Structural Engineering

with a Fresh Perspective

Structural Engineering

with a Fresh Perspective

Structural Engineering

with a Fresh Perspective

Structural Engineering

with a Fresh Perspective

Structural Engineering

with a Fresh Perspective

About Ecotech Engineers

Ecotech Engineers Ltd a UK based structural engineering consultancy working predominantly in the residential sector. We have expertise in the design of all construction materials above and below ground with a key focus on foundation assessment and design for low level housing developments.

We are based in Chesterfield working closely with local and national based Housebuilders covering a wide geographical area from Norfolk to Bristol and the Northern Home Counties to South Yorkshire. Due to our geographical reach, we have specialist knowledge of undertaking foundation appraisals for difficult sites containing peat, soft clays and historic mining.

 

We work closely with residential developers to propose the most suitable foundation solutions for future sites based on the site conditions and the Client’s targets on budget, time or buildability. We support our Clients from pre-land purchase to built properties and pride ourselves in the ability to react to our Clients’ needs. This means we provide not only a design role but a supportive role to help solve unexpected issues that may arise on site and affect proposed structural elements.

With our breadth of knowledge and expertise in the residential sector, we are also able to adapt our engineering and drafting skills to the private sector to aid with extensions, renovations and structural inspections for home owners and prospective home owners.

Meet the Boss

Ecotech Engineers Ltd is led by Laura Holland. Laura has been chartered with the Institute of Civil Engineers since 2018 with experience in structural engineering for light industrial and residential sector. Laura established Ecotech Engineers Ltd in 2020 and has enjoyed undertaking the challenge of setting up and running her own consultancy.

She has worked hard to form lasting Client relationships which has aided in the success of Ecotech and is a testament to her passion, communication and knowledge of structural engineering. She has been eagerly involved with The University of Sheffield Engineering Department, where she graduated in 2013 with a Masters Degree in Structural Engineering and Architecture, with an aim to encourage undergraduates and women to continue into the structural engineering industry. Her positive attitude and eagerness to learn has created a highly motivated engineering consultancy ready to take on new challenges and adapt to achieve her Clients’ needs.

Meet the Boss

What Ecotech Does

As a structural engineering consultancy, we are able to:

  • Assess, review and comment on ground investigation reports for both greenfield and brownfield sites.
  • Support Residential Developers with land appraisals to aid with bidding on new sites by providing suitable and realistic foundation proposals based on available information.
  • Assess and schedule trenchfill foundations to suit Warranty Provider’s design manuals and ground conditions.
  • Design and detail specialist foundation solutions including reinforced strip foundations to vibro ground improvement, reinforced concrete ground beams to piled solutions, pile setting out and safe working load assessments and reinforced concrete raft foundations.
  • Design and detail all superstructure elements in all standard construction materials to both British Standards and Eurocodes, including beams, columns, frames, slabs, retaining walls, masonry screen walls and pumping stations elements to list but a few.
  • Undertake structural appraisals of residential properties to Part A of the Building Regulations
    – Design calculations to submit to Building Control.
  • Aid with innovation of new construction methods by providing structural engineering assessments to suit the proposals.
  • Design and detail underpinning schemes.
  • Undertake structural surveys and monitor cracks within masonry construction.
  • Assess and detail appropriate remedial repairs for masonry and concrete elements.
Ecotech's Resolution in Construction
Ecotech on Site to Observe Compaction

Ecotech Values

  • Quality: Ecotech delivers quality engineering solutions to the exceed the expectations of our Clients
  • Teamwork: Ecotech prides itself on the cohesiveness of the design and drafting team to allow us to deliver quality engineering solutions within the project timescales. We extend this ideology of teamwork to the broader project teams we are involved in to benefit the project rather than just our organisation.
  • Communication: Ecotech believes that we can only delivery exceptional projects to meet the requirements of our Clients by having clear and open communication with our Clients and within our project team.

We continue to strive to our company values in all work that we undertake to build strong working relationships with our Clients and other professions to ultimately achieve quality work on time and in budget.

The Issue
Approval of Resolution Principle Instructs Remedial Works to Start on Site

Ecotech Aims To

  • Deliver quality structural engineering design solutions to suit the requirements of our Client, the constraints of the project and the proposed timescales.
  • Clearly communicate our designs with quality drawings and personal direct correspondence between the design team and the Client
  • Provide advice to our Clients in design constraints and design proposals to aid the completion of the project and the knowledge of our Client to build strong working relationships.
  • Build strong working relationships with Clients to extend the ethos of teamwork to cover the whole project team.
    Ecotech's Solution Approved for a Raft Foundation
    Ecotech's Solution Approved for a Raft Foundation

    Employment Opportunities

    Employment Opportunities

    We currently have two vacancies to join the Ecotech Team!

      Senior Structural Engineer

      Assistant Structural Engineer

    If you are interested to learn more, please email your CV and which position you are expressing an interest in to info@ecotechengineers.co.uk

    Case Studies

    Bedford Road, Olney

    We worked closely with both Vistry Northern Home Counties and Talyor Wimpey to deliver the foundation assessment for a 300 plot development. We were able to effectively translate the ground investigation report to the Developers to recommend the suitable foundation solutions which was a mix of trenchfill foundations and traditional piled plots due to historic limestone mining.

    We tailor delivered two high quality trenchfill foundation schedules to suit the two Client’s differing requirements and preferences within the necessary timescales. We undertook all reinforced concrete ground beam design and pile loadings assessments where necessary and aimed to reduce the number of piled plots as much as possible.

    We undertook structural appraisals and line load assessments for the Vistry house types, assessed the foundations for the retaining walls and masonry screen walls and continued to support the site team with issues that arose as the development was constructed.

    We were commended on our ability to resolve issues with practical engineering solutions, achieve tight deadlines and actively work within the Developer’s engineering team with a positive attitude to challenges.

    Large Format Block Innovative Design

    We worked closely within the Barratt and David Wilson Homes innovation team to deliver a new prefabrication construction methodology replacing the inner blockwork leaf of a traditionally built masonry house with an aerated concrete panel 2.4m high and 0.6m wide.

    We devised an innovative engineering methodology to appraise the lateral loading capacity and racking resistance of the proposed aerated concrete panels using test data. With our specialised design approach and active involvement in multiple design team meetings, we helped to gain approval on the scheme with the National House Building Control Warranty Providers.

    To further appease the Warranty Provider, we undertook numerous site visits to inspect the quality of construction, aid the teaching of site teams in the critical construction stages and undertake remedial detail assessment when necessary. Our involvement in this scheme, aided this new innovative construction approach to be implemented successfully across multiple sites over multiple Barratt regions.

    We continually work with the Developer and specialist Contractor to utilise practical solutions to theorical or construction issues to make sure the innovative proposal became a reality. This new approach to traditional construction has helped to reduce construction time, increase the rate of building completion and reduce waste material on site by utilising a prefabricated material.

    Beeston Business Park, Nottingham 

    We undertook the substructure and superstructure structural engineering designs for this 310 plot site for Barratt North Midlands.

    The site was historically used for light industrial works, so we were involved early in the project to discuss and review appropriate foundation solutions due to site conditions, site constraints and proposed earthworks.

    The site was in close proximity to the River Severn Trent and existing terrace properties, therefore we had to consider the implications of shallow ground water and the disturbance to neighbouring residents to the foundation proposal.

    We undertook conditional structural surveys of neighbouring properties prior to construction and were involved in meetings on and off site to make sure the foundation proposal was suitable.

    We successfully undertook all the reinforced strip foundation designs and detailing to suit the Client’s deadlines to allow for vibratory ground improvement to be viable.

    Where issues with ground conditions arose, due to shallow ground water, we reacted quickly to make sure construction could progress with site visits, trial pitting and remedial structural design where necessary.

    Our ability to react to our Client’s needs, achieve tight deadlines and consistently explain design implications to construction changes we have been able to form a trustworthy working relationship and continued to work with this Barratt region regularly.

    Transformation

    Click to follow journey

    Testimonials

    The Barratt David Wilson Homes North Midlands division has worked with the Ecotech team for a number of years on projects through from feasibility, to detailed design and on-site supervision. Their diligence, reliability and rapport with all stakeholders enables us to deliver at speed and on cost.

    Mark Potter

    Engineering Manager, Barratt & David Wilson Homes North Midlands

    The guys at Ecotech always deliver quality, well presented information in the right time frame and Laura is great at providing friendly advice when needed. Highly recommended!

    Ross Adamiecki

    Technical Manager, Persimmon Homes North Midlands

    Ecotech Engineers have provided us with a first class service. Their structural expertise play a pivotal part in our design development and are our number one structural consultancy

    Alex Kenny

    Technical Director, Redrow Homes

    Persimmon Homes East Midlands have worked with Ecotech for over 2 years, regularly making use of their structural engineering expertise to help us deliver residential developments of varying sizes. During that time we’ve established a strong partnership and collaborative working relationship Laura and the Ecotech team such that I would happily recommend the engineering services that they offer. Ecotech support us throughout the development of sites, from early stage pre-purchase reviews, investigations and assessments through to delivering detailed foundation and superstructure designs for a wide variety of sites. That full spectrum of work along with wider engineering support as required is always of high quality and clearly comes from professional engineers who have weighty expertise, understand the ‘bigger picture’.

    Ben Purdy

    Technical Director, Persimmon Homes East Midlands

    We have used Ecotech Engineers on a wide range of work and they have provided thorough and detailed designs ranging from land appraisals to detailed design on many of our schemes. Ecotech are very helpful, knowledgeable and are always able to deliver the designs on time.

    Daniel Evans

    Engineering Manager, Vistry Northern Home Counties

    Testimonials

    Contact

    Contact

    Ecotech Engineers Ltd

    Unit 205, Dunston Innovation Centre
    Dunston Road
    Chesterfield
    Derbyshire
    S41 8NG