CARPENTRY & FINISHING WORKS: Utilizing Manpower Towards

Construction Advancement

Carpentry is one of the oldest skilled trades and is still widely required in modern
construction. It involves the cutting, shaping and installation of wood (timber) for buildings and
other structures. Carpentry, the art and trade of cutting, working, and joining timber. The term
includes both structural timberwork in framing and items such as doors, windows, and staircases.
Carpentry evolved over the centuries in line with the technology and tools that were used
in construction. Sawmills were widespread by the 16th century, which established the timber
industry. The Industrial Revolution of the 18th century introduced steam engines and cut nails,
which freed carpenters from the labor-intensive process of relying on handmade nails.
Because wood is widely distributed throughout the world, it has been used as a building
material for centuries; many of the tools and techniques of carpentry, perfected after the Middle
Ages, have changed little since that time. On the other hand, world supplies of wood are
shrinking, and the increasing cost of obtaining, finishing, and distributing timber has brought
continuing revision in traditional practices. Further, because much traditional construction wastes
wood, engineering calculation has supplanted empirical and rule-of-thumb methods. The
development of laminated timbers such as plywood, and the practice of prefabrication have
simplified and lowered the cost of carpentry.
The framing of houses generally proceeds in one of two ways: in platform (or Western)
framing floors are framed separately, story by story; in balloon framing the vertical members
(studs) extend the full height of the building from foundation plate to rafter plate. The timber
used in the framing is put to various uses. The studs usually measure 1.5 × 3.5 inches (4 × 9 cm;
known as a “2 × 4”) and are spaced at regular intervals of 16 inches (41 cm). They are anchored
to a horizontal foundation plate at the bottom and a plate at the top, both 2 × 4 timber. Frequently
stiffening braces are built between studs at midpoint and are known as noggings. Window and
door openings are boxed in with horizontal 2 × 4 lumber called headers at the top and sills at the
bottom.
Floors are framed by anchoring 1.5 × 11-inch (4 × 28-centimetre) lumber called joists on
the foundation for the first floor and on the plates of upper floors. They are set on edge and
placed in parallel rows across the width of the house. Crisscross bracings that help them stay
parallel are called herringbone struts. In later stages, a subfloor of planks or plywood is laid
across the joists, and on top of this is placed the finished floor—narrower hardwood planks that
fit together with tongue-and-groove edges or any variety of covering.
Finishing works refer to a group of construction operations relating to the exterior and
interior finishing of buildings and structures to enhance their service and aesthetic qualities.
Finishing work is the concluding stage of construction; in many cases, the overall quality of a
building or structure being put into service depends on the quality of its execution. The main
types of finishing work include facing, plastering, flooring (and parquetry), painting,
wallpapering, and glazing.
In modern construction practice for residential, public, and industrial buildings, the
technology of finishing work has changed substantially. Increasingly widespread use is being
made of large prefabricated units, structures, and parts that are delivered to the construction site
in final finished form (for example, wall panels and roof slabs, sanitary facilities, and window
and door units). This substantially reduces the postassembly finishing work. Industry has
mastered production of a number of effective finishing materials that make it possible to
eliminate the most laborious and time-consuming processes (the “wet” processes) and to improve
the quality of the finish (sheets of thistle board, facing slabs, plastic shingles, and water-resistant
wallpaper).
Among the most labor-intensive types of finishing work are facing operations, for the
purpose of covering the front surfaces of structures with inlaid products made of natural or
artificial materials. All facing products are usually delivered to a construction site in ready-to-use
form, in predetermined sizes, coloring, and textures. Facing operations may be of the exterior or
interior type, depending on the kind of products being used and the means of attaching them to
the surfaces.
Exterior facing operations consist mainly in finishing the fronts of buildings and
structures with slabs and parts made of natural stone, facing brick, or ceramic blocks; they are
usually done with interior scaffolding at the same time as the walls are being laid. The space
between the wall and the facing is filled with cement mortar. Stone facing is sometimes applied
to finished walls; in this case exterior scaffolding is used. The facing is attached to the wall by
means of fasteners, which are embedded in holes drilled in the wall, and by filling the recesses
with mortar. Facings are also attached by means of steel bars or rods. Facing must be constructed
to avoid the possibility of penetration of moisture through seams and joints of the facing
products.
In modern mass construction, an assortment of materials and products are used for
interior facing work, which is mainly the facing of walls, floors, and ceilings. Such products
make it possible to vary and improve the interior finishing of buildings; they include ceramic and
plastic tiles, chipboard, fiberboard, asbestos-cement boards (including those with enameled
surfaces), decorative plywood, paper-laminated plastic, and decorative acoustic panels. The
finishing operations inside a building are usually done after the general construction work has
been completed. Before the facing work is begun, all buried wiring must be laid; the installation
of the risers, water pipes, and drain pipes must be completed; the surfaces to be faced must be
even and dry; the products must be sorted according to shape, size, and color; and, if necessary,
the edges must be ground in and holes must be drilled. The facing articles are attached by means
of mortars, mastics, shaped framing moldings, and drift bolts.