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Structural Engineering

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An illustration with part of the San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge, a green building, a dam, a wetland, and transportation tunnel.

Structural Engineers - The Unsung Heroes?

Structural engineers are the unsung heroes who ensure our infrastructure stands strong against nature's forces. They innovate to use materials more efficiently and design structures that can weather the impacts of climate change. Beyond design, they inspect and fortify existing infrastructure. With tools like 3D printing, machine learning, digital twins, and performance-based design, they're driving the field forward, allowing for rapid advancements in structural engineering.

 

Increasing Safety with Drones

3D render of a yellow UAV drone with top-mounted camera inspecting the underside structure of a steel bridge. Fictitious UAV and bridge, blue sky and motion blur for dramatic effect.

Drones can be flown into hard-to-reach places to assist civil engineering inspectors both in terms of time and safety

There are over 617,000 bridges in the U.S. and regular inspections of these bridges are critical for safety. Bridge inspection is not for the faint of heart as it can require engineers to hang off the side on ropes or use a telescoping inspection platform. For some, it would be a thrill but still a time-demanding endeavor. Government agencies are now using special drones that can get into hard-to-reach places and provide video images for inspectors. Allowing them to identify areas of concern that require.

3D Printed Steel?

Side view of a highly curved, 3D-printed, steel, pedestrian bridge spanning over a water canal in Amsterdam. Thin layers are visible in the bridge showing where beads of steel weld material were laid down to form the bridge.

This pedestrian bridge in Amsterdam was 3D printed in stainless steel.

In Amsterdam, pedestrians can cross a canal on a 3D-printed, stainless steel bridge. The innovative organic shape, made possible by 3D printing, challenged structural engineers to rethink traditional load paths and force-resisting systems, resulting in a functional yet sculptural work of art. This same additive manufacturing (AM) technology is revolutionizing steel production. Pittsburgh, PA, once known as "Steel City," is aiming to reclaim its title by establishing a hub for 3D-printed steel and other metals, bringing metal fabrication back onshore.