The Civil Engineer Blog

Civil engineers and other industry professionals talk about the real world challenges, issues and technical developments they have to deal with.

Our civil engineer blog contributors give their perspective on what's happening today - across all the civil engineering disciplines.

All posts (272):

Forensic investigations: can we trust them?
- Author: Karel Terwel
- Date: 18 March, 2019
Forensic investigations of civil engineering failures are used to identify lessons learnt, apportion blame and help ensure they don't happen again. Karel Terwel, Delft University of Technology, explains how the reliability of…
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SuDS - is there light at the end of the tunnel?
- Author: Bill Blackledge
- Date: 14 March, 2019
After over a decade of inaction, it looks like SuDS may be going mainstream. A recent ICE 'Design Sprint' workshop in Leeds looked at what could be done to encourage uptake. Landscape Architect Bill Blackledge gives a personal view.
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How to make roads safer: the debate continues
- Author: Erel Avineri
- Date: 11 March, 2019
Road traffic continues to be the world’s biggest killer of young people. Erel Avineri of Tel-Aviv Academic College of Engineering says ending the conflict between vehicles and vulnerable road users is still open to much debate.
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India looks at using plastic instead of sand
- Author: Dr John Orr
- Date: 07 March, 2019
India dumps 15 metric tons (Mt) of plastic waste a day, but local builders are short of sand. John Orr of Cambridge University reports on Anglo-Indian research into using plastic waste as a partial replacement for sand in structural concrete.
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Civil engineers must report climate-change risk
- Author: Madeleine Rawlins
- Date: 04 March, 2019
Asset owners and contractors must now disclose climate-related financial risks. Madeleine Rawlins of Mott MacDonald says considering emissions and physical resilience has become a professional obligation for civil engineers.
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Should the ICE include an even more diverse range of professionals?
- Author: Mike Woolgar
- Date: 28 February, 2019
We increasingly recognise that infrastructure performs best when it’s the product of multiple inputs from a very wide range of professionals. Should ICE become the Institution of Infrastructure Delivery and broaden its membership?
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Breaking Barriers in Infrastructure – perspectives from the profession
- Author: Dr Anne Kemp
- Date: 25 February, 2019
Dr Anne Kemp, UK BIM Alliance and Atkins, discusses the ICE/Topcon Breaking Barriers in Infrastructure report, addressing the barriers preventing us from maximising the opportunity tech has to offer the sector.
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What the infrastructure gap means for the future of society
- Author: Dr Tony Merna
- Date: 18 February, 2019
Infrastructure financier Dr Tony Merna discusses the infrastructure gap and the asset procurement strategies available to governments.
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Inside London's Airports Policy: indecision, decision and counter-decision
- Author: Paul Le Blond
- Date: 15 February, 2019
In a new ICE book, Paul Le Blond provides insight into the history of the development of airports policy.
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A day in the life of a one-day 'design sprint'
- Author: Anna Plodowski and George Kalathil
- Date: 12 February, 2019
Anna Plodowski and George Kalathil discuss the ICE/Wavin design sprint and how the innovative use of ‘design thinking’ could potentially lead to new solutions that allow for better management of surface water.
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