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The UK construction industry faces a major challenge with the replacement of British design standards by Eurocodes. It is a challenge that could prove expensive. According to a report by the Institution of Structural Engineers, the transition could cost a typical consulting practice £250,000. The report, National Strategy for Implementation of the Structural Codes: Design, found that the greatest cost will be a 10% loss of productivity during the first year as staff get used to the new Codes. This alone could cost as much as £128,000.
Economic Benefits
Despite the initial cost, however, economic benefits are expected to be derived from using the new Codes. For concrete design, it is expected that there will be material cost savings of some 5% compared with BS 8110. In addition, Eurocodes are less restrictive than British Standards, with a logical, well-organised layout that avoids repetition. They are also technically advanced and should provide opportunities for UK designers to work in other European countries.
Transition
In the UK, the Concrete Centre is leading the transition to Eurocodes. The main UK National Annex for concrete was published in December 2005. Since that time, the Centre has been working with a number of industry partners to ensure that there is a wide range of resources to assist with the changeover to Eurocode 2.
A website (www.eurocode2.info) provides advice and assistance on the introduction, interpretation and implementation of the new Code. In addition, the Concrete Centre offers courses and has produced a compendium of ‘How to’ guides covering slabs, beams, columns, foundations, deflections, detailing etc. It has also published ‘Concise Eurocode 2’ which summarises the main parts of the Code and provides explanations to all necessary clauses.
A similar guide in two parts has also been published by British Precast (www.britishprecast.org), entitled ‘Precast EC2’. Part One is a design manual that explains the basis of precast concrete design to Eurocode 2, and includes useful design aids in its three appendices. To complement this, Part Two contains a range of worked examples.
For further information please contact Owen Brooker at The Concrete Centre
(0845 812 0000; E-mail: info@concretecentre.com).
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