Engineering Matters

Latest Episodes:

#308 Building Bandwidth in the 1920s Jan 09, 2025

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We live in a world where data and connectivity are essential to almost everything we do. Cable and satellite connections add value to business through trade and collaboration, and enrich our personal lives with the ability to engage with friends and family around the world. Maintaining these connections is a central aim of engineers in...

#307 Giving the Gift of Engineering Dec 19, 2024

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For many of us, now is a season of giving. A well chosen gift can bring lasting joy. But it’s easy to get wrong. One of the finest gifts anyone can give, is the gift of engineering. But how can engineers and designers ensure that when they share their gifts, they really meet the needs...

#306 Revisited: Building Rothera Wharf Dec 12, 2024

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This week, we are returning to Rothera, in the Antarctic, where, in 2021 the British Antarctic Survey had just completed work on a project it has called ‘the world’s most extreme construction site’. Pour yourself a warming drink, and enjoy the episode. We’ll be back with a new episode next week. Since the end of...

#305 Making the Case for Nature-Based Solutions Dec 05, 2024

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Nature-based solutions are emerging as vital tools to tackle the dual crises of climate change and biodiversity loss by leveraging nature’s inherent resilience to protect and restore ecosystems. This episode explores how innovative approaches can make these solutions mainstream and economically viable while addressing complex challenges like urban flooding, ecosystem restoration, and sustainable investment opportunities....

#304 Grounded in Knowledge – Ireland’s Biggest Offshore Wind Farm Nov 28, 2024

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During the last Ice Age, glaciers scored huge trenches through the land beneath the Irish Sea. Today, those valleys are filled with softer material and sit between tracts of hard rock, creating a diverse landscape that wind farm developer Codling Wind Park has had to research in painstaking detail before it can begin installing its...

#303 Gathering data at the speed of a train: Engineering Matters Awards 2024 Health & Safety Gold Champion – Fugro RILA Nov 21, 2024

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Monitoring and maintaining an entire rail network can be costly, slow and, for those working on the track, very dangerous. Specialised trains were developed that could be mounted with sensors for collecting data on track gauging and track condition, however these couldn’t be mounted together. In this episode we look into the development of RILA...

#302 Conservation, Community and AI: Engineering Matters Awards 2024 Community Gold Champion — iNaturalist Nov 14, 2024

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From habitat destruction, to use of pesticides, the arrival of invasive species and the growing impact of climate change, life, in all shapes and sizes, is fighting to survive. To protect the world’s biodiversity, first we have a better understanding of what and where that biodiversity is. In this episode we delve into iNaturalist, the...

#301 Electrifying Sydney: Transformational Energy Systems Nov 07, 2024

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In the early 1900s Sydney was transformed by its first electric lighting system, which was so bright compared to gas lamps it was hailed as “turning night into day”. The network did much more than just light up the streets. It democratised power, electrifying communities, homes and businesses for the first time. The system, designed by...

#300 Bonus: Powering Net Zero Nov 05, 2024

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Governments and businesses around the world have made commitments to achieve Net Zero by the middle of the century. This will require engineering innovation, and changes to practices, standards and regulations, across the generation, transmission, storage and transport segments. In this episode we explore these challenges and how they intersect. The IET’s Powering Net Zero...

#299e Highways UK Live – A Legacy of Excellence Nov 01, 2024

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The Thames had been for thousands of years London’s main route to the sea. But it is also an obstacle. The last crossing east of London is the bridge and tunnel at Dartford, and this is often congested. But a new crossing has been proposed further down the river. Throughout its planning, the focus has...

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