Rail Structural Engineering
Rail structures are assessed and altered under a different regime from the rest of construction. The codes are different, the approval route is different, and the work happens inside possessions that were booked months in advance.
What we cover.
Rail work is not general structural engineering carried out near a railway. It runs to Network Rail company standards rather than to Building Regulations, it is approved through Approval in Principle rather than through Building Control, and the design has to survive contact with an access regime where the site is only available for a few hours at a time. Our rail experience comes from working inside that regime rather than adjacent to it, including at Contractor's Responsible Engineer level.
- Assessment of existing underbridges, overbridges and footbridges
- Platform structures, copings, canopies and station buildings
- Retaining walls, earthworks and lineside structures
- Temporary works design for possessions and staged handback
- Approval in Principle documentation and design submissions
- Contractor's Responsible Engineer and design checking support
- Structural inspections and defect assessment on rail assets
- Interface with signalling, OLE and permanent way constraints
What rail structural engineering actually involves.
The assessment codes are the first thing that differs. Existing rail structures are assessed to the standards the asset owner specifies rather than to the Eurocodes alone, and an assessment that quietly uses the wrong load model produces a number nobody can accept.
The second difference is the approval route: Approval in Principle sets out how a structure will be designed and checked before any detailed design is issued, and getting that document wrong costs more time than the design itself.
The third is buildability under possession. A scheme that is elegant on paper and needs nine hours of track access when the possession is six is not a scheme, and the sequence has to be designed alongside the permanent works rather than after them.
We work to the standards the asset owner specifies rather than to the Eurocodes alone, prepare Approval in Principle documentation before detailed design rather than alongside it, and design the possession sequence with the permanent works instead of after them. Our engineers have held Senior Engineer and Contractor's Responsible Engineer roles on rail schemes.
What makes rail structural engineering different?
Three things. Rail structures are designed and assessed to the asset owner's company standards rather than to Building Regulations, so the load models, the assessment criteria and the acceptance route are all different. Approval runs through Approval in Principle and a nominated checking regime rather than through Building Control. And the work is delivered inside possessions, which means the construction sequence and the temporary works are part of the design rather than something the contractor resolves afterwards.
- Experience at Contractor's Responsible Engineer level
- Designs checked and signed by a Chartered Structural Engineer
- Eurocode design with assessment to the asset owner's standards
- Temporary works designed around the possession, not after it
- Professional indemnity insured
The codes behind rail structural engineering.
BS EN 1990 through BS EN 1999 govern the basis of design, actions, and the design of concrete, steel, timber, masonry and aluminium structures. Every calculation we issue references the relevant Eurocode part and its UK National Annex, and states which parts were applied.
Structural analysis and design in Tekla Tedds and Tekla Structural Designer, with Autodesk Robot, CSC Fastrak, CSC Portal Frame, MasterSeries and Hilti Profis used where a scheme suits them. Drawing production in AutoCAD, and modelling in Autodesk Revit where a project is delivered in BIM. Output is issued as readable calculations rather than raw software printouts, so a checker or a building control officer can follow the reasoning.
The Building Regulations requirement your local authority Building Control checks against. Our calculations and drawings are prepared to demonstrate compliance so your submission is accepted without back-and-forth.
Every report and calculation package is backed by professional indemnity cover, which is what lets a lender, Building Control or another engineer rely on it.
From enquiry to sign-off.
Enquiry
Send drawings or describe the problem. We confirm the scope, the deliverables and a target timescale.
Information
We agree the survey, drawings or data we need and any site access required.
Engineering
Design, calculation or assessment to the relevant Eurocodes and UK National Annex.
Issue
A clear, defensible report or set of calculations, with assumptions and limitations stated.
Real structures, surveyed and engineered.
Common questions
Do you work to Network Rail standards?
Yes. Rail structures are designed and assessed to the asset owner's company standards rather than to Building Regulations, and the applicable standard depends on the asset and the type of work. We confirm which standards apply at the outset and state them in the submission, because an assessment carried out to the wrong document is rejected regardless of how sound the engineering is.
What is Approval in Principle?
Approval in Principle, usually shortened to AIP, is the document that sets out how a structure is going to be designed or assessed before any detailed design is issued: the standards being used, the loading, the analysis approach, the assumptions and the checking category. It is agreed with the asset owner first. Getting it right early is what prevents a completed design being rejected on a point that could have been settled in a paragraph.
What does a Contractor's Responsible Engineer do?
The Contractor's Responsible Engineer, or CRE, is the named engineer accountable for the engineering content of a contractor's work on a rail scheme: that the design is to the right standards, that it has been checked at the right category, and that what is built matches what was approved. It is a defined role with defined competence requirements. Our rail experience includes working at that level.
Can you design temporary works for a possession?
Yes, and on rail schemes it is usually the part that governs. A possession is a fixed window, so the temporary works, the lifting sequence and the handback condition all have to be designed against the time available rather than assumed. We design the sequence alongside the permanent works so the scheme is deliverable in the access that actually exists.
Do you assess existing bridges and structures?
Yes. Assessment of existing underbridges, overbridges, footbridges, retaining walls and lineside structures is core rail work. An assessment establishes what an existing structure can carry in its current condition, which is a different question from what it was originally designed for, and the answer depends heavily on the condition survey that sits behind it.
Are you a Network Rail approved supplier?
We are not claiming framework or approved supplier status, and you should be careful of anyone who implies it without naming the framework. What we offer is engineers with direct experience of delivering structural work inside the rail regime, including at Contractor's Responsible Engineer level, working as a subconsultant or directly to a principal contractor.
Related services and resources.
04Temporary WorksPropping, shoring, falsework05Structural Design & CalculationsCalcs, building regs, extensions, foundations
06Surveys & ReportsPre-purchase, inspection, due diligenceTell us what you are building.
Send the drawings or describe the project. We confirm scope, deliverables and a realistic timescale.
Start a project