Civil engineers role - Expanding ..
With different types of construction works taken up in the country now the role of civil engineers is expanding and gaining importance, Managing Director of Ganesan Builders V. Ganesan said here on Sunday. Speaking at the annual convention of Coimbatore Civil Engineers’ Association, he said the construction scenario in the country had undergone a complete change after globalisation. Earlier, the Government and the Public Works Department were the major employers. Mechanisation was not much and finance was a problem for those running building contract companies. Large capital was required as payments should be made four times a month. Business was cyclical too.However, now the scenario was different. Private power stations, four-lane highways, buildings with seven lakh to 10 lakh sq. ft. were coming up in different parts of the country. Mechanisation was happening at a large-scale and institutions were ready to fund for infrastructure projects. With these developments, supervision was becoming important. Construction required better techniques now and the role of civil engineers was becoming important.
It was not just work but also issues such as safety that were gaining significance, he said. Apart from providing personal protective gadgets to the workers, the contractors should also educate them and create awareness on safety standards, he said. Mr. Ganesan urged the Coimbatore Civil Engineers’ Association to ensure that the civil engineering and diploma graduates were employable. Their communication skills should also be improved, he said.
