The document provides a report from a site visit by a student to an ongoing construction project of 2-3 storey terrace houses. It includes an introduction to the project, objectives of the site visit, observations of construction materials and methods in use including piles, beams, columns, slabs and brickwork. Photos further describe the various components and construction stages witnessed. The student concludes it was a valuable learning experience that enhanced understanding of practical construction processes.

1. 1
SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN
Bachelor of Quantity Surveying (Honours)
INTEGRATED ASSIGNMENT :
MEASUREMENT 1 (QSB60104)
CONSTRUCTION TECHONOLOGY 1 (BLD60104)
BUILDING MATERIALS (BLD62003)
SITE VISIT REPORT
STUDENT NAME : PENNY LEUNG LING YEE
STUDENT ID NO. : 0328245
DATE OF SUBMISSION : 29TH
NOVEMBER 2016

2. Table of Content
Content Page
1. Introduction 3
2. Objectives 4
3. Content/Technical Observations 5-8
4. Photos & Descriptions 9-11
5. Learning Outcomes/Conclusion 12
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3. Introduction
On the 23rd
November 2016, we were taken to a site visit by our programme director,
Sr Ang Fuey Lin and lecturers, Ms Azrina Md Yaakob and Ms Aishah Kamarazaly. The
project for this site, namely Taman Impian Murni are 2 and 3 storey terrace houses
which are located at Lot 3607, Jalan Tanjung Balai (Lorong Haji Yusof) Seksyen 30, 40460
Shah Alam, Selangor. It is one of the project on going by the Purcon Group. There are 42
units to be built and we were told that all of these units are reserved for the
bumiputera.
On that day, we gathered at the site by 8.30am and a site briefing is given by the
engineer, Mr Yong who is in charge of this project at 9am sharp. From the briefing, we
got to know that this project costs around RM11 million and the estimated completion
time is on August 2017. Then, we were distributed a white helmet for safety purposes
and the students were separated into 2 groups before we started the tour in the
construction site.
Based on the information given, we got to know that the working scope includes site
clearance, earthwork and also construction of strip and piling as the foundation. While
construction for slabs, beams, columns, staircase and etc are the following works.
Students were encouraged to ask questions for a better understanding.
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The construction site Construction of 2 and 3 storey
terrace houses in process

4. Objectives
• To understand the basics of the construction process and witness the usage of
construction equipment’s on site including mechanical plants.
• To explore and identify various types of building materials and technology on site.
• To provoke awareness of the importance of safety on site and understanding of safety
problems and site conditions.
• To expose to actual working environment on site including uncertainty circumstances
E.g. weather
• To understand the future job scope and role in the industry
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5. Content/Technical Observations
Items in the site that are considered as a concrete frame
1. Pile Foundation
The project on the construction site where we have visited had chosen pile foundation
based on the information given by Mr Yong. Pile foundation consists of a number of
piles connected by a ring of concrete called ground beam. This is similar to a strip
foundation but not as wide. A pile is basically a long cylinder of a strong material such as
concrete that is pushed into the ground to support the structure built on top of it. There
are 2 types of pile foundations, end bearing piles and friction piles. In end bearing piles,
the bottom end of the pile rests on the intersection of a weak and strong layer. Thus the
load bypasses the weak layer and is safely transferred into the strong layer. While
friction piles work on different principle. The load of the building is transferred to the
soil across the full height of the pile, by friction, so the amount of load a pile can support
is directly proportional to its height.
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6. 2. Beams
Beams can be categorized into ground beam, suspended beam and upstand beam. A
suspended beam is a diagonal beam attached to suspended slab while an upstand beam
is a beam with larger depth for aesthetics/maintenance purposes. A ground beam is a
reinforced concrete beam near ground level. The purpose of ground beam is to link the
piles together and provide a platform for further superstructure construction.
3. Columns
A column is a vertical structural member which is designed to transmit a compressive
load. It transmits the load from ceiling or roof slab and beam, including its own weight
to the foundation.
4. Slabs
Ground floor slabs are those slabs that are poured directly into excavated area in the
ground. They rely entirely on the existing ground for support. While suspended slabs are
above-ground level slabs which are not directly in contact with the earth. They are
commonly used to create floors for the upper storey of houses, but can also be sat on
top of pre-constructed walls to form a ground floor.
5. Brickwork
Brickwork is the process of installing or restoring brick homes, walls, or other structures.
It simply involves stacking brick in even rows with mortar used to hold the units
together. Traditionally, this work involves building a double layer of brick with a cavity in
between to construct the basic shell of a house. The bricks along each row are offset for
added strength and stability, and the top and bottom of each brick is buttered with
mortar to form a tight bond. Workers rely on trowels to add mortar, and wet saws to
cut the brick to the desired size to complete each row.
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7. Materials involved in constructing a concrete framed
structure that have been identified above
1. Concrete mixes
Concrete is a heterogeneous material containing cement, sand gravel, rock aggregate
and water. The ratio of concrete is 1 : 2 : 4 (cement, sand, aggregate). First, mix the dry
ingredients and slowly add water until the concrete is workable. This mixture may need
to be modified depending on the aggregate used to provide a concrete of the right
workability. The mix should not be too stiff or too sloppy. It is difficult to form good test
specimens if it is too stiff. If it is too sloppy, water may separate (bleed) from the
mixture. There are 4 methods to test for the workability and flow value of the fresh
concrete, by slump test, compacting factor test, vebe consistometer test as well as flow
test. Based on the information given by Mr Yong, concrete grade 25 with ratio 1 : 1 : 2 is
used in the construction of foundation, beams, columns, slabs and also concrete
brickwork.
2. Reinforcement bars
Reinforcement bars or rebars are installed inside the concrete frame to carry internal
tensile forces and as well imparting strength and ductility. The amount of rebars
introduced will be used to suit specific loading requirements and thus withstand heave
forces. One important reason for placing the rebars properly is to achieve the right
amount of concrete cover. A concrete cover is the amount of concrete between the
rebars and the surface of the concrete itself. Concrete cover is important as it assures
that the rebars bond to the concrete well enough to develop its strength. The 2 types of
rebars that we have learnt are high tensile steel rod bars and mild steel rod bars. High
steel rod bars are used as main bars while mild steel rod bars are used as stirrups or
links in beams or columns.
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8. 3. Formwork
Formwork is a structure, usually temporary, used to contain poured concrete to mould
it to the required dimensions and give support until the concrete has gained sufficient
strength to support itself. A good formwork must be strong enough to withstand all
types of dead and live loads and must be accurately set out. We can see that they are
using traditional timber formwork at the construction site. The advantage of using
timber formwork is that it is lightweight and easy to work with hammer and nails.
Furthermore, it is also cheaper compared to other formwork such as steel formwork
and plastic formwork.
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9. Photos and Descriptions
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Ground beam Upstand beam
Suspended beam and suspended
floor slab
Clay and concrete bricks on ground
floor slab

10. 10
Concrete brickwall
Columns with starting bars and
timber formwork at the top
Rebars in suspended floor slab
Mesh fabric reinforcements to be
used in slabs
Concrete staircase
Side view of first floor slab with
suspended beam

11. Conclusion
After the site visit, I experienced the real working space and the environment of the
construction site which I would soon encounter in the future. I realized that working at
the construction site is not as easy as what I thought due to the uncertainty
circumstances such as weather changes especially during the rainy seasons now.
It was my first time on a site visit and it had provided me a clearer image of the
process of constructing a building. Also, I managed to understand the basics and
practical aspect of construction techniques on site. At the construction site, I could see
how a reinforcement bar and other building materials looked like. Furthermore, I could
see that workers were using the traditional method, by saw to cut the timber formwork
into the right dimensions as there is no electricity to power the chainsaw at the site. All
of these are precious experience and knowledge which I could not learn during the
lectures.
This site visit definitely got me a real life practical which had given me a good
preparation for the future as a professional quantity surveyor. In short, it was indeed a
great experience for me as I got to understand the construction process as a whole.
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