A Beautiful Start To Monday Morning Here In Bali @finnsbeachclub #themodernengineer #civilengineer #structuralengineer

Welcome to the worlds largest hybrid tensegrity bridge - The Kurilpa Bridge. Positioned right in the heart of @brisbanecity , @australia. If you are an engineer or architect, you'll appreciate the significance of this structure. @arupgroup #coxraynerarchitects #balanced #tension #compression #kurilpabridge #bridge #footbridge #civilengineering #structuralengineering #engineer #themodernengineer #tensegrity #252cables (at Kurilpa Bridge)

“step outside your comfort zone”

What does the title ‘engineer’ mean to you?  What is an engineer? An engineer in my eyes is a collective noun that encompasses a vast array of modern day professionals pushing the boundaries of human evolution. Still too broad for you? A common question I am met with as a professional civil/ structural engineer is ‘what is an engineer’? If you really want to know, grab yourself a cup of coffee, class is in session.

My name is Shaun Howard and i’ve been a professional engineer since June 2013. I graduated at Griffith University on the Gold Coast, Australia with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering. I’m from Brisbane, Australia but I don’t reside anywhere at the moment, on the hop is where I like to be. Since graduating, i’ve worked on a diverse range of projects throughout Australia within the Civil and Structural space. I’m a fitness addict, I love to travel and I love the term ‘engineering’. The term is extremely broad and I am here to explore what it means to be an engineer and the boundaries engineers are currently pushing to evolve the human race. 

Welcome to ‘The Modern Engineer’. Follow my journey as I bounce around the globe to give you a professional perspective on various, significant infrastructure. 

“to broaden the horizon, is to explore the unknown”

#themodernengineer

#Switzerland 🇨🇭 it was a #pleasure ... #bisbald #byefornow #tschüss #ciao #aufwiedersehen #swissalps #europe #explore #travel #snow #mountains @earth @switzerlandpictures (at Zürich, Switzerland)

A throw back to one of the best surf trips I have been involved with. Little did I know here it would be one of my last. 2.5 years ago I damaged my vestibular system (inner ear) in a surfing accident in Indonesia. I haven't stopped swaying for the past 2.5 years now, as if I've never stepped off of a boat. The medical term for this illness is Mal de Debarquement Syndrome (French terminology for - sickness from disembarkment) @mddsfoundation ... It's taken me a while to adjust to the constant swaying. Any mode of transportation (passive motion) alters the pressure in my ears and I automatically start swaying. It's been a long winded 2.5 years dealing with this issue but as I reflect, this was a great time with even greater mates! I'm pumped for future endeavours. Have a nice evening guys 😄 #notvertigo #maldedebarquement #northsumatra #indonesia #bungalow #shack #island #travel #explore #engineer #themodernengineer #pivot #tbt (at Telo Islands)

Bali

“Bagus Sekali"

'Modern Engineer’, why on earth would you start in Bali? I’ve had a beautiful relationship with Bali since 2008 and it continues to flourish. The place offers up something for absolutely everyone. Reconnecting with local friends and seeing the world with a much clearer vision are the two things I enjoy most about Bali. It’s a humbling experience to say the least. The local people live off the bare minimum but without a doubt will greet you with a big, grateful smile on a daily basis. 24 hours in Bali and ‘life’ is put back into perspective.

As an engineer, witnessing the growth of local infrastructure over the last decade has definitely been an eye opener. New bridges, roads and buildings are emerging all over the island. The capital injected into the local economy by western companies has also contributed to this rapid growth in infrastructure.

With a variety of structures in mind, I have decided to talk about a hotel that is currently under construction, directly opposite the guest house I have been living in. The construction of this hotel offers up some of the typical Balinese building techniques and displays the third world environment that the local builders are met with each day. Late yesterday afternoon I ventured over to the building site and was met with a local builder at the entrance who was cleaning away framing off cuts into a pile. I’ve been learning Indonesian on and off since I was 10 years old and in the best Bahasa I could muster up, I kindly asked if the man’s boss was on site. With a blank look he replied ‘no boss, no boss’ with a grin from ear to ear. I smiled back and asked if I could have a look through the job site and he proceeded to nod and smile.

As I entered the site, the first thing that sprung to mind was safety, or the lack there of. Safety on a construction site is paramount in my home country of Australia. A job site will simply be shut down if there is any question’s concerning safety. From the lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), to bamboo scaffolding, safety concerns were abundant across this job site. This unfortunately is to be expected in a third world country due to the lack of necessary resources. Exposed stair cases with no railings, workers with no harnesses working at heights, exposed reinforcement bar and the list goes on. The fatality rate in Indonesia on construction sites is recorded at 9 per day. Reports indicate that this could be far higher as many are not recorded. Mind blowing really!

Moving along, the structure itself looked sound but as seen in the pictures rough around the edges. The concrete stair casings were set, the design on the other hand questionable. I can’t imagine the design was accurate to the building legislation set in Indonesia, but some sort of progress had been made. The questions that arise from an engineer’s perspective are, has enough reinforcement been included in the slab? are the joists correctly positioned? has the concrete reached its required compressive strength? I was met with another 5 workers on the job site as I scaled the 4 level building. All the workers were happy to have me on bored as I mumbled in Bahasa that I was an ‘insinyur' (Engineer). None of the workers spoke any english, so finding a set of building plans was also proving difficult. With a solid communication barrier, a few more smiles arose, a couple of nods were made and the crew was happy to let me cruise around and take a few photos. I would also like to add I was in flip flops, a t-shirt and board shorts which seemed to be no problem.

All the concrete columns looked sound and the structure stable. Looks can be deceiving though. The bamboo bracing used to construct the top floor panels and roofing was an eye opener. This definitely looked strange at first but the tensile and compressive strength of bamboo is significantly higher than one would imagine. Bamboo can’t be used as a structural member in a building but can be utilised within a portioning wall, ceiling, roof and various areas of construction that does not incorporate heavy load-bearing. With the obvious lack of capital available when constructing such buildings, bamboo becomes a very efficient resource within the Indonesian construction industry. I didn’t hang around to long as I didn’t want to disrupt the construction program, if they had one? I’m sure it was tucked away somewhere. It was also scorching hot in the Balinese sun! I was grateful for the self guided tour the local builders had let me engage in, so I jumped onto my bike and gathered 6 large waters for the crew from the local store. They were all extremely grateful. This was certainly a humbling experience as I type this from the comfort of a Finns Beach couch overlooking the Indian Ocean. I’m certainly grateful for the position I am in with my life at present.

“Every opportunity is a chance to learn”

The Modern Engineer

I've been coming to Bali for the past decade and some of the villas popping up throughout the Canggu area are mind blowing... @modern.architect #ricepaddies #bali #indonesia #architecture #villa #themodernengineer #structuralengineering #travel #lifestyle (at Canggu Beach)

Love this!

The Glass House - Phillip Johnson / Veil (Fujiko Nakaya)

© Richard Barnes

Telephone engineer in London, 1925.