JOMO KENYATTA UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE AND

TECHNOLOGY

UNIT : ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT I

UNIT CODE : ECE 2501

LECTURER : MR WINJA

DATE : 28TH JUNE, 2024

GROUP MEMBERS

NAME REG. NUMBER

KITUM CHRISTINE CHEPKOECH ENC211-0016/2019

MUTUKU SUSAN NZAMBI ENC211-0040/2019

MUTINDA RAPHAEL MWATU ENC211-0262/2019

CYNTHIA MUKAMI MARANGU ENC211-0271/2019

MOSE BRIAN SIWA ENC211-0285/2019

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Plant Category Plant Types Applications Merits Demerits
 Digging trenches,  Versatile and can handle  High fuel consumption
foundations a variety of tasks  Requires skilled
Excavators
 Demolition of  High productivity operators
Excavation
structures
and Earth-
 Clearing land of trees,  Powerful and effective  Limited precision
Moving Plants
rocks, and debris for heavy-duty tasks  Can cause significant
Bulldozers
 Road construction and  Excellent for rough soil compaction
grading terrain
 Lifting and placing  Can reach great heights  Requires significant
heavy materials and cover large areas setup and dismantling
Tower Cranes  Construction of tall  Can lift very heavy time
buildings loads  Limited to specific sites
once installed
Lifting Plants
 Lifting and moving  Flexible and can be  Limited lifting capacity
materials on site moved around easily compared to tower
Mobile Cranes  Emergency recovery  Quick setup and easy to cranes
and disaster response transport  Requires stable ground
for safe operation
Compacting  They have smooth  They provide uniform  They are not suitable for
Plant drums and are used for compaction over the compacting cohesive
compaction of soil, entire surface. soils (clay or silt)
gravel, asphalt and  They can be used on because they tend to
other materials both asphalt and cause smearing rather
 They are sometimes granular base materials, than proper compaction.
Smooth wheeled
used for rolling and offering versatility in  They are sensitive to the
rollers
compacting seal coats road construction surface conditions and
or surface treatments applications. may cause surface marks
applied to roads to or indentations if not
extend their lifespan operated properly or if
and improve durability. the asphalt mix is not
adequately cooled or set.
 They are used for  They provide uniform  They require regular
compaction of mostly compaction, reducing maintenance and
asphalt. voids and ensuring a pressure checks to
 They are suitable for stable and smooth ensure optimal
use in the construction surface. performance, which can
and maintenance of  The kneading action be time-consuming.
Pneumatic tyre
airport runways due to reduces the risk of  Their initial cost can be
rollers
their ability to provide cracking, especially in higher compared to
uniform compaction, asphalt layers, by other types of rollers,
providing a more which may be a
flexible compaction consideration for
method budget-conscious
projects.
Grid rollers  They have a grid  They provide effective  They are not suitable for

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 pattern and are compaction by crushing all types of materials.
effective for cohesive and kneading the They are less effective
soils. material, which can lead on very cohesive soils or
 They are used in to better stability and materials with high
mining & quarrying load-bearing capacity. moisture content.
operations to compact  They are robust and  Their operation can
waste materials and durable, capable of generate significant
prepare the ground for handling tough materials noise and vibration,
further processing. and harsh conditions which may be disruptive
 without significant wear in certain environments.
and tear.
 They exert force  They are relatively  They are less effective
through their simple to operate and for deep compaction
deadweight and are maintain, making them compared to vibratory
limited to upper soil accessible for various rollers, as they rely
layers. construction projects. solely on static pressure.
 They are used in the  They are particularly  Their compaction
Static rollers
maintenance of effective for compacting process can be slower
pavements, helping to thin layers of material, compared to vibratory
smooth out such as asphalt and rollers, potentially
irregularities and granular soils. leading to longer project
compact patching durations.
materials.
 They produce asphalt  They ensure consistent  They require substantial
in batches. Better quality of concrete by space for the installation
suited for smaller precisely measuring and of equipment, storage of
projects mixing ingredients raw materials, and
 They produce concrete according to the movement of vehicles.
for roadways, ensuring specified mix design.  Setting up a batch plant
Batch Plants
consistent quality and  Their automation requires significant
timely delivery. reduces the need for capital investment in
manual labour, lowering equipment and
labour costs and infrastructure.
Road
minimizing human
Construction
error.
and paving
 They produce asphalt  They can produce large  The setup cost of drum
plant
continuously and are quantities of asphalt plants can be high,
efficient for larger continuously, making including the cost of
scale operations them suitable for large- equipment and
 They provide the scale projects. infrastructure.
Drum Plants
asphalt needed for  They provide a  Maintaining precise
constructing and consistent asphalt mix, control over the mix
maintaining airport which is essential for the quality can be more
runways, taxiways, and quality and durability of challenging compared to
aprons. road surfaces. batch plants.
Hot Mix Plant  They produce asphalt  They produce high-  They require significant

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 concrete by heating quality asphalt with capital investment in
aggregate and bitumen excellent binding equipment and
to a high temperature properties. infrastructure to set up.
to achieve proper  They can produce large  Regular maintenance is
mixing and coating. quantities of asphalt required to ensure the
 They produce high- quickly, making them optimal performance
quality asphalt needed suitable for large-scale
for constructing and projects with tight
maintaining airport deadlines.
runways, taxiways, and
aprons.
 Used to cut and lift  They offer high  They are more effective
sediment from bottom precision in sediment in shallow waters.
of water bodies removal.  Regular maintenance is
 They are used to  They can handle a required to keep auger
Auger dredger
dredge materials to variety of sediments dredgers operational.
create a stable base for therefore versatile.
causeways and coastal
roads
 They are used to  They offer high  They are generally
Dredging excavate and remove precision in sediment limited to shallow to
Plant sediment. removal. moderate depths,
 They are used to  They have strong making them less
maintain and deepen digging capabilities, suitable for deep-water
Backhoe harbor and port basins, making them effective dredging projects.
Dredger ensuring safe for excavating hard or  Weather conditions,
navigation for ships. compacted sediments. such as high waves and
strong currents, can limit
the operational
efficiency and safety of
backhoe dredgers.
Concrete &  Drum mixers used to  User friendly therefore  Drum mixers can only
Concreting mix cement, aggregate ensure easy and safe be used for small to
Plant and water to create operation medium concrete batch
concrete rotating  Drum mixers have a sizes
Revolving conical drum small footprint, making  Material segregation as
Drum Mixer  Used to produce them space-efficient and the heavier aggregates
asphalt concrete by suitable for various tend to settle at the
mixing asphalt, work environments. bottom while lighter
aggregate and bitumen  Drum mixers are materials like cement
portable can rise to the top
Concrete  Ready-mix plants  Production of consistent  Expensive to install and
Batching Plant combine all the and high quality maintain
materials except for concrete due to  Require a large amount
water at the concrete computerized control of of space to install
plant the mix design  Requires highly skilled

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  Central-mix plant  Less wastage of cement, labor
combines all materials sand and gravel
including water at a  Batching plants are
central location highly automated
making them efficient
 Used to transport  Have a large carrying  High initial investment
concrete from the capacity cost
Concrete Mixer mixing plant to the site  Consistent concrete  Delays or inefficiencies
trucks  Used to mix concrete quality as the ready-mix during transit can impact
in transit concrete is produced in project timelines
controlled batch plants

 Dumpers are used to  Versatility – transport  High initial cost.

carry bulk materials various materials  Require skilled labor to
such as earth, sand and  Cost effective – reduce operate
Dump Trucks gravel labor costs
 Used in mining
operations to haul
heavy loads from
mining sites
 Cranes are used to lift  Heavy load capacity 
and move heavy making them  Require skilled labor to
materials and indispensable operate
equipment in  Efficient –saves time  The initial investment is
Transporting
construction sites and labor costs very high
Plant Cranes
 Used for maintenance  Cranes grant access to  Safety risks – incorrect
works on buildings and areas that are otherwise operation can lead to
structures difficult to reach making accidents especially in
 They are also used in them essential for busy environments
transportation to expansive projects
unload and load freight
 Used to lift or lower  Efficient lifting of heavy  Require regular
loads by means of a loads maintenance for optimal
moving level platform  Carry both material and performance
Hoist
 Moving individuals up people  High initial, operation
or down by means of a and maintenance cost
moving level platform compared to manual
lifting methods
Rock Blasting  Dippers are used to  Dipper drilled holes  Require highly skilled
Plant drill blast holes to the contribute to creating a labor to operate
Dipper required depth solid wall with minimal  When using a dipper, the
 Used to soften rock back-break ratio of large rocks left
surfaces  Efficient in boring after blasting can be
precise holes relatively high
Jumper  Used to drill blast holes  Very effective in drilling  Require highly skilled
 Used in vertical hole vertical holes compared labor to operate

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 boring allowing to dippers  High initial cost and
controlled  They provide the maintenance cost
fragmentation necessary energy to start
detonation, ensuring
stable conditions for
rock breakage
 Drill rigs are essential  Drill rigs offer accurate  High initial investment
for creating stable and controlled drilling due to specialized design
foundations. ensuring stable and robust construction.
Drill rigs.  Drill rigs assess soil foundations.  During operation, drill
composition,  Drill rigs are suitable for rigs generate noise and
groundwater levels and various soil types from vibrations.
Drilling
subsurface conditions. soft sediments to hard
construction
rock formations.
plant.
 Ideal for quick repairs  Handheld drills are  Suitable for shallow
and adjustments. lightweight and easy to holes.
Handheld  Used for minor tasks maneuver.  May create less precise
Power Drills. like installing fixtures,  Can handle various holes compared to
hanging shelves, or materials (wood, metal, specialized rigs.
assembling furniture. plastic).
 Demolishing Mixed-  Excavators are versatile  Excavators can be large
Material Walls and can handle a wide and may have limited
 Debris Removal range of tasks. access to confined
Excavators  They provide high spaces.
precision in demolition  They require skilled
work. operators for efficient
operation.
 Used for demolishing  Effective for bringing  Lack precision
Demolition
large structures. down massive compared to other
plant Wrecking Balls  Ground-Level structures. methods.
Demolition.  Relatively simple to  Can cause vibrations and
operate. noise pollution.
 Small-Scale  Compact and  Not suitable for high
Skid Steer Demolition maneuverable in structures.
 Versatile Attachments confined spaces.  Operator Skill Required.
Loaders
(Works with various  Very powerful.
tools).
Tunneling  Subway tunnels.  Reduced ground  TBMs are expensive to
plant  Road tunnels and water disturbance and faster purchase and maintain.
Tunnel Boring supply tunnels. tunneling.  They may face
Machines   TBMs can work challenges in certain
(TBMs) continuously, leading to ground conditions.
faster tunnel
construction.
Roadheaders  Tunneling and  They provide precise  Roadheaders may have
excavation. cutting control. limited efficiency in

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  Rock reinforcement.  Roadheaders are very soft ground
versatile and can work conditions.
in various tunnel  They require regular
profiles. maintenance due to
heavy use.
 Tunnel excavation in  Shield tunneling  These machines are
soft ground. machines provide a safe complex and require
Shield  Customized tunnel working environment skilled operators.
Tunneling profiles. for workers.  Maintenance can be
 They help prevent costly and time-
Machines ground settlement consuming.
during tunnel
construction.