Material covered in this course will include materials utilized during the construction process (soils, aggregates, concrete, asphalt etc.) and testing of construction materials. This course is designed to expose the student to construction materials, testing processes, measurements and calculations utilized throughout the construction process. Special emphasis will be placed on concrete field testing as concrete is utilized throughout the construction process as the most widely used construction material.

There will be two (2) required textbooks for this course. You will be provided a pdf copy of the first textbook. The second textbook you are required to purchase from the SUU Bookstore (we have made arrangements with ACI to purchase as they do NOT typically sell them without registering for their certification).

• Common Soils Materials Testing (supplied by Professor Baker)
• Concrete Field Testing Technician – Grade I *ACI (American Concrete Institute)

ABET Student Learning Outcomes

Students will have ….

• …. An ability to formulate or design a system, process, procedure or program to meet desired needs;
• …. An ability to develop and conduct experiments or test hypotheses, analyze and interpret data and use scientific judgement to draw conclusions;
• …. An ability to understand ethical and professional responsibilities and the impact of technical and/or scientific solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts;

Course Objectives

Expose the student to and have them obtain a general knowledge of the components, principles, design, control, applications, methods, materials and terminology related to concrete.

Course Structure

This course is designed as a lecture style presentation discussion & potentially STUDENT BASED PRESENTATIONS based on assigned topics, readings, homework, practical theory, laboratory work/determinations, terminology, projects, quizzes (scheduled and unscheduled) and exams. Attendance is key and required for this course.

Assigned Homework

To be determined. Writing assignments, research, and construction calculation exercises are expected. NOTE: The instructor reserves the right to substitute and/or add quizzes and/or assignments as needed.

What you will turn in

Assignments may accompany material discussed in class from each chapter/topic and potentially real life, practical examples (including individual presentations/projects/research reports, group projects/presentations, research reports/papers, current issue examples, and etc.).

Evaluation

Student assignments may vary in value from 10 to 100 (homework, projects, assignments)points. All quizzes typically range in value of 10-50 points each (there may be some exception here). Midterm Exam is anticipated to be worth 100-250 points. Final Exam is anticipated to be worth 100-250 points. Student Presentation is anticipated to be worth 100-250 points.

Assessment

Assessment will be performed under the following criteria:

100 - 94% = A 73 - 70% = C-

93 – 90% = A- 69 – 67% = D+

89 – 87% = B+ 66 -64% = D

86 - 84% = B 63 -60% = D-

83 - 80% = B- 59 – 57 = F+

79 – 77% = C+ 56 – less = F

76 - 74% = C

Midterm 100-250 points

The midterm exam will be given during class time. Date of the midterm exam will be announced at a later time.

Final 100-250 points

(SEE SUU Provost FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE)

Tentative Schedule

Chapters and other corresponding course work covered this semester will be revealed prior to class discussion and may consist of, but may not be exclusive to, the following.

Including associated laboratory work for potentially each section.

Fundamental

• Quality Control (QC) & Quality Assurance (QA) Methods
• Measurements & Calculations
• Safety
• Compaction and Density Control
• Sampling & Random Sampling
• FOP - Sampling
• FOP – Reducing Samples

Soil and Aggregate

• FOP – Sampling
• FOP – Reducing Sample to Testing Size
• FOP - Total Evaporable Moisture Content by Drying
• FOP - Moisture-Density Relations of Soils (Proctor)
• FOP - In-Place Density and Moisture Content (Nuclear Methods)
• FOP - Sieve Analysis including Materials Finer than No. 200 Sieve by Washing
• FOP - Bulk Density “Unit Weight”
• FOP - Atterberg Limits; (Liquid Limit, Plastic Limit, Plasticity Index of Soils)

Concrete

• Temperature of Freshly Mixed Hydraulic-Cement Concrete
• Sampling Freshly Mixed Concrete
• Slump of Hydraulic-Cement Concrete
• Density (Unit Weight), Yield, and Air Content (Gravimetric) of Concrete
• Air Content of Freshly Mixed Concrete by the Pressure Method
• Air Content of Freshly Mixed Concrete by the Volumetric Method
• Making and Curing Concrete Test Specimens in the Field
• Compressive Strength of Cylindrical Concrete Specimens
• Masonry Systems
• Steel Reinforcing Bar

Asphalt (HMA – Hot Mix Asphalt)

• Reducing Samples of Asphalt Mixtures to Testing Size
• Determining the Asphalt Binder Content of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) by the Ignition Method
• Sampling Asphalt Materials
• Mechanical Analysis of Extracted Aggregate

Including associated laboratory work for potentially each section.

Late Assignments and/or makeup work

Make up work or extra credit work may be possible. Late work will be accepted but for less than full credit without prior communication, arrangements, and approval were made. For extra credit work come see me. Any extra credit not directly related to a course assignment will not be included in Canvas records but will be included in your final grade.

Late quizzes will only be allowed with prior communication with the professor and if taken prior to the return of graded quizzes. Late quizzes may be worth up to half credit.

Final Exam Administration

As per policy the final exam will ONLY be administered during the scheduled time. Do not ask to take the final exam early. There will be NO make-up if a student misses the final exam.

Grading Process and Communication

Please do not come and ask what your grade is before grades are posted. The grading process is long and tedious. For this class your instructor will review and/or grade all papers, quizzes, and exams. Graders may or may not be used for this course. First assignments have to be examined as a whole. Then assignments must be graded. Then those grades must be entered, calculated, and finally submitted. Your grades will appear as soon as they are submitted.

Mentoring Statement: COMMUNICATION IS OF KEY IMPORTANCE

If by chance you start falling behind through no fault of your own, PLEASE communicate with me and do not drop the class at the first sign of turbulence, I understand that life is also a test. The sooner you come see me, the sooner we can develop an intervention plan to get you back on track. I am available to work with any student willing to put forth a little extra effort. If for some reason you are feeling bad about life in general come and see me, I may be able to provide some insight that will help you feel better about everything.

Attendance Credit

Attendance is mandatory for passing this course. Your attendance will be calculated into your final grade using the following criteria.

Attendance is only taken once per class period at the beginning. Students receive 10 points of attendance/participation credit for each class period they attend providing they are not late. Arriving to class late can result in NO attendance/participation credit. If you are late to class you will lose 1 point of attendance credit for each minute you are late. If you are 10 minutes or later to class you will not receive any attendance credit for that day. This does not mean you have to leave class, is simply means that for that day, you will not receive any attendance credit.

Class participation

Students are required to bring text books and all other materials to each class meeting. Any student who attends class without a text book and other materials will receive an absence. Any student who does work from another class in class will be given an absence.

Class Conduct Related to Attendance

• Vulgar jokes or comments said to other students of the same sex or of the opposite sex, or to the instructor.
• Chewing tobacco

Violation of any of these policies will result in an absence.

Course Title: Construction Materials and Testing

Course Number: CM 2040

Credit Hours: 3 hours

Semester: Spring 2026

Construction is a crucial and ongoing practice in society. Proper use of construction materials and construction materials testing help ensure the required quality for construction projects and the safety for society in day-to-day life. Specifications for quality control (QC) and quality assurance (QA) methods assist throughout the construction process.

Desire to learn and ability to join in course work.