The current market share for steel in highway and railway bridge construction in the UK has been developed under the influence of the Codes of Practice that make up BS 5400 and with specifications for materials, products and workmanship that were largely written in the UK. Designers and constructors have optimised their schemes and concepts using those rules, to show the wide-ranging benefits that steel can offer.  

Working at height or in areas of confined space presents the civil engineer with special problems – some might even dare to suggest it takes him out of his comfort zone – but he has, in the last ten years, found the perfect work solution to many of his access problems by using rope access.

Look around you. Everything in civil engineering is founded on geotechnical engineering. From the small strip footings under your house to the complicated arrangements of deep foundations that are hidden beneath iconic structures such as the triumphal arch at the new Wembley stadium.  As virtually all civil engineering project interface with the ground in some way, geotechnical engineering is an integral and important part of the industry.

Britain’s transport infrastructure is under increasing pressure. This pressure is intensified by government transport policies that are often short term rather than providing the long-term investment that is necessary. Alan Bromage, head of civil engineering at The Concrete Centre explains why transport infrastructure needs solutions that offer minimum ongoing maintenance and maximum long-term performance.

The investigation of road pavement structure is becoming increasingly important as the UK road network we all take for granted continues to age.  A recent 'Road Maintenance' study by the Asphalt Industry Alliance for instance, indicates that the majority of Local Authorities report an increase in the need for structural maintenance work over the last ten years with average regional increases ranging between 30% and 59%.