HOME
AUTHOR'S BLOG
VOLUME I
Preface
Table Of Contents
Index
Bibliography
Virtual Tour
VOLUME II
Preface
Table Of Contents
Index
Bibliography
Virtual Tour
VOLUME III
Preface
Table Of Contents
Index
Bibliography
Virtual Tour
ADDENDUM
Volume I
Volume II
Volume III
HOW TO ORDER
Order your copy
Proforma invoice
FEEDBACK
CONTACT US
 
Preface
Previous Next

The Handbook lays special stress on the latest generation construction materials and fixtures, and building concepts on which information is not readily available. Some of these topics are:

• Fire resistance/ safety/ protection;
• Earthquake design of buildings;
• Rainwater harvesting;
• Green buildings;
• Landscape planning;
• Project management software;
• Total station;
• Geo-synthetics;
• Use of fly ash in embankments and brick making;
• Seismic design of masonry buildings;
• Manufacture of bricks and other masonry units (concrete and cellular concrete blocks);
• Role of fly ash in concrete technology;
• Formwork for RCC structures;
• Thermal insulation of roofs;
• Shell roofs and folded plate structures;
• Metal sheet roofing materials – galvalume, aluminum sheets, etc;
• Plastic pipes – UPVC, HDPE, PPR & CPVC for water supply and sewerage system;
• Latest generation plumbing fixtures and sanitary appliances;
• Manufacturing process of timber;
• Details of joinery;
• Use of machines in woodwork;
• Modular kitchen design, wood cabinets;
• Latest generation hardware and its installation;
• Iron making and Steelmaking;
• Cold rolled light weight steel sections for sheet metal roof structures;
• Welding processes & welded joints;
• Stainless steel;
• External wall tiles and stone cladding;
• Vacuum dewatering of concrete paving;
• Glazed vitrified tiles;
• Abrasives, grinding processes & mirror/diamond polishing;
• Wood laminate flooring;
• Precast paving blocks;
• Corrosion of steel and its prevention – metallizing, galvanizing, powder coating electroplating, etc;
• Latest generation melamine and polyurethane paints and transparent finishes.

The Book is a voluminous reference manual as it summarizes the knowledge from a very large number of books, engineering journals, IS codes and vendor’s literature on construction materials and building concepts and processes. The ease and speed with which information can be retrieved would determine its enduring value and utility.

With this object in mind, every paragraph is numbered and it bears the number of the chapter. So do the Figures, Tables and the Appendices. The exhaustive index at the end of the book indicates the paragraph number against each topic covered in the book. Thus desired information can be retrieved by the busy professional in the field in the speediest manner possible.

The author can vouch from his personal experience that the motivation to read a book is among other things a function of the excellence of its production quality so that the reader may overcome the initial inertia and be tempted to flip through the pages and then may be motivated to read. In this respect author has made special effort by computerizing the total process of writing the Handbook. The quality of printing and binding of the book, cover design and other book layout features are to world class standards.

The biggest challenge for me was to identify the topics which would be of relevance to the practicing professionals in the project execution. The available knowledge is unlimited. In order, however, to keep the bulk of the book manageable so that it does not overwhelm the reader I have used a slightly smaller font than the one used in my previous books and the layout of the sketches has also been made tighter without sacrificing readability in anyway.

Today, construction of a structure involves coordination of design inputs from a large number of experts specializing in a narrow field of civil engineering and architecture, such as educational buildings, hospitals, airport terminals, sports stadia, etc. Some of these specialized disciplines are: seismic design, fire safety, geotechnical engineering, plumbing and sanitation including recycling of wastewater, etc. There are numerous books on each of them dealing with design and analysis. Construction Handbook provides a conceptual framework of these disciplines and offers detailed practical guidelines for the execution of a structure. A practicing engineer will thus be adequately equipped to discuss his project with all the experts in the course of project design and execution.

The book contains a large volume of data on building materials, fittings and fixtures. If the reader discovers any inaccuracies, which may have inadvertently crept into the Handbook, a feedback in the matter will be highly appreciated. Any suggestion for improvement in the book will be most welcome.

Previous Next
 
Copyright @ 2012, All Rights Reserved.