What does a Civil Engineer do?
Civil engineers conceive, design, build, supervise, operate, construct, and maintain infrastructure projects and systems in the public and private sector, including roads, buildings, airports, tunnels, dams, bridges, and systems for water supply and sewage treatment.
The term engineering comes from two Latin words: ingenium, meaning “cleverness” and ingeniare, meaning “to devise”. For centuries, mankind has been using its intelligence to conceive, design and construct things which help us to solve life’s problems. There are many great civil engineering projects across the globe.
If I were to name my favourite civil engineering project, it would be the Westway in London where I was employed as a young civil engineer working for John Laing Construction.
In its time in the UK the Westway was lauded as an exceptional fete of civil engineering.
The Westway was funded by the GLC with a 25% grant from central government.
The main contractor was John Laing & Sons, while the flyovers at the eastern end were engineered by Sir Bruce White and Partners.
Every engineer will have a different opinion on the most impressive creations, however, in a series of papers I am declaring my favourite ten civil engineering projects which rate as being unsurpassable.
My number one on the list must be Great Pyramid of Giza
Great Pyramid of Giza
The Great Pyramid—the oldest, largest, and most famous of the monuments—is the last of the ancient world’s “seven wonders” still standing. … Today the Great Pyramid stands at 450 feet.
Built mainly of limestone, mortar, some granite in 2600 BC.
Many experts estimate that 5.5 million tonnes of limestone, 500,000 tonnes of mortar and 8,000 tonnes of imported granite were used to make it.
Experts also estimate that it would cost around $5 billion to build a replica today.
It remains largely undamaged. It is the largest of the three pyramids in the Giza pyramid complex and was the tallest construction in the world for over 3,800 years.
It is believed that the pyramid was built as a tomb for the fourth Dynasty Egyptian pharaoh, Khufu and was constructed over a twenty-year period.
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