Casa Construction, Exterior
Chapter Outline
Getting Started
- i) Introduction, How to Use Casa Construction
- ii) The Alphabet with pronunciations in English and Spanish
- ii) Numbers with pronunciations in English and Spanish
- 0.0 Basic English and Spanish for Construction
Construction Planning and Design
- 1.0 Land and Site Planning
- 2.0 Surveying
- 3.0 Architectural Design
- 4.0 Permits and Building Codes
Utilities
- 5.0 Sewer System
- 6.0 Water System
- 7.0 Electricity, Telephone, Cable and Gas
Exterior Construction
- 8.0 Foundations and Concrete
- 9.0 Framing
- 10.0 Roofing
- 11.0 Masonry
- 12.0 Exterior Facades
- 13.0 Exterior Finishes
- 14.0 Landscaping
Management and Safety
- 15.0 Construction Management
- 16.0 Construction Safety
Mike Devloo, Principal and Founder of GroundUP Engineering
Casa Construction: English-Spanish Reference Manual
In Addition to offering civil engineering consulting services, this year GroundUP Engineering's goal is to produce a bilingual construction reference manual outlining the building construction process in English and Spanish. This first-of-it's-kind reference manual will be marketed as a learning tool and an on-the-job guidebook for those working in our bilingual construction industry.
The first edition of the book on Exterior Construction will be availible Soon, The book is being published through www.booksurge.com if you are interested in ordering Casa Construction Exterior. The book should be availible through booksurge.com, Amazon.com, and this website shortly.
Introduction and How to Use this book (PDF)
Free for a limited time only View 9 Complete Chapters of Casa Construction, Exterior
Chapters in full Color PDF format!
0.0 Basic English and Spanish
1.0 Land and Site Planning
2.0 Surveying
3.0 Archectural Design
4.0 Permits and Building Codes
5.0 Sewer and Septic System
6.0 Water System
15.0 Construction Management
16.0 Construction Safety
Casa Construction ExplanationGood communication on-the-job site is crucial to any construction project. Construction in North America today is a bilingual industry, however most people aren't bilingual. It is important to bridge the language gap in order to have a successful construction project. Costly problems can stem from a simple miscommunication. This book Casa Construction aims to teach people in the construction industry the Spanish or English they need to better communicate, and better their construction knowledge.
English-speaking construction superintendents and contractors can use the book to learn construction Spanish to better explain tasks and communicate problems with their Spanish-speaking workers. Spanish-speaking workers and contractors can use the book to learn English related to their job and better communicate with English-speaking clients, contractors, and supervisors.
Casa Construction is much more in depth than an English-Spanish dictionary of construction terms. The goal for the reference manual will be to outline each step in the building construction process in an easily referenced bilingual format.
The book should provide explanation of all aspects of the building construction process from initial permitting and surveying, through finish work. Key terms will be explained in English and Spanish, and common problems and solutions in each process will be explained through real-life examples. The format of the book will be such that odd-numbered pages will be written in English, while the even-numbered page next to it will read the exact same in Spanish. Careful manipulation and translation of the text in both languages will be done in order to provide a nearly exact, and easily referenced translation. For a list of the proposed chapters to be covered in Casa Construction, Exteriors, view the column to the left.
How is this book used?
The reader should be able to read and understand a concept in their own language, and then be able to correspond the explanation of the same concept in the foreign language on the page and location directly opposite. For additional help in understanding key terms, bolded words on each page will be used to indicate a direct translation.
For example:
An English line for specifications regarding wood framing might read:
An exterior wall should use treated wood for the bottom plate.
The reader should see on the opposite page in Spanish the following:
Un pared exterior debe usar madera tratada para el plato bajo.
The reader can easily determine that pared=wall and madera tratada=treated wood.
Other words like "plato bajo" and "usar" can be easily interpreted from their location in the sentence and their context.
Useful diagrams to explain certain concepts with English-Spanish corresponding labels will be used throughout the reference manual.
Web references in both languages will provide additional reference for detailed tasks. For example, the book may state basic guidelines, precautions and vocabulary for installing a septic tank, but a full guide on sizing, and installing septic tanks and leach fields can be found at: www.thenaturalhome.com/septic.html, or in Spanish a useful site is: www.epa.gov/owm/septic/pubs/xguiadeldueno06-06.pdf
By providing WWW reference for detailed of tasks, readers have an easy starting point to continue learning about more specific topics.
Casa Construction vs. an English-Spanish Dictionary
By outlining of processes as well as explaining and translating terms, the reader has a better chance of effectively communicating with workers of the other language, and has an easier time actually learning the language if he or she desires.
An English-Spanish dictionary may provide a translation for reinforced concrete: hormigón armada. But that's probably not enough information for an English-only speaking supervisor to effectively tell a Spanish-speaking rebar tier to make sure he is placing the rebar in the form where it has adequate concrete cover around it. By providing a fully translated tip in the section regarding foundation construction this concept and others can be more easily explained. For example:
| Advice for concrete footer installation | Consejos para la instalación de la base de hormigiòn |
| 1. Ensure that the footer is low enough below finish grade to protect it from from frost | 1. Asegurese que la base de hormigiòn sea suficientemente por debajo el nivel de tierra final para protegerlo de la helada. |
| 2. Ensure that the soil has been compacted and approved by a geotechnical engineer prior to placing concrete. | 2. Asegurese que el suelo esta compacto y aprobado por un ingeniero geotécnico antes de poner hormigón. |
| 3. Keep a minimum of an inch and a half of concrete cover around all rebar. | 3. Mantenga un mínimo de una pulgada y media de hormigón alrededor de todas las barras. |
This side-by-side example of English text with an opposite page of Spanish text illustrates how easily keywords can be cross-referenced and understood. Of course a good English-Spanish dictionary can be used in conjunction with this reference manual to clarify the exact definitions of certain words.
This concept of the side-by-side English-Spanish text with bolded key words is also being implemented in a travel novel written by Mike Devloo. To read an excerpt of from this work in progress click here.
