What Exactly is Structural Engineering and What Do Structural Engineers Do?

What Exactly is Structural Engineering?

Structural engineering is a discipline of civil engineering that involves the safe design of the 'bones' and load bearing elements of man-made structures using physics, mathematics, and empirical knowledge. Modern structural engineering provides a vast and precise body of knowledge that can reliably anticipate the performance of various shapes and materials used in structures to withstand loads and stresses. Structures such as the pyramids in Egypt and the Acropolis in Greece were built using structural engineering concepts thousands of years ago.

What Do Structural Engineers Do?

Structural engineers are trained professionals who are responsible for making sure that the structures we use in our daily lives, like bridges and tall buildings, are safe, stable and don’t collapse under applied loads. They do this by applying their technical knowledge to specify different types of construction materials in various shapes and geometries and design structures that can withstand the pressures and stresses of their environment such as gravity loads, storms and earthquakes.

Generally speaking, the structural design process of a building can be divided into three stages: load calculation, structural analysis and design.

Depending on the function of the building, standards and building codes can be used to estimate the weight of the building, and snow, wind and earthquake loads on the structures. Once the loads acting on the structure are known, the structure is analyzed to determine the effect of all these loads on the individual elements of the structure. Engineering software can be used by structural engineers to analyze different kinds of structures. It is always a good idea to check the validity of the software results using first principal knowledge and basic structural analysis formulas. The forces and stresses from the structural analysis software can be used to design the main structural elements including the floor system, vertical supports, foundations and other parts of the building.

As a structural engineer, the safety of the public must be top priority. When it comes to buildings and infrastructure we use in our society, the consequences of a collapsed structure can be catastrophic. This is the why structural engineers use factors of safety in their design to account for uncertainty in load assumptions and unexpected deficiency in construction material or workmanship.    

Where Do Structural Engineers Work?

Structural engineers are brought on to a project if an owner is planning on changing the use of a building, introducing more floors to a building, or adding a significant expansion to a building.  It’s very important to understand that introducing alterations to any structural element without consulting a professional engineer may result in serious damage to the structure and in some cases partial or extensive collapse of the building.

Structural engineers are also brought on board if there is damage to a structure due to fire, corrosion, environmental deterioration, impact or wear and tear that could result in a loss of capacity and impose a threat to the public’s safety. When a structural engineer is contacted for an assessment of an existing building, they would visually inspect the structure and determine the structural integrity of the load bearing elements, potential concerns regarding the occupants’ safety, suggest repair techniques and recommend structural details to restore the structure to its original conditions in order to resist the applied loads.

Are Architects and Engineers the Same Thing?

The answer is no. Both architects and engineers have important but different roles in the design of a building. This can be explained by thinking of a residential building for an example. If the aesthetics of the building looks pleasing and the spaces inside feel comfortable and inviting, this means that the architect did a good job designing the building. The work of the structural engineer however, is evident in the stability of the structure under different loading conditions. No matter how windy it is outside or how much snow there is on the roof, the building remains intact, safe and comfortable to its occupants.

Hopefully you now have a good understanding as to what structural engineering is, what structural engineers do, and the importance of structural engineering in a society where there are structures all around us that we are constant using in our day to day lives. Structural engineers, as do other engineers, have a huge responsibility to ensure that the public is safe and cared for, and that their best interests are considered.  

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