Iron and steel in long-span construction 1847-1890: A study of change and innovation

The mid-nineteenth century was a period when there was an increased demand for building of all types, including the large-span structures required to meet the needs of growing industries and the expanding rail network. Between 1847 and 1890 more and more structures for these purposes were constructed using iron, either cast iron, wrought iron or later, steel. It is the wider use of these materials, relatively untried in practice, that the present study investigates, to establish both the sequence and the significance of the changes that took place and their consequences for the construction industry. These are examined in relation to four aspects of the process of design and construction: first the developments that came about in fabrication and erection; including the use of mechanical equipment: second the changes in structural form that were evolved; and third, the attempts that were made to increase the output and quality of the iron used. The fourth aspect considered is the changes that took place in the activities of the designers and engineers. The consequences of the defined changes and innovations are analysed for their effect on the attitudes of designers and engineers to the content and pattern of education and training, to the practice of design, to safety and to the testing of materials and structures. The study considers the reasons for the changes that occurred, attempts to establish the groups of people responsible for their introduction and delineates the ways new ideas were diffused throughout the industry and the professions. It defines the importance, in a traditional industry, of the roles that the contractor and craftsman played in connection with change in all aspects of the process of design, fabrication and erection when using a new material, and illustrates the influence they exerted over attitudes to education and training. In addition, the relationship of theory to practice in design,and of science to technology in the construction industry, are considered in an attempt to establish how important these were in the second half of the century and to discover how far the traditional basis of the industry influenced people's approach to these matters.