Structural engineering: making the impossible possible
Structural Engineers have a vital role to play in the future of the built environment. They translate vision into reality, providing safe, sustainable and cost-effective solutions that, in some cases, can transform lives and communities.
Eleni Toumpanaki’s love for engineering began with her exploring the foundations of her childhood home. Here, she reflects on the importance of structural engineering, the development of new materials and technologies and offers an insight into our new MSc in Structural Engineering.
Tell us about structural engineering. Why is it so important?
What I find truly fascinating in structural engineering is the creative design process and the co-design approach with various stakeholders, including architects and mechanical engineers. We can make the impossible possible by realising architects’ aspirations and finding optimum, realistic and cost-effective solutions while ensuring that what is delivered is structurally safe, resilient, and sustainable.
As a Structural Engineer, you might be involved in designing the tallest skyscraper or the longest bridge, tackling grand challenges. Yet, you can equally contribute by working on a timber bridge in a local community in Rwanda, enhancing access to water resources and improving the lives of residents. While our focus as engineers often gravitates towards technical details, it’s essential to recognise the social and environmental effects of our profession.
How can structural engineering have a positive impact on people and planet?
The structural and civil engineering sectors can transform lives in many ways. For example, there are whole-house retrofit projects aimed at improving the living standards of occupants and addressing fuel poverty, as well as providing seismic retrofit solutions using local materials and resources in schools in Nepal to enhance seismic safety and resilience. Then there are large-scale projects, such as the Panama Canal, which can transform economies while reducing risks and time associated with shipping trade.
Meanwhile, adopting new technologies, like 3D-printed concrete houses, can further advance the industry by utilising high-performance, efficient materials through modern construction methods.
My own research focuses on using timber from sustainably managed forests and implementing regenerative design approaches with biobased local resources in construction, ensuring environmental and social responsibility for future generations.
What recent engineering breakthroughs or trends do you find promising or exciting?
Professional bodies like the Institution of Civil Engineers and the Institution of Structural Engineers have highlighted emerging trends that will disrupt the structural engineering sector. These are high-performance and sustainable materials, adopting a systems-level thinking approach, given the increasing complexity of engineering projects and data management, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of things
Structural engineers should be equipped with the skills to adapt to the requirements of a changing world. However, core engineering principles of problem-solving skills, creative and critical thinking, and developing solutions from first principles – beyond codified approaches- are timeless. Bristol’s new MSc in Structural Engineering is designed with the current and future needs of the structural engineering sector in mind, encompassing all these aspects of advanced engineering skills.
Tell us about your personal journey into engineering?
As a kid, I enjoyed building things (e.g. Lego), breaking things apart to see how they work, or attempting to fix things (e.g. intercom) in most cases successfully. The first seeds of my interest in structural engineering were planted when I observed the construction of our home, from the excavation of the foundations to the casting of the concrete slabs. You could say that I had my first site visit as a prospective structural engineer at the age of 14!
I’m now a Senior Lecturer in Civil Engineering at the University of Bristol, where I have been since November 2019. I hold a Diploma in Civil Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens and an MSc in Steel Design and Sustainable Development from Imperial College London. I’ve spent most of my career in academia, focusing on both teaching and research. I dedicated six years as a researcher at the University of Cambridge and two years as a Structural Engineer at Foster + Partners in London.
I really like Bristol because the size of the city is manageable and not as chaotic as London. You can enjoy a nice, quiet walk in Clifton or by the Harbourside. You can easily commute on foot and experience the vibrant life of a big city. Plus, the University of Bristol is among the best in the country for both teaching and research in civil engineering sector.
I chose research engineering paths because I could better satisfy my engineering curiosity. It is like a detective job – trying to find answers and solutions to problems and interpreting experimental results.
My research focuses on sustainable construction materials, particularly timber, with an emphasis on durability and structural resilience. I enjoy teaching and engaging with students, prompting them to challenge their thinking and inspiring them to think creatively. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the students’ progress. You plant the seeds, and in a few years, you see them succeeding as Structural Engineers, delivering talks at the University of Bristol, and sharing their work experiences and insights with the next generation.
Can you tell us some more about the new MSc?
We’ve designed this programme to make sure that there’s a degree of interdisciplinary, offering transferrable skills and flexibility in career paths. So, when you apply, you can choose from two pathways depending on the area you want to specialise in, either Composite Materials and Sustainable Design or Asset Management and Digital Transformation.
One of the key features of this programme is the final design project, which, unlike other MSc programmes, is delivered instead of a research dissertation. It’s intended to help students develop industry-relevant skills by working on a real-world engineering project (e.g. a footbridge in London).
Students will also be able to showcase their skills via a group poster session, lab report, final design report and individual coursework where they can work independently to develop one aspect of their project.
We also ask students to submit a Personal Development Plan to help them understand future chartership requirements.
Are there any practical elements to the course?
As well as from the final design project, which simulates workflows in a design office, there’s also a the field trip, which offers the opportunity to gain hands-on learning in construction and opportunities to gain lab experience and exposure to our state-of-the-art facilities.
For example, you could work on our 3m x 3m shaking table at the Earthquake lab as part of the lab report in the Advanced Structural Analysis unit. You’d test a scaled-down version of a three-storey building under various seismic excitations, record accelerations, and evaluate its performance.
The summer group design project also has a group lab component, where you will develop an understanding of how research is embedded in the design and the principles of the performance design approach.
What kind of career could graduates go into after studying this programme?
MSc graduates can pursue careers in structural, civil, and construction engineering. Depending on the chosen pathway and optional units, students will also have the opportunity to broaden their skills in the design and construction of composite materials or mathematical modelling for engineering applications.
Your final piece of advice for aspiring sustainable engineers?
Engineering is an exciting job for problem solvers. Think out of the box! You are shaping the next generation of engineers, and your actions can lead the way to a more sustainable future in construction.
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*The course information and statements contained within this blog are correct at time of publication.