TRADA engineers complete Masters degrees

TRADA Technology graduate engineers Ramona Stoicescu and Sajith Kannangara have been awarded their Masters degree in Timber Engineering from Edinburgh Napier University after submitting dissertations based on TRADA 75th anniversary research projects.

“The expertise of our staff has always been a major strength and we are proud of the commitment to excellence shown by Ramona and Sajith in achieving their Masters degrees,” said TRADA chief executive Andrew Abbott.

Ms Stoicescu completed her first degree, a BSc in Product Design at Buckinghamshire University College, and graduated with Honours in 2004. She joined TRADA Technology three years later, initially with product services and is now with the engineering team.

Mr Kannangara graduated with Honours from Kingston University, London, in 2005 with a BEng in Mechanical Engineering Design and was appointed to the TRADA Technology engineering team in 2007.

Ms Stoicescu’s thesis, Ty Unnos - Volumetric Building System, aimed to demonstrate “that even in tough economic times in the construction market, it is possible to develop innovative methods of design, based on the use of home-grown timber, to create a stable and competitive product”. This was a collaborative project between Coed Cymru, Elements Europe Ltd, The Welsh School of Architecture, Gwalia Housing, Pontrilas Timber Group and Kenton Jones Timber.

The research highlighted the benefits – structurally as well as economically - of the innovative Ty Unnos (a house in one night) building system, which from inception to its final design stage has managed to produce interest in the construction industry, winning several awards. The system has also been awarded the BM TRADA Q-Mark, and is now targeting CE marking’.

Mr Kannangara’s thesis, Design Methodology for Mechanically Laminated Timber Beams in Bridges, focused on the search for a practical design methodology for Mechlam beams under bridge loading in accordance with Eurocode 5 (EC5). Mechlam bridge beams were supplied by Concrete and Timber Services (CTS) and bridges were tested by TRADA Technology. The test data was used in the proposed design methodology and a comparison made.

Mr Kannangara added, “The driver for the research was the lack of a clear design methodology to work out the number of dowels required for mechanically laminated timber beams used in bridges and also weakening of such beams by cross-beams,” said Mr Kannangara. “Nor had the application of EC5 design rules for dowels with large diameters been investigated in detail under practical situations. The aim of the research was to design bridges in Mechlam strong and stiff enough to withstand maximum bending, shear and bearing stresses while limiting the deflections.”