Civil Engineering Skills - Assignment Example

Business Customer Inserts His/Her Name Customer Inserts Grade Course Customer Inserts Tutor’s Name 3rd April, 2015. Task 2 In the development of a personal goal, it is imperative to assess the general vision and the necessary skills needed in achieving this general goal. My current study of civil engineering has enabled me to build skills that are necessary within the field. As a result, the learning goals that I intend to achieve in the next few years are; a) Develop Communication Skills: I intend to sharpen my communication skills in the next 6 months with emphasis on public speaking. Due to my current knowledge on different fields with a bias in engineering, I intend to socialize with other students to acquire more information on their fields and attend more events that give me an opportunity to develop my communication skills (Hamp-Lyons 2012). b) Develop leadership skills: Team management needs the development of leadership skills which I intend to learn and acquire over the remaining 4 semesters at the university. Leadership skills require development of listening, decision making and conflict resolution mechanisms. I will build on my leadership skills by joining clubs and seeking a leadership position within the Science & Engineering associations and clubs in the institution. I will also utilize my past skill as a scout master in high school to ensure that I become an effective leader within my engineering class. c) Join a professional body: In my last two semesters at the university, I intend to join an engineering professional body. This would enable me to connect with other engineers and professional with vast experience in the field. I would leverage on my undergraduate study in the field and knowledge to ensure I gain introduction into a relevant professional body. Many professional bodies charge annual fees and other fees for events specific to these bodies. Therefore, the availability of funds is an issue that is going to be looked into carefully. d) Attain a top 5% position in my course: In the next 2 semesters (8 months), I have goal of becoming part of people or group in the top 5 % of my engineering course. Having to work hard and attain better GPA points will push my dream into the top 5% and allow me to gain better experience and grades. In the pursuit of this goal, it would be imperative to work hard and ensure that more research is geared toward the achievement of this goal. As a result, resources such as books, internet and other academic tutoring will assist greatly in the achievement of this goal. e) Intern at an engineering firm: In the pursuit of academic learning and goals, it is imperative to acquire hands on experience within the engineering field. As a result, it would necessary for me to intern at an engineering firm that would enable me to sharpen my skills and knowledge. An internship at an engineering firm would be appropriate since it would expose me the activities at engineering firm on a first hand basis. This goal would need at least 2 years engineering learning which will be achieved in the next 1 month. Moreover, spare time will have to be factored in the achievement of this goal. The goals listed above will require proper analysis and evaluation to ensure that these goals are achieved towards its completion. Each goal will require separate evaluation and course of action based on the evaluation report as outlined; a) Communication and leadership skills acquisition will require personal and peer evaluation to ensure that progress has been made or achieved. This evaluation will be undertaken by colleagues while at the same time, I will analyze the level of confidence that I have achieved over the period. b) In relation to the evaluation of my pursuit in joining a professional body, evaluation will be easy since membership cards and other prerequisites will be easy to trace. While, the alternative to joining a professional body would be to join a university club that caters for the needs of engineering students. c) Evaluation of class performance would require the use of transcripts and peer evaluation of other students. The goal to achieving this dream would be to ensure that a certain GPA target of 3.84 would be appropriate since it would be an improvement from the current GPA of 3.62. d) In relation to attachment in an engineering firm, the goal will be look for a position while assessing the progress every 2 months. As a result, within a period of 8 months, I will have secured a position and in case I become unsuccessful then the internship will be postponed for another 2 months. The summary of the personal learning goals are summarized in the table below; Learning Goal Steps & Resources Needed Evaluation Strategy Communication Skills Build on public speaking and attend more events to ensure confidence is gained. More networking & social events would assist in building on communication skills. Peer and personal evaluation through social engagements. Leadership Skills Join a club or seek a class leadership position to build on these skills. Possibility of a leadership position or not within the university. Join a professional body Membership status in a professional body. Funds/membership fees would be required. Lack of a membership card or position. Alternatively, the professional body’s card joined. Attain a top position in class Require constant reading, tuition and increased grades from time to time. Resources such as books, extra tutoring and consultations. Evaluation of class/unit transcripts to gauge improvements and performance against set targets. Intern at an engineering firm Proper Curriculum Vitae preparation, research and applications for intern positions. Online applications and networking with colleagues and Alumni would come in handy in the search. Internship report and proper intern assessment based on successful call for internship or not and firm’s name. Task 3 Teamwork is important in management of various tasks and undertaking projects since each team member contributes his/her skills in the completion of these tasks. However, working as a team is quite difficult due to conflicts and management of various interests. There are various characteristics that can transform a group of people into an effective and functional team as outlined; a) Integrity: Team members should learn to develop integrity and utilize it in the process of running the team’s activities. Integrity allows a team to work ethically since all decisions made are done honestly and in consideration of all other team members. Integrity allows people to share ideas and undertake dealings that are in the best interests of the team (Wilson 2009). b) Respect: All team members need to develop and learn to respect each other’s ideas, skills and knowledge. Respect allows team members to appreciate each other’s strengths while at the same encouraging others to overcome their weaknesses in the process of undertaking team activities. Respect also allows team members to undertake the decisions made by others and allow the majority of the members to stand by the team’s decisions. c) Leadership: A team requires proper leadership to overcome the several challenges that plague teams such as conflicts and decision making. A good leader should have a strong character that ensures trust and respect is built among the different team members. Leadership allows team members to share ideas in a dignified manner while at the same time allowing the team to flourish through differences while making decision making process easier (Runco 2012). d) Communication: Team members should be able to communicate to each other in a free environment that enables the exchange the ideas or opinions. Effective communication allows the team to understand the scope and plan while devising a plan to achieve this goal or plan. The characteristics of effective communication include the possibility of considering all opinions, enhanced communication frequency and increased motivation among team members (Hamp-Lyons 2012). e) Cohesiveness: Team members working on a project or tasks should allow for cohesion since this allows commitment and willingness to succeed as team members. Cohesion affects the way in which team members get along while at the same time it affects the team trust especially in regard to people abilities and opinions. As part of the team it is imperative to contribute towards the efforts of the team and make sure to utilize the characteristics and skills in the enhancement of the team. The skills that might assist the team are; a) Listening: As a good listener, this skill will assist my team in taking the ideas, view and opinions of every team member. Listening ensures that every person’s ideas are noted and it allows for patience in the process of decision making. Listening also allows for constructive communication to be undertaken easily. b) Honesty: I value the power of honesty and it is a character trait that I would utilize in building the team. Honesty allows team members to trust others as they undertake the team’s activities. Honesty also fosters integrity and therefore, people can work or achieve a lot through honesty (Wilson 2009). c) Communication: In the process of communication, I always make use of different skills and sets of communication activities to pass the message. For instance, I inculcate the use of white boards, diagrams and gestures in passing the message. As a result, I can communicate effectively and assist other team members in passing out their messages. There are several advantages and drawbacks in the process of working with different team; as outlined the advantages of working for a team are; a) Efficiency: Working in a team allows for the division of work and thus work efficiency is increased leading to shorter time being taken in completing group teamwork jobs. Many people can undertake several tasks and thus it increases efficiency greatly (Runco 2012). b) Diversity: Teams comprise of people with different talents and thus is we encourage diversity in ideas, sharing and leadership styles. As a result, several issues and problems can be tackled with ease. The diversity of talents allows a team to tackle issues from different fronts (Meredith 2011). c) Sharing: Team members are bound to share ideas, thoughts and challenges and thus, it is imperative to ensure that each team member contributes towards the team activities. As a result, huge tasks and issues can be tackled swiftly and within a short period of time. d) Accountability: Teams work by assigning duties and as a result, it is easy to trace the people or team members who have been assigned specific duties. As a result, accountability is an effortless duty that can be undertaken with haste. However, there are several drawbacks that might hinder the development of team activities as outlined; a) Conflicts: Due to diversity of ideas, issues and thoughts, the possibility of emergence of conflicts within a group is quite common. As a result, team member should be aware of conflicts and come up with a conflict resolution mechanism to resolve issues surrounding conflicts. b) Decision making: Due to diversity and other interests within teams, the process of decision making might be tedious and time involving. As a result, decisions take time and thus it hampers effectiveness. In the process of overcoming this issue, we have to come up with a decision making mechanism that is swift such as utilizing a voting system when it comes to contentious issues (Wilson 2009). Leadership is vital in the management of groups of teams or groups of people since it gives an enables people to undertake business or activities in an organized manner. Good leadership brings forth development, expansion and cohesion among different groups of people. Our team utilized the skills of leadership in ensuring that all team members became involved in the duties and tasks while working together as outlined; a) Team members undertook task sharing as outlined by team leader since delegation is an important aspect of leadership. b) Team members undertook team activity planning to ensure that all activities within the team are planned. Prioritization of team activities was important in the implementation of teamwork since leadership skills require proper planning. c) Good leadership requires that decision making and conflicts are managed in a prudent manner. The group had a conflict resolution mechanism that allows for all interested parties to be heard and the involvement of an external arbiter in this case the course tutor. While, decision were made once all team members were involved and contentious issues would be taken for a vote (Wilson 2009). Task 4 The Engineers-Without-Borders (EWB) is an organization that volunteers its time and resources to ensure that solutions to challenges facing underprivileged global societies are tackled. Its current project in Bambui, Cameroon is an example of a noble project. As a young engineers with interest in designing solutions that would impact the society; we decided to look into developing a solution for the sanitation and hygiene problem in Bambui in Cameroun. Out interest in the area of sanitation & hygiene is based on the fact that this area affects millions of livelihoods in Third-world nations. By focusing on this area, we get the opportunity of learning from real world challenges and issues and stimulating our knowledge in developing solutions for these challenges. Africa and other third world nations are experiencing phenomenal economic growth and thus there will be improvement will affect many sectors including the health and hygiene sectors. The health & hygiene sector will expose me to a new challenge and thus allow me to build new skills in engineering within real global issues (Wilson 2009). Knowledge and skills gained within my engineering field should not only benefit me personally but also the general society as a whole. Since, if the society is happy then mutual satisfaction can be gained personally and from a societal view. In the process of undertaking a project design, engineers have to analyze the design area and issues concerned with the design. In this project, the issues are myriad as outlined by the community leaders. For instance, water continuation is a major problem and this has been contributed by poor hygiene and dirty environment leading to water contamination. The project will look into the critical areas that contribute to poor hygiene and sanitation as outlined; a) Toilet and pit latrine system contribute to poor hygiene since these facilities are water insufficient leading to human waste contamination. Lack of proper human waste disposal systems has also contributed to poor human health & hygiene in Bambui. b) Water and drainage systems within Bambui are deficient thus contributing to water contamination since environmental waste is mixed with rain water or water sources. For instance, research from the local hospital has revealed of high cases of water-borne diseases due to poor water and drainage systems. c) Waste collection is a problem in Bambui since the housing system does not allow for refusal disposal which has been exacerbated by the lack of resources and equipment to handle waste disposal. In the design and implementation of the project in Bambui, several design considerations will be analyzed including social, environmental and cultural considerations. The solution to the three main issues highlighted above will focus on a solution that mitigates the above problems and provides a benefit to the society (Runco 2012). The project design will focus on three key areas as outlined; a) Water & Drainage Systems: Water collection systems should be developed to ensure proper harvesting of rainwater with ease. Investment in eco-friendly plastic water tanks especially around public utilities such as schools, hospitals and village water points is vital. Moreover, drainage systems should also be designed to allow for continuous water flow within the villages. As a result, water stagnation will be stemmed out while water removal will be an easy process. Community mobilization should be utilized in ensuring the community is involved in the process and thus continuous monitoring will be undertaken easily. Proper drainage systems reduce destruction of the housing systems and thus it allows community savings that would have spent on other projects or issues. Moreover, the community can access clean water at an affordable cost compared to the past. b) Toilet Design: Most of the residents of Bambui utilize pit latrines and in its design these toilet systems allow for waste seepage into the water and soil thus contaminating water sources. This issue and the lack of a sewage system can be solved through the design of pit latrines with plastered walls and WC toilets which empty the waste into these eco-friendly designed toilets. Consequently, each of these designed pit toilets should also have appropriate wash systems that allow for proper personal hygiene. The design of these toilet systems would save the community a lot of money spent on hospital bills. While at the same time the community can adopt energy generation through smart biogas systems technology installed alongside these toilet systems. c) Waste Disposal: Bambui lacks proper waste disposal strategies and thus this contributes to increased diseases within the society. Installation of waste disposal cans, waste collection carts would reduce wastes being disposed. The community through mobilization and involvement should make sure that community educations programs on waste disposal are undertaken to ensure reduced haphazard waste collection is undertaken. Waste disposal through burning or organic manure preparation should also be undertaken by the community. The community would reduce health hazards and thus saving the community lots of resources that would have been spent on hospitals. In the design and implementation and design of the various solutions for Bambui, it is imperative to inculcate technical design considerations in implementing the project. Technical design issues that will be analyzed in this project are: a) Structural design: the design of the toilet and pit latrines should be undertaken using the best techniques to ensure sound structural design. The building material and design should be able to withstand strong winds and weather such as heavy rains. The design should allow for proper waste management and countercheck seepage issues. b) Location: All project sites must be located within appropriate areas with consideration into issues such as elevation, ground gradient and proximity to the locations such as the main house, school. Moreover, the location of these projects should not be close to water sources. c) Safety: Safety is a technical issue which look into the construction of safe toilets and other locations which can be reliably utilized by users within the locality. Safety of use for the toilets and other users during construction. For instance, open pits should be properly covered during construction. Also the pit latrines should be safe for use for people of all ages especially children. Construction safety should also be assured for all persons working within the site and project. d) Scheduling: this is important in the process of designing and construction since it outlines the procedures and steps that will be utilized in the project implementation. Scheduling allows the process of construction to be done professionally while at the same time, all the processes are followed to completion (Meredith 2011). e) Construction Techniques: the techniques utilized in the implementation of the project are vital, incorporating locally available materials and labour in the project assist in skill transfer. Specific construction techniques such as erection procedures, bracing, shoring should be undertaken in a keen manner. The materials utilized in most cases will determine the techniques to be used in construction, materials such as bricks or stone walls might require curing during the construction process. f) Review: the construction project should be reviewed from time to time with emphasis on the standards of construction. This review should be undertaken by an engineer with professional skills in construction. Reviews ensure all tasks are undertaken within the specified time, scope and budget under the supervision of an engineer (Meredith 2011). References Hamp-Lyons, L & Courter, K 2012, Research matters, Rowley Mass.: Newbury House. Meredith, J & ‎ Mantel, S 2011, Project Management: A Managerial Approach, John Wiley and Sons: Boston, MA. Runco, M 2012, Problem Finding, Problem Solving, and Creativity, McMillan Publishers, New York. Wilson, G 2009, Problem Solving, Palgrave, London. Read More

As a result, resources such as books, internet and other academic tutoring will assist greatly in the achievement of this goal. e) Intern at an engineering firm: In the pursuit of academic learning and goals, it is imperative to acquire hands on experience within the engineering field. As a result, it would necessary for me to intern at an engineering firm that would enable me to sharpen my skills and knowledge. An internship at an engineering firm would be appropriate since it would expose me the activities at engineering firm on a first hand basis.

This goal would need at least 2 years engineering learning which will be achieved in the next 1 month. Moreover, spare time will have to be factored in the achievement of this goal. The goals listed above will require proper analysis and evaluation to ensure that these goals are achieved towards its completion. Each goal will require separate evaluation and course of action based on the evaluation report as outlined; a) Communication and leadership skills acquisition will require personal and peer evaluation to ensure that progress has been made or achieved.

This evaluation will be undertaken by colleagues while at the same time, I will analyze the level of confidence that I have achieved over the period. b) In relation to the evaluation of my pursuit in joining a professional body, evaluation will be easy since membership cards and other prerequisites will be easy to trace. While, the alternative to joining a professional body would be to join a university club that caters for the needs of engineering students. c) Evaluation of class performance would require the use of transcripts and peer evaluation of other students.

The goal to achieving this dream would be to ensure that a certain GPA target of 3.84 would be appropriate since it would be an improvement from the current GPA of 3.62. d) In relation to attachment in an engineering firm, the goal will be look for a position while assessing the progress every 2 months. As a result, within a period of 8 months, I will have secured a position and in case I become unsuccessful then the internship will be postponed for another 2 months. The summary of the personal learning goals are summarized in the table below; Learning Goal Steps & Resources Needed Evaluation Strategy Communication Skills Build on public speaking and attend more events to ensure confidence is gained.

More networking & social events would assist in building on communication skills. Peer and personal evaluation through social engagements. Leadership Skills Join a club or seek a class leadership position to build on these skills. Possibility of a leadership position or not within the university. Join a professional body Membership status in a professional body. Funds/membership fees would be required. Lack of a membership card or position. Alternatively, the professional body’s card joined.

Attain a top position in class Require constant reading, tuition and increased grades from time to time. Resources such as books, extra tutoring and consultations. Evaluation of class/unit transcripts to gauge improvements and performance against set targets. Intern at an engineering firm Proper Curriculum Vitae preparation, research and applications for intern positions. Online applications and networking with colleagues and Alumni would come in handy in the search. Internship report and proper intern assessment based on successful call for internship or not and firm’s name.

Task 3 Teamwork is important in management of various tasks and undertaking projects since each team member contributes his/her skills in the completion of these tasks. However, working as a team is quite difficult due to conflicts and management of various interests. There are various characteristics that can transform a group of people into an effective and functional team as outlined; a) Integrity: Team members should learn to develop integrity and utilize it in the process of running the team’s activities.

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