The Life Of A Construction Manager

The Life Of A Construction Manager A construction manager is someone whose job it is to oversee, monitor and co ordinate the process of construction of a building from design and initial planning stage to finish of the building. This means architects, by the nature of their jobs can to some extent also act in the capacity of a project manager since they are trained in document control and financing projects as well handling resources and overseeing construction. In some instances like in design-build-operate procurement the job description of the construction manager goes as far as overseeing and managing the operation of the building(s). Construction project managers have many responsibilities that they have to attend to on a day to day basis. According to Ritz (1994) these responsibilities include: setting and achieving project objectives, purchasing of labour, equipment and materials, controlling of planning, design and estimation of costs as well as budgeting and monitoring progress of the project. He goes on to further state that the construction manager has to also handle project planning, costing, resource management such as time allocation, employee management and all communication necessary during a project including dispute resolution. In order to gain a better understanding of the typical day of a construction project manager I had to go interview one. I was fortunate enough to find a willing participant in Mr. Ngu Yen of Tomtek Malaysia Sdn Bhd which is a consultancy firm based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. What I learnt affirmed some of what I already knew from my studies and thought a construction manager goes through on a daily basis as well as gave me new insight into what it is that he actually does. Similar to other professionals in the construction industry like an architect, the day of a construction project manager usually begins with making phone calls and checking up on emails. He then checks his daily planner to see if there are any outstanding and important meetings scheduled for the day. On the day that I interviewed Mr. Yen, he had a big site meeting with a client as well as other contractors for a commercial project that his company was supposed to oversee. There was also another site visit to a cons truction site to check on the level of progress scheduled and a manning schedule for another project that needed reviewing. The work that the construction manager is hectic and stressful and requires a lot of employability skills, such as being organized, attentive to detail and an understanding of how a construction project is supposed to progress. During a construction project, the construction manager becomes the intermediary between the owners of the project (clients) and the workers on site. In this way the project manager acts in the same capacity as an architect. (Rojas 2009) the construction manager also has to be able to multi-task very well, as they often have to take notes while talking to the client and planning how to effect changes that a client, through the architect, will want done on the project. This was the case at the second site meeting where Mr. Yen was already preparing anticipated changes to the handover date of the project due to the fact that the client had relayed through the architect that there was changes that had to be made about the material used during construction. Workin g out the logistics proved to be a bit of a challenge especially as the contractor for the project was not familiar with knowledge on how to build using the new materials and there was now a need for a sub-contractor to take over erection of the building. On a daily basis, the construction project manager has to do office work to kep their records up to date and organised. They also have to schedule meetings for ongoing and upcoming projects to finalise issues such as budgeting, manpower requirements and procurement of material. The project manager will often chair the meetings and have to come up with clear goals and objectives for the rest of the members of the design team or the building team and ensure that these goals re achieved at the end of the meeting. Perhaps the hardest task in the day of the construction project manager is conflict resolution. Building projects require constant supervision to ensure the project will be finished on time, within the estimated cost and according to the quality specified. This usually results in contractors having to be pushed sometimes to get the job done, a move which they normally resent. As the custodian of the site and the project, the construction manager has to make sure that any issues raised by either the contractor or his workers are looked into and speedily resolved to make sure the project is not compromised. Apart from that the construction manager has to ensure the safety of the site for workers, pedestrians and other professionals who come to the site. It is the responsibility of the construction project manager under law to ensure site safety and check that safety measures are being put into practice as intended. This will involve talking to the site foreman and at extreme times or i n the case of serious emergencies halting the construction for an investigation into the accident to be carried out as well as safety recommendations to be implemented. The construction manager needs to be knowledgeable about the project as well in order to answer any questions the crew on site might have. On a busy day such as when the company is handling a lot of projects at once the project manager will be on his feet for most of the day. This results in a lot of stress and fatigue, hazards which they have to look out for and also deal with. Planning and organising people takes a lot of patience and the skill of foresight. (Walter A2007, pp 44) The major difference between what I thought I knew about the day of a project manager and what I actually saw and learn is that no two days are the same for the project manager. Each project has problems as well as solutions that are unique to it, and the project manager needs to have a lot of hands on experience sometimes to solve these problems and perform to the best of their ability. Conclusion At the end of the day the project manager has to do whatever it takes to get the job done. On a typical day they will rely on software to keep their schedule up to date, other professionals in the building industry to ensure the smooth continuation of the project as well as provide clients with input as well as feedback on the progress of their buildings. The project manager goes through a lot of meetings on any day and has to give precise instructions always to ensure the viability of the project. Communication plays a very important role in the day of the construction project management, coupled with a strong work ethic for excellence.

A Bloody Christmas :: essays research papers

Creative Story: A Bloody Christmas Hurry up Joe! It's 10:15, your fifteen minutes late!" Claire screamed from outside the dressing room with a hint of a New York Accent. Claire was Santa's helper at the mall. "I'm coming!" Joe yelled back. "Stupid kids, I hate kids." Joe mumbled to himself while getting himself dressed. Joe was the Santa at the local mall. Since Joe had just been released from the mental institution for insanity, the cost of the institution wiped him out of money so he needed the job badly. When the job was offered to him he had to take it. Joe was a scrawny man. Not your usual Santa Clause. He had no rosy cheeks or round belly, he didn't have the hearty laugh nor real white hair. His ribs poked out of his skin and his stomach looked like an empty cave. His eyes were pushed into his head way more than most people, the dark rings circling his made his eyes look like they were going to pop out any second. The bones of his cheeks showed through his dry, pale skin making him look like a zombie. "Let's go now!!" Claire screeched at the top of her lungs. Claire meant this time. Quickly, Joe stumbled out of the dressing room in a clumsy fashion. Looking like he had just chugged a couple of kegs, dragged his oversized Santa coat and pants with him hopping they wouldn't fall down and left the dressing room. Joe and Claire walked toward where Santa's hut was while watching a crowd gather around it. "Ya know Claire," Joe said, "I really hate my job." "Really," replied Claire in a sarcastic tone, "Who doesn't hate little brats crawling around on your lap." Joe sat down in his special Santa chair and waited for the first child to come forward. The fist kid was about five yrs. old. Joe thought he was disgusting. The child was wearing cuarteroy overalls with a white turtleneck underneath. The cuarteroys had crusty stains of peanut butter all down the front of his navy blue overalls. Making a revolting contrast between colors. The turtleneck seemed to have lost its whiteness a long time ago. It was imbedded with red pasta sauce and olive chunks glued to the sauce. His face wasn't very attractive either. On his left cheek a piece of spagetti attached to his skin dangled and dried mucus flaked off his upper lip. Joe leaned back in remorse wishing this was all a long terrifying dream. The kid hopped on his lap and in a happy voice said, "Hi Mr.

IIO course

For example, learning through trial and error how to interact with one's spouse or one's boss intelligently may be expensive for the person as well as for others in terms of emotional energy drained, career failure, or broken relationships. This course will take you through the accumulated wisdom on interpersonal skills. After all, wise people learn from others' experience and from the accumulated wisdom.Learning Goals: In addition to the course objectives mentioned above, students should expect to develop the following by end of the course 1 . Decision Making Skills and Analytical Ability : An ability to arrive at a feasible criteria for Implementation of a decision among a set of equally competitive possibilities : through quantitative and / or qualitative analysis of data and contextual information / industry analysis . Critical Analysis and Creative Communication Skills: Each student should be able to identify key issues relevant to this course, develop a perspective supported by externally obtained / instructor provided information ; capacity to distinguish between major, minor, peripheral and irrelevant factors as well as exogenous and endogenous variables ; and present and defend the decision arrived at based on the assessment criteria already established. . Interpersonal Communication and Group Working Ability: Each student is required to demonstrate an ability to appreciate peer group member view point and work In team environment, exalting a clear understanding of Individual roles and tasks, ability to Identify and resolve Required Text Book: Hunter, J. C. (1998). The servant: A simple story about the true essence of leadership (p. 187). New York: Crown Business.Additional Readings: as per course outline EVALUATION COMPONENTS: Components of Course Evaluation Percentage Distribution Class Participation You should come to class fully prepared with each session's prescribed readings completed (prepared means being capable of starting an educated discussi on or answering the facilitator's questions in class on any section). A deep and thorough understanding of the required readings is expected. Preparedness will be tested individually by asking questions to some students.If you are unable to answer questions satisfactorily, you will lose 5 percentage points of the weighted for this course each time you fail to answer a question raised by the faculty in the class (this means that if you fail to answer four questions in class, you will lose the entire 20% for class participation). Moreover, for each session you must summarize your insights n the form of a short sentence/phrase of not more than 140-characters (including spaces). This â€Å"tweet† for each session must be submitted on the web link provided to you before 0600 hours on the day of the session.The tweet must not be picked up from any of the prescribed readings, but is a summary of your insights from the readings. Do not share your tweet with others- if two or more stu dents have very similar or same tweets, then all concerned students will lose all marks for their submission. Quizzes (There will be one quiz at the end of the course, which will include only little-choice questions with h negative marking). 80% Total 100 COURSE MATERIAL AND HANDOUTS: Soft copies of course material including case studies will be uploaded in the blackboard.Hard copies will be distributed prior to the class and will be available at resource center SESSION WISE TOPICS AND READINGS: session NO-I Session Title Introduction students learn about leadership through service to others. Journal of Business Ethics, 15 (1), 103-110. Pedagogy Lecture and Discussion Session No-2 Session Title Introduction to Karma-Yoga Reading Material Karma in its effect on character. Karma-Yoga, 1-12. Hunter Prologue. Pedagogy Lecture and Discussion Session No-3 Session Title Leadership and Power Reading Material Hunter Chapter 1 (The Definitions).What is duty? Karma-Yoga, 52-64. Pedagogy Lectur e and Discussion Session No-4 Session Title Introduction to Servant Leadership Reading Material Hunter Chapter 2 (The old paradigm) Hunter Chapter 3 (The model). Pedagogy Lecture and Discussion Session No-5 Session Title Love and Leadership Reading Material Hunter Chapter 4 (The verb). We help ourselves, not the world. Karma-Yoga, 65-77. Session No-6 Session Title Managing the Environment Reading Material Hunter Chapter 5 (The environment) Hunter Chapter 6 (The choice). Session No-7 Session Title Why lead?Reading Material Hunter Chapter 7 (The payoff Hunter Epilogue The ideal of Karma- Yoga. Karma-Yoga, 117-131. ATTENDANCE Regularity in Attendance Regular attendance is considered extremely important in the BGP. All students therefore, must comply on regular attendance in class. The relative deduction of having attendance of less than 60% (irrespective of medical certificates) shall not be permitted to appear for the examination in that term/academic year and will carry â€Å"F† read in the course. Institute uses biometric attendance for recording attendance of students.In the event of two continuous sessions, students are required to punch twice at the beginning of each session if there is a break in between the sessions. The class room doors will be closed within 5 minutes of starts for each session. Student attendance will be a component while grading them for the course. If the instructor wishes to take physical attendance along with the Biometric attendance, they will communicate the same in the class. In this case also Biometric attendance ill be the official record (and not the physical attendance) for the course.Instructors have been advised to report about habitual absentees (habitual absentee is defined as students absent in the class for more than three classes consecutively). Unauthorized absence from class/institute will be considered a breach of discipline and the Institute will be free to take appropriate action in such cases. The same stu dent will be asked to face disciplinary committee. Students will not be given any attendance for any committee related activities which warrants them to drop from the class.They are required to undertake all committee related work beyond class hours. Under extra-ordinary circumstances, students may obtain leave of absence under the following rules and procedures: Prior permission of the Director BGP must be obtained for availing of leave. Students are not permitted to go out of station during the terms. In the event of students visiting their local guardian for overnight stay, they must inform the Director BGP and adman office (Officer in charge of hostels) and only travel after receiving a proper gate pass.If a student is noticed to be out of station for overnight thou any intimation to the Director BGP, disciplinary action will be taken against him/her to the extent of debarring the student from appearing in the examinations. In case of sickness, medical certificate issued and/or countersigned by the doctor along with the prescribed application form must be submitted to the BGP Office within 3 days of Joining classes after illness. No student shall be allowed to Join the program unless he/she presents a medical fitness certificate duly endorsed by a Medical Officer of the designated hospital only.No medical certificates from doctors there than the Institute approved hospital will be entertained. Institute's approved hospital's Medical Officers will issue medical certificates only in case of diagnosed illness where they are convinced that the student is too ill to attend classes. These include hospitalizing, communicable diseases (chicken-pox, jaundice and typhoid) and accidental injuries (fractures, deep traumas). Cases depending on the genuinely of the case by the BGP Director.However no compensatory attendance and examination will be held for the period of leave. Students will be awarded grades on the basis of their attendance level and reference only in t he classes from which they were present. Before applying for leave to the Director BGP a student should contact his/her course instructors to ensure that he/she is not missing any quizzes or examinations during the leave period. The BGP Office or the faculty concerned will not be responsible for the student losing any segment of evaluation on account of his/her leave.No compensatory opportunity will be given for quizzes and other class room based components on account of leave of any kind. Attendance and Performance Grade Penalty Each student is expected to attend a minimum of 80% of classes in each course. The grade penalty will be imposed on all the students who do not meet the minimum 80% attendance requirements in each course in the following manner: Attendance of Student Performance Grade Penalty More than or equal to 70% but less than One grade drop (e. G. From A to A-) More than or equal to but less than 70% Two grade drop (e. . From A to B+) Less than 60% F grade will be awa rded If a student gets D grade in a particular course and also gets a grade drop due to attendance shortage, ‘D' will become an ‘F' grade. If a student fails to meet the specified attendance requirement, his/her grade in the respective course(s) would be ordered by the Director BGP in accordance with the grade penalty rules laid down above. Exiting and Entering Students are expected to remain in the classroom, be mentally alert, and participate in the class proceedings for the duration.If a student must leave early for unavoidable reasons, that student should obtain permission from the professor before the class begins. Leaving and re-entering the class is not permitted, except under extraordinary circumstances. Faculty members may cross check the attendance and if a student is found absent in the class, the case will be sent to spieling committee and actions will be taken by the committee. Norms of Behavior Students should demonstrate respect for Faculty and fellow stud ents. Respectful behavior contributes to the enhanced learning experience.Students should refrain from disruptive behavior such as eating, using laptops, and holding side- conversations. Using laptops during is allowed only on the instruction of the proper forum instead of seeking an immediate solution. All grievances may be addressed to the BGP-Director or respective functional heads and in his absence, to the Executive Director. In such cases, a copy should be marked o the above. Respect the Facilities Students are expected to help maintain chairs, display screen, desktop computers, LCD, tables, window curtains and electrical fittings in good usable condition and not damage them or render them useless.Students are expected not to destroy the classroom ambiance. The cost of damage, loss or theft on account of students will be recovered from them. When this cannot be attributed to one student, the cost will be recovered from an identifiable group of which the individual is a part or from the entire batch. Students are expected to use cans to dispose of trash. They are also encouraged to remove defacing or unclean material voluntarily. Essentially, students should always use proper reporting and escalating mechanisms for concerns and issues.Under no circumstances should students take matters into their own hands. Students are expected to use only the students' dining hall for dining. Classrooms or any of the other administrative or academic areas shall not be used for dining. Great Lakes has adopted the principle of preserving the environment. Therefore, it tries to inculcate in the minds of its students and staff, a sense of being one with tauter causing no harm anytime, anywhere, and under any circumstances which will result in damage to the environment.Smoking, chewing tobacco and drinking alcohol in and around the premises is strictly prohibited. Severe penalties will accrue to those students caught violating this. Use of Laptops in the class Use of laptops in the class is strictly prohibited during class hours, unless specifically authorized by the Faculty or the Academic Administration. Biometric Readers: Bio-metric readers are installed for attendance in class rooms. Students must register their attendance using only these devices.

The Horror Of Horror Films - 858 Words

Horror films are alluring to viewers for many reasons. Horror movies have longed to serve a purpose which is to scare and also provide stories about the dark scary side of life. People watch horror movies to get scared, for the thrill and most of all plain old entertainment. Three main characteristics of horror films are according to Maggie McCutcheon is scaring people into creating morals, Stephen King differs and says that horror films are made to let people’s emotion and fears rein free, and Tim Dirks feels that a film must have certain characteristics for a horror film to be considered â€Å"good†. Horror films are not only meant to scare you but to also scare you into creating morals. Maggie McCutcheon discusses in her article â€Å"Too Disturbing, Too Shocking†, that the purpose for horror films is to scare you into having morals and it tells you how to act which benefits the society. This quote explains the purpose for horror films according to McCutcheon â€Å"Despite their gore, they are almost always moral fables about how to act...†, by telling you how to act they teach you main principles of what â€Å"good and evil† are. What she means by â€Å"good and evil† is that all the gore from horror films psychologically scares people into having morals and clearly see what is good from bad (1). In Stephen King’s article â€Å"Why We Crave Horror Movies†, he discusses his view on the purpose for horror movies. In this quote he says, â€Å"†¦ horror movies provide psychic relief†¦Ã¢â‚¬  which means thatShow MoreRelatedHorror : Horror And Horror Film Essay2210 Words   |  9 PagesMerriam Webster defines â€Å"horror† as â€Å"painful and intense fear, dread, or dismay.† A popular definition of horror film argues that horror is subjective-anything that evokes the emotion of horror in an individual is a horror film to that individual. 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Horror films are no longer based on a cleverly written script with lots of twists and turns, but rather how graphic and twisted the images are throughout the movie. Horror films are appealing to viewers for various reasons. In fact, according to some film critics, â€Å"good† horror films have particular characteristics. Maggie McCutcheon in â€Å"Too Disturbing, Too Shocking,† According to Olson, people particularly enjoy experiencingRead MoreThe Genre Of Horror Films1563 Words   |  7 Pagescategorized a film based on similarities in the narrative elements. There are a wide range of different types of film genres: detective, action, adventure, gangster or crime, science fiction, drama, horror, romance, comedy, musical and so on. It is quite difficult to identify a particular film because a film might have a few of different genres. That is the reason why sub-genres exist. Sub-genres can help us to more c larity in identify the genre of a film. For example, a horror film might involveRead MoreHorror Genre Films586 Words   |  2 PagesHorror Genre Essay Horror Genre Films are unsettling films that are created to frighten and panic the audience. They are there to invoke our hidden worst fears yet entertaining the audience. They deal with our most undiscovered fears, our nightmares, and our vulnerability, our terror of the unknown, our fear of death or our loss of identity. Watching a horror film gives an opening into the scary world, into a passage for the essence of fear itself, but not really being in danger. Common story lines