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Sheet 1 of 8107885161.xlsx.ms_office.xls30-Aug-1211:42 AM ENGINEERING MAKES THE DIFFERENCEOriginal Date:August 14, 2011 V 2.16File: 04-My half century.xlsx ABCDEFGHIJKLMN 1-BEFORE YOU READ ONOpinions expressed about persons, institutions and organisations in the following and preceedingpages are my own and may not be based on objective data. Mostly the right data may be notaccessible to me. But the life-long contact with them makes me intuitively well placed toexpress those opinions.Original draft of this chapter contained multiple quotes from Urdu and Persian poetry of Iqball and other classical poets.My bent of mind towards poetry and sentimental writing was very compelling. But in the final draft, I discarded all butthree poetic references. That should make it easier for the readers, who like plain venila compositions.2-DESIDERATA I found a hand written plaque in the house of My high school teacher Mr. Mohammad Shahbaz Cheema, when I visited his family to condolehis death. He was in mid fifties when he got a stroke. Latter I would find the same in an issue of the Readers' Digest Megazine, attributed to findsin Saint Paul's Church. But from the internet linkhttp://www.fleurdelis.com/desiderata.htmI found that the history of thisdocument is confused and that it's actual author was Max Ehrmann in 1920. I here apeal to my readers with a quote from it: ….And listen to others, even to the dull and ignorant; They too have their story…. . My story appears in the following pages and I hope itwill motivate some young engineers. But why not read the DESIDERATAFIRSTas it is copied from the above link:The little storys of my professional life are stated here as a motivation. But in any case they serve for my catharsis. I quote from aboveDESIDERATA, the following lines: And if you don't want to read, you can skip the rest of this chapter. Please note it is neither mandatorynor requiredto use the contents of this book. As for myself, I continue my naration: 3-BLOWING MY OWN TRUMPET-My story in retorespect A little more than four years have gone by and have already written a fewworkbooks. I had written a few memories as well, because they have asignificance in my professional life.Right at the time of admission to the engineering college, I was planning to joinprivate industry. I have written about an other motivation in the opening para of 02-By Way of Nostalgia.xlsx.In that file, I have provided a copy of myappointment and retirement letters. So from Sep. 20, 1959 to July 31, 2007makes about 48 years. I call it a half century. The purpose of this chapter isto highlight some items of my professional development that were madedespite and inspite of very discouraging and demoralising environment.They say it is not good to blow your own trumpet. But the question is who elsewill? In fact the one thing that was so obvious in my carrier is lack of protestor what I call, SINE WAVE SYNDROME of the management towardsrecognition of my achievements and a just financial returns. The companywould use my qualifications and skill to their advantage whenever they felt likeand would discourage me when it came to giving me facilities. And I never thought it imporatnt to highlight my skill or knowledge and demand a goodreturn. I always took a back seat when things went against me and manytimes my company had to bring me to forefront just because it was needed bythem. It was a barberous act by them. My story would never be known, If I don'ttell it. So I decided to blow my own trumpet. It might not be interseting to thereader but will deffinitely do kathasis for myself.This chapter will, I hope describe the history of My Transmission Line experience . luckily I entred the profession at the right moment.Most of the development of this technology happened in that peroid. I don't have much documentory back-up at hand. At my agememory starts deteriorating, though in my case things have just stuck in my mind and do not seem to die away. Even now in my dreams,I see myself buisy in doing my professional duties as if I was still employed. My loyalty to the profession compels me to write on.Events described may not be strictly in a chronological order but the underlying thoghts are true. 4-2 B OR NOT 2 B-THATS THE QUESTION This heading may be misleading. But it tells the reason d'etre of this chapter. Before I started writing this book, I meditated a lot as tothe contents. The idea did occur to me that by sharing my stories, I might be exposed to judgements. People might find out thatmy status in the company was not as percieved by my colleagues in other organisations including the client and suppliers. My companyhad gone to great length to convince our clients and the consultants that I was the one and only in this profession. Well I never tookrefuge in my popularity. I always did my job in a professional way, harnessing new technologywhenever possible but using what wasavailable at any time. Thus my work has always improved, when new technology became known to me. I was never afraid of admittingif I did something that latter on seemd wrong. It was RIGHT at the time that I did it. And as the nursery rhyme goes:Good, better, BestNever let it restTill your Good is Better and your Better Best! My half century of Transmission LineEngineering 05 Sheet 2 of 8107885161.xlsx.ms_office.xls30-Aug-1211:42 AM ENGINEERING MAKES THE DIFFERENCEOriginal Date:August 14, 2011 V 2.16File: 04-My half century.xlsx ABCDEFGHIJKLMN My half century of Transmission LineEngineering 05 Please do not expect this book to be a High class academics as my friends at LUMS and FAST expect. These professors wouldexpect high sounding algoritms and Object Oriented Programming or use of Visual Basic in the design of spreadsheets and technologyfor the sake of it.I also considered the possibility that people may not understand my sentiments towards my profession and the company. If I was that Attached to the company, and if the company was so kind to project my image to the professional circles, why all the complaints?In fact this love and hate relationship permeated through out my carrier. I worked selflessly, not asking much in exchange. I onlyexpected some self respect. I was not THAT materialsitic in my approach. If I was doing some important job, I did not attend to mypersonal affairs even if it means a loss- material or sentimental. So bare minimum distractions intervened my dedication to work.Company, as a rule would reconsile and replace their hopes on me, whenever there was a job visible with a newer technology. Thinkingtheir rebounding nature, I did not usually decide to leave the company.There were not any employer where I could fit in except if I changed my expertise. Even my company at times looked down upon therole that I was playing. They wanted a direct translation of my activities into money. They knew very well that real design activity wasnot a financially viable, unless you also counted the gains in terms of tender awards and fulfilment of the contracts based on thisexpertise and the economy resulting due to solutions. In this respect their behavior was like a road-side vendor, who must earn profite onevery item that he sold, and is not worried for an overal good will that would accumulate, if he facilitated the clients on some items. 5-LUCY- A POEM THAT SEEMS STUPID In our pre-engineering English poetry was also taught. There was a poem, that I did not understand really and thought the poet was astupid person. But as I progressed in my carrier and followed an apparently loosing proposition, I was able to appreciate the stupidityfound in the poem and in my carrier. I could not locate my book but the internet search helped me and here I reproduce this poem sothat my readers can appreciate why I stuck to the technology.It may also be noted that, prior to my coming into profession, there was no real transfer of technology. That is not to say that I did all that.But certainly I was an agent of change in the field. It was during my professional life that the technology of design of transmission linesbecame available.I preserved it also. Others did not. Even my company takes comfort in the list of work done. But do not really possesthe hard core technology. And they don't need it. As the new model is to get the jobs done form outside. Why keep messy cows whenmilk is available in the market. That model has encouraged One man design companies. But they do not integrate all aspectsof the work. A company man is still needed to co-ordinate the work of multiple one man companies . But no contractor or consultantwants to support designers and developers in-house. Even if they have some they do not give them their due place. These specialists arestill treated a second class citizens of the profesion.My company did do their best to give me a respecatble place but at times acted selfishly. As I left the company, I can see they now areignoring individuals like me in the next generation. They think that WAPDA and even KESC, now employ consultants and turn-keycontractors are not needed any more. At least in next 5-10 years. But they ignore the fact that they will get a very low quality job in thisbusiness model. So the technology will remain burried in files and will be lost very soon. This is specially so because the immediateproblems are solved the easy way-subletting to outsiders. Unfortunately these outsiders are actually insiders . They belong toclient/consult organisations. They can work for much less fee and it is they who have to approve contractors work, so all they have to dois to put a stamp of approval on the work done by themselves as independent consultants. The Outsiders do not think it a questionof ethics. Latter a story will appear on this subject.Contractors, consultants and clients should place resources in design offices and give some self respect to design engineers includingsome lime-light. As the luck would have it, properly trained people are not readily available in the market and in the absence of anytraining facilities, self trained designers can only result from a stable employment. If they leave prematurely, they will not find a similar job and in swtching over, the little skill gathered by them is lost for ever. That is why I decided to include my actual experience eventrivial things in this collection.I also decided to describe some salient incidences that I met in the process, that on one hand emphasize my desperate efforts toobtain the knowledge of this field and on the other hand the encouragement provided by my employer. But some times they did haveafter thoughts. Then they would pressurise me to make it commercilly viable independent enterprise. Invardly they knew that such aproposal was not possible. But possibly their tactic was to keep me scared all the times. So their treatment or mistreatment towardsme followed a sine curve. What they ignored was that I was a very committed professional and wanted to stick to this professionat all costs. And my this decision gave them a chance to utilise myimproved capabilities, when new opurtunities knocked at their door-steps. Many offers came my way, and frankly speaking, I did consider one or two that I will mention sometimes latter in this chapter.But overall, they were the loosers in some regards as a satisfied worker does a better job than a frustrated one.They may have realised,when last year I was asked by the CEO to do some job for a month in their office and I refused. Naturally, I cannot remain a standby.I have tried my best to avoid naming individuals in these stories, to avoid embarassement to those persons. But sometimes it wasdifficult to avoid it and I tried to use generic designations. But in a small family business, it is tell-tale of the real persons. In multipleediting sessions, I have been switching my position. But finally I gave in and have included the sine-curve behaviour of my company(as generically as possible), towards me during my carrier in stories where approperiate. In the final discussion with the CEO as youwill read elsewhere, I had protested loudly and I refused to continue as an advisor to the company in the face of their continueddescrimination over and comparason with my junior colleagues, whom they had been openly criticising for their defficiencies in myface. But obviously it is an expediancy tool used by CEOs, to take different positions and argue with opposite premesis. Sheet 3 of 8107885161.xlsx.ms_office.xls30-Aug-1211:42 AM ENGINEERING MAKES THE DIFFERENCEOriginal Date:August 14, 2011 V 2.16File: 04-My half century.xlsx ABCDEFGHIJKLMN My half century of Transmission LineEngineering 05 Most contractor and client managements are giving the designer a minimal role and dwindling self respect. One reason why WAPDAcould not maintane good design office even uptill now is that they consider design engineers as a liability and not assetts. IN that respect.Even NESPAK is going down the drain in this respect. All give the designers a show-boy status meant only to improve their brochuresand prequalification documents. Obviously their design have no aesthetics. Only old designs scaled up and a lot of mindlessnumber-crunching. 6-A TIMELINE IN PROFESSION Here is a brief survey of my employment. It represents my whole professional life as I had but only one employer. It may be intersting tonote in the table below the heading, So called Designation . There are two ways to sustain an employee. Firstly to give him an important-looking designation, which may or may not describe his true job assignement. Secondly, the employee is given a raise in the salary. In aprivate company the so called board of management is not the real decider. It is the CEO, who decides all matters. When he does notwant to give a benefit, he simply blames the board, but when he decides to give it, he does not even consult them. Boards are concernedwith other matters of interest to them. Employees are not their priority. It is difficult for a company to attain a good status, so employeesare high lighted by them to obtain it. Once attained, they start thinking that it is their relations with people of importance, that sustainstheir business. Good employees only make it to the advertisemnt columns. So here is my timeline of both very important assignmentsand show-boy assignment. Which is which, I let you be the judge:Year Dept.1959-601961-621962-631962-651965-671967-691970-741974-761976-78ImperconLimited1978-84Design &Contracts1984-2000Design &Quality2000-2007Design &Quality 7-LOOSE CHANGE Following incidents or accidents during my life as an employee of a VERY private company support my above belief:1- It was around 1975 that two of my colleagues and friends leaked a news that I would not get further promotion unles my wife stopsthe Islamic practice of HIJAAB . Well her hijaab was a matter of her and my conviction and she was not an employee of the company.So I told them, if it was an official message, my reply would be, I don't need such promotion .I have no idea if they were only expressing ther own thinking but a few weeks latter, I was called by our MD. He very clearly stated thatDy. Chief. Engr,Design & CommercialIncharge Construction of 220 kv D/C Line to NishatabadIncharge 132 kv SCARP line (Muzaffar Garh)Incharge Design Office USSR training July 16-1971 to Oct. 17, 1971 1969-70 C o n s t r u c t i o n - T r a n s m i s s i o n L i n e s & G r i d s a t a t i o n s Construction Engineer Incharge Construction of 2-220 kv D/C LinesMangla Transmission Project Assistant DivisionalEngineer Divisional Engineer Sukkur Thermal Project IibIncharge project 132kv-2 lines & 3 Gridstations Design &Contracts Chief Design &Contract Engineer Head Office LahoreIncharge Design and CotractsIncharge 500 kv T/L Tarbela-FaisalabadCrew incharge-Difficult Tower Erection, Tension Stringingin Warsak Hills, Stringing main crew, Special Low Heighttowers-Survey, Foundations, Erection and Stringing AssignmentSo called DesignationIncharge Project-3 lines & 3 Substations all 132 kvCommunication TowersConstruction of Rohri Pole PlantSukkur Thermal Project phase IIProjectIncharge 11 kv & 33 kv lines on tubular polesIncharge Stringing 66kv transmission lines Area Incharge-Sargodha, Piplan, Layyah, 18HazariSukkur Thermal Project phase IIncharge Project-7 Lines andd 7 Gridstations 66kvWarsak Kharian 132kv D/CTransmission LineHyderabad Thermal ProjectSec0nfary T/L P_rojectDirector Technical &Qualty ManagementRepresentativeDesign All ProjectsISO 9000 Certification & ImplementationHead Office LahoreChief Engineer/GeneralManger/Acting CEO of ImperconImpercon Head Office at LahoreConstruction of 111 Tube-wells in Michinabad AreaChief EngineerDesign & Tendering All ProjectsDirector Technical &Electrical Spervisor Head Office LahoreDesign All ProjectsSpervisor for the company as per Electricity Act Sheet 4 of 8107885161.xlsx.ms_office.xls30-Aug-1211:42 AM ENGINEERING MAKES THE DIFFERENCEOriginal Date:August 14, 2011 V 2.16File: 04-My half century.xlsx ABCDEFGHIJKLMN My half century of Transmission LineEngineering 05 they did not need my services any more, and that I should find another job. All that I could say as a response was that they proceedwith their decision, and finding a job for me was not their hastle. It was a difficult time for me. I had started to build my house with a loanfrom House Building Corporation. Whatever I had saved, I had put in the construction, that was still not usable as a house.In less than fifteen days, I was called again, was assigned a tube well project and was promoted as a chief engineer and projectmanager. Latter When I visited WAPDA and signed the contract with Member Water, forgetting my CROSS pen on his table, I learnedfrom a WAPDA director some facts about the contract. Mr. Bhutto had promised his voters in southern Punjab to build water supplyschemes in that area. Bhutto ordered WAPDA to immediately start Tubewell projects in the area and complete before next electionsdue in 1977. There were not that many qualified contractors for the job. WAPDA suspended their usual prequalification procedures andgave the projects without a formal bids. Our company was included in that list.fter as General manger and given the powers of Owner Director of the company. My seat in the main company was occupied by my junior colleague, Saeed Anwar, who would run the afairs of the design office in consultation wth me. After Bhuttp's fall as a result of riggedelections WAPDA changed their policy and two companies were formed to run such projects. One under the federl Govt. by the nameof National Tubewell Corporation, headed by my class fellow, and the other within WAPDA, named WAPDA Tubewell Taskfrce, headedby my friend A. Khaliq. All future tenders went to them with no chances of private companies. I gave an official report to the board of directors proposing to close the company. I was told by my immediate boss that such reports must be worded such that unwarrantedscare is not spread. I told them, I would not conceal the truth. If the directors decide, I will leave the company. Instead I was transferredback on my seat, where my junior colleague running day to day affairs had gone abroad for better prospects.2-On Sep.7, 1997, my kids were palying in our office on a Sunday, while I was working to help our MD to prepare for his foreign visit. Hedid not like the noise from the kids and asked some-one who's kids they were. Promptly I was called and given an exercise to find acontract for making drawings on Autocad, In my design office and report a feasibilty of it a month latter on his return from abroad. I tookthe hint and completed the exercise and concluded that currently WAPDA and other semigovt. employess work part time in privatecompanies, taking a meager sum in return. And these private companies had no interest in using autocad in-house or on contract. Isubmitted the report along with my intent to leave the company. But MD asked me to continue.3-Sometimes in 1998, the company decided to do business abroad in the form of a joint venture. A large group was invited and a meetingarranged to include all the senior and young directors. I was also in the meeting. When intoduced the president of this group noted thatexcept for me, all were family members. So he remarked, Don't you have professional management ? . The company response wasobvious, These boys have been employed on merit .I would offer NO COMMENTS from my side.4- Twice I resigned from my job- Once right in the beginning and then in winter of 1959 and second time inJan. 1985. On both occasionscompany went all the way to retain me, by giving me financial benefits and usual honors that attract employees so much. I was evengiven interest free loan to eas my liabilities of house construction.5-Around 1985 we were lowest in a project in Karachi, but our tower supplier backed out. Our contract team was in Karachi to attendaward meetings and nagotiate the final contract price. Suddenly I received a frantic call form the MD to come to Karachi. Here I wasto prepare estimated tower weights based on a new design. Consultant Fishner from Germany were very skeptical about our capabilities.In fact they were very secretive and would not have us talk freely except answering some questions and they would formulate the resultsin their own manner. We did not have VDE 0210, which was the very basis of tower design.A very interseting event happened.I was then taking a homoeopathic medicines in the form of little globules. When there was an intermission in the meeting. I took out thebottle and poured some globules on my palm and put them into my mouth. The gentleman sitting next to me was the Project Manager designate from Fichner side, to deal with us in Germany. He looked at my globules and asked for a few. I shared happily. He closed hiseyes for a moment and remarked, I have been wanndering in the whole world for the treatment of my sinus problem, but not even half the relief was experienced as today. Right at that time I saw with him an English version of the VDE. So I requested for half an hour.He readily obliged and I rushed for a photocopy. Before the meeting would resume, I had the book back.Next day, I had studied it and then pointed out things in their specifications that were in contradiction to VDE. The chief nagotiator fromFichner side looked surprised and asked how could I argue with a German on German standard. The answer softened their attitude andsked me to bring answers to his querries with calculations as per VDE by dinner time in his hotel. I handed over the package. As soon ashe left the scene, members of his team became very friendly towards me and started consulting on their medical problems. To cut thestory short, they took my medical reputation to their head office. When I visited them in Stutgart, I had a VIP treatment and my threeweek long stay was as comfortable as one could have. I was able to get new designs approved. In fact the gentleman to approve design,was a PhD. He gave his stamp to me and I stamped myself on all the drawings and he signed. Our Korean team gave me the title of Thinking that I must also be a PhD.I have stated this rather long story because after all these years, When I was in hospital, two of my ex-coleagues came to visit meand mentioned this story. They had heard it for the first tiem from our MD that day, and were woundering on the remarks of the MDthat it was a milestone in their contracual history. Can anybody connect it to my unceremonius departure from the company? No send-off no retirement benefits, no certificates and yet the MD is remembering me, when I am lying in the hospital. SO THAT IS MY NETEARNING.6-It was around 1975-76 when the WAPDA chief, incharge of our 500kv project, called me in his office and told that there was a report fromhis staff that on a river-crossing foundation, something injurios has happened and has been covered up by ICC. He wanted me to go to
