CAREER AS

CIVIL
ENGINEER
Lecture 2
by
AP. Dr. Siti Halipah Ibrahim
ext. no: 3283
TODAY’S LECTURE:
 Roles of engineers as representative for the
employers.
 Roles of engineers as consultant and designers.
 Roles of engineers as contractors.
 Relationship of their roles – working closely
together.
 CAREER AS CIVIL ENGINEER
 Civil engineers are involved with the design, development
and construction of a huge range of projects
 role is central to ensuring the safe, timely, and well
resourced (TCQ) completion of projects
 Primary function is to use their technical knowledge and
training to create products and processes that are of value
- good design (efficiency and economy of design)
- accepted engineering practices
- state-of-the-art technology
- special concern for quality
- most importance of safety
 ENGINEERS AS EMPLOYEES

It is estimated that >90% of engineers are “employees”

Engineers are employed in:
* government agencies
* large and small corporations
* defense industries
* universities, research facilities
* engineering consultants
 ROLES OF ENGINEER AS EMPLOYEE

 Like engineers in industry, government engineers

serve only one client: their employer.
 Most public bodies have engineers and architects
on their staffs.
 These professionals perform a variety of functions
encompassing both design and administrative
activity.
 ROLES OF ENGINEERS AS
REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE EMPLOYERS

Want to build a
Government’s
Building
Client (Government?)

Will build
lia
ise

the building
Client’s liaise
Consultant Contractor
Engineer

Consultant’s Contractor’s
Engineer Engineer
Slide courtesy of Ms. Rohaida
CLIENT
 CLIENT
 Person/parties that own the building that going to be
built
 Example: UNIMAS would like to build a new lecture
hall. So they hired a consultant and contractor to
build it.
 In this case, the client is…
 Among the duty/ responsibilities of the
CLIENT/ OWNER:

 Ensure time, money and other resources are sufficient

and available, to allow the work to be done safely
 identify their level of involvement in the project e.g
(review process, required reports & levels of approval)
 responsible for setting parameters on total costs,
payment of costs, major milestones & the project
completion date.(task of client’s engineer)
 The owner, designer and contractor must form a
cooperative relationship to complete the project in
the most efficient manner.
ROLE OF ENGINEERS AS EMPLOYEE
e.g.: JKR(employer) is the Government arm responsible for
and entrusted with the development and maintenance of
projects.
It also responsible for the construction infrastructure such
as roads and bridges, airport, government offices and
buildings, water works as well as electrical and mechanical
tasks.
In JKR, engineers plan projects as proposed by the
Government.
Projects that are awarded to the private sector become the
responsibility of engineer to ensure that they carried out
accordingly.
They required to coordinate implementation and supervise
site works.
CONSULTANT
 CONSULTANT
 Consulting engineers can provide a high level of technical
expertise, direct personal service, and highly technical advice.

 Practicing consulting engineers must be licensed professional

engineers (PE) in their state of residence and must qualify to
obtain licensure in other states where they practice or provide
services.

 Consulting civil engineers are responsible for working with

clients to plan, manage, design and supervise the construction
of projects.

 They work in a number of different settings and, with

experience, can run projects as project manager.

 They may also monitor the quality of work and safety on site
in conjunction with contracting engineers.
 CONSULTANT
 Parties who are professional in their own subject.
 Among the person who has their own consultancy
firm are as follows:
a) Architect
b) Civil & Structural
c) Mechanical & Electrical
d) Quantity Surveyor
 OVERALL RESPONSIBILITIES OF
CONSULTANT
 translate client’s objective which is to
fulfill client’s wish
 will monitor & follow up the construction progress
until it’s completed.
 Will also be able to give advice to the contractor.
 Ensure building construct on time, specified cost and
with good quality.
 Architect

-produce architectural drawing with aesthetic

features on the structure
 C & S Consultant

-develop structural drawing base on architectural

drawing
 M & E Consultant

-design drawing for electrical (electric circuit) and

mechanical elements( fire sprinkler etc)
 Quantity Surveyor

- estimate overall cost of the project

- prepare document tender for tendering process
In private sector the salary and allowances and
career advancement of engineer are determined by
the company Board of Management.
A well managed and progressive enterprise
emoluments and bonus are determined by the
company.
A better managed and well performing company
usually contribution by giving far bonuses at the end
of the year.
ARCHITECT
ARCHITECTURAL DRAWING
 ARCHITECT
 One who design the aesthetic/appearance part of
the structure
 The building designed must be functional,
economical, safe and fulfill the needs of the
client/owner
 Receive order/instruction from client to design the
building
 He must understand the client and able to visualize
the wish of the client completely
 Client must explain every single thing that he want for
his building to be. (how many rooms, what amenities,
what needs to be near what, what needs to be far
away from what, and the approximate square footage
requirements for all rooms.)
 This is called a word picture or design program.
 Base on the client’s brief, the architect will develop
the ideas by producing rough plan, sketches & models
to be seen by the client
 Then, prepare preliminary site plan that shows how
the new facility will be situated on the site, specified
plan
 Drawing produced by the architect is called
architectural drawing.
 The architect will attend site meeting held by
contractor together with the design/structural
engineer.
 He will also conduct site inspection during the
furnishing work (plastering, painting, turfing, tiling
etc) done by contractor to ensure it follow the
specification on architectural part.
 They also follow building codes, zoning law, fire
regulations and other ordinance (UBBL)

 The Architect will not be responsible for construction

means, methods, techniques, sequences or
procedures, or for safety precautions and programs
in connection with the worked.
C & S CONSULTANT
Civil & Structural
 DESIGN ENGINEER
 The structural design would be based on the
architectural drawing by the architect
 This design after agreed will be stated in the form of
detailing plan which will specifically state the no &
size of the bar to be used etc.
 The design need to be approved by Professional
Engineer (PE) before being submitted to the local
authorities for approval.
 Among local authorities involved are fire department,
town council, public work department, power supply
department and others.

 The design can only used for tendering process once it

is approved by all these authority which takes more
than 1 month or 4-5 month.

 The design engineer need to be at site every time a

construction activity is carried out in order to ensure
the structure built according to specification.
 The design engineer will also conduct site inspection
to ensure the contractor fulfill requirements stated in
the contract document tender such as
implementation of site safety precaution

 The design engineer will attend the site meeting held

by the contractor to give comments through memo
and follow the construction progress

 The PE will be responsible towards the design plan

CIVIL ENGINEER
 PLANNING ENGINEER
 Work under contractor’s company
 Plans and schedule the sequence, duration, exact
date of construction activities to be carried out and
completed.
 The planning will include the start of project until
the completion of it.
 The scheduling can be made easier by using
planning software tools such as Primavera and
Microsoft Project 2000
 SITE ENGINEER
 Works at construction site under the contractor’s
company
 Plan, coordinate and monitor the construction
activities on site
 Ensure activities are carried out by the sub-contractor
as scheduled
 Ensure the work completed are in good quality and
fulfill the specification in the design plan.
 Also ensure the workers follow the safety rules on
site.
 keeping the progress & quality record
SITE ENGINEER
QUANTITY SURVEYOR
 QUANTITY SURVEYOR
 Advise on cost factor and contract procedures
 Estimate the cost of the project based on the
structural design prepared by the engineer.
 All cost involved in the construction project - including
labor cost, material cost etc.
 When there is changes proposed by the contractor
due to client request, the eng. will review it and
submit the new design to the QS
 QS will recalculate the cost for every changes in
construction drawing proposed & decide.
 Prepare tender document for the tendering process
CONTRACTOR
 CONTRACTOR
 One who plan, budget and direct the construction
project.
 There are 3 types of contractor as follows:
a) Main contractor
b) Sub Contractor –appointed by the client
c) Domestic Sub-Con appointed by the
main contractor
 People who usually works in contractor’s company
are as follows:

 Project Manager
 Sub Contractor
 Site Engineer
 Safety Officer
 Site Supervisor / Site Agent
 Technician
 Construction Worker
 DUTIES OF CONTRACTOR
a) Carry out & complete the works in accordance with
the contract documents.
b) Start the construction works when given possession
on the site
c) Regularly & diligently proceed with works and
complete by date of completion
d) Notify the responsible authority to any cause of delay.
e) Provide the engineer with sufficient info to exercise
his duties as regard to extension of time
f) Follow the construction schedule and complete the
project on time
g) Establish an effective project control system for cost,
schedule & quality
 The Contractor shall be solely responsible for and have
control over construction means, methods,
techniques, sequences and procedures and for
coordinating all portions of the work.
 The contractor also responsible in providing

and utilize adequate materials and labors optimum.

 The contractor can be sued or the site can be shut
down due to the inability to apply safety precaution at
site depends on the seriousness of the case.
REGISTRATION OF CONTRACTORS
The criteria for consideration of contractors

1. Capital and financial capability

2. Management organization and personnel

3. Company’s and or management staff’s experience

4. Plant
5. Equity structure
BE A CONTRACTOR WHO CAN WORK PROFESSIONALLY
CONSTRUCTION
WORKER
CONSTRUCTION WORKER
 Construction Workers
 2 types of construction workers:

i) skilled workers
ii) unskilled workers
 Indonesian, Bangladeshis, Vietnamese,
 Mat Salleh??
RESPONSIBILITY OF CONSTRUCTION
WORKER
 must give full commitment to management
party to accomplish the task
 Ensure the safety factors
 Obey safety rules & regulation
 Carry out and complete the work at the construction
applying proper method and procedures
CONCLUSIONS….
 Civil engineers have a very important role in
today’s society.
 They are the people behind the scenes of
construction jobs which result in important
buildings and structures throughout one’s city or
hometown.
 They ensure not only that the buildings are
constructed in a proper fashion but practical as
well.
That’s all for today

Thank You
REFERENCES
 C. E. Harris,Jr., M. S. Pritchard & M. R. Rabins,
(2007)Engineering Ethics: Engineers as Employees,,
2nd. Ed.,
 John W. Poston, Sr. (2008)Department of Nuclear
Engineering, Responsibilities of Engineers as
employees, A&M University Lecture 2008