ICE - Institution of Civil Engineers - Virtual Library

European governments have been told to start preparing now for the new structural Eurocodes. But for civil engineers the decision on when to start making the switch is more complex, says Haig Gulvanessian of Eurocodes Expert.

New electronic communications regulations should deter unsolicited emails but they have also changed the way that civil engineering businesses can contact customers. Russell Brown at Manchester law firm Glaisyers explains the new rules.

Following a seminar on recent experiences in attempting to restore severely damaged public services and infrastructure, the ICE is planning a new guide. Stephen Wearne of UMIST's project management division reports.

A low-cost additive for road deicing salt has been shown to reduce its corrosive effect by over 80%. Ken Atkinson, former head of highway maintenance at the GLC and now consultant to Safecote, reports.

A new generation of ultrasonic equipment could enable us to ‘see’ reinforcing bars in concrete without even touching the surface. Phil Purnell and Dave Hutchins of Warwick University report on the latest developments in non-destructive testing.

The UK Government's target to build over two million new homes on brownfield land by 2016 looks ambitious given the amount of contamination. Alan Bromage, head of civil engineering at The Concrete Centre, says greater use of cement could be the answer to saving the green belt.

A new transport noise barrier developed in France is claimed to be up to 50% more effective than anything else on the market. Philip Jolly of the French Technology Press Bureau reports on the award-winning design.

British tunnel-jacking expertise contributed to savings of over US$300 million on the vast project to build Boston's new subterranean highway network. The change from traditional cut-and-cover construction to tunnel jacking in frozen ground enabled three full-size interstate highway tunnels—totalling over 240 m in length—to be built in heavily obstructed ground under the approaches to a busy railway station with no disruption to service. The scale of the work was unprecedented, being several times larger than any tunnel-jacking project previously undertaken. It has set a new benchmark for the technique and further raised its profile as an effective and sustainable solution for creating new urban infrastructure.

Removing, dismantling and recycling the world's largest steel gravity platform has proved that the energy industry can safely and sustainably decommission its vast offshore infrastructure when the oil runs out. Nearly 100% of the 110 000 t Maureen platform and its associated 9000 t loading column was either re-used or recycled—with major structural components being used to build new port facilities and 42 000 t of steel landed ashore for scrapping. This paper reports on the complex and delicate task of cleaning and progressively dismantling the vast structure in a Norwegian fjord. It was the final phase of a £150 million decommissioning project, which has now set a benchmark for over 200 other steel structures currently operating in the British sector of the North Sea.

The inherent risks of civil engineering projects mean the choice of contract can have a significant impact on cost and duration. In the absence of any quantitative comparisons, the decision tends to be based on qualitative criteria or personal preference—which may not result in the best solution either for the client or contractor. Help is now at hand in the form of a spreadsheet-based, probabilistic model which uses a Monte Carlo simulation to plot the possible range of costs and durations associated with each type of contract. This paper shows how the model can be applied to a small tunnelling project, making a comparison between fixed-priced and cost-plus-fixed-fee arrangements. The results are quite striking, showing the substantial potential cost savings offered by the cost-plus route in this case.

According to Ralph Emerson, ‘There is properly no history; only biography’. This paper is the first of two papers based on research undertaken for the ICE Archive Panel book Biographical Dictionary of Civil Engineers of Great Britain and Ireland 1500–1830, which traces the development of the British civil engineering profession. This paper covers the era up to the dawn of a mature profession in 1790, identifying some of the leading practitioners and their works. It also provides data on the professional interests of the early ‘engineers’ and the growth in civil engineering activity since the Middle Ages.