SUPERSTRUCTURE.

We had attended the site visit to a unit of shop house at Taman Kriastal Parit Raja.

During the site visit, we had observe several type of superstructure which consist of beam,

column, wall and finishes.

BEAM DESIGN.

Reinforced concrete beams are designed to act together with longitudinal and web

reinforcement in resisting applied forces. Cast-in place concrete beam are almost always

formed and placed along with the slab they support. Because a portion of the slab acts as an

integral part of the beam, the depth of the beam is measured to the top of the slab.

The structural precast column is reinforced and can be used as a part of a total precast

concrete structure. A variation of finishes can be applied according to the building type once

the beams and column are done. Beam are commonly used as ledges for other forms of

precast flooring to rest on, but can also be used as a flooring option on their own. They are

manufactured to suit each particular building design. Some of beam included are Tee-Beams,

Rectangular Beam, U-Beams and Beam shells.

There are two type method of concrete beam in manufacture. One of that is by

commonly construction or we call in-situ method and other one is by new technology that is

pre-cast concrete beam. Both of that is different method between in-situ and pre-cast.

However, the most common method of constructing beam and columns are through in situ

cast concrete. This method is used in the construction at Taman Kristal Shop house. The in-

situ concrete structure mostly contains steel reinforcement for stronger support. The steel

reinforcement is placed in between the concrete during casting.

Beams are rigid structural member designed to carry and transfer loads across space to

supporting elements. The non-concurrent pattern of forces subjects a beam to bending and

deflection, which must be resisted by the internal strength of the material. We noticed that the

beam, column and slab that are on our site are constructed together.

Figure 1: Finished first floor Beam

Ground beam are sometimes casted together with the slab, but in According to Mr. Ah

Hong, they casted the beam before they casted the slab. As the second floor, we found out that

the beam and slab are cast together because it is not possible to cast the beam first then the

slab later.

The construction concrete beam is started by fixing the reinforcement bar of the beam.

Alternately, formwork is prepared first. Then the reinforcement is completely assembled on

top of the formwork and is later lowered into its final position inside the forms. If there a joint

of two crossing beam and column at the ground level, we must make sure that the

reinforcement clear each other and adequate space must remain proper consolidates of

concrete. Then fix the wooden formwork for the concrete beam and pour the concrete. After

that dry it up and remove the formwork.

COLUMN.

Column in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that acts as a

support of building, transmitting load from higher platform towards foundation level. The

column that is applied in our site is concrete column. Columns are rigid, relatively slender

structural member designed primarily to support axial compressive loads applied to the ends

of the members. According to Mr. Ah Hong the concrete column that is built in our site was

built along with the concrete beam and slab. It composes of concrete and reinforce

steel(rebar). It work in the way were reinforced steel is placed at where there is tensile force

and let concrete resist corrosion.

There are several types of column which is steel column, wood/timber column, and

concrete column. Column is function to support building which carries compressive loads.

WALL.

Figure 2 Column can be seen at site.

Walls are often used to support loads, to insulate the building and to work as a climate

enclosure, protecting the building from sun, wind and rain. Walls can be load bearing,

supporting the floor and roofs or non-load bearing. However, they always separate a place

from another, working like filters in spaces; their qualities affect the space they create.

They are different types of walls, made from different materials, according to

requirements of the context and the client’s wished. A wall can be a solid wall that carries its

load in compression thought out its length and so it requires supporting beams or a continuous

foundation.

On the site visit we managed to catch several different types of wall and different

material used. According to Mr. Ah Hong the site supervisor, there are 2 different types of

brick that we can find at our sites:

a) Concrete Brick.

- It is beauty in its natural state.

- It is much economy in term of saving materials, labours, time and costing.

b) Common burnt clay bricks.

- It does not have attractive appearance thus it requires plastering or rendering.

- It has the maximum fire resistance among the bricks.

- It is expensive because of the time consuming.

MASONRY WALL.

Masonry wall are made up of piled up modular block, usually made of clay, stone,

cement, or concrete. They are various ways a masonry wall can be stacked and they create

different patterns. Usually they are hold together with the help of mortar that is made of sand,

cement and water.

Concrete Brick = Made from solid concrete which is a combination of Portland

cement, aggregates and water.

Clay Brick = Made from a mixture of clay and water then pressed into forms

and fired in a kiln.

Mortar = mortar is a workable paste consist of cement or lime, or a combination

of both with sand and water. It is used as a bonding agent in masonry construction. A standard

mortar mix for new brickwork would be 1:1:6 (cement: lime: sand) or 1:4 (Portland: cement:

sand)

BRICK ON-SITE:

Parti wall is a dividing between 2 adjoining building (unit) that is shared by the tenants

of each residence or business. It also serve as the fire wall by restrict the spread of fire from

one unit to another. As the built on site of Taman Kristal are doing shop house construction,

parti wall are the type wall that we can saw used there. According to the internet source, the

materials and masonry building are used due to its unique features against fire. The common

burnt clay brick are used because of its high fire resistance. The thickness of parti wall is

formed by two headers or one stretcher face of brick. A parti wall not only separates two

different unit, it also plays an important roles in fire stopping.

A firewall also has sufficient structural stability during a building fire to allow

collapse of the construction on either side without collapsing. At the site, the types of wall

arrangement are using the Flemish bond type. Flemish bond has alternating header and

stretchers in each course, each header being centered above and below a stretcher. By placing

the brick in this arrangement, its benefit both economic and structural aspect as it able to form

a thick wall by using minimum amount of bricks.

Figure 3: Parti wall on site

Figure 4: Flemish Bond

PROCEDURES OF CONSTRUCTING CONCRETE BRICK WALL.

Step 1 : Measure the length of wall.

Start by putting a brick down at each end of the wall. Measure from the outer edge of

the brick at one end to the outer edge of the brick at the other end to get the length of the wall.

Step 2 : Measure the brick.

Measure the brick and mark at 10 inch intervals, add about 3/8 of an inch onto the

length of the brick to compensate for the mortar in between the brick which is a ‘joint.

Step 3 : Consistency.

Keep the height of all the same by using a spirit level.

Step 4 : Set up the line.

Hook a line at both ends so it lines up with the very top of two bricks. Then fill up the

middle.

Step 5 : Continue on the next level.

Always start at each end then fill in the middle until the destined height. Remember to

adjust the hook line on every level.

Step 6 : Wiring and piping.

After constructing the brick until the top, get all kinds of piping ready such as wire, air

conditioner, water and etc. Then, craft a cylindrical-like space on the wall vertically or

horizontally depending on the piping system. After that, start setting up the pipes.

Step 7 : Plaster and skim coat.

Apply the plaster in smooth layer over the brick wall and let it dry before applying a

second coating which should be thinner than the first layer. Smooth over the wall with the

skim coat of mud applied with a special squeegee.

Next, we also can saw the way of the site strategy to strengthen the wall which is by:

a) Brick bonding.

- The brick are arranged in overlapping to prevent the whole wall from sinking.

b) Wire mesh.

- Wire mesh are primarily used as anti- cracking reinforcement of brick and

block masonry.

The problems that we detected at the site are the mortar work is not neat as some parts

the can drooling out. While the brick work is roughly been done with some brick is ‘popping’

out. Excess mortar isn’t removed as plastering wall will be done later onto brick wall,

avoiding any unwanted sight of brick wall. There also a hole between the brick which we

secretly being told that it we use to support the scaffolding. But the problem is the hole after

that is not again fill with brick but it just being cover with the plastering.

FINISHES.

PLASTERING AND SKIM COAT.

Plastering.

Plastering is the process to produce an acceptable final wall or ceiling by using plaster.

The most common type of plaster used is gypsum plaster which made up of mixing calcimed

gypsum with water, fine sand or lightweight aggregate and various additives.

From our site, plastering is applied by hand and it is done by two very simple tools, a

hawk in one hand to hold a small quantity of plaster ready for use and a trowel on other hand

to lift the plaster from the hawk. Apply to surface and smooth it into place.

Mr. Ah Hong said that there were two-coat plaster is applied at our site. First coat is

brown coat which it is roughly finishes, leveling coat of plaster. Second is the finish coat. It is

the final coat of plaster, serving either as a finished surface or as a base of decoration.

Last process are normally wall tiling. Using sand paper to smoothen out the wall and

vacuum away the dust.

Process of plastering at site.