Technical Features

Heat and moisture: Predictable design issues

“In hot conditions, cattle can become unproductive, overheat or die”.

Those words are from the opening line of a paper in the Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research published in 2000 by two colleagues - Rod McGovern and Jim Bruce. They had produced a model of the thermal balance for cattle...

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Aiming for net zero: A guide to energy efficient buildings

In the previous issue I wrote about the impact buildings have on greenhouse gas emissions and the potential impact of climate change on the design of buildings. We are all going to be hearing the phrase ‘net zero’ a lot more over the next few years as the UK attempts to balance its...

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Climate change: What’s next for UK livestock welfare?

The language of late 2021 has a focus on climate change, and how our leaders are going to commit to consumption and investment policies that will make a significant change for the better. The language is not new but is finding a wider usage; re-think, reduce, re-use, recycle. At the same time the global livestock industry is...

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Changes to cattle systems begin to bite

Although the subject of heat stress has been mentioned before, some of the predictable changes in cattle systems in the UK are beginning to bite on animal health and welfare.

The first change is that as cattle become more productive, they process more energy and need to dump more sensible heat to...

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Designing Steel Framed Buildings for Fire

Introduction

I’m writing this article on the 4th anniversary of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, an event that shocked the entire nation and shone a much needed spotlight on the issue of fire safety in buildings. Of course there are several significant differences between a highrise residential block and a single...

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NSSS 7th Edition

NSSS 7th Edition

The National Structural Steelwork Specification (NSSS) has been a familiar fixture on the desks of steelwork fabricators’ engineers and workshop supervisors since its introduction in 1989.  The most recent incarnation of this bible of structural steelwork, the 7th edition, has recently been published by the BCSA with important implications for RIDBA members.  The...

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Selecting the Correct Steel Grade

Steel is a remarkably versatile construction material and has so many uses within modern agricultural and industrial buildings.  In addition to the structural frames, which are usually made from hot-rolled carbon steel, galvanized cold-formed steel is often used for the purlins, cladding rails and the roof and wall cladding, while steel bolts hold the structural elements together and reinforcing...

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