Chapter 1: Design Considerations for Typical Building Uses

Engineering graduates may consider that they leave university and enter industry will the knowledge that they would be able to design any structure they may be presented with. While this may be true in the case of having been given all of the design parameters, the challenge they face may come about when presented with a building to design from a “blank canvas” and only defined for a specific end-use. The knowledge needed then becomes very specific to the needs of that end-use, whether it be loading, space, form, performance, structural layout requirements. However, a client engaging an engineer, or their company, expects specific knowledge and expertise from the outset to deliver their brief for that building’s intended use. The art of a good Engineer is to know what the structure for an end use should deliver in terms of design loading provision, column grid, performance, floor heights and the like. Each end use will have aspects of these which need different consideration. This chapter seeks to inform Engineers - especially those at the earlier stages of their career pathway - of the areas of design that they should specifically consider in order to appropriately meet the client’s anticipated brief.