Introduction

A site visit to construction site was organized by our Measurement I lecturer, Ms

Ang Fuey Lin on 6th of July. The construction site is located at Bandar Bukit Raja, Off Jalan
Meru, Mukim Kapar, Daerah Klang, Klang Bandar Diraja, Selangor. The purpose of this site
visit is to allow students to have a better understanding about the theory that has been taught in
class. This will also allow students to have a hand on review and a clear understanding on actual
construction process.
Before visiting the site, students were briefed about the safety precautions by the CIDB
officer. Safety precautions such as wearing a safety helmet and covered shoes when going inside
the site must be obeyed in order to ensure the safety of every students. The site visit started at
9.00pm sharp. After gathering at the entrance of the site, students were briefed on the safety
precautions again by the Health and Safety officer. After that, students were separated into 2
groups which lead by different officer in charge. Throughout the site visit, the officer in charge
were asked many questions by the students about the building materials and foundations used to
construct the building.
This construction site is known as ‘Serunai Apartment ( Rumah Selangorku)’. It consists
of 2 blocks of 16-storey with 285 units and there is also a block with 5 storey covered multitiered
car parking lots in between Block A and Block B. There is also a multipurpose hall, surau and
also one playground.
Cooperation of companies for this project are:
 Sime Darby USJ Development SDN. BHD. (Developer)
 Sime Darby Property Klang SDN. BHD. (Owner)
 Kamal Ismail Associates Klang SDN. BHD. (Architect)
 Ace Allied Consulting Engineer SDN. BHD. (Electrical & Mechanical Engineer)
 Perunding Rekacekap SDN. BHD. (Civil & Structural Engineer)
 Yusoff Associates (Quantity Surveyor)
 Nadi Cergas SDN. BHD. (Design & Building Contractor)

Figure 1

Figure 1 below shows the site plan of the ‘Serunai Apartment’ project.
Objectives
 To understand the basics of the construction process and exposure to actual working
environment on site including uncertainty circumstances such as weather.
 To witness the usage of construction equipment on site such as mechanical plants.
 To be aware of the importance of safety on site and understanding of safety problems and
site conditions.
 To be able to explore and identify various types of building materials and technology
used on site.
 To be able to explain the construction of buildings and the scientific principles that
underpin the design and construction.
 To experience the environment of construction site that students will face in future as a
Quantity Surveyor.
 To ask questions from engineer and officer on site to gain more information and learn
from their real-life experience.
 Content
In this integrated assignment, students are required to study on both pile caps and column
stump. Students are required to study how a pile cap and a column stump is constructed and
what are the building materials involved in constructing a pile cap and column stump.

Pile Foundation
Pile foundation is the type of foundation used on the site. It is a foundation system that
transfers loads to a deeper and competent soil layer. There is a group of piles that supports a
superstructure. Pile can be known as a long cylinder of concrete that act as a support for
structures built on top of it by pushing it into the ground. The pile cap will connect the piles
together and distributes the superstructure loads the layer beneath. Pile can be made of
timber, steel, concrete or a combination of these materials, usually forced into the ground to
transfer the load to underlying soil or rock layers when the surface soils at a proposed site are
too weak or compressible to provide enough support.Piles should be hammers into the
ground till refusal, at which point they cannot be driven any further into the soil. Figure 2
below shows how is the pile foundation looks like.

Figure 2

In this construction project, precast concrete pile is used instead of others. Precast concrete piles
are first cast at ground level. It is then hammered or driven into the ground by using a pile driver.
This machine holds the pile vertically then hammers it into the ground blow by blow.Since it is
precast before the initiation of work, it will bring a fast execution work. They can also be loaded
very soon after driving to the required depth. Figure 3 below shows the precast concrete pies that
has been driven or hammered into the ground.
 Figure3

Process of constructing pile cap and column stump on site

A. Site Surveying and Site Clearance

Before constructing, a site surveying is carried out to determine the soil condition of the site. In
this project the soil condition is clay subsoil which has low bearing capacity. This is the main
reason why a pile foundation is more suitable to be used in this case instead of other foundations.
The depth of excavation shall be periodically checked by a surveyor to avoid over excavation.
Site clearance is done to remove vegetation from areas where there has been overgrowth or
where space needs to be made to erect a construction.

B. Pilling process
Hydraulic drop hammer is used to hammer the pile into the subsoil until the point they cannot be
driven any further into the soil. However, before pilling, hydraulic drop hammer is mobilized to
the intended pile position after making penetration of piles.

C. Excavation
Excavation is done around the piles to receive pile cap. The subsoil around the pile shaft is
excavated to reduce level for the construction of pile cap.The area excavated is known as pit. The
excavated material is disposed off site by lories. Figure 4 below shows excavator used for
excavation.
 Figure 4

D. Cutting off the pile

After excavation around the pile, the piles are cut in order to make sure all are in the same height
using a pneumatic hammer to expose the reinforcement. This cut off piles are disposed at a
certain place at the site.

E. Lean Concrete Blinding

50mm layer thick of lean concrete is casted on the top portion of the piles. The main function of
the lean concrete is to provide the uniform surface to the foundation concrete and to prevent the
foundation from direct contact from the soil. It is to prevent the moisture or other chemicals in
the soil like sulfates which may attack and weaken the concrete. It is also used to provide a level
surface where the reinforcement and the pile cap can be positioned and placed. The top portion
of the rebar was bent into an L-shape.

F. Formwork for Pile Cap

Traditional timber formwork is used to build the formwork for pile cap. The formwork is erected
according to the design.

G. Reinforcement for Pile Cap and Column Stump

High tensile reinforcement bars are used as the reinforcement for pile cap. It is done with
extremely precision according to the structural drawing to make pile-cap reinforcements.
Besides, the same reinforcement bars are used to construct the reinforcement for column stump.
 H. Reinforced Concrete in Pile Cap
Concrete of Grade 30 is pour into the formwork of the pile cap. Then it is compacted sufficiently
using concrete vibrator. It is done to increase the strength by preventing air pockets. It is left for
a few days to let them to set, harden and curing. After few days, the formwork can be opened.
Figure 5 below shows casted concrete pile cap without it formwork open.

Figure 5

I. Formwork to Column Stump

Timber formwork to column stump is set up.

J. Reinforced Concrete in Column Stump

Grade 30 reinforced concrete is poured into the formwork. The concrete is vibrated to increase
its strength using concrete vibrator. Let the column stump harden for approximately 7 days to
wait it mature and to have sufficient strength. Then the formwork is opened after completion.
Building Materials Involved in Constructing Pile Cap and Column Stump

1. Reinforced concrete
It is the main and most vital building materials in constructing pile cap and column stump as well
as other structure. The component or the composition of the concrete is mixed with cement, sand
gravel, rock aggregate and water in different ratio. The most popular ratio of composition is
1:2:4 (Cement: Sand : Aggregates). In order to get a good appearance of the concrete , there are a
few factors that we need to consider.

a. The composition of the concrete mix

b. The formwork used
c. Any surface treatment after casting
d. The quality of workmanship

The grade of concrete used in the structure is depends on the load that the structure needs to
withstand. There are also few test to ensure the freshness of concrete such as slump test,
compacting factor test, vebe test and flow test. There are some advantages of using reinforced
concrete such as it has high compressive strength, adequate tensile strength, fire resistant and etc.

2. High tensile reinforcement bar

This is a standard reinforcing steel rod that is used as tension device in concrete structures to
strengthen and hold the concrete together. It is incredibly versatile and long lasting. By being
casted into structures, it effectively counteracts the poor tensile strength of the concrete. It is
available in different desired sized and diameters. In this case, it gives a better anchor to the
concrete in pile cap as well as column stump to make them stronger. Figure 6 below shows the
example of the reinforcement bar which can be find on site.

Figure 6
 3. Timber formwork
Formwork is a temporary or permanent molds into which concrete or similar materials are
poured. It is also used to give shape and support the concrete until it gets its sufficient strength to
carry their own weight. In this construction project, the formwork used is timber formwork
where it has a lot of benefits. Firstly, the timber formworks can be constructed at a lower initial
cost than a steel formwork due to a higher availability and cheaper production cost. It is also easy
to handle since it is light weighted. Moreover, timber formwork also can be reused. Figure 7
below shows the timber formwork used to side column.

Figure 7
Photos and Descriptions

Figure 8

Figure 8 above shows companies cooperating with the ‘Serunai Apartment’ project.

Figure 9

Figure 9 below shows the reinforcement bar for ground beam which is then reinforced concrete
will be poured into it to become a complete ground beam as shown as figure 10.
 Figure 10

Figure 10 above shows the ground beam with column reinforcement bars.

Figure 11

Figure 11 above shows the timber formwork on site which is then used to build the formwork of
the structure.
 Figure 12

Figure 12 above shows a backhoe loaders which is used for construction, small demolition, light
transportation of building materials, powering building equipment, digging holes, landscaping,
breaking asphalt and paving roads.

Figure 13

Figure 13 above shows the fabric mesh reinforcement (BRC) with 9d hook.
Conclusion
Site visit is a great experience for students to have a knowledge on how the real construction
environment is. Working at construction site is much more different and harder compared to
what we have studied in class. Students can gain experience where they cannot be learnt or
gained during lectures or tutorials in class. With the help of engineers on site , students are able
know more about the building materials and also construction technology that students are never
learnt before. In facts, what students have learnt in classroom provides the main theory on how
the construction works but it is true that students will gain more if they put it in real life practice.
In a nutshell, the site visit also helped the students to have better understanding what they might
face in future as a quantity surveyor. It must be a great experience for students to face the real
life construction environment which will give lots of help to students in their future studies.

Lastly, we would like to thank our lecturers which are Sr. Ang Fuey Lin , Ms Habizah and also
Ms. Azrina for giving the opportunity for students to have a site visit which benefits a lot for
students.

Figure 14: Group picture

 SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING & DESIGN
BACHELOR OF QUANITY SURVEYING (HONOURS)

INTEGRATED ASSIGNMENT:
MEASUREMENT 1(QSB 60104)
CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGY 1(BLD 60104)
BUILDING MATERIALS (BLD 62003)

SITE VISIT REPORT

STUDENT NAME :Maurice Wong Bak Wee

STUDENT ID NO : 0331860

DATE OF SUBMISSION : 13/07/2016

 CONTENT

1.0 Introduction 3

2.0 Objective 4

3.0 Content

 Pile Foundation 5

 Process of constructing a pile cap and column stump 6-8

 Material involved in constructing a pile cap and column stump 9-10

4.0 Photos and Descriptions 11-13

5.0 Conclusion 14