Infrastructure development in the country should overtake the demand, according to president of the Association of Consulting Civil Engineers (India) Avinash D. Shirode.
Inaugurating a seminar on “Quality Assurance and Buildability Issues in Concrete Structures” organised by the association here on Friday, Mr. Shirode said soon India would have the best infrastructure, on a par with the Western countries. The association members were providing technical assistance to the local government on issues related to pollution control, green energy, etc.
Though infrastructure development was on in the country at a rapid pace, there was a shortage of civil engineers. Of the 1,700 engineering colleges in the country, only some had civil engineering programmes. With the overall economic changes in the country during the last 15 years, construction materials and techniques had also changed. “Quality is important in construction workmanship, material, technique and maintenance.” “Quality can never be compromised,” he said.
Speaking on “Buildability Issues in Concrete Construction”, A. R. Santhakumar, Consultant, Disaster and Mitigation Management, Anna University, said buildability went hand-in-hand with quality construction. It was always associated with a project. The methods of construction should be integrated with the design process. The main problem now was lack of space for construction. Several structures were now coming up on lands rejected earlier or on the reclaimed land. Identification of proper structural and foundation systems was important, he said.
Chairman of the Coimbatore chapter of the association C.M. Dharmalingam said quality was the bottom line for every product. Concrete was a vital factor in the construction industry. The construction sector was now in an era of fast track and volume buildings. These developments resulted in use of high strength concrete and increasing use of ready mix, chemical admixtures and blended cements. Concrete had moved from the conventional mixing at site to high strength and high performance levels, he added.
