₦airaland Forum

CASTOSVILLA:
This is to counter this thread https://www.nairaland.com/3040875/very-important-mistakes-architects-make.
1. ACCEPTING THEIR LIMITATIONS
Architects are the real consultants and their duty is to bring together the building team in other to achieve optimum desired goal in any building project. Most Civil Engrs parade themselves as Architects, quantity surveyors, Electrical Engrs etc because they feel like it is their duty alone to handle every espect of the building construction.

2. POOR AND WRONG STRUCTURAL DETAILS AND CALCULATION SHEET
I've witnessed this in many cases and I don't know whether the cause is laziness or lack of the knowledge. Most of them depend on software like Orion and the rest to do the job instead of using AutoCad to exercise their ability. Will the Architect be blamed after the collapse of the building due to wrong and misleading structural details and specifications?
3. LIMITATION IN STRUCTURAL KNOWLEDGE AND APPLICATION/ LACK OF CONFIDENCE.
Imagine when an Architect know better in terms of structural intergrity and construction methods. Most Architect design ground breaking edifice hoping that the so called Civil Engr will do justice to it, the next thing he'll hear is,"this is not achievable". Most Civil engineers are afraid to challenge themselves thereby resorting to denials and excuses not to handle a project beyond there technical/engineering capabilities. Some cannot extent a cantilever more than 900mm without applying a pillar. Any point of intersection of beams, a pillar is introduced. At the end of the day, pillar are seen everywhere. Some knows nothing about expansion joints even when it's clearly representated in the design. A whole lot of structural blunders are being commited by these Civil Engrs that one continues to wonder.
4. LIMITED KNOWLEDGE IN THE USE OF DIFFERENT STRUCTURAL MATERIALS (esp Steel)
Whenever you watch foreign football you'll notice the length at which they span the cantilever in their stadiums. Have you wondered why even at such span, it still carries a lot of spectators with ease. What type of material was used (even if you know), how was it constructed (most of our Civil Engrs do not know this and are not willing to know). Come to think of the little we do over here with rod, sand, stone and cement, some of these civil engineers cannot properly specify the correct mixture and proper reinforcement rather, they resort to guess work.
5. NOT WELL TRAVELLED
It pains me as an Architect whenever I get into an arguement with any of the Civil engineers in regards to the structural intergrity of some conceptual designs and the ones already constructed. Most Civil Engineers hate to see designs with concept. It beats their ability and it weakens their mind. I use this medium to urge our indeginous Civil Engrs to take their time and travel outside Nigeria. Go to Dubai, France, Italy, USA etc, go see for yourselves. Things you cannot do, go and see people doing it!

NOTE: I've worked with a lot of Civil Engrs and I can say that only few of them understand what is required of them and can relate to the above argument. The reasonable ones won't argue but will try to go back and improve on themselves.
Remember, no design from a qualified architect is unworkable, the problem is from the construction method.
FOR THE CLIENTS: Do not patronize roadside Architects, always sort the help of a qualified Architect no matter the price. Because YOU the clients thinks that you're smart, therefore ending up with regrets. Consult a qualified Civil Engr for your projects and stop cutting corners.

Get a builder

einsteino:
The hard truth is an architect draws pretty pictures that he has no idea how to make stand. There is no limitation to what an architect can model. One can model a completely suspended building in revit, archicad.. Can cantilever 40 metre span.. Can have an overhang of 400 sq metre supported by just a brick wall.. It is all just pictures and models.. The civil engr tells him what is obtainable within the budget and the prevailing technical conditions in the country. The way the industry works, engrs call architects dreamers and architects call engrs killjoys.

You dont hve to feel bitter about it. It is one thing to dream, it is another to make it work. It is not too late to go get a second degree in civil engineering so you can have all the competent technical know how you require to make your projects be the way you wish.

moreso nigeria isnt dubai, it is the truth. Such pojects require a lot of money for an engr to be able to explore alot of options and assemble a large competent team. Here it is hard for a civil Engr to even specialise unlike in developed nations. I have carried out many projects that budgetary constraints made me negotiate modifications with the architect. Heck it is almost mission impossible to produce grade 40 concrete in Nigeria which is the minimum grade of concrete in eurocode. The yield strength of rebars in nigeria mkts can not be vouched for, some are as low as 300N/mm for socalled high yield meanwhile it ought to be 460 minimum. Clients refuse to carry out proper geotechnical investigation that would educate the engr on the soil bearing capacity the structure would sit on. What are engrs to do? These factors greatly inhibit our engineering capacity. Even when u profer smart solutions that would save aesthetics, the same client wouldnt be able to afford it. The client doesnt want to spend money on his own project, the engr isnt paid something that even encourages thinking outside the box but the architect is still drawing beautiful dreamland pictures without taking into cognisance the difficulties and risk it would pose in a nation like ours.

Yes there are incompetent engrs and i agree many of them hide their incompetence by avoiding projects that require the most basic ingenious solutions. I have met a number of them, but the truth is alot of folks who parade themselves as civil engrs are not, even Architects also parade themselves as engrs and i have met a good number of incompetent architects too. I work as a consultant/design structural engr and i know the sacrifices and efforts it takes to be a competent engr. Civil engineering is very tasking, intellectually and otherwise. Yet an architect would dare ask an engr to carryout structural designs for peanuts. They want you to offer competence at the fees of quacks.

If you want competence, you must be ready to pay for it. You shy away from employing the service of a competent engr because you want to cut cost, only to run to quacks and come out here and insult an entire profession based on your experience with the quacks, it is not nice a thing to do at all. If i wrote an epitsle detailing the level of incompetence of some architects i have worked with, generalising and ridiculing your entire profession, how would you feel? There are many civil engineering consulting firms in Nigeria and they are very competent, employ their services. Most of the foreign construction firms employ the services of indigenous engineering consulting firms, I dont think you know better than them. I too am a competent civil engr and you can reach me for your structural designs. I have expertise in steel and reinforced concrete structures and software proficiency in STAAD PRO, Tekla Structures, Revit Structures, Robot Structural Analysis, SAP 2000, Orion and Auto Cad.

Oh that reminds me, you made mention of detailing in Orion being bad. Oh yeah every software has its limitations but it doesnt make one incompetent to employ them. Orion slab detailing is a disaster, its foundation details isnt a sight to behold either. I only endorse its beam detail but that needs some tweaking too. Personally draughting using Autocad is still the best due time the flexibility it avails its user but it is a painstaking process and involves too many repetitive and time wasting actions. To avoid this, Cads RC and revit structure can be employed if one can survive the learning curve. To engrs please make sure you understand the software you use perfectly well. Orion doesnt span slabs purely in one way, doesnt matter if u change the slab type.. Also be sure to introduce hinges before analysis because its details doesnt cater for fixity. Its foundation footing sizing is also too conservative. Personally, good old manual structural designs and calculation is a favourite and is always a good backbone, however automating the process makes it speedy.

Lastly engrs please a software is a garbage in, garbage out tool. You can't get what you didnt give. It is only to automate what you already know not what you dont. An engr reads more on graduation than he did in all his years in Uni combined, keep developing yourselves. Hopefuly we would take our profession back from the quacks someday.

What concerns a civil engineer with cost??

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supajizy:
What concerns a civil engineer with cost??

part of being a civil engineer is making structural designs that are cost effective.

These architects are so so so so annoying...God bless you einsteino... Architects always feel like punching them..

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An Architect can only function in building work,,,, not in transportation, geotechnical, hydraulic. etc
An architect is lost in mind during its stupid design ,that why they design for imagination not for reality, and not base on the geographical suitation of things,,,,,,
The Engineer is best in decision taken ,, because they have been train to take into consideration,,,, the economicall factor of the client, the material ability exiting in the country ,,, and the risk of life,,,,,even climactic condition of the area.....
That is why most of ur design are not achievable, just because you don't take time to consider this in your dream design............