WOLAITASODO UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGNEERING

INTERNSHIP PRACTICE ON WOLAITA SODO TOWN MUNICIPALITY

PREPARED BY – HAILEYESUS BERHANU

ID NO – ENG/R/0566/09

MENTOR’S NAME – ASHEBIR (MSC)

APRIL 2021

WOLAITA SODO ETHIOPA

 Declaration of the Student
This Practical Work (Internship Report) is submitted by the fulfilment of the requirements for the
Internship Program at Wolaita Sodo University. I honestly declare that this is my original work and all
sources of materials used in this Report have been acknowledged.

I declared that this internship report has been submitted by me under the guidance of my mentor Eng.
Ashebir assure that the report contains actual events and facts that I observed and performed during
my internship practice program. All the contents are mine and have not been submitted to any other
institute or university.

Name………………………………………….

Signature…………………………………………

Date……………………………………….………
 Advisor Approval Page
This is to certify that the internship practice on building construction Wolaita sodo town municipality
by Haileyesus Berhanu Eng /R/0566/09 under my supervision. Therefore I recommend that the
students have full filled all the requirements of the program and he can submit to the department for
open defence.

Ashebir (MSc.) ……………… ………………..

Name of Principal Advisor Signature Date

 Acknowledgement
First of above all I would like to thank my almighty God for giving me lovely family & helping me to
attend and accomplish my internship program with my friends, all professionals and workers in peace
and in good relationship.

Then I would like to thank Wolaita Sodo University industrial linkage office and department of civil
Engineering that have prepared this program & helped me to have a practical knowledge over my
courses.

I also wish to express my deepest gratitude for Wolaita sodo town municipality for giving me this
chance to do my internship in one of the site in Sodo town.

I would like to thank my Advisor instructor Ashebir for helping me to use my internship program time
effectively and to develop practical knowledge based on giving me that construction site question these
as much as possible carried out by practicing on saint Mariam church under wolaita sodo town
municipality

I also like to thanks site engineer (Getachew), Forman (Mohamed S), project manager (Kokeb T).

Finally; I want to say thanks for everything that all Professionals & workers whom found on saint
Mariam church site did for me and for my friends.
 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

My final internship report is an outcome of the exercise I conducted during my internship period stay at
different sites.
Wolaita sodo town construction office is organization in construction industry that has been engaged in
various civil engineering constructions such as different level of buildings and roads works
construction. The main responsibility of this office was performing their works efficiently and
effectively as per their agreement with consultant and client parties.

I have started my work on sub structures on my site I allocated. But I tried to visit another sites to see
supper structures like beam and beam.

Chapter one: briefly describes the back ground of my internship hosting company. Including the
history and objectives of the company,its main products and main customers of its products and the
overall organization and work flow of the organization.

Chapter two: briefly describes the overall internship experience, knowledge that I have gained during
my practical work. I started by telling how I could get into the company, in which section of the
company I have been working in and the work piece. I have tried to explain the procedure step by step
starting from each construction work. Next to this how good I have been in performing my work
task .Lastly, I described about the challenges faced and their corresponding measures.

Chapter three: briefly describes about the overall benefits I gained from my internship in terms of
improving my practical skills, interpersonal communication skills, team playing skills, leadership
skills, upgrading my theoretical knowledge and work ethics.

Chapter four; I have put conclusions about project work and recommendations for Wolaita sodo
university.
CHAPTER ONE

1. BACKGROUND OF THE HOSTING COMPANY

1.1 Brief history of the company

Wolaita Sodo town construction and design office is one section of sodo city municipal office. It is also
mandated with huge responsibilities of providing myriad economic and social services to protect the
health, safety and welfare of society. They are responsible to determine the minimum national standard
for the construction and modification of the buildings or altering of their use in order to ensure public
health and safety.

They have many sub-organization of construction among those Wolaita Sodo Town Construction
Office hip.

Back ground of WSTCO Consulting, Architects and Engineers

WSTCO was established in 2008. Ever since its establishment WSTCO Consulting, Architects and
Engineers business was shown its development in a short period of time through hardworking of the
staff members. WSTCO controls all construction activities in the town. Fields of specialization
building office covers the under listed fields of specialization and the company also involves in any
developmental activities and research works.

• Building construction

• Preliminary investigation and feasibility studies

• Architectural

• structural Engineering

• Environmental management and infrastructure projects

• Contract administration

• Training and technical aspects

Objectives of the Company

The followings are the general objectives of the company.

• Constructing buildings and related schemes

• Constructing water works

• Implementing designed constructions

• Constructing multi story buildings

• Constructing site works

• Installing mechanical, electro mechanical and electrical line

• Constructing drainage lines

• Constructing irrigation structures

• Constructing real state house.

Vision of the Company

To be an international Engineering and Architectural consultancy firm known for professional and
business integrity.
• To see the people of Ethiopia at large get standardized infrastructure by rendering quality study,
design, and construction supervision and consultation services and be cases’ and proficient
enterprise in east Africa
• To become competent in the construction and other similar sectors undertaking to have better
contribution in the area.
Mission of the company
Construct high standard and quality buildings in the town.

To create large amount of job opportunities for skilled and unskilled labour who lived in the town
and the country as whole.

Goals of the company

Keeping its level of growth step by step to undertake different construction activities
• construct building of various standards for government, public and private sector through
competition
• Construct bridges and to undertake different activities in water, telephone, and electricity
services.

• Main products or Services

The company is contractor of government. It gives building construction permission license for both
government organizations and private owners.

• It checks and approves different designs

• It follows and controls design implementation whether it is based on the design approved or not

• It gives maintenance and painting works license

• It gives license for building use

• It controls illegal constructions

• Its Main Customers or the end users of its products or services

The main customers of this company are the society weather the project is governmental or private.
The major activities in which the company has engaged are the following.
 • Building construction

• Other related constructions.

• Design works.

• Town’s people

• Private owner

• Consulting firms

• Housing association

• Project Organization and Work Flow

Any project no matter how big or small the scale requires a well put together organization and work
flow that is suitable to nature of the project. This may depend on,

• The time required to finish the project

• The number employees involved

• The scale of project

• The type of project

• The location of the project site

• Construction department
 General
manager

Human Technical
Finance head
resours head

Construction Plan and Material

department equipments purchase

Project
manager

Project
Site engineer Purchaser
coordinater

Tread
forman General
forman
 CHAPTER TWO

OVERALL INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE

How you get in to the company
As an engineering student theoretical knowledge and practical knowledge plays a great role to get
knowledge full and a fruit full person on his profession for development of one country in construction
industry and others, so the ministry of education prepares away to develop interaction between
university and industry to upgrade practical skill of the student. Due to this, university industry linkage
plays a great role in gaining of practical knowledge by sending the student in to any company having
on going construction project.

First of all, we were searching for best industry or company which invites us to apply what knew in the
academicals classes for the last few years. As a result; we had select various companies before starting
fourth year in terms of some criteria such as:

• The service they give to the customer,

• The activities and business they run,

• Its overall capability and its rank or level of business,

• Its project qualities.

The second step of our internship was getting to know the total environment around the construction
area. It started with introduction to the staff members, from the project manager to site engineers,
office engineers, supervisors and formans. We can say everyone around was willing to accept us as part
of the construction crew. They have helped us a lot in building our confidence, and answering any
unclear aspects toward the projects.

The company has a good work flow from the project manager up to the daily labour. This makes us
think that we are very lucky to work at Plant construction plc.

.
 In which section for the company you have been working in
During the internship period my tasks were; observing, discussing and practicing about different site
works. This includes:

1 Observing discussing about different sub and super structural parts of the structure

2 Deeply understanding the procedures followed in the site during construction

3 Obeying the rules and regulations of the company

4 Punctually arrive at the site etc.

Honestly speaking no work division was given me from the company manager ato aregaw
tamiru.Rather he tells me that to do each and every works in the company. Accordingly I try to work
on going works that the company works. Actually the company have its own working division but the
company manager didn’t give any working division because I am not a regular worker. But each
section department’s workers they try their best to share their knowledge for me.

And I have spent my most of my time with site Engneer Getachew . Also I work with steel workers
and carpenters these are the section that I participate during in my apparent working experience.
How does the flow in the section look like
While performing our tasks at the site, we have watched how everything is going in steps, and
how each task is done by its own working procedure. In this section of our report we will try to
describe some of the procedures we have performed while performing our work task. The work
flow has the procedure written below

General Manager

Finance
Forman

Workman’s

Daily Labors

Which work piece or work task you have been executed

As an intern student, I pay attention for every working section to upgrade my practical skill by
comparing with the theoretical skill, so I have the following working section during my internship
period;

• In site work
• As a site engineer
• As a Forman
The first activity I could have done was introducing myself to the company workers then then on the
next day I directly participate with the site workers and I begin to see the basic working method of site
works like preparation of formwork for footing pad, footing pad preparation installation of column etc.
Then when the day goes I try to touch each working divisions like steel installation and carpenter work.
The steel installation workers were good and they are perfect on working experience so I try to share
them my knowledge and instead of this they share me the real or the practical working experience

What procedures you have been using while performing you work tasks

Before I go to site I try to guess the type of work going to be executed on that day and
read references from my lecture’s note and another reference book This thing helps me to share my
knowledge for them and instead of this they share me a better practical knowledge from them without
any boring
When we enter in to the site, the site guards check our wearing condition and safety materials for covid
19.so that I tried to be prepared by wearing masks and other protective materials .Then my second
thing was creating a good relationship with the company workers after I have a good platform of
relationship my working condition becomes safe. Then try to share my knowledge that I get from the
campus and they share me the practical working experience.. And this method helps me to know and
compare the practical work and the science. Another procedure that I used to follow was writing each
working information each day in my note book and compare with my friend who work on another site
How good you have been in performing your work task
When I check my working performance I was punctual in working time and I have good
relationship with my coworkers of my company this makes easier my working. communication with
company’s management workers. And sometimes instead of simply asking questions first I try to
participate the work equally with them after this the workers becomes much willing to share their
knowledge to me this method of approach was the best method to know the detail thing of about the
work.
 What challenge you have been facing while performing your work tasks
The challenges we have faced during internship are depend on covid 19.and inflation on purchasing
construction materials so the company could be stagnant for some weeks
Challenges related with covid 19
Offices were closed so this make difficult for office works
Working together was impossible
Cost of transportation was doubled
Employees were minimised
The time required to finish the project and time for practice did not match this resulted in the lack of
time to observe the whole structural part of the building

Challenges related to increase in cost of construction materials

Unexpectedly the cost of construction materials like cement, reinforcement bars and other related
materials tripled sour site could not progress the work.
What measures you have taken in order to overcome this challenge
So, challenges need solutions (measures) to continue the normal work progress. But my measures were
to develop for site and office works. The following are some measures taken

Wearing safety materials like masks and glove

Staying at home and reading books related to my internship

Washing my hands regularly using soap, sanitizers

Limiting the number of people entering the site etc. are the measures taken to overcome the obstacle of
corona.

The second problem was inflation. As I said above my site has stopped due to the increase in cost
materials so I could change my site and search for active sites which purchased materials before the
inflation .This decision created a good opportunity to see another superstructures which I cannot find
on my site

CHAPTER THREE
OVER ALL BENEFIT GET FROM INTERNSHIP
3.1. In terms of improving my practical skills
During my internship period I improved my skill by relating the different construction methods with
the theoretical knowledge. In this internship period we have exposed our self to different practical
skills and asking to learn more since our skills developed through time. So we were able to know:
• How to bring the sciences to an actual work.
• Working with different types of construction materials like: - panels, reinforcement
bars...etc.
• Working with different types of machineries used in the site such as: -
• Vibrator: used for compaction of cement mixtures and to avoid air bubble in
the concrete
• Mixer: used for mixing cement, sand and aggregate
• Erecting column
• Tying stirrups
• Placing masonry stone
• Smoothening the surface of casted concrete
• Structural Aspects
• Preparation of concrete
• Comparing of structural drawings and built structures.
• Erection of false work and formworks
• Spacers production….etc.
 3.2. In terms of upgrading my theoretical knowledge
We have been able to gain a great deal of knowledge in this internship experience. Among them
we will try to mention some of them. They are

• Learning the different application in building construction.

• Learning and reading different manuals that were used as guidance. These manuals
stipulate why and how a type of house type should be adopted.
• Observing different construction works their importance in the theory of a house.
• Observing some of the structures has widened our knowledge on such construction work. We
had been able to differentiate the different parts that are in building. On these kinds of subjects
they needed an extra effort to understand the components on them.
• Learning different kinds of construction machineries and their use in real life.

Generally, for the development of theoretical knowledge practising in construction site is the superior
option

3.3 In terms of improving interpersonal communication skill

 Interpersonal communication skills are the skills we use every day when we communicate and
interact with other people, both individually and groups They include wide range of skills, such
as listening and effective speaking .But particularly asking questions is a vital part of
understanding and the way of gaining knowledge through this information and ideas are
exchanged. Regard to this communicating with every staff member is unavoidable. I had to ask
and work with different people who had different levels of skills and expectations. So in order
to perform any activities one should communicate wisely and effectively. Good communication
and coordination among these participants is essential to accomplish the overall goals of the
project. Interpersonal communication is person to person interaction that includes the sharing of
information and feelings between individuals (in small group) that establish trusting
relationships. So the internship opened some window on the world of communication to like;
• Understood how to communicate with all workers with respect to their level of
responsibility
• Understood how to work with friends and share personal skills and knowledge
• I improved my ability to respect others’ idea
• I improved my ability of sharing each other’s feelings
 • Developed the habit of listening and challenging ideas of peoples at any level
position
• Listening and tolerating ideas of others even if it is not acceptable
• Communicate with an open mind and understanding.
• 
• 
• 


3.4. In terms of Improving Our Team Playing Skill

In construction there are different sections of work starting from the carpenter in the site to site
engineer and to the site manager they all work together to build one building and all labours in the site
are divided in different teams. They have a leader to manage and contact the site-engineer so; team
work plays a big role. Also most of the tasks we completed had assigned as group duty.

This thing helped us to develop our team playing skills to the extent; such as

• Functioning as an active participant

• Sharing ideas openly and willingly
• Trust among team mates.
• Showing commitment to the team.
• Treating each other in a respective and supportive manner.
• Looking beyond our own piece of work and care about the teams overall work.
• Sharing knowledge and experience.
• Saving time for the implementation and completion of the project.
• Coordinating, motivating and organizing skill of different people.
• Communicates constructively
• Listens actively
• Functions as an active participant
• Shares openly and willingly
• Cooperates and pitches in to help
• Treats others in a respectful and supportive manner etc.
3.5. In terms of Leadership Skills

Leadership is the process of influencing individuals or groups to accomplish an organizational goal or

mission. The working environment is also carefully designed. The company has good way of handling
the workers during their stay so, we had learned about the leadership philosophy of the company. Such
as:-

• Workers should feel that their position is the best alternative or they have to appreciate
their work.
• To illustrate the works to be done for the workers
• To order the workers in a polite manner
• To hear the problems raised by the workers and solve their problems
• To make sure the working environment is safe for the workers,
• Leadership needs to be being patient, wise confident and effective communicant.
• Leaders have to be punctual than other labours.
• Advising and encouraging the workers to be punctual, transparent & responsible.
• Ability to handle interpersonal relationship of labour effectively within an organization
• Communicates constructively
• Listens actively
• Functions as an active participant
• Shares openly and willingly
• Cooperates and pitches in to help
• Treats others in a respectful and supportive manner etc.

3.6. In terms of Work Ethics

Work ethics is important to create a good working environment & it is the basic behaviour one should
have in doing his job and fulfilling responsibility. This involves attitude, behaviour, respect,
 communication and interaction; how one gets along with others. If one fails to respect the work ethics
he will be punished according to the rule of the company.

The company has its own rule and ethics regulation, some of the basic work ethics we learned in the
internship period includes: -

• Punctuality
• Reliability
• Cooperation
• Initiative
• Self-discipline
• Self-responsibility
• Protocols
• peacefully treating employees

3.7. In terms of Entrepreneurship Skill

Work experience, interest and acquired skills are fair evidence of our ability to succeed in a new
venture. Skilled entrepreneurs have what it takes to pursue their dreams and acquire their objective.
We have a way of surviving the tough situations. We must remember to take regular breaks from
work which will ensure that we do not burn out quickly

Entrepreneurship is a special human talent that helps manage those factors of production such as
labour, machinery, capital and takes risks of making loses. It is the act of being an entrepreneur or
one, who understand innovations, finance and business acumen in an effort to transform: -

• Participating in an internship help us to gain a better perspective of post-graduation

employment by applying the principles and theories we had developed in the classroom. This
practical application creates an easier transition for us from the classroom to the working world.
• While participating in this internship we realize that creativity and problem solving is one of
the starting points of entrepreneurs.
• This internship motivated us to be employee because it enables us to know more about our
career, the real challenges, and way of business establishment in this profession.
breaks from work which will ensure that we do not burn out quickly. Most successful
entrepreneurs exhibit the following entrepreneur skills;
 Entrepreneur skill- Strategic and communicative
Communication and delegation entrepreneurial skills will help us to muster the abilities
and efforts made by our team members.
 Entrepreneur skill-Make snap and right decisions
Entrepreneurs have this innate ability to make clear and concise decisions in a short
frame of time. This entrepreneurial skill ensures that our decisions are intuitive,
calculative and made without emotions that could have an adverse effect. This ensures
there is a reasonable chance of succeeding at the task on hand. Superior conceptual
abilities help them to function well in chaotic and complex situations.
 Entrepreneur skill-Organized and planned behavior
Organization and planning are strong entrepreneurial skills. This will enable us to set
achievable goals, maintain stringent work schedules and manage time effectively.
 Entrepreneur skill-Be financially wise
Strong financial knowledge is an entrepreneurial skill that will help the person to
understand and better the financial conditions of the business.
 Entrepreneur skill-Market yourself and the business
Selling ideas and products is an entrepreneurial skill that cannot be undervalued.
Appealing presentations, direct selling whenever there is a need and determining sales
quotas accurately are tasks that entrepreneurs must be able to achieve.
  Entrepreneur skill-Get to know your customers
Being customer oriented is an entrepreneurial skill that helps them to satisfy the needs of
their customers.
 Entrepreneur skill-Be adaptable
Ability to adapt and change to a new environment is an entrepreneurial skill that decides
the outcome of success or failure in a dynamic environment.
•

The major characteristic of entrepreneurship

• Self-confident multi-skilled
• Innovation
• Result-oriented
• Risk taker
• Total commitment
Generally, entrepreneurship process is the composition of five basic things.

• Ability to see work opportunities and recognizing their type.

• Ability to change these work opportunities to business

Persistence to continue in the business

• Ability to work in strategic way

• Ability to understand & accept if there is possibility of loss or any problem

 MATERIALS AND METHODOLOGY

2.1 Construction Equipment and Materials

2.1.1. Construction Equipment
The contractor used different equipment at different stages of the construction process as needed.
Some of the equipment are;
a. Mixer

b. Vibrators

c. Wooden box

d. Barillas

e. Strings

f. Plumb bob

g. Tape

 Mixer- is equipment which is used to mixing concrete and mortal

• Vibrator- is equipment used to remove air (void space) in the concrete

• Wooden boxes-are used to measure the aggregate and sand to the correct ratio
to get the needed concrete strength.
• Barilla-is used to transport concrete to proper place.
• Strings- are used to align straight lines and to keep centre lines of all works.
• Plumb bob- is used to check whether the formwork is straight or not.
 • Tape- is used to measure the dimensions of the formwork according to the
design and drawings.

2.5.2 Construction Materials

Materials we used at the construction work are;
a. Concrete

b. Mortar

c. Steel bars

d. Formwork

e. Spacer

f. Hard rock

a. Concrete- is stone like the major material that obtained artificially by mixing the mixture
of cement, aggregate materials (fine and coarse) and water. It is known for its high
compressive strength. After the mix has been cast, it will take 7 days to get 2/3 of full
compressive strength, 28 days to attain its 95% compressive strength and gradually
within 3 to 5 years get its full compressive strength.

b. Mortar
Mortar is a mixture of cement fine aggregate and water. On the site it used in the masonry work
and HCBs construction. It has a mix ratio of 1:3; this means for every one bag of cement we used
3 box of sand with the appropriate amount of clean water.

C. steel bars

Steel bars are rounded steel with different size of diameter and shape used in reinforced concrete.
Steel bars are capable of resisting both tension and compression about 10 and 100 times
respectively of common structural concrete.
 A wide range of reinforcing bars is available with nominal diameter ranging 6mm to 35mm.In
our site work with diameter of 8mm, used for stirrup and, 12mm, 16mm, 20mm etc. Used for
foundations, beams, and columns per structural drawing.
The number, dimensions, length, shape and bending of the reinforcement bars is according to the
design, drawings and specifications. It is done with adequate bending tools. All bars with cracks
and splits at the bend are not used for construction.
D. Form work
Formwork is a temporary support for casting of concrete. It is designed, and constructed in
timber or metal and capable of resisting the live and dead loads imposed on it and fully
preventing leakage of concrete.
Formworks are designed and constructed so that the concrete can be properly placed and
thoroughly compacted and the hardened concrete matches to the required shape, position and
level. Formwork is so constructed that it can be stripped from the hardened concrete easily
without hammering or without shock or vibration in order to protect the concrete or reduce labor
cost. In order to achieve this, it’s inside surface is coated with a release agent like burned oil.
 Use a releasing agent like plastic sheet on plywood surface to ;
 Facilitate the removal of the formwork.
 Prevent the concrete adhering to the face of the formwork.

The internal dimensions of the formwork should be equal to the dimensions of the concrete work
intended to produce] and all dimensions are carefully checked by the site engineer. Form work
should be removed only after the concrete has attained sufficient strength so that there will be no
noticeable deformation or damage to the concrete.
Strip formworks as soon as it is safe in order to facilitate maximum reuse of forms. Striping
(dismantling) time of formworks for different structural parts differ.
Columns..................................16 hours
Slabs.........................................28 days
Beams.......................................21 days, and
Types of formwork used on the site are;
1. ply wood
2. Steel panel

In our site we only used ply wood form work.

1. Plywood
 Ensures quality surface finish and is especially recommended in works where large exposed
areas of the concrete.
 We used in our site for foundation columns, elevation columns, beam, and for other
structural part of the building.
2. Steel panel

Although steel shuttering costs more initially, it may work out to be economical in the long run
due to its large number of reuses.
The advantage of steel formwork
 It is stronger, more durable and has longer life.
 It can be put to sufficient large number of reuses.
 It can be installed and dismantled with greater ease and speed.
 The quality of exposed concrete surface obtained by use of steel form is excellent and
most of the time it need no further treatment.
 There is no danger of the formwork absorbing water from the concrete and hence the
chances honey combing are minimised.
E. Spacers
Spacers are used to maintain uniform thickness of cover to reinforcement in substructure and
superstructures which were reinforced. They were pre-made at the site by using plain concrete
with its required dimension of cover to reinforcement.
That means different size spacers were used for different parts:
 For footing 50mm
 For column and beam 25mm
 For slab 15mm
 Spacers were put between the formwork and reinforcement bars by using metal ties
which were connected with the spacer while preparing them. These spacers remained as
the part of structure after the formwork was removed and gave cover for the
reinforcement.

Fig; 6. Concrete cover placement

G. Hard rock

Hard rock is stone, sound and approval quality, used for hardcore. This stones are approximately
equal and recommended size and have sufficient strength to carry all the loads from ground slab.

2.6. Site works

2.6.1 Sub structure
Sub structure is the lower portion of the building which transmits the dead load, live loads and
other loads to the underneath sub soil.

Foundations
Classification of foundations.

Shallow and deep foundations.

Shallow foundation are found near to the finished ground surface are used where surface soils
are strong and stiff

Types of shallow foundation

- Isolated footing

- Combined footing and etc…

In our site we had constructed shallow foundation which is isolated footing.

 Isolated footing; is footing which is provided beneath the column to distribute the loads
safely to the bed soil.
 Fig; 8. Isolated footing.

 Combined footings; are constructed for two or more columns when they are close to
each
2.6.1.1 Earth Work and Excavation

2.6.1.1.1 Bulk Excavation

It is excavation done to level the surface; it is mostly done when there is uneven surface or if the
surface is dump. In the instance of no limits being established or no permanent structure, the
working space shall be determined by the Engineer but shall not exceed 500mm of working
space on either side of the limits of the area to be excavated. It is excavated based on the soil
properties of the site.

2.6.1.1.2 Pit excavation

It is deep excavation made for footing, this excavation is done after bulk excavation and used to
place the footing. Once the footing work is done we fill the rest by selected fill material. When
Pit excavation is done we leave 20 to 30cm work space to make insure that the worker do their
work freely. It has a depth of foundation, depth of the footing pad and 50mm of lean concert is
add on the pit before any foundation work is done.
The depth of pit excavation can be found from survey data and design and depend on bearing
capacity of the soil.
Generally the depth of excavation depends on;
 Topography
 Type of soil

Fig; 10. Pit Excavation.

2.6.1.1.3 Trench excavation:
Trench is a channel like structure that is excavated for building of a masonry wall. It has a width
of equal with the base of the masonry wall including a working space in each side of the
dimension giving the surface area of the volume to be excavated and a depth according to the
designer need.

Fig; 11. Trench Excavation

2.6.2 Manufacturing of Concrete in the site

2.6.2.1 Concrete Ingredients

Concrete is composed mainly of three materials, namely, cement, water and aggregate.
2.6.2.1.1 Cement
The main purpose of cement is to stick the different ingredient of the concrete each other.
 Stored separately from other items.

 Should be free from dampness, due to whether or ground conditions.

 Type of cement should be selected; we use ordinary Portland cement (OPC).

Type of cement
 OPC (Ordinary Portland cement)
 PPC (Portland Pozzolana cement)

2.6.2.1.2 Sand
Sand is the main gap filler between aggregate, since aggregate have irregular shape as the result
they do not fit each other, to give good strength and workability for concrete.
The quality of sand is tested by their silt amount if it has silt content of greater than 5% it not
applicable for work. Quality of sand should be pure sand that doesn’t mix with any type of soil,
should have average minimal size that is determined by sieve test.
 Fig; 12. Sand.
2.6.2.1.3 Aggregate
Aggregate is another important component that contribute the large portion of the mix, it
contribute more than 50% of the total content and contribute lot for the strength of the concrete
by developing interlocking force between aggregate and increase the shear strength of the
concrete.
 The characteristic of the aggregates greatly influences

 The properties of the concrete

 Mix proportion of the concrete
 Economy of the concrete
 Consist of naturally occurring sand, and basaltic stone gravel.
 Should be clean, hard, strong, sharp and durable.
 Have to be free from excessive dust, silt and harmful materials like iron, mica, shale.
Fig; 13. Aggregate.
2.6.2.1.4 Water
Main purpose of water is to create bond between the concert components any doubtful quality of
water should be submitted for laboratory analysis and tests. Water without any mixture like fit
for drinking is generally suitable for making concrete. If harmful substances are with large
amounts are present in water such as salt, oil, industrial wastes, alkalis, sulphates, organic matter,
silt, sewage etc. It is not good for concrete.
Water used in concrete mixes has two functions,
 The first is to react chemically with the cement, which will finally set and harden.
 The second function is to lubricate all other materials and make the concrete workable.

In general, the presence of impurities in the curing water doesn’t have any harmful effects,
although it may spoil the appearance of concrete. In our site they use relatively good water
quality for concert work and for a given ratio of the cement, sand and aggregate.

Fig; 14 Water tank of our site.

2.6.2.2 Concrete Composition
The three ingredients of concrete are combined to give a hard and monolithic solid that would
take the form of the container (formwork). For the concrete to meet its intended purposes its
ingredients have to be good quality and sufficient quantity, because they affect chemical and
physical properties of concrete.
The objective in proportioning concrete mixtures is to determine the most economical and
practical combination of readily available materials to produce a concrete that will satisfy the
performance requirements (design) for the particular conditions of use.
. In our site mostly used concert type is C25 concrete for sub structures and super structures, the lean
concrete grade was C5.
• C 5 (lean concrete) with a mix ratio of 1:4:6.

• C25 ( beam and column) with a mix ratio 1:2:3.

For practical the composition of concrete should be satisfy the following properties to having good
quality for construction:
• When freshly mixed it is workable enough for economical and easy
uniform placement, but not excessively fluid.

• When hardened it possesses strength and durability adequate to the

purpose for which it is intended.

• Economical consistent with acceptable quality.

2.6.2.3 Concrete Mixing

Mixing of concrete materials should be done thoroughly to ensure the uniform distribution of
materials in concrete mass & this can be judged by consistency of concrete.
Steps for mixing of concrete using mixer
 Make the inside of the mixer clean

 The sand and course aggregate and the cement are to be mixed in dry state for at least 10
turns, so that the ingredients shall be mixed thoroughly.

 Add sufficient amount of water until it reaches the required workability. Usually the
amount of water is predetermined for each and every mix design.

 The mixing operation shall continue until the cement is thoroughly distributed throughout
the mass and shall last at least two minutes or 14 turn of the drum after the whole of the
water added.

The aim of mixing these materials in measured ratio amounts to make concrete that is easy
to: transport, place, compact, finish within its given compressive strength and which will set,
and harden, to make it strong and durable product.
  Grades of concrete

 C5 (lean concrete)-to protect the structural concrete from damage and to give level surface.

 C25- for totally supported structural elements such as beam, column.

 Properties: - Concrete has two types of property i.e. at its fresh and at hardens condition.

Properties of fresh concrete Properties of hardened concrete

 Can be molded in to any shape  Cannot be molded in to any shape

 Workability( ease with which concrete is  Strength(it has high compression

placed and consolidated) strength)

 Uniformity (the concrete is mixed  Durability

thoroughly i.e. all ingredients are evenly
distributed in the mix )
 Shrinkage(reduced in volume)
 Consistency(degree of fluidity of the
mixed concrete)  Creep(continuous deformation of a
member under a sustained load)

Table; 1. Comparison between fresh and hardened concrete

2.6.2.4 Placing, compacting and vibrating fresh concrete

2.6.2.4.1 Placing of concrete
The operation of placing and compaction are interdependent and are carried out simultaneously.
The main objective is to deposit the concrete as close as possible to its final position so that
segregation is avoided and the concrete can be fully compacted.
2.6.2.4.2 Compaction of concrete
During casting of concrete, it should be thoroughly compacted so as to form a dense
homogeneous mass properly worked around embedded fixtures, reinforcements and into the
corners of the formwork. Concrete placed and subsequently compacted has to be left undisturbed
by any movements or thrusts while setting at least for 12 hours. Once the concrete has been
placed, it is ready to be compacted.
 It is important to compact the concrete fully because:
 Air voids reduce the strength of the concrete.
 Air voids increase the concrete permeability as a result reduces its durability.
  Moisture and air are more likely to penetrate to the reinforcement causing it to rust.
 Fully compacted concrete is dense, strong and durable; badly compacted concrete will be
porous, weak and prone to rapid deterioration.

2.6.2.4.3 Vibrating
Process of compacting fresh concrete by applies energy to make air trapped in it can then rise to
the top and escape by using equipment called vibrator but manual techniques such as rodding are
only suitable for smaller projects. If energy put in by the vibrator is bigger the vibrators do the
job faster and the depth of the concrete is thick sections take longer time. As a result, the
concrete becomes consolidated, and you are left with a good dense material that will, after proper
curing, develop its full strength and durability. If the concrete is not vibrated well the concrete
segregate and result poor concrete finish.

 Segregation

Segregation is separation of the coarse aggregate from the mortar or the water from other
ingredients, the equipment and method of handling and transporting concrete should be selected
according to the placing condition. Segregation can also result due to improper filling method.
 Bleeding

Concrete must be compacted to have higher density, strength and durability before it hardens, the
objective is to eliminate air holes and achieve maximum density which leads to higher strength.
Compaction can be done with hand or vibrator. Excessive vibration can result in bleeding
concrete. The rising water tends to carry with it many fine particles which weakens the top
portion and in extreme cases form scum over the surface.
 2.6.2.4.4 Curing Concrete
Curing is the process of keeping the concrete moisture to enable it to gain full strength, hardness
and other desirable properties. This is done for the purpose of preventing the loss of initial water
and increasing the strength of concrete with age. We have used 7 days for curing, by applying
water directly to the concrete. Moisture is necessary for the proper hardening of concrete
because the chemical action which results in the setting and hardening of the paste takes place
only in the presence of water. Normally the amount of water used at the time of mixing is
enough for this purpose, however, the loss from evaporation from the concrete is mixed and
placed is usually so rapid that there may not enough of it left for full hydration and hardening.
Excessive loss of water due to evaporation may cause the hydration to stop all together with a
consequent reduced strength development. In addition, if concrete dries out too quickly by
exposure to sun and wind, it will shrink. This early and unusually rapid shrinkage will result in
tensile stresses which will lead to surface cracks.
Therefore the purpose of curing is to:
 Prevent formation of surface cracks due to rapid loss of water while the concrete is fresh
and weak.
 Assure attainment of strength by providing enough moisture for the hydration of the
cement grains throughout the concrete.

2.6.3 Super Structural Works

2.6.3.1 Column Work
Column is reinforced vertical structure which is transfer the axial load to the foundation (earth).
They are vary in size and shapes .such as, in shape
 Rectangular column-is used in many buildings know a day and easy to work and cheap.
 Circular column-is used for architectural purpose

In our site of construction uses rectangular columns only. The size, in area, decrease throughout go
up ward to the building, in the case of decreasing dead load of the building. The reinforcement and
bar diameter used in one column to the other are also variable, based on load they hold. In the
column the stirrups are used to tie the longitudinal bars and to improved ductility. In our site the
stirrups of columns are all single. The column must be connected with the footing (for foundation
column) or the beam (for elevation column).
The two mostly used columns are:

1. Foundation columns: - rise from footing and continue up to grade beam. Its purpose is to
transfer load to the ground surface. The depth of each foundation column is 2.3m below the
ground level in our site. The reinforcement of foundation column and the reinforcement of
the footing pad have great connection.
2. Elevation column: column which is found above the ground level at each floor.

The step we observed in aligning the columns are as follows;

1. Cut the bars of various diameters to suitable length as per the structural drawing.
2 .Bend bars of stirrups shape the column area as the structural drawing shown and put bars
through the stirrups in proper position.
3. Erect the longitudinal bars connection by joining with the overlap length (for elevation
column) or the footing pad (for foundation column).
4. Close the bar reinforcement by form work with spacing 2.5mm
5. Fill C25 concrete through in form work and compact (vibrate) in order to avoid air void space.
6. Realizing the formwork after 16hr-1day.
7. Curing for 28days.

Fig; 15. Column

2.6.3.2 Beam Work
Grade beam
CHAPTERFOUR

4: conclusion and recommendation

4.1 recommendations for company

- For intern students the company should provide offices with computerized system. In that case
interns can be familiar with the modernized construction work & can upgrade their computer skill
since everything is done by computers in recent times.

- It will be safe for interns to work freely on the site if safety equipment like helmet and safety shoes
provided.

4.1.1 Recommendation for the University

Universities are providing good opportunities for students in this internship program. But I
would like to recommend the University to do the following during the whole academic
session.

→It should give courses like, quantity survey, electrical and mechanical concerned
courses before the internship program.

→It should include some software courses in to the whole department programs of
civil engineering courses.

→The teaching learning method shall be more practical other than theoretical, for that
to make the students full confidential and good professional in the field of study.

→The supervisor must not be only from the university itself; it may be can from the
university near to the students site to make the supervision easy and to attend the
student continuously and to communicate with the company concerning about
internship in which the students engaged.
 4.2 conclusion

The internship program alleviates the problems of new graduate students that may face after
their graduates and makes so good for the new curriculum to expose students to real world
before the candidates complete their courses.

Even though there was a gap between the things which I know in the class with the outside
environment, I got practical work experiences and benefits at MOGES DESTA consulting
architects and engineers Construction Company. Some of the benefits of the internship
offered to us include;

• Allow us to both make and develop professional contacts, for our future job search.

• Assist us in developing greater understanding of our own strength and weakness,

• The company’s Work flow

• Upgrade our theoretical knowledge at school

• Leadership skill

• Knowing the local construction terms

• Knowing Working standards

• Work ethics

During the internship I develop and enhance employability skills. Because this time, I
feel like the part of the organization and feel more to increase my productivity hence, gain a
greater sense of responsibility and personal direction.

It assists in moving toward my career goals by combining what I had learned from
school, practical and supervised work experience; it thus explained the necessity of every
student to undergo this process.