Building Construction

Chapter one
Outline
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Development of Building construction
1.3. Typical house construction in Ethiopia
1.4 Building Classification
1.5 Components of building
1.6 Design and Performance requirement
1.7 Participants in Building Construction
1.8 Steps in Building Construction
1.1 Introduction

A construction is a process of constructing something by man for

one purpose or another. It may be a road, bridge, a dam, a dwelling
place, an airport, a commercial building, etc.
A building can be generally considered as a structure consisting of
floors, walls and roofs erected to provide covered space for
different uses such as residence, business, entertainment, workshop,
etc.
• Buildings come in a wide amount of shapes and functions, and

have been adapted throughout history for a wide number of factors:

building materials available weather conditions
land prices ground conditions
specific uses aesthetic reasons
 Introduction(contd.)
• Buildings serve several needs of society – primarily as shelter
from weather and as general living space, to provide privacy, to
store belongings and to comfortably live and work.
• The first shelter on Earth constructed by a relatively close
ancestor to humans is believed to be built 500,000 years ago by an
early ancestor of humans.
• The initial causes which forced man to look for shelter were:
•Fear of wild animals
•Seeking protection against the cold and the heat
•Seeking shelter against the rain and wind
•The desire for a place where everything belonging to the
family could be gathered
 Introduction(contd.)

Proper building design should ensure optimum utilization of built

up space to satisfy functional and architectural requirements of
people living or working in it.
A building construction must satisfy the following requirements:
1. A site on which to build the house
2. Permission from local authorities
3. Material for building the house
4. Finance
5. Skilled laborers for the erection of the house
6. Professionals such as architects and Engineers
Introduction(contd.)
• The main considerations in architectural design of buildings for
all purpose are:
•Climate and its effect
•People and their requirements
•Materials and method of construction
•Regulations and building codes
• Requirements which must be satisfied for the construction of a
modern house are:
• A plot of land
• Permission from local authorities
• Materials for building
• Skilled labourers for the erection
• Finance
• Professionals, such as architects and engineers
 1.2 The Development of a building construction
Man requires different type of buildings; such as Apartments, schools,
banks, offices, market centre...etc., for day to day activities. These building
activities are an important indicator of the countries social progress.
Building consists not only the house but also of the site, road, paths, the
yard, the garden, the gate, fence, etc should be planed so that the total
results will be complete harmonious unit.
What initiates a man to build a house?
1. Fear for wild animals during the night and a day
2. Seeking protection against the cold at night and against the heat during
the day
3. Shelters against rain, wind ……
4. The desire for a place where everything belonging to the family; cattle
and equipment
5. Desire for better living condition( primary motive)
1.3 Typical house construction in Ethiopia

There are different type of house construction in Ethiopia.

A division can be made in many way. However, a division
based on climatic conditions and altitude is considered to be
more appropriate.
Accordingly,
 house of low land- up to 1400m,
 houses of the up land- 1400-2700m and
 house of the high land - >2700m.
Houses of low lands
The climate in these regions is hot and usually dry, so it is desirable
to have a house, which give protection against the burning sun
during the day time and against the cold and wild animals during
the night.
Rains are scarce and if they occur, the ground dries quickly. There
are frequent strong wind with plenty of dust. As the houses are not
much used during the day time, windows are rare. However, a
sufficient amount of daylight can pass though the doorway
Two main type of houses are to be noted here:
 house of permanent residence and
 house of nomadic people
 House for Nomadic People
House of Permanent residence
• It is like houses in other regions. It • It must be easy to remove.
construction is influenced mainly by • It requires light construction in
the supply of locally available order to facilitate transportation
construction material. during mobilization and after
• Stone, sand , earth and grass are to be project accomplishment.
found in sufficient quantities at a
convenient distance from the paned
building site. It requires thick walls
(about 50cm) which is jointed by
earth mortar(Chika). It can be
extended to a height of 2-3m
• The typical feature of these house is,
a flat horizontal roof usually consists
of one or two layer of logs or thick
branches resisting on the outer walls
House of high lands
In this region rains are frequent and wood and grass are the
most important materials. Material like Tid and red eucalyptus
which are strong and termite resistant are preferable material

Houses Of Uplands
Wood and stone are the most available material in this regions.
The type of traditional house construction in this region is
generally similar to that of highland house construction. Except
minor difference in the use of construction materials.
Sidama and wollaita house construction are categorized in
upland house construction
 1.4 Building Classification
Depending up on their occupancy of use or type of construction
building can be classified in deferent groups.
1.4.1 Classification based on occupancy of use
1. Residential: houses occupied by persons where living
accommodation are provided. Private dwellings, apartments,
dormitories, hotels, etc.
2. Educational: which are used for educational institution. School and
collage building
3. Assembly: any building or parts of building where group of people
gather for recreation, social or religious or other similar purposes. E.g.
Theaters, exhibition hall, place of work shops… etc.
4. Business occupancy: building or parts of building which are used for
any business transaction and for taking and giving any professional
services. e.g. Garage, barber shop, city halls…
Classification cont’d

5. Industrial: buildings in which products or materials of all kinds

and properties are fabricated, assembled, finished or processed.
6. Institutional: buildings which are used for medical or other
treatment center. e.g. Institutional building which provide sleeping
accommodation for the occupants . Include hospitals, prisons etc.
7. Storage: buildings primarily used for storage or shelter of goods,
wares ,agricultural products, raw materials

 The classification given above is very general and each group is

again subdivided in to various subdivision.
e.g. Educational building can be sub divided as kindergarten,
elementary school, university…
 1.4.2 Classification based on type of construction
Under this category we have
1. Fire resisting construction: elements of a building are non
combustible. The building have a sufficient fire resistant material.
2. Non combustible: with less fire resistance than required for fire
resisting construction
3. Heavy timber construction: exterior walls are out of masonry or
non combustible materials. Interior structural members are out of
timber either in solid or laminated form
4. Ordinary construction: exterior walls are out of masonry or non
combustible materials. Interior structural members could be
partially or wholly out of wood
5. Wood framed construction: this type of construction in which
practically the whole of the building is out of wood or other
combustible materials.
1.5 Components of a Building
A building has two basic parts:
•Sub-structure
•Super structure
• Sub-structure: is the lower portion of the building, usually
located below the ground level, which transmits the loads of the
superstructure to the supporting soil.
• Super-structure: is that part of the structure which is above the
ground level, and which serves the purpose of its intended use.
The basic component of a building include: Foundations, walls,
floor structures, roof structures building finishes, doors and
windows and other openings.
Simple pictorial illustration of building component
1.6 Design and Performance Requirements

A building structure should satisfy the following basic design and

performance requirements
A. The structure should have adequate margin of safety (factor
of safety) in addition to that necessary to support its normal
loading.
B. It must have sufficient stiffness so that its distortion does not
offend the eye or reduce the efficiency of the structure for its
normal purpose.
C. The building should be planned to provide sufficient comfort
and convenience to the occupants of the building.
Design and Performance Requirements( contd.)
• To accommodate basic functional requirements, a building should
satisfy the following requirements in design and construction works:
1. Strength and stability
• Any structural component of a building should be strong enough to
carry or support all possible types of loads to which it is likely to be
subjected. The Loads in a building are commonly classified as: dead
loads, super imposed or live loads and wind loads.
•Dead loads: are static loads due to the weight of the respective
structural members, i.e. The wall partitions, roofs, slabs and all other
permanent fixtures in the building.
•Live loads: also called as super-imposed loads, consist of moving or
variable loads, due to people or occupants, their furniture, temporary
stores, machinery, etc.
•Wind loads: are loads, which can cause uplift on a building and
reduce the pressure on the foundation on the windward side and increase
pressure on the leeward side. The effect of wind pressure increases with
the height of the building.
Design and performance requirements(contd.)
2. Dimensional stability
• Refers to the resistance to dimensional changes in building materials
and structures caused due to:
• elastic and plastic deformations as a result of applied loads
• expansion and contraction due to changes in temperature and
moisture content.
3. Comfort and convenience
• Should be satisfied by proper planning of the buildings and its units.
• Optimum utilization of space
• Lighting considerations
• Orientation
4. Resistance to moisture penetration
• The presence of moisture in any building structure deteriorates the
materials strength, reduces durability and could cause partial or total
failure of the structure.
Design and performance requirements(contd.)
5. Fire protection
• A building structure should not ignite easily
• A building should provide means of fire escape
• A building should be designed to reduce the spread of fire
6. Heat insulation
• The building should be designed in such a way to maintain fairly constant
temperature of the internal environment independently of the varying climatic
conditions externally.
7. Day light and ventilation
• Day lighting is essential to promote the activities carried out in the building
and to create pleasant inside environment.
• Ventilation is essential to prevent undue concentration of odours, fumes, dust,
etc and maintain suitable condition for the user of the building.
8. Sound insulation
• The insulation of noise is a very important requirement for buildings such as
hospitals, educational institutions, offices and residential building located in
noisy areas.
Design and performance requirements(contd.)
9. Durability
• The durability of a building is defined as the time over which a
building remains serviceable and depends mainly on
• Type of building materials
• Environmental exposure
• Quality of workmanship
• Degree of maintenance, etc.
10. Security
• Due considerations should be given in designing and constructing
external walls and openings to protect a building against theft
11. Economy
• The designer must exercise economy at every stage of planning,
design, construction, maintenance and operation.
1.7 Participants in Building Construction
• The practice of planning, designing, constructing, and operating
buildings is most usually a collective effort of different groups of
professionals and trades.
• Depending on the size, complexity, and purpose of a particular
building project, the project team may include:
• A client or an owner: Individuals, government, real estate
developers etc.
• financial institutions or other investors that provide the funding
• Local planning and code authorities
• Consultants or Licensed architects and engineers who provide
building design and prepare construction documents
• Contractors who provide construction services and install
building systems
• Marketing or leasing agents
• Facility managers who are responsible for operating the building.
 1.8 Steps in building construction
 Building construction involves a number of stages in offices as well as
in building sites
The main stages are
Stage 1: Planning
Stage2: Design
Stage 3: Tendering
Stage 4: Construction Process
Stage 5: Handover
Stage 6: Evaluation
.
1.8 Steps in building construction (Contd)
Stage1: Planning Functional planning of the building is the pre
requisite of any type of building construction. In this aspect,
architectural design play a major role in satisfying human needs.
Appropriate site selection is very important in the functional
planning of a building
 Carry out studies to determine the feasibility of the Client’s

requirement.
 Provide information for report on cost implication.

 Identification of Client’s requirements and of possible

constraints on development.
1.8.1 Factor to be considered in planning
Aspect: peculiarity of the arrangement of doors and windows in
the external wall of a building. This allows the occupants to enjoy
the nature of gifts such as sunshine, breeze etc.
For kitchen, E-aspect, for bed rooms- S-W-aspect or W-aspect and
for reading rooms, class rooms, stairs N- aspect, living and
dinning room S or SE/SW aspect is preferred.
Prospect: is the impression of the house on a person who looks at
it from the out side.
Privacy: It requires consideration of two ways:
1. Privacy of one room from another
2. Privacy of all parts of the building from the neighboring,
publics streets, etc.
Grouping: is the disposition of various rooms in the layout in a
typical fashion so that all the rooms are placed in proper correlation
of their function and in due proximity with each other
(Contd)
Flexibility: is planning a room or rooms in such a way to meet a
specific purpose as original design.
Circulation: the movements of space provided on the same floor
either between the rooms or within the rooms for the case of
horizontal circulation, between different floors though the stair
or lift is a vertical circulation.
Passages, corridors, halls and lobbies service the purpose of
horizontal circulation
Staircase, ramps, lifts etc, serves a vertical circulation.
 Aesthetic merits: it is produced by elevation and general layout
of the plan.
 Economy: it highly affects the planning.
Steps in building construction (Contd)
Stage 2: Design
The design and the building drawings are to be completed in design office,
where as construction and supervisions are made in the construction site.
In civil engineering construction works, there are four major types of design.
 Architectural design,

 structural design,
 electrical design and sanitary design

Stage 3: Tendering
 Prepare tender documents in sufficient detail to enable a Tender or Tenders
to be obtained for the construction of the Project.
 Quantity Surveyor provide Bill of Quantities.
Stage 4: Construction Process
 Prepare the Building Contract and arrange for it to be signed
 Appointing the Contractor
 Issuing of Production Information to the Contractor, and arranging site
Stage 5: Handover
 Handover to the Contractor.

 Prepare site including

 Principal roads and drainage

 Excavate foundation
 Construct all the structures which is include on the contract

document.
Stage 6: Evaluation
 Review design information from Contractors or specialists.

 Certify valuations of work prepared by others and present

financial
 Give general advice on operation and maintenance of the building.

 Evaluate the complete process from initial design to completion

THANK YOU!