Professional Development for Highway Engineers
Helping create knowledge champions
Super Amphibian Highways
In today’s ever changing highway construction industry, it has never been more important to ensure you are up to date with current industry trends and new innovations.
ACO recognises that in a diverse discipline such as highway engineering, this can be a daunting task and has developed a series of Professional Development courses that can be accessed in number of ways ensuring you can undertake professional development when and where you need it.
As a chartered engineer you are required to undertake continuous professional development to develop your career and encourage lifelong learning. Dependant on your professional body or employer, this can be between 20-30 hours CPD per year, this could, for example, be split between personal technical knowledge and skills, job role technical knowledge and skills, and personal soft skills.
Levels of CPD
ACO have identified 3 levels of CPD in line with leading Construction Institution guidance. These levels assist you and ACO to select the educational program required for your professional development. For a full description please contact us.
Level 1 – Basic knowledge and understanding
Level 2 – Application of knowledge to a subject
Level 3 – Reasoned advice, depth and synthesis of technical knowledge and its implementation
Super Amphibian Highways
Level 2
Description
This presentation will focus on biodiversity in the highway and the reasons for the decline of species in the UK, how construction, fragmentation and climate change have all played a role in the huge decline of species. We delve into some of the protective measures that have passed into legislation and future legislation like The Environment Bill, specifically Biodiversity Net Gains and how this will effect sites. We’ll look at Highways England's Environment and Biodiversity strategies over the course of RIS 2 with an optimistic outlook on what can be achieved.
Moving on to look at some of the technical solutions to help prevent fatalities, fragmentation, increase genetic diversity and achieve biodiversity net gains on the road network. Finishing with a series of case studies, where ACO products have been used to protect the natural world and help it prosper.
Learning outcomes
• Understand the Factors affecting biodiversity and species decline
• Learn Guidance and legislation that protects natural systems and biodiversity
• Understand the principals of Biodiversity Net Gains
• Learn about Highway England's Environmental and Biodiversity Strategy on the road network
• Better understand solutions and technologies that can mitigate species decline in and around the highway
• Learn how to protect animals from road traffic accidents and fatalities through design
• Get best practice advice and learn from case studies
Highways Surface Water Management
Level 2
Description
The UK Highway network is one of the best in the world, it is also one of the oldest. We look at some of the issues associated with designing in the highway environment. How these issues influence other areas including pathways and crossing points and what is needed to meet requirements within the current Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB).
Highways affect every part of society and the codes of practice that need to be followed and adhered to are substantial. We delve into the standards and guidance that govern Surface Water Management and attached hard and soft landscaped areas, specifically SuDS. Simplifying and extracting only the pertinent information for the designer.
We cover the four pillars of SuDS throughout and provide a detailed section for Wildlife and Biodiversity where ACO provides a range of solutions to protect and support the migration of species across our busy network.
We also consider the importance of planned maintenance for highway drainage systems and how this can be designed for even at the preliminary stages of a scheme.
Case studies are used to demonstrate how a variety of products comply with current standards and guidance to overcome numerous problems encountered in Urban and Rural highway schemes including conveyance, SuDS, Geocellular storage systems and flow controller.
Learning outcomes
• Understanding the issues associated with surface water on highways and the associated problems
• Where to get access to applicable standards and guidance
• Understanding load classes and where they are used in the highway
• The application of surface water management products in the highway
• How SuDS (Sustainable Drainage Systems) fit within a highways context
• Understanding the design requirements for maintenance of surface water management systems
• How to integrate Wildlife and Biodiversity products to enhance a highway design
Effective Surface Water Management
Level 1
Description
To help architects, designers and contractors meet legal requirements that now tightly control the way surface water is managed, ACO has created its unique ‘Surface Water Management Cycle’ – Collect, Clean, Hold, Release – the four core processes now required for the complete and sustainable management of surface water drainage with a balance of proprietary products and SuDS features.
We focus on why we need surface water drainage; how to select an appropriate system from the perspective of design, materials, environmental impact, loading, aesthetics and the legislation used to ensure that the manufactured product is of the highest standard.
Looking at where it goes following its collection from the surface i.e. the natural environment or a combined sewer. How we treat this collected rainwater using oil, heavy metal separators and what level of treatment is required based on the SuDS mitigation Indices set out in The SuDS Manual (C753).
Volume and rate of runoff are a consequence of a changing climate. How we manage this volume using soft SuDS and underground storage in an economic way, creates resilience systems. Though, making sure the system is future proof in terms of inspection and maintenance is desirable and evaluated. The rate we release storm water into the environment and how flow controllers can assist in alleviating scour, wash out, bank erosion and cut down on excess storage on the site is the final subject.
Learning outcomes
• Understand the basic requirement for surface water management
• Learn how ACO approaches each element of Collect, Clean, Hold & Release
• Where to get access to applicable standards and guidance
• Understand load classes as per BS EN 1433 and the certification process
• The application of surface water management products in a variety of scenarios
• Understand the principals of separation devices
• Learn the basics of The SuDS Manuals (C753) Mitigation Indices and Connecting to SuDS features
• How to specify underground attenuation for loading and maintenance
• Understand how Controlling the flow rate can lower the need for attenuation
Value Engineering
Level 2
Description
In an age of construction, where margins are shrinking, uncertainty is increasing and a dispute is enough to send a company into liquidation, finding certainty and greater profitability from a project is of the utmost importance.
This presentation will look at the Surface Water Management System and how ACO conduct Value Engineering, or what we call the ‘Recognition of Opportunities’ within a scheme. Exploring a series of case studies where we have worked with various consultants and contractors to find value within a project, this presentation outlines the importance of early engagement with clients to find the most economical solution for any given scheme.
For this presentation, ACO teamed up with cost consultant Gleeds to provide the cost before and after Value Engineering was carried out.
Learning outcomes
• Find out how early engagement and collaboration can deliver cost and time efficiencies
• Learn how to use channels to rationalise a site drainage layout
• Why considering site topography can save on proprietary products, materials, excavation and time on site
• Using structural calculations can rationalise geocellular storage and lower excavation, offsite transport and accelerate the site programme
• Using surface storage in line with The SuDS Manual guidance can eliminate underground storage
Quad Channel Design
Level 1
Description
The ACO Quad Hydraulic design software is free, online and cloud based, enabling the quick and easier design and optimisation of channel drainage systems including the design of surface storage and the prediction of maintenance schedules. Other modules include the design of Geocellular storage volumes taking into consideration roof drainage and other contributing areas.
We look at different Wallingford storm profiles (FSR) and the free input capability for FEH rainfall data. Moving on to the effect of designing the channel with insufficient capacity and how to design surface storage in line with the SuDS manual for exceedance events. Looking at complex geometry, the use of additional catchment areas and point inflows along the channel run to generate a comprehensive design.
For maintenance a peer reviewed paper on The Source, impact and management of car park runoff pollution carried out by ACO in combination with Middlesex and Cranfield University provides the calculations to establish the length of time required between maintenance periods.
Finally, we finish by calculating the site storage requirements where the software automatically adds up all the contributing areas from the channel design and additional onsite areas can be added.
Learning outcomes
• Learn how to use the ACO Quad hydraulic design software
• How to evaluate a design using a variety of different storm profiles
• Design surface ponding in line with SuDS for extreme events
• Model complex catchment areas to suit site layout
• Learn how to model complex channel layouts to create a network
• Design for maintenance of channel drainage systems
• Learn how to calculate attenuation volumes
• Create an output that can be used for approval
• Calculate the required excavation and concrete required for an installation
ACO has recognised that knowledge transfer is fundamental in keeping up-to-date with these latest advancements in surface water management and has unique professional development and training offers for industry professionals. These can be accessed in a number of different ways to suit your learning requirements; online, in-company, or at the state of the art training facility at ACO UK headquarters.
The extensive range of professional development material we offer is constantly updated and refreshed. Availability of certain programmes fluctuates according to demand. For both these reasons we recommend you register your interest by providing a few details in order for us to be able to keep you up to date.
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SuDs Route Map
ICE & ACO Guide to Effective Surface Water ManagementCASE STUDIES
View all CASE STUDIES
ACO helps give Markeaton Park new lease of life with green car park solution using ACO GroundGuard
ACO StormBrixx HD geocellular crates provide a tree pit solution at Rushden Lakes retail development
ACO's Bespoke MultiDrain Brickslot manages water for the UK’s most challenging geometrical structure - Tate Modern
