1. You are a general contractor working on the construction of a trade center. You’ve got a request from the building owner to inform him about the delay in constructing the building. You have to write a report including the information about:
- what has gone wrong on the building site
- what the reasons were
- what measures you are going to take to make up for the time lost
- when the construction will be completed/ finished
- show all the changes in the project schedule and attach it to the report.
To get the necessary information for the report fulfill the following tasks:
a. Study the table below and match the problems with the reasons. Use the project schedule to help you.
Project schedule
Forman |
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Labourers |
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Machine drivers |
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Steel erectors |
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Bricklayers |
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Plumbers |
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Joiners |
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Carpenters |
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Roofing contractor |
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Cladding fixers |
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Heating contractor |
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Electricians
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Glaziers
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Decorators |
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b. Make up sentences explaining the causes of the delays in the schedule. Use the phrases in the box:
Explaining causes That was a result of … That was because of … That was largely due to (the fact that)… …contributed to that. | Describing results As a result we had to… It lead to… It resulted in… …was a direct result. …so… Consequently,… |
Example:
Excavation was delayed for two weeks due to the fact that he excavator broke down.
The excavator broke down which lead to a two-week delay in excavation.
The broken excavator resulted in a two-week delay in excavation.
A two-week delay in excavation was a result of the broken excavator.
c. Show all the changes in the project schedule.
2. Write your report according to the following format:
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“Building is really not a job for human beings in this day and age. When technology gives us the potential we should leave repetitive tasks to machines and free humans to perform creative work”
(B.Khoshnevis, an engineering professor at the University of Southern California)
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What do you understand by the word “technology”? Can you give a definition?
The words in the box are used in Wikipedia to define the term “technology”. Organise them in the right way to restore the definition (it includes two sentences).
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1. No doubt, conventional building technologies will hold their place at the market for long. Houses made of brick, wood, mass reinforced concrete and other materials are still popular. But it does not prevent progressive builders from moving forward...
There are many reasons why builders utilize modern technologies of construction. Can you name any of them?
2. You are going to listen to the interview with Mark Cooper, Senior Analyst of the National Audit Office, UK. This influential government body in the UK was commissioned to prepare a report about the use of modern methods in construction.
Make notes of the reasons for using modern methods listed in the report.
3. Listen again and answer the following questions:
a. What are the advantages of using modern methods of construction in comparison with the traditional ones?
b. What changes do new methods make to:
§ the number of workforce on the construction site?
§ the period of construction?
§ the quality of houses?
§ the cost of construction?
c. How much money is it planned to invest into construction with the use of modern methods?
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1. You are going to read an extract from the article “Houses built by robot?!”
Look through the first paragraph and at the pictures. How does this robot work?
Houses built by robot?!
By this time next year, a California scientist Behrokh Khoshnevis hopes to build a 500-square-foot "house" almost entirely by robot. If his experiment is successful, his next goal is to "print out" a complete one-story, 2,000-square-foot home in a single day with hardly any on-site help from human beings.
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2. Read the second paragraph of the article and check whether your ideas were right? What Russian equivalent would you use for the name of the technology described?
With federal funding, Behrokh Khoshnevis, a professor of industrial and systems engineering at USC (University of Southern California), has devised a machine that takes its instructions from an architect's computerized drawings and then squirts successive layers of concrete, one on top of the other, to build vertical walls and domed roofs. The technology based on this principle is called Contour Crafting. The chief advantages of the Contour Crafting process over existing technologies are the superior surface finish that is realized and the greatly enhanced speed of fabrication.
The computer-guided nozzle squeezes out a line of wet concrete like toothpaste being deposited on a toothbrush, according to a report from the NewScientist.com News Service. Then a pair of trowels attached to the nozzle shape the concrete as the robot repeats the pouring as many times as is necessary to achieve the programmed height. Khoshnevis' "Contour Crafter" can work around the clock, with no need for breaks. It needs only power and a constant feed of semi-liquid building materials.
3. Various applications
The potential for this technology is immense in terms of the possible applications including (but not limited to) emergency shelters, low-income housing and even for building extra-terrestrial habitats.
Why is this technology applied for the three types of housing? (Under what circumstances and where?)
Could you think of any other possible applications? (military housing)
4. What are the advantages of “Contour Crafting” technology?
Fill in the boxes, then read the paragraph and compare your answers
Advantages
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Dr Khoshnevis believes that, “Contour Crafting construction projects will be extremely accelerated. This rapid construction minimises the financing costs of construction projects that typically take six months or longer to complete. While the costs of manual labour will be significantly reduced, physical power will be exchanged for brainpower in the construction industry. Reduced costs and automated building will make construction accessible to anyone.” It wouldn’t be illogical to imagine a time in the future when the Contour Crafting machine will be available at the local hardware store for sale as well as for hire.
Contour Crafting will prove to be much safer, both for the worker and the environment. The fact is construction jobs are dangerous and take a heavy toll on human life and resources.
From the safety perspective, Contour Crafting technology provides a number of benefits. First of all, people will have fewer injuries in construction and transportation-related activities. Secondly, they will have less contact with hazardous substances. Besides, there will be less exposure to airborne substances such as dust and chemicals. Also, there will be less noise exposure. Finally, it will be easier to establish procedures for hazard and failure analysis during construction.
Globally, the construction industry has a huge negative impact on the environment through exploitation of natural resources and through generation of construction waste. In addition, it contributes significantly to environmentally harmful emissions.
Contour Crafting is a robotic technology with very accurate computer control. Due to the nature of this technology, materials are used with perfect precision and near zero waste.
The proposed technology could result in the following environmental health benefits: less total material use, less total energy use for all construction activities, less material and energy waste during construction, and less transportation of material, equipment and people.
5. The way ahead
Is possible to predict whether a technology will have a successful application in future? If yes, then how?
Read the following paragraph and compare your ideas with those given in the article.
Before reading choose the correct alternative to complete these statements:
I. overall serviceability in practical terms means:
a) suitability to be used for practical purposes
b) ability to provide good service in practice
c) practical ability to work as a servant
II. to propel the human race forward means:
a) to drive people forward with the help of a motor vehicle
b) to be used as a propeller that makes an aircraft move forward
c) to stimulate the development of the humanity
III. to score brilliantly means:
a) to win many brilliants
b) to be very successful in something
c) to be able to count very well
IV. to be in for a paradigm shift means:
a) to be ready to press the key on a computer
b) to be ready to move from one place to another
c) to be ready for radical changes
Universally speaking, the basic parameters to judge any technology should be its overall serviceability in practical terms and its ability to propel the human race forward. Contour Crafting, in the long-term, has the potential to score brilliantly on both these accounts. So, the construction industry is in for a paradigm shift.
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as in h o me | as in rep or t | as in c o ncrete | as in oi l | as in t owe r | as in meth o d |
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pouring |
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1. Look through the text again and find expressions which mean:
2. Certain key words are used to speak about Contour Crafting. Complete the key words below and match them to the suitable word in the right column.
r_b_t_c | substances |
c_mp_t_r_z_d | analysis |
s_m_-l_qu_d | activities |
l_w-_nc_m_ | analysis |
_m_rg_nc_ | drawings |
_ _b_rn_ | building materials |
tr_nsp_rt_t_ _n-r_l_t_d | housing |
h_z_rd | technology |
F_ _l_r_ | shelters |
3. Match the following words and phrases to make complete expressions from the article. Translate them into Russian. You will find it easier if you match columns 2 and 3 first. The first one has been done for you as an example: to build a 500-square-foot house
1. to build | the programmed | of concrete |
2. to take | layers | house |
3. to squirt | a 500-square-foot | walls |
4. to build | its instructions | height |
5. to achieve | vertical | from computerized drawings |
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6. to build | extra-terrestrial | of manual labour |
7. to minimise | a toll | costs |
8. to reduce | the financing | on human life |
9. to exchange | the cost | habitats |
10. to take | physical power | for brainpower |
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11. to establish | materials | during construction |
12. to have | less energy | for hazard and failure analysis |
13. to use | the human race | on the environment |
14. to use | procedures | forward |
15. to propel | a negative impact | with zero waste |
4. Use the key words and the expressions from above to make up a summary of the article.
Useful language can help you.
USEFUL
The article tackles the problem of… Particular (special) attention is paid to… The article is devoted to… It informs the readers of… The paper discusses the benefits of … The paper carries a lot of comment on… The paper covers a variety of… The reporter makes it clear that… The author expresses the view that… The author stresses the importance (necessity) of…
| LANGUAGE
In the author’s view (opinion)… Speaking of… it’s necessary (interesting) to note that … There is every reason to believe that… It is reported/ stressed that… The first paragraph discusses/ analyses… The second paragraph describes/ offers… The third paragraph focuses on… The article concludes by saying that… The general conclusion is that…
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5. What is your reaction to the article you read? Complete one or more of the following:
· I’m amazed that…
· I’m not so sure…
· I already knew…
· I don’t agree that…
· I tend to agree that…
· I can hardly believe…
6. Do you think the technology invented by a California scientist Behrokh Khoshnevis can be used in Russia? Why? Why not?
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1.What new building technologies are used in Russia?
What is specific about Russian building technologies?
Make up a list of factors that should be taken into account while developing new technologies in Russia.
- climate
- ….
- …
- …
- …
2. Read the title of the article and the introduction to it and answer the following questions:
a) What does “IZODOM” stand for?
b) What are the key features of the technology described which make it popular?
c) What building material is the technology based on?
3. Read the article and find the answers the questions:
- What is the principle of ICF technology?
- What is the main advantage of it in comparison with other building technologies?
- What do the following figures refer to?
a) 2,5
b) 6,5
c) 2,90
d) 50
e) 100
f) 10%
g) 16
h) 5900
IZODOM TECHNOLOGY
The new building technology known among builders as ICF or Insulated Concrete Form construction spreads over. And it's inevitable because in third millennium one should build faster, more economical, more durable and with higher quality.
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