UNIVERSITY OF GONDAR

INISTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING
DEPARTEMENT OF CONSTRUCTION TECHNIOLOGY
AND MANAGEMENT

NAME OF HOSTING COMPANY;-UNITY ENGINEERING PLC

TITLE OF REPORT;-INTERNSHIP FINAL REPORT
DURATION OF INTERSHIP; - FOUR MONTH
PREPARED BY;-HAILEMARIAM MIRETE

ID NO; 00568/09

ADVISOR; - MR ZENAW (MSC.)

DATE;-01/10/2013
GONDAR, ETHIOPIA
 INTERNSHIP FINAL REPORT

Declaration
I declare that this final internship report is my own original work. I can say confidentially the
report contains the actual events and facts that was observed and performed during my internship
practice program. All the contents are my own and have not been submitted from any other
university.

Student Name sign Date

Mentor Name Sign. Date

Hailemariam Mirete
Page 1
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

This internship report and all over the program would not have been completed without the great
help I received from several individuals. First and foremost, I wish to express my gratitude to my
teacher Ins. Zenaw, who contributes his assessment in the internship. Sincere thanks are due also
to all staff of UNITY Construction Plc. and Net consulting Engineers, without their valuable
assist this internship program would have not been possible to conduct. But special thanks are to
my company advisor; engineer Shimeles for his professional, genuine and valuable advice for
my accomplishment. His advices: “Respect other”, “Don’t shy to ask any ambiguous for you” is
unforgettable.

It is a pleasure to thank my families who gave me the moral and financial support and my
colleagues for our cooperation. Finally, and above all I wish to express a sense of gratitude and
debt to the one above all of me, GOD, for everything he done for me.
 Abstract

This final documentation basically consists of four parts, namely the back ground of my
internship hosting company, my overall practical work experience sharing and taking training,
overall benefits that I have gained from these two months of internship program. Finally, I have
tried to Cleary describe the general problems of my hosting construction company and I made
my own recommendation and conclusion for the company.

In chapter one, I have tried to describe the mission and vision of the hosting company and also
its main objectives in playing a vital role in the construction industry of the country.

In chapter two, I have tried to include the overall works that I have observed in my internship
program. I included in which section of the company I have been working in office and the
procedure that I have used while perform in my tasks.

In chapter three, I tried to notify the overall benefits that I have gained in my internship
session, such as benefits in terms of improving my practical skills, interpersonal communication
skills, team playing skills, leadership skills, entrepreneurship skills and etc. In addition, the
benefits gained in terms of upgrading my theoretical knowledge and the benefits gained in terms
of understanding about work ethics related issues are also indicated in this chapter.
In chapter four, I have tried to clearly describe the general problems of my hosting construction
company and I made my own recommendation and conclusion for the company.

Key words: perform, skill, improve, upgrade, observe

Hailemariam mirete
Page 1
 TABLE OF FIGURES

Figure 1- work flow chart................................................................................................................4

Figure2; -Physical status of the project Block A. (G+0) B. (B+G+6)...........................................8
Figure 3– HCB work.......................................................................................................................9
Figure 4- overseeing plastering work............................................................................................12
Figure 5– floor finish.....................................................................................................................12
Figure 6- ceiling of work...............................................................................................................12
Figure 7-brick stock…..................................................................................................................13

Figure 8- manhole work.................................................................................................................16

TABLE OF TABLES

Table 1 Some of the construction project works performed by the company................................. 4

Table 2 Takeoff sheet sample.........................................................................................................13
Table 3 Bar schedules sample........................................................................................................13
Table 4 Analysis Sheet for Direct & Indirect Unit Cost................................................................14
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Declaration.................................................................................................................................................. i
ACKNOWLEDGMENT........................................................................................................................... ii
Abstract..................................................................................................................................................... iii
TABLE OF FIGURES............................................................................................................................. iv
CHAPTER ONE........................................................................................................................................ 1
1...........................................................................................................................................................BACKGRO
UND OF HOSTING COMPANY..................................................................................................... 1
1.1..................................................................................................................................................Brief
history of the company...................................................................................................................... 1
1.2...........................................................................................................................................Mission
statement.................................................................................................................................... 2
1.2.1....................................................................................................................................Operational
Excellence............................................................................................................................... 2
1.2.2....................................................................................................................................Relations
Development........................................................................................................................... 2
1.2.3....................................................................................................................................Broad-
range Services & Facilities.................................................................................................... 2
1.2.4....................................................................................................................................People &
Culture.................................................................................................................................... 2
1.2.5....................................................................................................................................Their
Promise................................................................................................................................... 2
1.3...........................................................................................................................................Vision of
the company............................................................................................................................... 3
1.4...........................................................................................................................................Main
product and service.................................................................................................................... 3
1.5...........................................................................................................................................Main
customers and end users............................................................................................................ 4
1.6...........................................................................................................................................Its overall
organization and work flow...................................................................................................... 4
1.6.1....................................................................................................................................Manageme
nt style..................................................................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER TWO....................................................................................................................................... 5
2...........................................................................................................................................................THE
 OVERALL INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE..................................................................................... 5
2.1 How I get in to The Company......................................................................................................... 5
2.2...........................................................................................................................................Section of
the work...................................................................................................................................... 5
2.3...........................................................................................................................................Work flow
of the company........................................................................................................................... 5
2.4 Work task I have been executing and the procedures and methods I have been using while
performing my tasks.............................................................................................................................. 6
2.4.1....................................................................................................................................Office work
6
2.5................................................................................................................................................Task
performed in the site........................................................................................................................ 9
2.6...............................................................................................................................................Challenges
during the internship..................................................................................................................... 18
2.7...............................................................................................................................................Measures
taken to overcome challenges........................................................................................................ 19
CHAPTER THREE................................................................................................................................. 20
3...............................................................................OVERALL BENEFITS FROM INTERNSHIP 20
3.1........................................................................................................................Introduction 20
3.2...................................................................................................Improving practical skills 21
3.3.......................................................................................Upgrading theoretical knowledge 22
3.4...................................................................................Interpersonal communication skills 22
3.5......................................................................................Team playing and leadership skill 23
3.6.........................................................................................................................Work ethics 23
3.7........................................................................................................Entrepreneurship skill 23
CHAPTER FOUR................................................................................................................................... 24
4.........................................................................................CONCLUSION & RECOMENDETION 24
4.1...........................................................................................................................Conclusion 24
4.2................................................................................................................Recommendation 25
References................................................................................................................................................ 26
 CHAPTER ONE

1. BACKGROUND OF HOSTING COMPANY

1.1 Brief history of the company

Unity Engineering plc was established in 1998 according to the federal republic of Ethiopia trade
law by four engineers in order to contribute their experience in the construction endeavor of the
country. It has been serving a range of different private, governmental and nongovernmental
organizations for the last 15 years.

Unity engineering plc started serving as building contractors’ class VI during its establishment.
Now, it has been upgraded to class І building contractors as a result of strong dedication of its
well experienced professionals to the growth of the company.

The contract for the internship project was signed in 2016 G.C. between University of Gondar as
client and Unity engineering construction PLC as contractor.

The internship project is cancer treatment center for university of Gondar hospital and its
purpose for giving medical treatments to cancer caused peoples. The project completion time has
765 calendar days but actual completion time of the project couldn’t be determined because of
changing of design.

Totally there are two blocks in the project those are block A and block B. Block A is G +0 but
block B is B+G+6. Foundation of block A is mat foundation with the depth of 1m and its wall
constructed by shear wall with variable thickness from 1m up to 2.4m, height of shear wall is
4.2m and its roof is flat roof and also dense slab thickness. Block B building has basement at
right side and this block has two types of footing these are isolated footing and combined
footing. The total area covered by the buildings is 3400m2. Block A has no basement.

Hailemariam Mirete
Page 1
 1.2 Mission statement

1.2.1 Operational Excellence

Unity engineering plans now evolved to a more recognizable, gathering unparalleled
accomplishments and vast know-how since inception. In addition, having achieved consistency
across all his construction works, I have established a brand that is identifiable with
dependability and quality assurance.

1.2.2 Relations Development

Unity engineering plc earnestly geared towards being customer-centric. They do this by paying
meticulous attention to their customers and working harmoniously with their consultants. The
end result is one of unsurpassed value created for their clients. Such relationships also exist in
every aspect of their value-chain; fostering superior ties with their suppliers, sub-contractors,
authorities and among employees, moving forth by means of a cohesive alliance.

1.2.3 Broad-range Services & Facilities

The broad-range of construction services provided includes Housing and building construction,
Water Supply Construction, Construction of Irrigation infrastructures, road, drainage, sewerage,
landscaping and other infrastructure works. In promoting greater operational control, they have
been actively acquiring complementary assets, further expanding their vast production facilities.
Materials supplied are extensive, in particular quarry, pre-mix, sand and precast products.

1.2.4 People & Culture

They have an experienced and dedicated management team to ensure the proper functioning of
all operations. The rank-and-file, on the other hand, is the engine behind their business success.
They constantly foster innovation, integrity, skills upgrade and promote a culture, affirming to all
that every employee plays a vital role in every project.

1.2.5 Their Promise

At Unity Construction, they don’t only views quality as paramount but they take immense pride
in exceeding their customers' expectations. Simply put their satisfaction is our honor.
 1.3 Vision of the company
The company’s vision is to be a leading and most progressive construction firm in the country by
providing outstanding performance in the construction industry by building its capacity in terms
of working capital, qualified and well experienced professionals, construction equipment and
rendering quality and time efficient services.

1.4 Main product and service

Unity Engineering PLC as explained before focuses mainly on conducting construction of

buildings and they have successfully completed the construction of various projects until now.
Based on this I have listed some projects which have been constructed by the company together
with their location, owners and year of the project status within the following table

Table 1: some of the construction project works performed by the company

NO Project Client and project location Project Proj

Amount (in
ect
birr) stat
us
1 ICT Building Gondar University (C/Gondar) 335,260,766.1 On progress
5
Cancer treatment center Gondar University (C/Gondar) 765,000,000.0 On progress
0
2 Air traffic control tower Ethiopian Civil 35,847,584.8 On progress
Aviation 1
Authority
3 Academic staff office and post Gondar University (C/Gondar) 164,520,738.1 Completed
graduate &library 5
4 Library, lecture hall and laboratory Gondar University (C/Gondar) 35,791,470.0 Completed
0
5 Residence for the Gondar University (C/Gondar) 23,637,877.0 Completed
University presidents 0
6 Central animal Diagnostic National Animal Health Center 35,171,463.0 Completed
laboratory 0
7 Conference hall National Animal Health Center 60,381,948.0 Completed
0
8 Dembia Primary Hospital Amhara Health 31,599,060.0 Completed
Bureau (Dembia) 0
9 Gondar University Community Gondar University (C/Gondar) 25,462,437.0 Completed
school 0
10 Gondar secondary school Amhara Education 27,450,388.0 Completed
Bureau (C/Gondar) 0
11 National stadium work Federal Community Bureau 28,554,388.0 Completed
0
12 District Hospital Afar Health Center (Semera) 20,599,428.0 Completed
0
 1.5 Main customers and end users
As explained in the previous table the company has many customers listed as follows:

Gondar University
Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority
National Animal Health Bureau
Amhara Education Bureau
Federal Sport commission
Afar Health Bureau

1.6 Its overall organization and work flow

1.6.1 Management style

@ A good project management will maximize efficient resource utilization, develop
effective communication and mechanization for resolving conflicts among
participants, make proper coordination and control the entire process.

1.6.2 Organizational structures

Managing Director

Technical Manager Finance & Admin Head

Office Eng. & Site Quality

Surveying Engineers Control

Supply & HR & Finance

Maintenance Admin
Forman 1 Forman 2 Forman 3

Figure 1- work flow chart

 CHAPTER TWO

2. THE OVERALL INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE

2.1 How I get in to The Company
The first challenge of this internship was to find a good hosting company where to spend the four
months of the internship period, and it wasn’t a simple task to find an actively involving
construction company in the country which is willing to host intern students in one of its sites.
The major requirements by the intern were whether/if the company really applies engineering
science on daily basis or works are being done with trends without science application and the
other is if the company has an active site in Gondar with pending structural works for the intern
to see, because I was not ready to work outside Gondar at intern level. However, finally I
recommended applying to this company named unity construction plc. By one of my relatives
and it almost took me a day to finish the whole process from issuing my application to getting
accepted and being approved to spend my internship period in one of their sites around Gondar
university referral hospital.

2.2 Section of the work

During my stay in the company was assigned different work sections and came across the
different work experiences from the respective work sections. An intern working in this company
is expected to fill every vacant work section to the best of their knowledge and interest. Some of
the work sections which the intern was expected to engage are as data collector, office engineer
and site engineer. To discharge responsibilities related to these sections, one has to follow
procedural and project management guidelines with proper hierarchy of authorities.

2.3 Work flow of the company

Work pieces or tasks that I have been executing during my internship period were divided in to
two parts. These are:
è Site work

è Office work
The company performs some works like, form work, hollow block masonry work and plastering
work aluminum ceiling work epoxy floor finish work brick work executed by sub-contractors.
The payment is issued for form work, HCB masonry wall aluminum ceiling work epoxy floor
finish work brick work and plastering work are per m 2. Scaffolding lintel and any other work are
done by the monthly and daily employee

2.4 Work task I have been executing and the procedures and methods I have
been using while performing my tasks.

2.4.1 Office work

As I have seen in the company work distribution; a quantity surveyor works and takeoff sheet
analysis for all executed works and for material purchasing purpose he/she also make takeoff
sheet and bar schedule based on structural and architectural design. Based on this concept I
trained to make takeoff sheet and bar schedule as a quantity surveyor and also, I was working in
office cost break down and bill of quantity.

2.4.1.1 Preparing takeoff sheet

Preparing takeoff sheet requires collected data from executed work in the site. It helps to prepare
payment for subcontractors and to submit to consultant and client offices. I prepared takeoff
sheet for some part of finishing work (HCB work, plastering work and ceiling work) then I
quantified the quantity of the HCB work, plastering work and ceiling work and multiplied it by
unit rate which is found in the contract agreement.

Table 2: Takeoff sheet sample

TAKEOFF SHEET FORMAT

Project:- …… Page No:- ………
Location:- …….. Takeoff sheet No:- ……….
Client:- …….. Date:- ………………
Contractor:- ……….
Consultant:- …………
T D S Description T D S Description
 2.2.1.1 Making Bar Schedules
First, I have to understand the detail drawings to making reinforcement bar schedules for the bar
benders requires. The bar benders must necessarily follow the instructions given by the site
engineer through G/Forman.

Table 3: bar schedules sample

BAR SCHEDULE FORMAT

Project:- ……. Location:- …… Client:- ……… Contractor:- ….. Page No:- …..
Consultant:- …… Bar schedule No:- ……. Date:- ………..

Sr.No Description Bar Bar Bar Length No No of Total Total ø6 ø8 ø10 ø12 ø14 ø16 ø20 ø24
No Shape ø of member No length
bar bar

Total length (m)

Weight per (m) 0.222 0.395 0.617 0.888 1.028 1.578 2.468 3.55

Total Weight (kg)

2.2.1.2 Preparation of Cost Breakdown

I was briefly introduced on how to prepare a cost breakdown. The point of this work was to
determine the rate of price to do a certain unit amount of work. The work may be HCB work;
plastering work and ceiling work other work. It takes the price of the construction materials, the
hourly cost of manpower involved, the hourly rental cost of machinery and equipment required,
the predicted time taken to finish a unit amount of work, the actual time taken and so on. It is a
very important work because it helps to determine our expenses and profit.
 Table 4: analysis sheet for direct & indirect unit cost

ANALYSIS SHEET FOR DIRECT & INDIRECT UNIT COST

Table 6 Analysis Sheet for Direct & Indirect Unit Cost
Project:- ……. Location:- …… Client:- ……… Contractor:- ….. Consultant:- …… Work Item:-Labor
……..Hourly Out Put----m2/hr E
Total Quantity of Work Item:- ……../m2 Result-------Birr/m2

2.2.1.3 Bill of quantity

Generally, bill of quantity is divided in to two, sub structure and super structure. Sub structure
includes
Material excavation and earth works, concreteLabor
cost (1.01) works
costand stone masonry work;
(1.02) And super
Equipment cost (1.03)
Type of Unit Qty. * Rate Cost/Unit Labor No UF **Indexed Hourly Type of No Hourly Hourly
structure includes
materials
concrete work, roofing
by
work, steel structure
hourly
work,cost
HCB wall work, plastering
Equipment rental cost
gradework, carpentry
work, metal work, floor and wall finishing cost cost
& joinery work, ceiling work, glazing
work, painting work, electrical installation work and sanitary installation work etc.

The bill of quantity includes specification of each work items, unit measurement, and quantity of
Total (1.01) Total (1.02) Total (1.03)
works, unit rate and amount of birr. It may prepare by the designer when after finished the
A=material cost ……Birr/m2 B=Labor cost …….Birr/m2 C=Equipmen

Quantifying works
My first real task was quantifying HCB block area needed, plastering area and the amount of
HCB block per m2 needed and the sewerage system of the building in order to build 6 th floor
slabs in one of the building blocks. While quantifying these items of work I was reading the
dimensions from the structural drawings.

Figure 2 -Physical status of the project Block A. (G+0) B. (B+G+6)

 2.5 Task performed in the site
During the past four months my internship program stays at unity engineering plc. Cancer
treatment project; I have experienced a wide range of knowledge in different construction works.
The major tasks performed at site are discussed in detail below;

Ü Quantity work for HCB Blocks: Includes preparing quantity for (20 & 15cm) thick HCB
blocks for partition walls, external and walls per m 2 to estimate the number of HCB blocks
that should be requested for the subsequent construction and for the Purpose of payment to
the contractor and sub-contractors. For my company case there are two types hollow concrete
blocks (HCB) according to their sizes one (40cm×20cm×20cm) and another
(40cm×20cm×15cm).
The first one is used for external walls, for walls in between unit houses, for walls in between a
unit house and common corridor and the walls that close in the stair case primarily to decrease
sound effects due to the high traffic. And also, they are preferably placed on the beams below so
that they won’t impose heavy load on the slabs. The 15cm thick HCB is used for internal
partition of rooms and chosen for their light weight and the fact that they require less amount
(about ¼ less) of mortar to bond than the previous and they occupy relatively small amount of
area.
0

Figure3: HCB work

Ü Expansion joint the building are constructed on wide area the building is separate in two
parts by Expansion joint for the purpose of separate settlement and partial distraction
Ü Quantity for Plastering: Plastering for internal & external walls, columns and ceilings
should be quantified per m2 for payment purpose to the contractor and sub-contractor.
 Finishing works

I was also required to determine the amount of finishing work required for UOG G+6 medical
building.

a) Plastering/ coating
Is the process of covering the surface of the masonry & concrete structure using cementing
material? Generally, there are three types of plastering these are: -

1. Primary (first) coat

2. Secondary (2nd) coat
3. Third coat (fine coat)

1. First coat: is the coat that is applied on the wall directly. It is also known as ‘bearer grief’.
We have to use a cement and sand mix with the ratio of 1:3. It has a thin thickness and used to
support the rest coat (2nd&3rd) coat on the wall properly, we left this layer for one day to
continuous the 2nd&3rd layers.

2. Second coat: first we take a ‘fascia’ to limit its thickness then we fill spread the convent
mixes with trowel up to the limited. It covers most of the body of the coating and creates a good
base for the next coating. Misalignment of HCB, beam and any other structure can be balanced
by second coating type with a minimum thickness of 1.5 cm. it is made with a ratio of 1:3 i.e., 1
bag of cement and 3 box of sand. Seven days of curing is needed for this type of coating to attain
sufficient strength and adhere effectively.

3. Fine coat: after 2nd coat is attaining its curing period, we apply the third coat. This is the last
layer of plastering on which painting is done. It is to smooth the walls ton increase an esthetic
value of the building. It is made with a ratio 1:1 i.e. (one bag of cement and one box of sand but
the sand is fine sand).
Generally during plastering we have to follow the following things:
The sand used should somewhat fine and pure that means for plastering the percentage of silt
must be zero. The mix ratio should be kept i.e. 1:3 for the 1 st&2nd coat whereas for fine coat it
should be 1:1Except the 1st coat the rest layer (coats) should be rubbed to make the wall
smoother.
b) Cement screed works; concrete floors to receive cement screed are first cleaned thoroughly
with water. The application of cement screed is made through three layers.

Concrete screed; Applied first to the clean surface has mix ratio of 1:2:3 (cement: sand: 01
aggregate) act as foundation for the cement screed.

Sand screed; Applied after concrete screed, has mix ratio of 1:1 (cement: fine sand). It is very
essential for absorbing moisture from the cement screed and provide level surface for cement
screed.

Cement screed; Is the final layer over the sand screed bed. Has a very small thickness and
should be finished even and truly smooth. Cement screed finish should be protected from drying
up so quickly, by keeping it went for a period of no less than seven days.

C) Water Proofing.
Water proofing was used on shear walls, roof and other structure that expected to be subjected to
water either storm water or moisture in the soil, which will weaken the strengths of the structure
by attacking the reinforcement bars. Rusting of iron is resulted, which will decrease the
efficiency of the bar by slowly deteriorating the diameter of the bar. To prevent this from
happening water proofing material was used.

A prime coat is first applied to the concrete face, which is a black liquid and then the water
proofing is heated with a torch to plaster it to the concrete face.

Ü NB—fine cote (third cote) is to be applicable when the wall finish is to be finish by paint. In
our project the fine cote is omitted because of the gypsum finish of the wall .in this case the
wall is not smooth.
 Figure4- Overseeing plastering work
Floor finish in the radioactive class the company use epoxy material for floor finish, this
material is self-leveling material.

Figure 5-floor finish

Ceiling work the company use aluminum ceiling material for radioactive class by separating
60cm *60cm and hung on the slab

Figure 6- Ceiling work

Scaffolding work
There are two type of scaffolding steel and wood scaffolding. Steel scaffolding are very
essential for work, durable and long service period but its initial investments so expensive. Wood
scaffolding is less initial investment and short service period. As unity engineering they use steel
scaffolding.

Form work; Form work is a temporary support for cast in situ concrete designed and
constructed with timber and wooden posts or sheet metal (panel) and steel posts and capable of
withstanding the live and fully preventing leakage of cement pest. It is better to use panels and
steel posts because I can use them for long time and to prevent expansion force during
compaction of concrete by using vibrator.

Form works must be regular shape in addition; they must be smooth and the opened part must be
covered by other material to prevent leakage of cement pest while concrete casting. Also it
should be designed and erected to safely support, vertical and lateral loads that might be applied
until such loads can be supported by concrete structure.

Lintel beam is used when the height of the door and window dose not teach the beam or slab. the
lintel beam is applicable

Before the lintel beam is cast the carpenter & foreman should check the necessary things like:
 Vertical and horizontal alignment for the beam
 Any defects on the soffit board.
 Painting with black oil the inside part of the form work.

Brick masonry
Brick masonry is made of brick units bonded together with mortar.

Figure7- brick stoke

Types of bond in brick masonry
 Stretcher bond,
 Header bond
 English bond
 Flemish bond.
Stretcher bond can be constructing from a single width of brick and it will be uses for construct
internal partition wall. Stretcher bond is created by rows of stretchers only displaced by 3/4 th
batten on each row.

Header bond can be constructing from a single length of brick and it will be uses for arch
building which have more esthetic values. Header bond is created by rows of headers only
displaced by half a brick on each row.

English bond can be constructing from double width of brick and it will be uses for internal and
external walls. It gives more esthetic value and strength than stretcher and header bonds. It has
two alternating courses of stretchers and headers.

Flemish bond can be constructing with deferent forms like single bond Flemish, double bond
Flemish, double and half bond Flemish and so on. It gives more esthetic and pleasure value than
the others. Arrangement of brick such that each course consist of alternate bricks having their
short sides (headers) and long sides (stretchers) facing outwards, with alternate courses being
offset. It displaced by queen battens

Cement Concrete Work

Concrete is a composite material consisting of a binder, which is typically cement, course and
fine aggregates, which are usually crashed stone & river sand and water. These comprise the
constituent materials of concrete. Cement concrete is made from mixing of deferent construction
materials with water: Cement, sand, aggregates (gravel) and admixtures (if it is necessary).

Ü Water: - Water is an important ingredient of producing concrete as it actively participates in

the chemical reaction with cement. Since it helps to form the strength giving cement paste,
the quantity &quality of water is required to be looked very carefully. Generally, potable
water or tap water is suitable for making good concrete. In general water to be used in
concrete work should be free from Oil, Suspended particle and Silt, Algae, Salts of
 manganese, tin, zinc, copper and lead, and Carbonates & bicarbonates of sodium and
potassium. The use of sea water for mixing concrete leads to corrosion of reinforcement.
Therefore, I should use tap water only.
Cement: -Cement should be fresh, not be older than six months and is delivered to the site in
the manufacture’s original sealed bags and stored in a dry and well-ventilated store on a wooden
floor raised minimum 20cm above the ground and stoked separately. It should be free from
dampness, due to whether or ground condition.

Figure 2; - Cement stock /store/

Aggregates are the most important constituent on concrete. Aggregate for concrete must be well
graded; clean from the dust and oil, sound, hard, strong and durable.

Figure 3 Coarse aggregate

Sand/Fine Aggregate; - Silt amount in sand is not greater than 5% before I used any sand I have
to check test that sand by test mechanisms if silt amount is greater than 5% in sand I can reduce
by washing that sand to remove silts.

A) Workability: The concrete mix should be workable, so that it can be placed and consolidated
properly by the workmen.

B) Hardness, cohesiveness and strength: - Concrete must be: resistant to freezing & thawing
(melting), water tight (permeable), wear resistance, and strong.

C) Economy: -Since the quality mainly depends on the w/c ratio, the water requirement should
be minimized to reduce the cement requirement and hence cost.

D) Vibration; -To compact concrete you apply energy to it so that the mix becomes more fluid.
Air trapped in it can then rise to the top and escape. 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. Vibration is the next and quickest method of supplying the energy.
E) Curing
All structure made from cement concrete should be properly cured and protected until it has set
and hardened and acquired the required strength. Care must be taken that no concrete is allowed
to become prematurely dry and the fresh concrete must be carefully protected from the
atmospheric weather for a period of at least seven days by applying water.

There are two setting times of concrete namely, initial setting time and final setting time. The
former one is setting time from placing of concrete up to dismantling of the formwork. It is 10
hrs for columns. The final setting time is the time from dismantling of formwork: It is 21 days
for slab and beams soffit.

Sewerage line and manhole constructing

The main purpose of sewerage line and manholes is transports sewage from toilet, west water
from bath rooms and hand wash basins to septic tank.

 Sewerage line may construct from UPVC, PVC, Concrete, pipe

 Manhole may construct from stone, brick, HCB masonry and plain or reinforced
concrete, it may rectangular or circular in shape.

The purposes of manhole are: -

 To inspection and maintenance

 To make elevation and direction change
 To change size of pipes if it is required
Figure 8- Sewer line & manhole constructing
Procedural arrangements

Procedures are disciplines in the flow of any work piece that is undertaken and should be
followed by the person who is in charge of processing. Every task in construction has its own
procedures. In those work tasks there are some procedural issues that should be discussed. The
procedures implemented as a data collector and as an office engineer are somehow totally
different since they have a separate work flow.

The procedural tasks of data collecting are as follows:

In the morning

- Gathering any activities’ data on site

- Preparing the daily report for the works executed the day before
In the afternoon
- Gathering of data on new activities and changes in the morning activities
- Analyzing, arranging and summarizing the collected data for report preparation.

The procedural tasks as an Office engineer are as follows:

Æ Collecting daily reports from data collector --- performance calculation

Æ Summarizing the daily reports --- weekly report
Æ Summarizing the weekly reports --- monthly report
Æ Organizing monthly reports --- progress reports ---sending to Project Manager
Æ Analyzing material requests --- quantifying materials
Æ Passing for approval to Project Manager
Æ Scheduling the daily, weekly and monthly activities in accordance with the master
schedule.
Performance of the internship

I have been actively involving on assigned works since the beginning of the internship and was
gaining experience in the respective work sections that I was assigned to. The first month of the
internship was almost a trial period for me and other interns too by the company supervisors
checking if I am able to discharge my duties and tasks fully and responsibly. After the
completion of the first month I develop the confidence of the company supervisors that I could
work on any sections that I was assigned to. Then after, I was assigned to different work sections
of the company that I discharged my duties given from the company supervisors fully and
responsibly, and this has given me the chance to get used to the different work pieces undergoing
in the company and I was also privileged to gain experience on the different theoretical, practical
and communication skills of the company and the construction industry at large, and I personally
would like to say that I grateful to have been working or spending my internship period in this
company.

2.6 Challenges during the internship

As known, a person who is working always faces challenges, and with a smart view and positive
skepticism if challenges are handled properly they pave the way to promotion and success. In
other way round, challenge with an optimistic outlook is defined as an opportunity for
improvement. These challenges also create an opportunity for me to develop my problem-
solving skills, as this is one of the skills to which the intern introduced. The challenges are faced
on almost every work section was assigned to starting from getting used to the work sections in
the very beginning. To briefly discuss the challenges faced with the respective work sections:

a) Data collector: recording every activity on site which should be recorded because of the
bulkiness of the project.
- Incorporating the movement of skilled and unskilled man power from one task to the other
into the data.
- Quantifying some activities on site as a data.
- Recording of biased data due to some technical difficulties like power loss during concrete
work etc.…
- Lack of concentration during data interpretation and analysis due to repetition of the task.
b) Office Engineer: missing tiny parts of structural elements during takeoff preparation.
Managing and delivering works on time, since time is given a lot worthier value on the
construction industry than any other industries
Challenges on producing accurate and error free takeoff sheets for different activities and
different reasons specially for payment purposes
c) Site Engineer: inability to make engineering judgments on site at the very beginning of
the internship. Inconvenience with skilled man power due to construction site terminologies.
 2.7 Measures taken to overcome challenges

A problem appearing on any work section should be addressed with a solution for the healthy
continuation of the subsequent activities and the project as a whole. A solution to a challenge or a
problem is the way of management of the problem leading to success.

These are the possible ways where by one addresses a problem and of these three of which are
adopted to my system of problem solving during the internship namely preventing it, reducing it
and treating it

 I have tried hard to the best of my capacity to prevent the above-mentioned

challenges from happening or taking place.
E.g. Close follow up site activities for data recording could avoid possible errors created
due to negligence.
 Some errors on data could not be avoided completely and the data can’t be made
error free because of the nature of the source of error. The only option is to minimize the
error.
E.g. Errors committed on concrete work data due to power loss can only be minimized
with the data collector’s educated guess.
 Some challenges were addressed after they have already been created.
E.g. Dalliance on delivering assignments on time was treated by finishing the subsequent
activities before time to compensate for the already made dalliance.
 CHAPTER THREE

3. OVERALL BENEFITS FROM INTERNSHIP

3.1 Introduction
A good engineer should possess some basic skills (attributes) to act as a fully responsible
practitioner. These are sometimes known as bench marks for engineers. These skills are as
follows:

 Knowledge: specialist knowledge (profession) mostly gained from formal education.

 Intellectual abilities: problem solving skill and being innovative.
 Practical skills: using and understanding tools, practicing techniques and methods.
 General transferable skills: communication skill, writing skill, resource
management skill, leadership skill and team working skill.
 Qualities: innovation, self-motivation and eagerness.

There are also some core concepts which are basic to every graduate especially to engineers in
order to fully discharge their responsibilities accordingly. These are:

 Owning the question/problem/: when a problem arises, a good engineer engages

with the problem (makes the problem his/hers) to come up with the right solution.
 Habits of mind:
 Curiosity (questioning?): raising questions like why? How? When? Where? Etc.…
 Open-mindedness with healthy suspicion: being open to different ideas
with positive doubts.
 Respect for evidence: believing on noticeable evidences.
 Persistence: stick to the plans whatever challenges appear.

Owing to these facts, the following are skills or attributes gained from this 4-month internship
period.

1. Practical skills
2. Theoretical knowledge
3. Communication skill
 4. Team playing skill
5. Leadership skill
6. Work ethic
7. Entrepreneurship skill

3.2 Improving practical skills

Practical skill is one of the basic skills expected from engineers. This skill helps engineers
convert drawings to actual structures and to design appropriate designs which consider the
conditions on ground that wouldn’t give hard time for the contractor to build. With this aspect the
internship has given a privilege to interns specially those working on site to equip themselves
with the practical knowledge they need for their future career. These practical skills would seem
difficult to get used to when observed from outside, but when one engages himself/herself with it
provided that he/she has at least the necessary knowledge about construction, the learning is easy
going and one can learn a lot within a few periods of time. To list some of the practical skills
learnt from this internship:

Ü Guiding carpenters on formwork construction by giving them measurement by which they

construct the formworks, erect props, build scaffoldings and other wood work activities.
Ü Supervision and close follow up of concrete works. This activity is the most sensitive and
demands the expertise of engineers because of the nature of concrete that it’s difficult to
make necessary modification on site after the concrete is already poured, therefore the
engineer’s expertise is required on
o Close follow up on concrete composition if it has been composed of the right constituents
with appropriate proportion.
o Appropriate (not less not over) vibration of concrete before it has been casted, to avoid
segregation of concrete which implies poor construction process.
o Engineering judgment on the sequence of concrete work activities (which activity should
come first and which one should follow immediately).
 Ü Block work supervision on appropriate use of mortars in between each course and block
and keeping in touch with masons to give necessary details on block work and details of
windows and doors.
Ü Supervision on plastering activities, which is mainly depicted by economic use of mortars
on plastering and close follow up on edge sharpening plastering works.

3.3 Upgrading theoretical knowledge

The theoretical knowledge is basically learnt from formal education in universities but the fact
that it is interdependent with the practical skill gives rise to its being upgraded. The design core
concepts already known before internship are mainly upgraded and correlated with the one
observed on site.

The other aspect of theoretical knowledge is the knowledge related to office works. These are

 Preparing takeoff sheets for different activities like formwork, concrete work,
rebar, plastering and block work activities.
 Data interpretation and analysis.
 Manipulating soft-wares like MS-project, MS-excel, Auto cad for preparing
schedule, takeoff sheets and reading soft copy drawings respectively.

On general basis, this internship has given the chance for interns to see things clearly on site that
they have already learnt in class.

3.4 Interpersonal communication skills

Communication skill scholars ‘Brilliant and Galleons’ defined communication skill as the
process by which people create and send signals that are received, interpreted and responded to
by other people. One of the biggest mistakes people make each day at work is underestimating
the power of communication, but the importance of communication simply accounts for the
success and failure of a business. Owing to these introductory facts, the intern has developed an
interpersonal communication skill from the very beginning of introducing herself to the staff to
every day’s work interaction.
 3.5 Team playing and leadership skill

In a business firm works are executed in a team or individually consulting colleges as there is no
such work as totally personal based and completely isolated from the staff. Therefore, with this
aspect the intern has improved their team playing skill with regard to office works as well as site
activities for fruitful outcomes. This trend where by executing works in a team helps for sharing
skills among the group and for minimizing errors to the best knowledge of the team.
Leadership skill is the other basic skill an engineer should possess. This skill helps engineers to
effectively manage resources and manage man-power on site. This skill also helps engineers to
make appropriate judgments and improve their problem-solving skill. Being innovative,
passionate and being able to create helpful working environment is also the other benefit gained
from this internship.

3.6 Work ethics

Having all the skills mentioned above would mean nothing, if one doesn’t have the right attitude
and ethics towards fulfilling it. In other words, a good engineer is one who knows what they are
doing and why they are doing it in addition to the above mentioned professional skills. To
mention some of the work ethics learnt are:

 Being punctual on working hours

 Obedience to bosses
 Honestly discharging responsibilities (reliability)
 Following professional procedures

3.7 Entrepreneurship skill

The 2009 version of Encyclopedia-Encarta defines “Entrepreneur to be one who assumes the
responsibility and risk for a business operation with the expectation of making a profit.” Every
private company in Ethiopia is also established for the same purpose of making profit by group
or individual entrepreneurs and visionary founders and the same works true for my hosting
company Unity Construction Plc. which is founded by private entrepreneurs are experienced and
visionary engineers. This skill basically starts from developing innovative and enthusiastic mind
and develops to making best use of resources available at hand and then proceeds to providing
best alternative to customers which would give an excellent and economic outcome (output).
 CHAPTER FOUR

4. CONCLUSION & RECOMENDETION

4.1 Conclusion
A construction or contractor company is the one which is mainly engaged on putting civil
structure drawings to ground, and the civil or the construction engineers are the ones basically in
charge of this task and related management tasks. Therefore, internship plays a prominent role in
equipping students with the skill the industry demands. There are also companies where
Engineers practice their professional skills. These companies are named consulting companies
where architectural, structural, electrical and sanitary drawing for buildings and civil structures is
made. These two sides of the construction industry must co-work jointly towards achieving the
planned goal.

There are two main things that the contractor is graded to, the quality management and
completion date or follow-up of the prepared schedule. In my hosting company which is
categorized under the contractor’s division, the quality assurance is met with the strong and very
dedicated skilled man powers which are continuously addressing their responsibilities on the
project. The second part which undertaking works according to schedule is best done by the
engineering expertise of the project manager and the office engineer. Sticking to plans and if
possible working ahead of schedule is the track they were following to pursue towards a great
achievement.

Working in this company was worth it and fun, besides the professional skills mentioned to have
been gained during the internship period. I was grateful to have had a close contact with the site
engineer and the project manager as well, because this close contact with these professionals has
helped me to excel on the already mentioned professional skills and to have a brief know-how
about the construction industry and some positive and negative things undergoing in the industry.

Finally I have taken the aspiration to improve those negative sides or draw backs of the industry
on our future career.
 4.2 Recommendation
As already mentioned on the profile part, my hosting company is one of the actively involving
level-1Building Construction Company in the country. With the vision adopted towards fulfilling
the goal and satisfying customers to the best of its potential, the company has been assigning
senior engineers as project managers and office and site engineers with best required qualities.
These professionals have been discharging their responsibilities to enhance the profit of the
company and build good name for the company in the industry. Having all these qualities,
however the company has some drawbacks which I have noticed during my stay in the company
and which I think is worthwhile mentioning here and hope to see these recommendations
incorporated into their system on their future projects.

 Practicing the usual trends only and lack of motivation towards new approaches
 Making use of wood props to support recently casted slab and beam which has its
own effect on the evenness of the floor levels which requires the owner of the company
to issue capital intensive budgets to projects
 Negligence on employing assistance data collector for reliable data collection on
site activities
 Assigning the project manager on other bid tendering tasks in head office besides
his responsibility on the project which creates work burden on the project manager
 Rushing on some tasks without being pre-notified which affects the reliability and
accuracy of the respective work task
 Negligence on construction safety rules
References
 Unity Constrction Company Profile.

 Encyclopedia Encarta 2009 version

 Senior students report format

 Communication skills teaching material
 Dr. Abebe Dinkha text book of Building Construction, Addis Ababa
University Printing press 2007 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
 Construction Material
 Reinforced concrete handout
 Technical document of the hosting company
 RC 1 and 2 handout
 INTERNSHIP FINAL REPORT

Appendix

Tumbi …………………………………………..........plumb bob

Staffa…………………………………………………..stirrup

Sebago ………………………………………………..string

Kerebat ………………………………………….……holding of column

Squadrol……………………………………………….right angle

Griff……………………………………………………2nd coat

Mullet ………………………………………………...1st coat

Lessen ………………………………………………...3rd coat

Riga………………………………………………........metal

sponda………………………………………...............side formwork (beam)

Fond………………………………………………….bottom formwork (beam)

Soleta………………………………………………….slab

Armata………………………………………………..Concrete

Goma weha lik……………………………………….Tube water level