Civil Engineering

Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016

■■ A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK

■■ Evolution of modern mega-buildings in China: innovations and sustainability

■■ Launching of Leigh Road Bridge, Slough, UK

■■ Urbanisation and landslides: hazard drivers and better practices

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Call for Papers
Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers
Smart Infrastructure and Construction
Co-Editors: Dr Jennifer Schooling, Centre for Smart Infrastructure and Construction, University of Cambridge, UK
Prof Kenichi Soga, Dept of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California - Berkeley, USA
In 2017, the Institution of Civil Engineers is launching
a new journal, Smart Infrastructure and Construction,
as part of its Proceedings series.
Smart Infrastructure and Construction will provide
a learned forum for documenting changes
caused by the global adoption of emerging
digital technology in the design, construction and
management of infrastructure assets. These radical
changes will lead to greater efficiency, economy,
adaptability and sustainability in the way our
infrastructure is delivered and operated.
Working in collaboration with the Cambridge
Centre for Smart Infrastructure and Construction
(CCSIC), the journal will publish original research
papers, briefings, discussions and reviews. Smart
Infrastructure and Construction will appear quarterly in a digital-only format
and will provide free access to its content throughout 2017 and 2018 to allow
for the widest dissemination of its findings.
Contributions to the inaugural issue of the journal are welcome.
Suggested topics include, but are not limited to:
■ adaptive structure design and construction
■ additive layer manufacturing in construction
■ automated infrastructure construction systems
■ citizens as sensors
■ city-scale infrastructure planning and operations
■ city-scale simulations and data analytics
■ deterioration modelling
■ digital engineering and BIM
■ infrastructure resilience
■ offsite manufacture and innovative manufacturing methods
■ performance-based design and maintenance
■ sensing solutions for infrastructure monitoring
■ smart cities
■ smart construction technology
■ value of sensing
■ whole-life cost and value
Why Publish with ICE?
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Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016

CONTENTS:August 2016

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97
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.98
EDITORIAL: AUGUST 2016
Editorial
Philippe Bouillard BSc, MSc, PhD, Hab, CEng, MICE, FAUA
Professor, Building Architecture and Town Planning Department, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
This century will certainly be the ‘century of the cities’.
According to reports from the Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development and others, the world’s urban
population be around 6 billion by 2050 and 9 billion by 2100,
with 85% of our descendants living in cities by the end of the
century.
To address this challenge, we will need the skills and
competences of civil engineers as never before to design,
build and operate the increasingly complex structures
and infrastructure required by our ever-expanding urban
populations.
In China, where the demographic challenge is already a
big one, the government is encouraging a dramatic increase
in the density of cities through greater use of high-rise
buildings. These structures still raise many issues related to
hazard mitigation against extreme actions and environments,
integrated structural frameworks and facades, complex
connections and constructional and energy efficiency.
Wang (2016) presents an interesting review in this issue
of four recent high-rise building projects in China, discussing
the evolution in engineering design, construction and
management that has been required for their successful
delivery.
Urbanisation is also crucial in developing countries, where
unplanned or uncontrolled development is not unusual – as
was discussed in our recent special issue on humanitarian
engineering (Kent and Adler, 2016). Without proper structural
and risk analyses, or adequate civil infrastructure, many urban
areas are barely liveable.
In this issue, Holcombe et al. (2016) address rainfall-
triggered landslide risk in such urban areas in countries
where conventional slope stabilisation techniques are often
unaffordable – and where most risk-reduction investment
is currently made post-disaster. Based on studies in the
Caribbean, the authors propose a promising and effective
community-based surface water drainage system based on
bioengineering schemes.
A recent misrepresentation of urbanisation and mobility has
suggested that European countries no longer need to invest
in civil infrastructure – and some have already started to rein
in spending. The economic reality is that cities need to be
more interconnected than ever, even if this proves increasingly
difficult.
An example in the UK is Leigh Road Bridge in Slough,
only the second bridge in the UK to have been launched
across a railway using trailers – and one of the largest
structures constructed by this method anywhere in the world.
98
Editorial
Bouillard
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
Unfortunately, as described in this issue by O’Connor et al.
(2016), an unforeseen incident occurred during the launch.
The methodology and successful realignment operation
led to some very pertinent learning points for future similar
launches.
And finally, in addition to new delivering new
interconnecting infrastructure, civil engineers need to keep
existing infrastructure operational – which can involve some
particularly challenging and large-scale replacement of worn
parts. In the lead paper of this issue, Collins and Smith (2016)
report on a 2-year project to do just that on the world’s
seventh largest suspension bridge.
Humber Bridge carries the A15 highway 2·2 km over the
Humber estuary between Hessle, East Yorkshire and Barton,
North Lincolnshire, UK. An innovative technique was used
to replace the main span’s four A-frames – which carry up to
1600 t each – with vertical pendels and horizontal wind shoes
without disrupting traffic. It is likely to inspire similar solutions
worldwide.
I hope you enjoy the papers and articles in this issue; that
they help you appreciate your own role in building a bright
and sustainable future; and that they encourage you to share
your experiences of doing so in this and other ICE Proceedings
journals.
References
Collins J and Smith D (2016) A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber
Bridge, UK. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers – Civil
Engineering 169(3): 113–120, http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00066.
Holcombe EA, Beesley MEW, Vardanega PJ and Sorbie R (2016) Urbanisation
and landslides: hazard drivers and better practices. Proceedings of the
Institution of Civil Engineers – Civil Engineering 169(3): 137–144, http://
dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00044.
Kent E and Adler A (2016) Introduction. Proceedings of the Institution of
Civil Engineers – Civil Engineering 169(5): 3, http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/
jcien.2016.169.5.3.
O’Connor M, Attrill M, Gibb I and Oh SH (2016) Launching of Leigh Road
Bridge, Slough, UK. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers – Civil
Engineering 169(3): 129–135, http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00081.
Wang A (2016) Evolution of modern mega-buildings in China: innovations
and sustainability. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers – Civil
Engineering 169(3): 121–128, http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00063.
CALL FOR PAPERS: Civil Engineering relies entirely on material contributed by
civil engineers and related professionals. Illustrated articles of 600 words and
papers of 2000 to 3500 words are welcome on any relevant civil engineering
topic that meets the journal’s aims of providing a source of reference material,
promoting best practice and broadening civil engineers’ knowledge, Please
contact the editor for further information
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.99
BRIEFING: STANDARDS
PAS 2080: world first specification for cutting
carbon dioxide emissions in infrastructure
The UK Green Construction Board launched a new specification in May 2016 to encourage a
consistent approach to reducing carbon dioxide emissions related to infrastructure – a world first.
Ben McAlinden of the Institution of Civil Engineers introduces PAS 2080.
PAS 2080:2016 Carbon management
in infrastructure (BSI, 2016) and
its associated guidance document
(GCB, 2016) set out the general
principles and components of a carbon
dioxide emissions management system
for infrastructure supply chains.
The UK government’s Infrastructure
carbon review of 2013 (HM
Treasury, 2013) made a number
of recommendations to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions related to
infrastructure, including development
of a low carbon dioxide specification.
A publically available specification
(PAS) was duly commissioned by the UK
Construction Leadership Council’s Green
Construction Board and published by
BSI in May 2016.
Benefits of specification
Leading infrastructure organisations are
already delivering solutions with reduced
carbon dioxide emissions – and therefore
reduced cost – by applying the principles
and framework set out in PAS 2080.
Carbon dioxide emissions are an
excellent proxy for materials and energy
used in constructing and maintaining
infrastructure, such that reducing
carbon dioxide equates to reducing
cost. The specification also sets out
collaborative ways of working to drive
innovation and improve value.
Overall, the specification aims to
contribute to reducing greenhouse gas
emissions and lead to a more effective
use of raw materials. It is hoped this in
turn will enhance the reputation of the
infrastructure industry, helping to attract
new talent and skills.
Structure and framework
PAS 2080 is written in a clear language
with well-defined responsibilities and
For further information contact: BSI Tel: +44 345 086 9001 Email: cservices@bsigroup.com Web: www.bsigroup.com
PAS 2080: world first specification for cutting
carbon dioxide emissions in infrastructure
McAlinden
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
The new PAS 2080 Carbon management
in infrastructure specification and guidance
document are both available online
expectations. It has three distinct
sections: scope and general principles;
the carbon dioxide management process;
and assessing emissions reductions and
claims of conformity.
A core theme is that each part of
the supply or ‘value’ chain can take
action to measure, manage and reduce
carbon dioxide, but it is not until the
whole chain is aligned against common
principles that significant emissions and
cost reductions will be achieved.
The common and individual
responsibilities assigned to asset owners
and managers, designers, constructors
and product and material suppliers are
set out, illustrating the organisational
capabilities required to be in place.
Compliance with PAS 2080 can be
demonstrated through certification or
self-assessment.
At the heart of the specification
are strong leadership and governance
to drive positive behaviours and step
changes in design – and to reinforce
the message that the greatest
opportunity for both capital and
operational carbon dioxide reduction
is at the earliest stages. Other key
components of the framework
include setting targets and baselines,
monitoring, quantification, reporting
and continual improvement.
Guidance document
The Green Construction Board
has also published a free guidance
document on PAS 2080 to give practical
advice on how to implement the
specification. Current good practice is
addressed through worked examples
and case studies and presented in
an engaging style with clear cross-
references to PAS 2080 clauses.
In summary, PAS 2080 and its
associated guidance document provide
a consistent approach to deliver
reduced carbon dioxide, reduced cost
infrastructure, which when actioned
will leave a sustainable legacy for future
generations.
The 60-page specification and
82-page guidance document can be
downloaded from the BSI and Green
Construction Board websites, respectively.
References
BSI (2016) PAS 2080:2016: Carbon management in
infrastructure. BSI, London, UK. See http://shop.
bsigroup.com/PAS2080 (accessed 07/06/2016).
GCB (Green Construction Board) (2016) Guidance
Document for PAS 2080. GCB, London, UK.
See http://greenconstructionboard.org/images/
stories/ICR/Guidance%20Document%20for%20
PAS2080_vFinal.pdf (accessed 07/06/2016).
HM Treasury (2013) Infrastructure Carbon Review.
HM Treasury, London, UK. https://www.gov.uk/
government/publications/infrastructure-carbon-
review (accessed 07/06/2016).
99
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.100
BRIEFING: INSURANCE
Cyber threats and civil engineering –
understanding the risks
The embarrassment of headline-grabbing information breaches are just the tip of the iceberg
when it comes to the growing cyber risks facing civil engineering firms. Karl Jones of UK insurance
broker Kerry London says the risks go much further than reputational damage.
From the cyber attack which lost UK
telecoms firm TalkTalk 100 000 UK
customers last year to the many red
faces caused by international law firm
Mossack Fonseca’s ‘Panama papers’
leak, the importance of cyber security
has never been more relevant –
particularly for civil engineering firms.
A Department of Business, Innovation
and Skills survey published in May
this year (BIS, 2016) found that
65% of large and 51% of medium
organisations suffered a cyber breach
in 2015 – though there is still no
obligation to report these.
Knowing the risks
Civil engineering firms now rely
heavily on electronic systems. They
are used for everything from day-
to-day office administration and
communications to digital design and
engineering, building information
modelling, project and supply chain
management, logistics planning,
satellite positioning, and monitoring
and control systems.
The consequences of electronic
systems failing or coming under attack
are potentially very serious, given the
safety-critical nature of structures and
infrastructure and the often large
sums of money involved. Attacks can
come from a diverse range of sources
including criminals, rogue governments,
terrorists, activists, competitors and
even disgruntled employees.
Attacks generally fall into two
categories: malicious viruses being
introduced to the network internally
or external network intrusions. If a
system breach happens, the risks
are many: reputational damage and
the ensuing loss of customers; loss
of intellectual property; fines from
For further information contact: Karl Jones Tel: +44 7807 194 283 Email: karljones@kerrylondon.co.uk Web: www.kerrylondon.co.uk
100
Cyber threats and civil engineering – understanding the risks
Jones
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
Civil engineering firms are at increasing risk
from potentially hugely damaging cyber
attacks – all employees and suppliers need to
be aware of the danger
the UK Information Commissioner;
business interruption; loss of invoicing
systems; being held to ransom to
remove external encryption from
documents; financial fraud; malicious
alteration of designs or survey data;
and defamation.
Potential solutions
The Information Commissioner’s
Office reported that 93% of
investigated incidents in the fourth
quarter of 2014–2015 were caused
by human error. Employee education
should therefore be a high priority,
along with appropriate controls on
own-device usage and access to
personal web-based email accounts.
Employee education and control
should all form part of a comprehensive
cyber security strategy, which should
include regular stress tests. Civil
engineering firms should also factor in
the need for anti-virus software and
firewall protection, evaluating and
protecting systems of high exposure or
value to the business, and regulation of
administrative access.
Prudent firms should also consider
buying non-physical business
interruption insurance. Essentially this
works in the same way as physical
business interruption cover. The cover
is designed to indemnify businesses
for either lost profits or revenue as a
result of a cyber event that damages
or interrupts their cyber infrastructure.
Depending on the insurer, the
cover could be part of data-breach
insurance or a standalone policy, and
can be extended to deal with financial
crime.
Top-level decision
According to the Department of
Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS,
2016), only 29% of UK businesses
have written cyber security policies
and just 10% have formal incident
management processes.
Cyber security strategy should be
decided at the top level of all civil
engineering businesses and then
integrated into company culture
through employee policies and
education. Its success will also depend
on regular updates to security software
and procedures reflecting new cyber
threats.
References
BIS (Department for Business Information and
Skills) (2016) Cyber Security Breaches Survey
2016. BIS, London, UK. See https://www.gov.
uk/government/publications/cyber-security-
breaches-survey-2016 (accessed 02/06/2016).
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.101
BRIEFING: FLOODING
Improving urban resilience to flooding:
a vital role for civil engineers
Being resilient against flooding is a key challenge for urban communities – and one for which
civil engineers can play a vital role. Manuela Escarameia of HR Wallingford highlights findings of
two themed issues of the Institution of Civil Engineers’ journal Water Management on the topic.
Much has been written in recent years
about resilience in many sectors of
society and, equally, many definitions of
resilience have been suggested.
In the context of urban resilience to
flooding, the following definition by van
Veelen et al. (2015: p. 50) is arguably
the most appropriate: ‘Resilience [is] the
capacity of a system to buffer natural
variations, recover from disturbances
and return to its previous state without
experiencing changes to the system as
a whole.’
However, when certain thresholds are
reached (‘tipping points’) systems are
no longer able to recover and need to
adapt to face changing circumstances.
This is what civil engineers need to bear
in mind when designing and managing
infrastructure that limits personal and
economic damage from flooding.
New approaches needed
Recent flood events worldwide
have brought to light the pressures
that increased population, urban
development and climate change pose
on existing traditional flood defences.
The efficacy of traditional flood defence
methods is being questioned, with
increased efforts and resources being
made available for research into new
approaches that focus on resilience.
The new approaches include
technologies and methodologies that
allow a smoother passage through
a flood event and promote faster
recovery, enabling populations to
resume their normal activities more
quickly. The approaches – which are
particularly important for expanding
urban areas – span the various stages
of flooding: before (preparedness,
assessment of vulnerability and
criticality), during (implementation
For further information please contact: Manuela Escarameia Tel: +44 1491 822429 Email: m.escarameia@hrwallingford.com Web: www.hrwallingford.com
Improving urban resilience to flooding:
a vital role for civil engineers
Escarameia
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
of protection measures, emergency
evacuation) and after (reinstatement).
They also span a range of technical
subject areas which, in addition to
hydrological and hydraulic flood studies,
include urban planning and design, urban
drainage, building construction and asset
management of infrastructure networks.
Global engineering challenge
A sample of the breadth of engineering
research and practice in the field of flood
resilience has been captured in two
themed issues of the Institution of Civil
Engineers’ Water Management journal
(168 WM2 and 169 WM2) published in
April 2015 and April 2016. They include
contributions from France, Norway,
Thailand, the Netherlands, the UK and
the USA, often through international
collaborative research.
The papers highlight that new thinking
needs to acknowledge uncertainties,
not least of which is climate change.
This has led to the development and
promotion of adaptive approaches to
flood resilience rather than traditional
precautionary approaches (Brisley et al.,
2016; van Veelen et al., 2015).
The papers also discuss how to improve
urban flood resilience at a neighbourhood
Stranded aircraft at Don Mueang airport in
Bangkok, Thailand – civil engineers need to
find new ways to improve urban resilience to
flooding
scale, describe the design and social
impact of resilience technologies such
as temporary flood barriers and set out
mitigation solutions for critical urban
infrastructure during flood events (Balsells
et al., 2015; Connelly et al., 2015;
Escarameia et al., 2016).
Case studies from France, the USA,
Thailand, Norway and the UK highlight
the importance of collaboration, clear
vision, an integrated approach, good
organisational structure and good
flood data archives. It is also shown
that public awareness of flood risk and
willingness to contribute to long-term
maintenance can be heightened by
the use of locally tailored sustainable
drainage systems (Everett et al., 2016).
The papers offer only a taster for this
ever-expanding and topical subject – it
is hoped they will whet the appetite of
a broad range of civil engineers.
References
Balsells M, Barroca B, Becue V and Serre D (2015)
Making urban flood resilience more operational:
current practice. Proceedings of the Institution
of Civil Engineers – Water Management 168(2):
57–65.
Brisley R, Wylde R, Lamb R et al. (2016) Techniques
for valuing adaptive capacity in flood risk
management. Proceedings of the Institution of
Civil Engineers – Water Management 169(2):
75–84.
Connelly A, Gabalda V, Garvin S et al. (2015)
Testing innovative technologies to manage
flood risk. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil
Engineers – Water Management 168(2): 66–73.
Escarameia M, Walliman N, Zevenbergen C and
de Graf R (2016) Methods of assessing flood
resilience of critical buildings. Proceedings
of the Institution of Civil Engineers – Water
Management 169(2): 57–64.
Everett G, Lamond J, Morzillo AT, Chan FKS
and Matsler AM (2016) Sustainable drainage
systems: helping people live with water.
Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers –
Water Management 169(2): 94–104.
van Veelen PC, Stone K and Jeuken A (2015)
Planning resilient urban waterfronts using
adaptive pathways. Proceedings of the
Institution of Civil Engineers – Water
Management 168(2): 49–56.
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Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.102
BRIEFING: MATERIALS
Recycling construction materials – proud
tradition and bright future
Salvaging and recycling construction materials, which has gone on for thousands of years, looks
set to increase in the future. Ian Sims of RSK Environment reports on the latest trends detailed in
a recent themed issue of the Institution of Civil Engineers’ journal Construction Materials.
There is an established tradition for
salvaging and recycling construction
materials. Former Roman buildings
served as a source of new construction
materials for hundreds of years in
Europe, while demolition waste has
long been used in foundations for
buildings and infrastructure worldwide.
The clear sustainability benefits of
recycling demolition waste and re-
using building elements means it is
now actively encouraged throughout
the construction industry. The latest
developments in recycling were reported
in a themed issue of the Institution of
Civil Engineers’ Construction Materials
journal in April 2016.
Salvaging key elements
Valued building elements – such as
stone, bricks, slates, lintels and flooring
tiles – have always been recovered and
re-used. Indeed, certain materials are
only available on a second-hand basis,
including stone varieties that are either
worked out or no longer viably quarried.
For example, in the UK it is often
considered preferable to undertake
expert selection of second-hand slates
for re-use rather than import new
natural slates or use manufactured ones.
Employing waste and by-
products
There has also been a gradually
increasing role in construction for
redundant or waste products. For
example, the London 2012 Olympic
Stadium roof incorporates 2600 t of
redundant steel gas pipes (Crockford
et al., 2011).
Industrial by-products such as ground
granulated blast-furnace slag from
steel-making have found extensive and
For further information please contact: ICE Publishing Tel: +44 20 7665 2460 Email: journals@icepublishing.com Web: www.icevirtuallibrary.com
102
Recycling construction materials – proud
tradition and bright future
Sims
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
Cumbrian roof slates being assessed for re‑use
after decades in London’s Regent Street
largely beneficial uses in construction. In
the mid-twentieth century, clinker from
coal-burning furnaces was routinely
used as concrete aggregate, and today
furnace ash is a common component of
precast units.
Calcium sulfate, also an industrial
by-product, is used to make gypsum
plaster by factory blending with fillers
and other constituents, competing
directly with plasters processed from
natural deposits.
By-product supply shortages
The availability of by-products can
fluctuate however. For example, the
architect of a recent London landmark
was originally keen to use floor tiles
made from the abundant supply of
television and monitor cathode ray
tubes. Unfortunately, not only were the
glassy tiles too slippery, their production
was soon compromised by the rapid rise
of flat screens.
Slag and fly ash might also face
supply shortages going forward. Some
former steel-producing countries,
including the UK, are increasingly
focusing on specialist rather than bulk
production, resulting in reduced slag
outputs. On the other hand, there
could soon be a new lease of life from
processing recycled iron and steel.
Recycled and reclaimed
aggregates
Certainly it is clear from the range
and diversity of papers in the themed
issue of Construction Materials that
recycling in construction is now the
global norm.
For example, Soutsos and Fulton
(2016) report on the successful
programme of re-utilising construction
and demolition waste during recent
regeneration in Merseyside. In Qatar,
Hassan et al. (2016) address the
development of new infrastructure
ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup and
the initiative underway both to recycle
demolition waste and reclaim usable
aggregates from excavation arisings.
Also, Ellis et al. (2016) describe an
exemplary case in south-east London,
where bricks from a demolished viaduct
were innovatively recycled as engineering
fill for the replacement works.
It seems construction recycling, which
has a long, proud history, also has a very
bright future.
References
Crockford I, Breton M, McCormick F and Johnson
P (2011) Delivering London 2012: the Olympic
Stadium. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil
Engineers – Civil Engineering 164(6): 37–43,
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/cien.2011.164.6.37.
Ellis S, Goodwin A, Laycock E and Hurst C (2016)
Use of crushed brick in reinforced earth railway
structures Proceedings of the Institution of Civil
Engineers – Construction Materials 169(2): 93–105.
Hassan KEG, Reid JM and Al-Kuwari MS (2016)
Recycled aggregates in structural concrete – a
Qatar case study Proceedings of the Institution
of Civil Engineers – Construction Materials
169(2): 72–82.
Soutsos M and Fulton MC (2016) Recycling of
demolition waste in Merseyside Proceedings of
the Institution of Civil Engineers – Construction
Materials 169(2): 54–66.
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.103
BRIEFING: TESTING
Doubts remain on reliability of concrete
chemical analysis methods
It was reported over 2 years ago that British Standard methods for analysing hardened concrete
give unreliable results. Jeremy Ingham of Mott MacDonald and Richard Barnes of The Concrete
Society warn that nothing has changed – and that great care is needed until it does.
Chemical analysis of hardened concrete
samples is commonly undertaken during
condition investigation of concrete
structures, forensic investigation
of failures and during research and
standards development for concrete
durability design.
Such analysis is an important asset
management, diagnostic and research
tool and so it is imperative the results
are accurate. However, despite being
shown 2 years ago to give inaccurate
results, the methods set out in
BS 1881‑124:1988 (BSI, 1988) are still
routinely used in the UK and elsewhere.
Laboratory trial
A Concrete Society laboratory trial in
2012–2013 investigated the accuracy
of the most commonly used chemical
analysis methods in BS 1881-124 –
cement content, chloride content,
sulfate content, alkali content and
water/cement ratio. Four concrete mixes
were prepared that included a range of
contemporary concrete ingredients.
Eleven UKAS-accredited construction
materials testing laboratories
500
Measured cement content: kg/m3
450
400
350
300
250
200
150
250
Comparison of actual and BS 1881-124 measured cement contents from the 2012–2013
laboratory trial results
For further information contact: Jeremy Ingham Tel: +44 20 8774 2994 Email: jeremy.ingham@mottmac.com
Doubts remain on reliability of concrete
chemical analysis methods
Ingham and Barnes
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
participated in the trial and the results
indicated that BS 1881-124 analysis
procedures are insufficiently accurate
when applied to contemporary concrete
(Concrete Society, 2014).
An example graph from the trial,
showing the range of cement content
results obtained for the four concrete
mixes, is shown here. It can be seen
that the laboratory tests gave results
ranging from 175 kg/m3 to 400 kg/m3
for a sample of concrete with an actual
cement content of 300 kg/m3 – typical
of the level of inaccuracy found.
Implications
The accuracy of the BS 1881-124
methods are clearly in doubt and this
is a matter of considerable concern
given their extensive and long-
standing use. In the 28 years since the
methods were introduced there have
been considerable developments in
concrete technology and changes in
concrete construction practice, which
the tests have not kept pace with.
This is a problem that will increase as
advancements in concrete technology
Mix 1
Mix 2
Mix 3
Mix 4
Line of equality
300 350 400 450
Actual cement content: kg/m3
inevitably continue to change the
composition of concrete mixes over
time.
On the other hand, the tests may
have been inaccurate or inadequate
for decades. This raises concerns about
knowledge of the current and future
condition of the UK infrastructure stock.
There are significant implications for
safety, serviceability and sustainability,
which also typically increase the whole-
life cost of structures (Ingham and
Barnes, 2016).
Recommendations
The Concrete Society recommended
2 years ago and continues to call for
a further, larger laboratory trial to be
undertaken. If the findings concur with
the 2012–2013 trial, then a considerable
amount of research and development of
new test methods will be required.
In the meantime – and as a stopgap
only – the society has recommended
that BS 1881-124 methods continue
to be used, but in full knowledge of
the potential levels of inaccuracy. In
addition, the analysis of results and
any interpretation of their significance
should always be undertaken by
suitably qualified and experienced
specialists, capable of exercising sensible
engineering judgement.
References
BSI (1988) BS 1881-124:1988: Testing concrete
– Part 124: Methods for analysis of hardened
concrete. BSI, London, UK.
Concrete Society (2014) Analysis of Hardened
Concrete: A Guide to Tests, Procedures and
Interpretation of Results. Technical Report No.
32, 2nd ed. The Concrete Society, Camberley,
UK.
Ingham J and Barnes R (2016) Briefing: Testing
times for concrete structures – is BS 1881-
124 still fit for purpose? Proceedings of the
Institution of Civil Engineers – Construction
Materials 168(6): 253–258.
103
Call for Papers

Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers

Civil Engineering
Panel Chair and Honorary Editor: Emma Kent, Cundall, UK

Civil Engineering, indexed Why Publish with ICE?

in Web of Science, is the
ICE’s flagship journal.
Practical and diverse in its scope,
Civil Engineering publishes overview
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topics range from landmark
projects to philosophical, ethical,
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safety issues.
Civil Engineering gives a wide-
ranging insight into the engineering
profession with full-colour papers
and articles on topics across the
spectrum of civil engineering activity,
topics range from landmark projects to debates on philosophical, ethical,
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Highways and Transportation
Books From ICE Publishing
Highways: The Location, Design,
Construction and Maintenance of
Road Pavements, 5th edition
Coleman O'Flaherty and David Hughes
Price: £45.00
ISBN: 978 07277 5993 1
Format: Paperbound
Extent: 646
Highways is a comprehensive textbook on
all aspects of road engineering and the new
edition will cover the latest developments in
the field, building on the fourth edition which
is still viewed as the leading title in highway
engineering, despite now being over ten years
old.
Originally published 1974, this book is the
leading authority on the subject. Highways,
5th edition covers road location and plans,
roadwork materials, surface and subsurface
moisture control, pavement design and
construction, thickness design of bituminous
and concrete pavements, and road
maintenance and rehabilitation.
Online: www.icebookshop.com Email: orders@icepublishing.com
Phone: +44 (0)1892 83 22 99
ice textbooks
Transportation Engineering
John Wright
Transport Engineering
(An ICE Textbook)
John Wright
Price: £30.00
ISBN: 978 07277 5973 3
Format: Paperbound
Extent: 160
Covering rail, air, road and water,
Transportation Engineering explores the
transport of people, goods and information
throughout history and considers how
transport can meet the needs of the future.
It examines the idea that transport needs
are based on the concept of supply and
demand and that modes of transport must,
therefore, have a “life-cycle”. This book also
explores the economics of transport and the
importance of considering price, convenience
and safety of new and existing modes of
transport, as well as the impact that the
recession has had on preferred modes of
transport, e.g. an increase in people cycling
instead of driving, using the internet to
communicate instead of travelling overseas.
To order
Practical Road Safety Auditing
3rd Edition
Martin Belcher, Steve Proctor and Phil Cook
Price: £65.00/$110.00
ISBN: 978 07277 6016 6
Format: Hardbound
Extent: 208
Practical Road Safety Auditing 3rd edition,
explains the systematic process for checking
the safety of new road schemes to comply
with the brand new 2014 update to the Road
Safety Audit Summary, which includes risk
assessment as a potential part of the Road
Safety Audit and the need for the professional
certification of Road Safety Auditors.
Practical Road Safety Auditing ensures that
all highways schemes operate as safely as is
practicable, by minimising future accident
numbers and severity. The book aims to raise
awareness of the safety of all road users, and
in particular vulnerable road users such as
the visually and mobility impaired, cyclists,
pedestrians, equestrians, motorcyclists,
children and the elderly.
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.106
MONITOR: BOOKS
Books
REVIEWS
CDM 2015:
questions and
answers
by Pat Perry, ICE
Publishing, 2015,
£40, reviewed
by Eva Linnell,
Atkins, UK
The third edition
of the UK Construction (Design and
Management) Regulations (CDM
2015) has applied to all construction
projects since October 2015. The revised
regulations impact the entire project life
cycle, but there is increased emphasis on
early engagement by the client and on
the role of the designer in maximising
opportunities to eliminate risks.
This is a surprisingly accessible book
about legal responsibilities under CDM
2015, describing health and safety
best practice on construction projects.
The format of this book makes it highly
readable, with questions and answers
arranged under easy-to-reference
sections, and interspersed by short case
studies.
The book is split into two parts.
Part one is on the regulations, roles
and duties, describing the legal
responsibilities of the duty holders and
the recent changes to the legislation.
The second part covers construction
safety, with guidance included on the
construction phase health and safety
plan, working at height and asbestos.
Answers reference the relevant
legislation that forms the legal basis for
the responsibility.
First and foremost, this is a highly
practical guide, covering real-world
scenarios so readers can confidently
assess whether they are complying
with the law. Questions include, ‘the
client refuses to accept my advice as
principal designer, what shall I do?’,
‘what type of temporary works should
be medium risk?’ and ‘what is a permit
to work?’. The book also includes a
range of example forms, including
an appointment letter for a principal
designer and a hot-works permit.
106
Monitor: Books
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
It is a little bible that cuts through
the myths and uncertainty to give clear,
confident and concise guidance.
Health and
safety: questions
and answers – a
practical
approach
(2nd ed.)
by Pat Perry,
published by ICE
Publishing, 2016,
£35, reviewed by
David Oloke, Progressive Concept
Consultancy Ltd, UK
This second edition has built on the
success of the first edition to produce
very good material on a very important
subject. It covers a wide range of health
and safety issues in the construction
industry.
The logical presentation makes it easy
to interact with the book. The first five
chapters deal largely with concepts,
laws and regulations, while the next five
chapters relate mostly to human factors
including training requirements – which
are particularly important for health
and safety management and accident
prevention.
The next 14 chapters cover common
questions asked in respect of work
processes and the requirements to
work safely and guarantee the safety
of others. Significantly, they also cover
the practicality of occupational health
matters. The last three chapters deal
with the unique aspects of stress, lone
working and working with others –
including managing contractors.
Although readers may tend to see
‘Q&A’ books either as handy quick-
reference guides or non-conventional
textbooks, this book succeeds in bridging
that gap. Each chapter contains relevant
and up-to-date information, templates to
aid application of discussed concepts and
case studies that can further help the
reader. As such it is a good reference for
students, graduates, trainers and other
practitioners.
Successful
professional
reviews for civil
engineers
(4th ed.)
by Patrick Waterhouse
and Harry Macdonald
Steels, published by
ICE Publishing, 2015,
£30, reviewed by
Sebastian Lewandowski, Atkins, UK
This book provides comprehensive
guidance on the Institution of Civil Engineers’
(ICE) professional review and offers advice
as to how the candidates should comply
with each of the requirements given in ICE’s
professional review guidance.
The fourth edition has been updated
to cover the simplified review process
introduced by ICE in 2015. The authors
have drawn upon their experience and
included a number of practical tips and
common mistakes made by candidates
in writing the report and preparing the
presentation.
Similar to the previous edition, it also
describes what to expect on the review
day. While some of the information could
be considered as just common sense, there
is a good amount of useful advice as well.
If you have nearly completed your
initial professional development, I would
recommend you and your supervising
civil engineer reach for this book well
before you actually start putting your
submission together.
For those earlier in their career, looking
for advice on the initial professional
development process, I would recommend
Initial professional development for civil
engineers by Macdonald Steels instead.
Trust in
construction
projects
by Anita Cerić,
published by
Routledge, 2016,
£95, reviewed by
Philippe Bouillard,
Université Libre de
Bruxelles, Belgium
Civil Engineering Monitor: Books
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016

MONITOR:BOOKS

Anita Cerić presents in this book the
result of 4 years of empirical research
complemented by a thorough literature
review. After setting the scene by
stating why trust matters in construction
projects, she analyses the new roles of
construction project managers.
The argument of the book is
straightforward and relevant considering
the increasing complexity of current
projects, particularly in terms of
the number of actors involved. It is
supported by much evidence, making
the book very easy to read.
This is definitely a book that will
convince its readers of the importance
of trust as an essential project success
factor. Though inspirational in this
regard, the book gives little practical
information on how to build the trust.
It is nevertheless a significant and useful
contribution to support Simon Sinek’s
essential quote, ‘A team is not a group
of people who work together. A team is
a group of people who trust each other.’
Structural
analysis and
design to
prevent
disproportionate
collapse
By Feng Fu, published
by CRC Press, 2016,
£82, reviewed by
Philippe Bouillard,
Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
This book presents a disproportionate
collapse analysis based on the alternative
path method initially proposed by
Ellingwood in 1978. Author Feng Fu, who
has 10 years of practical experience before
joining academia, has produced a clear
and practical guide for design engineers.
The book cites existing British
standards, Eurocodes and US codes, and
covers many different types of structures
– including multi-storey buildings, space
structures and bridges. It also contains
detailed information on fire and blast,
the two forms of extreme loadings
which typically lead to disproportionate
collapse.
The analysis method is based on
Abaqus software and the author
provides the corresponding files for easy
application. The many applications in the
book could also be useful as case studies
for engineers and students.
From a research perspective, the state
of the art is perhaps under-examined
and references to past publications,
including Ellingwood’s, are missing.
But it is of major practical interest and I
would definitely recommend it for design
engineering offices and lecturers in
structural mechanics.

NEW BOOKS

The ICE library maintains one of the most comprehensive collections of civil engineering books in the
world, including all titles from ICE Publishing (shown in bold below). New books received in the past
3 months include the following.
2015 International Building Code illustrated handbook D Thornburg and J Henry £122·99
ACE find a consultant 2016 ACE £70·00
Assessment and management of unexploded ordnance (UXO) risk in the marine environment, Ciria C754 N Cooper and S Cooke £110·00
Building futures: managing energy in the built environment J Powell, J Monahan and C Foulds £34·99
Construction planning (2nd ed.) R Neale, D Neale and P Stephenson £30·00
Deformation and failure mechanism of excavation in clay subjected to hydraulic uplift Y Hong and L Wang £59·99
Delivering value with BIM: a whole-of-life approach A Sanchez, K Hampson and S Vaux £44·99
Engineering geology for underground works P Gattinoni, E M Pizzarotti and L Scesi £117·00
Fit-out environmental good practice on site guide, Ciria C757 S Harris £70·00
Geomechanics in soil, rock, and environmental engineering J Small £57·99
Geomodels in engineering geology: an introduction P Fookes, G Pettifer and T Waltham £35·00
Highway bridge maintenance: planning and scheduling M A Hurt £85·00
Innovative bridges C Broto £44·71
Low car(bon) communities: inspiring car-free and car-lite urban futures N Foletta and J Henderson £41·99
New forms of procurement: PPP and relational contracting in the 21st century M Jefferies and S Rowlinson £95·00
Non-destructive techniques for the reverse engineering of structures and infrastructure B Riveiro and M Solla £99·00
Offshore wind farms: technologies, design and operation C Ng and L Ran £180·00
Railway transportation systems: design, construction and operation C Pyrgidis £95·00
Setting up in business as a mediator S Walker £80·00
Structural analysis and design to prevent disproportionate collapse F Fu £82·00
Structural design of buildings P Smith £49·95
Structural steel design to Eurocode 3 and AISC specification C Bernuzzi and B Cordova £99·95
Structures and their analysis M Fuchs £63·99
The fully integrated engineer: combining technical ability and leadership prowess S Cerri £33·50
Triaxial testing of soils P Lade £125·00
Urban quay walls A Roubos and D Grotegoed £89·00

All books can be borrowed from the ICE library on the first floor of 1 Great George Street, London, SW1P 3AA from
8.30 am to 6.30 pm, Monday to Friday. ICE Publishing titles can also be purchased from the ICE library or ordered by
calling +44 1892 832299, emailing orders@icepublishing.com or by visiting www.icebookshop.com.

107
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.2016.169.3.108
MONITOR: PROCEEDINGS
ICE Proceedings
In addition to Civil Engineering, ICE Proceedings includes 17 specialist journals. Papers and articles
published in the most recent issues are listed here. Summaries of all these and other papers and articles
published can be read free in the ICE Virtual Library at www.icevirtuallibrary.com/content/journals.
Bridge Engineering
Assessing the capacity of existing
bridge structures: part 1
169, No. BE2, June 2016, 79–154
On-site assessment of bridges
supported by acoustic emission
P. Olaszek, J. R. Casas and G. Świt
Progressive cracking of masonry arch bridges
N. Gibbons and P. J. Fanning
London Underground – successful outcome of
bridge assessment programme
R. McKoy
Assessing the potential value of bridge
monitoring systems
P. J. Vardanega, G. T. Webb, P. R. A. Fidler and
C. R. Middleton
Assessment of Tame Valley Viaduct
C. West
Construction Materials
Alkali–aggregate reactions: part II
169, No. CM4, August 2016, 179–240
Rilem activities on alkali–silica
reactions: from 1988–2019
B. J. Wigum, J. Lindgård, I. Sims and
P. Nixon
The enigma of the ‘so-called’ alkali–carbonate
reaction
T. Katayama, V. Jensen and C. A. Rogers
Alkali release from aggregates: contribution
to ASR
E. Menéndez, R. García-Rovés and S. Ruiz
Options for minimising the risk of alkali–
aggregate reactions
P. Nixon, B. Fournier and M. D. A. Thomas
Alkali–aggregate reaction: performance
testing, exposure sites and regulations
J. Lindgård, B. Fournier, T. F. Rønning and
M. D. A. Thomas
Expansive chemical reactions in dams and
hydroelectric projects
R. G. Charlwood and I. Sims
Mitigation of alkali–silica reaction in US
highway concrete
K. J. Folliard, M. D. A. Thomas, B. Fournier,
T. Drimalas and G. Ahlstrom
Energy
Smart futures
169, No. EN3, August 2016, 91–138
Performance comparison of UK
domestic renewable incentives
J. R. Snape, P. J. Boait and
R. M. Rylatt
108
Monitor: ICE Proceedings
ICE Publishing: All rights reserved
Smart citizens for smart cities: participating in Temperature in housing: stratification and
the future contextual factors
R. Bull and M. Azennoud M. Baborska-Narozny, F. Stevenson and
Corporate social responsibility at the core of P. Chatterton
new business models Material quantities and embodied carbon
S. Lupini dioxide in structures
Governing effective and legitimate smart grid C. De Wolf, F. Yang, D. Cox, A. Charlson,
developments A. S. Hattan and J. Ochsendorf
P.-A. Langendahl, M. Cook, S. Potter, H. Roby and Reuse of redundant gravels and phyto-
T. Collins conditioned sewage sludge
M. S. M. Chan and I. Wolsey
Engineering and
Computational Mechanics Forensic Engineering
169, No. EM2, June 2016, 43–85 Structural health monitoring
A tablet computer application for 169, No. FE2, May 2016, 29–80
conceptual design Predicting service life from site-
D. Åkesson and J. Lindemann accessed corrosion rate data
Modelling localised fracture of reinforced G. Jones and P. Lambert
concrete structures Assessing temporal requirements for SHM
F. Liao and Z. Huang campaigns
Perforated tunnel exit regions and micro- I. Farreras-Alcover, J. E. Andersen and
pressure waves: geometrical influence N. McFadyen
H. Wang, A. E. Vardy and D. Pokrajac Maintenance of structural integrity using
cathodic protection
S. Beamish, S. El-Belbol and V. Ngala
Engineering History and
Heritage
Geotechnical Engineering
169, No. EH3, August 2016,
169, No. GE4, August 2016,
109–154
319–380
Seismic reinforcement of
Piled-cruciform attachment
historical steel bridges in Japan
to monopile head reduces
H. Isohata, A. Kurebayashi and A. Mori
deflection
Accessibility for the 19th century Naarden-
M. Arshad and B. C. O’Kelly
Bussum railway station, Netherlands
Foundation design and construction for store
N. den Hartog and M. Brinkhuis
in Zagreb, Croatia
Failures of US bridge rocker bearings
Z. Cabarkapa and P. Smith
J. M. Cohen and V. Wetzk
An analytical method for a slope reinforced
Civil engineering heritage: country profile –
with rigid piles
Albania
Y. Zhuang and X. Cui
M. D. Gill
IDM pressure measurements in a large-scale
Civil engineering heritage: country profile –
excavation test
Scotland
M. V. Schwager, M. Amstad and A. M. Puzrin
G. Masterton
Cement stabilisation of crude-oil contaminated
soil
I. A. Akinwumi, C. A. Booth, D. Diwa and P. Mills
Engineering
Sustainability
169, No. ES4, August 2016, Ground Improvement
123–168 169, No. GI3, August 2016,
Development of thermally 157–233
insulated sustainable building Re-examination of compaction
model parameters of fine-grained soils
V. A. Dakwale and R. V. Ralegaonkar G. A. S. Pillai and P. P. Vinod
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3 August 2016
MONITOR:PROCEEDINGS
Strength development in fly ash and slag
mixtures with lime
A. K. Sharma and P. V. Sivapullaiah
Strength indices of high-moisture soils using
handheld gauges
F. Vahedifard, I. L. Howard, W. H. Badran,
W. D. Carruth, M. Hamlehdari and B. D. Jordan
The swelling behaviour of lignosulfonate-
treated expansive soil
D. P. Alazigha, B. Indraratna, J. S. Vinod and
L. E. Ezeajugh
Physico-geotechnical properties of peat and its
stabilisation
P. K. Kolay and Md A. Rahman
Properties of soil after surcharge or vacuum
preloading
S. Gangaputhiran, R. G. Robinson and R. Karpurapu
Management,
Procurement and Law
169, No. MP3, August 2016, 141–186
Effects of an economic downturn
on construction partnering
J. Challender, P. Farrell and F. Sherratt
A chronographic protocol for modelling
construction projects
A. Francis
Public–private partnerships for future urban
infrastructure
S. Alim and J. Polak
Maritime Engineering
169, No. MA2, June 2016, 47–95
Spar concrete monolithic design
for offshore wind turbines
A. Campos, C. Molins, X. Gironella
and P. Trubat
Assessment of three dredging plans for a
wave-dominated inlet
D. S. Mendes, A. B. Fortunato and A. A. Pires-Silva
Chloride penetration of RHA concrete under
marine environment
D. S. Jayanti, J. Mirza, R. P. Jaya, B. H. Abu Bakar,
N. A. Hassan and M. R. Hainin
Non-linear analysis of quay wall combi-pile
infill sheets
H. Ahmed and A. Douglas
Municipal Engineer
Emergency planning and disaster
relief: part I
169, No. ME2, June 2016, 63–124
Natural disasters: an engineer’s
perspective in Nepal
K. Merrilees
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Post-earthquake performance indicators for
sewerage systems
M. Liu, S. Giovinazzi and P. Beukman
Disaster management in Pakistan
M. Malik and H. Cruickshank
Study for assessment of rainfall duration
inducing landslides
C. Chhorn, C.-Y. Yune, G. Kim and S.-W. Lee
Workington: a case study in coordination and
communication
A. Affleck and J. Gibbon
When floods strike close to home
D. Rowley, M. Buckler and J. Barnett
Structures and Buildings
169, No. SB7, July 2016, 469–546
Comparison of code-specific
non‑linear seismic performance
A. Kiani, S. Manie and B. Mansouri
Experimentally based q-factor
estimation of cross-laminated timber walls
L. Pozza, R. Scotta, D. Trutalli, A. Polastri and
I. Smith
Load-bearing capacity of axially loaded circular
concrete-filled steel tubular columns
S. Jegadesh and S. Jayalekshmi
Bond–slip behaviour of steel bars in low-
strength concrete
S. Ahmad, M. M. Rafi, K. Pilakoutas, Q. uz Zaman
Khan, F. Shabbir and M. F. Tahir
Maximum loads on shores during the
construction of buildings
M. Buitrago, J. M. Adam, Y. A. Alvarado,
P. A. Calderón and I. Gasch
Transport
169, No. TR4, August 2016,
185–246
Calibrating truck characteristics
into traffic microsimulation
J. Appiah, B. Naik, L. R. Rilett and
S. Sorensen
Conflicting volume for U-turns at uncontrolled
median openings
S. S. Mohapatra, P. P. Dey and S. Chandra
Evaluating effects of integrated TDM measures
in Nanhai, China
F. Zong, H. Jia, Z. Juan and H. Zhang
Size effects of rubblised PCC on HMA overlay
performance
Y. Lu and Z. Rong
Correlations among railway turnout geometry,
safety and speeds
J. Sadeghi, A. Masnabadi and A. Mazraeh
Analytical method for evaluating top-down
cracking in pavements
Y. Gao
Urban Design and
Planning
169, No. DP4, August 2016, 163–208
Understanding identity and
belonging through incidental
spaces
L. P. Rajendran
Urban resilience: the regeneration of the
Dublin Docklands
A. Doyle
Thinking about resilient cities studying Italian
earthquakes
M. Vona, P. Harabaglia and B. Murgante
Why the urban pattern toward sprawling
development?
K.-C. Hsu, T.-Y. Lai and C.-N. Li
Waste and Resource
Management
169, No. WR2, May 2016,
55–92
Aerobic treatment of leachate
from municipal solid waste in
Morocco
M. Abouri, S. Souabi, M. A. Bahlaoui, F. Zouhir,
M. Baudu, R. Moharram and A. Pala
Towards recycling and waste reduction in
Mohammedia, Morocco
A. El Maguiri, I. Laila, B. Kissi and S. Souabi
Hazardous constituents of e-waste and
predictions for India
S. Ahmed and R. M. Panwar
Recovery of lubricant base oils using ionic
liquid processes
S. M. Grimes and F. Thompson
Water Management
169, No. WM4, August 2016,
155–200
An efficient multi-layer model for
pier scour computations
S. Pournazeri, S. S. Li and
F. Haghighat
Greywater quality changes in a permeable
pavement reservoir
R. K. Chowdhury, S. E. Sharvelle and S. Beecham
Stability criterion for people in floods for
various slopes
J. Xia, Q. Chen, R. A. Falconer, S. Deng and
P. Guo
Gasification of petrochemical sludge in
supercritical water
L. Zhang, Y. Zhang and T. Zhao
Predicting flow rate and sediment in
bifurcated river branches
Q. Du, H. Tang, S. Yuan and Y. Xiao
109
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Award-winning papers for free download

On 7 October 2016 ICE president John Armitt will present awards to the following papers published
in the various ICE Proceedings journals in 2015. Journal editorial panels nominated their best papers
and an awards committee, chaired by Nigel Wright, allocated the awards. These award-winning
papers can be downloaded for free from the ICE Virtual Library’s ‘ICE Publishing Awards 2016’ page at
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Bridge Engineering
Design and static analysis of the Taizhou Yangtze River Bridge, China, by Min Zhang, Tianbao Wan and March Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya
Yingliang Wang Prize
MediaCityUK Footbridge, Salford, UK, by Fabio Gazzola, Steve Thompson and Peter Curran June John Henry Garrood King Medal
Civil Engineering
High-resolution sonars set to revolutionise bridge scour inspections, by Simon Clubley, Constantino Manes and February Bill Curtin Medal
David Richards
The News Building, London: design and construction cantilevering over a live transport hub, by Jack Adams, Bart August Coopers Hill War Memorial
Lemmens and Matt Massey Prize
A review of satellite positioning systems for civil engineering, by Gethin Wyn Roberts, Xu Tang and Chris Brown November Charles Manby Prize
Construction Materials
Fire performance of metal-free timber connections, by Daniel Brandon, Cristian Maluk, Martin Ansell, August Thomas Howard Medal
Richard Harris, Pete Walker, Luke Bisby and Julie Bregulla
Energy
Delivering safe geological disposal of nuclear waste in the UK, by Cherry Tweed, Alun Ellis and Rob Whittleston November James Watt Medal
Engineering and Computational Mechanics
Unsteady Reynolds averaged Navier–Stokes simulations of a buoyant plume above a cylinder, by Stig March Thomas Telford Premium Prize
Grafsrønningen and Atle Jensen
Calculation of fluid–structure interaction: methods, refinements, applications, by Mustafa Can Kara, Thorsten June George Stephenson Medal
Stoesser and Richard McSherry
Engineering History and Heritage
Hinges in historic concrete and masonry arches, by Stefan Holzer and Karen Veihelmann May Benjamin Baker Medal
James Newlands and the origins of the municipal engineer, by Sally Sheard May Thomas Telford Premium Prize
Engineering Sustainability
Towards a sustainable infrastructure company, by Chris Whitehead February Richard Trevithick Memorial Fund
Forensic Engineering
Release of data following a serious incident in the UK construction industry, by John Carpenter August Thomas Telford Premium Prize
Geotechnical Engineering
Seismic stability of braced excavations next to tall buildings, by Nick O’Riordan and Ibrahim Almufti February Russell Crampton Prize
Ground Improvement
Field-scale bio-cementation tests to improve sands, by Michael Gomez, Brian Martinez, Jason DeJong, August Thomas Telford Premium Prize
Chris Hunt, Len deVlaming, David Major and Sandra Dworatzek
Management, Procurement and Law
NEC for DBFO – taking best practice procurement into PPPs, by Richard Patterson and Barry Trebes October Parkman Medal
Maritime Engineering
Littlehaven promenade and seawall, South Shields, UK, by Nick Cooper, Simon Wilson, Tony Hanson, David March Safety in Construction Medal
West and Mike Goodall
Impact of managed realignment design on estuarine water levels, by Nigel Pontee June Halcrow Prize
Municipal Engineer
Investigating ramp gradients for humps on railway platforms, by Taku Fujiyama, Craig Childs, Derrick June James Hill Prize
Boampong and Nick Tyler
Structures and Buildings
Structural development and testing of a prototype house using timber and straw bales, by Daniel Maskell, Chris January Frederick Palmer Prize
Gross, Andrew Thomson, Katharine Wall, Peter Walker and Tim Mander
Transport
Guernsey airport pavement rehabilitation and safety works, by Jonathan Green April William Webb Prize
Reassessing the financial and social costs of public transport, by Xucheng Li and John Preston August Rees Jeffreys Award
Urban Design and Planning
Do sustainability measures constrain urban design creativity?, by Joanne Leach, Christopher Boyko, February Reed and Mallik Medal
Rachel Cooper, Anna Woodeson, Jim Eyre and Christopher Rogers
Waste and Resource Management
Municipal solid waste as a resource: part 1 – specifying composition, by Jade-Ashlee Cox, Michael Mulheron, August Thomas Telford Premium Prize
David Jesson, Angela Druckman, Matthew Smyth and Helen Trew
Water Management
Using climate change projections in UK flood risk assessment, by Ashley Woods August Robert Alfred Carr Prize

110
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MONITOR: ICE REVIEW
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UK infrastructure body ‘official’
In May, while setting out the UK
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the coming year, the Queen confirmed
that the National Infrastructure
Commission chaired by Andrew Adonis
– and of which I am a member – will be
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Setting the commission on a
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the mood in the commission is now
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Studying nature’s engineers
A fascinating paper on termite
engineering in the April 2016 issue
of ICE’s Environmental Geotechnics
journal has been widely covered in the
media. Written by the Indian Institute
of Science in Bangalore, it looked at the
effectiveness of construction techniques
used by the mound-building termite
and their potential application in civil
engineering.
The paper revealed that the well-
documented ‘bio-cementation’ process
used by termites – where grains of soil
are bonded into balls and then stuck
together – actually makes their mounds
ten times stronger than structures built
from unmodified materials.
The paper was widely covered
in engineering and construction
trade publications, many of which
described the termite as one of
nature’s top engineers. Stories like
these – where engineers learn and
benefit from nature – are important
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on engineering. They also show the
breadth of depth of ICE’s international
journal publishing programme – see
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information.
An ICE journal paper revealed that bio-
cementation processes used by termites
makes their structures ten times stronger
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Civil Engineering Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers
Civil Engineering 169 August 2016 Issue CE3
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Pages 113–120 http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00066
A-frame rocker bearing replacement Paper 1500066
Received 29/09/2015 Accepted 03/03/2016
at Humber Bridge, UK
Published online 22/04/2016
Collins and Smith Keywords: bridges/steel structures

ICE Publishing: All rights reserved

A-frame rocker bearing

replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
1 John Collins MEng, CEng, MICE 2 Daniel Smith BSc, IEng, FSOE, FIPlantE
Senior Engineer, Ove Arup, Leeds, UK Senior EPC(m) Project Manager, Fabricom, Great Grimsby, UK;
formerly Project Manager, C Spencer Ltd, Hull, UK

1 2

Routine inspections of the A-frame bearing rockers on the Humber Bridge, UK, led to concerns over lack
of articulation and potential premature wear. Following design optioneering, an innovative scheme was
selected to replace the main span’s A-frames with a pair of vertically orientated pendels and a wind shoe
at each tower, thus separating out the horizontal and vertical forces, with benefits for construction and
maintenance. This paper describes the design and £4 million, 2 year replacement project. The works were
carried out in a very confined environment, and required significant strengthening to the existing bridge
to accommodate the new permanent and temporary design elements. The project was completed in 2015,
all under live traffic, and has ensured the future integrity of this world-class structure.

1. Introduction
Opened in the UK in 1981, the Humber Bridge carries the A15
dual carriageway over the Humber estuary between Hessle, East
Yorkshire and Barton, North Lincolnshire, UK. With its 1410 m
suspended main span, it was the world’s longest single-span bridge
until 1997 (Figure 1).
The highway is carried by a 4·5  m deep steel deck box.
The carriageway is discontinuous at the reinforced concrete towers,
passing onto expansion joints. Each end of the deck boxes at the
towers and anchorages were supported by pairs of steel A-frames
(Figure  2). These elements formed a pinned connection at their
apexes – to the deck box at the top and to the tower and anchorage
abutment at the bottom.
The A-frames provided several functions
■■ free longitudinal movement of the deck boxes while the
supporting catenary above changes shape as traffic crosses the
bridge
■■ free longitudinal movement of the deck boxes against other
effects, notably temperature expansion and contraction, static
and dynamic wind loading
■■ being of low plan torsional stiffness, free plan rotation of the
deck box ends under wind loading
■■ torsional restraint for the deck box against unbalanced
carriageway loading – one A-frame acting in compression, the
opposed A-frame in tension
■■ horizontal restraint to the ends of the deck boxes under wind
loading
■■ vertical load path for a nominal amount of dead load not
carried by the hangers and for a component of traffic load up to
approximately 90 m from the deck box ends.
The total longitudinal displacement accommodated by the main
span A-frames was approximately 2 m.
Through routine inspections, the bridge owner Humber Bridge
Board (HBB) had noted degradation to the main span A-frames.
Gaps that were present between the rocking A-frame and its
supporting structure had closed, suggesting wear of the pin
bearings was taking place (Figure 3).
In 2011, HBB commissioned designer Arup to investigate
further, recommend a single preferred option for refurbishment
or replacement and undertake detailed design. This paper details
this process and describes the resulting 2013–2015 £4 million
construction work by contractor C Spencer.
2. Investigation
2.1 Inspection and monitoring
Upon inspection of all 12 A-frame bearing rockers, only the four
to the main span were noted to be heavily worn. The two rockers
at Hessle tower were particularly heavily worn. Restraining keys
intended to prevent rotation of the pin relative to the tower portal
beam and deck box brackets had been removed. Although the
bearing arrangement prevented full inspection, it was thought and
later proven on demolition that the pin was free to rotate inside the
connecting brackets, causing heavy wear to the bracket holes.

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Civil Engineering A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
Volume 169 Issue CE3 Collins and Smith

162.5 mOD MHWST 3.960 mOD

Hessle Barton

280 m 1410 m 530 m

CL CL CL CL
sidespan Hessle Barton sidespan
anchorage tower tower anchorage
bearing bearing
Elevation
22.9 m
162.5 mOD

CL CL
cable and cable and
hangers hangers
3m 22 m
Deck box Footway
2 lanes = 7.3 m
34.8 mOD
Portal beam
A-frames 4.5 m
6.6 mOD Hessle
9.0 mOD Barton
28.5 m
24.4 m
Elevation of towers Section through deck box Isometric of A-frames

Figure 1. General arrangement of Humber Bridge and view onto an

A-frame rocker bearing

Laser extensometers recording longitudinal displacement of the

Temporary Permanent Deck box Original
pendel pendel strengthening A-frame main span deck box had been set up (Brownjohn et al., 2012). These
concrete were mounted on the tower legs, measuring the varying distance
to the deck box corners. For  example, passage of a 40 t vehicle
After Before results in longitudinal movement over a 20 mm range. Analysis of
the resulting data showed good agreement with a computational
structural model. Extrapolation from a 4 week monitoring period
led to the estimated longitudinal accumulated sliding distance of
the main span being 4·5 km/year, or around 130 km prior to the
A-frame replacement works (Hornby et al., 2012).
Extensometer output demonstrated that the deck box was
articulating as per the original design intent. However, due to
the relatively large height of the A-frames – at 3·8 m tall – and

Tower leg and Transformer Wind shoe

portal beam room

Figure 3. Pin housing at the base of an A-frame (left) and gap closure

Figure 2. The main span deck box arrangement at the towers before formed by elongation of the pin’s hole in supporting bracket plates
and after the works (right, circled in red)

114
Civil Engineering A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
Volume 169 Issue CE3 Collins and Smith

relatively small horizontal displacements, it was not clear to
the naked eye that the frames were rocking to accommodate
longitudinal displacements. If  a pinned bearing were seized, it
is possible that it would form a moment restraint against a free
rocking motion with displacement accommodated by the A-frame
acting in flexure. Such a flexural action on the A-frame would
impose a stress range of approximately 90 N/mm² on extreme
fibres of the frame for each 40 t vehicle crossing the bridge: a
stress range which could result in rapid growth of fatigue cracks.
To determine whether the A-frames were freely rocking, a
simple but effective monitoring regime was instigated. Moiré
tell‑tales, sensitive to differential movements as little as 0·1 mm,
were attached across the A-frame pin-housing–lug-plate interface.
These were visually monitored under displacements imposed
by live load. All  A-frames appeared to be rocking freely under
imposition of live load with the exception of Barton main span’s
A-frames.
From the wear to A-frames at Hessle main span and concerns
over the freedom of rotation of Barton main span’s A-frame
bearings, it was decided that refurbishment or replacement of the
main span A-frames only was required.
3. Option development and design
Six possible options were developed and appraised by the
designer and the bridge owner (Hornby et al., 2012). Aspirational
design life was 120 years, with 50 years on replaceable parts such
as bearings.
Refurbishment or replacement like-for-like was ruled out since
the existing arrangement only achieved 30 years’ life. Consideration
was given to removing all uplift forces, allowing use of a common
spherical sliding bridge bearing. This could be achieved by filling
the end deck box with concrete. The  large quantity of concrete
required made this option untenable. The  existing pin-in-bush
bearing was identified as a particular weak point not only due to
their poor wear performance but also the difficulty of replacement
now and in the future.
Proprietary plane spherical bearings with polytetrafluoroethylene
(PTFE) sliding surfaces are commonly encountered within the
realms of mechanical engineering and were specified. It  was
decided that rather than installing these bearings into new
A-frames, the horizontal and vertical load components would be
separated into vertical pendel and horizontal wind shoe elements
(Figure 2) to simplify installation and future bearing replacement
works.
Pendels (from the German Pendel meaning pendulum) are
rocking single-bar linkages, here positioned in place of the
A-frames and housing a spherical bearing top and bottom.
The  wind shoe is a steel box cantilevering from the deck box,
with opposed sliding bearings providing horizontal reactions.
An inventory of the principal elements is included in Table 1.
Eurocodes were used for determination of load effects and
design of new structural components. Traffic live load to the UK
implementation of BS EN 1991-2 (BSI, 2008) was found to result
in load effects and longitudinal displacements far in excess of the
bridge’s original design load or its bridge specific assessment live
loading. Bespoke amendments to the appropriate factors were

Element Item Number Material Total / comments

Steel (BS EN 10025 (BSI, 2009a), Temporary pendel 4 S355   8·0 t
BS EN 10225 (BSI, 2009b))
Temporary pendel holding-down frame 4 S355   26·5 t
90 mm thick temporary pendel connection plate 4 S355   16·8 t
15 mm thick end diaphragm strengthening plate 4 S355   2·4 t
Upper pendel connection bracket 4 S355   16·0 t
Pendel 4 S355 and S460G2+M   24·8 t
Pendel holding-down frame 4 S355   36·0 t
Wind shoe 2 S355   9·8 t
Total 140·3 t
Threaded connectors BS EN 14399-8 (BSI, 2007) fit bolts >4000 Grade 10.9
Post-tensioned steel bars 144 Macalloy 1030 12·7 t
Bearings Spherical: pendel 8 PTFE, stainless steel RBC Lubron supplied
450 mm dia. pins, pendel 8 Mild steel   7·6 t
Spherical sliding: wind shoe 4 UHMWPE, stainless steel Ekspan supplied
In situ reinforced concrete Deck box strengthening: wind shoe 2 C40/50   11·6 m³
(concrete BS EN 206 (BSI, 2013),
Deck box strengthening: upper pendel connection 4 C50/60   24·8 m³
reinforcement B500B/C to
BS 4449 (BSI, 2005)) Pendel bottom anchorage 4 C40/50   17·0 m³
Wind shoe plinths 4 C40/50   3·4 m³
Side span A-frame plinths 4 C40/50   2·6 m³
Total  59·4 m³
Electrical 3·3 kV cast resin transformers 4 Air cooled Installed by PCS

Table 1. Summary of principal elements

115
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
To allow removal of the
A-frames and installation of the
new pendel without closing the
bridge to traffic, a temporary
pendel arrangement was
designed and implemented
made to develop a live load model representative of the bridge’s
capacity (Collins et al., 2013).
While predominantly under compressive loads (16·4 MN at
ultimate limit state (ULS)), the pendels frequently enter tension
(11·5  MN ULS) when forming a torsional reaction. Loads are
transferred from the pendels into the tower portal beam by a
steel fabricated holding-down frame. To  resist uplift, the frame
is connected by post-tensioned steel bars to the portal beam. This
necessitated formation of a reinforced concrete anchorage inside
a void in the portal beam which houses the bridge’s electrical
transformers and switchgear. The  frame has been designed to take
loads from side spans, should the existing A-frames here require
future replacement.
The top pin of the main span A-frame was just 225 mm in
diameter. To reduce bearing pressure and increase wear life a larger
450 mm pin was designed. However, this larger pin is contained
within the pendel in a geometrically tight area that was only big
enough for the A-frame’s top bearing. High-strength quenched
and tempered steel BS EN 10025-6 S690QL1 (BSI, 2009a) with
enhanced brittle fracture requirements was specified. Specialist
guidance was sought to produce an achievable performance
specification for the pendel’s spherical bearings. This included
close consultation with suppliers at design stage and review of
load and wear tests.
The top pendel bearing and its connecting plate is attached to
the deck box by post-tensioned bars. The bars are anchored against
the penultimate diaphragm. An  existing complex arrangement of
longitudinal diaphragms in this area is strengthened compositely
by reinforced concrete.
To allow removal of the A-frames and installation of the new
pendel without closing the bridge to traffic, a temporary pendel
arrangement was designed and implemented. It was attached to
a new 90 mm thick plate cantilevering from the side of the deck
box, immediately adjacent to the tower leg. This is an area of the
deck box not designed to take large point loads. Steel strengthening
plates 15 mm thick were therefore bolted to the end diaphragm,
providing additional capacity to transfer loads from the temporary
pendel to the A-frame–pendel connection area.
To limit the extent of strengthening works required to transfer
temporary pendel loads, it was specified that the bridge’s nearside
lanes (lane 1, the ‘slow’ lane) in both directions would be closed
to traffic while on temporary pendels. The  main effect of this is
to reduce the torsion on the deck box requiring reaction by the
temporary pendels. When combined with reduced factors for
the relatively short duration that the temporary pendels would
be resisting live load, ULS loads on the temporary pendels were
6·4 MN compression, 2·5 MN tension.
116
A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
Collins and Smith
Bearing
plinth
Cylinder
bearing Min. 2 MPa
Sliding
surface
To accumulator
Figure 4. Wind shoe hydraulically preloaded sliding spherical bearing
arrangement
Opposed sliding spherical bearings are required to the wind shoe
such that wind-induced loads (2·1 MN ULS including a dynamic
wind loading) in either horizontal direction can be resisted and
transferred into the portal beam through new reinforced concrete
plinths. Unless preloaded, the windward side bearing would carry
no load, opening up sliding surfaces to dirt and moisture ingress:
highly undesirable if bearing life is to be maximised. Hydraulic
preloading of bearings to maintain a contact pressure of at least
2 MPa was specified.
While several bearing manufacturers offer bespoke units
incorporating both hydraulic cylinder and bearing, it was felt that
future maintenance and replacement would be made easier if the
cylinder and bearing could be separate, easily procurable items
(Figure 4). Conventional PTFE in sliding surfaces has limited wear
life for high movement cumulative displacements and velocities.
A  silicone-lubricant-impregnated ultra-high molecular weight
polyethylene (UHMWPE) was specified. The  deck box soffit to
which the wind shoe was connected was strengthened by placement
of in situ reinforced concrete.
4. Construction
Construction works commenced in July 2013 and finished in
July 2015. The  £4 million project was procured under the NEC3
Engineering and Construction Contract option A (priced contract
with activity schedule). The designer was retained as NEC project
manager and supervisor.
For accurate fabrication and installation, it was essential
first to survey in three dimensions the faces and edges of the
existing structure. What might otherwise be a simple structural
survey was complicated significantly by the exposed windy
environment and constant movement of the deck box under
traffic loads. Surveying was hence at night in calm winds and
low traffic volumes.
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Figure 5. Removal of lane 1 carriageway expansion joint and
installation of a temporary hinged plate allowed the new fabrications,
such as the permanent pendel base, to be lifted by Hiab loader crane
and lowered onto the portal beam
Bespoke brackets were made so that the survey station could
be fixed directly to the deck box, allowing it to move with the
bridge. Two  surveys were then created: one of the bridge deck
box (moving) and one of the portal beam (stationary). These two
surveys were then brought together by plotting the A-frame’s upper
bearing locus.
The main area for the works, the A-frame bearing shelf atop the
portal beam, is extremely cramped. Working area was increased
by a temporary scaffold cantilevering from the face of the portal
beam. Access to the deck box faces was provide by scaffold affixed
to the steel box, positioned such that it did not clash with other
bridge elements as the bridge moved longitudinally.
High-risk operations, such as lifting of the bulky replacement
components, were meticulously planned. To reduce risks associated
with lifting and working in confined areas, the contractor removed
the lane 1 carriageway expansion joints above the portal beam.
Access for lifting in the large sections of new steelwork was created
by temporary expansion plates (Figure  5). These plates could be
independently hinged open to allow the steelwork to be lowered in
through the carriageway.
Completion of the dimensional survey allowed steelwork
fabrication to start. The  pendels’ spherical bearings were chill-
fitted into the completed pendel arms after fabrication. Aware of
the difficulties of welding some of the high-strength steel grades
specified, the designer’s metallurgical expert, fabricator Allerton
Steel and the contractor’s material consultant Sandberg worked
closely to ensure the high quality of welding and materials
was not compromised. Weld trials to the originally specified
S690QL1 were not successful and a new specification for BS EN
10225 S460G2+M with enhanced toughness and yield strength
requirements was developed.
A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
Collins and Smith
Weld trials to the originally
specified S690QL1 steel
were not successful so a new
specification for S460G2+M
with enhanced toughness and
yield strength was developed
The contractor designed and installed temporary pendels,
with rotational freedom provided at their ends by pins in bearing
bushes of synthetic woven material in a resin matrix incorporating
solid lubricants. During the 15 months on temporary pendels,
these bearings wore to such an extent that they emitted loud
banging noises under deck movements. However, thanks to
close monitoring of strain gauges attached to the temporary
pendels it could be proven that resulting stresses in steelwork
from additional restraint formed by the bearings were of a safe
magnitude.
Before load transfer to the temporary pendels, the wind shoe
and bearing assembly was installed and commissioned. Output
from a pressure transducer allows the bridge owner to monitor
the hydraulic system remotely. The  steel wind shoe was installed
by lowering it through the temporary expansion plates before
transferring the load across the portal beam and under the deck by
the use of a series of lifting points with lever hoists.
The wind shoe and strengthening plates were connected to the
deck box with M24 fit bolts. The selection of these fit bolts reduces
the number of bolts required compared to conventional preloaded
bolts in normal clearance holes. To ensure the fit bolt shank engages
the connected plies in shear, the hole tolerance is just -0/+130 μm.
Holes were drilled and reamed on site with magnetic drills, using
a match-bored template with undersize holes. Quality control of
hole size was by go/no-go gauges on every single hole. All  bolts
were fitted with direct tension indicator washers to verify preload
applied with torqueing by hydraulic wrenches. These performed
very well, offering increased control and reduced noise compared
to impact wrenches.
Load transfer to the temporary pendels was carried out under
live traffic, albeit at night in calm wind conditions to make for
easier monitoring of strain gauges. Taking advantage of the slope
in the A-frame bearings created by 30 years of wear, the bridge was
lifted by jacking up each temporary pendel in turn by two 260 t
low-height, failsafe hydraulic cylinder jacks connected in series to
a hand pump.
The loads in the temporary pendel were monitored by way of
strain gauges. Dial indicators monitored the height of lift of the
A-frame’s bearing housing. When it was determined by reference
to the monitoring equipment that there was no residual load in the
A-frames, they were severed from the deck box by oxyacetylene
cutting (Figure 6). This was repeated at all four corners of the deck
box over successive nights in September 2014.
With load transfer to the temporary pendels complete, the
A-frames were demolished (Figure 7). A survey finding was that
the deck box is significantly non-flat and therefore unsuitable as
a surface for the clamping reaction formed by the post-tensioned
bars. To  overcome this, an ultra-low shrinkage and creep, high-
117
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
strength resin, usually used for chocking of marine machinery
base plates, was used to fill the voids after engineering a minimum
gap between the plates. Such a specialist, high-performance resin
required exacting installation conditions, proven by detailed
trials.
In situ concreting required complex reinforcement fixing and
a highly workable, self-compacting, low-shrinkage concrete.
Extensive trials were undertaken to prove the pouring method into
the tight, enclosed spaces of the deck box and switch room.
Figure 6. Oxyacetylene flame cutting at night following load transfer
from the A-frame (foreground) to the temporary pendel (background)
Figure 7. Gap left by removal of a main span A-frame, restraint being
provided by the temporary pendel (behind) with strain gauges monitored.
An A-frame left unaffected by the works can be seen on the right
118
A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
Collins and Smith
The new pendel was secured to the portal beam by the
holding-down frame, each of the four frames held down by
14 post‑tensioned steel bars. The 50 mm dia. bars passed through
75 mm dia. holes, cored 1·3  m through reinforced concrete
into the portal beam void. To  allow installation of a densely
reinforced 1 m deep concrete anchorage block to the ceiling of
the switch room (Figure 8), C Spencer installed new transformers
in a temporary location on the bridge footways. This allowed
the old transformers to be removed from the working area: an
excellent example of the ‘avoid, reduce, control’ hierarchy of risk
mitigation.
There was inadequate space in the closed lane 1 for a mobile
crane to extend its outriggers fully. To  transfer the steelwork
down between main span and side span deck boxes through the
hinged temporary expansion joint, the contractor used a 175 t/m
Hiab loader crane, modified with a bespoke ballast box on the
rear to carry and install the steel (Figure  5). Off-site trials using
test weights proved the machine could safely operate on reduced
outriggers.
Pendels were manufactured in two halves with a bolted splice
in the middle to aid installation and future bearing replacement.
Accurate survey discipline throughout the drilling and installation
works ensured that when the upper pendel connection was installed
above the pendel base, the two pendel halves aligned well within
tolerance (Figure 9).
Post-tensioned steel bars in the base and upper connection
were each prestressed with 1400 kN prior to load transfer from
the temporary to permanent pendels. Load transfer was again
carried out in calm weather on successive nights with the bridge
remaining open to traffic throughout. The  bolted splice was
installed, followed by immediate lowering of the temporary
Figure 8. Portal beam void’s switchroom, showing new in situ
anchorage for the holding-down frame’s post-tensioned bars on the
ceiling and new transformer in the background
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Figure 9. The lift of the upper pendel connection (left) and achieving
perfect alignment of top and bottom parts of the pendel (right)
pendels, dropping the bridge onto the permanent pendels. This
time the jacking operation had the benefit of strain gauges
providing data for both the temporary and permanent pendels to
determine when all of the load had been transferred. The strain
gauges continue to monitor loads on the pendel, providing
useful data to the bridge owner during unusual wind or traffic
events.
5. Use of three-dimensional modelling
Design was aided by, and contract drawings created from, a
three-dimensional computational model. This model was passed to
the contractor and greatly aided site planning including complex
lifts (Figure  10), explaining works to the client and operatives in
task briefings.
6. Discussion
6.1 Learning points
With increasing awareness of high-strength steels, especially
due to its inclusion in Eurocode standards, there is likely to be
increased specification of grades such as S690 (Baddoo and
The existing deck box was
found to be significantly
non‑flat, eventually leading to
use of a chocking resin. With
hindsight, the cost of creating
access for a pre-works survey
would have been less than the
actual costs ultimately incurred
A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
Collins and Smith
Figure 10. Views from the three-dimensional computational model
of lifts (left) and photographs of the lifts (right), showing temporary
pendel deck plate (top) and permanent pendel base (bottom)
Brown, 2015). From the unsuccessful specification of this grade
in the works, caution would be advised over its use in bridgeworks
with their often demanding fracture toughness requirements
coupled with the heightened risk of hydrogen embrittlement
(Dainelli and Maltrud, 2012).
Difficult access prevented a pre-works survey of the deck box
to which new plates were to be bolted. The  existing deck box
was found to be significantly non-flat: in fact it did not meet the
tolerances specified in the 1970s fabrication drawings. This led to
protracted discussions and analysis to understand whether bolts
would safely draw plates together and use of a chocking resin
around post-tensioned bars. With hindsight, the cost of creating
access for a pre-works survey would have been less than the actual
costs ultimately incurred.
6.2 Project successes
The project was full of unique challenges and their successful
solutions. Of particular note are the following.
■■ The client understood the complexities of their bridge and
allowed adequate time to investigate and understand bridge
behaviour, develop options and design.
■■ Inclusion of third party knowledge by early engagement with
an excellent independent checker who was present when
crucial detailed design decisions were made.
Continuation of design staff to site roles with rapid response to
■■
site queries.
■■ Meticulous planning of site works, aided and communicated
by the same building information model used by the
designer.
■■ Low impact on the public: the bridge remained open throughout
the works.
■■ Experienced and innovative contractor’s design team leading to
versatile, well-detailed temporary works such as the temporary
pendel and temporary expansion joint.
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Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
■■ Highly skilled and disciplined site operatives, able to undertake
a wide variety of complex tasks accurately to the required
quality.
■■ Use of a predominantly Yorkshire-based supply chain,
demonstrating the wide ranging ability of local resources on a
project of high complexity.
7. Conclusion
The finished arrangement of pendel (Figure 11) and wind shoe to
the Humber Bridge’s main span play a critical part in the continuing
safe operation of the bridge.
The works undertaken were the most complex structural works
undertaken on the bridge to date. They exhibit the difficulties and
novel solutions required when working with existing bridges. Close
work between designer and contractor, with meticulous planning
and care while implanting on site, resulted in works befitting one of
the UK’s most spectacular structures.
Figure 11. One of the four completed pendels, attached to a new
bracket at the top, holding-down frame post-tensioned to the portal
beam at the bottom. A bolted strengthening plate can be seen top left
120
A-frame rocker bearing replacement at Humber Bridge, UK
Collins and Smith
The complex structural works
exhibit the difficulties and
novel solutions required when
working with existing bridges
The unique challenges addressed by this project have been
recognised by industry through award of the Institution of
Engineering and Technology’s Sir Henry Royce Award for Young
Professionals 2012 to the Arup author; the Institution of Civil
Engineers’ Yorkshire & Humber Smeaton Award 2015; and
shortlisting for the British Construction Industry Civil Engineering
Project of the Year (up to £10 million) Award 2015.
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful for the support of Humber Bridge Board
in writing this paper. The independent checker for the design was
AECOM. Eadon Consulting Ltd provided design services leading
to the bearing specifications. The  steel fabricator was Allerton
Steel Ltd and electrical works were by Pennine Control Systems.
References
Baddoo N and Brown D (2015) High strength steel. New Steel Construction
23(8): 24–26.
Brownjohn J, Koo KY, Scullion A and List D (2012) Operational deformations
in long span bridges. In Bridge Maintenance, Safety, Management,
Resilience and Sustainability: Proceedings of the Sixth International
IABMAS Conference, Stresa, Lake Maggiore, Italy, 8-12 July 2012
(Biondini F and Frangopol DM (eds)). CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA,
pp. 20–26.
BSI (2005) BS 4449:2005: Steel for the reinforcement of concrete. Weldable
reinforcing steel. Bar, coil and decoiled product. Specification. BSI,
London, UK.
BSI (2007) BS EN 14399-8:2007: High-strength structural bolting assemblies
for preloading. System HV. Hexagon fit bolt and nut assemblies. BSI,
London, UK.
BSI (2008) NA to BS EN 1991-2: 2003. UK National Annex to Eurocode 1:
Actions on structures – Part 2: Traffic loads on bridges. BSI, London, UK.
BSI (2009a) BS EN 10025-6: 2004+A1: 2009. Hot rolled products of
structural steels. Technical delivery conditions for flat products of high
yield strength structural steels in the quenched and tempered condition.
BSI, London, UK.
BSI (2009b) BS EN 10225: 2009. Weldable steels for fixed offshore
structures. Technical delivery conditions. BSI, London, UK.
BSI (2013) BS EN 206:2013: Concrete. Specification, performance,
production and conformity. BSI, London, UK.
Collins J, Hornby SR, Hill P and Cooper J (2013) Humber Bridge A-frame
rocker bearings replacement. IABSE Symposium Report 99(1): 2037–2044.
Dainelli P and Maltrud F (2012) Management of welding operations with
high strength steels. Soudage et Techniques Connexes 66(7–8): 37–42.
Hornby SR, Collins J, Hill P and Cooper J (2012) Humber Bridge A-frame
refurbishment/replacement. In Bridge Maintenance, Safety, Management,
Resilience and Sustainability: Proceedings of the Sixth International
IABMAS Conference, Stresa, Lake Maggiore, Italy, 8-12 July 2012
(Biondini F and Frangopol DM (eds)). CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA, pp.
3170–3177.
Civil Engineering Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers
Civil Engineering 169 August 2016 Issue CE3
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Pages 121–128 http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00063
Evolution of modern mega-buildings in Paper 1500063
Received 19/11/2015 Accepted 16/02/2016
China: innovations and sustainability
Published online 22/04/2016
Wang Keywords: composite structures/concrete structures/
design methods & aids

ICE Publishing: All rights reserved

Evolution of modern mega-

buildings in China: innovations
and sustainability
Aaron J. Wang PhD, CEng, CPEng, FICE, FIStructE, FCIOB, MRICS,
MIEAust
Director, CapitaLand Management (China) Co., Ltd., Shanghai, China

China’s construction boom over the past few decades has led to growing demand for high-rise and ‘mega-
scale’ buildings. Such structures feature sophisticated building services, unique elevations, seamless
connection to infrastructure and high safety levels. Design and construction challenges include hazard
mitigation against extreme actions and environments, integrated structural frameworks and facades,
complex connections and overall constructional efficiency. Civil and structural engineers add value,
enhance engineering efficiency and achieve overall environmental and cost-effectiveness for modern mega-
buildings in China. This paper introduces the design and construction of four of such projects. It reviews
the evolution of modern mega-buildings, including aspects of integrated engineering design, construction
technology, value engineering and overall sustainability.

1. Introduction ■■ Raffles City Chengdu – this mixed development consists of

With the booming construction industry in China, the demand
for high-rise and ‘mega-scale’ buildings has increased over the past
few decades. The  main features of such mega-buildings include:
being big in scale with more integrated building functions and
a more significant carbon dioxide footprint; open and tailored
building elevations with a better incorporation into the community;
seamless linkage to municipal infrastructures; and higher levels of
building safety provision and hazard mitigation.
The design and construction of such modern mega-buildings
need to conquer engineering challenges in hazard mitigation against
extreme actions and environment, integrated structural frameworks
and facades, complex connection and overall constructional
efficiency. Civil and structural engineers add value, enhance overall
engineering efficiency and achieve overall environmental and cost-
effectiveness for modern mega-buildings in China.
This paper introduces the design and construction of four such
mega-developments situated in different major cities of China, as
follows.
five 110 m bespoke high-rise towers including offices, hotels,
serviced apartments and a four-storey shopping mall plus a
four-storey basement car park. The project is complete and has
been open to the public since 2012 (Wang and Hong, 2015).
■■ International Trade Centre, Tianjin – this is a brownfield
development based on an unfinished building of 18-storey steel
frame works and half-completed basement works. The  new
design includes a total of one 250 m tall steel hotel tower, two
180 m tall composite office towers, a five-storey commercial
podium and three-storey basement. The  re-development
includes the re-use of a large portion of the existing structural
frameworks and the associated strengthening works.
Looking at the engineering design, construction and management
on these four projects, the evolution of modern mega-buildings
is considered. This covers the aspects of integrated engineering
design, construction technology, value engineering and overall
sustainability.

■■ Raffles City Hangzhou – the project is located in the central
business district of Hangzhou, China, and consists of two
60-storey 250  m tall super-high-rise twisting towers, a
commercial podium and three-storey basement car park.
The overall construction floor area of the project is 390 000 m2.
■■ Raffles City Chongqing – designed by architect Moshe Safdie,
this top-end mixed development project includes a total of
six mega-high-rise towers, ranging in height from 250 m to
370 m and including offices, hotels, residential and serviced
apartments, a sky conservatory, a four-storey shopping mall
and a four-storey basement car park. The  overall completed
floor area of the project is over 1 million m2.
2. Value through engineering
Value engineering is a systematic method to improve the ‘value’
of goods or products and services by using an examination of
function. Value, as defined, is the ratio of function to cost. Value
can therefore be increased by either improving the function
or reducing the cost (Cooper and Slagmulder, 1997). Value
engineering in a building project does not simply mean a cost
reduction, but also an enhancement in building performance and
construction productivity from a whole-life cycle point of view.
Structural engineers create value through rigorous engineering
approaches.

121
Civil Engineering Evolution of modern mega-buildings in
Volume 169 Issue CE3 China: innovations and sustainability
Wang

In Raffles City Hangzhou, a composite moment frame plus Table 2. Thus, option 3 was selected to be the outer moment frame
concrete core structural system was adopted for the 250 m tall of the tower structures, with a relatively low cost, controllable
tower structures. A total of three outer frame forms were studied as constructability and reasonable building functions.
follows Figure  1(a) shows the structural frameworks of the tower
structures. Figure  2 shows the site construction of the main
■■ option 1: steel floor beams together with concrete-filled steel structure. The main structure of the project was completed in late
tubular columns 2014. It was demonstrated that a 5 d cycle was achievable in typical
■■ option 2: concrete floor beams together with steel-reinforced floors with the adopted structural form.
concrete columns
■■ option 3: steel-reinforced concrete beams together with
concrete-filled steel tubular columns. 3. Joints – the frontier to conquer
Cost comparison and work breakdown analyses were conducted The detailing of joints is always a frontier to conquer during the
for a typical tower floor; the results are shown in Tables 1 and 2, design of modern high-rise composite buildings. The rigidity and
respectively. It  was concluded that option 3 – steel-reinforced ductility requirements of composite joints are covered in various
concrete floors beams together with concrete-filled steel tubular prevailing design codes (AISC, 2005; Brockenbrough and Merritt,
columns – and the reinforced-concrete-dominant option 2 2006; BSI, 2005; MHURD, 2010, 2011; SCI and BCSA, 2002).
shared similar low construction costs. On  other hand, the overall
construction cycle of option 3 was much lower as a result of
breaking through the critical path of column construction with Option 1: steel floor Option 2: reinforced Option 3: steel-
permanent formworks of steel tubular columns. The  construction beams plus concrete- concrete floor beams reinforced concrete
filled steel tubular plus steel-reinforced floor beams plus
cycle per typical floor was estimated to be 5 d, as shown in columns concrete columns concrete-filled steel
tubular columns
Work Days Work Days Work Days
Item Option 1: Option 2: Option 3: steel-
breakdown breakdown breakdown
steel floor reinforced reinforced
beams plus concrete floor concrete floor Erection of steel 0·5 Circular column 1 Erection of steel 0·5
concrete-filled beams plus beams plus tubular columns formwork tubular columns
steel tubular steel-reinforced concrete-filled
Erection of edge 0·5 Column 1 Erection of edge 0·5
columns concrete steel tubular
beams reinforcement beams
columns columns
Erection of floor 1·5 Erection of edge  0·5 Erection of floor 1·5
Concrete: m3/m2      0·54      0·97      0·97
steel beams beams steel beams
Reinforcement 110 117 102
Reinforcement 1·5 Erection of floor  1·5 Reinforcement 1·5
tonnage: kg/m2
in slab and walls steel beams in slabs and
Steel tonnage: kg/m2 118  62  68 walls
Formwork: m2/m2      0·97     2·1     2·1 Concrete 1·0 Reinforcement in  1·5 Concrete 1·0
pouring slabs and walls pouring
Profiled steel      0·82 – –
decking: m2/m2 Concrete  1·0
pouring
Overall cost ratio 149% 100% 105%
(option 2 = 100%) Total 5·0 Total  6·5 Total 5·0

Table 1. Cost comparison of structural options at Raffles City Table 2. Time comparison of options for typical floor construction at
Hangzhou Raffles City Hangzhou

(a) (b) (c)

+ + =

Concrete Composite Concrete

core moment frame beams & slabs

Figure 1. Raffles City Hangzhou: (a) tower structural system; (b) views

of composite moment frame; (c) completed tower

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Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Figure 2. Construction of Raffles City Hangzhou twin towers
In Raffles City Hangzhou, the structural design of the composite
connection between concrete-filled steel tubular columns and steel-
reinforced concrete beams needed to safeguard the overall structural
stability through fully rigid connections as well as maximise
internal space. The  conventional ring-beam-type composite
connection was considered to be bulky and not suitable because
of its inference with facade erection and interior decoration.
An  innovative and high-performance corbel-type composite
connection was proposed to achieve a fully rigid connection with
a minimum intrusion into the interior space (Lou and Wang, 2015;
Wang, 2015). The  proposed corbel-type composite joints include
the following key components, as shown in Figure 3.
■■ The corbel and ring stiffener was butt-welded to the concrete-filled
steel tubular column: to ensure a full-strength rigid connection, the
I-section corbel was enlarged and stiffened together with a ring
stiffener welded inside the steel tube, so that the overall rigidity
and load-carrying capacity of the connection is not less than that
of a typical steel-reinforced concrete beam section.
■■ The tapered section from the corbel to the steel beam: to ensure
a smooth loading and stress transfer from the corbel in the joint
region to the ordinary steel-reinforced concrete beam, a tapered
steel section was proposed with a slope of 1:6.
■■ The steel section in the steel-reinforced concrete beam: the
ordinary I-steel section in the composite steel-reinforced
concrete beam was fully connected to the outer edge of the
corbel through full bolted joints on both flanges and webs.
(a) (b)
Figure 3. Connection test and numerical simulation: (a) test set-up;
(b) finite-element models
Evolution of modern mega-buildings in
China: innovations and sustainability
Wang
■■ Lapped reinforcement bars: all the longitudinal reinforcements
were lapped around the flanges of the steel corbel, so that both
the loads and stress could be transferred from the longitudinal
main reinforcements onto the corbel in the connection region.
Physical tests under both static and cyclic loads were conducted
to investigate the load-carrying capacities and deformation
characteristics of this new type of composite connection according
to both ASTM (2011) and CABR (1997) specifications. Figure 3(a)
shows the overall set-up of the tests. Various structural responses
were examined in detail, including load–deformation characteristics,
the development of sectional direct and shear strains and the history
of cumulative plastic deformation and energy. A three-dimensional
(3D) finite-element (FE) model built up with solid elements was
also proposed and carefully calibrated incorporating the material,
boundary and geometrical non‑linearities, as shown in Figure 3(b).
Figures 4(a) and 4(b) present the results of the monotonic
tests on specimens SP1 and SP2. A  close observation on the
strain development also shows that the direct tensile strain at the
top flange is 30–50% higher than the compressive strain of the
bottom flanges due to the contribution of the concrete material.
It is noted that the shear strain in the web is significantly smaller
than the strain in the flange, which is just above the yield strain.
This is preferred for a high-rise building in a seismic-sensitive
region like Hangzhou, where the project is located (Lou and Wang,
2015). The quasi-static cyclic loading tests were conducted on both
specimens SP3 and SP4. Figures 4(c) and 4(d) present the load–
deflection and moment–rotation curves of specimens SP3 and
SP4. The cumulative plastic deformations of both specimens SP3
and SP4 are 0·3 and 0·24 rad respectively, which correspond to 88
and 80 times the first yield rotation of the composite connections.
This, again, demonstrates the high ductility and energy-absorbing
capacities of the corbel-type composite connections.
To study the structural behaviour of the corbel-type composite
connection, a generalised non-linear 3D FE model was set up using
the commercial FE package Ansys 12.1 (Ansys, 2011). The meshes
of the FE model are shown in Figure 3(b). To simplify the problem
and save computational time, only half of the specimen was modelled.
The  FE simulation gave a quite close prediction of the load–
deformation characteristics in the connection regions, which was
demonstrated through the comparison of the load–deformation curves
at the end of the connection corbel (Lou and Wang, 2015; Wang,
2015). Both the experimental and numerical studies demonstrated
the high rigidity, strength and rotation capacities of the corbel-type
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Civil Engineering Evolution of modern mega-buildings in
Volume 169 Issue CE3 China: innovations and sustainability
Wang

(a) (b)
350 350
Applied load, P: kN

Applied load, P: kN
300 300
250 250
200 200
150 150
100 End of the cantilever (inclimometer 6) 100 End of the cantilever (inclimometer 6)
End of the corbel (inclimometer 3) End of the corbel (inclimometer 3)
50 50
End of the tapered section (inclimometer 4) End of the tapered section (inclimometer 4)
0 0
0 25 50 75 100 125 150 0 25 50 75 100 125 150
Deflection: mm Deflection: mm
(c) (d)
400 400

300 300

200 200
Applied load, P: kN

Applied load, P: kN

100 100

0 0
–150 –100 –50 50 100 150 –150 –100 –50 50 100 150
–100 –100

–200 –200

–300 –300

–400 –400

Deflection, Δb: mm Deflection, Δb: mm

Figure 4. Load–deflection curves: (a) specimen SP1; (b) specimen SP2;

(c) specimen SP3; (d) specimen SP4

composite connections, and gave detailed structural understanding for
engineering design and practice. As such, the corbel-type composite
joint was verified to be of high strength, rigidity and ductility and
suitable for high-rise buildings in seismic regions.
4. Engineering against the extreme
The design and construction of high-rise buildings in China
require a rigorous consideration of earthquake and wind actions.
In  current national seismic design codes (MHURD, 2010, 2011),
performance-based design approaches are introduced, which
require a structurally complex building to meet the corresponding
stringent requirements under minor, moderate and major
earthquakes with 50-year exceedence rates of 63%, 10% and 2–3%
respectively. ‘Dual system’ requirements also need to be met for
tall buildings in many circumstances. Wind is another concern
for many Chinese coastal cities, where typhoons are normally an
issue. The structural engineer normally faces the double challenges
of extreme loads from both wind and earthquakes, and needs to
achieve both overall structural and spatial efficiency. Energy-
dispersing devices, like dampers and isolating bearings, are
becoming more commonly used in high-rise buildings to enhance
the overall structural performance under disastrous loads.
The engineering design of the sky conservatory in Raffles City
Chongqing allows for semi-continuous connection between the
conservatory decking structures and four of the tower structures
below. Figure 5(a) shows the overall structural configuration. Friction
pendulum bearings are adopted between the decking structures and
supporting tower structures. A friction coefficient of 5% was chosen
after detailed consultation with the bearing suppliers. The bearings
work with viscous dampers and disperse the seismic energy on the
occurrence of various levels of earthquake and relative movement
between the tower and the conservatory. The  overall engineering
design also uses the mass of the conservatory to disperse the seismic
energy and control the lateral deflection of the tower structures – as
such, a ‘mass damping’ mechanism is facilitated.
Figure  5(b) shows the overall effectiveness of a mass-damping
effect on the base shear onto towers at various levels of earthquake.
Generally, 35–40% of the base shear is reduced due to this innovative
configuration between the conservatory and tower structures, which
leads to significant saving in building materials in columns and core
walls. The steel-reinforced concrete structural moment frame together
with the core wall system was adopted for all of the 250 m towers in
Raffles City Chongqing. The structural design of the project tackled
multiple structural irregularities in an intensity 6·5 seismic zone.
Shaking table tests were conducted on the linked towers to verify
the effectiveness of mass damping and the structural adequacy of the
buildings under moderate to extreme earthquakes. Figure 6(a) shows
the test set-up under various levels of earthquake, while Figure 6(b)
shows the bearing details adopted in a 1:25 scale physical model.
An innovative type of steel–concrete hybrid outrigger truss was
also developed in two 370 m tall mega-high-rise towers in Raffles
City Chongqing (Wang, 2015), in which the steel truss is embedded
into the reinforced concrete outrigger wall as shown in Figures
7(a) and 7(b). Both the steel truss and concrete outrigger wall work

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Wang

(a) (b) 600

Level 3
500
Level 2

Base shear: MN
Secondary truss 400 Level 1 Capacity
Main truss of top
of wall
300

200

100
Wind
0 shear

Option 1 – fixed

Option 2 – fixed
with damper

Option 3A – FPB 5%

Option 3B – FPB 15%

Option 4A – FPB 5%
damping

Option 4B – FPB 15%

damping
Bearings

Figure 5. Raffles City Chongqing sky conservatory mass damping

arrangement (a); effect on base shear (b) (FPB, friction pendulum
bearing)

(a) (b)

Figure 6. Shaking table tests on linked towers at Raffles City Chongqing

compositely to enhance the overall structural performance of the (a) (b) (c)
tower structures under extreme loads. Meanwhile, low-yield steel
dampers were also adopted as a ‘fuse’ device between the hybrid
outrigger and the mega-column. The dampers were designed to yield
first under moderate to severe earthquakes to protect the structural
integrity of important structural components of the hybrid outrigger.
As such, no brittle failure occurs in the reinforced concrete portion
of the hybrid outrigger system. Figure  7(c) shows the numerical
simulation of the hybrid outrigger system under earthquake loading.
The design allowed the contractor to break through the critical
path of the time-consuming welding on the steel outrigger trusses Figure 7. Hybrid outrigger system: (a) hybrid outrigger; (b) reinforced
concrete outrigger wall; (c) numerical simulation under earthquake
in the floors, and ‘shoot’ the core first by leaving the construction
joints between the core and the outrigger walls. This helps to shorten
the overall construction period of the tower. As  per verification actions. The  hybrid outrigger system exhibits sufficient ductility
tests, low-yield steel dampers work effectively under level 2 and 3 under seismic actions under the effective protection of the fuse
earthquakes and enhance overall structural performance. Both FE device of low-yield-steel dampers. Figure 8(b) shows the results of
modelling and physical component tests were conducted to verify the 3D FE simulation. This demonstrated sufficient ductility at the
the effectiveness of the hybrid outrigger system. Figure 8(a) shows fuse device while cracks in the concrete outrigger wall were well
the overall test set-up and load–deflection curves under cyclic controlled, even under the action of a severe earthquake.

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Wang

(a) 800

600

400

Applied load, P: kN
200

–200

–400

–600

–800
–8 –6 –4 –2 0 2 4 6 8
Deflection: mm
(b)

Figure 8. Study on hybrid outrigger: (a) physical tests test set-up and
load–deflection curves; (b) finite‑element modelling

5. Integrated building facade and digitalised between reinforcement and steel sections. Both construction
mock-ups and a 3D computer tool were adopted to assess
design buildability, allowing for reasonable construction tolerances and
working space. Stiffener and gusset plates were adopted to transfer
Modern computerised design tools allow the designer to break
the loading from the reinforcement into the joint region without
through the barrier of conventional modular design and work on
sacrificing structural continuity and rigidity. Figure 10 shows the
a 3D platform. Nowadays, more free-form tailor-made building
construction mock-up and computer visualisation model.
facades can be achieved in a more creative way. Structural engineers
Building information modelling (BIM) was adopted in both
are now equipped with 3D design technology such that they can
Raffles City Chongqing and Raffles City Hangzhou to sort out
produce structural frameworks suited to the building facade.
the complex building shapes and possible conflict at particularly
As  shown in Figure  1(b) for Raffles City Hangzhou, structural
complex locations such as the basement, plant floors, cores and
members are tailored to support the facade outer skin, and form the
conservatory. A  BIM protocol was set up among the various
modern appearance of the building. Both the structural engineer
design parties and contractor to streamline management
and main contractor worked collaboratively on a 3D platform to
procedures, and a BIM manager was employed to administer the
establish the setting-out information on site.
daily model operation and design coordination. The  civil and
Raffles City Chengdu used high-strength light-colour in situ
structural BIM model was issued to the tenderers as part of the
concrete in its outer frame, which forms part of the facade system
tender documents to assess the possible major dynamic conflicts
together with the window wall as shown in Figure  9 (Wang and
in the complex site logistics, like installation of major steel
Hong, 2015). The  unit cost for the concrete was higher than
works and facade panels.
ordinary concrete, yet the integrated design greatly reduced the
glass coverage areas. As  such, overall cost-effectiveness was
achieved for the facade system. Several trial mixes were conducted
in the tendering and construction stages to ensure the finish and 6. Overall sustainability and brownfield projects
concrete colour met the architectural design intent, and the
mechanical properties met the engineering design requirements. All the previously discussed aspects and technologies facilitate
In addition, durability tests such as chloride penetration tests and a more efficient and better-integrated engineering design and
concrete curing tests were also performed to ensure an alkaline- construction. This will contribute positively to the overall
dominant concrete mixture with acceptable crack width. sustainability of the building construction and development through
The project also faced another challenge of composite joints the reduced usage of building materials and less tedious effort and
in the steel-reinforced concrete columns, beams and diagonal energy consumption in site implementation. As  such, the overall
members, leading to special complexity and possible conflicts carbon dioxide footprint throughout the building development can

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Figure 9. Raffles City Chengdu
be reduced accordingly. Some of the key issues that need to be
considered through the engineering of mega-projects include
■■ controlled building footprint and aspect ratio
■■ proper composition of concrete, reinforcement and steel
materials to achieve optimal embodied carbon dioxide emissions
■■ possible use of seismic- and wind-energy-dispersing devices to
prevent over-sized structural members and enhance the overall
engineering efficiency
■■ consideration of carbon dioxide footprint from material supply
and transportation, especially for some precast concrete and
structural steel components
■■ reuse of existing buildings and structural framework through
brownfield development.
Figure  11 shows a computer program developed to carry out
structural design optimisation towards the most cost- and energy-
efficient structural layouts on typical residential blocks. Multiple
constraints on structural member sizes and reinforcement ratios can
be assigned as input conditions, and the computer program, linked
with commercial structural analysis software, can interact and reach
a structural layout dually optimised for cost and energy effectiveness.
(a) (b)
Figure 10. Raffles City Chengdu composite facade joints: (a) under
construction; (b) construction mock-up; (c) screenshot of computer model
Evolution of modern mega-buildings in
China: innovations and sustainability
Wang
Maximising possible reuse of existing structural frameworks
is always a priority in a brownfield development. This not only
leads to more cost-effective design, but is also an energy-efficient
engineering solution. Necessary alteration and strengthening works
need to be conducted to fit the newly defined building functions and
general layout plans. For  steel frameworks, de‑rusting, corrosion
treatment and fire-proofing need to be redone. The  International
Trade Centre, as shown in Figure 12, is an example of a brownfield
development that CapitaLand undertook in the downtown area of
Tianjin. The  engineering and construction of the project is being
carried out on an unfinished steel skeleton with half-finished
basement concrete works. Rigorous de-rusting work was conducted
with visual mock-ups regarding finished surfaces. The strengthening
works involved both enlarged member sizes on existing steel beams
and columns and concrete works in the basement. Both metal and
viscous dampers were designed and installed to ensure the overall
structural stability and integrity under wind and seismic actions.
7. Conclusions
This paper introduces the design and construction of four mega-
building projects in China. Looking at the evolution of engineering
design, construction and management on these projects, the
following conclusions are reached.
Value engineering in a building project does not only mean a
cost reduction, but an enhancement in building performance and
construction productivity from a whole-life point of view as well.
Structural engineers can create value through rigorous engineering
approaches.
Structural engineers need to face the double challenges of
resisting extreme loads from both wind and earthquakes, and
ensure the overall structural and spatial efficiency at the same time.
Energy-dispersing devices, like dampers and isolating bearings, are
becoming more commonly used in high-rise buildings to enhance
the overall structural performance under high environmental loading.
Detailing of joints is always a frontier to conquer during the design
of modern high-rise composite buildings. The rigidity and ductility
requirements of composite joints need to be met. Three-dimensional
computer tools, verification tests and construction mock-ups should
be used for some especially complex composite joints.
(c)
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Wang

Nowadays, free-form bespoke building facades can be achieved
in a more creative way through digitalised working platforms.
Structural engineers need to equip themselves with 3D design
technology, and produce structural frameworks compatible or
integrated with building facades.
All the above-introduced aspects of evolution facilitate a more
efficient and better-integrated engineering design and construction.
This contributes positively to the overall sustainability of the
building construction and development through reduced use
Embodied carbon
of building materials and less effort and energy consumption.
As such, the overall carbon dioxide footprint throughout a building
development can be reduced accordingly.
References
AISC (American Institute of Steel Construction) (2005) ANSI/AISC 360-05:
Specification for structural steel buildings. AISC, Chicago, IL, USA.
Ansys (2011) User’s Manual Version 12.1. Ansys Inc., Canonsburg, PA, USA.
ASTM (2011) E2126-11: Standard test methods for cyclic (reversed) load
test for shear resistance of vertical elements of the lateral force resisting
systems for buildings. ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA, USA.
Brockenbrough RL and Merritt FS (2006) Structural Steel Designer’s

Handbook. American Institute of Steel Construction, Chicago, IL, USA.

BSI (2005) BS EN 1993-1-8:2005: Eurocode 3: Design of steel structures,
Part 1.8: Design of joints. BSI, London, UK.
CABR (China Academy of Building Research) (1997) JGJ101-1996: Specification
of test methods for earthquake resistant building. CABR, Beijing, China.
Cooper R and Slagmulder R (1997) Target Costing and Value Engineering.
Productivity Press, Portland, OR, USA.
Lou GB and Wang AJ (2015) Studies into a high performance composite
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
connection for high-rise buildings. Steel and Composite Structures 19(4):
Cycle number 789–809.
MHURD (The Ministry of Housing and Urban–Rural Development) (2010)
GB50011-2010: Code for seismic design of buildings. The Ministry of
Housing and Urban–Rural Development, Beijing, China.
MHURD (2011) JGJ3-2010: Technical specification for concrete structures
of tall buildings. The Ministry of Housing and Urban–Rural Development,
Cost

1 2
Figure 11. Examples of numerical optimisation of embodied carbon
dioxide and construction cost
Beijing, China.
SCI and BCSA (The Steel Construction Institute and the British Constructional
Steelwork Association Limited) (2002) Joints in Steel Construction.
The Steel Construction Institute, Ascot, UK.
Wang AJ (2015) Re-engineering composite connections for a higher
construction and cost effectiveness. In Proceedings of the 11th
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 International Conference on Advances in Steel and Concrete Composite
Cycle number Structures, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China (Han LH, Li W and Lam D
(eds)). Tsinghua University Press, Beijing, China, pp. 538–543.
Wang AJ and Hong Y (2015) Raffles City Chengdu, China: achieving a sunlight-
influenced design. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers – Civil
Engineering 168(2): 81–88, http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/cien.14.00062.

(a) (b) (c) (d)

Figure 12. International Trade Centre, Tianjin: (a) before de-rusting;

(b) after de-rusting; (c) protection to surroundings; (d) project graphic

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Civil Engineering Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers
Civil Engineering 169 August 2016 Issue CE3
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Pages 129–135 http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00081
Launching of Leigh Road Paper 1500081
Received 25/11/2015 Accepted 11/01/2016
Bridge, Slough, UK
Published online 03/03/2016
O’Connor, Attrill, Gibb and Oh Keywords: bridges/steel structures/temporary works

ICE Publishing: All rights reserved

Launching of Leigh Road Bridge,

Slough, UK
1 Mike O’Connor BEng, MSc, CEng, MICE 3 Iain Gibb BSc, CEng, FICE
Technical Manager, Osborne, St Albans, UK Design Team Leader, Peter Brett Associates LLP, Reading, UK
2 Malcolm Attrill BSc, MSc, CEng, FICE 4 Soon Hee Oh BEng (Hons), MSc
Engineering Manager, Osborne, Reigate, UK Engineer, Peter Brett Associates LLP, Reading, UK

1 2 3 4

Leigh Road Bridge, a road-over-rail bridge crossing the Great Western route in Slough, UK, is believed to
be only the second bridge in the country to have been launched across a railway using trailers. It is also
one of the largest structures constructed by this method anywhere in the world. During the sliding stage
of the launch a significant unforeseen incident occurred when the launch structure nose suddenly slid
laterally, damaging some of the key temporary works. The project team worked collaboratively to restore
the position and complete the launch without disruption to rail traffic and open the scheme to road traffic
on time. Both the methodology and the successful realignment operation led to important conclusions and
learning points for future launches of this type.

1. Design of permanent works and launch
structure
Slough Trading Estate, UK, is Europe’s largest trading estate
in single ownership. At  present the owner, Segro plc, has a
redevelopment programme running. The  estate is bisected by the
four east–west tracks of the Great Western route of Network Rail
(owner and maintainer of Britain’s heavy rail network). The railway
is crossed by an existing 1836 Brunel brickwork twin-arch
bridge owned by Network Rail at Leigh Road, which provides a
sub-standard, narrow, signal-controlled single-way crossing for
traffic with no segregated provision for pedestrians and cyclists.
The vision to improve this situation required the owner to promote
a scheme to provide a safer and more accessible route through the
central core of the estate by way of a new adjacent overbridge which
would be adopted by Slough Borough Council, which also acted as
the technical approval authority under BD2/12 (HA, 2012).
Design concept considerations were influenced not only by
the tight vertical highway alignment constraints, but also the
construction methodology. Peter Brett Associates and Osborne,
the owner’s appointed design consultant and civil engineering
contractor, respectively, formed a design-and-build team under
the NEC3 Engineering and Construction Contract option A form
of contract. Initially three superstructure forms were considered: a
crane-lifted lattice arch; deck beams involving multiple lifts; and a
launched through-girder deck.
Further considerations showed the third option to have the lowest
operational rail disruption impact and cost estimate. The resulting
design development gained the client’s acceptance. To  satisfy the
alignment profile and associated highway network tie-ins a vertical
curve profile was required for the permanent span. Multiple railway
possessions could not be accommodated for the construction phase
due to coincident Crossrail works (the east–west rail link being
constructed across London) planned through the site. Therefore,
the delivery team worked to devise a detailed method for a
launched structure and began the necessary initial consultations
with the various parties, particularly Network Rail.
As early as 2004 the contractor had been involved in developing
the concept of a trailer-based launch of a proposed bridge near
Hemel Hempstead, UK, which did not happen at the time, but
is now being progressed. This concept was incorporated into the
methodology described in a paper by Marples and Richings (2014),
which proposed best practice following an overline bridge launch
at the A406 North Circular Road in 2010.
The available site for the scheme required demolition in advance
of provision for a large site compound (Figure 1). To minimise rail
interfaces the supports for the permanent bridge were positioned
outside the Network Rail boundary, resulting in edge girders
52·95 m long and having a 51 m span at a 15° skew (Figure 2).
Weathering steel was chosen to avoid costly future maintenance
painting over the railway. To accommodate the prescribed carriageway,
cycleways and footways the edge girder webs were positioned 15·3 m
apart. This girder spacing, span, road vertical curve profile and
precamber for the dead load deflections resulted in variable-depth
edge girders with a maximum height of 3800 mm enabling their webs
to be sourced from standard weathering steel plate depth.

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(a)
51 000 mm skew

Great Western
main line

Buildings demolished
to enable new road (b)
construction 2000 mm 1500 mm 7000 mm 1500 mm 2000 mm
Proposed bridge
location adjacent to
the existing bridge

1800 mm
min.
130 mm
325 mm
Extent of works 1:40
1:40
1:40 1:40
Site compound and
bridge assembly area
A4 Bath Road

Figure 2. Bridge elevation (a) and section (b)

(a)

1300 mm
878 mm

Figure 1. Aerial view of site in the centre of the Slough Trading Estate

The deck of the permanent bridge was steel/concrete composite

construction with a 250 mm concrete slab (Figure 2). It was formed
17 485 mm
8230 mm
56 758 mm

14 000 mm
on permanent steel plate between deck cross-girders, which provided
a closed construction platform over the railway once launched.
To launch the structure, the contractor had engaged specialist
expertise for moving large and heavy loads using self-propelled (b)
modular transporters. A  16 m long temporary tail supporting the
required 380 t counterweight and a torsionally stiffened 27 m long
temporary nose were added to the permanent steelwork. The resulting
all-steelwork launch structure had an overall skew length of almost
96 m and weight of 1122 t (including counterweight), which could be
assembled in an area 250 m from the final bridge position. 27 000 mm 52 950 mm 16 000 mm
Launching required a structure capable of cantilevering 57 m
(c)
(Figure  3) to enable the transporters to get close to the south
abutment and land the nose onto rubber slide bearings on jacks
on the north side. Once the leading transporter was removed the
launch structure became simply supported with a span of almost
91 m for advancing by sliding.
The UK design document recording the basis for scheme
detailed design methods and checking (approval in principle) for
the permanent highway structure was accepted by Slough Borough
Council in early 2013. It  was also necessary to satisfy Network
Rail standards and, as the method of installation was classified as
novel, its common safety method on risk evaluation and assessment Figure 3. Cantilever launch in (a) elevation, (b) plan and (c) isometric
(NR/L2/RSE/100/02 (Network Rail, 2012a) and PAN/S&Sd/
CD/INS/0081 (Network Rail, 2014). For  certifications both the
permanent and launch structures were subject to category  3 the chosen fabricator’s factory set-up. Because of the torsional
checking by Tony Gee & Partners. susceptibility of the main bridge structure without its composite
The permanent and launch structures were analysed using the deck, the nose of the all-steelwork launch structure was made
Midas Civil three-dimensional finite-element package. The  nose torsionally robust with lateral and top and bottom longitudinal plan
and tail were also formed using plate girder edge members to suit bracing (Figure 3).

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Nevertheless, launch model analysis revealed significant It was vital that the delivery team (contractor/launcher/designer/
deflections during both cantilever and simply supported checker) had a combined understanding of all the mechanisms
conditions due to the skew spans and the hydraulic performance affecting the launch methodology. Deformations within the
of the transporters. It  therefore became important to predict the launch structure and its supports were recognised as critical
deflection profile of the structure to assist planning of the launch for the operational integrity to achieve the launch geometry
methodology and ensure that the resulting levels of the launch constraints. Consequently, regular launch workshops were held by
structure could be adjusted for transportation, landing, transporter the contractor and attended by the launch contractor, the design
removal and jack down. consultant and the checker.
The layout of the self-propelled modular transporters enabled
a stable, statically determinate three-point support system to be
2. Launch preparation and method development devised throughout the launch. The  hydraulic linkages within
and between the transporters also allowed the complete launch
The self-propelled modular transporters offered the most structure with its transporter supports to deform such that no
advantageous method to move the launch structure from the unacceptable additional dead-load stresses arose. It was essential
assembly yard to the permanent supports. The installation method to model this feature such that these deformations could be
had been used in the Hanger Lane project referred to in Section 1.2 confidently evaluated to predict the associated geometrical
above (Marples and Richings, 2014). behaviour of the combined mechanism and to enable clearance
The outline launch sequence (Figure  4) had been included for the self-propelled modular transporters to be removed.
in the approval in principle process to the council and the final
scheme was detailed in the subsequent submissions for launch
methodology, launch embankment, slide bearing and lateral
restraint for the additional certification process with Network Rail.
Other aspects of the launch also requiring consideration were
the design of the bottom flange of the nose edge girders, which
entailed a change of width from 1000 mm to 1500 mm at a point
15 m from the leading edge (Figure  5). This required a ‘hold
point’ during the slide to reposition the lateral restraints on the
slide bearing jacks.
Furthermore, the bolted connection between the horizontal
nose section and the precambered main bridge required a bottom
flange splice with a bolt-free central zone to enable progress of this
joint across the slide bearing jacks to reach the permanent bearing
positions (Figure 6).

(a)

Nose Bridge
Tail
Figure 5. Launch nose flange width change
North South
abutment abutment

(b)

Nose Bridge
Tail

North South
abutment abutment

(c)
Remove
Nose Bridge
Tail

North South
abutment abutment

(d) Lower
Bridge
Tail

North South Split splice plates

abutment abutment to allow launch Slide bearing jack
slide through arrangement

Figure 4. Launch sequence: (a) initial launch, (b) slide, (c) nose removal
and (d) jack down Figure 6. Slide bearing jack and split splice area allowing slide through

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This theoretical geometry was captured and summarised in a
series of drawings with tables for the various stages of the launch.
During the workshop process it was agreed that the predicted
deformations associated with both the maximum launch cantilever
and simply supported state analyses should be demonstrated in a
trial launch in the assembly yard. Support packing and transporter
stroking (raising or lowering) adjustments had been devised for the
launch and these could also be reviewed. This would serve to verify
for the team the geometric intricacy of the launch methodology and
enable the launch contractor’s team to familiarise themselves with
the actual structural behaviour.
In parallel with the workshop process the contractor arranged
regular meetings with Network Rail representatives to establish a
professional relationship to provide confidence and assurance in
the development of the launch methodology. This forum was also
used to discuss the contingencies risk assessment schedule and
agree the principles for the certification of the launch and other
temporary works required under NR/L2/CIV/003 (Network Rail,
2012b).
Mabey Bridge fabricated and then assembled the launch structure
at the site. The two lengths forming each main bridge edge girder
were butt-welded on site; all other main connections (nose, tail,
cross girders) were site bolted. The  temporary trestle support
positions for the assembly were devised to allow subsequent self-
propelled modular transporter positioning, removal and trial launch
sequences to be executed.
The route for manoeuvring the 96 m launch structure from the
assembly area to the initial cantilever touchdown launch position
was carefully planned from the launch workshop meetings and is
shown in Figure 7. This identified where conflicts would arise with
existing street furniture and services requiring protection.
The final launch workshop took place shortly before the actual
launch and comprised the full-scale trial and calibration of the major
launch movement conditions for maximum span, forward slide, ‘hold
point’ restraint adjustments and for the maximum cantilever. This
enabled verification of the methodology for controlling the steering
and restraint of the structure and of the predicted deformations.
It  also allowed the launch subcontractor to demonstrate the ability
satisfactorily to slide the nose splice connection with the main bridge
over the temporary slide bearings. All aspects of this technical trial
and geometry check proved satisfactory.
(a)
Figure 7. Launch route (a) and initial cantilever condition (b)
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Launching of Leigh Road Bridge, Slough, UK
O’Connor, Attrill, Gibb and Oh
3. The launch
A ‘rules of the route’ possession had been arranged for the
early hours of Sunday 8  February 2015. Over a 2 h period the
initial cantilevering launch structure was slowly moved along
the predetermined path (Figure  7) on the self-propelled modular
transporters (two at leading positions under the permanent main
span edge girders and one combined set beneath the tail and
counterweight) from the assembly yard to where the cantilevered
nose reached the south abutment.
Once the possession had been handed to the contractor, the
cantilevered structure was incrementally steered over the railway
on the self-propelled modular transporters along the permanent
bridge centreline until the tips of both nose edge girders were
directly over the receiving slide bearing jacks on the north
abutment. The  jack heights and the self-propelled modular
transporter strokes were adjusted until the launch structure could
be simultaneously landed on both jacks – that is, taking account
of the greater vertical deflection of the western tip of the nose as
induced by the skew.
Within just over 1 h of the possession the nose was landed and
measured as being within 1 mm of the intended absolute touchdown
position, thus allowing the possession to be handed back. The tail
counterweight could then be reduced and the leading self-propelled
modular transporters removed, leaving a simply supported 91 m
span launch structure sitting over the railway.
Having removed the leading self-propelled modular
transporters the launch structure could be advanced, steered
by the tail transporters over the polytetrafluoroethylene-coated
rubber slide bearings on the two jacks to maintain the three-point
support arrangement. The  jacks incorporated lateral restraints
with a 30 mm clearance from the leading nose girder flange. This
tolerance enabled the bottom flange to be largely unstiffened.
It  was noticed that, unlike during the trial slide, contact was
being made with the western restraint requiring continuous small
corrections to direction and level to assist guidance while the
slide advanced.
3.1 Unforeseen slide incident and immediate aftermath
During the subsequent restraint repositioning ‘hold point’, the
launch structure suffered a sudden and unforeseen uncontrolled
(b)
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Volume 169 Issue CE3
(a)
Figure 8. Damage at north-west slide bearing plinth (a) and slide bearing
jack (b)
300 mm lateral movement to the west on the slide bearing jacks.
The nose immediately slid laterally, resulting in a significant impact
against the restraints and ejecting one of the rubber slide bearings
on the western jack. The  launch contractor quickly lowered the
jacks landing the leading nose area onto the north embankment
to stabilise the structure. Despite the large forces generated in this
incident, the lateral restraints performed their function and no-
one was injured. The launch nose and the temporary slide bearing
supports were damaged, but there were no restrictions or delay
imposed on the railway.
Immediately after the incident an initial visual condition
inspection was undertaken by the delivery team. It  was clear
that the bottom flanges of both east and west nose girders had
deformed locally at the slide bearing jack positions. The  slide
bearing pads were deformed on the jacks and the bolted
connections of the western restraint had been overstressed.
The  jacks were fixed around and in front of the 900 mm high
north abutment permanent bearing plinths and the western plinth
had been damaged due to the torsional effect of the dynamic
impact through its fixing to the jack.
By landing on the north embankment the nose had effectively
re-established the stability of the launch support system. There was
no damage to the permanent structure and there appeared to be no
visible effect on the splice connections to the nose or tail sections
from the impact. Figure 8 shows some of the damage. Additional
lateral restraint at the nose was quickly installed utilising ballast-
filled skips to the east of the north embankment.
Following these initial assessments an urgent meeting was
convened with Network Rail’s representatives on site who had
witnessed the incident. It  was vital to assess the stability and
integrity of the structure on its temporary supports, then to assure
Network Rail that it was safe to continue operation of passenger
and freight trains through the site.
The meeting discussed this initial assessment and the actions
required in order to assess fully the structural integrity for the
current state and for the proposed recovery plan. An  initial
realignment plan had already been conceived and the combined
delivery team set about their respective tasks in order to
demonstrate and assure Network Rail that the structure was
safe, and would remain so during the proposed recovery plan to
complete the bridge installation successfully.
Launching of Leigh Road Bridge, Slough, UK
O’Connor, Attrill, Gibb and Oh
(b)
3.2 Assessment and realignment
Prior to structural assessment, welds around the deformed
zones were subjected to magnetic particle examination and the
bolted joints were closely examined to ensure no defects had
arisen. Monitoring of longitudinal and vertical movement of the
structure was initiated immediately and continued throughout the
recovery process. Observations demonstrated that there was no
unwanted restraint to thermal movement or any locked-in stresses
due to the sudden impact. An emergency plan and protocol was
prepared, which was to be implemented if any movement trigger
levels were breached.
Hydraulic pressure readings from the slider jacks were
stable and indicated that they had equal support reaction loads
of 82·5 t. Although the affected nose girder flanges were still
in tension, it was initially decided to discount any strength
provision provided by the deformed flange section, resulting in
a J-section rather than I-section assessment along the affected
panels.
The analysis structure is shown diagrammatically in
Figure 9. The resulting assessment was formalised in combined
certification to Network Rail and formed the basis of further
modelling for the certification of subsequent recovery
operations.
It was important to achieve the recovery and realignment as
quickly as possible to restore the final structural integrity safely
and to contain contract overrun and additional expenditure.
Several constraints were already evident: availability of
appropriate recovery equipment; any likely requirement for
railway possessions; and designs, checks, repairs, certification and
acceptance by Network Rail.
6.0 m 7.5 m
Support point –
slider jacks Support point –
Support point – centre of group 1
temporary (approx. 82.5 t
per jack) self-propelled
embankment modular transporters
Figure 9. Post-incident support arrangement
133
Civil Engineering Launching of Leigh Road Bridge, Slough, UK
Volume 169 Issue CE3 O’Connor, Attrill, Gibb and Oh

Network Rail appointed an independent reviewing consultant
(Aecom) to provide additional assurance on structural integrity and
proposed recovery methodology. It  also deemed that recovery of
the structure could only be conducted within possessions.
Before the slide could be resumed the main physical challenges
to the delivery team involved
■■ repairs to the slide bearings and jacks
■■ repairs to the deformed flange areas to resume slide
continuation
■■ enhanced lateral restraint for the repaired nose bottom flange at
the slide bearing jacks
■■ repairs to the damaged bearing plinths
■■ lateral realignment.
The team was confident that the original slide and bridge
positioning could be continued as originally planned once all these
challenges were overcome.
The bearing plinth was repaired by breaking back to undamaged
original concrete surfaces and recasting.
The key proposal for lateral realignment entailed the assembly
and installation of a skid shoe system under the nose edge girders
(Figure 11) as the mechanism for restraining and then sliding the
bridge laterally. These were positioned north of the permanent
bearings and damaged girder zones to provide alternative
temporary support during all the repairs to the jacks, permanent
bearing plinth and nose edge beams.
Once the realignment corrections and the modifications were
completed the structure was lowered onto the repaired slide
bearing jacks again before resuming the longitudinal slide.
These arrangements were devised by the delivery team, certified
and reviewed, including a revised contingency risk assessment
schedule, before being accepted by Network Rail in time to
complete the slide successfully during a possession on 29 March
2015, only 7 weeks after the incident.

3.3 Addressing the physical challenges

The slide bearing and jack repairs comprised replacement
bolt fixings for the overstressed lateral restraints and replacing
Launch nose
damaged slide bearings. The damaged girder panels had already
been treated as J-sections for structural strength provision but the
bottom flanges required reinstatement of flat running surfaces
for the resumed slide. This entailed fixing a 3 mm plate beneath Jack
Push/pull rams
the central cross-section of the damaged flange zones and filling
the void between the damaged and replacement slider plates with Stool

epoxy mortar.
Enhanced lateral restraint was accomplished by welding
new plates to the nose bottom flanges at the damaged section
to increase the flange width from 1000 mm to 1500 mm, thus Directi
on of
skid tr
taking out the width transition and providing immediate avel
restraint across that zone when the slide bearing jacks were Skid track
re-engaged. This was accomplished by way of local stiffeners
attached to the new widening plates and welded to the damaged
girder flange and its web. Both these flange modifications are Figure 11. Skid shoe system
shown in Figure 10.

(a) Nose flange (b)

widening and
stiffening New stiffeners
Narrower
nose flange

Edge restraint

3 mm running plate
Direction of
resumed slide Flange widening
plates

Figure 10. Nose flange modifications – (a) repaired flange at slide

bearing jack and (b) plan showing flange widening for resumed slide

134
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
4. Bridge installation completion
Once the launch structure was finally correctly aligned over the
permanent bearings, the nose could be unbolted and slid over the
temporary scaffold tube roller arrangement on the embankment
ready for dismantling and recycling.
The initial intention was to lower the bridge deck onto the
four permanent bearings using hydraulic jacks and demountable
towers of stacked hardwood timbers. A  facility to jack the deck
longitudinally and laterally was also needed to achieve the required
plan tolerance of ± 10 mm.
To minimise the need for such complex plan jacking an
alternative method was devised using the self-propelled modular
transporters and the temporary slide bearing jacks to manoeuvre
and lower the deck to 300 mm above the permanent bearings and
within ± 40 mm of plan location. At  this point the bearings were
re-centred and grouted prior to the final stage of lowering using
the self-propelled modular transporters (southern end of deck) and
climbing jacks (northern end).
The additional plan tolerance was created by using the clearance
of the bearing anchor bolts in the grout pockets. The  deck was
horizontally restrained at all times through contact friction with
self-propelled modular transporters and jacks. Once jacked down
the tail could be unbolted and withdrawn on the self-propelled
modular transporters for its own dismantling and recycling.
Completion of the remaining bridge, embankment and highway
construction was reprogrammed to minimise the time lost to the
incident, resulting in the scheme opening to traffic on time on
22 September 2015, the original contract completion date (Figure 12).
5. Conclusions and learning points
Several conclusions leading to learning points and the root cause
of the unforeseen lateral movement incident in the slide phase were
identified by the team.
Lateral alignment corrections required at the western restraint
during the slide phase to overcome the tendency for the nose to
move west were due to a transverse weight component induced
on the supports by the skew effect of the nose girders and this
condition gave rise to a transverse deformation of the low-friction-
rubber slider jack bearings.
Figure 12. Aerial view of completed bridge
Launching of Leigh Road Bridge, Slough, UK
O’Connor, Attrill, Gibb and Oh
When the ‘hold point’ for the planned change of inner steel
packing at the restraint position was reached (to allow the transition
between narrow and wide nose flange sections, resulting in a
period of removal of close lateral restraint) any such induced lateral
movement tendencies had temporarily increased the potential
movement range from beyond the maximum intended close control
40 mm value provided when the restraints were in place to 250 mm.
In turn, as the nose was slid forward to capture the wider nose
flange this further unrestrained increased eccentricity subsequently
deformed the bottom flanges of the nose girders. Combined with
the bearing deformation, this significantly increased the transverse
gradient causing rapid lateral acceleration, but was instantaneously
halted on impact with the outer restraint system resulting in the
damage occurring during the rapid deceleration.
It was still concluded that close collaborative teamwork between
all parties enabled thorough safe incident recovery to proceed
swiftly. The full engineering trial of the launch gained confidence
and assurance in the analysis associated with the method and
support arrangement for launching.
From the experience of the incident it was concluded that
■■ continuous close lateral restraint should be provided at all
times during the slide phase of a bridge launch
■■ where possible, any need to change a close lateral restraint
position during the slide should be eliminated
■■ where such a change cannot be avoided, a suitable
supplementary restraint mechanism should be provided during
transition of the close restraints
■■ in addition at any transition zone, the structure should be made
sufficiently robust to accommodate the most eccentric lateral
load case movement that could be generated from the overall
system at any time.
Application of these conclusions and learning points would
assure that bridge installation by the method used on this project
remains viable and suitable.
References
HA (Highways Agency) (2012) BD2/12 – technical approval of highway
structures. In Design Manual for Roads and Bridges. Highways Agency,
Guildford, UK.
Marples F and Richings JD (2014) Improving management controls for the
launching of bridges. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers –
Bridge Engineering 167(2): 131–142.
Network Rail (2012a) NR/L2/RSE/100/02: Safety Verification. Network Rail,
London, UK.
Network Rail (2012b) NR/L2/CIV/003: Engineering Assurance of Building and
Civil Engineering Works. Network Rail, London, UK.
Network Rail (2014) PAN/S&Sd/CD/INS/0081: Guidance to Projects on
Compliance with the Common Safety Method on Risk Evaluation and
Assessment. Network Rail, London, UK.
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Civil Engineering Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers
Civil Engineering 169 August 2016 Issue CE3
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Pages 137–144 http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/jcien.15.00044
Urbanisation and landslides: hazard Paper 1500044
Received 31/07/2015 Accepted 11/01/2016
drivers and better practices
Published online 03/03/2016
Holcombe, Beesley, Vardanega and Sorbie Keywords: developing countries/disaster engineering/
geotechnical engineering

ICE Publishing: All rights reserved

Urbanisation and landslides: hazard

drivers and better practices
Elizabeth A. Holcombe MSci, PhD Paul J. Vardanega BE, MEngSc, PhD, MASCE, MIEAust
Lecturer in Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK Lecturer in Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Mair E. W. Beesley MEng Rachel Sorbie BEng, PGCE
Postgraduate, Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK Former undergraduate, Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK

Rapid unplanned urbanisation is driving increasing rainfall-triggered landslide risk in low-income

communities in tropical developing countries. Conventional slope stabilisation techniques are often
unaffordable and most disaster-risk-reduction funding is currently spent post-disaster. However,
experience in the Caribbean has changed local engineering practice and World Bank policy, demonstrating
that community-based surface water drainage is affordable and effective in mitigating urban landslides.
New evidence presented in this paper identifies specific informal construction practices generating
further landslide hazards and bioengineering schemes most effective for landslide mitigation. A dynamic
hydrology–slope stability model is used to simulate the factor of safety response of nine slope classes
(angle and soil strength) to progressive vegetation removal, slope cutting and loading, for six design
storms. The  effectiveness of 76 bioengineering schemes for improving stability is modelled. Key
recommendations are that deforestation should be limited and slope cutting avoided as cutting is most
detrimental to stability. Site-specific modelling is needed to identify where deep-rooting, lightweight
trees might add stability, whereas grasses are beneficial in all locations.

1. Introduction development (Wamsler, 2007); and a significant lag in funding for

Landslide hazards and impacts are increasing globally.
Developing nations experience the highest economic losses relative
to gross domestic product and the majority of fatalities – over half
of which are estimated to occur in urban areas (Petley et al., 2007).
High-intensity and high-duration rainfall events are the
dominant landslide trigger in the humid tropics (i.e. Köppen
classification: tropical rainforest and monsoonal climates; Peel
et al., 2007) where deeply weathered residual soils render slopes
particularly susceptible to failure (Lumb, 1975). High-magnitude
events, with hundreds of landslides triggered, can set back
the economic growth of developing countries by several years
(Peduzzi and Deichmann, 2009).
However, until recently the impact of small-scale, high-frequency
landslide events on development has not been recognised. Such
‘everyday’ hazards contribute to an accumulation of risk which
compromises livelihoods at community levels, erodes economic
growth and indicates systemic lack of resilience (Bull-Kamanga
et al., 2003). Risk accumulation is part of a vicious spiral in which,
‘disasters put development at risk... [and] development choices...
can generate new disaster risk’ (UNDP, 2004: p. 1).
Unfortunately current top-down disaster-risk-reduction policies
struggle to address the highly localised physical and human drivers
of everyday hazards such as urban landslides. Two  examples of
this disconnection between policy and practice are: the limited
delivery of practical interventions on the ground, despite
statements that disaster risk reduction is required for sustainable
ex-ante disaster mitigation (de la Fuente, 2010), despite evidence
that it is more cost-effective than post-disaster actions (World
Bank, 2010).
Effective risk reduction requires that risk drivers are identified
and appropriate actions are taken to reduce hazards and/or
consequences (exposure and vulnerability). The top-level drivers of
the increasing landslide risk are urban migration and population
growth as cities in developing nations expand rapidly.
Over 900 million people now live in overcrowded, poor-quality
housing with inadequate infrastructure, making them highly
vulnerable to both small- and large-scale disasters (Satterthwaite
et al., 2007). Often these settlements are built on hazard-prone land
such as marginally stable slopes. Informal construction means that
slopes and structures are not assessed or designed for safety; and
high housing density increases exposure to landslides. Landslide
hazard is increased further by localised changes to vegetation,
topography, drainage and loading (Figures 1 and 2).
In this context controlling exposure to landslides using
planning policies alone is impractical, since urbanisation often
outstrips regulation and 30–50% of the population already
live in informal, low-income settlements (Satterthwaite
et  al., 2007). Vulnerability reduction thus presents a complex
socioeconomic challenge; and landslide hazard drivers are not
being systematically addressed.
Delivering conventional slope stabilising works is technically
challenging due to the localised scale of instability drivers,
widespread distribution of urban landslide hazards and high costs

137
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
Figure 1. Typical informal housing on a landslide-prone slope in Castries,
Saint Lucia, Eastern Caribbean (photograph by Holcombe, 2011)
of geotechnical data, engineering expertise and construction.
Furthermore, unless informal construction practices are modified,
landslide hazard will continue to accumulate. Experts in the built
environment are being called upon to develop innovative ‘global
solutions and local actions’ to increase community resilience
(IISD, 2014: p. 6).
1.1 A platform for delivering community-based
landslide mitigation
Just such a community-based engineering approach to urban
landslide hazard mitigation has been developed by Anderson
and Holcombe (2006). Known as ‘management of slope stability
in communities’ or ‘Mossaic’, it engages residents, community
development practitioners and local engineers in identifying
localised drivers of slope instability and implementing appropriate
drainage measures.
Lack of geotechnical data and a limited budget for conventional
site investigation are overcome by combining information from
several sources: residents’ descriptions of slope materials,
runoff, seepage and previous landslides; mapping of house plot
scale slope features; elicitation of local engineering knowledge
of soils; and reference to previous direct shear tests of similar
local soils. This method provides detailed information on
topography and surface drainage, and enables estimation of soil
depths, categorisation by weathering grade and determination of
relative strength with respect to other local soils (Anderson and
Holcombe, 2013).
The physically based modelling software – Chasm (Combined
Hydrology And Stability Model; see Section 2.2) – is then used
to diagnose dominant instability processes. Where surface water
infiltration is shown to drive instability, networks of open drains are
designed to intercept runoff at critical locations and convey water
to existing drains. Roof guttering and rainwater tanks are installed
to intercept rain, supplement water supplies and attenuate peak
drain flows.
Between 2004 and 2011 three Eastern Caribbean states
implemented Mossaic in 12 low-income urban communities (over
138
Urbanisation and landslides: hazard drivers and better practices
Holcombe, Beesley, Vardanega and Sorbie
Figure 2. Rainfall-triggered landslide in an informal community
(photograph by Holcombe, 2004)
800 homes). There have been no subsequent landslides reported
in these communities despite the exceptional rainfall associated
with hurricane Tomas in 2010 (>500 mm in 24 h in Saint Lucia),
whereas previously even 1 in 2 year rainfall events would trigger
multiple small slope failures (Anderson and Holcombe, 2013).
By involving residents at all stages of mapping, design and
construction there is evidence that both residents and local
engineers have incorporated better slope drainage practices into
subsequent construction (Holcombe and Anderson, 2010).
1.2 Understanding and mitigating future hazards
Mossaic addresses the hydrological drivers of rainfall-triggered
landslides where urbanisation has already occurred. Its uptake by
international disaster risk reduction funders, local practitioners and
communities provides a unique platform to extend the analysis of
urban landslide hazards and identify additional practical solutions.
To this end, this paper presents numerical simulations of
■■ dynamic slope stability responses to progressive urbanisation,
enabling identification of the most detrimental informal
construction practices
■■ modified urbanisation scenarios to determine the effectiveness
of actions by residents and engineers in offsetting accumulation
of new landslide hazards.
Civil Engineering
Volume 169 Issue CE3
2. Modelling urbanisation and landslide
hazard drivers
Informal urbanisation of slopes typically involves removal of
natural vegetation and excavation to create flatter sites for house
construction (Smyth and Royle, 2000). Cut  slopes are often at
angles of 60° or steeper (Diaz, 1992) and may initially remain
stable due to the high negative pore pressures that can develop in
deep tropical residual soils, only to fail later as rainfall infiltrates
(Anderson, 1983). The  first houses are often built at the base of
slopes adjacent to urban centres in valleys and on coastal plains.
Informal settlements extend up slopes over time, and housing
density increases as infilling occurs and houses are extended.
2.1 Mechanical and hydrological processes
Deforesting and cutting slopes are known to increase the
incidence of landslides (Glade, 1998). Vegetation has mechanical
and hydrological effects on slope stability, including root fibre
reinforcement and anchoring, load transfer of self-weight and wind
forces, rainfall interception, evapotranspiration and preferential
flow pathways created by roots. Slope cutting alters the load
distribution on potential shear surfaces within the wider slope, and
can generate localised instability of the cut section.
Altered surface cover and topography also affect runoff,
infiltration and drainage, leading to raised or perched water tables.
Landslides become more likely to be triggered by rainfall as negative
pore pressures are lost and material shear strength reduced. While
the individual effects of different vegetation types, slope angles
and hydrogeological conditions have previously been investigated
(Anderson et  al., 1997), the impact on slope stability of the
combination of the dynamic mechanisms that relate to progressive
urbanisation and the effect of retaining or replanting vegetation in
the changing urban environment have not been established.
2.2 Experiment design and data
To model dynamic slope stability processes, the physically
based model Chasm was used to represent rainfall infiltration,
groundwater flows, negative and positive pore pressures and
slope factor of safety (F) over time. Chasm has proven reliable in
predicting the safe/failed condition of tropical residual soil slopes
for given rainfall events (e.g., Anderson, 1990; Holcombe, 2006)
and for indicating the benefits of Mossaic drainage interventions
(Holcombe et al., 2012). Slopes are represented by a regular two-
dimensional mesh of columns and cells with specified material
parameters (Figure 3).
A forward explicit finite-difference scheme solves Richards’ and
Darcy’s equations (Darcy, 1856; Richards, 1931) for unsaturated and
saturated flows in which cell moisture contents and pore pressures
are updated every time-step (usually 60 s). Once the initial water
table has equilibrated, a rainfall of a specified intensity and duration
is imposed. Every hour pore pressures are incorporated into a limit-
equilibrium analysis (Bishop’s circular (Bishop, 1955) or Janbu’s
non-circular (Janbu, 1954)) in which the minimum F slip surface is
identified using a search algorithm. The hydrological and mechanical
effects of vegetation and the unit weight of houses can be included in
the analysis (see Wilkinson et al. (2002a) for model equations).
A series of Chasm simulations was designed to represent the
stability response of different slopes (classified by three angles and
Urbanisation and landslides: hazard drivers and better practices
Holcombe, Beesley, Vardanega and Sorbie
Precipitation Slip search grid
Computational
Evaporation
point
at centre of cell Runoff
Saturated cells Slip circle Mechanical and
hydrological effects
of vegetation
Slope profile for hydrology
model
Slope profile for stability
model
Water table
1x1m Soil type 0
mesh
cells
Soil type 1
Soil type 2
Figure 3. Representation of a slope cross-section for analysis in Chasm
three soil types) to typical stages of urbanisation observed in the
Eastern Caribbean and similar humid tropical locations (Smyth and
Royle, 2000). Starting with a fully forested slope, urbanisation was
represented as a sequence of three construction steps – vegetation
removal, slope cutting and site loading – repeated at four sites
on each slope, to give a total of 12 urbanisation stages (Figure 4,
Table 1).
For each slope three material strata were defined using the Hong
Kong weathering grade classification for tropical residual soils
(GEO, 1988), and assuming no previous landslides had occurred.
Strata depths and parameter values for soil cohesion cʹ and drained
friction angle were based on direct shear tests on 25 undisturbed
residual soil samples from un-failed cut slope faces in Saint Lucia
(Anderson and Kemp, 1985; Holcombe, 2006).
The mean peak strength values (grade VI residual soil:
cʹ = 14 kPa, ϕʹ = 25°; grade V: cʹ = 21 kPa, ϕʹ = 30°) were in accord
with those obtained from an extensive programme of triaxial
testing in Hong Kong on similar undisturbed tropical residual soils
derived from volcanic bedrock (GCO, 1982). Such soils typically
exhibit apparent cohesion due to the formation of high negative
pore pressures, chemical bonding and the persistence of structures
inherited from the parent material (c.f. Wesley, 1990).
The parameter values of ϕʹ = 25° and cʹ = 2, 5 and 10 kPa
selected for modelling are thus conservative with respect to these
data, reflect uncertainty surrounding apparent cohesion (negative
pore pressures are represented in Chasm), and support the aim of
investigating the stability response of typical slope classes.
Further studies investigating specific slopes, and with resources
for additional geotechnical data, would allow revision of these
values as appropriate. However, it should be recognised that, as
with all such numerical models, these parameters are lumped at
the grid-scale (1 m2 in Chasm), effectively incorporating sub-grid
mechanisms such as apparent cohesion.
Two sets of simulations were carried out. The first analysed the
impact of a 12-stage ‘business as usual’ urbanisation scenario
on each slope class to identify construction practices most
detrimental to slope stability. For  each simulation the minimum
F and associated critical slip surface location were determined
in response to Saint Lucia’s 1 in 50 year, 24 h storm (based on
an unpublished report from 1995 by Klohn-Crippen ‘Roseau
139
Civil Engineering Urbanisation and landslides: hazard drivers and better practices
Volume 169 Issue CE3 Holcombe, Beesley, Vardanega and Sorbie

24 h design storm Sequence of construction steps

12 mm/h intensity modelled per house plot
50 year return period

Original
forest cover

4th house
(i) Deforestation
2nd house
60° α°
Definition of slope classes 3rd house (ii) Cutting
by slope angle and grade V–VI soil strength 9m
α: ° 20 30 40 1st house Grade V–VI soil 8 kPa
c’: kPa 2 5 10 2 5 10 2 5 10 (iii) Loading
ϕ’: ° 25 25 25 25 25 25 25 25 25 Grade III–IV
weathered material 6m
Class a b c d e f g h i
Grade I–II rock
52 m

Figure 4. Representation of a typical progression of tropical slope

urbanisation used in the Chasm model (12 construction steps in total,
from 100% forest cover to 100% urbanisation)

Urbanisation stage 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Forest % 100 75 75 75 50 50 50 25 25 25 0 0 0
Total cuts 0 0 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4
Total houses 0 0 0 1 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4
a Slope angle = 20° cʹ = 2 kPa 2·07 1·89 0·62
Factor of Safety for each slope class

b 20° 5 kPa 2·34 2·19 0·89

c 20° 10 kPa 2·57 2·54 1·30 1·30 1·30 1·30 1·30 1·25 1·27 1·27 1·26 1·22 1·22
d Slope angle = 30° cʹ = 2 kPa 1·45 1·34 0·63
e 30° 5 kPa 1·69 1·58 0·89
f 30° 10 kPa 1·91 1·91 1·33 1·33 1·33 1·30 1·30 1·22 1·12 1·12 1·12 1·12 1·12
g Slope angle = 40° cʹ = 2 kPa 1·11 1·02 – 1·01 1·01 – 1·01 0·98
h 40° 5 kPa 1·26a 1·22 – 1·20 1·17a – 1·16a 1·10a – 1·09a 1·00a – 0·99a
i 40° 10 kPa 1·38 a
1·34 a
– 1·34 a
1·28 a
– 1·27 a
1·21 a
– 1·20 a
1·11 a
– 1·10a
Decrease in F relative to previous construction step ΔF ≤ 0·05 0·15 ≥ ΔF > 0·05 ΔF > 0·15
Increase in F relative to previous construction step ΔF ≤ 0·05 0·15 ≥ ΔF > 0·05 ΔF > 0·15
Bold font indicates F > 1·4; planar slip surface (Janbu) at base of top strata, otherwise failures are rotational (Bishop); – no cut geometrically possible.
a

Table 1. Urbanisation stages and associated factors of safety for each

slope class for a 1 in 50 year storm, delivering a total of 288 mm of
rainfall in 24 h

Dam and ancillary works. Tropical storm Debbie, final report 3. Simulation results
on hydrology’, held by WASCO in Saint Lucia – see the online
supplementary data for rainfall intensity-duration-frequency data). Table  1 presents the lowest F for each slope class and
The  second set of simulations tested the potential benefits of urbanisation stage in response to the 1 in 50 year design storm.
modified urbanisation scenarios: the impact of deforestation alone; In  total, 62 simulations were run; if a slope failed at a certain
the exclusion of the most detrimental construction practices; and stage then no further urbanisation stages were imposed. Cuts were
bioengineering. omitted from 40° slope simulations as they are not geometrically
A series of design storms of increasing intensity and return period viable and houses on such slopes are often constructed on stilts.
(from 1 in 5, to 1 in 200 years) were also simulated to identify
the critical storms rendering each slope ‘unsafe’. A threshold level 3.1 Effect of slope cutting on stability
of F > 1·4 was adopted ‘as an acceptable number to guard against Table  1 aligns with observations that progressive urbanisation
failure in a high-risk slope’ (Hencher, 2012: p. 280). tends to reduce slope stability. Changes in F relate to the type of

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Volume 169 Issue CE3
construction activity and its location on the slope. Cutting is the
dominant instability driver giving reductions in F of up to 1·30.
The  greatest stability decrease due to deforestation is 0·18; and
housing loads have a negligible impact regardless of their position.
For slope classes ‘a’ to ‘f ’ the maximum impacts occur during the
first construction sequence at the base of the slope.
At the start of the urbanisation process, critical failure surfaces
typically encompass a large part of the slope and penetrate less-
weathered material (Figure  5). Cutting at the toe of the slip
surface (Figure  5, stage 2) removes a large proportion of the
shear resistance and reduces the stability condition of a shallower
slip surface. The  first cut produces the greatest reduction in F,
triggering shallow rotational failure in soils modelled with low
cohesion (cʹ = 2–5 kPa).
Of the remaining stable slopes, following the second cut, the
slip surface radius typically decreases further due to stress relief
at its crest, and relocates to a more critical position downslope
(Figure  5, stage 5). Removal of residual soil by cutting exposes
less-permeable material and locally reduces rainfall infiltration.
Additionally, cutting introduces an angle (60°) greater than the
effective angle of friction (25°). Progressive urbanisation of slope
classes c and f ultimately leads to localised circular slip surfaces on
the face of each cut with critical or near-critical F values.
Slope angle and soil strength strongly influence stability of the
natural slope and the impact of urbanisation. The  steepest slopes
Stage 0: F = 1.91 Pressure head: m
Black lines: critical 24.3469
slip suface 20.1939
Blue lines: water table 16.0408
and perched water 11.8878
7.7347
Remove vegetation Cut slope Add house loading
Stage 1: F = 1.91 Stage 2: F = 1.33 Stage 3: F = 1.33
Stage 4: F = 1.33 Stage 5: F = 1.30 Stage 6: F = 1.30
Stage 7: F = 1.21 Stage 8: F = 1.12 Stage 9: F = 1.12
Stage 10: F = 1.12 Stage 11: F = 1.12 Stage 12: F = 1.12
Figure 5. Chasm visual output of pore water pressure, critical slip
surface and F at progressive stages of simulated urbanisation at time
steps corresponding to the lowest factor of safety (slope class f)
Urbanisation and landslides: hazard drivers and better practices
Holcombe, Beesley, Vardanega and Sorbie
(α = 40°) are inherently marginally stable and are considered
unsafe for urbanisation. Here, only soils modelled with cʹ = 10 kPa
maintain F > 1 throughout the urbanisation process. For slopes of
α = 20° or α = 30° the first cut produces consistent decreases in
F and indicates that the landslide mechanism transformations are
geometrically similar. For slopes of these angles with the highest
cohesion soils (i.e. c and f) the critical surface becomes localised
to one of the cut slopes and F remains relatively constant after the
third cut. Here, cut slope geometry outweighs the influence of the
original slope angle in determining slope stability.
None of the fully urbanised slopes meet the specified safety
threshold of F > 1·4. Therefore, the scenario of ‘urbanisation
without cuts’ was modelled for slope classes in which cutting led to
F < 1 (classes a, b, d and e). The results for this scenario (Table 2)
show that slopes a, b and e maintain F > 1·4 throughout the design
storm, while d remains marginally stable (1 < F < 1·4).
3.2 Effect of targeted bioengineering on stability
While slope cutting dominates decreases in F, reintroducing
vegetation to slopes, or limiting deforestation, is one way of
mitigating the impact of urbanisation. However, despite the
recognised benefits of bioengineering for reducing soil erosion,
‘its ability to stabilise slopes...is less well proven, and certainly
less well quantified’ (Campbell et al., 2007: p. 13). This is because
the effect of vegetation on slope stability is strongly related to the
location of roots with respect to the critical slip surface; and there
is uncertainty regarding the mechanical and hydrological influences
of vegetation and natural variations in plant properties (Norris and
3.5816 Greenwood, 2006).
–0.5714 The importance of the mechanical effects of vegetation, such as
–4.7245
–8.8775
root–slip surface interaction and root tensile strength, was evident
–13.0306 in simulations of the urbanisation process. Table  1 indicates a
reduction in F if tree roots interact with the critical slip surface
prior to deforestation. Where the sliding mechanism is translational
(slopes g and h) successive stages of deforestation lower F in
Slope Business as Modified urbanisation scenarios
definition usual
α: ° cʹ: Class 100% Urbanised 100% Urbanised Tree Grass
kPa forest with cuts deforested without cover cover
cuts
20  2 a
 5 b
10 c A A
30  2 d B B
 5 e
10 f A A
40  2 g B B
 5 h B B
10 i B B
Dark shading: F < 1·0, failed; light shading: 1·0 < F < 1·4, critical; no shading:
F > 1·4, stable; diagonal strike through: not considered.
Modelled bioengineering schemes: A, cut slopes, one tree at crest of each
cut, complete grass cover; B, uncut slopes, five trees between houses,
complete grass cover
Table 2. Summary of stable, critical and failed slopes for a 1 in 50 year,
24 h design rainfall (12 mm/h)
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Civil Engineering Urbanisation and landslides: hazard drivers and better practices
Volume 169 Issue CE3 Holcombe, Beesley, Vardanega and Sorbie

approximately equal steps because each tree contributes an equal
fraction of shear resistance. For  rotational slides the critical
slip surface extends up the slope as F decreases (e.g., stage 6–7,
Figure  5), suggesting that trees force the critical slip surface
outside the rooting zone prior to removal. Slopes with soils
modelled with lower cohesion (cʹ = 2–5 kPa) are more sensitive to
initial deforestation because the cohesion added by roots (taken as
6 kPa for the deforested trees (c.f. Wu et al. 1979)) is greater than
the ‘bare-soil’ value.
To test the impact of bioengineering the three urbanised slope
classes with the greatest response to vegetation removal for their
soil type were selected (d, f, h). Two  types of bioengineering
scheme were modelled: grass (uniform distribution) and trees (at
the crest and toe of cuts and downslope of houses). Vegetation
effects represented in Chasm included: rainfall interception,
evapotranspiration with root water uptake, increased hydraulic
conductivity, root reinforcement, and surcharge (Wilkinson et al.,
2002b). Additionally, ranges of root area ratio, root depth, root
tensile strength and surcharge for each plant type were used to
assess the sensitivity of F to variations in properties of grass and
trees (see Table 3, the online supplementary data and Sorbie and
Beesley (2013)). The  most effective planting schemes were then
applied to the remaining critical slopes (see Table 2). The design
values chosen for the modelled bioengineering schemes are given
in table S8 of the online supplementary data.
Table  3 shows that trees potentially produce the greatest
increases in F if there is a large degree of interaction between
the roots and slip surface (e.g., roots of 4 m depth located at the
crest of cuts), and if the roots have a high enough root area ratio to
increase cohesion significantly. However, cut slopes are particularly
sensitive to surcharge due to trees (2 to 5 kPa) positioned on the
crests, which reduces F by 0·89 and triggers failure during the
design storm. The  effectiveness of trees is thus highly dependent
on their location and properties. In contrast, all three slopes (d, f, h)
were found to respond positively to grass cover in every simulation,
with increases in F of at least 0·13.

Rd: RAR: T r: S: Added cʹ: α: 30°, c′: 10 kPa α: 40°, c′: 5 kPa α: 30°, c′: 2 kPa
m 1 × 10-3 MPa kPa kPa
ΔF F ΔF F ΔF F
m2/m2
Trees 1 0·1  50 2 6 0·05 1·17 0·03 1·02 0·01 1·29
Max. ΔF = 0·39* 2 0·1  50 2 6 0·09 1·21 0·03 1·02 0·03 1·31
Mean ΔF = 0·14*
Coefficient of 4 0·1  50 2 6 0·22 1·34 0·06 1·05 0·05 1·33
variation (COV)* Mean (SD) 0·12 (0·09) 0·04 (0·02) 0·03 (0·02)
range: 0·27–0·74
Mean COV = 0·52 4 0·1  50 2 6 0·22 1·34 0·06 1·05 0·05 1·33
*Excludes effect
4 0·5  50 2 30 0·39 1·51 0·18 1·17 0·20 1·48
of variation in S
4 1  50 2 60 0·39 1·51 0·34 1·33 0·30 1·58
Mean (SD) 0·33 (0·10) 0·19 (0·14) 0·18 (0·10)
4 0·1  20 2 2·4 0·17 1·29 0·05 1·04 0·03 1·31
4 0·1  50 2 6 0·22 1·34 0·06 1·05 0·05 1·33
4 0·1 100 2 12 0·29 1·41 0·09 1·08 0·09 1·37
Mean (SD) 0·23 (0·06) 0·07 (0·02) 0·06 (0·03)
4 0·1  50 2 6 0·22 1·34 0·06 1·05 0·05 1·33
4 0·1  50 5 6 -0·89 0·23 0·04 1·03 0·06 1·34
4 0·1  50 10 6 -0·92 0·2 0·01 1 0·07 1·35
Mean (SD) -0·53 (0·65) 0·04 (0·03) 0·06 (0·01)
Grass 1 0·1  20 0·0008 2·4 0·34 1·46 0·13 1·12 0·17 1·45
Max. ΔF = 0·37 2 0·1  20 0·0008 2·4 0·34 1·46 0·13 1·12 0·18 1·46
Mean ΔF = 0·22
COV range: 4 0·1  20 0·0008 2·4 0·22 1·35 0·16 1·15 0·21 1·49
0·00–0·38 Mean (SD) 0·30 (0·07) 0·14 (0·02) 0·19 (0·02)
Mean COV = 0·18
1 0·02  20 0·0008 0·48 0·34 1·46 0·13 1·12 0·13 1·41
1 0·1  20 0·0008 2·4 0·34 1·46 0·13 1·12 0·17 1·45
1 0·5  20 0·0008 12 0·34 1·46 0·16 1·15 0·37 1·65
Mean (SD) 0·34 (0·00) 0·14 (0·02) 0·22 (0·13)
1 0·1   4 0·0008 0·48 0·34 1·46 0·13 1·12 0·13 1·41
1 0·1  50 0·0008 6 0·34 1·46 0·13 1·12 0·17 1·45
1 0·1  75 0·0008 9 0·34 1·46 0·15 1·14 0·31 1·59
Mean (SD) 0·34 (0·00) 0·14 (0·01) 0·20 (0·08)

Table 3. Sensitivity of slope factor of safety (F) to rooting depth (Rd),

root area ratio (RAR), tensile strength (Tr) and surcharge (S) (see Table 1
for colour key)

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Volume 169 Issue CE3 Holcombe, Beesley, Vardanega and Sorbie

Again, high values of root area ratio increase the effectiveness of
grass, particularly in soils exhibiting low cohesion. Furthermore,
F  is generally less sensitive to variation in grass parameters than
tree parameters, and significant increases in F were observed
without roots interacting with the critical slip surface. This
suggests that the thatch effect, by which long grass intercepts and
sheds rainfall, improves slope stability by way of a hydrological
mechanism (reduced infiltration). The consistently beneficial effect
of grass makes it a ‘no regrets strategy’ in bioengineering schemes.
Table  2 compares the selected tree and grass bioengineering
schemes with current and modified urbanisation scenarios.
For  slopes of 20° and 30° both schemes improve slope stability
to F > 1·4; and for the 40° slopes the ‘urbanisation plus design
tree cover’ scenario stabilises slope i. These results rely on the
design tree root area ratio of 1 × 10-3 m2/m2 (see table S8 in the
online supplementary data) – a parameter to which the slope shows
significant sensitivity (Table  3). In  comparison, complete grass
cover does not increase F sufficiently for any of the 40° slopes
to be considered stable, although there is less uncertainty in the
effectiveness of grass schemes.
4. Discussion – urbanisation and landslide
hazard
The change in landslide hazard for slopes under alternative
‘business as usual’ and ‘modified urbanisation’ scenarios is
summarised in Table 4. In all cases current construction methods
increase the frequency of rainfall-triggered landslides to return
periods of at least 1 in 5 years, affecting multiple cut slopes.
This aligns with observations of ‘everyday’ landslide hazards in
informal urban communities in the humid tropics.
The steepest slopes are considered unsafe for urban development
– again reflecting the known unsafe locations inhabited by many
such communities. These results emphasise the detrimental effect
of slope cutting; yet by constructing without cuts (e.g., using pier
foundations as recommended by AGS (2007)), the increase in
landslide hazard could be mitigated in slopes a, b and e. To offset
risk accumulation in existing urbanised slopes, both modelled
bioengineering schemes are viable (classes c and f).
The value of integrating better practices is demonstrated by
the response of slope class d, where a combination of informal
urbanisation without cuts and with bioengineering reduces
landslide hazard to below that of the original forested slope.
5. Summary and recommendations
From the simulations reported in this paper, slope cutting
is shown to be the dominant instability driver; aligning with
observations that high-frequency rainfall events (<1 in 5 years)
often trigger multiple cut slope failures in informal urban hillside
communities. The retention or reintroduction of vegetation can be
effective in mitigating some of this hazard, and grass is found to be
beneficial in all cases.
Site-specific bioengineering schemes can be identified for each
slope class. However, given that the critical factor of safety is
sensitive to the modelled cohesion of the soil and the mechanical
effects (and location) of trees, a thorough ground investigation,
physics-based modelling of site hydrology and stability mechanisms
and selection of local tree species with beneficial characteristics
(e.g., Greenwood et al., 2006) is required to reduce the uncertainty
in F related to tree-planting schemes. These general and site-specific
actions would be suitable for application in combination with other
improved construction and slope drainage practices.
Acknowledgement
The authors wish to thank Professor Malcolm Anderson who
developed the Mossaic approach in collaboration with the first
author and who reviewed early drafts of this paper. The online
supplementary data file can be downloaded from the ICE Virtual
Library website.

Slope definition Business as usual Modified urbanisation scenarios

α: ° cʹ: kPa Class 100% forest Urbanised with 100% deforested Urbanised Tree cover Grass cover
cuts without cuts
20  2 a 1 in 200 >1 in 5 1 in 200 1 in 200 N/C N/C
 5 b 1 in 200 >1 in 5 1 in 200 1 in 200 N/C N/C
10 c 1 in 200 >1 in 5 1 in 200 N/C 1 in 200 1 in 200
30  2 d 1 in 100 >1 in 5 >1 in 5 >1 in 5 1 in 200 1 in 200
 5 e 1 in 200 >1 in 5 1 in 200 1 in 200 N/C N/C
10 f 1 in 200 >1 in 5 1 in 200 N/C 1 in 200 1 in 200
40  2 g >1 in 5 N/C >1 in 5 >1 in 5 >1 in 5 >1 in 5
 5 h >1 in 5 N/C >1 in 5 >1 in 5 >1 in 5 >1 in 5
10 i >1 in 5 N/C >1 in 5 >1 in 5 1 in 200 >1 in 5
N/C, not considered.
Modelled tree and grass covers are defined in Tables 2 and 3.
24 h rainfalls with return periods of 1 in 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 years were simulated.
Rainfall intensity, duration, frequency data used to define the critical storms are provided in the online supplementary data.

Table 4. Return periods of 24 h storms causing F < 1·4 (‘>1 in 5’

indicates F < 1·4 for a storm with a return period of 1 in 5 years or lower)

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Volume 169 Issue CE3
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