half day seminar on “failure in structures – learning … · seminar on “failures in...

JURUTERA, July 200524

R E P O R T

Half Day Seminar on “Failure in Structures – Learning fromthe Structural Failures and Mistakes of Structural Engineers”...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

By : Ir. Ong Sang Woh

One hundred and twentyparticipants attended the half-day

seminar on “Failures in Structures –Learning from the Structural Failuresand Mistakes of Structural Engineers”by Mr. Leon Grill on 15 January 2005 atBangunan Ingenieur, IEM. Mr. LeonGrill is at present, an independentconsultant and has 48 years ofexperience in structural design,detailing, structural failures anddiagnosis of the causes, problems ofCodes of Practice and strengthening/repair of the existing structures. He hasalso been practicing as Chief ProofChecking Engineer in Europe, SouthAmerica, Australia as well as inSingapore and Malaysia.

The seminar was presented in twoparts – i.e. “Failures of ReinforcedConcrete Structures”, and “Pathology ofSteel Structures”. Mr. Leon highlightedthe reasons for structural failures,lessons learnt from these failures andthe importance of reducing theunacceptably high number andfrequency of failures. The use ofcompetent Forensic Engi-neeringreports and the compilation ofreported failures into a data bank werereported. These are useful referencematerials for cross-checking by theengineering profession in crucialinvestigative matters.

The lecture on “Failures of ReinforcedConcrete Structures” commenced with agiven report on the statistics ofstructural failures from variouscountries and the root causes of thesefailures. It was reported that between43% to 59% of all these structuralfailures are caused specifically bydesign shortcomings only – some ofwhich are incorrect choice of generaldesign concept, poor detailing ordetails being left to the contractor,improper choice of materials anderrors in design calculations. Othercauses of structural failures (besidesdesign defects) are attributed to poorcon-struction by builders, use ofdefective construction materials, andmisuse and/or improper maintenance

of structures. Mr. Leon highlighted thatthe cost of wrong detailing or lack ofdetailing has increased dramatically ascompared to the other causes of designfailures. He also mentioned that theheavy reliance on the use of computer-aided design in the recent past hasresulted in detailing being (sometimes)dangerously neglected.

A typical case history, which described the structural failure of areinforced concrete cantilever roof of asports stadium, was discussed. Thespeaker highlighted the presence ofcracks at the top surface of thecomponent, which may havecontributed to the collapse of thecantilever structure. These cracksoccurred, not at the face of the columnsas expected, but close to the centre-lineof the supporting columns – in totalcontradiction of the studied theory oras described in Codes of Practice.Consequently, laboratory tests werecarried out and the experimentalresults obtained have confirmed thatthe type of structural failure found (asin the case of the RC cantilever roof ofthe sports stadium) is neitherexceptional nor unique.

From thereon, the subject of designof corbels and the use of Codes ofPractice was discussed. The speakerreported that laboratory testsconducted indicated that the generalsafety factor recommended by Codesof Practice was not alwayssatisfactory. (Note: The speakerrecommended a factor of safety of at least2.5 for live load in the design of corbels).In addition, it was stressed that theproper detailing for the corbels is justas critical.

The second part of the seminardeals on the topic entitled, “Pathology ofSteel Structures”. It was mentioned thatthe most repeated causes of structuralsteel failures are human in nature, i.e.ignorance, negligence and lack offoresight. The general known means ofprevention are as follows:-• Quality assurance through quality

control at all stages during designand construction.

• Strict control of the quality of thematerials to be used.

• Proof checking at all the stages ofengineering design (specifications,conceptual, calculation, anddetailing).

• Site control of assembly andprovision of stability duringerection.

Statistics and photographs showing collapse of steel structuresand causes of reported failure werepresented. Three categories of thecauses of failures were identified asfollow:-(a) Those which occurs during

erection.(b) Those that are due to instability

caused by buckling of members orthin plates.

(c) Those resulting from faultyassemblies.

In conclusion, the speakerintroduced two practical recommen-dations to improve on the practice ofengineering. They are:-(a) To introduce short courses on

structural failures in theuniversities.

(b) To have an independent peerreview or proof checking at allstages of engineering design.

In addition, the speakeremphasized that the checking ofdesign should not be limited toassuring that all parts of the design arein full agreement with the provisionsin Codes of Practice, but must alsobased on sound and reliableengineering judgment. The speakeralso gave a list of useful references on related subjects on structuralfailures.

During the discussion session,major issues pertaining to the use ofCodes in design was debated and thespeaker ended the session stating thatengineers should always consider theCodes as a Guide and not use it as aManual. ■

Civil & Structural Engineering Technical Division


R E P O R T

The Institute for Environment andDevelopment (LESTARI) of Uni-

versiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM)recently held a regional forum on the 11 April 2005. The forum focused onsustainable energy, with the headline“Meeting the Challenges forSustainability in Energy Develop-mentand Utilisation”. The event wasofficiated by YB Dato’ Sri Dr. Lim KengYaik, Minister of Energy, Water andCommunications, Malaysia.

The main keynote speech waspresented by Y. Bhg. Tan Sri Datuk AmarLeo Moggie, Chairman of TenagaNasional Berhad (TNB) and it wasentitled “Sustainable Development in thePower Sector in Malaysia”.

In his speech, Y. Bhg. Tan Sri DatukAmar Leo Moggie highlighted twocritical issues faced by our energyconsortium; that of sustainable energydevelopment and sustainable growth ofenergy com-panies in the power sector.

“Last year’s tsunami and thesubsequent earthquakes have forced theglobal community, more than ever before,to come to terms with the true wrath andforce of nature and the importance ofstriking a balance between developmentand the environment.

For long, changes in energydevelopment have been driven byresource availability, prices anddevelopments in technology. Today,consistent with the goal of sustainabledevelopment, the transition to asustainable energy system is alsoincreasingly marked by the import-ancewe give to the environment and socialconcerns through actions related toenergy.”

The speaker goes on to state that “Attimes, however, we in Malaysia havebeen guilty of taking our beautiful, cleanand pristine green environment forgranted. As the recent spate of news onenvironmental violations goes to prove,more and more, pressures fordevelopment have resulted in thecollision of priorities between the needsand interests of what is seen as“development” and those of nature and

the environment.” and he cited theincrease of public interest in theenvironment and that environmentalimpact assessment is a necessary part ofprojects and steps has to be taken tominimise and mitigate the effects on theenvironment and the surrounding areas.

SUSTAINABILITY IN ENERGYDEVELOPMENT

Y. Bhg. Tan Sri Datuk Amar Leo Moggieemphasised “Energy is always animportant issue in today’s world, not onlybecause of its implications for economicgrowth and development but also becausewe are concerned with our decliningnatural resources. For too long, we havebeen too reliant on fossil fuels for ourenergy resources that we lost sight, albeittemporarily, of the need for resources tobe sustained for generations to come.

Every sector in the economy has itsfair share of sustainable developmentissues. A sustainable energy future,according to the UNDP, is an importantlinkage for sustainable development andbrings considerable benefits in social,environmental, economic and securityterms.”

The speaker talked about theevolution towards the four fuel strategyto the recent inclusion of renewable

energy as the fifth fuel. Examples of someof the developments in the renewableenergy sector in Malaysia and thataround the world were discussed withexamples of wind, solar and biomassprojects that were conducted in Malaysia.He cited that the slow progress in thissector is due to the cost differentialbetween the cost of generation ofelectricity from the other different fuels.

Hydro Potential The speaker introduced hydropower as agreen energy, which is perhaps the onlyconventional large energy system that isrenewable and sustainable. He cited thata lot of this potential resource is under-developed because of its location. InMalaysia, specifically in Sarawak, theRajang river basin including Bakun,Muruni, Baleh and Pelagus, which boastsof a huge hydropower potential,reportedly at approximately 20,000 MW.

In the context of ASEAN, threecountries share the Mekong river basin,which is known to have hugehydropower potential.

Within this scenario, hydropowershould attract renewed interests and itspotential deserves another re-look forlong-term diversification of the country’sgeneration capacity.

Report on the Regional Forum on Sustainable Energy – 11 April 2005......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Reported by : Ir. Mah Soo

JURUTERA, July 2005 27

R E P O R T

SUSTAINABLE GROWTH OF COMPANIESThe speaker then touched on sustainability of companies inthe power sector. He gave some comparative data as follows:

“A look at some comparative figures on return on capitalemployed of different utilities versus their correspondingelectricity growth rates show that in 2003-2004, TNB’s returnon capital employed was 3.6% compared to 12.5% for EGAT inThailand, 5% for KEPCO in Korea, 8.5% for Singapore Powerand 14.9% for China Light and Power.

The corresponding growth in electricity demand was 8%p.a. for Malaysia, 9.2% for Thailand, 5.7% for S. Korea, 2.4%for Singapore and 4.3% for Hong Kong. As can be noted,even though the demand growth for S. Korea, Singapore andHong Kong were lower than Malaysia, the returns to theseutilities were all higher than TNB’s.

Utilities can only provide the quality of service modernconsumers expect if they earn a fair returns to allow forcontinuous investment in capacity building and upgradingof existing networks.”

Finally, the speaker concluded after having covered awide area of issues relating to sustainable energydevelopment, from traditional fuels to renewable energy andto the relevance of sustainable company growth. He thenwarned that the time for renewable energy has arrived as oil,coal and natural gas prices in the long term would continueto escalate, whicle renewable energy costs should comedown, and there will be a time when all the prices wouldconverge and all forms of energy would compete on a levelplaying field.

He also highlighted the challenges faced by a utility as acommercial entity with a going concern in the issue ofsustainability. He then cited TNB as an example “which hasfor long strived to cope with trying to sustain and meetelectricity demand growth, despite the declining rates ofreturn from the 8% required by World Bank beforeprivatisation, to less than 4% today.

Many nations, we we know, have been experimentingwith the competitive model in the hope of letting marketforces determine the price of electricity and to weed out theweak and inefficient industry players. Despite the earlyenthusiasm that accompanied such a model in the late 80’sand early 90’s, success of the model has been evasive so farand has created instability in the supply system even forcountries where demand growth has stabilised.”

The speaker concluded on the note that TNB has a centralrole in the power sector and that “when TNB sneezes, theelectricity industry in the country would catch a cold” andthat it is essential to ensure the continued sustainability ofthe national utility (TNB) as a prerequisite to sustainabledevelopment in the power sector.” ■

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For discussion & appointment_____________________________

Call : (02) 6225 6015Mail : [email protected]

Y. Bhg. Datuk Amar Leo Moggie was recently conferred thetitle of ‘Tan Sri’ by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku SyedSirajuddin Syed Putra Jamalullail.


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R E P O R T

IntroductionOn 5 August 2004, the Civil & StructuralEngineering Technical Division of TheInstitution of Engineers, Malaysia inconjunction with IStructE, MalaysiaDivision organised an interesting talkentitled “Failure Modes of ConcreteStructures”. The renowned speaker isProfessor Leslie A. Clark, Head of CivilEngineering Department at the Universityof Birmingham and the Past President ofIStructE, UK. The talk was attended by 171participants.

The talk covered the use of structuraldesign codes in general, and brieflyaddressed issues of strength, stiffness anddurability of structural elements, andchecking of the ultimate and serviceabilitylimit states of individual members.Structural design is thus highly codifiedand applying past knowledge gained frompractical experience and research. Hence,the practice of codified design encourageslack of consideration of real structure'sbehaviour. Moreover, other aspects notcovered by code of practice are alsoignored.

However, in reality, when structuralfailures occur in practice they often involvewhole structures, and not individualelements. Structural failures are also oftenof a very sudden non-ductile nature. Theseaspects of structural behaviour and failuremodes are not well covered in the designcodes, hence there is an immediate need toconsider rational ways of designing toprovide adequate robustness, ductility andredundancy in concrete structures.

Types of FailureFour major factors for structural failures arediscussed and it was stated that failurescould be due to a combination of thefollowing four factors:a) Design code deficiencies b) Design errors c) Construction deficiencies d) Deterioration

The common features of structuralfailures are:a) Sudden and brittleb) Involve significant parts, if not all, of

the structure

Typical examples of structural failuresand failure mechanism were discussed andhighlighted by the speaker. These examplesare:a) Hotel New World, Singaporeb) Royal Plaza Hotel, Thailandc) Wilkins Air Force Base, USA

d) Ronan Point Flats, UKe) Ynys - y - Gwas Bridge, UK f) Pipers Row Car Park, UKg) World Trade Center, USA

As a result of the brittle nature ofstructural failures, consideration have to be given to the relationship betweenrobustness and ductility of concretestructures. Robustness is defined as

“The damage suffered by a structure asthe result of an unforeseen event, whichshould not be disproportionate to thecause.”

Unfortunately, robustness is a term,which could not be quantified. Hence, thereis a need to consider it separately.

Design for RobustnessThe structure has to be capable ofwithstanding two different andindependent sets of actions.a) It should be able to support a defined

ultimate loadb) It should be able to absorb, without

collapse, a defined energy input. Hence,the required ductility can bedetermined.

The three elements in ductility asdiscussed are:a) Concrete – which has limited ductility

especially in design for high strength.As such, concrete failure may berestrained by reducing the failure strainin concrete.

b) Reinforcement – which is the mainelement for ductility.

c) Detailing – which also includesanchorage of structural elements.

Although there is no specific ductilityrequirements in BS81 10 and BS5400, theaspects of ductility have been envisagedand will be covered in Eurocodes EN1992-1-1 for Buildings and EN1992-2 for Bridges.Also the reinforcement production (interms of performance characteristics,threshold limits, test methods andattestation of conformity) will be coveredby EN 10080 (which is due for publicationby 2005).

The Normative Annex C of EN 1992specifies the ductility requirements ofClasses A, B and C structures. Thefollowing design conditions are covered bythe design applications of the classes ofstructures.

Class A• moment redistribution < 20%• no plastic analysis

Class B• moment redistribution < 30%• plastic analysis

Class C• seismic condition

Slides of failed structures with high andlow ductility reinforcement and fracturedreinforcement were shown. Also the effect of corrosion deterioration of thereinforcement was discussed using thefollowing graphs:a) Total force versus micro strains for

reinforcement barsb) Effect of corrosion of reinforcement

propertiesc) Effect of corrosion on bar ductilityd) Effect of corrosion on beam ductility

In summary, the talk on failure modesof concrete structures covered the followingpoints, which should be noted for designconsiderations:a) The collapse of structures tend to be

sudden, non-ductile and non-localised.b) Design codes do not cover ductility and

robustness adequately.c) There is a need for a rational design

method.d) Concerns persist in design code

requirements for shear resistance.e) Significant effect of corrosion on

reinforcement bars may occurs due topoor detailing or even inappropriatedesign.

Finally, a lively question and answersession followed on immediately after thetalk was concluded. The queries raisedcover a wide range of topics, such as,a) the definition of “ductility” of

structures,b) the need for research into types of

deterioration in structures,c) bonded construction and grouting of

tendons,d) current trends adopted for shear design

worldwide,e) the use of computers by young

engineers and the need for a clearunderstanding on behaviour ofstructures, and

f) awareness by engineers, of up-to-dateknowledge in structural design and not"hiding" behind the design codes.

The talk officially ended at 7.30 p.m.,and the speaker was given a rousing clapsof appreciation. A token of appreciationwas presented to the speaker by theorganisers, the IEM Civil & StructuralEngineering Technical Division. ■

“Failure Modes of Concrete Structures”.......................................................................................................................................................................................

Reported by: Ir. Ong Sang Woh

Civil & Structural Engineering Technical Division


R E P O R T

IEM/IES meet is an annual eventorganised on rotational basis by The

Graduate and Student Section of IEM(IEM G&S) and Young MembersCommittee of IES (IES YMC). Theobjectives of this meet are to promotemore communication, interaction, andcooperation and information exchangebetween the young engineers of the twoinstitutions. This year, for the 23rd meet,IES YMC was the host. The event was held from 21 to 23 May 2005. Tenmembers from IEM and seventhmembers from IES participated in thisyear’s meet.

The IEM delegates led by Sdr. SureshYegambaram (IEM G&S Chairperson)and Sdr. Yau Chau Fong (IEM G&S ViceChairperson) departed from Puduraya inthe wee hours of the morning. After afew hours of sleep in the bus, we finallyarrived at our destination, Singapore…..The Merlion City……

Our first day started by havingbreakfast with some of the IES YMCdelegates at the Beach Road HawkerCentre. After the get together breakfast,we checked in to ‘The New 7th StoreyHotel.’ Next, we headed to SMU(Singapore Management University)construction site for site visit. We werewarmly welcomed and guided by Mr.CK Phang, one of the civil engineers incharge at that site. Safety helmets weredistributed as a safety measure alongwith the site plans and structural layoutof the site for site illustration. We weregiven a thorough explanation on thevarious design considerations andconcepts in constructing the building andstructures. We then visited differentsections of the university.

After a pleasant lunch and minglingwith each other, we were off for the nextvisit to the ‘NEWater Plant’. We boardeda bus together with the rest of the IESdelegates. During the journey on the bus,we took the golden opportunity to have ashort ice breaking session with oneanother. Upon reaching the plant, wewere shown a documentary about the‘NEWater Plant’. Basically the progress ofthe visit reminds me of the tour I had atthe KLCC Petronas Twin Tower Visit.After the brief documentary show, thevisitors were given some time to havefun with some hands-on and interactive

games in order to understandmore about the ‘NEWater’. Afurther documentary was alsoshown. Later, we were led by atour guide for the briefing of thedifferent stages in waterprocessing before the water issafe for drinking. Finally, wewere each given a bottle of‘NEWater’ as a souvenir. We hada few photo sessions beforemoving on to the next activitythat is none other than the muchawaited IEM/IES ChallengeTrophy activities.

The sports activities were held at EastCoast Park. Two games were supposed tobe played in determining which team willwin the IEM/IES Challenge Trophy,namely the Frisbee Challenge and theCaptain Ball. After some tense moments,IEM G&S has to surrender the trophy theywon two years ago to the much fitter IESYMC in a tough game with a score of 8-5.The IEM G&S was initially leading the inpoints but as the game went on, the IEMG&S tired out and gave the game away.Unfortunately it started to rain heavilyafter the first game during the FrisbeeChallenge and we decided to end thechallenge and awarded the trophy to IESYMC in a true sporting spirit. After that,we continued to have some ice breakinggames before dinner time. As the daygrew, we could see the changes of EastCoast Park. It was getting merrier andmore gala, offering a variety of delightfulSingapore’s local food. Beautiful andcolorful lights added to the festive

atmosphere. Among the famous localfood available were satay bihun, chickenrice, stingray fish and BBQ chicken.

Sightseeing was the highlight for thesecond day. We were brought to theChinatown for the heritage view and tobuy some souvenirs. After having ourbrunch at a famous "dim sum" restaurant(The Yum Cha Dim Sum) at Chinatown,we split into few groups and headed forsome light shopping. Along the road, wenoticed that there were some streetperformers preparing to do someperformances later in the evening. Timeflew… and before we could wait for theperformance to start, we were asked togather for our next activity. The nextitinerary was at Kallang Water SportsCentre. Well, Kallang is famous for itsdragon boat races. The event was led bythe muscular built IES YMC committees,Kok Leng and Hsien Hung. We have ashort warm up before we went throughthe dragon boat’s introductory training.The weather on that evening was just

beautiful for usto do suchactivity .We hada good rowingand enjoys p l a s h i n go u r s e l v e sduring the boatrace. After atiring day ofwalking ands p l a s h i n garound, wewere treated to as u m p t u o u sdinner atR e n d e z v o u sHotel by IES.

23rd IEM/IES Meet 2005................................................................................................................

By: Sdri. Kang Sze Hui

Singapore Management University Site Visit

The Dragon Boat Training at Kallang River

Graduate & Student Sect ion


R E P O R T

The dinner was great and most of us tookthe opportunity to exchange informationand interact with each other. The officialdinner ends with exchange of souvenirsbetween the two institutions

After the dinner, the committees fromboth IEM G&S and IES YMC proceededwith a short discussion session chairedby the Engr. Chew Chee Yong, theChairperson of IES YMC.

The summary of the discussion wereas follows:1) The next IEM/IES Meet would be

held in Malaysia, tentatively in May 2006.

2) Both IEM G&S and IES YMC agreedto have more cooperation amongstthe student members and represent-atives of both institutions.

3) To look into sharing of knowledgeand information on each other’sactivities held.

4) To play a more proactive andprominent role in the upcomingYEAFEO (Young Engineers ofASEAN Federation of EngineersOrganisation) in Laos.

5) To conduct combined visits to otherASEAN countries in the near future.

After that we had a brisk walk to thefamous Esplanade, Boat Quay andClarke Quay. Those places are well-known for picturesque night view alongthe Singapore river and a definite‘happening’ place for the youngergeneration, especially during the night.Boat Quay and Clarke Quay are famousfor their pubs and cafés too. As wewalked along the quays, we couldhear a wide repertoire of songsranging from oldies hits to thelatest hits coming from the pubs.The landscape of Esplanade wasreally a sight at night time. It was

brightly lit by light from the famous"Durian Building", which was dubbed bythe locals because the shape of thebuilding is like a durian.

On the last day of our Meet, we weregiven freedom to choose the places thatwe wanted to visit. Finally, after alengthy discussion, we decided to splitourselves into two groups. A groupvisited the Singapore Zoo and anotherwent off to Orchard Road to do someshopping. I chose the Singapore Zoo!Singapore Zoo is a well known spot fortourist attraction, famous for its animalshows. We were all so keyed up duringthe animals’ shows. We gathered fordinner at the First Thai Restaurant. Thedinner was good especially the Tom YamSoup and the dessert. Next, we had somenight view at Bugis Junction and somechit chat before bading farewell to IESYMC delegates. We thanked the IES YMCfor their hospitality. We came backexhausted but each of us had a store ofmemories, which will not be easilyforgotten. ■

Group Photo at NEWater Plant

Group Photo at Singapore ZooGroup Photo at Chinatown MRT Station

The start of the IEM/IES Challenge – The FrisbeesChallenge

** The IEM G&S would like to thank the IESYMC (especially Chew Chee Yong, HsienHung, Kok Leng and their Committees) forsuccessfully organising the 23rd IEM/IESMeet 2005 and their hospitality. We will meetagain in the next edition of the IEM/IESMeet 2006 in Malaysia. For those who wouldlike to receive more updates on theupcoming IEM/IES Meet 2006 and the IEMG&S activities, feel free to drop us an e-mailat iemgs@ yahoo.com.


L E T T E R T O E D I T O R

Dear Chief Editor,

I just finished reading (not frontto back though) the March 2005

issue of JURUTERA and amimpressed by the mix of articles,not to mention the format ofblending colors. I particularlyenjoyed the witty remarkssprinkled by Ir. Dr Wong KoonYuin throughout his articlereporting on his foray into themetropolis that is Shanghai. Alaswe are also reminded that somehuman habits do die hard despitethe imposing façade of moderndevelopment. I’m referring ofcourse, to the spitting culture.

I also find his need to qualifyhis Chinese friend “who has donevery well in China” as not anengineer quaint, his telling it as itis notwithstanding. Maybe it isthis kind of subtle and not sosubtle attempts at equatingengineers to NOT RICH guys thatis causing the recent slump in thenumber of engineering graduatesas lamented in the US (Malaysia?).Or are we (or rather am I) givingtoo much credit to theseinnuendos?

I’m also happy for SauberPetronas for having a modern(sorry, ultra-modern) wind tunnelfacility, which must be the envy of many a university bent onsolving engineering problemsfrom atmospheric turbulence tobuilding safety in extreme windevents. And FLUENT, the state-of-the-art CFD, will surely come inhandy in studying variousengineering problems associatedwith fluid motion, be it air, water,or any other liquid media. Maybesome form of arrangement can bemade for local universities topartake of this wondrous facilityto address more “down-to-earth”but chronic engineering issues.Wishful thinking? You tell me.

The many reports on IEMactivities perhaps answer the callto capturing IEM’s living memoryas rightly advanced in theeditorial of Sdr. K.H. Man to someextent. Obviously much moreneed to be done and now is thetime as good as any to start aserious effort in that respect.

Last but not the least, themusing of Sdri. Elaine Koh can bean inspiration to other engineer-ing graduates to enter the fold ofIEM, be it through constantbugging as was the “last straw” forher, but only at the start, oradding the human element to theengineer in community projects,which sustains her attachmentthereafter. I must commend herfor “taking a step back and reflectingwhere I am going next” at such arelatively young age (I’mguessing that from her photo andher appellation, Sdri.). Most of usat the half-century mark are onlybeginning to exercise that part ofthe faculty in our brains.

And the Shaiky’s View is abefitting epilogue to the monthlyissue of JURUTERA, as always.

All in all it has been adelightful pleasure reading theonline version of JURUTERA(just imagine if it were a printed copyon glossy papers ... it will surely make my day. I‚m hintinghere...). ■

Sincerely,

Ir. Dr Lee Say ChongPh.D. MIEM(via email from US, April 30, 2005)


Al-FatihaAllahyarham Prof. Madya Ir. Dr Mohamad Nizar Hassan Dalam Kenangan

..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

By: Ir. Assoc. Prof. Siti Hawa binti Hamzah

Allahyarham Prof. Madya Ir. Dr Mohamad Nizar dilahirkan

pada 23 Oktober 1956 di Langgar, AlorSetar, Kedah. Allahyarham telahmendapat pendidikan di Sekolah Datuk Abdul Razak Seremban, NegeriSembilan sebelum melanjutkanpelajaran ke peringkat diploma dalamkursus Kimia Perindustrian di ITM(kini UiTM) pada tahun 1978 danseterusnya melanjutkan pelajaran diWest Virginia University USA danberjaya memperolehi B.Sc. (ChemicalEngineering) pada tahun 1984. Padatahun 1987 Allahyarham memperolehiM.Sc. (Chemical Engineering) diFlorida Institute Of Technology USAdan PhD (Chemical ProcessTechnology) di USM P. Pinang padatahun 2000.

Allahyarham telah memulakankariernya sebagai penolong pensyarahdi UiTM Perlis pada 1980-1984. Padatahun 1985-1993 beliau telah dilantiksebagai pensyarah . Allahyarham telahdiberikan kepercayaan oleh pihakUniversiti dan telah dilantik sebagaiKetua, Bahagian Penyelidikan dan

Perundingan UiTM Kampung Arau,Perlis. Pada 1993 beliau telah di naikpangkat ke jawatan pensyarah kananseterusnya ke Profesor Madya.Allahyarham juga telah dilantik sebagaiKetua Jabatan Kejuruteraan Kimia padaNovember 2001 hingga April 2003.

Sepanjang kariernya sebagaipensyarah di UiTM Allahyarham telahmenyumbangkan sebanyak 10 jurnalserta kertas kerja dan 10 penyelidikansamada perseorangan atau ber-kumpulan. Pada tahun 1993Allahyarham telah dianugerahkanResearcher Of The Year dari UiTM danfinalist, Petronas Inventors Award.

Pada bulan Mac,1998 Allahyarhamtelah dilantik sebagai ahli perundingbagi Wastewater Treatment System Auditbagi AMOCO Chemical (M) Sdn. Bhd,Gebeng Industrail Park, Kuantan,Pahang. Allahyarham juga bergiataktif sebagai ahli dalam The Institutionof Engineers, Malaysia, Institution ofChemical Engineers, Malaysia danInstitut Tenaga Malaysia. Allahyarhamadalah Ahli Korporat Institusi JuruteraMalaysia (IEM) dan beliau telah

memperolehi kelayakan JuruteraProfesional daripada LembagaJurutera Malaysia (BEM) pada 16November, 2004.

Di kalangan rakan-rakan, Allah-yarham merupakan seorang yangperiang, peramah, pemurah danseorang yang rajin berusaha.

Pada tanggal 20 Mac 2005bersamaan 9 Safar 1426, Prof. Madya Ir. Dr. Mohamad Nizar Hassan telahkembali ke rahmahtullah. Semogarohnya dicucuri rahmat dan di-tempatkan bersama-sama denganorang yang saleh.

“IT IS MY OBLIGATIONTO ACQUIRE ANDTRANSMITKNOWLEDGE FOR THESAKE OF ALLAH”INSYAALLAH

Di atas adalah “teachingphilosophy” daripadaAllahyarham Prof.Madya Ir. Dr. MohamadNizar Hassan.

ERRATA(In Previous Bulletin)

E U L O G Y

MAY 2005 ISSUE

On page 34 of the May 2005 issue of JURUTERA, in thearticle “2-Cycle Moment Distribution For The Analysis ofContinuous Beams And Multi-Storey Framed Structures”,

In Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, it should be D.L = 1.0G instead of 1.4G.Under “Minimum Moment At Span”, the 6th line shouldread:

“It can be obtained by allowing total loads on the adjacent spansand dead load only on span BC”.

Under “Determination of Column Moments”, the 5th line“far lends” should read “far ends” instead and 9th line should read “live load” instead of “line load”.

The second last paragraph on “The sign of column momentsshould be opposite to the beam unbalanced moments at the joint”should be replaced by “No signs are given for the columnmoments; the rotation for column moment follows that of thebeam unbalanced moment at the joint and bending momentdiagram should be drawn on the tension face”.

JUNE 2005 ISSUE

On page 16 of the June 2005 issue of JURUTERA, in thearticle “SI & Geotechnical Engineering Design” by Ir. Neoh Cheng Aik, we apologise to our readers and theauthor for the erroneous 1/2 page void.

On page 18 of the same issue, in the article “A Glimpse ofEngineering Geology”, Mr. Tan Boon Kong was incorrectlycredited as Ir. Tan Boon Kong. The correct designation isAssoc. Prof. Tan Boon Kong.

We regret any inconvenience caused


C O L U M N

In this modern age, many students are tryingtheir best to excel in their studies to keep up

with the ever demanding world which onlythe fittest will survive. Some students evenattend special courses which promise studentsthe fast and easy way to excel in studies. Thesecourses provide multiple comprehensiveplans to ensure the success of their 'students'in education. Thus, many researches havecarried out in formulating plans to helpstudents achieving their dreams. Here aresome ways that might prove handy tostudents who wants to get good grades.

The first thing a student must know is thatstudying 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, is nota good approach. We should instead followthe saying 'study smart, not hard.' Study smartis a program written by a student to helpothers improve their grades and reduce theirstudy time. Firstly, a student must beconfident in everything they do. Selfconfidence is the key to success. This may getthem to be interested in the course taken eventhough it's dull or difficult. Another importantpoint is to have a good organisation of yourstudy materials. When writing your own notesfor references, the notes have to be well

organised and simple to understand. Mindmapping is a proven method to help studentsremember fast. Mind mapping is to writenotes using colorful pens and pictures to makethem interesting and easy to understand. Thisform of studying method has been applied bymany successful students in replacement ofthe boring black and white words.

Next, students should have an advancedexamination preparation. Advanced examina-tion preparation means that students shouldbe well prepared before the examinations. Tryyour best to revise the subjects taught in classat the very same day. Constant study leads tosuccess, a proverb that is proven to be true.Before the examinations, students shouldattempt a lot of questions taken from severalsources. Apply all the concepts given bylecturers to solve the problems given. Anydoubts should be rectified by consulting therespective lecturer as soon as possible. Thesepractices are helpful and students retain moreknowledge from it than from just plainreading. After all the preparation and hardwork, students will have more confidencewhen sitting for the examinations. This is animportant aspect to do well.

Students should also have a systematicstudy plan. A systematic study plan focuses ontwo principal elements; excellence in teachingand learning, and excellence in research andcreative activity. Both teachers and studentsmust establish a two way communication inorder to have a better understanding of thesubjects. Excellence in research and creativityrefers to the way students help themselves inremembering important points on certainsubjects. Group studies among friends may be helpful too. This would make studyingmore interesting as interaction is present.Students should have a timetable to ensurethat they do not miss any subjects that they should be revising. A good andsystematic plan is healthy for students as theyprovide a good balance of study and play.Therefore, they would not have to squeezetheir brain every single minute, with no timefor leisure.

In conclusion, to be an excellent student,one has to be hardworking and well-disciplined. As a student, we should knowhow to spend our time wisely. An ambitiousperson and someone who has self confidencein themselves is an excellent student! ■

How to be an Excellent Student............................................................................................................................................

By: Sdri Eunice Lim (MMU Cyberjaya)

Graduate & Student Sect ion

half day seminar on “failure in structures – learning … · seminar on “failures in...

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