FIBE alumnus Deryck Chan won the second prize in the Institution of Civil Engineer's Emerging Engineers award in October 2020, for presenting his doctoral research project on basement heave in over-consolidated clay. His paper on centrifuge and numerical modelling of basement heave earned him a spot in the international finals, where he gave a twenty-minute live webinar and fielded judges' questions.
"I am thrilled to present my work on basement-clay interaction to the wider civil engineering industry. Whether they are old-school foundation designers learning about soil-structure interaction analysis techniques for the first time, or geotechnical leaders critiquing my proposed refinements to the design guides, I am glad that I can disseminate my research findings beyond academia." Deryck Chan
Since completing his PhD, Deryck has been working for FIBE industry partner Mott MacDonald as an engineer, continuing his work on construction in the stiff clay strata of England. You can watch the Emerging Engineers 2020 finals on-demand here: https://www.ice.org.uk/eventarchive/emerging-engineers-award-2020-final-online