CROSS UK REPORT: Structural designs carried out by non engineer

Collaborative reporting for safer structures. Report 1322: Structural designs carried out by non engineer.

A reporter found that structural designs for a home extension had been prepared by an inappropriately qualified designer

A reporter was asked by a client to take on a structural engineering commission for a modest domestic project, as the previous engineer had stopped communicating with them.

On checking, the reporter discovered that the previous ‘engineer’ was an architectural designer, who did not appear to have sufficient experience to carry out structural calculations (though offers this on their website).

The calculations that had been carried out for steel and timber beams (using proprietary design software) had no explanation of how loads were derived so were impossible to check. Although the design was not obviously structurally unsafe, the steel beams were much larger and heavier than necessary, by a factor of four in some cases, bringing health and safety risks associated with installation. The reporter is concerned that in other cases, the designer’s lack of knowledge and experience could lead to designs that are structurally unsafe.

Having discovered this individual, the reporter is not sure how to take action to prevent possible unsafe designs being produced by them in the future. The reporter would welcome advice on how to prevent this individual, and others without the necessary experience, from offering structural design services.

Further reading
CROSS Safety Report 245: Generic designs for steel beams in domestic buildings 
b.link/CROSS_245
CROSS Safety Report 678: Architect conducts structural design of sway frame for domestic project b.link/CROSS_678
CROSS Safety Report 1183: Incompetent design of simple steel beams b.link/CROSS_1183
CROSS Safety Report 1208: Who should submit designs to comply with Approved Document Part A of the Building Regulations b.link/CROSS_1208
CROSS Safety Report 1210: Unqualified engineer’s unsafe computer aided design of a retaining wall b.link/CROSS_1210
Please see page 28 for more on the importance of structural engineering competencies.

Comments

Clients can easily underestimate the significance of the works to be undertaken. They should confirm that their appointed designers carry professional indemnity insurance for all of the services they offer to undertake.

CROSS notes that (at present) there is no way to protect the title ‘structural engineer’. However, the Grenfell Tower Public Inquiry Phase 2 Report recommended that the profession of ‘fire engineer’ be recognised and protected by law, and that an independent body be established to regulate the profession, define the standards required for membership, maintain a register of members and regulate their conduct. Perhaps such legal recognition and protection could also be extended to structural engineers. This may go a long way to deterring individuals from offering structural design services for which they are not qualified.

To help clients select a suitably qualified and experienced designer, the Institution of Structural Engineers has published Your Home Project Guide to Appointing a Structural Engineer. It also runs the Find an Engineer service.

It is imperative that all designers demonstrate competency for the work to be undertaken. The requirements in the Building Safety Act will help achieve that.

Image credits | iStock