Civil Engineering

About

This page provides the sort of information that I convey to students at Careers Fairs where I am representing Civil Engineering as a career.  To assist people I talk to and those who contact me directly I thought I would write some notes and include some links that you might find useful.

The information is targeted mainly at students looking to ultimately obtain a professional qualification via a higher education route however much of it is equally valid for students looking for apprenticeships or direct entry to work after school.

If you want any further information or assistance then email me at andrew.kenyon.ice@gmail.com

About Me

My full name and title is Andrew Robert Kenyon BSc(hons) CEng MICE MCIHT

I am first and foremost an Engineer – and engineers are cool.

I have a Bachelor of Science Honours Degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Surrey.  That’s the BSc(hons) bit.

I am a  Chartered Engineer – that’s the CEng bit.  That means I am professionally qualified.  See below for more on CEng.

I am a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). That is the MICE bit. There is lots more about the ICE below.

I am also a member of the Chartered Institute of Highways and Transportation. That is the MCIHT bit.

I am employed by French company Vinci in their UK Construction division – Taylor Woodrow – as a Planning Manager in the work winning department.  In that role I plan how civil engineering works are going to be carried out when we are bidding for work to help in arriving at a price for the work and to help with the bid documents that we have to provide.

I am a Supervising Civil Engineer (SCE).  An SCE is a professional engineer who has been approved by the ICE to supervise engineers who are training toward becoming Chartered.

I am the immediate past Chairman of the Essex Branch and  Chairman of the east of England regional committee of the ICE

I am a Civil Engineering/Construction/Science&Engineering Ambassador. Ambassadors are trained and CRB checked to do activities with schools.

You can find out more about me on my LinkedIn page here http://uk.linkedin.com/in/andykenyon1

You can read my blog on this site here https://constructionetc.wordpress.com/

My Journey

… coming soon …

STEM

STEM is short for Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics.  STEMNET are a government funded organising that promotes STEM careers and provides resources for students, teachers and professionals. http://www.stemnet.org.uk  STEMNET runs the Science and Engineering Ambassador scheme which prepares engineers and other STEM professionals for supporting schools and students in their STEM career choices.

In Essex ExploreSTEM manages the Schools STEM Advisory Network and STEM Ambassadors Programme across Essex, Southend and Thurrock.  They manage requests by schools and students for support of schools events and careers events.  If you are a school and you would like STEM Ambassadors to support an activity or event then contact them via http://www.ExploreSTEM.co.uk (and tell them I sent you!)

Engineering

Wikipedia describes engineering thus:

Engineering is the discipline, art, and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of people.

You can read the full article here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engineering

As detailed in this article there are four main branches of Engineering.  These are:

• Chemical Engineering
• Civil Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering

There are others – but these are the principal ones.  If you are interested in the branches of engineering other than Civil Engineering I have included links the their respective websites at the bottom of this page.

One of the best websites  for students, parents, and teachers for information on Engineering is http://www.TomorrowsEngineers.org.uk  A section dedicated to Construction can be found here http://www.tomorrowsengineers.org.uk/Construction/

Civil Engineering

The Institution of Civil Engineers describes Civil Engineering thus:

Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment. Put simply, civil engineers build bridges, roads, canals, dams, tall buildings, and other large structures.

This quotation is taken from the website of Institution of Civil Engineers and can be seen in it’s original form here http://www.ice.org.uk/About-civil-engineering. From this page you find out more about what Civil Engineering is, what civil engineers do, see examples of some big civil engineering projects like the 2012 Olympic Stadium and Crossrail, and learn about some current issues facing the industry.

To get a quick flavour of some of the projects Civil Engineers work on take a look at the covers of our trade magazine – New Civil Engineer – on my GooglePlus site by clicking the image below.  These are a little out of date and will be updated soon – you get the idea though!

For a simple overview of how to become a Civil Engineer see this ‘Moving On’ page (its very good) – http://movingonmagazine.co.uk/how-to-become-a-civil-engineer/

The Institution of Civil Engineers

The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is a registered charity (no. 210252; no. SC038629 [Scotland]) that strives to promote and progress civil engineering. We believe that civil engineers are “at the heart of society, delivering sustainable development through knowledge, skills and professional expertise.”

You can find out more about who the ICE are here http://www.ice.org.uk/About-ICE/Who-we-are

ICE is an international membership organisation that promotes and advances civil engineering around the world. ICE is a qualifying body, a centre for the exchange of specialist knowledge, and a provider of resources to encourage innovation and excellence in the profession worldwide.  Its purpose is to qualify professionals engaged in civil engineering, exchange knowledge and best practice, and promote their contribution to society.

You can find out more about what the ICE does from here http://www.ice.org.uk/About-ICE/What-we-do

ICE produce a very good clear English guide to the Institution and what it does and this can be downloaded in pdf format via the Who-we-are page above or directly by clicking here.

The homepage of the Institution of Civil Engineers can be found at http://www.ice.org.uk/

Also on the ICE website is a whole section devoted to Education.  This includes information for Students and Young Learners, and teacher information and resources amongst other things.  The education page can be linked directly here http://www.ice.org.uk/Education

Routes to Professional Qualification

The ultimate goal of civil engineers is to become professionally qualified and to become a ‘Chartered’ Civil Engineer.  Being Chartered allows you to use the CEng letters after your name and indicates that you have achieved a high level of qualification and proficiency in you chosen field.  This is a similar status to becoming a Chartered Accountant or Chartered Solicitor or a fully qualified doctor.

You can also become Professionally Qualified as an Incorporated Engineer which allows you to use the designation IEng or as an Engineering Technician which permits the use of the designation EngTech.

To become a Chartered Civil Engineer you have to have a proven academic base and following a period of in-work training and career development you sit a professional examination at the Institution of Civil Engineers which tests your knowledge and abilities and ultimately allows you to become a chartered Engineer.  To become an Incorporated Engineer or an Engineering Technician requires a lessor academic base and is often used as a stepping stone to ultimately becoming Chartered.

Click on the image below to open an easy to follow routemap to professional qualification (pdf).

The proven academic base to become a professionally qualified Civil Engineer is having what is called an ‘Accredited’ Degree – that is a degree that the Joint Board of Moderators (JBM) have assessed as being suitable to provide the academic base for level being aimed for.  Many many universities run Civil Engineering degree courses.  The JBM publish a list of accredited university degree courses for the different levels which can be found here.  http://www.jbm.org.uk/GeneralContent.aspx?ContentID=16 There are separate lists for CEng, IEng and EngTech. These lists also provide a useful index of civil engineering degree courses and the universities that run them.

Professional Qualification is by no means essential for individuals and the Civil Engineering industry needs civil engineers at all levels including tradespeople to actually do the construction work itself.  If you don’t feel you have the academic base or qualifications currently to start on a journey to professional qualification then look for a job with a construction company and work you way up.  Many senior managers in the construction industry currently started their careers as site supervisors and you could too.

Civil Engineering Contractors

Civil Engineering contractors are organisations that take a design and turn it into reality by physically constructing the works.  The following is a list of the top  Civil Engineering contractors working in the UK and their websites.  All these companies websites have sections for careers and apprenticeships so take a look…

• Vinci Construction UK – http://www.vinciconstruction.co.uk/
• Carillion – http://www.carillionplc.com/
• Balfour Beatty – http://www.balfourbeattycsuk.com/
• Costain – http://www.costain.com/
• Bam Nuttall – http://www.bamnuttall.co.uk/
• Laing O’Rourke – http://www.laingorourke.com/
• Skanska – http://www.skanska.co.uk/
• J Murphy and Sons – http://www.murphygroup.co.uk/
• VolkerWessels UK – http://www.volkerwessels.co.uk/
• Morgan Sindall – http://construction.morgansindall.co.uk/
• Galliford Try – http://www.gallifordtry.co.uk/
• Colas – http://www.colas.co.uk/
• Kier – http://www.kier.co.uk/
• MWH – http://www.mwhglobal.com/
• Lafarge Tarmac Contracting – http://www.tarmac.co.uk/
• Clancy Docwra – http://theclancygroup.co.uk/
• Buckingham Group Contracting – http://www.buckinghamgroup.co.uk/
• Dawnus Construction – http://www.dawnus.co.uk/
• Interserve Construction – http://www.interserve.com/
• Barhale – http://www.barhale.co.uk/
• Sir Robert McAlpine – http://www.sir-robert-mcalpine.com/
• JN Bentley – http://www.jnbentley.co.uk/
• John Graham Construction – http://www.graham.co.uk/
• Alun Griffiths Contractors – http://www.alungriffiths.co.uk/
• Cleshar – http://www.cleshar.co.uk
• Jackson Civil Engineering – http://www.jackson-civils.co.uk/
• Raymond Brown Construction – http://www.raymondbrowngroup.co.uk/

The above is a selection of the large main contractors operating in the UK and worldwide.  In addition to the above there are hundreds if not thousands of smaller contractors and specialist subcontractors who alos employ civil engineers both professionally qualified and apprenticeships and indeed tradespeople.

Civil Engineering Consultants

Civil Engineering consultants are organisations produce the design for a civil engineering project and produce the information needed to construct it.  The following is a list of the top UK registered Civil Engineering consultants and their websites.  All these companies websites have sections for careers and apprenticeships so take a look…

• Atkins – http://www.atkinsglobal.co.uk/
• WSP – http://www.wspgroup.com/
• Mott MacDonald – https://www.mottmac.com/
• Jacobs – http://www.jacobs.com/
• Parsons Brinkerhoff – http://www.pbworld.com/
• URS  – https://www.ursglobal.com/
• CH2MHill – http://www.ch2m.com
• Arup – http://www.arup.com/
• RPS – http://www.rpsgroup.com/
• Amey – http://www.amey.co.uk/
• Hyder Consulting – http://www.hyderconsulting.com
• Mace – http://www.macegroup.com/
• MWH – http://www.mwhglobal.com/
• Turner and Townsend – http://www.turnerandtownsend.com/
• AECOM – http://aecom.com/
• Capita Symonds – http://www.capitasymonds.co.uk/
• Black and Veatch – http://bv.com/
• Waterman – http://www.watermangroup.com/
• WYG – http://www.wyg.com/
• Pell Frischmann – http://www.pellfrischmann.com/
• EC Harris – http://www.echarris.com/
• Buro Happold – http://www.burohappold.com/
• Royal Haskoning – http://www.royalhaskoning.co.uk
• Sinclair Knight Merz – http://www.globalskm.com/
• Grontmij – http://www.grontmij.co.uk
• Ramboll – http://www.ramboll.co.uk/
• Tony Gee and Partners – http://tonygee.com/

Civil Engineering Clients

There are a great many companies that employ civil engineers to help manage the civil engineering projects that they employ consultants to design and contractors to construct.  Whilst many private sector client employ civil engineers it is mostly public sector clients that do so and these include…

• The Highways Agency
• The Environment Agency
• Transport for London
• Network Rail
• Crossrail
• County Councils
• Local Councils

Links

http://www.ice.org.uk – Website of the institution of Civil Engineers

http://www.icheme.org.uk/ – Website of the Institution of Chemical Engineers

http://www.theiet.org/ – Website of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (formally Institute of Electrical Engineers)

http://www.imeche.org – Website of the institution of Mechanical Engineers

http://www.colchesterengineeringsociety.co.uk – Website of Colchester Engineering Society

http://www.chelmsfordses.org.uk/ – Website of Chelmsford Science and Engineering Society