I wanted to mix it up a little with this column and throw in some history as it pertains to construction and building in general. As a general contractor I marvel at how for we’ve come since human beings started building way back in the early days of modern man.
Most likely the first type of construction could be considered the first bridge made. An early human probably took a fallen tree and laid it across a stream to make a bridge. Shortly after during the stone age dwellings appeared and early forms of buildings were being built by hand or with the assistance of basic tools. Most of the buildings in these days were mainly just for shelter from the elements and were made of local materials to form all sorts of types of huts, tents, and other types of shelter.
In certain early societies which still exists today people in areas that don’t have a lot of natural resources that they can use to build houses or anything with really. So they have a different approach. They build a basic frame that gets covered with a blanketing later made of something like straw or hay or something similar. Upon the top layer is placed lot of mud to form a tough layer once the mud dries. And sometimes it’s not even mud but dung from animals like cows.
During the bronze age building changed a lot. Professionalism and specialization emerged. Now there were specialized trades where someone only did one task and did it well. The emergence of blacksmiths, craftsmen, carpenters, bricklayers etc, changed the way buildings were made dramatically. People could create intricate plans and have divisions that were tasked for specific parts in the process.
And might be how the project manager came along. With a bunch of individual parts needing to be sewn together at precise moments takes the hand of someone not only smart but someone that can orchestrate a group well similar to how a conductors wand keeps an orchestra together an on time.
From the bronze age through the middle age and industrial revolution, projects started to take on a whole new level of size and function. With inventions like cranes, electronics, bulldozers, arc welders and on and on with all the tools they have now for almost every type of task building in general has become truly amazing.
Things like the Hoover Dam, Panama Canal, Empire State building and more were great feats in their day. And today we’ve pushed the bar much further as our technology continues to grow.
FUN FACTOID:
The pile driver was invented around 1500 AD.
