Optimisation of large concrete DfMA structures for the Nuclear Industry

The project is to optimise the design for manufacture and assembly (DfMA) of large preassembled components for reinforced concrete construction in nuclear and heavy civils projects. The project will develop and test DfMA components to increase productivity and improve safety and quality over more traditional in-situ methods of construction. It will address the stringent levels of structural and functional reliability of the overall structure, improve and simplify seismic detailing requirements, and quality control.It will consider the manufacture, transport, cranage and placement aspects of components from 20-1000t, and bring optimisation and simulation techniques to identify best solutions for specific applications . The team includes Laing O'Rourke, a major UK civil engineering enterprise and manufacturer and a current nuclear new build constructor, ARUP a worlwide consulting firm, Imperial College, leading on optimisation analytics and BRE for prototype testing