New Civil Engineer
Richard Thompson
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League of its own
26-Jan-2011
Qatar’s successful bid to host the 2022 World Cup gives the green light to a wave of major infrastructure projects across the gas and oil-rich state, says Richard Thompson. -
Granting wishes
25-May-2000
The sSRA has been described as the vital cog missing from the rail industry. Richard Thompson finds out from chief executive Mike Grant how it will make the nation's rail machine work more effectively. -
Growth industry
25-May-2000
If being a railway man is a religion - as some argue it is - then sSRA railway development director Chris Stokes is of the born again variety. He tells Richard Thompson he probably has the best job in the railways. -
Laying the ground rules
25-May-2000
What will the sSRA's upcoming strategy document contain? Richard Thompson predicts. -
Fresh delays for Croydon tram
4-May-2000
News -
Railtrack to cut consultancy work
6-Apr-2000
RAIL CONSULTANTS face a 15% drop in work after Railtrack announced a major reorganisation of its supply chains last week. -
Dublin review
1-Apr-2000
LOCAL RESIDENTS have forced Dublin Corporation to ask the President of the Institution of Engineers of Ireland to appoint an independent expert reviewer for site investigation plans on the controversial Port Dublin Tunnel project. -
Engineers go in at full blast
1-Apr-2000
DESIGNING MILITARY fortifications must be one of the most frustrating areas of civil engineering. No sooner have you devised a structure that can resist the enemies' most powerful weapons than they develop a new weapon to beat it. -
'Loophole' in CDM legislation sparks urgent HSE review
23-Mar-2000
THE HEALTH & Safety Executive is to launch an urgent review of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations after an Appeal Court decision uncovered a loophole which resulted in designers escaping responsibility for the work of their contractors or employees. -
Signal glitch delays Croydon tram opening
23-Mar-2000
SIGNALLING SOFTWARE problems have delayed the opening of the Croydon Tram again. It will now open fully by the end of May - seven months late. -
Winsor weighs rail upgrade options
16-Mar-2000
News: Rail Regulator Tom Winsor's job has just expanded because of train operators' plans to finance and upgrade parts of the rail network. He discusses the implications with Richard Thompson. -
Railtrack shake-up puts WCML upgrade back on track
9-Mar-2000
RAILTRACK'S WEST Coast Main Line management shake-up last year saved the project, according to train operator Virgin chief executive Chris Green. -
Dublin tunnel on hold as locals demand independent review
2-Mar-2000
News -
Professional paupers
2-Mar-2000
It's official - civil engineering is one of the lowest paid professions. Richard Thompson asks why. -
Southall report demands Railtrack review maintenance
2-Mar-2000
News -
Construction backs call for EUwide fine enforcement
1-Mar-2000
THE UK construction industry has called for Home Secretary Jack Straw to instigate a Europe-wide convention to enforce fines levied on overseas companies found guilty of health and safety breaches in the UK. -
Calls grow to create a new railway safety watchdog
24-Feb-2000
News -
Geoconsult complains to European Court
24-Feb-2000
NEWS -
Dublin engineers to strike over Corporation reforms
17-Feb-2000
News -
Freelancers face tax threat
17-Feb-2000
News -
Minister investigates Dublin tunnel
17-Feb-2000
News -
Engineers headhunted as skills shortage escalates in Scotland
10-Feb-2000
News -
England could follow Scottish route to road maintenance Scotland's road maintenance regime is undergoing a transformation which could be mirrored in England.
10-Feb-2000
News -
Night moves Resurfacing a busy airport runway is always a major challenge.
10-Feb-2000
Resurfacing; Glasgow airport Richard Thompson reports from Scotland on one £10M project where good planning was the key to success. -
Railtrack to tackle zonal 'anarchy'
10-Feb-2000
News -
Construction industry backs call for EU-wide enforcement of fines
27-Jan-2000
News -
More rail research needed, says DETR
27-Jan-2000
News -
Safety laws lack teeth for foreign construction firms
27-Jan-2000
Is it right that foreign companies can escape paying fines for breaking British health & safety laws? -
Allott & Lomax deal fills gap in Babtie portfolio
20-Jan-2000
News -
Ineffective CDM regulations cost industry dear
20-Jan-2000
News -
Killing time
20-Jan-2000
News -
MEP vows to act over fine dodging European contractors
20-Jan-2000
News -
LU to restart bidding process for £3.2bn subsurface lines
9-Dec-1999
News -
Railtrack integration plans proved too costly
9-Dec-1999
News -
'Double whammy' worries water firms
2-Dec-1999
News; Water price review -
Grant calls on TOCs to boost investment through franchises
2-Dec-1999
BRITAIN'S RAILWAY network needs £41bn of investment if it is to cope with a predicted 53% rise in rail traffic over the next 10 years, according to research by Sheffield University's Advanced Railway Research Centre for the BBC. -
Great Wall of China
2-Dec-1999
STRETCHING NEARLY one tenth of the way around the planet, the Great Wall of China is the longest structure ever built. From end to end it measures 3,460km although when you include its branches this rises to 6,320km Famously, it is reputed to be the only man made object visible from space. -
Less income, more expenditure
2-Dec-1999
Is the latest round of water price cuts putting too much pressure on an already efficient water industry? -
CIWEM members say new in-house consultancy is conflict of interest
25-Nov-1999
SENIOR MEMBERS of the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management this week rebelled against its launch of a consultancy which they say could cost them work. -
CIWEM's latest business venture has stirred up strong feelings.
25-Nov-1999
Institutions and commercial ventures -
Workers fought to save collapsing tunnel
25-Nov-1999
TUNNELLERS BATTLED underground to save Yorkshire Water's collapsed tunnel in Hull last week while concrete spalled around them, the client's project manager told NCE this week. -
Overall safety regulator vital to transport policy, Government told
18-Nov-1999
News -
Electrical leaks and software glitches delay opening of Croydon's new tram network
11-Nov-1999
A DOUBLE whammy of leaking electricity and software glitches has delayed opening of Croydon's £200M tram network. -
In the hustle and bustle of modern London
28-Oct-1999
A cluster of timber piles discovered on the banks of the Thames could turn out to be the foundations for London's first river crossing. NCE put together team of construction brains to work out how it could have been built. Richard Thompson reports. -
Rail regulator dangles fresh carrots in front of Railtrack
21-Oct-1999
NEWS -
Railtrack appeals againstsignal prohibition notice
21-Oct-1999
NEWS -
Crash train signals were not cleared by rail inspectors
14-Oct-1999
News -
HSC to look at effects of privatisation on rail safety
14-Oct-1999
News -
Signal irregularities swamping Railtrack, says HSE
14-Oct-1999
NEWS -
Checks for bacteria carried out at Dome
7-Oct-1999
NEWS -
Railtrack subsidy doubts threaten Tube upgrade talks
7-Oct-1999
News -
Taiwan's quake exceeded design codes
30-Sep-1999
NEWS -
Profile Janet Goodland Railtrack director for London
23-Sep-1999
ANALYSIS -
Design failures led to tragedy
16-Sep-1999
Cowboy contractors and corrupt building inspectors have taken the brunt of the blame for the devastation caused by last months' Turkish earthquake. But when Richard Thompson travelled to the disaster zone he discovered that poor design was just as much to -
Turkey to train civil engineer 'army' for post-earthquake building assessment work
16-Sep-1999
THE TURKISH Chamber of Civil Engineers is to train a volunteer army of civil engineers to carry out urgent building assessments following last month's earthquake. -
Panic in Istanbul as quakes head east
2-Sep-1999
TURKISH EARTHQUAKE -
Inexperienced British miss major rail projects
19-Aug-1999
NEWS -
Thames Water sends team to Turkey
19-Aug-1999
THAMES WATER has rushed a team of engineers to Turkey to assess the condition of a new water supply scheme after an earthquake rocked the country on Tuesday. -
Thameslink pre-qualification to start before end of year
19-Aug-1999
NEWS -
Inspector shortages hit rail safety checks
15-Jul-1999
NEWS -
Tunnel blast kills three
8-Jul-1999
NEWS -
Watchdog threatens Railtrack shake up over WCML failures
8-Jul-1999
RAILTRACK HAS until the end of the month to convince new Rail Regulator Tom Winsor that it has the expertise to manage its West Coast Main Line capacity commitments. -
British companies losing the battle to win work in Serbia
1-Jul-1999
BRITAIN'S CIVIL engineering companies have fallen behind their European competitors in the race to reconstruct Serbia. -
Profile Tom Winsor Rail Regulator
1-Jul-1999
ANALYSIS -
Convertible pitch, but no twin towers for new Wembley
24-Jun-1999
THE NEW Wembley Stadium will have a moving roof and a convertible pitch, but the famous twin towers are set to go, it was revealed by Wembley Stadium chief executive Bob Stubbs at last week's Stadia & Arena 2000 conference in London. -
Kosovo taskforce launches damage assessment mission
24-Jun-1999
NEWS -
Stadia design breaks new ground
24-Jun-1999
ANALYSIS -
Burst main 'had been leaking for years'
10-Jun-1999
NEWS -
HSE safety probe follows rise in trackside fatalities
10-Jun-1999
10 June 1999 -
Broken rails crisis
3-Jun-1999
RAILWAYS CHIEF Inspector Vic Coleman has called for an urgent meeting with Railtrack to discuss the alarming 24% jump in broken rails on the UK network. -
Civils have 'wrong type of skills' says Railtrack
3-Jun-1999
NEWS -
Site settlement halts mall piling work
1-Jun-1999
NEWS -
Agency slates Ofwat failure to reduce water demand
31-May-1999
THE ENVIRONMENT Agency this week attacked water regulator Ofwat's 'price control philosophy', claiming it had failed to encourage water companies to reduce customer demand. -
Bobby Charlton backs twin towers rescue
20-May-1999
SIR BOBBY Charlton this week urged designers of the new Wembley National Stadium not to abandon the old structure's famous twin towers. -
Britain needs a Minister for Wembley, says stadium developer
20-May-1999
BRITAIN WILL never host the Olympic Games unless a Minister for Wembley is appointed to oversee strategic development of the area around the new English National Stadium, the Government was warned this week. -
Go with the flow
20-May-1999
Summer flood protection in East Anglia will take a great leap forward when the Environment Agency introduces an advanced computer-controlled flood forecasting system. In the opening feature of NCE's quarterly IT Focus, Richard Thompson reports on the proj -
Glasgow mall undermined by M&S foundations work
13-May-1999
NEWS -
Race to prevent London mains burst
13-May-1999
COMMUTERS AND residents in North London face a summer of disruption after Thames Water revealed it may have to excavate up to 77 buried access hatches on a key water main. -
Talks start on moving Wembley towers
13-May-1999
NEWS -
Scots Parliament urged not to interfere in transport plans
6-May-1999
NEWS -
Dublin Port inquiry ends
1-May-1999
EXPERTS LEADING the public inquiry into the proposed Dublin Port road tunnel are considering evidence from the 21-day hearing. -
Ofwat goes head to head with water firms over prices
29-Apr-1999
WATER COMPANIES and Ofwat are on a collision course over prices which could result in hundreds of millions of pounds worth of civils work being cancelled or postponed. -
First footing
22-Apr-1999
First Engineering and Railtrack have embarked on a maintenance contract that could set a benchmark for the rest of Britain's railways. Richard Thompson reports. -
Hatches under investigation
22-Apr-1999
THAMES WATER is to investigate the condition of 24 inspection hatch covers on the19 km trunk main which burst and flooded a main road underpass in North London last month. -
Morton and Murray NCE meets the Strategic Rail Authority's Sir Alastair Morton and Railtrack's Simon Murray, arguably the two most influential men in rail infrastructure.
22-Apr-1999
The chairman of the new Strategic Rail Authority, Sir Alastair Morton, has identified project management as the key to delivering the much promised British rail system 'for the 21st century'. -
Railtrack takes charge Easter marked a key turning point on Railtrack's West Coast Route Modernisation project.
22-Apr-1999
Slow progress has forced Railtrack to take direct control of its £2.2bn West Coast Route Modernisation. It has replaced project manager Brown & Root's project director Ian MacPherson with its own director of capital programmes Tony Fletcher (News last week). Fletcher answers directly to Railtrack's director of major projects Simon Murray. -
Brown & Root loses out in WCML reshuffle
15-Apr-1999
DELAYS ON the West Coast Main Line route modernisation have forced Railtrack to revamp its project management causing Brown & Root to be ousted from its lead role on the project. -
Six month wait for Dublin decision
15-Apr-1999
EXPERTS LEADING the public inquiry into the proposed Dublin Port road tunnel have retired to consider the evidence. -
Road tunnel code ready at last
1-Apr-1999
BRITAIN'S FIRST road tunnel design codes are to be published by the Highways Agency this summer - after nine years of preparation. -
Skill shortage threatens Railtrack spending
25-Mar-1999
RAILWAY ENGINEERS this week cast doubt on whether the industry was fit to deliver the £27bn, 10-year network improvements programme expected to be announced by Railtrack today. -
It's time to take safety; seriously
18-Mar-1999
Rail's failure to learn vital safety management lessons keeps causing accidents, as the Bexley train crash of 1997 showed. -
Leakage may have led to trunk main burst
18-Mar-1999
THE MASSIVE Thames Water trunk main which ruptured and flooded an underpass on London's North Circular last week could have been leaking for years, according to engineers called in to assess the damage. -
Rotten track caused Bexley rail crash
18-Mar-1999
BAD MANAGEMENT by Railtrack and its contractors caused the 1997 Bexley rail crash, according to the conclusions of a report into the accident published last week. -
Austrian rules for Dublin tunnel
11-Mar-1999
CONTRACTORS BUILDING the 2.6km tunnel under Dublin Port will have to work to Austrian design codes, a public inquiry was told this week. -
Bridge threatened after biggest ever main burst
11-Mar-1999
CONSULTANT MOUCHEL was this week investigating the stability of a major London road bridge after nearly 26,000m3 of water from a burst 1.5m diameter main threatened to lift the deck off its bearings. -
UK firms race for Brenner tunnel
11-Mar-1999
BRITAIN’S BIGGEST civil engineering companies are jockeying for a chance to build the 2.5bn, 55km Brenner pass railway tunnel through the Alps from Austria to Italy. -
Water firms hit back at bills and spending edict
4-Mar-1999
WATER COMPANIES this week warned that spending on infrastructure renewals may have to be slashed to free up funds to meet the Government's new water quality improvement targets. -
Trackside accidents on the increase
25-Feb-1999
FATAL ACCIDENTS and unsafe work practices by rail maintenance contractors rose steeply last year, according to figures published this week by Railtrack. -
HEX verdict: record fines Geoconsult to appeal
18-Feb-1999
AUSTRIAN TUNNELLING consultant Geoconsult will this week begin appeal proceedings after being convicted in the High Court and fined £500,000 for breaches of the Health & Safety at Work Act during the 1994 Heathrow Express collapse. -
Witness error cost HSE dear
18-Feb-1999
BREACH OF the rules governing the use of expert witnesses has contributed to the fact that the Health & Safety Executive must pay £680,000 towards the cost of its investigation into the HEX collapse and its prosecution costs. -
Geoconsult denies quality control role on Heathrow Express
11-Feb-1999
HEATHROW EXPRESS main contractor Balfour Beatty reduced the role of its tunnelling consultant Geoconsult to little more than observer. -
Geoconsult 'scapegoat' in HEX trial - Muir Wood
4-Feb-1999
FORMER INSTITUTION of Civil Engineers President Sir Alan Muir Wood has claimed the tunnelling contract for the Heathrow Express project was badly set up, and that the New Austrian Tunnelling Method subcontractor Geoconsult is being made a scapegoat for the collapse. -
HEX collapse case told of '50mm tunnel linings'
28-Jan-1999
SELF CERTIFICATION systems on the Heathrow Express project were not understood and led to tunnel linings being too thin, the HEX trial was told this week. -
Profile Hugh Carlisle
28-Jan-1999
Heathrow Express prosecuting counsel. -
Heathrow Express court case kicks off
21-Jan-1999
TUNNEL MONITORING instruments predicted a cave-in at Heathrow Express weeks before the actual collapse but the consultant responsible failed to act, a court heard this week -
Tracks
21-Jan-1999
Railtrack has frustrated the industry by changing the emphasis of its infrastructure spending programme, dashing hopes of a boom in civils work. Richard Thompson reports. -
Railtrack faces barrage of safety prosecutions
14-Jan-1999
RAILTRACK AND its contractors are facing a barrage of Health & Safety Executive prosecutions following rail accidents in areas where maintenance work was being carried out. -
Ofwat threat to water spend
7-Jan-1999
WATER COMPANIES this week warned that spending on renewal projects risked being substantially cut if industry regulator Ofwat continued with its 'fundamentally flawed' system for capping their spending. -
Prescott holds road charge veto
10-Dec-1998
CONGESTION BUSTING road charges will be kept in the hands of local authorities, the Government promised this week. -
WCML battles to close cost gap
10-Dec-1998
RAILTRACK IS scaling down its West Coast Main Line modernisation programme after realising it cannot afford the level of improvements it had originally planned for the route. -
Flynn & Rothwell founder claims for unfair dismissal
3-Dec-1998
FLYNN & ROTHWELL founder Brian Flynn is taking the consultancy he established in 1982 to an industrial tribunal for unfair dismissal. -
Piggyback costs challenged
3-Dec-1998
THE PIGGYBACK Consortium has submitted evidence to a Parliamentary Transport Select Committee which accuses Railtrack of not looking at all options before it dismissed the West Coast Main Line piggyback scheme in favour of its 'big box' alternative (NCE 26 November). -
Funding deal set to release Wembley design work
26-Nov-1998
MOTT MACDONALD and architect Foster & Partners are set to be handed design of the new 240M Wembley Stadium within the next six weeks - six months later than expected. -
Railtrack backs 'big box' freight over piggyback
26-Nov-1998
HIGH INVESTMENT costs and unacceptable network disruption have forced Railtrack to go cold on the 250M piggyback scheme for carrying road freight on the West Coast Main Line, Railtrack chief executive Gerald Corbett admitted this week. -
Water engineers on vole virus alert
26-Nov-1998
HEART FAILURE suffered by a Salford City Council engineer earlier this year has been traced to a virus carried by voles living near the watercourses on which he worked. The engineer spent six months recovering. -
Column rethink delays Leicester road bridge
19-Nov-1998
MANUFACTURING PROBLEMS on four stainless steel support columns have led to a nine month delay on a 1.4M river crossing in Leicester. -
Column rethink delays Leicester road bridge
19-Nov-1998
MANUFACTURING PROBLEMS on four stainless steel support columns have led to a nine month delay on a 1.4M river crossing in Leicester. -
Spy in the cab
19-Nov-1998
The Highways Agency's 1M, state of the art road inspection vehicle is set to revolutionise highway maintenance, says Richard Thompson. -
Support network
19-Nov-1998
There are many trunk road bridges being upgraded to meet the new 40t weight limit. But only one has its own web site. Richard Thompson finds out why. -
Funding deal set to release Wembley design work
12-Nov-1998
MOTT MACDONALD and architect Foster & Partners are set to be handed design of the new 240M Wembley Stadium within the next six weeks - six months later than expected.
