News

Skills for saving lives

Published 20 September 2011

Teenagers at a master class learned how civil engineering skills save people from disasters including earthquakes.

During the four-day event at the University of Brighton, 34 students from schools across Sussex and the UK conducted tests using state-of-the-art facilities in the university's School of Environment and Technology in Moulsecoomb, including a 20 metre wave flume, an earthquake simulation table and water quality equipment.

Experimenting with the construction of an earthquake resilient tower

School of Environment and Technology staff demonstrated how civil engineering know-how can be employed in emergency situations. Professor Huw Taylor, professor of microbial ecology, gave an insight into the potential consequences of drinking contaminated water and the engineer's role in preventing infection, whilst senior lecturers gave talks on related subjects. Dr Kaiming She and Dr Heidi Burgess explained how energy transferred through sea waves can power or protect coastal communities. Dr Friederike Gunzel gave an overview of tectonic activity and earthquakes and a technical lecture by Dr Pierfrancesco Cacciola, explained the design principles behind earthquake-resistant buildings.

Staff were also joined by an engineer from Mott MacDonald, who provided an account of two major overseas projects. At the end of the course and after a tour of the university facilities, the students presented project work as though they were bidding for a professional tender to a panel of professional and lay persons.

As well as gaining practical knowledge of the engineering challenges involved in disaster relief situations, the teenagers learned life skills such as teamwork, communication, problem-solving, time management, finance and presentation skills. Comments from the students about the course included: "All activities were fun and answered a lot of questions I had about Civil Engineering", "I thoroughly enjoyed the course and the master classes were good - I learnt a lot from them. The activities were well organised. I had fun as well as being given a challenge, and the course gave me a brilliant impression of what you would require to become a Civil Engineer".

Senior lecturer, Dr Burgess said: "The visiting students displayed a real enthusiasm for meeting challenges and solving problems and have the potential to be civil engineers of the future, addressing urgent global issues resulting from the effects of climate warming and over-population".

Gemma Murphy of The Smallpeice Trust, an educational charity, added: "Civil Engineers have one of the world's most important jobs. They build our quality of life. Thanks to STEM Sussex and the University of Brighton, we have been able to give budding engineers the chance to create solutions to real-world problems. We are confident that this type of activity will enthuse and encourage more young people to consider careers in civil engineering."

The event was organised by Dr Burgess and Bronagh Liddicoat, Manager of STEM Sussex in partnership with The Smallpeice Trust.