Construction Plant and Equipment in Engineering

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1.1 Introduction to construction tools, machines, plants and equipment

  • Construction Tools:
    Small hand-held devices used to perform specific tasks (e.g., hammer, trowel, spade).
  • Construction Machines:
    Powered devices that perform large-scale tasks efficiently (e.g., excavator, bulldozer).
  • Construction Plants:
    Permanent or semi-permanent setups used for production (e.g., concrete batching plant, asphalt plant).
  • Construction Equipment:
    A broad term covering both tools and machines used for construction works.
  • Purpose:
    To improve work speed, accuracy, and safety in construction projects.
  • Benefits:
    Reduces labor effort, increases productivity, and ensures quality.

1.2 Advantage of using construction equipment

  • Equipment speed up tasks, saving time and effort.
  • Wastage of material is less.
  • Reduce manual labor and risk of injuries.
  • Delivers high quality results.
  • Reduce project duration.
  • Large and complex work can be carried easily.
  • Reduce labor cost.

1.3 Equipment for excavation, transportation and compaction

Equipment for excavation:

1. Dozer

  • Used to move earth and debris.
  • Equipment with large front blade for levelling and clearing.

2. Excavator

  • Digs, lift and move soil and material.
  • Use a bucket attached to a hydraulic arm to do task.

3. Scrappers

  • Use to more or removal gravel.

4. Grader

  • Loads material like soil, gravel and sand into tracks.
  • Equipment with a front bucket for efficient loading.

5. Dragline

  • Heavy duty excavator used in deep excavation.
  • Utilizes a dragline for digging and hauling.

Equipment for Transportation:

1. Trucks

  • Used for transporting construction material.
  • Haul material and goods on road.

2. Mini Dumper

  • Small vehicle for carrying loads on construction site.
  • Suitable for moving materials in confined space.

3. Rail wagons

  • Transport goods and material on railway track.
  • Efficient for bulk movement over longer distance.

4. Belt conveyor

  • Moves material continuously on a belt.
  • Used for transporting material within a facility.

5. Ropeway

  • Aerial transportation system using cable.
  • Transport material across challenging terrain.

Equipment for Compaction:

1. Smooth wheel roller

  • Make surface smooth and solid.
  • Good for road pavement.

2. Sheep footed roller

  • Stamp soil with feet for compactness.
  • Works on sticky soil.

3. Vibrating roller

  • Shakes to press soil and asphalt.
  • Best for sand and asphalt.

4. Pneumatic tired roller

  • Compressor with rubber tyre.
  • Great for different soil.

5. Rammer

  • Hand tool for pressing soil in small areas.
  • Useful in tight space.

1.4 Aggregate handling equipment

1. Crushing plants

  • A facility that breaks down large rocks into smaller sizes.
  • Involves various machine like jaw crusher, cone crusher and impact crusher.

2. Screening plants

  • Used to separate different sized material.
  • Includes revolving screens and vibrating screens.

1.5 Concrete batching, mixing and compacting equipment

Equipment for concrete batching:

  • Manual
  • Semi-automatic
  • Fully-automatic

Equipment for concrete mixing:

  • Tilting type mixer: Suitable for small to medium batches.
  • Pan mixer: Suitable for small batches.
  • Non-tilting type mixer: Used in large batches.
  • Transit mixer: Vehicle transport ready-mixed concrete.

Equipment for concrete compaction:

  • Internal vibrator: Remove air bubbles from wet concrete.
  • Plate vibrator: Compress soil and concrete.
  • Vibrating screen: Separates aggregate in concrete.
  • Form vibrator: Ensure even concrete distribution in formwork.
  • Concrete roller: Compacts and finish concrete surface.

1.6 Pile foundation construction equipment

  • Pile driver: Drives pile into the ground using impact or vibration.
  • Drilling rigs: Creates boreholes.
  • Auger: Removes soil during drilling for piles.
  • Pile extractor: Remove piles from ground.
  • Pile load tester: Tests load bearing capacity of piles.

1.7 Equipment for construction of caisson foundation

  • Caisson rig: Drilling equipment used for creating caissons.
  • Caisson grab: Used to remove soil.
  • Caisson pump: Transfer concrete in caisson holes.
  • Dewatering pump: Removes water.
  • Caisson vibration: Ensure proper compaction.

1.8 Criteria for selection of equipment

  • Purpose
  • Capacity
  • Efficiency
  • Cost
  • Availability
  • Safety
  • Operator skill
  • Environmental impact
  • Maintenance
  • Compatibility

1.9 Equipment for lifting of materials and parts

  • Crane: Lifts heavy materials and equipment.
  • Hoist: Loads vertically using a pulley system.
  • Forklift: Lift and moves material on pallets.
  • Aerial lift: Lift workers and material up.
  • Chain-block: Hand-operated device for lifting heavy load.

2.0 Tunneling Equipment

1. Tunnel boring machine (TBM): Excavates tunnel by drilling and removing soil.

2. Rock drills: Break through hard rock.

3. Ventilation system: Provides fresh air.

2.1 Equipment for hydraulic construction

  • Excavator: Dig trench and channel.
  • Dredger: Removes sediment.
  • Hydraulic hammer: Breaks rock and concrete.
  • Water pump: Manage water levels.
  • Hydraulic crane: Lifts heavy material.

2.2 Equipment for highway pavement construction

  • Paver: Spread asphalt and concrete.
  • Roller: Compacts layer.
  • Grader: Level the road bed.
  • Asphalt distributor: Spray asphalt evenly.
  • Road sweeper: Clean debris from road.

Reference:

• Harold Kerzner (2017). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling.
• PMI (2021). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – 7th Edition.
• Nebosh, Nepal Engineering Council Syllabus (2024). Engineering Professional Practice Notes.
• Civil Engineering Standard Method of Measurement (CESMM).
• Personal Class Notes & Presentations from Nepalese Engineering Institutions.

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