Problems With Your House? Get The Right Advice

The Institution of Structural Engineers has published an advice sheet on the problems of settlement, subsidence and and heave  for householders. Follow image below to view the document:

A basic guide to finding and appointing a Structural Engineer for home-owners in the UK

At Mead Structures we like nothing more than to talk about Structural Engineering to anyone who is unfortunate enough to ask what we do. Over time, we have found that many people associate Structural Engineers with large, prestigious and complex projects such as sky scrapers or stadiums. This is true, however a Structural Engineer in the UK is less likely to be involved in designing a Wembley Stadium than a small extension to a terrace house near Wembley Park Station.

In reality, most people's experience of employing a Structural Engineer stems from wanting to make structural alterations to their properties or needing a report on a structural defect for their mortgage lenders, insurers or for their own peace of mind. In these cases, how does the average home-owner with little experience in the construction industry find and appoint a suitably qualified Structural Engineer?

Making Initial Contact

The first challenge faced by a potential customer is to find a company or individual offing Structural Engineering services near to their location. There are a number of sources of such information, including:

• The Institution of Structural Engineer's Find an Engineer website. 
• Directory services such as FreeIndex, Yell, Qype, etc.
• Recommendations from local building professionals such as Architects, Surveyors or Contractors.
• Internet search engines such as google, yahoo, bing, etc.    
• Recommendations from the local authority's Building Control department.

The IStructE's Find an Engineer Website (www.findanengineer.com) is a particularly useful resource as all companies wishing to be included must employ at least one Chartered Structural Engineer.

Ensuring Competency

Once contact details for a Structural Engineer have been obtained, it is important to ensure that they are suitably qualified to undertake the work required. By asking a few simple questions a customer can be reasonably assured that they are appointing a competent company:

• Will the works be undertaken by a Member or Associate Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers?
• If not, what professional qualifications does the Engineer hold, are they relevant and will they be supervised by a Member or Associate Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers?  
• Does the practice carry Professional Indemnity Insurance and are they able to offer proof?
• Do they have experience in undertaking the type of work required?
• Is the Engineer easy to get hold of and, if not, did they return your call quickly? This could give an indication of the practice's ability to respond to any problems that may occur quickly and efficiently.

The final point may seem trivial but there are Structural Engineers out there who are in full time employment and who 'moonlight' in their free time. Whilst most are competent and fully qualified, they often only work in the evening and are consequently difficult to contact when most needed.

Agreeing a Fee and Appointing a Structural Engineer

Once a customer has found a Structural Engineer that they feel comfortable working with and have satisfied themselves that they are a reputable, qualified and experienced practice it is necessary to agree the extent of the work required and the fee.

The Structural Engineer should define the extent of their services and scope of the works to the Customer and advise of any potential shortcomings with their services.  The Engineer should also state clearly how their fees are to be calculated and along with any expenses and VAT, including frequency and timing of payments.

Most Structural Engineers will charge on an hourly basis although some may have fixed fee scales for common work such as inspections and reports. Some Structural Engineers may be happy to quote a fixed fee if they are confident that the work is well defined and straightforward. The Structural Engineer should be able to provide a written confirmation of their fee proposals.


The above is a very brief guide to help anyone looking to appoint a Structural Engineer. Further guidance can be obtained through the Institution of Structural Engineers - www.istructe.org

What is a Structural Engineer?

Structural Engineering is a specialised branch of Civil Engineering, and its applications are extremely diverse. A great deal of what Structural Engineers do involves designing things to be built, and then helping to build them.

An architect may come up with a building design, but it's the Structural Engineer's responsibility to fit the structure to the architecture, and decide on what structural system is best suited to that particular building. The Structural Engineer may design the beams, the columns, the walls, the foundation or any structural element to make the building stand up.

A Structural Engineer might also be involved in the demolition or dismantling of a structure, either permanently or in order to repair it. For both of these processes, they need to know about the forces that act on a structure from the stresses put on a bridge by heavy traffic or by strong winds on a tall building or on any structure by seasonal temperature changes.

Structural Engineers also inspect and report on structural building buildings and may prepare designs and details for repair and remedial works. Such defects may range from serious problems such as subsidence or collapse to minor defects such as wall tie corrosion or roof spread.

Like all Engineers whose work may affect life, health or property, new Structural Engineers go through a rigorous training process during their early career. This training involves several years of work experience under the supervision of experienced Engineers followed by a thorough interview and a 7 hour examination, and results in membership of the Institution of Structural Engineers (MIStructE) and the title of Chartered Structural Engineer.

Along with technical know-how, a Structural Engineer needs a host of other skills to be able to interact with professional and non-professional colleagues and clients. Problem resolution, time management and good communications are all skills have to be developed by a Structural Engineer.  In most cases construction work costs a lot of money and proceeds very rapidly, so if there are problems, then they need to be resolved as quickly as possible.

If you require the services of a Structural Engineer please feel free to one of our Chartered Structural Engineers info@meadstructures.co.uk