Built Environment Archives - Hawkins Forensic Investigation

Ewan Slight Featured in The Voice of Foil

Chloe Duggan — Wed, 15 Apr 2026 13:45:12 +0000

Hawkins is delighted to announce that Ewan Slight, Principal Associate and Chartered Quantity Surveyor, has been featured in the latest edition of The Voice of FOIL (Forum of Insurance Lawyers) Magazine.

In his article System Dynamics: An Alternative Approach to Construction Claims, Ewan explores one of the industry’s most persistent challenges: accurately evidencing productivity loss caused by disruption. Despite widespread use, traditional approaches, such as ‘global claims’ and ‘measured mile’ analysis, often struggle to demonstrate clear cause-and-effect relationships. Ewan explains why these methods can fall short, highlighting issues such as weak causal linkage, difficulties identifying unimpacted baselines, and problems with concurrency.

System Dynamics (SD) is a modern and technically robust approach for assessing construction disruption claims. By modelling construction projects as interconnected systems, SD captures cumulative impacts, feedback loops and non-linear interactions that traditional forensic methods may overlook. Through tools such as Causal Loop Diagrams and Stock & Flow modelling, SD provides transparent, data-driven simulations that demonstrate how disruption develops over time.

Ewan emphasises that System Dynamics offers significant advantages for dispute resolution, including improved quantum validation, greater evidential robustness for litigation or arbitration, and deeper portfolio-level risk insights. Its methodology is also aligned with the Society of Construction Law Delay Protocol.

Ewan is a Chartered Quantity Surveyor with more than 30 years’ experience in the construction and infrastructure sectors. He specialises in quantum analysis, delay, and disruption within major and complex disputes, and has held roles ranging from equity director to independent expert. Ewan is a RICS Registered Expert Witness, with experience delivering expert opinion and responding to adversarial questioning during pre‑hearing proceedings. By integrating quantum expertise, forensic delay techniques, and dynamic disruption modelling, Ewan provides robust, defensible evidence for litigation and arbitration. His work supports clients and legal teams by bringing analytical clarity, evidential rigour, and sound professional judgement to complex disputes.

Follow the link if you would like to watch Ewan’s Webinar: System Dynamics, A Smarter Way to Prove Disruption in Construction Projects.

Or read Ewan’s article on page’s 27-28 of February’s edition of The Voice.

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Hawkins Welcomes Highways Engineer Connor Parkes

Chloe Duggan — Tue, 14 Apr 2026 16:17:46 +0000

Hawkins is pleased to welcome Connor Parkes, who joins us after more than 12 years in the highways and civil engineering industry. Connor brings extensive experience in highways asset management, stakeholder coordination, and ensuring the long-term resilience of local authority infrastructure.

Alongside building his professional experience, Connor completed his BEng (Hons) in Civil and Transportation Engineering, achieving IEng status and membership of both the Institution of Civil Engineers (MICE) and the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (MCIHT). He is also a Fellow of the Institute of Highway Engineers (FIHE), and a member of The Association for Road Risk Management (MARRM).

Connor previously worked as a Highways Asset Management Engineer, contributing to a multi‑year contract valued at over £100 million. In this role, he played a key part in ensuring public safety, maintaining highway quality, and achieving maximum efficiency from public funding allocated to essential road infrastructure.

He has also supported local authorities during the delivery of major highway works connected to a multi-billion-pound national rail scheme. His role focused on ensuring that new highway assets constructed across Staffordshire met the required standards for future adoption and long-term maintenance by the authority.

Connor joined Hawkins in December 2025, where he will be working predominantly on highways schemes. We are delighted to have him on board and look forward to the valuable expertise he brings.

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Do I Have a Cladding Dispute?

Chloe Duggan — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 09:45:05 +0000

Over recent years, the safety of a building’s cladding has become a major concern in the UK and the UAE. This is primarily due to the use of combustible cladding materials and ill-fitted or absent fire stopping.

The typical cost of recladding an 18-metre tall building is in the region of £4-5m in both the UK and the UAE. This has led building owners and occupants to consider whether these costs can be recovered from other parties.

Before being able to answer the question, a prospective claimant must first ask ‘do I have unsafe cladding?’. Safety concerns regarding cladding includes structural and fire issues, but this article will focus on non-load bearing facades and therefore fire safety concerns only.

Many of the headlines covering combustible cladding materials initially focused on aluminium composite panels (ACP). However, a building clad in ACP is not the only type of material which could present a risk. There are other cladding types, such as high pressure laminates and external insulated render systems known as EIFS, ETICS or EWI, which may appear to be acceptable but could give rise to a claim.

How do I Know if a Building’s Cladding is Defective?

Defective cladding could be due to the design, construction (installation and workmanship related defects) or both. Design and construction are governed by local building codes, and it is necessary to review a building based upon the codes relevant at the time of design and construction.

In England and Wales, the current relevant codes include the Building Regulations 2010. In the UAE, the current relevant codes include the Fire and Life Safety Code of Practice 2017.

Was the Design Defective?

In England and Wales, there is more than one route to demonstrating compliance with the fire safety requirements of the Building Regulations that the designer/s could have followed:

Linear route: Following the guidance in the Approved Documents, although this does not guarantee compliance with the Regulations.
Performance route: Demonstrating that the performance criteria for external walls in BR 135 have been met by using fire test data from a large-scale BS 8414 test to determine how the proposed façade build-up performs in a fire.
Fire safety engineering route: This would generally follow the recommendations in BS 7974 ‘Application of fire safety engineering principles to the design of buildings – Code of practice’ and take the form of a desktop study that states whether the performance criteria in BR 135 would be met, and as set out later in this article.

Whilst the UAE did not develop its own Fire Life Safety Code until 2011, with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards being adopted previously, it has been quicker than many other countries to update and introduce more stringent requirements following significant fires.

The review of a design’s compliance with the Code is undertaken by the Civil Defence Authority, although compliance with the code is still the responsibility of the consultant. Any façade system must have been tested and approved by the Civil Defence Authority and the relevant and current approval certificate must be submitted as part of the application for Civil Defence Approval. This, in theory, means that, a design post2011 should not be defective.

However, a building gaining building control or code approval does not necessarily mean that the cladding as designed and installed meets the functional requirements and is not defective.

The most common design defects we have come across at Hawkins include the lack of fire barriers and/or cavity closers. Both of these defects can lead to extensive areas of the external envelope of a building where the spread of fire could be hidden from view. The restricted nature of these cavities can lead to flames that extend up to 10 times the height they would otherwise reach if they were not within a cavity.

The Consultant Told me the System had Been Tested

In the UAE cladding systems must be tested to NFPA 285, which replicates a fire breaking out in the building, spreading through the glazing and igniting the external façade. The test determines the fire performance of an exterior, non-loading bearing wall assembly.

BS 8414, first published in 2002 and some 30 years after the origins of NFPA 285, also provides a test method for determining the fire performance of non-load bearing external cladding systems. The standard is split into two parts; part one tests systems applied to the masonry face of a building, whilst part two tests systems applied to a structural steel frame.

There are a number of issues with statements that a system has been tested to a standard:

Firstly, what was the result? Results for BS 8414 tests are generally not made publicly available, and the BS 8414 test results are not given as a pass or fail (this must be determined by using BR 135). In the UAE, NFPA 285 are available as part of a supplier’s marketing material and without it their products are unlikely to be specified.

Secondly, is the system tested going to be applied in the same way as the test? A masonry applied system will behave differently than a steel frame applied system.

Thirdly, does the system tested match exactly what was proposed for your cladding system? For example: where fire barriers are installed around openings in the test is the insulation the same; and, if it is, is it the same thickness? In one of our cases, it was stated that the EIFS system was tested to BS 8414. The test was relevant for insulation thickness up to 200mm yet the designed system was 320mm in places

The Fire Engineer Said the Design was OK

By following BS 7974, fire engineers can use an analytical process based upon a qualitative design review, in which the possible ways a fire hazard may arise are considered and a range of strategies adopted to ensure that the risk is kept to an acceptable level. This process has a number of stages, including:

A review of the architectural design of the building
Establishment of the fire safety objectives
Identification of fire hazards and the possible consequences
Establishment of trial fire safety designs
Identification of acceptance criteria and methods of analysis
Identification of fire scenarios for analysis
Assessment against criteria.

As you may be able to tell, this is not a quick exercise, and a fire engineer should provide a substantiative reason as to why the guidance in Approved Document B has not been followed, together with supporting evidence to show how the Buildings Regulations are being complied with through another route.

Was the Installation Defective?

What the consultant draws is not always what gets built. Defects we have encountered include lack of fire barriers, intumescent strips to fire barriers impeded so they cannot act as designed during a fire, and incorrectly installed EIFS resulting in cavities between the back of the insulation and the supporting structure.

It is likely that only an intrusive survey will be able to determine if there are defects in the installation. However, an intrusive survey needs to be carried out correctly and those carrying out the survey must understand what they are looking at. In one instance, I have seen a surveyor incorrectly label solid aluminium cladding as ACP, which will have had an effect on the building owner’s insurance premium. In another instance, a surveyor had considered that a lack of cavity barriers in an external wall, indicated that there had been a breach of the Building Regulations, despite the layout of the building meaning there was no other compartment to which a fire could spread.

The above points provide some insight as to whether building owners have a potential route to bring a claim for the costs of remedial works either against consultants, contractors, or possibly both, before a building fire highlights any defects and when it may be too late to ascertain defects in construction.

About the Author

Austen Smith is a Forensic Architect in Hawkins’ Dubai office who specialises in construction defects and defects in architectural design. He has twenty years’ experience in construction projects spanning Europe, the Middle East, the CIS, East Asia and Australia.

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Congratulations – Hawkins Celebrates Employee Promotions

Chloe Duggan — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 07:30:12 +0000

It is with great pleasure that we announce a series of well-deserved promotions across our organisation.

Our newly promoted colleagues Ben Lister, Shimin Zhuang, Yang Dang, Ross Clarke, and Richard Baker, have consistently demonstrated outstanding technical expertise, professionalism, and a commitment to the highest quality standards. Their promotions recognise a sustained period of achievement across complex casework, advanced technical development, and active engagement in continued professional learning.

Beyond their case responsibilities, each has made significant contributions to the wider business, including leadership in Health & Safety, mentoring colleagues, and positively influencing best practice across their teams. Their strong performance in mentoring, diligence in maintaining quality standards, and sustained operational contribution have demonstrated the professionalism and quality that these roles require.

We extend our sincere thanks to each of them for their continued hard work, leadership, and positive influence across the business.

Please join us in celebrating the achievements of our newly promoted Senior Associates and Principal Associates. We look forward to their continued success and impact across the organisation.

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Hawkins Hosts Annual Spring Drinks Reception at The Whitworth Gallery

Chloe Duggan — Thu, 02 Apr 2026 13:18:02 +0000

Hawkins welcomed clients, colleagues, and industry professionals to our annual Spring Drinks Reception at The Whitworth Gallery in Manchester, bringing together guests for an evening of forensic insight, professional development, and networking.

Attendees were greeted with refreshments on arrival before settling in for a CILA accredited CPD presentation delivered by Hawkins’ sexperts and a guest speakers. Marketing Director and Chartered Civil Engineer Andrew Reeves opened the evening with an update on recent developments across the business, including:

Hawkins’ continued global expansion into Abu Dhabi, South Africa and Italy
The successful acquisition of A. Lamb Associates and Morham + Brotchie Partnership, strengthening our quantum and delay expertise
The expansion of Hawkins’ multidisciplinary team, now over 150 forensic experts supporting clients across more than 70 specialist disciplines

Forensic CPD: From Collapse to Cleanup

Our CPD presentation, From Collapse to Cleanup, guided attendees through a real-world, multidisciplinary forensic investigation. The session explored the structural failure and collapse of a racking system, followed by the clean‑up of potentially hazardous materials. It also examined a related personal injury incident involving a slip on a wet surface during remediation.

Presenters included Hawkins experts George Jackson, Claire Mann, and Ian Tatner, and quantum expert, Nigel Jackson of ALA , supported by guest contributor Mike Clementson of Claims Care Consultants

Interactive Exhibits & Networking

Following the presentation, guests enjoyed a networking reception with flowing drinks and canapés. Attendees explored a series of real-life casework exhibits, immersed themselves in a VR fire investigation experience, and took part in interactive demonstrations – including the popular “guess the accelerant” scent challenge and hands-on use of the pendulum slip-resistance tester featured in the presentation.

Hawkins extends its thanks to everyone who attended and contributed to the success of the evening. Information about future events can be found here.

Thank you to everyone who joined us. Details of our upcoming events can be found here.

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Yvonne Ainsworth Hosts Panel Discussion at WiGeotech Afternoon Tea

Chloe Duggan — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 08:39:51 +0000

Hawkins Geotechnical Engineer Yvonne Ainsworth was invited to chair a panel discussion on Championing Inclusion in Geotechnics at the inaugural WiGeotech afternoon tea, a networking event bringing together professionals from across the Ground Engineering sector to celebrate collaboration and support women in the field. The event was organised by the British Geotechnical Association (BGA).

Opening the session, Yvonne drew on her 25- year career across consulting, contracting and forensic geotechnics, as well as her recent MBA research exploring the influence of female role models on women’s career aspirations and retention in the UK construction industry. Her findings highlighted the sector’s persistent “leaky pipeline”, with talented women joining the industry but too few progressing to senior levels. She emphasised the importance of representation, noting:

“Visibility matters. When women can see other women succeeding, it strengthens confidence and signals that people like me can do this.”

Yvonne also outlined the broader challenges identified in her study, including cultural bias, inflexible working patterns, and the pressure many women feel to adapt to existing workplace norms rather than being fully included within them. Supportive networks, meaningful mentorship, and active allyship, particularly from male colleagues, were identified as critical factors enabling women to thrive. These personal interventions were found to make a tangible difference to confidence and career progression.

Yvonne stressed the importance of sustaining momentum:

“The real opportunity now is not just to bring women into geotechnics, but to ensure they stay, develop and thrive.”

Yvonne then introduced the panel of industry professionals who explored key questions around visibility, senior representation, allyship, and the challenges faced by parents and carers balancing demanding careers with family life. The discussion included:

The importance of visibility and female role models in inspiring women to join and remain in the industry.
Why representation drops at senior levels, and the cultural, systemic and bias-related barriers behind it.
The role of male allies, mentors and leaders in creating a more inclusive industry culture beyond formal EDI policies.
How parents and carers navigate guilt and competing responsibilities, and the strategies that support their progression.

The session prompted extensive engagement from the audience, with thoughtful questions, shared experiences and active participation that reinforced the importance and urgency of building a more inclusive geotechnical sector.

Yvonne’s geotechnical expertise is rooted in her deep understanding of ground behaviour, foundation systems, and complex soil–structure interactions. Having led the design and delivery of major piling, diaphragm wall and deep excavation works, she brings a rare blend of practical construction insight and advanced engineering judgement. Her ability to diagnose ground-related failures, optimise foundation solutions, and manage geotechnical risk on technically challenging sites has made her a trusted specialist across the infrastructure and energy sectors.

If you would like Yvonne or another Hawkins specialist, to investigate a case or present to your organisation, please contact us.

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Hawkins Welcomes Structural Engineer Michael Boyd

Chloe Duggan — Tue, 10 Mar 2026 15:51:25 +0000

Hawkins is delighted to welcome Michael Boyd, who joins us with over a decade of structural and civil engineering experience gained across the UK, Ireland, and the Middle East. Michael brings a wealth of expertise in structural design, multidisciplinary coordination, and delivering complex projects across multiple sectors.

Michael graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2011 with a Master’s degree in Civil and Structural Engineering, specialising in advanced structural engineering. He began his career with WS Atkins Overseas, working within the infrastructure and master‑planning team on a range of large‑scale developments across the Middle East.

He later returned to Northern Ireland to join engineering consultancies in Belfast. During this time, Michael gained a strong foundation in civil engineering scheme design and practical experience in contract administration under NEC3 contracts, collaborating closely with clients, contractors, and multidisciplinary teams. Michael progressed to the role of Associate Structural Engineer and became a Chartered Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers. His role saw him embedded in the local design consultancy sector, working across residential, institutional, industrial, and commercial projects for both public and private sector clients.

Michael has extensive design and detailing experience across all major structural materials, including steel, reinforced concrete, masonry, and timber. His project portfolio ranges from small-scale domestic and commercial schemes to major developments valued at over £350 million, including large campus and estate expansion projects.

He has acted as the primary design engineer on several high-profile, award-winning education developments, including South West College Enniskillen and Ardnashee School and College, where he was responsible for technical delivery, interdisciplinary coordination, and design quality throughout the project lifecycle.

We are delighted to welcome Michael to Hawkins and look forward to the expertise he brings to our structural engineering capability.

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A Structure is Only as Strong as its Weakest Link

Matthew Carrington — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 15:41:10 +0000

Construction projects of all kinds, over a wide range of scale, require structural engineering design input to direct the way they are built. The structural engineering design is almost always implemented in conjunction with architectural design, other specialisms, and the knowledge and skills of the contractor and specialist sub-contractors.

Civil and structural engineering design is a complex field where many engineers are highly qualified, with professional accreditations from engineering institutions after several years of industry experience, following a university degree. However, there is no safeguard against less qualified or less experienced people also trading as civil or structural engineers.

This article discusses the typical aspects of structural engineering design that are required in most construction projects. It includes case studies investigated by Hawkins, where the action of the structural engineering designer could be at fault.

“The strength of a structure depends on the strength of its elements and the way they are joined together.” – Gustave Eiffel

Weak Links

Some building faults might be related to issues with the structural engineering design, or omissions in it. Others may be due to the actions of other parties in the design or construction team, or faulty materials. The design process for each project must consider all the potential modes of failure of the structure. Any one thing could be missed in the design process and cause an issue with the performance of a building. Sometimes, a combination of circumstances needs to coincide to cause a failure. Almost every construction project is a prototype due to the varying combinations of building shape, location and formation of the team performing the work. The following sections describe five links in the structural engineering design chain.

1. Design Issues

It is possible for a structural engineer to completely design the strength and stiffness of the individual elements for the structure but miss a wider issue that can lead to damage or failure.

For example:

The lateral sway stability of part of a building can be reduced by replacing the vertical support from a solid masonry wall with a steel beam;
Loads on a gravity retaining wall at a change of level of external ground that were not allowed for in the design can occur if drainage is not detailed (Figure 2);
Overall structural capacity can be exceeded if a whole category of loading is omitted, such as wind or snow load.

2. Site Issues

There are cases where the design might have considered the typical scenario for the type of structure they designed, but there was something different on site that they did not allow for.

For instance:

If a designer assumed that a wall was a cavity brick/block wall, when it was in fact a solid stone wall, then the wall would be heavier than assumed. A beam installed to create an opening and support the wall could then be overloaded;
A wall that was retaining higher ground could collapse if the rest of the building that was providing lateral support to the wall was removed without considering the interaction (Figure 3);
The effect of a row of small trees on building foundations movement can be greater than the individual trees;
Different ground conditions can have more or less aggressive reactions to the concrete they are in contact with. The wrong mix of concrete might look suitable initially, but in aggressive ground conditions, it can degrade over time.

3. Calculations

Sometimes, the structural designer can miscalculate their designs.

Examples might include:

An assumed length of a beam was not updated in the design calculation when the length of the opening was longer than first planned;
In a structural assessment, the engineer might have used the material properties for normal density concrete when the element was lightweight or aerated concrete, which can only provide lower strengths;
In computer aided design, using finite-element modelling or calculation sheets prepared by a software company, the wrong input for the situation being built can lead to an understrength member. This might arise from one wrong tick in a box within the software options.

4. Stages of Design

There have been cases where the structural engineer provided sufficient design information for a preliminary stage of the design, such as submission to building control, to gain approval for the project to proceed. Then, the client or contractor did not go back to the engineer to ask for detailed design and construction details, or did not correctly apply the submitted preliminary design.

These cases have included:

Where relative positioning between structural members and their supports was critical to the building performance, but the individual member capacity design was sufficient to pass the building control plans check;
Where the order of construction would be critical to the capacity of the structural members. During construction, an unrestrained steel beam would have considerably less capacity to carry vertical loads until it was restrained by the floors to both sides (Figure 4);
Often, changes that appear to make the building simpler to construct can introduce complications to the way they would perform. The changes would need further structural design and could cause a problem if the designer had not been notified.

5. Missing Design

We have investigated cases where an item was overlooked as needing civil or structural engineering design. This can occur at interfaces between specialist contractors’ responsibilities:

i. Roof vents (Figure 5);
ii. Cladding boards (Figure 6).

These will likely perform satisfactorily in normal conditions but might not be sufficient for high winds or rain. This would likely present in the failure of several of the same items. Identifying the fault early might allow the rest of the items to be remediated.

Failures can exhibit a range of states of distress and at different times in the life cycle of a building.

The questions which must be considered when investigating the root cause of the failure will vary with the scenario, including:

Was the designer provided all the necessary and correct information?
Should the designer have found out the correct information by looking into the situation more than relying on drawing or reports they were provided?
Was there information that the designer needed to show in more detail to a competent contractor?
Was there a coordination responsibility to make sure the correct information was provided?
Should a competent contractor have given feedback to the designer that the situation was not as allowed for in the design?
Did the client appointment limit how much the designer could do in any of these aspects?

In some cases, we have been able to advise that urgent action needed to be taken to avoid further damage occurring. This can save people spending time in a position of danger looking for material damage or conducting intrusive investigations that might tip the situation further towards collapse.

“The best design is the simplest one that works”. – Albert Einstein

Conclusions

Sufficient structural engineering design relies on considering all the relevant design issues and all the particular conditions on the site. The structural engineer must complete the design calculations correctly and present the construction information clearly to the contractor. Greater levels of detail are required for the construction issue of the structural drawings than for the building control submission. That is a situation where misunderstandings can arise. Also, there are proprietary and peripheral items related to construction that might not be part of the scope of a structural engineering appointment but would have benefitted from a review by a structural engineer.

How can Hawkins Help?

Hawkins’ Built Environment team can review when something has gone wrong and assess the relevant specialism or party that might have contributed to the issue. Professional experience is important in engineering, including experience of investigation.

About the Author

Jolyon Antill is a Chartered Civil Engineer based in our Reigate office. Graduating with a first-class Master’s Degree in Civil and Structural Engineering, Jolyon has 27 years of design consultancy experience.

His range of industrial and commercial project design work includes new builds, renovations, and structural surveys, both in the UK and overseas. Jolyon also has extensive experience in regional civil and structural engineering consultancies working on educational, residential, leisure and commercial projects. If you have a civil or structural issue and need Jolyon or one of the team to investigate, please contact us.

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Hawkins International Webinar Series

Chloe Duggan — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 15:53:49 +0000

From April to June 2026, join experts from across Hawkins as they host our International Webinar Series, featuring specialists from our global office locations.

This series covers a wide range of topics, including material and mechanical failures, lithium‑ion batteries, bridge forensics, bolted connection failures, and risk in indoor climbing.

For webinar details and to register, please see below.

If you would like further information on each webinar before registering, simply click on the titles. Our events page provides details of other Hawkins events that you may find of interest.

Forensic Investigation of Materials and Mechanical Failures in MENA

Presented by Dr Tom Peat

Thursday 16th April 2026 at 9.30am BST

Mechanical Engineer Dr Tom Peat will explore Hawkins’ forensic investigation capabilities across the Middle East and North Africa, with a particular focus on materials and mechanical failures relevant to legal disputes and insurance claims. He will outline how metallurgical analysis, failure reconstruction, and engineering forensics are applied to determine causation and support liability assessments within the energy, infrastructure, and industrial sectors.

An Introduction to Bridge Forensics

Presented by Eng Phin

Thursday 30th April 2026 at 9.30am BST

In this webinar, Structural Engineer Eng Phin introduces the fundamentals of bridge forensics, with a focus on pre‑stressed concrete (PSC) bridges – one of the most common bridge types in Hong Kong and worldwide. The session covers key topics including structural systems, failure modes, and common investigation techniques.

A Bolt From the Blue: Why Bolted Connections Can Unexpectedly Fail

Presented by Patrick Walsh

Thursday 14th May 2026 at 9.30am BST

Civil Engineer Patrick Walsh will examine the most frequent design and installation errors in bolted connections that can lead to unexpected failures. The session will highlight how issues such as incorrect surface preparation, improper bolt pre‑tensioning, and misunderstandings of bolt behaviour can significantly increase the risk of structural failure.

Lithium Ion Batteries: Chemistries, Failures and Fire

Presented by David Reid Rowland

Thursday 28th May 2026 at 9.30am BST

In this webinar, mechanical engineer and forensic expert David Reid Rowland draws on two decades of investigative experience to demystify how lithium ion batteries work, why they fail, and what makes their fires so destructive and difficult to extinguish. He also explores real-world examples involving consumer products, marine cargo, and electric vehicles, highlighting the importance of regulation, protective systems, and safe handling practices.

Forensic Insights: Uncovering Failures in Mechanical Systems

Presented by Albert Law

Thursday 11th June 2026 at 9.30am BST

In this webinar, Mechanical Engineer Albert Law explores the forensic engineering approach applied to mechanical systems such as air‑conditioning units, pumping systems, fans, and other mechanical equipment. Attendees will gain an understanding of how mechanical failures are investigated, the methodologies used to identify root causes, and the role of forensic analysis in improving system reliability and safety.

Climbing: Lets Tie in & Consider the Risks

Presented by Jason Buchwitz

Thursday 25th June 2026 at 9.30am BST

In this presentation, Materials Engineer Jason Buchwitz will explore the construction and characteristics of indoor climbing walls, review trends in climbing-related accidents, and examine existing risk reduction measures, while considering which risks are unavoidable elements of the sport.

We look forward to presenting to you.

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An Introduction to Bridge Forensics

Chloe Duggan — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 14:52:18 +0000

Bridges are designed for long service lives, often 100 to 120 years, and must remain safe and reliable throughout their lifespan. While a bridge may appear to be a straightforward structure enabling transportation, its performance has a direct impact on economic activity and the daily lives of the communities that rely on it. At the same time, bridges are frequently located in challenging environments and subjected to heavy loading, both of which can accelerate deterioration.

In this webinar, Structural Engineer Eng Phin introduces the fundamentals of bridge forensics, with a particular focus on Pre‑Stressed Concrete (PSC) bridges – one of the most common bridge types in Hong Kong and around the world. The session covers key topics including structural systems, typical failure modes, and widely used investigation techniques.

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