Registration

To register for any of our events, simply click the button below and fill in the online registration form. If you wish to register additional colleagues, please add their details using the same form.

Registration costs £75 (ex. VAT) per delegate. We will contact you following registration to arrange payment, which must be received to confirm your place on the course. Note that participants will be required to bring their own laptop PC and are advised to download and install LimitState:RING from limitstate.com/download/ring in advance of the course. A 14-day full license for personal use will be supplied on the day, providing participants access to all the features of the software (see below).

Overview

This course is aimed at practicing engineers wishing to enhance their understanding of the behaviour of masonry arch bridges and their working knowledge of the use of LimitState:RING.

By the end of the day, the delegate should have:

• gained a clear working knowledge of the core features of LimitState:RING.
• obtained experience of applying LimitState:RING to the practical assessment of masonry arch bridges.
• an appreciation of the range of applicability of existing masonry arch bridge analysis and assessment tools.

Format

The course consists of a series of session blocks. Each session will begin with a short presentation, followed by an intensive hands-on session using LimitState:RING. Specific LimitState:RING features to be explored will include:

• Multi-span and multi-ring bridge analysis capability

• Ability of the software to identify mechanisms involving hinging, sliding and/or material crushing failure
• Railway underbridge analysis capability
• Ability to model localized features (e.g. loss of mortar)
• Use of the support movement analysis feature to model load paths under working loads

Benefits

Participants will gain an awareness of the range of applicability of existing analysis and assessment tools, and a deeper appreciation of the benefits of modern limit analysis techniques. Additionally the advanced features in LimitState:RING, which enable users to model masonry arch bridges more accurately than has been the case before (often revealing that a bridge has higher capacity than originally thought) will be outlined. All participants will be issued with a CPD certificate recording their attendance.

Who should attend

The seminar is designed to benefit practicing senior bridge engineers, bridge engineers, civil engineers and consultants. Topics will be relevant to both potential and current users of masonry arch analysis software.

Software licence and laptops

The course fee includes a 14-day full personal licence for LimitState:RING.  Delegates should bring their own laptop and will be provided with the full 14-day licence on the day.  This allows delegates to further explore features of LimitState:RING after the course.

Seminar tutors

The seminar will be delivered by Dr Matthew Gilbert and Dr Colin Smith, both Senior Lecturers at the University of Sheffield and co-founders of LimitState Ltd.

Dr Gilbert is a chartered civil engineer who has a longstanding interest in the behaviour of masonry arch bridges and also in the application of limit state analysis and design methods. He has published many papers in the field and is the originator of the successful RING masonry arch analysis software, now used in over 40 countries worldwide. Dr Smith has a particular interest in soil-structure interaction in arch bridges and is a recipient of the Institution of Civil Engineers' Baker Medal for a published paper which demonstrates the adverse effects of flooding on the load carrying capacity of masonry arch bridges.