The grout is carefully pumped to each individual duct while recording
the paste consumption and pumping pressure. Just like the fill grout the pressure grout pump will
be inserted in the second duct then start pumping the only difference is the grout won’t be sprayed
through the back hole of the duct rather sprayed through the perforated hole and used to fill the
anchoring hole from the upside. The same process will continue for the third duct grouting. At the
completion of post grouting, a curing period of about 14-21days is mentioned prior to pre-stressing
the anchors to their design load.

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 Fig 2.18 Post grouting ducts Fig 2.19 Grouting Fig 2.20 Grouting machine

5. Stressing

Stressing is a tensioning carried out after concrete attains sufficient strength. It is done on strands
14 days after grouting is done. First the sit plate will be inserted at the top of the cored anchoring
hole in the prepared spot, then the anchor head also known as block will be inserted in to the strands
the head have circular opening that can pass the strands out we used wedge to fastened strands.
Then the stressing machine will come we will give the amount of pressure we want to stress by
pushing a button. The pressure depends on the design. The machine will stress each tendon. Then
the protruding anchor strands got cut by leaving some length for a fastened area and to avoid
corrosion we can cover it with plastic cup. The grout helps tendon not to move.

Fig 2.21 Stressing Fig 2.22 Pressure measuring Fig 2.23 Stressed pile

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1.1.6. Spacers

Spacers are simple materials made from cement-sand mortar or reinforcement bar (‘cebelito’).
Concrete spacers used to keep the bar at the correct distance from the formwork and to give enough
cover for reinforcement bars. Reinforcement bar spacers made from wastage bars (ferros), the
ferroye bend them in both side and used to keep the bottom and top reinforcement separately and
keep reinforcements from overlapping.

In our site concrete spacers were manufactured with the following dimensions:

 For substructures 50mm

 For foundation 50mm

Concrete spacers were put between the form work and reinforcement bars by using metal ties which
were connected with the spacer while preparing them. These spacers retain as permanent part of
the structure when the concrete is pouring to it and after the form work was removed they gave
concrete cover for the reinforcement bars.

Fig 2.24 Concrete spacers

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1.1.7. Foundation work

Foundation is the element of a structure which connects it to the ground, and transfer loads from
the structure to the ground. Foundation is generally considered shallow or deep. Shallow
foundations include: - strip footing, isolated footings, combined footings and mat foundations.
Deep foundations include pile caps, piles, drilled piers, and caissons. The choice of foundation
over a site depends on the preliminary site investigation. Foundation provides the following
purposes: -

 To distribute the load of the structure over a large bearing area so as to avoid
overloading of the soil beneath.
 To provide a level surface for building operations
 To increase the stability of the tructure as a whole.
 To secure a level and firm bed for building operations.
 To load the bearing surface at a uniform rate so as to prevent differential settlement.

While selecting the foundation type the following points must be considered: -

 Function of the structure

 Loads it must carry
 Subsurface conditions

From the preliminary soil and site investigation, our site chooses shallow footings, particularly
isolated footings for the soils with good bearing, combined footing- where two footings are close,
they are tied to act uniformly and mat foundation.

1.1.7.1. Isolated footing pad

Isolated footing is provided beneath the column to distribute the loads safely to the soil. Selected
when loading on footings are less, when the soil bearing capacity is high and if the columns of a
building are not closely spaced. This kind of footing is used to support single column. Isolated
footing pad is the most economical footing.

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Advantage of Isolated pad footing

 Cost effectiveness
 They are easy to construct.
 Does not require skilled labors for construction
 It requires less excavation

Disadvantage of Isolated pad footing

 It may have settlement

 Weak against uplift force and lateral forces.
 It has limited capacity

In our site most of foundations were isolated footing because the soil type is very good; the bearing
capacity of the soil is very high so it is a wise choice to construct isolated footing pad. 5 steps are
followed to cast isolated footing.

1. Pit excavation

Pit excavation is done after they get the location of edges of the footing pad from the surveyor,
then the four points will be marked with chalk as well as bar will be inserted on them. The next
step will be excavating with excavator with the given depth but since it’s a machine work they
checked with the total station if the points are distorted the daily laborers will correct it by adding
some soil back or removing it from that point.

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 Fig 2.25 Marked for pit excavation Fig 2.26 Pit excavation

2. Lean concrete

After pit excavation lean concreting will proceed. Lean concrete is a concrete type on which the
footing pads, grade beams and masonry’s are placed. It is used for leveling and differentiating the
reinforcement from the underlying ground. The lean concrete used in our site has C-5 concrete
grade. It is a mix of cement, sand, gravel and water. It is usually hand mixed. To do lean concrete
the first step will be the surveyor work to check and mark the four points in the x, y coordinate.
Then a bar will be inserted at that points then the surveyor will use a levelling machine to get 5cm
for the lean cover and to ensure everything is leveled. After that a rope was tied at 5cm on the bars
in a criss cross manner to get the center, then the center is checked whether or not it is 5cm from
the ground after that the C-5 mix that was created on the site becomes in place. Combination of
lean concrete will be spread on the marked area until it touches the rope. It was done in order to
protect the footing pad reinforcement from the soil. After lean concreting is done the next step is
preparing the formwork.

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 Fig 2.27 Lean concrete

3. Formwork

Formwork is a temporary structure used to mold and hold fresh concrete and to shape and support
the concrete until the concrete reaches adequate strength to carry it’s self-weight. In Our site the
formwork for isolated footing pad mainly includes 3 materials plywood, purlin (morale), and
eucalyptus. The first thing the daily laborers did under the site engineer provision was nailing iron
bars near the perimeter of the formwork (within the working space.). Then a crachery will grasp
on to the ground and nailed in a triangular manner which was supported by the bars. After that the
oiled plywood will stand behind the marked points and the purlin which is used as horizontal
bracing (kerebat) and a vertical bracing will be nailed on the plywood at some interval and further
hold by another diagonal bracing which was nailed from purlin to crachery. The diagonal bracing
that connect the plywood to the crachery is eucalyptus. The plywood that is used as a formwork is
ready made from the factory and its height is 1.22m and its width is 2.44m. After the formwork
was done we checked the level using plumb bob (tumbi).

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 Fig 2.28 Isolated footing formwork

4. Reinforcement work

Footing reinforcement involves top and bottom layer reinforcement, rebars in the bottom layer are
provided in both directions (in the X and Y direction). They were laid with spacing as per design
requirements. Hooks were provided as per design at the end of each rebar from bottom to the top
side for sufficient anchorage with concrete. After the bottom reinforcement were done column
longitudinal rebars placed with a hook of L shape in a criss cross manner which are embedded in
the footings for better anchorage with concrete. Stirrups tied to column longitudinal reinforcement
started right from the footing and resist the shear forces in them. The next step will be preparing
the top layer reinforcement; in the top layer rebars were provided in the X and Y direction and tied
with spacing as per design requirements. Hooks were provided as per design at the end of each
rebar from top to bottom side for sufficient anchorage with concrete. Reinforcement bar spacer,
U- shaped bar called chair (cebelito) was used to keep the bottom and top reinforcement separately.
For footing pads a concrete cover of 50mm has to be left from top, bottom and sides of the rebar.
After reinforcement work concrete work will proceed.

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 Fig 2.29 Bottom reinforcement Fig 2.30 Column reinforcement

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 Fig 2.31 Top reinforcement

Inspection works

The last inspection work is done in the brink of concrete casting, to make sure everything is
according to plan .and if there is any miss-shape it would be easy to make it right. After the form
work is in place and reinforcement has been install in place, the site engineer checks if the bar has
been installed in accordance with the specifications. This is to make sure the size and number of
the main bars as well as the stirrups is accurate.

5. Concrete work

The concrete used for the footing pad is C-30 concrete. The concrete come from the batching plant.
At the top of the bar rope is used to mark and determine the concrete cover depth. Then after the
concrete passed the workability test, the concrete will be poured and a vibrator is used to eliminate
void space. The pouring continues until the concrete reach the rope then the daily laborers will
smooth it. Then the form work detached after 24hrs.

Important factors contributing to the strength of concrete:

 water cement ratio

 curing of concrete and The quality of ingredient

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 Fig 2.32 Concrete casting

1.1.7.2. Concrete work for rectangular combined footing

A footing that supports two or more column is known as combined footing. Used when two
columns are very close enough to each other. Rectangular combined footings are part of combined
footings. They have rectangular shapes and support two or more columns which carry equal loads.
The concrete used for the footing pad is C-30 concrete. The concrete come from the batching plant
at the top of the bar rope is used to mark and determine the concrete cover depth. Then the concrete
will be poured and a vibrator is used to eliminate void space. The pouring continues until the
concrete reach the rope then the daily laborers will smooth it.

1.1.7.3. Concrete work for mat footing

Mat footing is the foundation made of concrete that is laid on the ground surface to provide stability
to the structure, they are widely used in areas where basements are common. Mat foundation is
also used for low bearing capacity soil in order to spread the load of a building and to handle
heavier loads. The concrete used for the footing pad is C-30 concrete. Then the concrete will be
poured and a vibrator is used to eliminate void space.

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1.1.8. Back fill around the footing and compaction
After the isolated footing was casted, they started back fill. Back fill is to mean replacing excavated
space by selected material either from another place or from the excavated soil itself if its
engineering property is good. All materials used for backfilling shall be approved quality and free
from organic material, such as pieces of wood, roots, bushes and black cotton soil. At the national
theatre project since the property of soil was good, they used the excavated soil for back fill by
removing the courser material. The selected fill compacted by rolling compactor. Soil compaction
is a constructive part of construction process. In order to reduce voids, approved strength [safe
bearing capacity] of soil which creates safe condition for buildings, Well compaction is needed.
After back fill and compaction, since the soil property is good there was no trench excavation.
After back fill a lean concrete was sheeted in to be base surface for the grade beam.

1.1.9. Grade beam

Grade Beams are structural members of building used to carry the load coming from the
superstructure and transfer this loads to the foundation. They casted at foundation level to create
bond between footings and connect the footing column so that the isolated footing could act
uniform. Stirrups (Staffa) were placed to handle the diagonal shear force and to hold the rebars in
position. The Grade beam helps to control differential settlement. At the national theatre project
w*d of the grade beam is 30*60cm. after placing lean concrete the following procedures will
continue for grade beam work: -

1. Form work

After lean concreting formwork were placed. They used plywood form work. The oiled plywood
will be placed behind the marked point. Then purlin which is used as a horizontal bracing (kerebat)
and vertical bracing will be nailed on the plywood. Then the plywood hold by another diagonal
and lateral bracing which was nailed to the crachery (which grasp on to the ground and nailed in a
triangular manner and supported by the peg which was nailed first to the ground near the perimeter
of the formwork) called eucalyptus. Only one side formwork were placed before placing
reinforcement bars. The other side formwork were placed after placing the reinforcement bar.

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 2. The reinforcement bars

The longitudinal reinforcement were placed on a lean concrete at the top and bottom then the
stirrups were tied with the spacing as per design. During reinforcement work a concrete cover of
50mm has to be left from top, bottom and sides of the rebar.

3. Concrete placement

After the reinforcement bars were placed, concrete work took place. Concrete used for the footing
pad is C-30 concrete. At the top bar rope is used to mark and determine the concrete cover depth.
The mix comes from batching plant and became in place. The placed concrete should be compacted
very well, a vibrator is used to eliminate void space. The pouring continues until the concrete reach
the rope then the daily laborers will smooth it. Then the form work detached after 16hrs.

Fig 2.33 Grade beam formwork Fig 2.34 Lean concrete Fig 2.35 Reinforcement bars

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 Fig 2.36 Casted grade beam

1.2.0. Column

A column is a vertical structural member designed to transmitting axial compression loads with or
without moment from slab, beam, stair and other members, including its own weight to the
foundation. Procedures for column work: -

1. Column reinforcement
 The bar bender measures and cuts bars according to the required distance. This includes
the stirrups.
 Then the rebars was set in place and tied to the extended bars of the preexisting footing
column. And we make sure that we leave a length of 4 times the diameter of the bar at
the top for further extension so that we could overlap the bars of the column above for
the sake of safety.
 After the main bars were kept in place, bars will be marked with chalks in interval for
the spacing for the stirrup then they place the stirrups on the marked place and tie them
using black wire. The number of stirrup required can be calculated using: - column
height/spacing+1. During reinforcement work a concrete cover of 50mm has to be left
from all sides of the rebar.

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 2. Formwork

Checking the vertical alignment from the bottom column using tumbi and crachery which hold the
plywood in perpendicularly will be setup and nailed at the bottom. It is done by calculating the
space left for concrete cover and thickness of the plywood. Then the needed length of oiled
plywood will stand inside the crachery, 50mm away from the column reinforcement bar for
concrete cover, this space is created by inserting a spacer between the reinforcement bar and the
plywood. After that I beam is used as a vertical bracing. It will be nailed on the plywood. Then
full length was held by horizontal and diagonal supports throughout the entire length so as to
provide good stability. We used wood (crachery) for horizontal bracing and we used both steel and
wood for diagonal bracing which is called ‘stanga’. During formwork construction vertical and
horizontal alignments have to be checked using tumbi and rope (sibago) by tying from one
formwork to another respectively.

Inspection works

 Before the form work was erected the site engineer checks if the bar has been installed
in accordance with the design. This is to make sure the size and number of the main
bars as well as the stirrups is accurate.

 Then after the formwork was done it was checked for the proper vertical and horizontal
alignment by using plumb bob (tumbi) and rope (sibago) respectively.

 Besides the alignment, the formwork was checked for the intactness then the site
engineer gives the approval for concrete works started.

3. Concrete work

Column concrete casting involves the concrete mix coming from batching plant by truck mixer.
The concrete used for the column is C-40. Since these structures have higher depth, the pumping
process needs special attention. If they pump the concrete directly there will be segregation.
Because the mix will fall freely with a high speed. So they provide a tremie pipes connecting one
to another for further extension. A tremie pipe placed inside the column is used to pour the concrete
into the column. This helps the concrete from being directly pumped with high speed and prevents
occurrence of segregation and bleeding. The concrete will be poured and compacted using a

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vibrator until it reaches the needed level. Then the formwork could be removed 16-24 hrs after
pouring the concrete.

Fig 2.37 Column reinforcement Fig 2.38 Column formwork

1.2.1. Shear wall

Shear wall is a structural member used to resist lateral forces acting on it. It is very important in
high rise buildings because they are subjected to lateral loads, typically wind and seismic loads.
These walls usually begin from the foundation level.

Advantages of shear wall

 Protect the basement from lateral force i.e., seismic load

 It avoids the water from entering into the basement.

 It transmits the load directly to the ground

Disadvantages of shear wall

 It takes a whole lot of space and reinforcement; therefore it is uneconomical

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 1. Shear wall reinforcement
The wall body is reinforced by two parallel grates. Vertical and horizontal reinforcement were
placed as per drawing at both sides of wall. Between the sides of wall U- shaped bar called chair
(cebelito) is used to prevent lapping of bars. A concrete cover of 50mm has to be left from both
sides of the rebar. After that preparation of formwork took place.

2. Formwork
The construction procedure for formwork of shear wall is: -
 Plywood’s (Oiled plywood’s to make it easy to detach after molding) were placed at
both side.
 After that I beam was used as a horizontal bracing (kerebat) and a vertical bracing.
 The plywood further hold by another diagonal support (we used both steel and wood
for diagonal bracing) which is called ‘stanga’, at the base and above the stanga was
supported by ‘gendila.

 Finally check whether it is straight or not using Masson string

3. Concrete work

Shear wall concrete casting involves the concrete mix coming from batching plant by truck mixer.
The concrete used for shear wall was C-40. The poured concrete was compacted using vibrator.
Then the formwork could be removed 16-24 hrs after pouring the concrete.

Fig 2.39 Shear wall reinforcement

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 Fig 2.40 Shear wall formwork

Shear wall around the lift:- These are solid walls, which are fixed at foundation. As lift is the
part of the building which extent from the lowest level up to the highest level of structure, shear
wall around the lift shaft perimeter is used as dynamic load resistance.

Reinforcement: - Vertical and horizontal reinforcement were placed as per drawing at both sides
of wall (which are parallel to each other) in a U- Shape manner with void area for the lift
machinery. Between the sides of wall U- shaped bar called chair (cebelito) is used to prevent
lapping of bars. A concrete cover of 50mm has to be left from all sides of the rebar.. After that
preparation of formwork took place.

Formwork: - They used plywood supported horizontally and vertically by I beam and diagonally
by stanga, at the base and above the stanga was supported by ‘gendila’.

Concrete work: - Shear wall concrete casting involves the concrete mix coming from the batching
plant by truck mixer. The concrete used for shear wall was C-40. The poured concrete was
compacted using vibrator. Then the formwork could be removed 16-24 hrs after pouring the
concrete.

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1.2.2. Beam and slab

Beams are horizontal structural members that resist loads by means of internal moments and shear
forces. There are two categories of beams depending on their positions; these are grade beams and
upper floor Beams. As their name implies, the upper floor beams are the beams found above the
ground surface.
Slab is a horizontal structural element of a building which is provide a level surface, used to resist
live load, imposed dead load and its self-weight and transfer to beam. The reinforcement on the
slab includes both negative and positive bars. The positive bars are placed on the bottom stretching
throughout the whole span of the slab and used to resist positive moment at mid span. The negative
bars are placed on the top at one third of the span length and used to resist negative moment around
the support. The shear forces are resisted by the depth of the slab which is 15 cm. Slabs can be
ribbed, flat and solid. Ribbed slab is types of slab consist of equally spaced ribs and supported by
beams. Flat slab- types of slab without beam and it transfers its load in to columns directly. Solid
slabs- made of reinforced concrete and support by beam.

Steps of construction of beam and slab

 Erect props.
 Arrangement of formwork.
 Arrangement of reinforcement as per design.
 Keep spacer between the formwork and reinforcement
 Concrete casting.

1. Formwork for slab and beam

The first step in formwork construction is arranging all the props for beam and slab support based
on the desired height. Since beam has an extra hanging part (the depth of beam is greater than
depth of slab) props didn’t arrange evenly, props on the sides of beam placed appropriately lower
than that of the slab side. 1m2 area is covered by 4 props then placing of the joist made of timber
in horizontal and vertical manner proceeded. Joists placed closely. After that placing of oiled
plywood’s at the bottom on the head of joists took place. After the formwork was constructed
laying the reinforcement for beam and slab proceeded. The external side plywood shutter for beams
took place after placing of re-bar.

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 2. Bar installation for beam and slab

I. Bar installation for beam

The longitudinal reinforcement bars namely hanger and main bars were placed at the top and
bottom respectively, for the whole span between the supports. The stirrups were tied with the
spacing as per design. Then negative bars placed on the top arrest at one third of the span length
from the support, they are used to resist negative moment developed at the supports. After that
positive bars placed on the bottom arrest at the mid span, they are used to resist the positive
moment developed at the mid span of the beam. During reinforcement work a concrete cover of
50mm has to be left from from top, bottom and side of the rebar. Then the external side plywood
shutter for beams placed.

II. Bar installation for slab

Bottom reinforcement bars

When load is applied to a slab the bottom of the slab will experience positive moment (sagging).
Positive bars which includes, main reinforcement bars and distribution reinforcement bars
used to resist this moment. The main reinforcement bars should be arranged at the shortest extent
(parallel to the shorter side) of slab. The main bar is used to transfer the bending moment developed
at the bottom of slab to the beams. Distribution reinforcement bars are arranged at the longest
extent (parallel to the longer side) of slab at the top and perpendicular to main bars and used to
resist the shear stress and cracks developed at the top of slab.

Top reinforcement bars

When load is applied to a slab the top part of slab will experience negative moment (hogging) at
the support. Negative bars used to resist this moment. Top (negative) reinforcement bars are placed
on the top at one third of the span length. Top reinforcement was laid using a chair (cebelito) to
keep the bottom and top reinforcement separately. During slab reinforcement work a concrete
cover of 50mm has to be left from bottom and top.

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 3. Concrete work for beam and slab

Concrete for beam and slab is coming from the batching plant by truck mixer. The concrete used
for beam and slab is C-30. At the top of bar rope was used to mark and determine the concrete
cover depth. After that the concrete become in place. They used vibrator for compaction which
helps to avoid any segregation of concrete. The pouring continues until the concrete reach the
rope then the daily laborers will smooth it. The formwork has to wait a minimum of 21 days to be
removed.

Fig 2.41 Slab formwork

1.2.3. Concrete test

Slump test: - Slump test is used to measure workability or consistency and fluidity of concrete.
The procedure for the slump test is that first the concrete will come from the batching plant with
in the truck mix.

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Apparatuses: -

 Cone which is 10cm wide from the top 20cm wide from the bottom and 30cm height
 tamping rod 16mm diameter
 trowel
 base plate 450*450mm2. All the equipment should be clean and dry.

Procedures for concrete slump cone test: -

 Clean the internal surface of cone and apply oil.

 The cone placed on a smooth horizontal base plate, so it won’t be a problem during
measuring sample that is taken from the truck.
 The well mixed concrete filled into the cone. It will be put in to the cone using the trowel
in 3 approximately equal layers. Each approximately 1/3 of the height of the cone.
 Tamp each layer with 25 strokes of the rounded end of tampering rod in a uniform manner
over the cross section of the cone. A tamping rod have a thickness of 16mm diameter and
60cm long.
 After the cone is filled removing the excess concrete and level the surface with a trowel
took place.
 Then the cone removed from the concrete by slowly raising in a vertical direction.
 Then we saw concrete slump test result, in our case the result was a true slump so we notice
concrete subside. This subsidence refers as slump. The difference in level between the
height of the cone and that of the highest point of the subsided concrete is measured by
ruler. The subsidence measured is the slump of the concrete. In our case the result indicated
that workability of concrete was good.

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 Fig 2.42 Tamping the concrete Fig 2.43 Removing the cone

Fig 2.44 Measuring the slump

• The slump may either: - True slump: - true slump refers to general subside of
concrete mass evenly without disintegration. It is the desired form of slump and the
only reliable condition to get an idea about the workability of concrete.
• Zero slump: - this is an indication of very low water – cement ratio, which results
in dry mixes. If the concrete maintains the actual shape of the mould it is called
zero slump which represents stiff, consistent and almost no workability

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 • Collapsed slump: - the concrete collapses as soon as the cone is removed. This is
an indication that the water – cement ratio too high, i.e. concrete mix is too wet for
which a slump test is undesirable for the durability of concrete.
• Shear slump: - in harsh mixes the concrete go down in an inclined plane. It indicates
that the concrete lacks cohesion. It may undergo segregation and bleeding and thus
is undesirable for the durability of concrete.

Fig 2.45 Types of slump

The concrete demonstrates a shear or a collapsed slump is considered unsatisfactory / undesirable.

1.2.4 How Good I have been in performing the task

In my opinion I have tried my best by referring materials and trying to observe the tasks that were
executed in the site. I have tried to communicate with the workers politely, being on time and abide
by every rules and regulation of the company.

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1.2.5 Challenges I have faced while performing the task

 Communicating with laborers: Communicating with the foreman and daily laborers was
very challenging since there were many foreign languages (mostly Italy words) used as a
medium of communication.
 At the beginning of the attachment I was so confused I did not even know what to look for
since it was my first experience around site.
 It was also very challenging to relate what I have learned theoretically and the practical
experience.

 The construction site is located nearly in the opposite extreme of my house so

transportation was really challenging.
 The site work was very repetitive and cyclical .as much as repetition and cycles make things
vivid, it also has its own draw back. It took a huge portion of the apparent time over doing
the same thing again and again. For instance, the shoring work undertake months

1.2.6 Measures I have taken to overcome the challenges

1. To overcome the challenge of the language barrier I collected the words from the site engineer
and daily laborers that were being used on the site and studied the words so that I could be
familiar with engineering terminologies. Some of the site words are: -
• Wefcho: - a machine that is used to mix shotcrete mix
• Cebelito: - a U shape bar spacer also known as chair was made from wastage bars by
bending in both side which is used to separate top and bottom reinforcement as well as
keep the space between positive and negative bar and keep reinforcements from
overlapping.
• Kerebat: - horizontal bracing used to support the formwork.
• Ferroye: -someone who works with reinforcement.
• Ferro: - reinforcement bar.
• Overlap: - a re-bar that lies over another re-bar that overlap of steel reinforcement
should be 4*D of the bar.
• Plumb bobs (Tumbi):-is an apparatus used to check vertical alignments.
• Rope or sibago:-is used to check horizontal alignments.

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 • Props: - a vertical support placed beneath a slab or a beam to keep it from shaking or
falling.
• Crachery: –is horizontal erected wood which was grasp on the ground constructed
supported by bar pegs which shows the position of the formwork to be constructed.
• Stanga: - diagonal bracing used to support the formwork.
• Gendila: - a material used to support stanga.
• Staffa: - stirrup.

2. The Office engineer put a schedule for us so we work according to the schedule given to us.
Also she used to follow us.
3. I tried to revise what I have learned and try to relate to what I’m actually doing.
4. Leave early to arrive on time.

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 CHAPTER TWO

2. OVER ALL ATTACHMENT BENEFITS

This attachment program helped me a lot to improve my practical skills, theoretical knowledge,
interpersonal communication skills, team playing skills, leadership skills and also in terms of
understanding about ethics related issues. During this internship program, I have tried to practice
different skills and to understand the procedure of different construction phases and different site
terminologies.

2.1. Practical skills

In the attachment program, I got a chance to improve different practical skills such as by; relating
the construction method with the theoretical part, observation, asking the staff of the
company and sharing different information with other interns to build and improve my practical
skills.

Additionally I was able to understand;

 Construction of formwork.
 Improving our report preparation skills. Like monthly report and this final attachment
report

2.2 Improving theoretical knowledge

The attachment program was a good time for us to develop a firm knowledge on some courses that
we have taken in the past. During our attachment program, I had a chance to improve my
theoretical knowledge by applying into practical structures by referring different topics and asking
my supervisors an extra explanation on the topic that I need to understand.

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2.3. Interpersonal communication skills

This attachment program helped me in improving how to communicate with all workers in the site.
I tried to communicate with the whole staff politely and peacefully. The reason to develop such
kinds of communication skill is not to disappoint and nag other workers in the company and to
create a smooth peaceful environment. I was also very friendly with the other intern students and
we shared different ideas since we came from different learning environments. Since attachment
was our first practical experience it was tough to know the site terms so we collected the words
with other interns and tried to use them in the site to communicate with every staff workers and
other students. In my internship I was able to improve my communication skills by;

 Communicating with the staff; daily laborers, foremen, site engineers, office engineer,
and project managers with respect.
 Forwarding my questions without fear.
 Creating smooth relation.
 Sharing an information and discussion with other interns.

Generally without interpersonal communication skill, it would be really difficult to accomplish this
internship program since I gathered most of my information by verbal communication with the
foreman and the project engineer practically it is even impossible to think an internship overall
engineering field without communication.

2.4. Team playing skill

Team work is very important skill in order to achieve my goals and to cooperate with different
people. It help me to cooperate, information sharing, doing tasks, finalize assignments, help and
freely communicate with others. Main things I got benefits from team playing are;

 Developing cooperation.
 Appreciating others idea.
 Sharing information.
 Problem solving.
 Support with each other.
 Establishing strong relationships among each other to friendly communicate

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2.5. Leadership Skill

A leadership skill is the ability of managing, controlling and administering manpower and
resources within a given team and time in effective way to achieve the project goals by facing
different challenges. Leadership skill is very important for the successful accomplishment
of the project. The leaders are responsible for the tasks and activities that he/she commits.

Therefore, leadership skill is vital in my internship program. I was able to build my leadership
skill by observing how the site engineers and the project manager lead the other workers
effectively to achieve their goals and they try to be honest, fair, loyal, punctual and problem
solver.

Effective leadership include: -

 Clearly state the vision, mission and goal of the company.

 Motivating the workers to do their bests.
 Organization
 Allocate every important resource and man power.
 Improve efficiency and productivity.
 Managing and controlling the staff  Tolerate differences.
 Problem solving.
 Evaluating the construction process and the accomplishment of the tasks of their staff.
 Being model for others. These are some of the leadership skills we learned from
internship.

2.6. Understanding about Work Ethics

One of the basic laws from work ethics of different professions which we need to obey is that we
have to be punctual. So in my 3 months in the project, I was punctual. In terms of understanding
about work ethics and related issues, this attachment period enabled me to be present at
working place on time at working days and obey the rule and regulations of the company. Basic
work ethics that I was able to build up;
 Punctuality: arriving at work on time.
 Honesty: spending working hour for the project.
 Willingness to learn: Being ready to learn from every one and the conditions.

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  Initiative: being prepared to do given tasks without always being asked or told to do it.

 Responsibility: Being responsible for my tasks and is having a duty on that.

Lastly, as For a job that needs a team play work ethics is a mandatory entity in my attachment
program, this is very important for everyone in the company to be effective and more productive,
without a good work ethics there is no chance to achieve the goal of the project within the given
time schedule and it is very difficult to control every staff.

2.7. Entrepreneurship Skill

As an entrepreneur I have gotten the following benefits from the attachment program. Participating
in an attachment allows me to gain a better perspective of post-graduation employment by applying
the principles and theory that we have developed in the classroom. This practical application
creates an easier transition for me from the classroom to the working world.

While participating in this internship, I realized that creativity and problem solving is one of the
starting points of entrepreneurs. Therefore, this motivates me not to expect just to be an employee
because it enables me to know more about our career, the real challenges, and way of business
establishment in this profession. Some of the lessons I learned in this regard includes:

 How I can take information concerning the marketing behavior

 How I can be profitable with construction comprising
 Some human and material resources
 Management skill
 Good work ethics and skill

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 CHAPTER 3

3 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

3.1. Conclusion

The purpose of attachment program is to introduce Construction Technology students to the

construction environment so as to develop their theoretical knowledge to practical experience and
to introduce the real Engineering work and management system for undergraduate (UG) students.
I have seen a lot of new things, which I was not able to see in class. It was the best way to see my
theoretical knowledge and experience in the real life. Furthermore, the internship program
enlightened us on what to expect and what challenges we may face as civil engineer. It has showed
me the new world of a construction work and professional skill. It allowed me to create valuable
connection and gains a priceless experience and gave me the chance to revise what I have learned
for the past four years directly or indirectly. It was a big step in improving my communication,
team playing and leadership skills. In General;

 This attachment program helped me to know what the construction world looks like. I tried
so hard to know the site languages that were very foreign to me during this period of
attachment.
 The program enabled us to share and obtain practical knowledge from experienced persons
and professionals. Again this helps the students to be productive after graduation.
 I have known how to put what I learned in to practically solid structure by asking the
foreman and engineers at the site. It was really fascinating since it is the ultimate goal of
this attachment.

Lastly, in my three month stay in this attachment program though I have face difficulties, I gained
many things so it should be well organized and continue to be given for students.

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3.2. Recommendation

 The site use manpower to tie rebar’s which is time consuming. We recommended the
company to use DF16 – 32 rebar Tier which ties up to 1000 uniform and firmly tied knots
per hour. It saves time and offers labor relief well worth having.
 DBL has sufficient helmets, but most of site workers particularly site engineers didn’t wear
it. Since it is used to protect themselves from sudden injuries, we recommend the company
to oblige them to wear helmet.
 For the contractor, most of the time there was shortage of material on the site especially on
the shoring work to make it specific tendons, since it causes delay of work the company
should deliver this material timely.
 They didn’t use base plate equipment during slump test, since it serves to support and held
the concrete in place they should use the equipment.
 The university should make the courses to be given with practical aid so that the students
can gain clear knowledge.

References

1. Company documents containing organizational structure and brief history

2. Company website, https://www.afro-tsion.com.
3. Building and construction material handouts.
4. Reinforced concrete one and two handouts.
5. Foundation engineering hand out.
6. Foundation analysis and design, Joseph E. Bowles, 5th edition.
7. Ethiopian building cod of standard (EBCS 2 and EBCS4.)
8. Meier, R.L., Williams, M.R. and Humphreys, M.A., “Refocusing Our Efforts: Assessing
Non- Technical Competency Gaps”, Journal of Engineering Education, pp. 337-385, July
2000.
9. https://constructionor.com/shear-wall/
10. https://civiljungle.com/combined-footing/

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