Briefing: Resource scarcity and resource security – a suppressed civil engineering challenge

While natural and manufactured resources provide the raw materials with which civil engineers work, the term ‘resources’ should always be considered in its wider interpretation and then in the context that resources are in many cases limited. That they should be used wisely (resource efficiency) is beyond contention – we do this as a matter of course – yet considerations of where and how resources are obtained and refined for use are far less likely to feature in a civil engineer's psyche. Similarly, considerations of resource availability for others now, and importantly in the future, and the vulnerability of these resources to future supply disruption (e.g. for geopolitical reasons) are likely not to be in the forefront of our thinking when conducting our routine business. The ICE Research, Development & Innovation towards Engineering Excellence panel has chosen this topic as one of pressing importance across all the sectors that comprise civil engineering. Accordingly, the panel is promoting this topic for Research & Development Enabling Fund (R&DEF) proposals. This briefing note describes the prior work of the panel in exploring the extent of this issue, along with insights from current research, to raise awareness, encourage R&DEF proposals and prime debates on this topic

Apparatus for centrifuge modelling of twin-tunnel construction

In urban areas it is common for pairs of tunnels to be used as a method for building rapid transit systems. Driven by an increasing population and demand for services, tunnels are more widespread in their use than at any previous time. Construction of any form of tunnel causes ground movements which have the potential to damage existing surface and sub-surface structures. Modern tunnelling practice aims to reduce these movements to a minimum but there is still a requirement for accurate assessments of possible damage to structures resulting from settlements. For tunnels driven in clay, superposition of settlement predictions made by considering a single tunnel is an accepted method used to estimate movements around pairs of tunnels. Previous research, particularly numerical studies, has indicated that this may not necessarily be sufficient. In this paper a series of centrifuge model tests designed to investigate settlements related to twin-tunnel construction are described. The development of the experimental apparatus for sequential twin-tunnel construction with variable centre-to-centre spacing and volume loss is described in detail

Urban futures and the code for sustainable homes

Copyright © 2012 ICE Publishing Ltd. Permission is granted by ICE Publishing to print one copy for personal use. Any other use of these PDF files is subject to reprint fees.A 6?6 ha (66 000 m2) regeneration site, commonly referred to as Luneside East, is to be turned from a run down, economically under-achieving area of Lancaster, UK, into a new, distinctive, vibrant, sustainable quarter of the city. As a result several aspects of water planning for 350 new homes and 8000 m2 of workspace needed to be considered before any infrastructure investment was undertaken. This included assessment of the future capacity requirements (i.e. inflows and outflows) for water infrastructure (i.e. mains water supply, wastewater disposal, rainwater storage and stormwater disposal) much of which will be located underground. This paper looks at the implications of various water management strategies on the Luneside East site (e.g. water-efficient appliances, greywater recycling and rainwater harvesting) in line with current policy measures that focus on technology changes alone (e.g. the code for sustainable homes). Based on these findings this paper outlines some basic implications for technological resilience discussed in the context of four ‘world views’ – that is, the urban futures scenarios considered in this special issue. Conclusions are drawn as to how far this can take engineers, planners and developers in understanding and planning for resilient water infrastructure within a development like Luneside East

Appraising infrastructure for new towns in Ireland

Copyright © 2013 ICE Publishing Ltd. Permission is granted by ICE Publishing to print one copy for personal use. Any other use of these PDF files is subject to reprint fees.Over a 20 year period 1996–2016, a new 223 ha town is being developed 10 miles west of Dublin's city centre on the south side of Lucan, County Dublin, in the Republic of Ireland (ROI). This €4 billion ‘Adamstown’ development is the first of four planning schemes in ROI to be approved as a strategic development zone – an integrated planning framework deemed suitable for creating sustainable neighbourhoods in sites of strategic economic or social importance to the state. The creation of sustainable neighbourhoods in ROI is facilitated through the implementation of a checklist of 60 indicators. This paper critically examines the attempts being made to consider sustainability within the development's overall infrastructure plan, specifically: transport, energy and water services, information technology and waste. Inadequacies in the existing development are linked to shortfalls in the sustainability checklist, by way of a comparison of infrastructure-related indicators from the ROI checklist with those derived for the UK and exemplar European projects (i.e. Bedzed, UK and Freiberg, Germany). The subsequent legacy for future residents of Adamstown is then considered in the context of ‘what if’ scenarios