Risk and Safety in Play draws on PLAYLINKS 35 years experience with adventure playgrounds and the findings in its three year development project 'Quality Play and Safety.' The text has been widely researched and commented on by playworkers, managers and safety experts. Risk and Safety in Play is an essential hanbook for practitioners. It reviews the theory and practice of adventure playgrounds, introduces recent changes to legislation and gives guidance on the interpretation of legal responsibilities. Particular attention is paid to the duty to carry out risk assesments and the book shows how they fit into the values and the daily management od adventure playgrounds. Backed by PLAYLINK's advisory and technical srevices, appendices provide pro forma checklists, consent and report forms for photocopying and information on further reading and useful contacts.

To facilitate a deeper understanding of tensegrity structures, this book focuses on their two key design problems: self-equilibrium analysis and stability investigation. In particular, high symmetry properties of the structures are extensively utilized. Conditions for self-equilibrium as well as super-stability of tensegrity structures are presented in detail. An analytical method and an efficient numerical method are given for self-equilibrium analysis of tensegrity structures: the analytical method deals with symmetric structures and the numerical method guarantees super-stability. Utilizing group representation theory, the text further provides analytical super-stability conditions for the structures that are of dihedral as well as tetrahedral symmetry. This book not only serves as a reference for engineers and scientists but is also a useful source for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students. Keeping this objective in mind, the presentation of the book is self-contained and detailed, with an abundance of figures and examples.

Deterioration of cement-based materials continues to result in substantially shortened lives for conventional structures due to poor performance and the need for early repair. With more advanced applications, where very long service lives are essential such as the storage of nuclear waste, understanding the degradation processes resulting in poor durability is very important. This book forms the proceedings of the latest in the series of symposia at the Materials Research Society Fall meeting in Boston dealing with cementitious materials in which the emphasis is on the chemical processes of deterioration. With contributions from leading international researchers and specialists in the field, the book provides a reference for all those concerned with current thinking on the subject.

Finite element model updating has emerged in the 1990s as a subject of immense importance to the design, construction and maintenance of mechanical systems and civil engineering structures. This book, the first on the subject, sets out to explain the principles of model updating, not only as a research text, but also as a guide for the practising engineer who wants to get acquainted with, or use, updating techniques. It covers all aspects of model preparation and data acquisition that are necessary for updating. The various methods for parameter selection, error localisation, sensitivity and parameter estimation are described in detail and illustrated with examples. The examples can be easily replicated and expanded in order to reinforce understanding. The book is aimed at researchers, postgraduate students and practising engineers.

These proceedings, arising from an international workshop, present research results and ideas on issues of importance to seismic risk reduction and the development of future seismic codes.

This text presents a complete treatment of the fundamental themes of structural mechanics, from the traditonal to the most advanced. It covers: the mechanics of linear elastic solids, theory of beam systems and phenomena of structural failure. Structural symmetry is considered in one chapter and dynamics are dealt with at various points. The book is intended as a text for students and a reference for research workers and practising engineers. Logical presentation allows the clear introduction of topics such as finite element methods, automatic calculation of framed beam systems, dynamics, theory of plasticity and fracture mechanics. Key features of the text include: coverage of statics, dynamic, automatic computation of framed structures and the finite element method; an explicit consideration of all the static and dynamic operators of structural mechanics with their dual character; discussion of instability, plasticity and fracture; and examples and exercises with complete solutions.

The contributions to this book derive from the Second Cardington Conference held in March 1996 and are based on experimental work carried out on the first test structure at the LBTF, and eight-storeyed steel-framed building. They examine the role of full-size building tests in the development of structural design methods, and give recommendations on improved construction practice and safety of a building's occupants in the event of fire and explosion. Projects are covered in the fields of construction, static loading, dynamic response and the effect of fire and explosion loading. In addition, there are papers describing the future programme and other planned structures.

This book introduces practising engineers and post-graduate students to modern approaches to seismic design, with a particular focus on reinforced concrete structures, earthquake resistant design of new buildings and assessment, repair and strengthening of existing buildings. Fundamentals of engineering seismlogy are covered in the first part, including structural dynamics, calculation of structural response, energy considerations, structural configuration, static and dynamic analysis of structures under seismic actions, represented by equivalent lateral loads, or by elastic and inelastic spectra including the Eurocode 8 spectrum. The second part explains the earthquake-related properties of reinforced concrete materials, and seismic behaviour of structural members. Eurocode 8 design provisions for each type of member are presented in detail, as well as a fully worked design application. It concludes with a discussion of methods for assessing seismic performance of structures, and several case studies involving concrete buildings with frames and structural walls with and without masonry infill panels. Seismic pathology of concrete structures, assessment of seismic capacity of exist

The interaction between engineering and the law is undergoing dramatic changes. Product liability, laws have been introduced in Japan, patent claims over living organisms have been made in bioengineering and the differing national laws of copyright protection and liability are in the process of harmonisation, especially in the European Union. The pace and complexity of these changes make it essential for technologists, lawyers, engineers and insurance experts to establish a common basis for understanding, co-operation and exchange of expertise. The recently founded International Society for Technology, Law and Insurance aims to foster such co-operation. This volume features 46 selected contributions which address various topical issues and the law. The most important issues relate to engineering risks, quality assurance and assessment and legal implications assiciated with them. Recent failure cases are explained and the technical, legal and insurance-related issues discussed in detail.

This book is a collection of papers presented in the NDT Conference held on February 20-23, 1996 at San Diego, California. The conference provided an opportunity to share experience and provide additional input to the Federal Highway Administration.

This work consists of two parts: engineering seismology and earthquake-resistant design. Special attention is placed on bridging the gap between these two disciplines. The fundamentals of seismology, earthquake engineering and random processes are introduced. This is followed by a chapter describing the earthquake intensity, ground motions, and its damage effects. In ensuing chapters concerning the earthquake-resistant design, both fundamental theories and new research problems and future directions are presented, including methods for foundation design and structural experiments. Finally, in the last chapter on engineering applications, seismic risk and its damaging effects, seismic zonation and features of earthquake-resistant design of different types of structures and design standards are introduced.

An important state-of-the-art report prepared by RILEM Technical Committee 108 ICC. It has been written by a team of leading international experts from the UK, USA, Canada, Israel, Germany, Denmark, South Africa, Italy and France. Research studies over recent years in the field of cement science have focused on the behaviour of the interfaces between the components of cement-based materials. The techniques used in other areas of materials science are being applied to the complex materials found in cements and concretes, and this book provides a significant survey of the present state of the art.

This is the first fully comprehensive survey and analysis of masted structures and covers examples that have evolved during the past three decades. Masted Structures are one of the most interesting developments in post-war architecture resulting from a combination of technology, structural engineering theory and a collaboration between architects and engineers. This is an essential guide for architects to the structural and constructional implications of masted forms in relation to space enclosure, patterns of loading and use of differing materials and techniques. This useful volume will enable architects and engineers to understand the origins, development and nature of masted structures and will provide a stimulating basis for future design.

This text discusses factors such as mast overload, capacity of drawworks, and deviation in the hole to be drilled and the strata to be drilled. An omnibus approach to drilling techniques and problems is adopted.

In the past ten years there was a worldwide trend towards increased use of Tunnel Boring Machines (TBM's). This trend covers a broad variety of applications ranging both from small diameters for sewers and other utilities to large diameters for double track railway and even three-lane highway tunnels. The response to this has been the development of both hard rock machines in the direction for application in soft ground, and soft ground TBM's to be used in soft rock. Parallel to the technical development of TBM's towards applications for longer tunnels, running through changing geological conditions, there are needs for the development of lining methods. 'TBM Tunnel Trends' an international lecture serie collection, aims to present the latest scientific and practical state of the art of TBM tunnelling, taking into consideration interactions between machinery and lining. 26 international highly recognized papers.

The integration of photovoltaics (PV) into buildings goes beyond energy saving by providing a clean and elegant way of actually generating electricity. There are already numerous successful examples and rapid technological improvements promise expansion of PV's present niche market to that of a major energy provider of the 21st century. This handbook is the outcome of a five year programme which took place under the auspices of the International Energy Agency. Architects and solar experts from 13 countries addressed the wide range of engineering and architectural issues involved in the successful integration of PV into buildings. It demonstrates how to maximise the overall solar contribution to the building; integrate PV effectively with the building structure; clarify the relationship of PV with other elements of the building's energy system; optimise the system economics. It forms a thorough design guide that covers all aspects if the subject and will enable all building designers, engineers and property owners to make the integration of PV into buildings an architecturally appealing and energetically effective option.

Invited international contributions to this exciting new research field are included in this volume. It contains the specially selected papers from 45 key specialists given at the Symposium held under the auspices of the prestigious International Union of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics at Turin in October 1994.

This book presents the foundation and validation of the Cosserat Plate Theory, numerical experiments of deformation and vibration, and the unique properties of the Cosserat plates. Our approach incorporates the high accuracy assumptions of the Cosserat plate deformation consistent with the Cosserat Elasticity equilibrium equations, constitutive formulas, strain-displacement and torsion-microrotation relations. The Cosserat Plate Theory is parametric, where the "splitting parameter" minimizes the Cosserat plate energy. The validation of the theory is based on the comparison with the three-dimensional Cosserat Elastostatics and Elastodynamics. The numerical results are obtained using the Finite Element Method (FEM) specifically developed to solve the parametric system of equations. The analysis of deformation of a variety of Cosserat plates shows the stress concentration reduction, higher stiffness of Cosserat plates, and the size-effect related to the microstructure. The analysis of vibration of Cosserat plates predicts size-related properties of the plate vibration, the existence of the additional so-called Cosserat plate resonances, and the dynamic anisotropy, related to the dependency of the resonances on the microelement's shapes and orientations.

Tunnelling is a high risk business. Success depends crucially on the nature of the ground through which the tunnel is being driven. The cost of a thorough site investigation is usually only a small fraction of the cost of the construction work but this crucial phase of a project is often given too low a priority. This text provides a review of tunnelling contracts, particularly those for sewerage and drainage tunnels. It reviews site investigation methods, contract preparation and tender evaluation, tunnel costruction, claims and records, and the post-construction phase. Examples of good and bad practice of site investigation and other aspects of tunnelling are given, and the text is supported by over 500 references. Supplementary information in the second part of the book expands on particular aspects such as ground vibration and noise. Among other topics covered are quality assurance, rock properties and testing, pollution, permeability and dewatering.

This book deals with the new developments and application of the geometric method to the nonlinear stability problem for thin non-elastic shells. A.V. Pogorelov (Harkov, Ukraine) was the first to provide in his monographs the geometric construction of the deformed shell surface in a post-critical stage and deriving explicityly the asymptotic formulas for the upper and lower critical loads. The geometric method by Pogorelov is one of the most importanty analytical methods developed during the last century. Its power consists in its ability to provide a clear geometric picture of the post critical form of a deformed shell surface, successfully applied to a direct variational approach to the nonlinear shell stability problems. Until now, most of Pogorelov's monographs were written in Russian, which limited the diffusion of his ideas among the international scientific community. The present book is intended to assist and encourage the researchers in this field to apply the geometric method and the related results to everyday engineering practice. Further developments of the geometric method are carried out in this book and are directed to stability of thin shells in the case of elastic anisotropy, elastic anisotropy with linear memory and elasto-plastic properties of the shell material. This book is intended to serve both as a textbook for post-graduate students in structural engineering and applied mathematics, and as a revference monograph for academic and industrial researchers.

This book addresses problems in structural dynamics and control encountered in such applications as: aerospace structures, robotics, earthquake-damage prevention, and active noise suppression. The rapid developments of new technologies and computer power have made it possible to formulate and solve engineering problems that seemed unapproachable only a few years ago. The treatment combines concepts from control engineering (such as system norms and controllability) and structural engineering (such as modal properties and modal models), thereby both revealing new structural properties as well as giving new insights into well-known laws. The techniques discussed will make it easier for structural engineers to design control systems and for control engineers to deal with structural dynamics. The discussion begins by defining flexible structures and structural models, using such examples as the international space station and the antennas of NASA's deep-space network. The book then turns to controllability and observability; properties of system norms (Häsubinfinityü, Häsub2ü, and Hankel); and model reduction in terms of these norms. A discussion of sensor and actuator location follows: selecting these is rarely an easy task. The concluding chapters discuss the design of dissipative LQG and Häsubinfinityü controllers. Matlab codes for many of the procedures and methods discussed in the book are included.

A state-of-the-art report prepared by RILEM Technical Committee 116-PCD. At present, durability of concrete is controlled by specifying the materials to be used, the methods of mixing, placing, curing and so on. This approach is often unsatisfactory and it is a common objective of concrete researchers and engineers to develop performance criteria which allow the potential durability of a particular concrete mix or structure to be estimated. However, the complexity of concrete as a material and the difficulty of developing consistent and reliable test methods has meant that progress has been slow. International interest in the subject is growing strongly with the development of international standards and so this book is very timely in giving an authoritative, international review of the subject. It will set the scene for the next few years as a key source of information and advice.

Post-tensioning is the most versatile form of pre stressing, a technique which enables engineers to make the most effective use of the material properties of concrete, and so to design structural elements which are strong, slender and efficient. Design in post-tensioned concrete is not difficult and, if done properly, can contribute significantly to the economy and the aesthetic qualities of a building. Post-tensioned floors have found widespread use in office buildings and car park structures, and are also frequently employed in warehouses and public buildings. However, in spite of this, most prestressed concrete texts devote comparatively little attention to floors, concentrating instead on beam elements. This book answers the need for a comprehensive treatment of post-tensioned floor design.

Discusses the requirements for establishing, maintaining and revitalizing an efficient engineering documentation control system for use by technical and manufacturing personnel in private industry. The book stresses simplicity and common sense in the development and implementation of all control practices, procedures and forms. A list of effective interchangeability rules, a glossary of essential engineering documentation terms and an extensive bibliography of key literature sources are provided.;This work is intended for mechanical, computer, design, manufacturing and civil engineers; program, purchasing and documentation and production control managers; and upper-level undergraduate, graduate and continuing-education students in these fields.

This book is an outcome of the third Herbertov Workshop on "interactions of railway vehicles with the track and its substructure" at Herbertov, Czech Republic. It proposes an appropriate model for the dynamic behaviour of the track and its substructure.