Quality in Construction

Designer specifies the grade of concrete to be used and contractor has to use the in gradients of concrete such that desired grade of concrete is obtained.

Quality in construction is related to

• satisfying the specification mentioned in the contract
• completing the project time.
• Fulfilling the owner's requirement within budget
• Avoiding disputes claims and
• Ensuring the faculties performs its intended purpose.

We use certain product in the construction industry such as tiles, brick. Quality of these products can be partially related with the general connotation of quality. Other aspect in quality has slightly different meaning at various stages of life cycle of product such as at design stage or   construction stage.

Safety Management

Safety is one of the vital issues in the success of the project . Safety programme ensures the worker to be mentally and physically prepared to execute a job quickly, fearlessly and efficiently. Safety is a way of life. It must be part of every individual at every time during performance of any activity.

Working in a fearless protected environment makes the team to be more productive and efficient. Safety is an important parameter to measure a project, as cost of implementation and time of completion of the project. Although every manager, supervisor, worker accept their safety requirement, but it is by-passed by just lip service. Construction is highly accident prone industry.

In India, construction industry is labour intensive, with unskilled and untrained worker. Fatal accidents and minor accidents are very frequent. For example, it has been reported that more than two people died in the construction of dam like Bhakhara-Nangal project.

In out country, in construction work, a large number of inexperienced laborers are employed. They are unaware of the hazard during their work and generally the company hardly make an effort to explain this worker's inherent risk involved with the job. Medical check-up of the workers is not carried out before engaging them in the construction work.

Also, many accidents occur due to the use of improper tools and equipments. Improper methods and processes are used to cut the time of execution. Such as scaffoldings are not properly made, ladders are not checked properly. Many a time poor quality of safety belts are used, which gets broken during accident.

Earthwork

Soil is one of major construction materials used for the construction of road, embankment, earthen dam. We construct the infrastructural facilities on the soil. Construction engineer has to involve with soil with various object. The process of excavating the soil, transport to the other place and placing it is called Earthwork. Quantities of Earthwork varies from millions of cubic meters to 100 cubic meter. Like in the excavation of open mines to obtain coal require the removal of 200m to 800 m of soil from the top which is a gigantic amount whereas construction of building with spread footing requires few cubic meter of soil. Earthwork primarily involved the following process.

1. Excavation of soil or shifting of the soil.
2. Loading, transportation and unloading of soil.
3. Placing and compacting of the soil.

Depending upon the quantity of work, site conditions availability of recourses these works are carried out by various method and equipments. We shall first discuss the equipments required to execute the various earthwork.

                                                           Excavation
Soils are required to be excavated at site for various purposes . Some of the purposes of soil excavations are –

1. Removal of soil to level the groun. Example, cutting of hill.
2. For filling the ground at other places –making embankments.
3. For making structures such as footing or laying pipes, etc.