What Is A Structural Engineer?

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Structural engineers are tasked with designing and constructing buildings or structures that are safe and capable of withstanding the elements to which they will be exposed. Occasionally, this work will extend into already existing buildings, with the need for structural redevelopments in current properties.

This work often consists of architectural design, planning permission, preparing reports, drawings and plans, alongside quality organisation and team management skills. If you are looking to plan an extension on either a new or existing property, it’s important to communicate this with a structural engineer, who will be able to point you in the right direction, offer advice, answer queries and solve complex calculations and problems.

Here we outline what a structural engineer does, and how this can benefit you.

Design

In the earliest stages of the design process, through initial drawings, safety reports and analysis, structural engineers work tirelessly to ensure the design is structurally sound and able to support the load, weight or traffic it could be exposed to. An immaculate bridge structure is entirely worthless if it isn’t strong or stable enough to carry pedestrians, for example.

Structural engineers usually design buildings to stand for at least fifty years, and bridges for over a century, so their structures can be used and enjoyed by potentially millions of people.

Safety

An essential part of a structural engineer’s role is to make sure all buildings and infrastructures are safe enough to use. They carry out regular checks, report data and offer suggestions for improvement or renovations. Aside from this, they often study how to stop buildings from falling during earthquakes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters and implement these ideas into their existing or ready to be built structures. A structural engineer will be able to ensure that the foundation of the extension is properly reinforced and assess how any extension will impact the existing structure before the work is carried out.

Solutions

Structural engineers work to design sustainable structures, buildings that are sizable and impressive, that use less material and require a lot less maintenance. As such, they are often acute problem solvers, from basic calculation to mastering cutting-edge technology.

Their role is to provide the smartest, strongest structure solution for your building, using sustainable materials. Structural engineers are primarily concerned with safe and capable structures that can withstand the elements to which they will be exposed, as well as improving the structural integrity of existing buildings.

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