Today both teams returned to the sites they visited on Wednesday May 19th. Group 1 visited the Kingdom of Sheba
Group 1: The Kingdom of Sheba
Tour to Kingdom of Sheba
Tour on site:
Our tour began around the pool area where they use gunnite (a stiff material sprayed on steel and ideal for pools). The MEP coordination is very important on this particular area since all water systems are essential here. There is also a strong coordination between two sub-contractors carried out by the main contractor, DCC. For example, the kid’s pool wasn’t built because a nearby tower crane needs to be removed by a bigger one,which would need to be placed at the location of the pool.
We also elaborated on Post-Tension (PT) slabs: The steel cable path is marked with red on the slab for insurance. If any holes need to be drilled in the slab later, the markings ensure the tendons will not be hit. The main benefit of PT slabs is they allow long spans without beams.
We also saw a transverse slab (solid slab) used for the mechanical floor, the mechanical floor requires a large amount of reinforcement to support the machinery needed. The work on the slab seen was delayed because of redesign.
Furthermore we discussed joints: expansion, movement and shrinkage joints are used for multi-purposes but all with the same goal: allow movement in buildings without creating extra stresses.
Lecture about Planning:
- Contract program: Original time schedule that the contractor and client originally agreed on.
- Update program: re-nominations and redesigns usually cause delays in the original schedule. In addition to that, the indecision of the client causes much delay this is why they go to acceleration programs.
- Acceleration program: A speed up process that all parties agree on in order to accelerate the project. Usually the cost increases (supervising cost mainly) and the client pay it. This process isn’t about increasing the amount of labor; it is mostly increasing the amount of tasks performed in a given area.
- Project organization chart : The top of the chart is the project manager who supervises the rest of the staff : IT technician, Secretary, document controller, managers, surveyors, night shifts, etc…
Group 2: The Conrad Hotel
Tour given by Mr. Omar Lababidi, Project Director
Tour on Site:
Team 2 visited Conrad Hotel’s construction site for the second time. We arrived in the morning to the site and we were welcomed by the project manager Mr. Omar Lababidi, who showed us a short movie about the car park system that will be used at the Conrad Hotel.
Mr. Omar then took us on a tour to see a sample of the standard rooms for the hotel, mock-up rooms had been assembled on the second floor. These mock-ups showed us the interior design of the hotel, we were able to see a suite and a typical room. The mock-up rooms are almost fully functioning. Clients are brought into the rooms to test them out to insure they are satisfactory. Mr. Omar showed us interior design samples that clients of other hotels from the same chain as the Conrad Hotel will chose between
We later went to check the work in the car park space where piling works were being done. Afterwards, we saw how the exterior is being fixed with marble and granite. There are 22,000 pieces of granite and marble that will be used for the façade.
After being outside on the site, we came back to the office and checked again the drawings and a brief movie on how the hotel is supposed to become. The entire team agrees that going to see the Conrad Hotel.was an amazing experience
In the afternoon, after our site visits, we had a lecture on Construction Management from Mr. Ian Harper DCC’s Contracts Director. The information from this lecture can be seen at the link below.
