Keith

1
Keith
Keith is a post-16 learner with a real talent for
building things. He has helped his dad construct
a garden patio and pond and has just started to
convert the garage into a sound-proof studio
where he can practice his drumming to the
relief of the next door neighbours! With a good
set of GCSE grades behind him he has progressed
onto the Advanced Diploma in construction and the
built environment in the hope that it will equip
him with the skills and knowledge to find a
suitable career at the end of the course. The
Diploma has opened his eyes to the importance of
the design phase of projects and he is finding
this aspect particularly interesting.
1
2
Keith Advanced Diploma in construction and the
built environment
additional and specialist learning 360 GLH
principal learning 540 GLH
generic learning 180 GLH

• Design the built environment design factors
• Design the built environment stages in the
  design and planning
• Design the built environment physical and
  environmental influences
• Create the built environment health, safety and
  environmental influences
• Create the built environment management
  processes
• Value and use of the built environment adding
  value to the wider community
• Value and use of the built environment
  protecting and maintaining

3 x functional skills at level 2 (prerequisite)
Level 3 BTEC National Award in engineering (360
GLH) Keith felt the engineering course would
broaden his learning experience and stand him in
good stead both with his studies and his future
career.
extended project qualification (120 GLH)
10 days work experience
personal, learning and thinking skills (60 GLH)
2
3
(Work experience contd.)
Work experience
Extended Project
Keiths work experience was spent with a company
who were bidding for a contract to design and
build a new school in his town. He spent a week
with the Design Engineers, helping them draft
plans for the heating/ventilation ductwork and
was asked to source the cost of a range of
materials that would be used for insulation
purposes. As the work would be sub contracted,
Keith was asked to contribute to a tender
specification, taking into account his research
and
estimated costings. During his second week he was
involved in the calculation of the potential
energy requirements needed to run the
heating/ventilation system. The Education
Authority needed to be reassured that the new
school would be environmentally friendly and
conformed to their green agenda. Keith also found
time to discover the complexities required to
light the school which he found illuminating! .
Keith tied his project in to his work experience
placement and investigated how to make an
existing school more environmentally friendly. He
researched areas such as solar panels, rain
run-off collection and filtering, and combined
heat and power plants to establish which elements
were the most cost-effective when retro-fitted to
an existing building. He then compared this to
the costs involved in including these items in a
new-build. To complement his dissertation, Keith
also produced a presentation to summarise his
findings
AND... principal learning functional skills
personal, learning and thinking skills ASL
Progression route Keith enjoyed his work
experience and decided the time was right to find
a job. He was delighted therefore when the
opportunity to train as design engineer arose
with a local construction company. The promise of
further training in the work environment also
appealed to Keith.
3