IntCDC Constructive Conversations //
Fusion of Structural Engineering, Architecture and Manufacturing to Innovate and Decarbonise

We are very excited to welcome Wendel Sebastian, full Professor of Structural Engineering at University College London (UCL), to our upcoming Constructive Conversations event on Thursday, 7 December 2023 from 6:00-8:00 p.m.

Wendel Sebastian will give a lecture on Fusion of Structural Engineering, Architecture and Manufacturing to Innovate and Decarbonise.

^{Serpentine Pavilion (London) made of translucent fibre polymer composites, Picture: Iwan Baan}

The event will take place digitally and in person.

Lecture Abstract

The construction industry is exploring new ways to remain competitive while observing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. This dual objective to innovate and decarbonise can be enhanced and accelerated through cross-fertilisation between the spaces that structural engineers, architects and manufacturers inhabit. This approach thrives if the building block concept is employed, whereby intrinsic properties at the material scale are combined with those at the scale of key components (such as connections) to drive innovation at the scale of the entire system which can be a building, a bridge, or an exhibition structure. By way of examples this talk will illustrate how such joined-up thinking, underpinned by multi-scale structural testing, can generate novel construction artefacts which are efficient, elegant and safe. The chosen exemplars include London’s architecturally intriguing “unzipped wall” Serpentine Pavilion, assembled from fibre polymer composite modules that are both structurally active and translucent, also novel floor systems made from various combinations of cemfree concrete, steel, timber and natural stone (an overlooked low-carbon material).

Wendel Sebastian

Wendel Sebastian is full Professor of Structural Engineering at University College London (UCL). After taking his MA in Engineering and his PhD in Structural Engineering both from the University of Cambridge, he became an academic first at Bristol University, then at UCL. Professor Sebastian is External Examiner for a suite of Structural Engineering MSc courses at Imperial College, and also Editor-in-Chief (2017-2023) of the Institution of Civil Engineers' Structures and Buildings International Journal. He is an expert consultant to the World Bank and to the UK government's National Highways Agency on hazard-resilient bridges using conventional and new materials, and an expert advisor to industry on novel sustainable structures such as the multi-storey, timber framed Kantor Centre of Excellence building with timber-concrete composite floors in London. He is a full College member of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

His research, pursued in collaboration with industry and other disciplines, entails field monitoring and lab tests at the material, component and overall structure scales alongside advanced structural analysis. This research has spawned new studies at universities worldwide and is embedded in international design standards such as TR 55, CD 368 and prCEN/TS 19101. He has been invited External Examiner for PhD theses at Universities in Australia, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland and the UK. He was awarded a Leverhulme Senior Research Fellowship by the Royal Academy of Engineering, and is now the recipient of a Leverhulme Trust award (tenable 2024) to drive decarbonising innovation by cross-fertilising the Architecture/Structural Engineering/Robotics interfaces.

AdvanceAEC  – Join this and further AdvanceAEC Partner Seminars and receive an AdvanceAEC certificate!

This lecture is part of the AdvanceAEC Partner Seminar series. There will be eight Partner Seminars in 2023. Partner Seminars focus on cross-sectional and interdisciplinary topics and are open to all network partners. If you attend at least six of the eight seminars, you will receive a certificate of time attendance. You will need to register for this at the beginning of each event. The procedure for this will be briefly explained before each seminar.

The access data for this event is available to AdvanceAEC members. All researchers working in the field of AdvanceAEC are welcome to join the network. Please register or log in to access the event credentials.

IntCDC Constructive Conversations

Wendel Sebastian (University College London, UCL)

Steel-CemFree Concrete Composite Floor, UCL Structures Laboratory

Steel-CemFree Concrete Composite Floor, UCL Structures Site Tests

Serpentine Pavilion (London) made of translucent fibre polymer composites, - Pic by Iwan Baan

Prestressed Natural Stone Floor Exhibit, London