ABOUT THE DEPARETEMENT

The Department of Materials Research and Testing is one of the research and Testing department of the Faculty of Technology is located in the southern campus of Faculty of Technology, in Lideta sub-city besides the higher court.

Head of The Department:

Ato Tadesse Kebede
Tel: +251- 112-767602
Fax:
email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

BACKGROUND
The Materials Research and Testing Department (MRTD) is the offspring of the former Ethio-Swedish Institute of Building Technology resulting from the first technical agreement entered in 1954 (G.C.) between the two parties. In actual fact, MRTD started functioning in the early 1956 (G.C.).

The Department in its present form was designed to function along the three distinct lines.
• Research on local construction and foundation materials;
• conduct tests on local and imported construction materials and on foundation soils, as well as site exploration including sub-soil investigation
• Teaching in the Northern and Southern Campuses of the Faculty of Technology.

FACILITIES
The materials Research and Testing Department (MRTD) located in the premises of the Southern Campus of the Faculty of Technology has two laboratories for construction materials (i.e. cement, cement products and concrete ingredients testing laboratory, and steel and timber elements testing laboratory) and two laboratories to carry out tests on foundation soils. In these two distinct units, many of the engineering properties of the aforementioned materials are determined in response to the clients’ specific demand. Attached to these laboratories there are working offices, mini warehouses and special conditioned rooms to treat test specimens to working standard specification requirements.

OBJECTIVES
The major objectives to which MRTD is committed to are:
• Practical research on: foundation soils and construction materials
• Carry out tests on: the quality of construction materials, concrete products, engineering property of soil ,soil investigation, and compaction in lab and in the filed.
• Participate in: the teaching of students and giving shout-term training for technical staffs of interested organizations on request.

ACTIVITIES
With the motto, “stay in motion and keep in pace with the rest of the scientific community” in mind, MRTD is trying to organize itself for the revitalization of its endeavor for a fresh start of respond to the nation wide query of shelter and related structures. MRTD is also fully participating in the teaching learning process taking care of degree and students and those in the continuing education program. Its contribution to education is not limited to theoretical communication only but is also assisted by laboratory demonstrations to inject the sense of the practical engineering life into the students whole being right from the beginning.
As life is always floating in a pool of competition one has to be best to stay buoyant. Thus, the Department is called upon so often for the verification of the technical qualities of construction materials and foundation soils by various government and private organizations; so that what ever type of structure they design or erect it could symbolize first class quality in excellence and also advertise their best ability in the design and construction industry. By unambiguous realization of the above test results and issuing genuine certificates, the MRTD laboratory is still spear-heading this enormous sector of the economy. That is to say, from the engineering point of view a first-hand reliable information is worth to have, prior to pumping a large sum of money into any design or construction.

STAFF PROFILE
The Materials Research and Testing Department is composed of professionals from the main streams of Building and Civil Engineering working with administrative staffs.
Staff members on duty: Two Lecturer - MSc, Two Technical Assistants-Advanced Diploma Bldg. Four senior Technicians and one Lab Assistant.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
When the working environment permitted the Department carried out researches on constructions materials and foundation soils and successfully. Published the following 18 or more research papers.
2 on architecture ,3 on timber,5 on cement & concrete,1 on aggregate,2 on Building bolck units,3 on foundation soils,1 on reinforcement bar and 1 on solar.

CURRENT STATUS AND FUTURE PLANS
Currently MRTD is reorganizing and strengthening itself both in terms of equipment and manpower to render better services in the areas it is involved.
To satisfy the unrelenting query of our customers we are planning to run consultancy services in the following areas. Planning soil exploration and programmers and Recommendation of design parameters of soils, Recommendation of appropriate and effective structures in response to the legitimate demand of safety and economy.

Also, believing that scientific information is vital for the contemporary society the Department is aiming at having its own information center in the near future.
MRTD
Faculty of Technology (S.C.)
Addis Ababa University
P.O. Box 518
Tel. +251-112-767602