Construction Mathematics and Measurement
The calculations construction managers use every day: US customary and metric units, precision and tolerances, ratios, waste and markups, areas, volumes and formwork, concrete, aggregates and earthwork factors, slopes, ramps and roof pitch, trigonometry for layout, rafters and stairs, leveling, stations and coordinates, takeoff counting rules, crew rates and productivity, interest, escalation, retainage, prompt payment and sales tax, and spreadsheets, ending in a foundation takeoff and estimate.
CON-130 Year 1 3 credits 12 lessons · 6 h 44 min
Offered by HSM University · Construction Management
This is the American version of this course. See the Canadian version.
What you'll learn
- Work confidently in US customary and metric units, convert between them exactly, add and subtract feet-inch-fraction dimensions, and choose appropriate precision and rounding
- Apply ratios, proportions, percentages, waste factors, markups, margins and successive percentages to construction quantities and prices
- Calculate perimeters and areas of simple and composite shapes, and estimate irregular areas with the trapezoidal rule, Simpson's rule and Heron's formula
- Calculate volumes and formwork contact areas of footings, walls, slabs, piles, stockpiles and tapered elements, and volumes that vary along their length
- Convert volumes to masses using density, plan concrete deliveries and pour rates, and convert between bank, loose and compacted earth quantities
- Express slopes as ratios, percentages, angles and pitch, calculate elevations from grades, and apply slope limits for drainage, ramps and roofs
- Use the Pythagorean theorem, the 3-4-5 rule and right-triangle trigonometry to square layouts and to calculate rafters, stairs, braces and heights
- Reduce differential leveling notes, calculate cut and fill, work with stations and chainage, and compute distances, directions and areas from coordinates
- Take off framing lumber, sheet goods, reinforcing steel, masonry units and boxed materials using correct counting rules and units of sale
- Build unit costs from crew rates, labor burden and productivity, estimate equipment production and truck requirements, and track productivity on site
- Calculate interest, escalation, present value, progress payments with retainage, cash flow gaps and sales tax effects on construction costs
- Build and check structured spreadsheets for takeoffs and estimates, and complete a foundation takeoff and estimate from drawings to price
Course content
12 lessons · 6 h 44 min total · final exam
- 1 Units, conversions and precision: US customary and metric 38 min · quiz
- 2 Ratios, proportions, percentages and markups 36 min · quiz
- 3 Perimeters and areas of plane shapes 33 min · quiz
- 4 Volumes and surface areas of construction elements 33 min · quiz
- 5 Concrete, aggregates, density and earthwork factors 32 min · quiz
- 6 Slopes, grades and pitch 32 min · quiz
- 7 Right-triangle trigonometry and the 3-4-5 rule 35 min · quiz
- 8 Surveying and layout calculations 34 min · quiz
- 9 Quantity takeoff arithmetic 34 min · quiz
- 10 Unit costs, productivity and labor 33 min · quiz
- 11 Money maths: interest, cash flow, retainage and sales tax 34 min · quiz
- 12 Spreadsheets for construction and capstone takeoff and estimate 30 min · quiz
- E Final exam 20 questions
Description
The calculations construction managers use every day: US customary and metric units, precision and tolerances, ratios, waste and markups, areas, volumes and formwork, concrete, aggregates and earthwork factors, slopes, ramps and roof pitch, trigonometry for layout, rafters and stairs, leveling, stations and coordinates, takeoff counting rules, crew rates and productivity, interest, escalation, retainage, prompt payment and sales tax, and spreadsheets, ending in a foundation takeoff and estimate.
Part of the Construction Management stream, typically taken in year 1.