An Explanation of the Concepts of “Mandatory” and “Optional” (From the Kamino Blog)
Hello, I’m Kamino, a civil engineer and government employee who blogs. One of the “Seven Wonders” of the construction industry is the distinction between “mandatory” and “voluntary.” While many people have a general understanding of the difference between these two terms, almost no one can clearly explain the difference between mandatory temporary works and voluntary temporary works—especially when it comes to temporary works…
"The More Overtime You Work, the More Money You Make" Is a Myth | "Overtime" on Construction Sites Through the Lens of the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility
Hello, everyone. This is Enta. I went to the dentist the other day, and my tooth got so swollen that my face was all distorted... After they removed part of the cavity and put in a filling, it seems it had become infected... Take good care of your teeth! But anyway, in economics, there’s a concept called the “law of diminishing marginal utility”…
Why Do Slope Maintenance Workers Travel Such Long Distances? A Look at Annual Mileage and Vehicle Conditions
Hello, everyone. I’m Enta. I’ve been driving for about three hours, thinking to myself, “Isn’t the distance we slope workers travel just crazy?” so I figured I’d write about it lol. Our sense of distance is out of sync with the rest of the world. Generally speaking, a one-hour commute by car…
Why Do Cracks Form in Mortar? | Examining the Causes of Cracks in Formwork and Sprayed Mortar from the Perspectives of Mix Design and Curing
Hello, everyone. This is Enta. I came across a job site where there were fine cracks in the joints of the retaining wall. A layperson who was with me (not a slope contractor) asked, “Is this okay?” I explained the reasons on the spot, but later I thought, “If I summarize this on my blog, people will understand…”
Since I needed them on the job, I built two iPhone apps myself.
Hello, this is Director Jou. I provide on-site support for civil engineering projects in Hyogo while sharing content on YouTube about the use of ICT at construction sites. This time, rather than discussing construction methods or equipment, this is more of a record of my desperate attempts. There was something I really wanted on site, but I couldn’t find it anywhere…
The Correct Way to Install Formwork Is Level (Horizontal) | Why Aligning It with the Road Grade Will Make Reinforcement Installation a Nightmare
Hello, everyone. This is Enta. When I’m driving on the highway, I can’t help but keep looking at the road embankments—it’s an occupational hazard, isn’t it? lol The other day, while I was on the road, I saw a retaining wall that sloped diagonally to match the road’s gradient. Just as I thought, “Oh, that’s to match the gradient,” I also wondered, “What if there were rebar installers working on this…”
What Is Set Loss? | How Tension Stabilization of Ground Anchors Reduces Load and On-Site Countermeasures
Hello, everyone. This is Enta. Young engineers often ask me, “Is set loss really necessary?” Come to think of it, even though the term “set loss” is thrown around all the time on job sites, there are actually a lot of people who’ve never had it properly explained to them. Back in the day, when I was installing ground anchors…
What Is the Moldam Method? An Explanation for the General Public, from a Field Perspective, of a Stone Masonry Adhesive Reinforcement Method That Reinforces Masonry “From the Inside”
Hello, everyone. This is Enta. When I’m driving down country roads, I often see old retaining walls made of cobblestones, don’t I? Some of them are even arched outwards, and I find myself staring at them every time, wondering, “Is this really going to hold up?” lol. Those stone walls that our ancestors built one stone at a time really do make for a nice view…
Enta Goes to Mongolia! Part 4 | Traffic Jams in Ulaanbaatar, a Thermal Power Plant, and a City Full of Priuses
Hello, everyone. This is Enta. Day 3 in Mongolia flew by, and now it’s Day 4. Today, we’ll leave the ger where we stayed around 9:00 a.m. and head back to Ulaanbaatar. My trip to Mongolia is nearing its end. I’ve seen the grasslands, gers, camels, horses, and giant boulders, but what awaited me at the very end was…