Quality Policy

Our output is evidence that a structure works. It is relied on by Building Control, by contractors pricing and building from it, by lenders, and by other engineers reviewing it. It has to be right, and it has to be capable of being checked by somebody who was not involved in producing it.

We do not hold ISO 9001. What we operate is a checking discipline applied to every package, described below, and we would rather set it out plainly than imply a certification we do not have.

Every calculation package is checked by a second Chartered Structural Engineer before it is issued. Nothing leaves on one pair of eyes.

Calculations are issued as readable working rather than as raw software output, so a checker or a building control officer can follow the reasoning to its conclusion rather than being asked to trust a number.

Every output states the assumptions it rests on and the limitations of its scope, so a reader can tell what has been established and what has not.

Design is to the Eurocodes and their UK National Annexes, and to Approved Document A where Building Regulations approval is the route. Every package states which parts were applied.

Where an existing structure is assessed, the assessment states the standard it was assessed against, which is not always the standard in force today. On rail we work to the standards the asset owner specifies rather than to the Eurocodes alone.

Analysis and design in Tekla Tedds and Tekla Structural Designer, with Autodesk Robot, CSC Fastrak, MasterSeries and Hilti Profis where a scheme suits them.

Drawing production in AutoCAD, and modelling in Autodesk Revit where a project is delivered in BIM. Where a practice has its own drawing conventions, we work to them.

Drawings and calculation packages carry a revision reference and an issue date, and every issue is recorded against the project so it is possible to establish who received which revision and when.

Superseded revisions are retained rather than overwritten, because the question asked later is usually about what was issued at the time.

Project files are retained for 15 years from completion and are backed up off-site.

If you are unhappy with anything we have produced, contact us at contact@leadgroup.uk. We acknowledge a complaint within 5 working days and give a substantive response within 20 working days. If it cannot be resolved in that time we will tell you why and when it will be.

Complaints that are not resolved by the engineer involved are escalated to the Director.

Where an error is found in issued work we correct it and reissue, and we tell everyone who received the original. We do not wait to be asked.

This policy is reviewed at least annually.