Sturctural Engineering
Building Basements
Feb 17th
Home improvements and extending property has always been a popular way of increasing the value of domestic property. From something a simple as giving a room a coat of paint to major renovations and construction work there are levels of home improvement for all skills level and budgets. If space is a premium and you are not able to extend upwards or outwards then how about creating a basement? By creating a living space below your current residence you could greatly increase your living area and also the value of your house. The main problem with this is supporting the existing structure during the construction process and having a substructure that is capable of taking these loads. Many construction companies are now using precast concrete retaining walls to construct basement walls, which not only have excellent structural properties, but they also help to speed up the construction process.
Retaining Wall
Sep 22nd
There are many applications and uses for retaining walls, and a variety of materials and structures that can be used to construct a retaining wall it all depends on the purpose of the structure and the loads that will be placed on it.
A concrete retaining wall could be as straight forward as using wooden railway sleepers to create raised flower beds in a garden, which will retaining a small earth load. At the other end of the scale you could have a precast concrete crib wall retaining an earth bank on a motorway cutting, either way the most important thing is selecting the correct product for the application for which it will be used.
The most common material for constructing a retaining wall is concrete, this can either be constructed onsite or ‘insitu’ using shuttering and is reinforced using steel bars and mesh, or it can be precast in a specialist precast concrete factory. The finished sections would then be delivered to site where they would be fixed to create a retaining wall.
Structural Engineering
Sep 20th
Structural engineering is part of the engineering sector that deals with the analysis and design of structures and the way they support, or resist loads placed on them. Structural engineering would be considered a specialist subject within the discipline of civil engineering and can also be studied on its own. A structural engineer would be involved in the initial design of a building and large structures. Structural engineers can also be responsible for designing machinery, medical equipment, bridges, vehicles and any other object where the structural integrity of and item can affect the overall function or safety of it. A structural engineer should ensure that their designs satisfy the design criteria, especially relating to safety; serviceability or performance. Buildings are designed and constructed to resist elements including; substantial loads, changing climate conditions and natural disasters such as earth quakes.