CHAPTER ONE

1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of Study

Students’ Industrial Work-experience Scheme (SIWES) is one of the

Industrial Training Fund (ITF) programmes which were introduced in 1974 due to
the inability of engineering and technology students in Nigeria universities and
polytechnics to meet the practical aspects of their training. That is, the needs to
enable students match their theoretical school knowledge with the practical aspect
of their training in industry. The Training lasts for six months.

According to Ekpenyong (2011), one of the principles underlying any

industrial work experience scheme for students in institutions of learning are the
desire to marry the practical with the theoretical learning which characterizes
conventional classroom situations with a view to striking a balance between theory
and practice. The author stressed further that it was in realization of this that the
ITF when it was established, set out to study the extent to which the theoretical
knowledge that students in engineering technology and other allied fields in
Nigerian institutions offering technology based courses related to the kind of work
experience expected of them by employers.

1.2 Brief history of SIWES

In recognition of the shortcomings and weakness in the formation of SET

graduates, particularly with respect to acquisition of relevant production skills
(RPSs), the Industrial Training Fund (which was itself established in 1971 by
decree 47) initiated the Students’ Industrial Work experience Scheme (SIWES) in
1973. The scheme was designed to expose students to the industrial environment

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and enable them develop occupational competencies so that they can readily
contribute their quota to national economic and technological development after
graduation.

1.4 Objectives of SIWES

i. It provides an avenue for students in institutions of higher learning to

acquire industrial skills and experience during their course of study.
ii. It exposes Students to work methods and techniques in handling equipment
and machinery that may not be available in their institutions.
iii. It makes the transition from school to the world of work easier and enhances
students’ contact for later job placements and a chance to evaluate
companies for which they might wish to work.
iv. It provides students with the opportunities to apply their educational
knowledge in real work and industrial situations, there by bridging the gap
between theory and practice.
v. The programme teaches the students on how to interact effectively with
other workers and supervisors under various conditions in the organization.

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 CHAPTER TWO

2.0 THEORITICAL FRAMEWORK

2.1 CIVIL ENGINEERING

Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the

design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built
environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings.
Civil engineering is the second-oldest engineering discipline after military
engineering, and it is defined to distinguish non-military engineering from military
engineering. It is traditionally broken into several sub-disciplines including
architectural engineering, environmental engineering, engineering, control,
structural engineering, earthquake engineering, transportation engineering,
construction surveying, and construction engineering, etc. Civil engineering takes
place in the public sector from municipal through to national governments, and in
the private sector from individual homeowners through to international companies.

2.2 HIGHWAY ENGINEERING

Highway engineering is one of the branches of civil engineering. It deals with the
process of design, construction and maintenance of different types of roads.
Highway engineering is a sub of transportation engineering but in actual fact, they
are both interwoven and dependent on each other as other modes of transportation
such as airways, seaways and railways are reliant on highway engineering. Take
for example the rail has over 90% of its tracks built on land and often times crosses
the highway, go along the highway and sometimes pass under the highway
(tunnel). Likewise is the airplanes use up most of their travel time in the air but
they still have to take off and land on taxi-ways (highways) at the airports. The
design, geometry and maintenance of such ways are done by the highway engineer.
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Highway and Transport facilities are an important part of urban infrastructure.
Their quality and functionality have a crucial impact on the daily life of every
person and on the whole society. It is important to know that highway engineering
combines different knowledge such as geotechnics, urban planning, traffic
engineering and economics. The highway infrastructure stages are planning,
construction, management and maintenance. All the stages have to consider
security, sustainable development and cost efficiency. In addition, infrastructures
must be friendly with the landscape and should be comfortable to the user.

2.4 COMPONENT OF FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT

Flexible pavements are those which are surfaced with bituminous (or asphalt)
materials. 

The basic components of the highway are the road width, cross slope, pavement,
road margins, traffic separators, and curbs. These geometric elements are
designed and influenced by the psychology of the driver, the characteristics of the
vehicle and the traffic of the region

Fig 1. Component of flexible pavement

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1. Cross Slope or Camber
Cross Slope or camber is the slope that is provided in the transverse direction of
the pavement or carriageway, as shown in figure-1. The cross slope helps to drain
off the rainwater from the road surface. Inadequate cross slope results in the
flooding of water over the pavement, which results in deterioration of the highway.

2. Carriageway or Pavement
The paved portion of the highway or the road over which the traffic is meant to
move is called the pavement or the carriageway. The pavement width is dependent
on the width of the traffic lanes and the number of lanes planned for
construction.
3. Medians
Medians are traffic separators whose main function is to prevent the collision of
the vehicles that are moving in the opposite direction on the adjacent lanes.

4. Curbs
The boundary between the pavement and the shoulder is called as curbs. Curbs are
desirable to be constructed for urban roads.

5. Road Margins
Road margin includes:

1. Shoulders

2. Bus Bays

3. Parking lanes

4. Sidewalks or footpaths

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Shoulders: These are provided along the road edge as shown in the figure-1
above. This area serves the purpose of accommodating vehicles that are compelled
to be taken out of the pavement or the roadway. These also act as a service lane for
the vehicles that have broken down.
Bus Bays: Bus bays are constructed by recessing the curb. Hence, there is no
conflict with the moving traffic.
Parking Lanes: Parking lanes are provided for urban road construction hence
allowing for curb parking.
Footpaths or Sidewalks: When the vehicular and pedestrian traffic is heavy, the
special area is allotted for the movement of pedestrians. The area is called
footpaths or sidewalks. This is provided to protect the pedestrian thus decreasing
accidents.
6. Width of Roadway
The width of roadway or the width of formation is equal to the sum of the width
of pavement (including the separators if any) and the shoulders.
7. Right of Way
The area of the land that acquired for the road along its alignment is termed as the
right of way. Land width is defined as the width of this acquired land. The right of
way is dependent on the importance of the road and the possibility of future
development.

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 CHAPTER THREE

3.0 EXPERIENCE GAINED

The following are the experiences gained during my 2 month industrial training
are:

i. I leant how to drill and blast under sub-grade in term of constructing

road.
ii. I learnt how excavate the top soil
iii. I learnt how to construct drainage
iv. I learnt how to cut and fill
v. I was able to be familiar with various machines use in construction

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 CHAPTER FOUR

4.0 DISCUSSION OF THE EXPEREINCE GAINED

4.1 MACHINERIES USE IN SITE

There are many different types of machinery that are use in road construction,
below are some of the machineries:

i. A grader
Graders are commonly used in the construction and maintenance of dirt
and gravel roads for creating a flat surface where the asphalt will be
placed. For civil engineering projects, the purpose of the graders is to
perform fine grading.

Fig 2. A grader
ii. Bulldozer
Bulldozers are strong machines that mainly assist with pushing, digging,
excavating, and leveling materials like soil and debris at a work site.
They come with large, heavy blades in the front that push material. Some

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 come with other modifications like rippers in the rear to help break down
tough ground.

Fig 3. A bulldozer
iii. Dumper Truck
This machine is designed for large capacity loads to be carried over a
long distances on or off site. Usually, it capacity ranges from 5 to 15 m3,
some even up to 50m3 or above.

Fig 4. A Dump Truck

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 iv. Excavator
Excavation is used in construction to create building foundations,
reservoirs and roads. Some of the different processes used in excavation
include trenching, digging, dredging and site development.

Fig 6. An Excavator

4.2 DRILLING AND BLASTING

Drilling and blasting is the controlled use of explosives and other methods such as
gas pressure blasting pyrotechnics, to break rock for excavation. It is practiced
most often in mining, quarrying and civil engineering such as dam, tunnel or road
construction.

Fig 7. JACK-HAMMER

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4.3 EXCAVATION OF TOPSOIL

Topsoil excavation is the method of excavating that is defined by the material: the
top level of soil including vegetation and its rootzone. This method is used to
remove anything that would be unsuitable to bear structural loads. This includes
vegetation, soil, and any other decaying material.

Topsoil excavation is one of the most common excavation methods.

Fig 8. An Excavator

4.4 CUT AND FILL

In cut and fill excavation, the ultimate goal is to conserve mass as much as
possible. Having more cut than fill results in project managers needing to find
somewhere to dump excess rock and soil, while having more fill than cut results in
the manager needing to bring in dirt from another location.

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The main advantage of earth cutting and filling to level ground surfaces is that it
recycles the cut earth, eliminating the need to bring fill earth from elsewhere which
greatly reduces the cost of any ground leveling project.

Fig 9. Cut and Fill

4.5 DRIANAGE

Drainage is the artificial removal of water, both surface and sub-surface. Drainage
is often a major element of civil engineering and construction projects and is
necessary to avoid flooding and other damage. Typically, effluent is conveyed by
drains to sewers, and from sewers to a suitable outfall or treatment plant.

Fig 10. Drainage

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 CHAPTER FIVE

5.1 SUMMARY

Civil Engineers use their conceptual design method to design and construct
pavement for safety, stability, economy and durability. But at the same time
supervising the project closely to make sure it is being executed exactly the way
the design was and plan

5.2 CONCLUSION

This experience made it possible for me to relate what I was taught in class
with exactly what is happening on site.

5.3 RECOMMENDATION

In view of the relevance of the SIWES program, it is important that it is sustained

by the government through the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) as it exposes the
student to work tools, facilities, and equipment that may not be available in their
respective institutions in relation to their course of study. To this end, I recommend
that the following under-listed points should be implemented:

1. Students’ Industrial Works Experience Scheme (SIWES) needs to be

strengthened by all concerned stakeholder in order for its objectives to be
fully realized.
2. Regular monthly allowances for students on attachment should be paid
promptly.
3. Organizations should always accept students for SIWES and subsequently
assign them to relevant jobs. Experience staff should always be made to train
the students on attachment

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REFERENCES

Business Education for industry. The SIWES Experience. Business Education

Journal, 11(5), 9-14.

COREN (1991). Supervised Industrial Training Scheme in Engineering (SITSIE).

Formerly Council of Registered Engineers of Nigeria.

Ekpenyong, L.E. (2011). Foundations of Technical and Vocational Education:

Evolution and Practice for Nigerian Students in TVE and Adult
Education, Policy Makers & Practitioners. Ekwue, K.C.& Eluro, D.C.
(2002).

ITF (1973). Policy Document No 1. Industrial Training Fund, Jos, Nigeria.

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