PRACTICAL EDUCATION OF MIXTURE DESIGN FOR YOUNG ENGINEERS AT READY-MIXED CONCRETE PLANTS

Abstract

The demand for ready-mixed concrete in Japan has decreased in recent decades because various budgets for civil infrastructure have been reduced. Additionally, a large number of skilled engineers will retire in the near future. The numbers of ready-mixed concrete plants and employees have decreased gradually to almost 50 percent of the numbers 15 years ago. The lack of knowledge in mixture design should be a concern, especially to young concrete engineers in Japan. The goals of the present study are to pass on fundamental mixture design methods to young engineers and to develop an effective education program for young engineers. A competition was held between young and skilled engineers to design mixture proportions for a modern concrete and a historically produced concrete made from river aggregate. The educative competition confirmed that skilled engineers are better than young engineers in modifying a concrete design. A questionnaire survey completed after the competition showed that the education of young engineers should include the learning of skills and experiences from skilled engineers.