My engineering company wants a structural branch, how do i start it?
June 6, 2010 12:21 AM Subscribe
My engineering company wants a structural branch, and I'm meant to start it, what books, programs or other stuff do i need?
I'm a recent civil engineering graduate and I've just started working with a small-mid size engineering company. Straight away they told me they were looking to branch into structural engineering (my major at uni), and since no-one else on the team has much experience in structures, they want me to handle it. I'll be basically starting from scratch so can anyone help me out with all the essential things (programs, books, standards, etc) I'll need or will find useful. I'm in Australia so anything Australian focused is a plus.
My list so far is:-
- Structural modelling software (SpaceGass, Microstran or something similar)
- Australian standards 1170, 3600, 5100 plus any other relevant codes
- a copy of "Reinforced Concrete"by Warner and Rangan
Also (for bonus points) how do I proceed on a design if I've hit the limits of my knowledge? Is it possible to consult or hire another engineering company or would this be frowned upon?
I'm a recent civil engineering graduate and I've just started working with a small-mid size engineering company. Straight away they told me they were looking to branch into structural engineering (my major at uni), and since no-one else on the team has much experience in structures, they want me to handle it. I'll be basically starting from scratch so can anyone help me out with all the essential things (programs, books, standards, etc) I'll need or will find useful. I'm in Australia so anything Australian focused is a plus.
My list so far is:-
- Structural modelling software (SpaceGass, Microstran or something similar)
- Australian standards 1170, 3600, 5100 plus any other relevant codes
- a copy of "Reinforced Concrete"by Warner and Rangan
Also (for bonus points) how do I proceed on a design if I've hit the limits of my knowledge? Is it possible to consult or hire another engineering company or would this be frowned upon?
defcom1 beat me to it. I am not exactly sure how things work in australia but are the parterns really considering signing and sealing drawings which they dont have full and complete understanding of? This isnt HVAC where if it doesnt work quite right people are hot a couple of days a year. This is structural, if its wrong things fall down, people can die, and people go to jail. I think you need to add a structural engineer with at least 10 years of experience to that list.
As for the limits of knowlege thing, you really need to be careful contracting out. The work is going to show up on your drawing with your bosses sign and seal. So they are responsible and should have a firm understanding of what was done even if it wasnt done in house.
posted by ihadapony at 7:33 AM on June 6, 2010
As for the limits of knowlege thing, you really need to be careful contracting out. The work is going to show up on your drawing with your bosses sign and seal. So they are responsible and should have a firm understanding of what was done even if it wasnt done in house.
posted by ihadapony at 7:33 AM on June 6, 2010
Best answer: Opportunity is banging on the door here. You've looked at the problem from the bottom up; now look at it from the top down. You're putting together a department. Figure out how its product differs from the civil department, write it down. Figure out how that is done, and what standards you need to meet; write that down.
Now verify your facts and edit as needed. Take the result to a mentor and explain exactly what you've explained in your post; verify that the resulting plan makes sense.
Propose the plan to the partners. If you get that more or less right, you will not just be "the first structural engineering hire", you'll be head-of-dept by right. Then you'll figure out how to contract out structural engineering as needed. It is much more difficult, and much more valuable, to integrate a new moving part into the business than it is to get structural engineering done.
posted by jet_silver at 8:10 AM on June 6, 2010
Now verify your facts and edit as needed. Take the result to a mentor and explain exactly what you've explained in your post; verify that the resulting plan makes sense.
Propose the plan to the partners. If you get that more or less right, you will not just be "the first structural engineering hire", you'll be head-of-dept by right. Then you'll figure out how to contract out structural engineering as needed. It is much more difficult, and much more valuable, to integrate a new moving part into the business than it is to get structural engineering done.
posted by jet_silver at 8:10 AM on June 6, 2010
Nthing hiring an engineer with 10+ years experience. As a recent hire in process engineering, yes I understand everything I'm working on because of school, but just learning how to do my job is something I would have seriously struggled with in absence of a mentor.
posted by lizbunny at 8:35 AM on June 6, 2010
posted by lizbunny at 8:35 AM on June 6, 2010
Response by poster: Thanks to everyone for the advice, I think you're all right. One of the partners fathers is a retired structural engineer they said I could consult with, but I really need to be working with an experienced engineer who can check and sign off on any designs. I'll have to suggest they try to hire a qualified structural engineer or contract the work out and hope they'll want to keep me on the team for something. It would have been a fantastic opportunity but I'm not read for it
Out of curiosity anyway, what are the essential things structural/civil engineers and firms do need in their work?
posted by parryb at 2:22 PM on June 6, 2010
Out of curiosity anyway, what are the essential things structural/civil engineers and firms do need in their work?
posted by parryb at 2:22 PM on June 6, 2010
Civil P.E. here. A new grad has no business starting a structural division. There is a *lot* of liability and responsibility that comes with structural design, and the fact that your firm is considering leaving it to you is a big red flag. I can recommend some books, but I'm not sure if the standard American books are the same as those in Australia.
posted by electroboy at 7:03 AM on June 7, 2010
posted by electroboy at 7:03 AM on June 7, 2010
Found this post while looking through - since your latest question seems unanswered, I'll chime in.
I'm a structural engineer, uni and first 3 years of work in the USA and now 2 years in New Zealand - in fact I work for an Australian company. As you probably know, NZ is quite similar in this aspect to Aus. Many of our codes and standards overlap or were developed in conjunction with each other. So while I haven't worked in Aus, I think my experience here is pretty similar to yours there.
I think the notion of you starting a structural division has been pretty well covered. In general, I agree with jet_silver.
As for what you'd need, physically, to start a structural division:
You'll need the basic range of office supplies, including decent computers for each worker. Minimum of MS Word, Outlook and Excel (or similar), Acrobat, and AutoCAD viewer software on each box. You'll want MasterSpec as well. Terraview and MathCAD (arguably) would be very helpful.
You'll definitely need some kind of analysis software. Microstran is a good and widely-used package, and will suit the job for all kinds of steel and reinforced concrete structures. Space Gass is less well-known but not uncommon. If I were in your position, I would strongly consider going the Revit and Robot route, as the industry is definitely trending toward BIM and a clean slate is the easiest and most cost-effective situation to implement things like this. I haven't yet encountered it over here, but we used an amazing program in the US called EnerCALC, which would design all sorts of different structures. If I were starting my own office, I would definitely look into that particular software.
You'll also need a decent resource library. This would include a wide range of codes/standards. You could arguably get by with a full online license, though it's so handy to have hard copies available as well. The library would include a range of texts covering all sorts of design subjects - steel, concrete, and timber as materials; different types of structures, from foundations and retaining structures to buildings, bridges, etc.; environments and design constraints, i.e. marine structures, coastal or hurricane-prone structures, etc.; and as many publications as you can get your hands on from professional engineering groups or institutes in your area/country. Useful texts relating to project management, i.e. contracts, tender process, cost estimates, construction management, etc. would be helpful. The range of texts would be dependant on what type of business your office will be going after. It would also be pretty dependant on who's working at the office, as most resource libraries at new or small offices are pretty much made up of the texts that the employees bring in from their own libraries.
Your most valuable resource will be skilled, experienced engineers. Especially starting out, I'd look to hire as many older, well-established engineers as I could afford. If your division is backed by a larger, multi-discpline engineering company that can generate business in this sector from day one, then you should be able to get a couple on the payroll.
posted by hootenatty at 3:37 PM on October 20, 2010
I'm a structural engineer, uni and first 3 years of work in the USA and now 2 years in New Zealand - in fact I work for an Australian company. As you probably know, NZ is quite similar in this aspect to Aus. Many of our codes and standards overlap or were developed in conjunction with each other. So while I haven't worked in Aus, I think my experience here is pretty similar to yours there.
I think the notion of you starting a structural division has been pretty well covered. In general, I agree with jet_silver.
As for what you'd need, physically, to start a structural division:
You'll need the basic range of office supplies, including decent computers for each worker. Minimum of MS Word, Outlook and Excel (or similar), Acrobat, and AutoCAD viewer software on each box. You'll want MasterSpec as well. Terraview and MathCAD (arguably) would be very helpful.
You'll definitely need some kind of analysis software. Microstran is a good and widely-used package, and will suit the job for all kinds of steel and reinforced concrete structures. Space Gass is less well-known but not uncommon. If I were in your position, I would strongly consider going the Revit and Robot route, as the industry is definitely trending toward BIM and a clean slate is the easiest and most cost-effective situation to implement things like this. I haven't yet encountered it over here, but we used an amazing program in the US called EnerCALC, which would design all sorts of different structures. If I were starting my own office, I would definitely look into that particular software.
You'll also need a decent resource library. This would include a wide range of codes/standards. You could arguably get by with a full online license, though it's so handy to have hard copies available as well. The library would include a range of texts covering all sorts of design subjects - steel, concrete, and timber as materials; different types of structures, from foundations and retaining structures to buildings, bridges, etc.; environments and design constraints, i.e. marine structures, coastal or hurricane-prone structures, etc.; and as many publications as you can get your hands on from professional engineering groups or institutes in your area/country. Useful texts relating to project management, i.e. contracts, tender process, cost estimates, construction management, etc. would be helpful. The range of texts would be dependant on what type of business your office will be going after. It would also be pretty dependant on who's working at the office, as most resource libraries at new or small offices are pretty much made up of the texts that the employees bring in from their own libraries.
Your most valuable resource will be skilled, experienced engineers. Especially starting out, I'd look to hire as many older, well-established engineers as I could afford. If your division is backed by a larger, multi-discpline engineering company that can generate business in this sector from day one, then you should be able to get a couple on the payroll.
posted by hootenatty at 3:37 PM on October 20, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
What type of work will you be doing? Who will be checking your work? Do not go out with a design that hasn't been properly and thoroughly checked by a qualified engineer. I'm asking because you seem to be the 'senior' structural engineer...and you have no experience. (not meant to be mean) Some software and codes do not make you a good engineer or give you a structural engineering department. Years of experience do that.
posted by defcom1 at 1:01 AM on June 6, 2010