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Civil Engineering Fundamentals

When you'll study it
Whole Academic Year
CATS points
30
ECTS points
15
Level
Level 4
Module lead
David Richards
Academic year
2025-26

Module overview

This module presents knowledge and skills specific to civil/environmental engineering, in three areas: Environmental Sustainability and Geology for Geomechanics and in Construction. It complements the more general engineering science knowledge and understanding covered in the modules FEEG1002 and FEEG1003, and the civil engineering specific skills and knowledge with focus on design in the module CENV1026 in the first year of the civil and environmental engineering degree programmes.

The skills and knowledge gained in this module are applicable across many areas of the programme, in modules involving design/manufacture and in individual and group research and development projects.

In construction, students are first introduced to surveying, becoming conversant with modern surveying and construction techniques and develop surveying and setting out skills based on practical tasks undertaken around the campus. These skills will then be applied as a very important element of the construction of structures during the Constructionarium, which is a week-long residential field course activity in the final teaching week of semester 2. This tests awareness and knowledge of engineering processes in solving a series of practical construction tasks using the common civil engineering materials, steel, timber and reinforced concrete. Preparing for the Constructionarium is a major activity in semester 2, in which students work in groups to develop project plans, method statements and formwork/temporary works designs. A parallel activity in Semester 2 uses knowledge gained in the Mechanics, Structures and Materials module on the theoretical behaviour of structures to undertake numerical calculations to assess the performance of the Constructionarium structures, through a structural design exercise that includes sketching of load paths and structural form and understanding of loading, structural stability and structural element behaviour.