ALLEVIATING STRESS IN PROJECTS

An Inaugural Lecture Delivered at the University of Lagos Main Auditorium on Wednesday 6th May, 2009

By

PROFESSOR FUNSO ALPHONSUS FALADEDip.QS, M.Sc (Moscow), PhD (Lagos)

Professor of Civil Engineering

Department of Civil & Environmental EngineeringFaculty of Engineering

University of Lagos

University of Lagos Press

© Funso Alphonsus Falade 2009

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the author.

Published 2009

By

University of Lagos PressUnilag P. O. Box 132,University of Lagos,

Akoka, Yaba – Lagos,Nigeria.

ISSN 1119-4456

PREAMBLE

Mr. Vice-Chancellor Sir, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Management Services), Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and Research), The Registrar, Other Principal Officers, Dean, Faculty of Engineering, other Deans, Council Members, Members of Senate of University of Lagos, My colleagues, Our students, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is a great honour for me to be given the opportunity to present the 7th in the series of the inaugural lectures for the 2008/2009 academic session.

In this lecture, I intend to talk about stress and stress-related activities in projects. In doing so, I highlight our contributions towards alleviating stress in engineering projects, in general, and civil engineering projects, in particular. I start by giving a brief account of myself:

IN THE BEGINNINGI was born into a polygamous family of six wives. In my own lineage, I was the fifth of six children. Generally, in such homes there are unwritten rules that ensure orderliness in terms of sharing of resources for whatever is needed to be done including issues such as the schooling of the children. My Father cherished education and wanted all his children educated but the ‘order’ must be followed. At the time my colleagues started school, I was still waiting for my turn. It was stressful. Each time I told my mother about my worries concerning my education, she was always telling me that beyond my expectation that help would come. I held on to that. When I eventually started school, I had a psychological problem of being in a class of junior ones. This constituted some stress. No sooner I started primary school, than my elder brother took me to his station in Akure where I completed both the primary and secondary schools. Thereafter, I started to fend for myself.

In 1976, I got admission to read Quantity Surveying at Yaba College of Technology. At that time, Quantity Surveying, Civil Engineering and Town Planning were co-located in the same Department. My desire to be a qualified Quantity Surveyor was dampened by the attitude of the then head of department to the course. The attitude discouraged me from pursuing the course beyond Ordinary National Diploma (OND) level. However, after I had earned the OND, I got employed in a firm of Quantity Surveyors.

In 1979, while I was still wondering about what next to do, help came my way as I got Federal Government Scholarship under the Bureau for External Aids to study in the defunct Soviet Union. On getting there, I changed my course of study to civil engineering. Four of us from Nigeria were posted to the Moscow Institute of Civil Engineering but only two of us had OND. The two of us with OND wrote a letter of request to the Dean, Foreign Students, that we had earned OND and that we would like to proceed to 200 Level as obtained in our country. He told us that a different system was operating in his country. With a lot of persistence and consistency from us, the Dean agreed to our request with a proviso that while we studied at 200 Level, we must pass all the examinations for the 100 Level. It was indeed a stressful year. What was paramount to us was to accomplish what we were there for and quickly return to Nigeria to be part of the nation’s builders because of our belief in Project ‘Nigeria’. When we completed our programme in 1984, we were offered the option of staying for a PhD or return home. We were unanimous in our response that we did not need a PhD and that we preferred to return home.

I did my National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme with a firm of Civil/Structural Engineers. After the service year, my employer retained me. There were jobs but the clients were not forthcoming with payment. Then the staff including myself were placed on half salary and later delayed half salary and subsequently alternate month half salary. At that juncture it was imminent for me to look for an alternative employment. In 1986, I applied to the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), did an interview and was appointed an Assistant Lecturer on a salary of about N500.00 per month. The salary was a serious set back as my take home pay could really not take me home but I adopted a coping strategy. Then, I started counting years and suddenly realized that I needed a PhD to be relevant in academics. After I had fulfilled all the requirements for employment in the University of Lagos, I was offered appointment and I subsequently transferred my service from Obafemi Awolowo University to the University of Lagos to minimize the stress of having to commute

between Ile-Ife and Lagos for the PhD programme. Then I took up the challenge of doing a PhD in a resource constrained environment.

Mr. Vice-Chancellor Sir, the above short story of my life is presented to indicate my personal experience in stress related activities. In addition, the journey through life comprises an aggregate of finite projects with their attendant stresses.

WHAT IS STRESS?Stress has been defined differently by different people. Longman’s Dictionary of Contemporary English (1974) defines stress as a “force or pressure caused by difficulties in life”. Selye (1978) described stress as the rate of wear and tear in the human body that accompanies any vital activity. Neeves (1982) viewed stress as the way human beings respond to conditions that scare, threaten, anger, bewilder or excite them. Sanders and Mc Cormick (1987) defined stress as some undesirable conditions, circumstances, tasks, or other factors that impinge upon the individuals. Coleman (1980) noted that human beings are constantly under siege and anything deliberately sought or accidentally found pleasant or unpleasant has a degree of stress associated with it.

In Engineering, however, stress is defined as force per unit area. When an external load that gives rise to external stress is applied to a body or a structure or a system, for the body to be in equilibrium, a reaction that generates internal stress that opposes the externally applied stress is developed in the body. As long as the applied stress is lower than the strength of a body, stability is ensured but when it exceeds the strength, failure results. If the loading continues, collapse is imminent. Thus implied in the terminology stress is the possibility of failure.

The concept of stress as defined in Engineering is also true in other disciplines. In Medicine, for example, when a person develops blood pressure as a result of possible failure of a ‘project’ or other problems, so long as the developed stress is within limits, there is no cause for alarm but when allowable limit is exceeded, it can result in health problems such as distrust, anger and depression, headache, high blood pressure, heart disease, etc. In principle, the health of any one that experiences any of the above symptoms has failed but for him/her to continue to live, drugs are required but if the source of the stress continues, it might finally lead to death (collapse).

Stress has physical and emotional effects on us and can create positive feelings. As a positive influence, stress can compel us to action; it can result in a new awareness and an exciting new perspective.

We differ in our physiological and psychological responses to distressing events in life. For example, a person that normally moves from one jobsite to another is likely to be stressed in a job which is stable and routine whereas the person who strives under stable conditions is likely to be stressed on a job where duties are highly varied. Our individual stress requirements and the amount which we can tolerate before we become distressed changes with our ages.

Stress can have either external or internal origins or some combination of these. The external origin can include the work activity itself, the physical or social aspect of the work situation, pressures from supervisors or peers, and other aspects of the work environment. Certain internal states of individuals such as concern for consequences of failure can also serve as internal source of stress.

WHAT IS A PROJECT?Gray and Larson (2003) defined a project as a complex, non-routine, one-time effort limited by time, budget, resources and performance specifications, designed to meet customers’

needs. Project also includes small scale enterprises, research and development activities as well as major engineering projects such as motorways and oil rigs. This range also encompasses projects in the areas as diverse as chemical manufacturing, computing (both hardware and software), information, communication and technologies; and the manufacturing of engineering and non engineering goods for industrial and consumer markets.

A project can also be defined as a set of inter-related tasks that are undertaken by an organization to meet defined objectives that have an agreed start and finish time; it is constrained by cost, and has specified performance requirement and resources. It includes ‘any undertaking with an established starting point and defined objectives the achievement of which clearly signifies the completion of the project .It is a specific task to be completed to a specification within an agreed time and an agreed budget. The specification of ‘performance’ includes specification of social (e.g., health and safety) and environmental acceptability. A project can also be viewed as an instrument of change. In this respect, a project is a means of changing an activity from one state (A) to another state (B) as shown in Fig. 1. The motivation or driving force might be greater profit, safe conditions, better security, comfort, improved service, greater amenity or other value-added attributes.

Fig 1: Project as an instrument of change

In all probability, the change from state A to state B may not be possible without the passage of finite period of time and expenditure of money. In real situation, states A and B are not just two-dimensional but multidimensional. It is also likely that many, if not all of these dimensions will change in passing from State A to State B. The process of change from state A to state B is accompanied by a variety of stresses.

The establishment of a nation can also be viewed as a project that comprises many other sub-projects such as human resources development, development of infrastructure and appropriate technology. It can also be political, economical, social, welfare, etc.

Olunloyo (2005) described Nigeria as ‘a project which is a crusade to develop Nigeria and make it an indivisible entity for the good of all. The primary challenge of our times is development and the issue confronting us is what are our priorities and what strategies do we deploy to achieve them’. He further noted that ‘restoration of respect and honour for leadership position and democratic values in society is surely part of the project Nigeria’.

State A

Con

diti

on TheProject

State B

Time

The project ‘Nigeria’ is a critical one particularly when viewed as a ‘coin’ seen differently from different perspectives by the federating units. While some are building, others may be seen as pulling down. Thus, the project ‘Nigeria’ is undergoing its own stress.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CIVIL ENGINEERING PROJECTS A civil engineering project deals with the process of developing efficient and economical methods of construction operations such as earthworks, erection procedures, etc. It also has building structures as its integral part. Most construction projects are inherently complicated; as issues (project schedules, meeting notes and design/construction drawings) which require detailed discussion among all the parties (clients, consultants and contractors) will normally emerge. Documents and drawings are prepared, edited, approved and engineers need to talk to architects, contractors, clients and other consultants. Traditionally, these individual groups communicate essentially through face-to-face meetings and sometimes through telephone calls. Now, on-line project collaboration is possible, provided one secures on-line location in a project website which can be used by members to store, share and collaborate on any project-related documentation. This allows for efficient communication that contributes to harmonious and effective relationship between architects and engineers who typically have different objectives. Any delay arising from the failure of any project stakeholder may cause stress to other stakeholders.

STRESS FACTORSProjects are embarked upon to satisfy some basic needs. Whenever there is a failure to fulfill such needs or there are potential threats to their satisfaction, stress may occur. Stress elements are present at every stage of project development and implementation. They are both human and non-human. The human element comprises labour (skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled) and performance of the team members. Stress factors are evident at conceptualization of projects (appropriateness), inappropriate analysis of resources; technical, marketing, financial, social and economic analyses; project appraisal and resources coordination and as well as the risk aspects of projects.

The non-human factors include the time(start and finish), cost (price forecast, price fluctuation) and quality of materials allowed for the work to be executed, wrong communication with other stakeholders, inadequate room for innovation and poor work environment; others are progress and financial pressure. A project that is not completed within the set time frame, apart from the legal tussle that could arise, based on the condition of contract, it may result in time overrun which can also result in cost overrun. If the cost overrun is not anticipated at the inception of the project, depending on the magnitude, it may lead to abandonment of the project. The non-adherence to the project time, may lead to the purchasing of construction materials at high cost in an unstable economic environment. In an attempt to beat the high cost, quality could be compromised by the contractor by buying cheaper materials in order to cut cost. This may lead to early deterioration of the structure and its low structural integrity that may overtime lead to collapse of the structure.

GOVERNMENT POLICY AND PROJECT ‘NIGERIA’Mr. Vice-Chancellor Sir, Campbell (1995), a Faculty member of Union Theological Seminary, told an enlightening story:

‘A woman went to a pet store and purchased a parrot to keep her company. She took her new pet home but returned the next day to report that the parrot hasn’t said a word yet. “Does it have a mirror?” asked the storekeeper. “Parrots like to be able to look at themselves in the mirror”. So she bought the mirror and returned home. The next day she was back, announcing that the bird still wasn’t talking.“What about a ladder?” the storekeeper said “parrots enjoy walking up and down a ladder”. So she bought a ladder and returned home. Sure enough, the next day she was back with the same story –still no talk. “Does the parrot have a swing? Birds

enjoy relaxing on a swing”. She bought the swing and went home. The next day, she returned to the store to announce that the bird had died.“I am terribly sorry to hear that” said the storekeeper.“Did the bird say anything before it died?” “Yes”, the lady replied. It said, “Don’t they sell any food down there?”

In the above story, ‘living’ could be viewed as a project and what was crucial for its existence, food, was not provided. The parrot should have undergone a lot of stress as a result of lack of food and since the source of the stress was not abated, the parrot eventually died. This is synonymous to what has been happening to our national projects but unlike the case of the parrot that has resulted in an irredeemable situation; the resources (food) are still available to us to right the wrong solutions that we have proffered to our national problems.

Our government, overtime, has formulated policies tailored towards improving the standard of living of the citizenry and/or national development but at the implementation stage the‘food’ (resources required to achieve positive outcomes) were usually not adequately provided leading to the failure of the projects with their attendant stresses on the citizenry . Some of such policies are:

(i) TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

In the 70s, Nigeria relied on technology advancement; therefore, it embarked on export promotion and import substitution policies. Necessary efforts were not made to develop local resources to adapt, assimilate or improve on the imported technology for local needs. The imported machineries have aged and require refurbishment as well as replacement of spare parts but the items are inordinately expensive as a result of high exchange rate.

Many of the industries have closed down. The erstwhile labour force has joined the unemployment market. Those industries that are still in operation have reduced their labour force considerably. The ‘food’ that was not provided in this situation was manpower that was required to adapt, assimilate, improve or sustain the imported technology but since this was not in place, no marginal transfer of technology took place in Nigeria

(ii) LABOUR-BASED CONSTRUCTION METHOD

Nigeria, for a long time, depended and continues to depend on the use of imported heavy equipment for the construction and maintenance of all types of infrastructure works. The economic recession in the 80s and 90s resulted in a large labour surplus and shortage of foreign exchange. It became increasingly difficult to replace old, worn-out construction equipment or even import enough spares part to maintain existing stock.

In 1987, the Federal Government through the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) requested the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and International Labour Organization (ILO) to assist her in the introduction and promotion of labour-based method of construction in Nigeria. On the basis of the request, a multi-disciplinary mission was sent to Nigeria to assess the scope of the productive employment opportunities in the sectors of the economy including construction, rehabilitation and maintenance of infrastructure. The report of the multi-disciplinary mission indicated that the condition on ground- labour surplus, favoured the introduction of the construction method. The Government planned a pilot programme in four phases:Phase I: Preparation of the pilot programme Phase II: Demonstration of project Phase III: Implementation of the pilot programmePhase IV: Nation-wide expansion programme

The first and second phases were supported by UNDP/ILO projects NIR/87/001 and NIR/87/025 (Hussain et al, 1992). In preparation for the introduction of the programme to some selected tertiary institutions and in an effort to popularize the programme among the professionals, a seminar was organized in May, 1992 with participants drawn from professional bodies, Polytechnics and Universities (Ahmadu Bello University, University of Lagos, University of Ibadan and University of Nigeria, Nsukka). Dr. Banjo and myself participated in the workshop. The method of construction focuses on the use of labour for the provision and maintenance of facilities as long as it is economically viable. Tools and equipment are to be introduced in a stepwise manner from very light to heavy as the project may require. The following demonstrated projects were executed using labour-based approach; road rehabilitation, irrigation scheme, earth dam construction and rural road development. All these projects were located in Epe, Lagos State.

Apart from being cost effective, the method is used to generate employment in countries like the Netherlands and South Africa. It assists in solving social vices because both skilled and unskilled labours are usually engaged in large number.

The policy, if backed up by political will and commitment, could have led to the development of endogenous technology including capacity-building, reduction of unemployment and construction cost. However, only two phases were successfully implemented while the remaining two phases were abandoned because the necessary counterpart funding (the food) could not be sourced locally.

(iii) LOW-COST HOUSING SCHEME

Housing is one of the basic necessities of life and it is the second most important thing to man after food. This has been eluding the working class especially those who do their work with total commitment. Over the years, most of the housing programmes initiated under the low-cost housing schemes by the Federal Government achieved limited success. Some of the housing units were never completed and the costs of the completed units were unaffordable to the target group (low- and medium-income earners) because of high cost of the construction materials. Some of the buildings were constructed in rural areas where they were absolutely not required but must be there because of the ‘federal character’.

In Nigeria, the imported and conventional construction materials are expensive and as long as these materials are the components of housing projects, the product, would not be affordable to the target groups.

The ‘food’ that was not provided for all the housing programmes embarked upon by government was locally sourced materials that could have been used in place of expensive imported and conventional construction materials. (iv) VISION 20/2020The Nigerian Government has charted the path that we should follow through the development agenda tagged ‘Vision 20/2020’ which is a roadmap towards making Nigeria one of the 20 fastest growing economies in the world by year 2020 (Ekpiwhre, 2008). In order to achieve this laudable project, it is important to note that developing countries that successfully transited from backwardness to industrial delight necessarily attached great importance to Science, Engineering and Technology. India offers one good reference point here. Years back, India belonged to the club of backward economies. Today, the story has changed. India’s transformation did not happen by accident; rather, it is the fruit of placing more emphasis on the development of human capital with a strong recourse to Science, Engineering and Technology.

Science is defined as systematic inquiry into the workings of nature, with a view to understanding and directing these for human benefits, while engineering utilizes scientific

ideas to develop technology. Any technology that is not continuously driven by science is obsolete. As laudable as the project 20:2020 is, do we have the necessary infrastructure to make it a reality? The ability of a nation to create and/or apply new knowledge depends on the country’s level of technological capability, the formal and informal institutions as well as their supporting systems, physical infrastructure and advanced knowledge infrastructure. The irony of the situation is that many of the industrialized countries of the world today are poorly endowed with natural resources and less than friendly weather condition whereas the least industrialized nation, are those with rich resources and favorable climatic condition. The ‘food’ to carry this project through consists of adequate funding, manpower development and sourcing of local materials. Except these resources are harnessed effectively 2020 will come and go like any other year while the status quo remains and the Vision remains a mirage.

In general, the necessary inputs or resources (food) that are required to make a project succeed will vary for different projects, but as long as the appropriate quality and quantity of ‘food’ is not provided failure is imminent. When a project fails the stakeholders experience stress. MY CONTRIBUTIONSMr. Vice-Chancellor Sir, I believe that to every problem there is a solution. During my career in academics, I have identified some stress related activities in manpower development and construction materials and have made my contributions in these two areas:

1. MANPOWER DEVELOPMENT

(i) Project Management In order to alleviate stress from wrong planning, inappropriate analysis and coordination of resources, wrongful award of projects to incompetent contractors etc; I developed a programme on Project Management in 1998, with input from Professor T. A. I. Akeju, Dr. G. L. Oyekan and Architect Lanre Ogunbowale. The programme is tagged 3-month Advanced Certificate in Project Management. It addresses the essential tools that ensure proper implementation of projects with little or no stress from conception through design to execution stages. The course broadly covers the following topics:

Key Concept of Project Management, Time Management; Venture Idea Generation; Technical, Marketing, Financial, Social and Economic Aspects of Project; Resources Analysis; Resources Coordination and Management; Tendering, Contracting and Sub-contracting; Productivity of Labour, Equipment Output and Selection of Equipment; Project Appraisal; Computer Application in Project Management; Total Quality Management; Proposal Presentation, Environmental Impact Assessment Risk in Projects.

The participants at the programmes cut across disciplines: engineers, scientists, educationists, lawyers, medical doctors, estate managers, quantity surveyors, bankers, and accountants, etc. The programme is being run under the auspices of UNILAG Consult. It is mounted twice a year. The feedback from the industry concerning the performance of the “participants” has been encouraging. The course means different things to different participants; to some, it is a stress reliever, to others, it is an uplifter while, to some, it is a refresher and to another group, it is a family builder.

(ii) Maintenance of InfrastructureIn order to address the stress emanating from unkempt environment, I developed in 2001, a 5-day programme on ‘maintenance and remodeling of buildings’. The content of the programme covers:

Maintenance policies Building Maintenance Management Causes of Deterioration of Concrete in Buildings Maintenance of Mechanical Facilities in Buildings Maintenance of Electrical Facilities Maintenance of Concrete in Buildings Problems in Buildings Scheduling of Repair Works Restructuring of Buildings Safety in Maintenance Works Financial Aspect of Maintenance Works Legal Aspect of Maintenance and Collapsed Buildings.

The resource persons apart from me for the programme are: Prof. T. A. I. Akeju, Dr. G. L. Oyekan, Arc Lanre Ogunbowale, Engr. J. O. Akinwande, Engr. Abudiore (Lagos State Ministry of Housing) and Prof. Oyewo (Faculty of Law).

The programme has been mounted many times for different groups of participants under the auspicies of Unilag Consult and also for the top engineers working in the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). Through this programme, industry-based maintenance and remodeling problems have been solved.

(iii) Labour-based Construction MethodIn an effort to contribute to capacity building in the labour-based construction method, I developed in 1997, a 4-day workshop for the Lagos State Staff Development Centre, Magodo. The programme was mounted a few times with core resource persons from Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Lagos (Falade, Sadiq and Aiyesimoju).

I developed a two (2) unit 500 Level elective course on labour-based construction method which was embedded in Civil and Environmental Engineering Curriculum.

I carried out a comparative analysis of the labour-based with equipment-based method for rehabilitation of Noforija-Yewa road in Epe using the available data that were collected at the project site. The results showed a reduction of about 48.5% in the rehabilitation cost if labour-based had been used instead of equipment-based methods (Falade, 1996).

(iv) Engineering EducationIn an attempt to alleviate stress from the training of engineers and encourage capacity building in engineering education in Nigeria, in particular, and in Africa, in general, I initiated in 1999, a project for the organization of a sub-regional workshop on the development of new engineering curricula and African regional conference on engineering education. The programme was actualized in 2002 after the receipt of a financial support from UNESCO through the Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO (NATCOM-UNESCO) and further support from University of Lagos and some Government Agencies. The programme was held at the University of Lagos. There were 83 Participants from six (6) African Nations. The programme, with the support of the faculty members and bursary staff, recorded a huge success. The success achieved led to the decision that was taken by the participants that

the programme be held biennially and to be rotated among the member nations. University of Lagos was requested to organize the 2nd series.

In 2004, the 2nd African Regional Conference on Engineering Education was held at University of Lagos. There were 86 Participants from seven (7) African Nations. The programme was sponsored by University of Lagos, UNESCO, ANSTI and DTCA. The 3rd series (ARCEE 2006) was hosted by Tswhane University of Technology, Pretoria, South-Africa. One of the outcomes of ARCEE 2006 was the establishment of the African Engineering Education Association (AEEA). One of the mandates of the Association is to organize ARCEE biennially and ensure good participation from the member nations. I was appointed the Founding President of the Association supported by four Vice- Presidents from the other four Sub-regions, a Treasurer and Secretary-General. The Secretariat of the Association was located in Cape Town, South- Africa. Identification of problems within the compass of engineering education and provision of appropriate solutions to them are paramount on the agenda of AEEA. Members of AEEA are poised to proffer solutions that will alleviate stress from brain drain, poor infrastructure, poor funding, etc by identifying opportunities for linkages and networking of engineering training institutions both within and outside Africa including linkage with the Africans in the Diaspora.

The 4th African Regional Conference on Engineering Education was held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in April, 2008. One Hundred and Ten (110) participants attended from14 countries. The 5th African Regional Conference on Engineering Education will be held in Libya, North Africa in 2010.

I set up an Engineering Education Research Group (EERG) at the Faculty level. The focus of the group is to identify and proffer appropriate solutions to problems within the compass of engineering education and networking with other engineering stakeholders both within and outside Nigeria.

2. CONSTRUCTION MATERIALSMy research goal focused on identifying innovative materials that would be structurally viable, durable and cost effective to complement or replace the imported and conventional expensive ones with a view to minimizing stress arising from high cost and poor quality construction materials and to ensure that facilities are provided at affordable cost. The materials can be divided into two namely, concrete and allied products and bamboo as reinforcement.

2.1 CONCRETE AND ALLIED PRODUCTSConcrete is a mixture of cement, fine aggregate (sand or laterite) coarse aggregate (gravel or crushed stone) and water. Atimes an admixture such as plasticizer may be added to improve some of the properties of concrete. Considerable research interest has been shown in the possible use of laterite as fine aggregate in concrete instead of the conventional dredged sand. Laterite is a typical soil which to ordinary man is a reddish soil used mainly in road construction. The geological origin of laterite can be traced to hydrated ferric oxide, usually with some alumina and silica. It is a deposit of mineral matters of decomposed rock origin.Laterite fines are readily available at jobsites; they do not require to be washed like sand because they contain little or no organic material that can affect chemical reaction with cement during the formation of concrete.

Research on concrete and allied products was at advanced stage at the time I entered into academics but a lot was still required to be done in order to provide adequate data for these materials to be used successfully for construction projects.

(i) Significance of Source of Laterite

Lasisi and Ogunjimi (1984) reported that the location from where lateritic soils are procured particularly the topographic conditions, affects the strength properties of landcrete. However, information was not available as to whether lateritic soils obtained from different sources could be said to have high strength disparity or not.

Falade (1991) investigated the significance of source of lateritic soils on the structural behaviour of concrete containing lateritic soil. Lateritic soils were collected from three different topographies- flat, slopping and borrow pit. Samples were collected from three different locations from each topography making a total of nine different locations. Specimens were prepared, cured and tested at the appropriate curing ages. It was established that there were differences between strength values of samples within the same topography and from topography to topography. However, statistical analysis revealed that all the observed differences were not significant at 5% level. This indicates that lateritic soils within the study areas exhibited identical properties and, therefore, there was no need to leave one site to procure laterite from another place within the same geographical area.

(ii) Structural Behaviour of Laterised ConcreteFalade (1991) studied the behaviour of laterized concrete beams under moment and shear forces. The results showed that the shear span to effective depth ratio is the single most important factor that influences the mode of failure of the laterized concrete beams.

(iii) Curing of Concrete SpecimensConcrete specimens are cured to maintain adequate water within the specimens to allow for chemical reaction which accompanies the setting of cement and hardening of the concrete. Investigation shows that to achieve this, different curing methods are adopted. Falade (1991) investigated the influence of six curing methods (water, air, jute bag, moist soil, water/air and air/water) on the compressive strength of concrete cube specimens that contain laterite fine aggregate. Three different mixes of cement, laterite and gravel were used: 1:1: 3; 1:2:4 and 1:3:6(cement: sand: granite chips) with water/cement ratios of 0.62, 0.75 and 1.02 by weight respectively and four curing ages of 7, 14, 21 and 28 days were used. The results showed that the strength attainable by laterized concrete mix is affected by the curing method that is adopted and that most ideal curing method is water curing. Fig. 2 shows that strength increased with curing age irrespective of the method of curing. However, the values of the strength depend on the age and method of curing.

Curing Age Fig. 2, compressive strength of concrete cubes at different curing ages (1: 1: 3 mix)

(iv) Partial Replacement of Cement in ConcreteOften, the high cost of cement, a material that is inevitable in the production of concrete, generates stress in the prospective building owners, in particular, and other financers of engineering projects, in general. Falade (1990, 1993) investigated the possibility of partial replacement of cement with sawdust ash (SDA) and ground broken bottle (GBB) in concrete.

The investigations were conducted over a period of time. The results showed that the introduction of sawdust ash into concrete mix reduced strength values. Fig. 3 shows the general trends of reduction in strength with curing time. The behaviour of the concrete containing sawdust ash showed delay in setting times of concrete which is advantageous in our environment to minimize the effect of drying shrinkage that is usually associated with hot weather. Based on this, it was concluded that a proportion of SDA could be used to replace some quantity of cement to act as a retarding agent to delay the setting of cement thus compensating for the effect of hot weather both by helping to offset the loss of workability and to minimize the increase in the amount of water to produce the required workability.

SDA Content (%)Figure 3: Compressive strength for different curing ages at different SDA percentages (mix 1:

2: 4)

On the other hand, the inclusion of ground broken bottle in concrete mix improved the strength of the concrete mixture. The results showed that the optimum replacement levels are 5% for 1:1: 3 mix and10% for 1:2:4 mix. The two materials (saw dust ash and ground broken bottle) exhibited pozzolanic behaviour (they have cementing property which only manifests in the presence of some quantity of cement and in a moist condition).

(v) Lightweight ConcreteConcrete is classified into lightweight, normal and heavyweight concrete. The density of lightweight concrete ranges from a little over 300 up to 1950 kg/m3, for normal concrete, the density varies from 2200 - 2500 kg/m3 while for heavyweight concrete the density is between 3360 and 3680kg/m3.

In Nigeria, about 70% of construction work consists of normal concrete. The absence of lightweight concrete is of great concern to researchers and users especially when normal concrete is used as non-load bearing walls. Apart from the high cost of normal concrete, its self-weight increases the intensity of load on the structural members and, consequently, the quantity of reinforcement required to resist the forces. The self weight also causes an increase in the size of the foundation, thereby increasing the construction cost. This concern led to the investigation of the use of palm kernel shell as both fine and coarse aggregates (Falade, 1991 and 1992). The properties of periwinkle shell as coarse aggregate (Falade, 1995) was also studied in an attempt to identify appropriate material for the production of lightweight concrete. The palm kernel shell (coarse and fine aggregates) produced concrete whose densities were comparable to that of normal concrete but with reduced strength values. The weight of concrete produced wholly with periwinkle shells fell to the category of lightweight concrete. The densities of the designed mixes varied between 1850 and 2100kg/m3, giving strengths ranging from 11.77 to 15.65N/mm2 against the 2400kg/m3 for normal concrete and strengths ranging from 20 to 40N/mm2.

Further works carried out on the concrete containing periwinkle shells include its durability, responsiveness to different curing methods, structural behaviour of beams and slab specimens under different loading conditions and cost comparison with normal concrete (Falade,2000). The outcome of my research effort is that concrete containing periwinkle shells is economical, stable and appropriate for structural applications as lightweight concrete.

(vi) Quality of ConcreteThe ultimate consumer of concrete is interested in three major properties of concrete namely, adequate strength, adequate durability and minimum cost. To achieve this, the quality and cost of concrete components must be controlled.

The quality of concrete is usually assessed by its cube strength. Cubes are cast on sites, water cured and strength are evaluated on the 28th day. At 28th day curing, it has been postulated that concrete would have attained 75% of its characteristic strength. The time lag between the casting of concrete and determination of its strength on the 28-day is such that if the strength falls short of the concrete strength that is used for the design of a structure by an engineer, a large amount of money will be required to pull down the structure and rebuild it. One way by which the inadequacy is compensated for, is the use of factor of safety which though should be standard but varies with different designers depending on the perception of each designer.

Prediction of 28th day from 7th day strengthIn an attempt to reduce the waiting period of 28 days before the cube strength of concrete could be evaluated, data were collected from the laboratory. The cubes were tested on the 7th and 28th days curing. The data were analysed.

Falade (1993) assumed a linear relationship between 7th and 28th day compressive strength of lateritic mortar and arrived at the expression:

28 = K

7(1)

where

28 is the mean strength at 28 days

7 is the mean strength at 7 days

and K is a constant of proportionality based on the data.

28 = 8.04 with s.d = 2.53 and

7 = 5.66 with s.d. = 2.08. So K is 8.04/5.66 = 1.42

and

28 = 1.42

7(2)

The above equation was used to estimate the 28th day compressive strength which had a s.d. of 1.09 and which gave a very good fit to the experimental data. It was concluded that at 7-day curing, lateritic mortar cubes would have achieved about 70% of their 28 day compressive strength.

The correlation showed that the 28th day strength could be predicted from the 7th day strength. Notwithstanding, an improvement over waiting for 28 days before the determination of the concrete strength has been established, the result is still not satisfactory in the sense that the waiting period is also still long.

Prediction of 28th day strength from workability test (Slump Test)Workability is the ease with which a fresh concrete batch can be mixed, placed and compacted. Slump test is used to asses the workability of fresh concrete. The level of workability is determined by the proportion of water to cement in the concrete mix which, to a large extent, is also an important factor in strength development. Based on this, an

investigation into the influence of water/cement ratios on the characteristic strength of laterised concrete was carried out (Falade, 1991). In this research, the workability of the concrete was measured by slump and compacting factor tests. The slump test measures loss of plasticity or workability of fresh concrete and it is also a measure of the consistency of plastic concrete. Figure 4 shows that with increase in water/cement ratio in the concrete mixture, the workability increases until the concrete components can no longer hold themselves together. On the other hand, the strength increases with increase in water/cement ratio up to a point that is called optimum water cement/ratio for each mix, beyond that point the workability increases while the strength decreases.

Co

mp

ress

ive

stre

ngt

h(n

/mm

)1

25

20

15

10

5

0 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.00

25

50

75

100

125

150

175

200

Slu

m(m

m)

Fig. 4: Variation of the compressive strength slump and compacting factor with water/cement ratio (1:1:2 mix).

Source: Falade (1991)

In a related study, Falade and Oyekan, (2001) investigated the possibility of predicting the 28th day strength (property of hardened concrete) from slump values (property of fresh concrete). The use of slump test provides one method of quality control by which the compressive strength of concrete can be assessed before casting the structural units.

For the study, three mix proportions: 1:1½:3 (cement: laterite: granite chips), 1:2:4 and 1:3:6 were considered. The water cement ratios varied with each mix. For 1:1½:3 from 0.52 –1.12, 1:2:4 from 0.65 – 1.35 and for 1:3:6 from 0.90 – 1.80.

Regression equations were used to fit the curve of the slump versus water/cement (w/c) ratio and characteristic strength versus w/c ratio. The equations were formulated for the descending portion of the characteristic strength curve where slump test is sensitive to change in workability taking the optimum water/cement ratio as the starting point. The ascending portion of the characteristic strength curve has initial zero slump and increases to optimum w/c ratio.

Water/cement ratioFigure 5: Variation of Compressive Strength and Workability with Water/Cement Ratios

Source: Falade and Oyekan (2001)

The experimental and predicted results are presented in Fig. 5. Generally, the results show good agreement between the experimentally observed quantities and the predicted values.

Based on the analyses, some relationships were established between the 28th day strengths and slump values for different mix proportions. Zone 1 (lower portion of the curve)Mix Equation 1:1 1/2:3 Y = 138.88 x 9.76 (3)1:2:4 Y = 20.47 x 9.36 (4)1:3:6 Y = 0.69 x 10.78 (5) Zone 2 (upper portion of the curve)Mix Equation 1:1 1/2:3 Y = 615x - 505.97 (6)1:2:4 Y = 572.5x - 587.79 (7)1:3:6 Y = 460x - 642.3 (8)

Where,Y = Slumpx = Water/cement ratio

For the 28-day characteristic strength and water/cement ratio the relationships are:

Mix Equation 1:1 1/2:3 (9) 1:2:4 (10) 1:3:6 (11)where,

F28

= 28-day characteristic strength x = water/cement ratio

These relationships could not be generalized because of the inconsistence in the response of concrete to changes in w/c ratio which is a factor in the developed equations.

Characteristics of Concrete Mixtures with Disproportionate Constituents

As a follow-up on assessment of quality control using slump test, a comprehensive assessment of concrete mixtures that contained disproportionate quantities of their constituent materials was carried out (Falade, 2000). This is summarized in Table 1.

Table 1: Characteristics of concrete mixtures that contained disproportionate constituents Proportion of Constituents Characteristics of MixtureLow water

High water

Low cement

High cement

Low Fine Aggregate

High Fine Aggregate

Low Coarse Aggregate

High Coarse Aggregate

Results in loss of mobility and compatibility. It gives rise to dry segregation, which results in crumbly mixture that can cause unnecessary delay and difficulty during mixing, placement and compaction.

Provides greater fluidity and decreases friction within the concrete matrix. It gives rise to weak concrete that cannot retain individual aggregate particles in a homogenous dispersion. It results in wet segregation and bleeding. Increases settlement and shrinkage.

Leads to low adhesion between the paste and coarse aggregate. Produces weak concrete. It increases the water/cement ratio and workability of the mixture.

Gives sticky and sluggish mixtures, particularly in the normal range of slump for cast-in-place concrete. It results in lower water/cement ratio and higher content of hydrating material thus reducing the workability of rich mixes. It increases shrinkage and cracking.

Insufficient paste to lubricate the coarse aggregate. It results in increased workability and voids within the coarse aggregate fraction.

Increases the cohesion and causes the mixture to be sticky and difficult to move. It causes an increase in surface area of particles within the mixture, which increases the amount of water required to coat these surfaces. This can result in increased drying shrinkage and cracking.

Gives poor stability and increases workability. Provides weak concrete, segregation and bleeding.

Mixture lacks sufficient mortar to fill the void system resulting in loss of cohesion and mobility. Results in honeycombing due to incomplete compaction. Strength and impermeability of such mixture will be less than those for a well proportioned mixture.

Source: Falade (2000)

The above table shows the need for a paradigm shift in the way that specification clauses are drawn up for concrete products. Most engineers specify prescribed mixes for construction of facilities but the variable nature of concrete components calls for a re-think. For example, when 1:2:4 (cement: sand: granite) is specified for a project on the assumption that the sand will be of medium size and granite of particle size range 14-19mm but on getting to site, the sand can be finer than anticipated while the granite particles can be coarser and vice versa. Yet, because of lack of knowledge of the implications of the

variations in the concrete materials, the contractor/builder will still go ahead to use 1:2:4 mix as specified in the design in spite of the fact that the specifications are no longer valid because of the variation. The use of the erroneous particle sizes results in the production of poor quality concrete. The built structure may ultimately not collapse but exhibits early deterioration of concrete. In contemporary concrete practice, it is better that design engineers specify concrete strength and leave the materials combination that will produce the desired strength to the contractors/builders while keeping within the specified gradation envelope. However, the laboratories where the compressive strength test can easily be carried out are not readily available; yet, it is highly important that the strength is assessed. It is on the basis of this that the establishment of materials testing laboratory by the Lagos State Government is highly commendable. This will ensure the enforcement of compliance with the materials testing requirements as contained in the National Building Code (NBC, 2006). It is hoped that other state governments would take a cue from Lagos State Government by establishing Materials Testing Laboratories. It is only then that proper assessment of the properties of construction materials can be ascertained before they are used. While such tests should be mandatory for big projects, effective supervision by competent engineers will be adequate for small scale projects. The procedure for effective supervision is outlined in a schematic arrangement in Figure 6. If this is followed, it will ensure the production of quality and durable concrete on construction sites.

http://www.pdfonline.com/easypdf/?gad=CLjUiqcCEgjbNejkqKEugRjG27j-AyCw_-AP

(viii) Foamed Aerated Concrete Mr. Vice-Chancellor Sir, not long ago, Dr. Ikponmwosa and I commenced research on the structural behaviour of Foamed Aerated Concrete (FAC). Two PhD candidates have joinedus in the study. The preliminary overview of this material showed that aerated concrete is a pre-cast, manufactured building stone made of all-natural raw materials (Falade and Ikponmwosa, 2008). It is an economical, environmentally friendly, cellular, lightweight, structural material that provides thermal and acoustic insulation as well as fire and termite resistance. It is available in a variety of forms, ranging from wall and roof panels to blocks and lintels. It can be produced either by creating pores in the concrete through addition of foaming agent in the mix or by adding aerating agents that will react with cement to produce air voids.

The advantages of aerated concrete are: (i). Large variety of sizes (ii). High dimensional accuracy (iii) Lightweight(iv). High compressive strength (v). Excellent thermal insulation(vi). Great acoustic insulation (vii). High fire resistance (viii). Termite resistance(ix). High workability.

The use of aerated concrete is generally known around the world but has not been developed in Nigeria and many other nations in Africa. This is because we are addicted to the use of conventional construction materials like sandcrete blocks, concrete, etc.

It is our desire to comply with international standards in the production of aerated concrete. The greatest challenge that we have at the initial stage of this research was the development of stable foam. We are still discussing with Prof. Familoni of the Department of Chemistry for possible collaborative effort on the production of appropriate foaming agent, that is, foam that will be stable enough for concrete to set before the foam collapses. After the preliminary investigation, we prepared a research proposal and forwarded it to the Central Research Committee (CRC), University of Lagos for funding to enable us continue with the investigation. After a thorough consideration of the proposal, an approval was given by the CRC to fund the research. The work is still in progress. It is my belief, based on the data obtained to date, that aerated concrete industry could be developed in Nigeria and the sub-region to provide jobs and further develop associated small and medium scale enterprises (SME). Furthermore, the development of local aerated concrete production technology based on the study of existing foreign technologies will not only catapult Nigeria to limelight in the use of the material but will also carry along with it the desired economic gain to the construction industry in general.

2.2 BAMBOO AS REINFORCEMENT IN CONCRETE

Concrete surpasses the other construction materials with respect to flexibility of shape, strength, durability and response to its environment and economy. It is strong in compression but weak in tension. Its tensile strength is about 10% of its compressive strength. When concrete structures are subjected to tensile stresses, reinforcement is provided in the form of steel, synthetic and glass fibres to withstand the stresses. Generally, in developing countries, including Nigeria, steel reinforcement is commonly embedded in concrete to take tensile stresses which plain concrete is incapable of resisting. In reinforced concrete structures, civil structural engineers design concrete to carry compressive stress while reinforcement is designed to carry the tensile stress. The transfer of stress from concrete to steel is made possible through effective bond between concrete and the reinforcement.

Among the components of reinforced concrete structural elements, reinforcement is the most unstable material in terms of cost. A large proportion of the quantity of reinforcement that we use is imported and, therefore, foreign exchange-dependent. The cost has been increasing consistently over the years to the extent that the material is no longer affordable to the low and medium income groups. In 1993, the cost per ton of steel reinforcement was N24, 000.00. It was N31, 500.00 in 1995 while in 1996 the price was N37, 500.00. A decade later the cost of steel reinforcement has assumed an alarming proportion; for instance, in 2006, the average cost per tonne was N135, 000.00, it rose to N165, 000.00 in 2007 and in 2008 it hovered between N185,000.00 and N260,000.00 per tonne. This trend underscores the need for alternative materials as partial or total replacement of steel in concrete.

Investigation of Bamboo as ReinforcementBamboo is a natural fibre and widely available in Nigeria. It grows in natural vegetation among thick forest and in riverine areas. Bamboo is used in its natural form in rural areas as columns (nakedly or as composite with mud). The culms are also used as flooring material, roof trusses and wall in temporary structures. In urban areas, they are predominantly used on construction sites as temporary support to formwork during concrete work and scaffolding during plastering and painting works. Omotoso (1983) reported that there are seven species of bamboo in Nigeria. Among the species, bambusa vulgaris constitutes 80%. Its ability to sustain appreciable load on construction sites led to the preliminary investigation to determine its engineering properties and the possibility of using it as reinforcement in concrete. Generally, information is available on use of bamboo but because of the existence of over 1250 species around the world (McClure, 1966), there is need for researchers to identify the bamboo species within their localities and determine their engineering properties for effective utilization.

The pioneer work on the utilization of bamboo as reinforcement in concrete in Nigeria started at University of Lagos in 1993 when I developed my Ph.D research work on the topic. The focus of the research was to assess the possibility of using bamboo as reinforcement in concrete for low-cost housing in the desire to alleviate stress being experienced by the citizenry as a result of high cost of steel reinforcement. The research work was supervised by Professor T. A. I. Akeju. The project was executed in two phases: The first phase focused on determination of the properties of bamboo and the appropriate splint size that would be used to ensure optimum utilization of bamboo in concrete. The results showed a maximum tensile strength of 133.54N/mm2 for bamboo as opposed to steel reinforcement which has values of 250N/mm2 and 410N/mm2 for mild steel and high yield reinforcement respectively. The result further showed that bamboo splints of smaller sections are more ductile than those of medium and larger sections. The thickness of the bamboo culm determined the thickness of the splints since a square section is preferred (Falade and Akeju, 1997).

In the 2nd phase of the investigation, the behaviours of bamboo reinforced beams were studied. The deformation of the samples of the beams under load was observed; the strengths of the samples were evaluated and compared with both unreinforced and steel reinforced concrete.

Bamboo has high rate of water absorption. Because of that the surface of the bamboo splints was coated with bitumen and in order to compensate for the smoothless of the bitumen surface, the surface was sandblasted. The influence of bitumen coating to reduce the absorption of the mixing water and sandblasting on the surface of the splints to improve the bond characteristics of bamboo were evaluated. A designed mix of 0.55:1:1.86:4.34 (water: cement: sand: granite chips) with varying reinforcement volume fractions for bamboo and steel in beams. The beam specimens were cured in water and tested at 7, 14 21, 28 and 90 days.

The results showed that the inclusion of bamboo splints in concrete beams increased the load carrying capacity of the beam but not proportionately. The strength was observed to improve by up to 134.65% above the strength of unreinforced beams at 28-day curing. For the same section and percentage reinforcement, the failure load of mild steel reinforced beam was approximately 1.5 times that of its equivalent bamboo reinforced beams. It was also found that bamboo splints imparted post-cracking strength to concrete beams. The results further showed that bamboo deteriorates in concrete with age which manifest in reduction of strength after 28th curing age. The question then arose as to what could be responsible for the decrease in strength. The answer to the question bordered on the study of the anatomy of bamboo.

Dr. Toyin Ogundipe (now professor and Dean of Postgraduate School) provided necessary facilities to study the internal structure of bamboo before embedding it in concrete and after its retrieval from concrete specimens.

The results revealed that the reduction in strength could be attributed to deterioration of bamboo due to weakening effect of the fibres of bamboo (Akeju and Falade, 2001). The application of appropriate thickness of bitumen coating improved the performance of the bamboo splints.Low water/cement ratio is also required for optimum utilization of bamboo as reinforcement in concrete.

We developed design equations for the determination of the appropriate size and quantity of splints that would be required to resist applied load to any structural member (Falade and Akeju, 2002).

The results of the cost analysis, based on the cost equations that we developed, revealed that the replacement of steel with bamboo splints reduced the volume of concrete by 2.54% while the reduction was 0.65% for steel reinforced beam. The cost of bamboo reinforced beams of the same section and comparable strength with steel reinforced section was found to be 22.82% cheaper.

We used stress-strain relationship of bamboo reinforced concrete beam section to evaluate the maximum allowable percentage of bamboo in concrete. This was found to be 5.20% against 4% percent for steel reinforcement in concrete. Further research investigations showed that bamboo has limitation as reinforcement in concrete and that it can only be successfully used in beams with maximum span of 4.0m and under a maximum load of 60% of its moment of resistance (Falade and Ikponmwosa, 2006); and also that bamboo is not suitable as reinforcement in columns. The load-carrying capacity of bamboo reinforced columns was lower than that of unreinforced columns (Falade and Ikponmwosa, 2008).

My research work on bamboo has provided sufficient data to guide its use as reinforcement in structural elements where it has been found to be adequate. What is required now is the design and construction of a prototype building in which bamboo will serve as key reinforcing material in slabs and beams within the already defined limits.

CONCLUSIONMr. Vice-Chancellor, Sir, I started this lecture by presenting my personal experience in stress-related activities; I defined stress and project and showed stress factors in engineering projects. Nigeria as a nation was also viewed as a project that is suffering from variety of stresses.

I have presented my contributions in both areas of manpower development and construction materials as a way of managing stress in engineering projects.

The conclusion of my inaugural lecture can be found in the words of Sugerman (1997), “Every time you are honest and conduct yourself with honesty, a success force will drive you towards greater success. Each time you lie, even with a little white lie, there are strong forces pushing you toward failure”. As a nation, we have imbibed the latter part of Sugerman’s words; the challenge is to embrace the former. Our individual, corporate and national projects, such as technology transfer, housing, health, education, provision and maintenance of infrastructure etc have failed and are still failing because of insincerity, greed and wickedness. The Bible says in 2 Chronicles 7:14‘If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves,And pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways,Then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and Heal their land.’

The source of our greed and wickedness is the penchant to amass wealth and take possession of what belongs to other people but we must remember what the Bible says in Ecclesiastes 1:2“Vanity of Vanities’,’ says the Preacher,’ Vanity of Vanities; all is Vanity.’

And in 1 Timothy 6:7 ‘For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out’

For us to alleviate stress in projects and for Nigeria to make progress, our national character (self discipline, core value, sense of identity and integrity) must be reappraised in line with the ideals of progressive nations around the world, otherwise, we shall continue to be dreamers and continue to chase shadows.

RECOMMENDATIONS1. Concrete constitutes an important material for construction projects. The variable

nature of its components calls for caution in adopting prescribed mixes as specifications for construction works which currently is the practice. The engineers should specify concrete strength and leave the materials combination that will produce the required strength to the contractors/builders while keeping within the specified gradation envelope. This will ensure the production of good quality concrete and durable structures.

2. Materials testing laboratories are relatively few in Nigeria. They are mainly located in training institutions and research institutes. Each state should establish its own laboratories taking a cue from Lagos State. State-of-the-art equipment should be procured and able personnel employed to man the laboratories. This will ensure that the strengths of construction materials are ascertained before use. The laboratories will also serve as research and data collection centres for upgrading of codes and monitoring standards.

3. There are many research findings in the universities and other research institutes that are largely unknown and, therefore, unutilized. Some require the development and testing of prototype structure. Government and private sector are enjoined to use such identified viable local materials for their development projects and fund prototype projects such as bamboo reinforced concrete structures.

4 Expansion is required in the cement and steel industries to produce sufficient quantity for local needs. Some of the identified pozzolanic materials can be blended with cement in appropriate proportions without compromising its properties.

5 Government should encourage both the manufacturers of building materials and building/civil engineering contractors through adequate patronage to enable them assist in the provision of financial support to carry out, in the universities and other research institutes, research activities in area of identifying appropriate local construction materials. The results of the research should be utilized to develop indigenous technology that promotes industrialization relevant to national development.

6. The non-availability of appropriate infrastructure, especially electricity supply, is a major source of stress in our individual and national lives. Government should invest in the development of engineering infrastructure because engineering is the key that holds the future.

BEYOND THE BEGINNING Mr. Vice-Chancellor Sir, I have extensively discussed how I started at the beginning with a clear knowledge on how to cope with stress in order to be successful. I have explained that stress can both be internally or externally induced.

The internal stress induced by my upbringing has been nicely balanced by several people but most importantly by the Almighty God.

My coping strategy for the externally induced stress has been inwardly drawn with a sense of commitment, focus, dedication and hardwork with self discipline.

Having achieved the momentum considered necessary for excellence, I now look forward to a better and more efficient academic productivity for the benefit of mankind.

In particular, I am firmly committed to enhance the status of our fatherland in the communion of nations in our search for local sourcing of engineering materials that will increase our productivity, development of indigenous technology as well as generate employment for our teeming youth.

This, I believe will propel Nigeria to a greater height in the provision and maintenance of our infrastructure at affordable costs.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSMr. Vice-Chancellor, Sir, my utmost gratitude is to the Almighty God, the Author and Finisher of our faith. For His kindness, sustenance and for making today a reality. I cannot thank Him enough. He pioneered me from the day I was born and made me to be what I am today. To Him be the Glory.

I thank my parents, Late Chief Jeje Dosunmu Falade and Mrs. Aina Falade for bringing me to the world and for all that they did for me. I acknowledge the contribution of my brother, Honorable Augustine Odunlade Falade who extricated me from peasant life at the age of 13 and provided adequate support for my primary and secondary school education.

I express my gratitude to my nephew, Mr. Francis Ige who brought me to Lagos after my school certificate and found a job for me as an account clerk at ScoaTrac.

I am grateful to the Federal Government of Nigeria for the scholarship award that was given to me to study in the defunct Soviet Union.

I owe the beginning of my Engineering training to my teachers in Moscow Institute of Civil Engineering of particular importance is Prof. Sigalov who actually opened my eyes to the fundamentals of Civil Engineering.

My gratitude goes to my cousin, Prof. Deji Ojo who invited me to academics and to Prof. Sola Ogedengbe for his golden advice at the time that mattered.

I appreciate all my colleagues in the Department of Civil Engineering and other Departments in Obafemi Awolowo University for their support.

I thank my postgraduate teachers Prof. T. A. I. Akeju and Prof. Oye Ibidapo-Obe for the knowledge imparted in me. Prof Akeju also supervised my PhD project. I thank him for his guidance and constructive criticism during the programme. I appreciate Prof. Toyin Ogundipe for his contribution during my PhD work.

Professor Ibidapo-Obe was the Vice-Chancellor when I initiated the African Regional Conference on Engineering Education (ARCEE). I sincerely thank him for his unalloyed support for the conference.

I appreciate the following groups and individuals for their contributions towards the success of the ARCEE: all the Professors in the Faculty of Engineering, Members of Advisory and Organising Committees, all other staff (academic and technical) and students of the Faculty of Engineering, as well as the then Bursar- Mr. Feyisetan and Mrs. Serrano.

My gratitude goes to Professor Folarin Osotimehin (UNESCO, Paris), Prof. Mossaquio (Director, UNESCO Regional Office, Kenya) Dr. Sule Bassi (Director-General, Directorate for Technical Cooperation in Africa) and Mrs. Katagun (Secretary-General, Nigerian National Commission for UNESCO) for all their contributions for the take off and sustenance of the African Regional Conference on Engineering Education.

I thank my Professional colleagues too many to mention, Fellows and Members of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Members, Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, Fellows and Members of other Professional Bodies.

Prof. V. O. S. Olunloyo has contributed in no small way to my academic development. I have benefited a lot from him, through sharing of ideas and in advisory capacity. Twice, he secured sponsorship for me to attend conferences outside Nigeria- at University of Oxford, Britain and in University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania through his link with Chams Plc. I cannot thank him enough.

Sir Demola Aladekomo, the Managing Director /Chief Executive Chams Plc has been very wonderful. He twice sponsored my attendance at two conferences that had no direct relationship with his portfolio. I met and discussed with him at the first occasion but the second time all the discussions (request to approval including payment) were done by text messages. I doubt if we could have another of his kind in Nigeria.

I appreciate the cordial relationship that I have enjoyed with the entire staff in the department of Civil and Environmental Engineering which has helped me in no small way in facilitating my work.

I thank the Vice-Chancellor Prof. Tolu Odugbemi for giving me the opportunity to deliver this inaugural lecture and members of Senate and Ceremonies for putting all the relevant papers together.

I am grateful to Mrs. Bukola Ashon for all her efforts to type the manuscript of this inaugural lecture.

I sincerely appreciate Pastor Ituah Ighodalo, other Pastors and members of Christchurch Parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God for their support.

I appreciate Prof. A. S. Adedimila, Prof. Peter O. Adeniyi and Prof.. Akin Oyebode for their support.

I thank the family of my cousin and her husband, Prof. (Mrs.) and Chief Ikulayo for support.

I appreciate God for giving me a passionate family. My siblings: Honorable Odunlade Falade, Mrs. Mopelola Adeleye, Mrs. Olaitan Ajoloko, Late Mrs. Arinola Olanrewaju, and Mrs. Margaret Ajayi, they have been wonderful.

I thank members of my immediate family for their love, understanding, patience and tolerance. My children: Taiwo, Kehinde, Toyin, Seun and Ifeoluwa are a source of pride to me. They have contributed immensely in giving me the necessary peace of mind to face my primary assignments of teaching and research. I give thanks to my wife of 21 years, Dr. (Mrs.) Titilayo Falade for her love, understanding and support. She possesses uncommon strength and character that makes it remarkably easy for her to cope with any situation that arose in all our long years of marriage. She is very talented and innovative. Thank you for your love.

Mr. Vice-Chancellor Sir, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I thank you for your patience and attention. God bless you.

REFERENCESAkeju A. I. and Falade F. (2001), ‘Utilization of Bamboo as Reinforcement in Concrete for

Low-cost Housing’, Proceedings, International Conference on Structural Engineering, Mechanics and Computation, Cape Town, South Africa, 2-4 April 2001, pp 1463-1470.

Campbell Ernest (1995), ‘Cited in Maxwell, J. C. (1995), ‘Developing the Leaders Around You’ Spiritual Life Outreach Inc. Port-Harcourt, Nigeria, pp. 25 – 26.

Clifford, F. Gray and Erik, W. Larson (2003), ‘Project Management – The Managerial Process’ Mc Graw Hill, New York 2nd Edition.

Coleman, V. (1980), ‘Stress Control’ London Pan Book Limited.

Ekpiwhre (2008),’ Roadmap to Vision 2020: Government Woos Diasporas, Utilizing Science and Technology to Drive Vision’ Science and Technology Digest Vol. 7 No. 8 & 9, pp 17 – 24.

Falade, F. (1990), ‘Effect of Sawdust Ash on the Strength of Laterized Concrete’, West Indian Journal of Engineering, Vol. 15, No. pp. 71 – 84.

Falade, F. (1991), ‘Behaviour of Laterized Concrete Beams under Moment and Shear. Ife Journal of Technology, Nigeria, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 7 – 12.

Falade, F. (1991), ‘Influence of Method and Duration of Curing and Mix Proportion on the Strength of Concrete Containing Laterite Fine Aggregate.’ Int. Journal of Building Science and its Applications, Edinburgh, Vol. 26, No. 4, pp. 453 – 458.

Falade, F. (1991), ‘The Significance of Source of Laterite on the Strength of Cement-stabilized Laterite Block. Int. Journal of Housing Science and its Applications. Florida, Vol.15, No. 2, pp.121 – 131.

Falade, F. (1991), ‘The Use of Palm Kernel Shells as a Substitute for Sand in Concrete’ Proceedings, (IAHS) World Congress, France (23 – 27 September, 1991), Vol. 2, pp. 558 – 569.

Falade, F. (1992), ‘The Use of Palm Kernel Shells as Coarse Aggregate in Concrete.’ Int. Journal of Housing Science and its Applications. Florida, Vol. 16, No. 3, pp. 211 –219.

Falade, F. (1993), ‘The Strength of Laterite Concrete and Mortar:- The compressive Strength of Laterite Mortars: the Effect of Mix Proportion, Source and Water/Cement. Ratio’, Bulletin, Masonry International, Edinburgh, Vol. 7, No.1, pp. 2-4.

Falade, F. (1993), ‘The Use of Ground Broken Bottles as Partial Replacement of Cement in Concrete,’ Proc. of Third International Conference on Structural Engineering Analysis and Modeling (SEAM 3, Ghana, 21 – 29 July, 1993), pp. 473 – 486.

Falade, F. (1994), ‘Influence of Water/Cement Ratio and Mix Proportion on Workability and Characteristic Strength of Concrete Containing Laterite Fine Aggregate. ‘Int. Journal of Building and Environment, Edinburgh, Vol. 29, No.2, pp. 237 – 240.

Falade, F. (1995), ‘Investigation of Periwinkle shells as Coarse Aggregate in Concrete.’ Int. Journal of Bldg. and Environment. Edinburgh, Vol. 30, No.4, pp. 573 – 577.

Falade F. and Akeju T. A. I. (1997). ‘The Potential of Bamboo as Construction Material’ Fourth Int. Congress on Structural Engineering Analysis and Modeling (SEAM 4) –Ghana 9-11 September, 1997, pp. 447-460.

Falade, F. (2000), ‘Quality Control and Maintenance of Concrete in Buildings in Hot Climates,’ Proc. 13th International Congress on Condition Monitoring and Diagnostic Engineering Management, Houston, Texas, USA. December 3 – 8, 2000, pp. 559 –568.

Falade, F. (2000), ‘Structural Design and Economy of Normal and Lightweight Concrete: A Comparative Study’ Proceedings of third International Conference on Quality, Reliability and Maintenance, University of England, Oxford, March 2000, pp. 219 –222.

Falade, F. and Oyekan, G. L. (2001), ‘Slump Test as an Indirect Indicator of the Characteristic Strength of Laterised Concrete, ‘West Indian Journal of Engineering, Vol. 24, No.1, pp. 35 – 41.

Falade F. and Akeju T. A. I. (2002), ‘The Behaviour and Analysis of Bamboo Reinforced Concrete Under Flexural Loading’, Proc. Fifth International Conference on Structural Engineering Analysis and Modelling, (SEAM 5), Engineers’ Centre, Accra, March, 2002, pp 277-288.

Falade F. and Akeju T. A. I. (2002). ‘Structural Design and Economy of Bamboo Reinforced Concrete Beams’, Proc. Fifth International Conference on Structural Engineering Analysis and Modelling, (SEAM 5), Engineers’ Centre, Accra, Ghana, March, 2002, pp 215-228.

Falade F. and Ikponmwosa E. (2006). ‘Scope of Bamboo Reinforcement in Concrete Beams for Low-Cost Housing’ Journal of Construction and Materials Technology. Vol. 3 No. 1-2. pp. 39-45.

Falade, F. (2007), ‘Engineering Curricula For The Enhancement of Human Capacity Development’ Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) 2007 International Conference and Annual General Meeting “Abuja 2007”, (4th – 7th December, 2007).

Falade, F. (2008), ‘Challenges Facing Engineering Education in Africa’ European Society for Engineering Education, 2nd Global Engineering Deans’ Conference, Berlin, (24th –25th February, 2008).

Falade, F. and Ikponmwosa E. (2008), ‘Behaviour of Axially Loaded Bamboo Reinforced Concrete Columns’ African Journal of Engineering Research and Development, Vol, No. 1 pp 15 – 25.

Falade, F. and Ikponmwosa E. (2008), ‘An Overview of Foamed Aerated Concrete - A Building and Civil Engineering Construction Material’ Journal of Engineering Science and Technology, Vol. 3 No 3, pp 5 – 14.

Hussain, M. I., Nwune, T. C. and Obi, A. (1992), ‘Introduction of Labour-based Construction Technology in Nigeria: Field Demonstration and Experiences’ UNDP/ILO Project NIR/87/025 and NIR/90/014, National Directorate of Employment, Lagos, Nigeria.

Lasisi, F. and Ogunjimi, B, ‘Source and Mix Proportions as Factors in the Characteristics Strength of Laterized Concrete,’ Intl. Journal for Development Technology, Vol. 2, pp. 151 – 158.

Longman Group Limited (1974): Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, First Edition, Pitman Press, Great Britain.

Mark, S. Sanders and Ernest J. McCormick (1987), ‘Human Factors in Engineering’ SeriesSixth Edition. MCGrand, Hill Book Company, New York.

McClure F.A. (1966). The Bamboo, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass, U.S.A.

Neeves, R. E. (1982), ‘Coaches Reaction to M. D. Margolis ‘Management for Professional World Class Competition’ in L. D. Ziachowsky and W. E. Sime (eds) for Sports, Virgina AAAPERD Publication.

Olunloyo, V. O. S. (2005), ‘Project Nigeria and Technology’ Nigerian National Merit Award Winner’s Lecture, Abuja, 30th November, 2005.

Omotoso, T. O. (2003), ‘The Propagation and Utilization of Bamboo in Nigeria’ Independent Student project,’ Federal Forestry Research Institute, Ibadan.

Selye, H. (1978), ‘The Stress of Life’ U. S. A. Paper Back Edition.

Sugerman Joseph (1997), ‘Cited in Maxwell, J. C. (1997), ‘Becoming a Person of Influence’ Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers, Nashvile, Tennessee, pp. 130.

The Holy Bible (1982), New King James Version, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers, Nashville.