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PP 1990:2004
Structural Eurocodes. Guide to the Structural Eurocodes for students of structural design
£54.00. (Save £6.00 on RRP)
The guide has ten chapters, with extracts from the published Eurocodes (or the most recent available draft) with an explanatory commentary. Primarily written for UK undergraduates and students in English-speaking universities worldwide, the guide is also a valuable development tool and resource for engineers and technicians. Will eventually replace PP 7312:2002 Extracts from British Standards for students of structural design.
Copenhagens state-of-the-art metro is a world away from the gloomy, overcrowded underground systems most of us are familiar with. Built from scratch Denmarks capital had no metro system before 2002 the city now has 17 stations on two major new routes and the network is set to double in size in the next ten years. Trains are fully automatic and even stations deep below ground are filled with daylight streaming down from glass pyramids at street level.
Its a taste of the future, but not just for commuters. Copenhagens £1bn network represents the shape of things to come for the construction industry as well: the metro is among the first major European public works to be designed using new structural Eurocodes rather than national design standards.
Building bridges
The shift to Eurocodes is one of the biggest challenges the European construction sector has faced for more than a generation. The new codes [see box] govern safe design in civil and structural engineering, and will replace hundreds of existing national standards. Their introduction is primarily intended to facilitate the exchange of construction services between European Union member states, in effect creating a level playing field. And while the move to Eurocodes will have an impact on the industry as a whole, including the construction products sector, it is in the consultancy and design arena that the biggest changes are being felt.
Denmark was an early user of the pre-standard (ENV) form of Eurocodes and one of the requirements was that metro tender designs were to be undertaken, at least in part, on a Eurocode basis. Consultant Faber Maunsell, also early users of ENV Eurocodes, was one of the successful bidders and played a leading role in the design and construction of the new system.
I'd say our familiarity with the codes enabled us to offer a competitive edge on bidding for the work, says Jeremy Gardner, Faber Maunsells director of rail. What we found in Copenhagen was that Eurocodes made our work easier than it might have been had we had to work to Danish standards alone.
Eurocodes for structural design in materials as diverse as timber, steel and concrete or their equivalent will eventually be the main standards applied to all public works. And the ultimate withdrawal of national standards four years from now means the new codes or equivalent will become a de facto standard for private works as well.
The idea of a single set of European technical standards for civil and structural engineering design was first mooted in 1975. Thirty years down the line, the European Community has become the European Union and the admission of new member states has seen its population grow to nearly 500 million. The geopolitical landscape may have changed beyond recognition, but the determination to harmonize construction standards remains the same.
Although the content is still being finalised, Eurocodes are scheduled to replace all existing national structural standards across the EU by March 2010. Despite the stay of execution for existing national standards earlier proposals would have seen the first British Standards withdrawn in 2007 doing nothing is not an option.
From the ground up
The transition to Eurocodes will not be pain-free, but theres increasing recognition of the advantages.
I think, in the short term, there will be a blip in costs as we make the transition to Eurocodes, says Bob Lang, director of Arup, consulting engineers, designers, planners and project managers. In the longer term, it could save money for lots of people not just Arup. Having a single set of standards for Europe will make it easier for staff to move around because the learning curve in going from one area to another will be less and that is an advantage.
The desire to remove technical obstacles to trade between European member states provided the original political impetus for Eurocodes, but BSI sees a wider role for them. The organization is actively promoting Eurocodes in a global marketplace, with a programme of seminars in India, China, the Middle East and South East Asia. Vietnam and Singapore are already adopting Eurocodes. The prospect of global recognition of the new standards is a real one.
We have spoken to a number of UK construction companies and they are very supportive of the programme, says Mark Wasmuth, BSI international development manager. Savings can be made in not having to purchase and maintain a foreign standards collection. There will also be savings in staff training and resource allocation that means your design team can work on projects in more countries.
What are eurocodes?
Structural Eurocodes are ten codes that contain common rules for the design of buildings and civil engineering structures. Each Eurocode (apart from Eurocode 0) is divided into a number of parts currently, there are 58.
In addition, a national annex, which takes into account local factors (wind loads for example) may be produced for each document. Numerical designations (eg BS EN 1990) are not intended to reflect the year of publication.
BS EN 1990 Basis of structural design (0)
BS EN 1991 Actions on structures(1)
BS EN 1992 Design of concrete structures (2)
BS EN 1993 Design of steel structures (3)
BS EN 1994 Design of composite steel and concrete structures (4)
BS EN 1995 Design of timber structures (5)
BS EN 1996 Design of masonry structures (6)
BS EN 1997 Geotechnical design (7)
BS EN 1998 Design of structures for earthquake resistance (8)
BS EN 1999 Design of aluminium structures (9)
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