Precast Construction In Ethiopia - An In-Depth Look At The PBPPE Precast Plant
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Date
2017-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
It can be easily noticed how there are numerous defects in almost all of the concrete buildings in
Ethiopia. Anyone who works in the construction industry would have witnessed poor quality of work
in several projects. If such a person has an engineering and construction management background, the
quality problems and subsequent technical risks would stand out even more.
This MSc thesis is about precast construction, specifically, about the significance of this construction
method being introduced in Ethiopia. Despite the array of structural, serviceability, and quality
problems that are very common, it is exciting to think of the tremendous opportunities that such a
fresh start as precast construction would bring. Where the equipment and production space is
available, structural concrete elements could be cast and cured in a controlled manner on the ground
level. This could be seen as a characteristic feature of the precast method of construction.
The reader will find brief descriptions of the in-situ construction method, where concrete is mixed and
cast on site, with further details of how many construction activities are done manually in Ethiopia.
These details will probably draw a very old-fashioned and inefficient picture where construction is a
messy, and slow series of disorganized activities. There are exceptions to this scenario, where
supervision is sufficiently carried out by capable professionals, and project managers ensure timely
completion within the construction budget.
The research then goes on to study aspects of precast construction that are relevant to the Ethiopian
construction sector. It does so starting from what the country already has to work with, then it looks at
the standard level of the precast construction method internationally. It takes that as a guideline to
analyze what aspects should be considered if the country is to make substantial shift from the in-situ
method towards the precast method. It also makes systematic comparisons between the two
construction methods, between the work quality level of the precast plant in Ethiopia and the standard
level in the international scene.
The findings are mostly as would be expected. Mainly, the precast method was found to be better in
quality, resources, and time, than the in-situ construction method. It was also found that there are
certain types of buildings that are more suitable to be constructed using the precast method. Finally, it
was no surprise to find that the 28-year-old PBPPE precast plant got a score lower than the passing
score in the standard NPCA quality control manual used in the US to evaluate precast plants and
award them accreditations.
This is a major reason that this topic was chosen for the thesis. It was arrived upon while searching for
ways of modernizing the construction process in leaps and bounds. With the degree of outdatedness of
the construction process in Ethiopia, a catapulting change is needed just to cop up with where the
modern world has already reached.
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construction management background