ABOUT
MAD CAD
Introducing you to the world of MRT Yap Kimm Ho shares his MRT experiences Pg. 2-3
The Past, Present & Future of our MRT System How has the MRT system evolved thus far? Pg. 4
Valentine’s Day Special Two things you can hand make for your loved ones Pg. 5 - 6
What’s new in AcePLP? Check out The Bulletin for latest updates on company events. Pg. 7 - 8
Feb 2013 Issue
Introducing you to the world of
MRT
AcePLP Trainee Yap Kimm Ho shares his experiences with MRT projects and how it links to his interest in design,. As the LTA drums up to the challenge of building a good and hardy transport system, MRT seems to be the crux of it all. Just this January, the government announced that there would be a slew of new rail transit projects that will only be completed in 2030. We are preparing for the future of Singapore, one with an expected incremental population growth. While the 3-letter acronym may seem simple, MRT projects are never so. The creation of each MRT line, each station, is a complex combination of several disciplines and services. One of our trainees, Yap Kimm Ho from Batch 60, has been there, done that, and is still currently in the middle of one. The nice chap has taken some time to share his experiences in the world of MRT projects with us: How involved have you been in MRT projects since you joined us? . I’ve been to two assignments so far, AECOM and Arup, and both were MRT-based projects. At AECOM, it was the Thomson Line project, whereas at Arup (my current assignment), I am involved in projects like the Thomson Line: Woodlands station, Downtown Line: Kallang Bahru, Jalan Besar, Sungei Road, Bencoolen and River Valley stations.
So what is it like, working on an MRT project? MRT Projects are really interesting. I discovered many other aspects of the MRT that I had not paid attention to, prior to being involved in the projects. I am now more aware of the various services involved in an MRT project, such as fire protection, water valve and drainages, and learnt more about the design specifications of these elements. For example, the drainage catch pit distance needs to be 2 metres apart, and all the water would be collected at the lowest level, then pumped up to the ground level to discharge. There are also some MRT stations which also function as bomb shelters, so additional features need to be added, like creating more wall-layers for stronger resilience. Work often involves amending drainage, plumbing and sanitary drawings to fit current requirements, which is what I am focusing on at the moment. The amended drawings are then submitted to obtain licensing for fire protection valves and escape signage. What were the difficulties you encountered at the beginning? Fire safety measure drawings for the tunnels were difficult at first, because I was not familiar with tunnel drawings at all. The different elements mentioned earlier, such as the water valve had to be indicated within the drawings. Luckily, I had assistance from the other technician at Arup. Through her guidance, I was able to complete the drawings. The MRT experiences sound very design-based. As we recall, you actually won a Design Innovation Award in University. Was that when you got interested in design? My interest in designing started even earlier, when I was in Temasek Polytechnic. Projects which required me to calculate and size up mechanical robot design systems drove my interest. The motivating factor was to see the project being able to perform as specified.
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Have your daily interactions with MRT design led you to become sharper in observing the real physical elements of MRT?
Any general takeaways or important realizations during your assignments so far?
I have to admit that after getting involved with MRT projects, I have been looking around MRT stations in detail, like the pipes hanging above, the drainage routing, even the lighting. I try to relate the drawings to the physical aspects that we see. I wouldn’t say that it has made me sharper in observation but rather, inspired me to think more about the elements in MRT.
I cannot emphasize enough the importance of not making any assumptions. Clarifying any doubts immediately and thus understanding as clearly as possible the task given to you is the best way to go.
How has your participation in so many MRT projects impacted your skills? I learnt a lot because I had to take on Combined Service Drawing/SEM (Structured) and also got to use Microstation during the MRT projects. My Microstation skills improved tremendously because the practical experience during the assignments gave me the opportunity to practice. The fast working pace also pushed me to work with speed, using shortcuts. I would consider Microstation less challenging than CSD/SEM though, because all the foundations of Microstation had been learnt during my in-house training, mostly through Tips & Tricks classes. Why is CSD/SEM so challenging? CSD/SEM is quite challenging because it requires lots of practise before you can really get the hang of it. The difficult part is doing something we call the “cut back”. Cut back is done when one or two dozens of services overlap each other in the drawing and we have to cut them into parts of similar services in order to see clearly what services they are. I think it is great that I had been given the chance to do quite a number of CSD/SEM drawings during my assignment in AECOM.
It is also a good habit to have a backup file before doing any actual amendment to the drawings. I learnt it the hard way because there was once in Arup, I overrode an old file and had to redo everything!
To graduates who want to design: “Be prepared to go through the process over and over again till the optimum result is obtained. It can be quite a frustrating process, so you need to keep your calm.” - Kimm Ho
Right now at Arup I am experiencing a different challenge – doing individual drawings. However, in my opinion, CSD is still more difficult as there are more factors to consider. For instance, elevation of the services has to be done to ensure they will not clash with each other. Having to squeeze many services in a narrow walkway can be pretty challenging. Recently there was news that the government is going to have a number of new rail transit projects that will only be completed in 2030. Would you consider specializing in this area? I definitely would consider staying on in this field as I have already garnered some valuable experience and knowledge of the MRT design. Both assignments being MRT-related, I have gained quite a bit of insight into the MRT sector. However, I think that there is still a lot of knowledge to be captured out there and my present goal is to learn as much as I can through different assignments in terms of practice, system and culture.
Got an experience to share? Write in to hr@aceplp.com.sg to let us know!
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The Past, Present and Future
of our MRT System
How has the MRT system evolved and what does the future hold for it?
Since the introduction of the MRT system in 1987, the daily lives of locals have been transforming. Everyday, thousands of commuters board the MRT from early morning, attempting to report to work on time. During the evening, we doze off to the train’s chugging rhythm along the tracks. As it is, the trains play a pivotal role in fueling our economy. We have now grown reliant on using the MRT to maneuver around the island. From a humble 67km network, our MRT tracks have expanded to the current 149km, and we are not stopping. In another 4 years, the network will grow to 199km, adding 39 more stations in the North South Line Extension (NSLe), the Tuas West Extension (TWE) and the Downtown Line (DTL). Looking into the future, by 2030, Singapore aims to have a total of five MRT lines, stretching the total rail system to a massive length of 360km. The two new lines - Cross Island Line (CRL) and Jurong Region Line (JRL), will be connected to all existing lines. The CRL will run from Jurong Industrial Estate and pass through areas such as West Coast, Bukit Timah, Ang Mo Kio, Punggol and Pasir Ris before ending in Changi. What lays ahead is a promising prospect of increased accessibility around Singapore, with easy mobility from East to West, North to South. And it is our engineers, planners, architects and builders who will hold the key to building this future into a reality. All local MRT systems design will be done in Microstation. So skill up your Microstation abilities to play a crucial role in constructing our future rail networks.
PAST >>
PRESENT >>
FUTURE ? MaC|4
Do something for your loved ones this
Valentine’s Day Contrary to popular interpretation of the occasion, V day has evolved in Singapore into something more than just a day for that special someone. It is also a day when people show their appreciation to their other loved ones by hand-making small gifts for them. Here are two ideas for gifts that are small, doable and most importantly, demonstrate your love:
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Make your own jelly-heart tarts! The tart has 3 layers of goodness – the first is a biscuit base, followed by a cheese layer, and finally, nothing says ‘I love you’ clearer than the strawberry heart in a layer of jelly.
Recipe 1st layer – Base 320 gm Digestive biscuits (about 22 pieces) 160 gm butter, melted Method 1) Pound or process the biscuits till you get crumbs (22.86 x 15.24 x 2.54cm) 2) Mix with melted butter to make the crumbs stick together 3) Divide into two portion and press down to the base of the tray (9" X 6" X 1") (tray need to be lined with plastic). Chill for 20 mins or until needed 4) Prick base with the back of a skewer before pouring in the filling 2nd layer – Topping Totally Jelly (Strawberry Flavour) 2 boxes (1 box for 1 tray) 300 ml of boiling water (150 ml for 1 box) 300 ml of cold water (150 ml for 1 box) Method 1) Dissolve the Jelly in boiling water then add cold water and stir well. 2) Cool completely before pouring over the cheese / strawberry filing 3) Put into fridge until the Jelly is firmed. Cut into squares of 4 cm by 4 cm
3rd layer – Filling 250 gm Philadelphia cream cheese (1 block) 70 gm castor sugar 2 ¼ tsp of gelatine 150 ml of boiling water ½ tsp vanilla essence 20 medium-sized strawberries0 Method 1) Dissolve the sugar and gelatine in the hot (boiling) water and put aside until gelatine has dissolved completely. 2) Cut the strawberry into halves. Using a small heartshaped cutter (1"), cut hearts out of the strawberry halves. 3) Cream cheese and vanilla essence together at low speed. Add gelatine syrup gradually (bit by bit) and cream until smooth (like condensed milk). 4)Pour the mixture onto the chilled crumbs biscuits. 6)Place the heart-shaped strawberry, partially submerged into the creamed cheese. Put into fridge until firm, about 2 hours.
If you want to know how it is supposed to taste and look like, you can visit http://thejellyhearts.com/menu/. But do try not to give up and buy from them because handmade stuff are always more meaningful than store-bought, right?
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Make a one-of-a kind keychain Make a unique keychain specially for each of your loved ones using polyshrink. This amazing material shrinks to approximately a quarter of its original size when heated. There are a few kinds of polyshrink – transparent, opaque white and opaque black.
Opaque white
Transparent
Action! Materials needed Colour pencils Black permanent marker Key Chain ring and chain Toaster oven with flat and smooth metal tray Polyshrink sheets (slightly smaller than A4 size) Step 1 Cut the polyshrink sheet into pieces of 9cm by 10cm. Each sheet will be one keychain. Step 2 Select a picture that you like from the Internet. Customise it according to your preference e.g. put your loved one’s name in etc. Resize it to 9cm by 10cm so that it is the same size as your polyshrink sheet. Print it out. If you want to design your own picture, design it scaled to the same size, on a piece of paper. Step 3 Place the polyshrink over the picture you have printed or drawn, trace out and colour the picture on the polyshrink accordingly. Do not worry if the colours are faint, because when the material shrinks, the colours will be more concentrated.
Step 4 Punch a hole in one of the top corners using a hole puncher. This is for the key chain ring. Step 5 Place the polyshrink in the toaster oven and watch it shrink as the oven heats up. Things to note: 1. Polyshrink may curl in the process of shrinking but do not be alarmed as it will straighten out towards the end. 2. The whole process takes about 30 secs to 1 minute, depending on how hot your oven is. 3. Take out the tray from the oven to cool once the polyshrink has flattened out as leaving it in too long will cause it to be burnt and browned. 4. Only remove the poly shrink from the tray when it has cooled. 5. You may choose to varnish spray the coloured surface to ensure that the colours will last longer.
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The Bulletin Capture Your Experiences :: Photo Competition “What Makes Me Come to Work” And the winner is… Eng Meng!
My friends at work gives me daily motivation to CHIONG AH~
The feel of food culture around Amtech creates a unique atmosphere and so, I enjoy coming to my work for the yummy food!
Eating Twisties with chopsticks?
What makes me come to work… is the funky stuff I see my partner do every day. Makes me LOL all the time!
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The Bulletin Upcoming Events…
Financial Talk Financial Talk confirmed to be on 13 March 2013 night, dinner provided! SIGN UP NOW and learn how to manage your income, spending and debt better as part of a coherent budgeting plan. Deadline has been extended to 11 February 2013. Do write in to hr@aceplp.com.sg to indicate your interest in attending the workshop/talk TODAY!
CNY Casual Dinner Casual Buffet Dinner @ HQ Join us on 18 February for a casual buffet dinner at our Amtech Headquarters and use it as an opportunity to catch up with some of your batch mates. Timing: 6pm to 8.30pm Write in to hr@aceplp.com.sg if you are attending by 11 February 2013.
Last but not least…
Happy Chinese New Year! Have a good break this holiday MaC|8