Students swap lecture theatre for construction site
Civil engineering students from the University of Greenwich at Medway have swapped the lecture theatre for a construction site to get some hands-on learning with leading industry experts.
Final-year undergraduates took part in the week-long residential project at Constructionarium, based at the National Construction Centre in Norfolk, where they experienced the hours, conditions and challenges of a working construction site.
The scheme aims to bring together the theory and reality of construction, preparing students for work in the industry. Divided into teams, the 21 students built a scale model reinforced concrete structure, based on the Millennium Galleries in Sheffield, complete with a double curvature roof.
The structure was specifically designed for the students by the two project partners: contractors Byrne Brothers who provided all site materials, personal protection equipment and supervisory staff; and design and engineering consultancy Atkins, who provided the detailed design work and technical drawings. The consultancy already has close links with the university through the sponsorship of the Atkins Professor of Civil Engineering.
Mike McNicholas, director for Atkins, said: “This is a terrific project to be involved with because the students get so much out of it. They find it a real eye-opener and hopefully leave feeling confident and enthusiastic about starting out in the industry for real.”
Tony Backler, Senior Project Manager for Byrne, and leader of the supervision team said: “With the structures being predominantly precast concrete, the week is rather ‘front-end’ loaded to achieve completed projects on the Friday. All the concrete elements must be poured by Wednesday evening so, as the students have to make the moulds, fix the reinforcement and pour the concrete, the first three days are somewhat hard going and stressful.
“We all had a good week and the students learnt a great deal about onsite construction practices and, in fact, construction reality.”
Mid-way through the project, the students showed their progress to special visitors, including MP for Greenwich & Woolwich, Nick Raynsford, who is also President of Constructionarium, the university’s Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research & Enterprise Professor Tom Barnes, and invited industry guests.
Tom Barnes says: “Everyone involved brought tremendous energy, enthusiasm and commitment to the day, which helped our students to reinforce their academic learning in a very practical and professional atmosphere. This will be hugely useful to them and their future employers after they graduate.
“This couldn't have happened without the generous contributions of our professional partners, Atkins and Byrne Bros, for which the university is very grateful."
Students get involved with the project from the initial planning stages, each taking on different roles such as project manager, negotiator or power tool operator.
Final year student, Shirin Moghadam, 23, said of the project: “I learned a great deal from the experience and it was so much more than I expected. To put the theoretical background into practice was very useful and made us realise how different life can be a construction site from what we imagined in the classroom.
“It was great to get involved with everything from design work to levelling the ground.”
To find out more about studying Civil Engineering at the University of Greenwich, call freephone 0800 005 006 or email courseinfo@gre.ac.uk
Alternatively, visit www.gre.ac.uk/schools/engineering
ENDS
Image caption: (l-r) Nick Raynsford MP, student Shirin Moghadam and Professor Tom Barnes all lend a hand at Constructionarium.
Notes for editors:
- Constructionarium is a collaboration between academia and industry, designed to recreate the appearance and atmosphere of working on a real large-scale civil engineering project.
- Atkins is a multinational engineering and design consultancy, providing expertise to help resolve complex challenges presented by the built and natural environment. Atkins is the largest multidisciplinary consultancy in Europe; the largest engineering consultancy in the UK; and the world’s eighth largest design firm.
For images or more information please contact:
Amanda Breen, Public Relations
University of Greenwich
Tel: 020 8331 9420