The foundation of our research is our expertise in civil engineering structures (such as bridges and buildings) and a detailed understanding of the mechanics of constructions materials (such as steel and concrete).

Our particular areas of specialisation include:

• Structures in fire and at elevated temperatures
• Advanced composites and emerging structural engineering materials
• Strengthening and repair of infrastructure
• Silos and thin-walled structures
• Dynamic effects in structures and materials
• Structural health monitoring non-destructive testing
• Biomechanical applications of structural engineering

Our Facilities

The University of Edinburgh has substantial facilities for physical testing and computational analysis of structures. We regularly conduct mechanical, material and thermal tests on a wide range of specimens. These tests range from simple coupon strength tests, to large-scale bespoke tests of structural elements under complicated loads.

• Structures testing equipment from small coupons to full-scale structures in The Structures Laboratory
• Structures in fire test equipment
• Non-destructive testing and structural health monitoring
• Finite element and discrete element analysis software
• A range of computer hardware, including supercomputer access at the Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre
• Facilities for fire testing and materials characterisation

Consultancy Services

We regularly carry out consultancy work upon structural engineering problems, including:

• Prototype testing and development before a structure is built
• Coupon tests to determine material strength
• On-site structural testing and assessment
• Computational modelling for design and assessment
• Forensic investigation of failures
• Design code development
• Up to date knowledge on the latest structures research and development
• Courses and seminars relating to our areas of expertise

We welcome any opportunity to work with external organisations upon collaborative projects, and the University has a variety of models for collaboration, such as consultancy contracts, knowledge transfer partnerships (KTPs) or sponsored research.

Our consultancy work is arranged through the University's commercialisation organisation, Edinburgh Innovations.