A Surprise Email From Dr. Tam Chat Tim

The blogger’s note:

I am pleasantly surprised this morning to have received an email 2 days ago from Dr. Tam Chat Tim, my Civil Engineering Final Year Project supervisor/tutor (1979/80 session) in the University of Singapore (later renamed as the National University of Singapore (NUS) commencing from 1980/81 session).

I have posted a brief account of meeting with Dr. Tam in my blog during a one-day YTL Cement Annual Seminar on April 9, 2015 as follows:

"Meeting Dr. Tam Chat Tim After 36 Years"

https://taionn.blogspot.com/2015/04/meeting-dr-tam-chat-tim-after-36-years.html

I suppose he must be googling and bumped into my above blog post recently and took the trouble to find my email address and write to me.   

To Dr. Tam, I must express my heartiest gratitude to you for writing to me and may I wish you good health, happiness and prosperity in this Year of the Ox and all the coming years.  It's really great to know that you are still attached with the NUS while I have already retired 3 1/2 years ago.  From: Tai Onn

The email from Dr. Tam Chat Tim (pic right) is as follows:

Date: Tue, 23 Feb at 9:43 pm 

Hi Tai Onn

I just found what you wrote about our meeting at YTL seminar in 2015.  You were wondering if I did teach any of the subjects that you took other than being your FYP on setting time.  

 

The topic on concrete material that I taught in later years was not yet introduced into the curriculum.  They were Concrete Technology in Year 3 and an elective Advanced Concrete Technology in Year 4 (CE 5604 for MSc programme).   

 

Currently CE 5604 is still being offered but part of the Year 3 material is now incorporated with mechanics.  As a result, CE 5604 has to cover materials that are no longer in the previously Concrete Technology. Not too many opts for the elective and so with insufficient knowledge on concrete when they work in the construction industry.

 

Hope this message reaches you with my best wishes for the Year of the Ox.

 

CT Tam

The blogger is pleased to share herewith a further reply from Dr. Tam as follows:

Date: Thu, 25 Feb at 3:14 pm

 

Hi Tai Onn

 

So glad to receive your mail as it indicates that my message was sent successfully to you.  

 

I retired in 1996 and since then mainly concentrate on my research interest.  

There are so much to learn from new developments in cement and concrete and to find appropriate application of new materials and technology in the construction industry.

 

The challenges of higher concrete strength and better resistance to potential durability issues with new knowledge is ever increasing with modern demand in infrastructure development.  

 

Structural design with concrete has advanced much faster with large computing capabilities than construction knowhow to catch up with suitable concrete technology to realize such novel designs.  

Structures are becoming taller and foundations deeper.  They pose new challenges for concrete construction.  

 

For sustainable concrete structures, there is the need to have new constructions that can be extended in its design life after initial design life by providing a systems that will enable extending to subsequent life/lives based on current technology.

 

Hope you will forgive an old teacher for “preaching” to the “converted” – a hoppy!

 

Best wishes for a happy and enjoyable life after retirement,

 

CT Tam

Latest update by courtesy of Dr. Tam Chat Tim (谭七甜博士，the 7th child in his family):

Dr. Tam’s current appointment at NUS is Honorary Fellow. He also acts as co-supervisor of Final Year Projects (wow, like what he was to me 42 years ago) and acts as resource person or examiner for PhD candidates.