Interview with Jane Richards: A Career Building Structures

An early adopter of Modern Methods of Construction (MMC), passionate about retrofit and experienced in delivering many different and complex projects, Jane Richards talks about her rich and varied career leading to her current position as head of WSP’s UK building structures business.

Global | Tuesday, 31 October 2023
Reading Time : 7 mins

What attracted you to structural engineering?

I was an all-rounder at school and enjoyed both creative and technical subjects. This made it hard to decide which direction to take, but I opted to study scientific subjects for A Level. I had always been interested in architecture and buildings, their history and how they work, and I felt that structural engineering would allow me to pursue this interest as well as providing the diversity that I was looking for in my career.

How formative were your early years as a structural engineer?

When I started in the 1980s, the construction industry was booming. But on returning to work after having my first child in 1990, we were in the thick of the 90s financial crisis, which I believe is the worst recession that the construction industry has ever experienced. While many projects were stopped and people lost their jobs, one major project that kept going was London Underground’s Jubilee Line Extension. The civil engineers on the project required support with the building structures engineering, and I was very lucky to be seconded to them and gain experience on a heavy infrastructure-type project. I developed my knowledge of issues such as settlement assessments and the impact of tunneling and excavations on buildings along the proposed route. This experience has been very helpful at WSP, where so many of our projects are close to sensitive third-party assets.

After a few years, and a second child, I spent four years working part time. I really enjoyed the opportunity to spend time with my children while continuing to develop as a structural engineer. It made me appreciate the benefits of a good work-life balance contributing to both personal and professional fulfilment

In 1998 I joined WSP, which at the time focused mainly on private sector projects, thus enabling me to fill further gaps in my experience.

Jane Richards

Head of Discipline, Structures

United Kingdom

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What do you enjoy most about working on projects?

What I find most satisfying is the variety that comes with working on diverse projects and the different challenges that they present. One project that stands out is the redevelopment of a large children’s hospital. The health trust wanted to modernize the facilities to meet the needs of modern clinical care, while keeping the hospital operational. This meant that a 1970s building would need to be replaced and I felt that to demolish it would be wasteful, as well as being difficult for the hospital to keep working. I was part of the Development Control Plan Review and led a study to consider partially demolishing the existing building and adding extra floors above it. I continued overseeing the project through to design and completion. In terms of the embodied carbon that we were able to save, I feel this was a forerunner to current day thinking.

I mentioned that I’ve always been interested in the architecture and the history of buildings, and I particularly enjoy working with architects on the adaptive reuse of structures. I love working out how to reinvigorate a building for the future, to retrofit and, usually, to extend it, while also preserving its features. My very first job was to return the fire-damaged roof of a little Christopher Wren-designed church in London to its original form. A larger scheme that I’ve enjoyed more recently is a residential-led development of an Edwardian building in London. It features a very long retained façade as well as structural isolation bearings which help to deal with ground-borne vibration.

Jane was an early adopter of modern methods of construction (MMC) and currently chairs the WSP UK team focused on this area.

You were an early adopter of Modern Methods of Construction (MMC). How did this come about and how is it developing?

It started with volumetric modular construction, where building modules are manufactured off-site, then joined together to construct an entire building. Around 2005, I was working with a client who had invested in a factory to make their own volumetric modules for student halls of residence. They had adopted a production line approach to their buildings so they could construct them rapidly in time for the annual student intake. They could build up to four storeys with their system and they asked me if we could apply some of our tall building techniques to their production line system to enable them to go higher.

This involved some interesting Research & Development, and we succeeded in producing buildings of 12 and 13 storeys, the tallest of their type in the UK at the time. We also conducted testing and analysis and reviewed the technologies for a paper I co-wrote with the academic, Mark Lawson, entitled Modular Design for High-Rise Buildings, explaining how this type of construction could comply with code design standards.

With the 2008 recession, much of the innovation around modular work went on hold, it is now back on the agenda – and it’s not just volumetric modelling, but a wider approach to off-site construction. I now chair the WSP UK team focused on MMC and we are continuously learning from one another, whilst building a strong reputation for WSP as a leader in this.

What is the biggest technical challenge you have encountered in your career?

An extreme challenge we constantly face is the design of deep basements in the highly congested ground under central London. We have to contend with the proximity of London Underground and other third-party infrastructure and we would not be able to accomplish this without the support of our excellent geotechnical team and their expertise in site investigations, modelling and monitoring of ground movement. For example, I collaborated with our geotechnical team on a 43-storey residential and hotel development adjoined to a refurbished Victorian building. It has a four-level basement, which contains a box-in-box construction for a ballroom and sits adjacent to busy London Underground lines.

What do you like most about working for WSP, and how have you been supported in your career progression?

From the start I have been impressed by how dynamic and entrepreneurial WSP is, and by the company’s focus on people. We respect our employees, with their skills and experience, and by listening to them, we are able to constantly improve. In addition, we have that wealth of global knowledge and experience and wide diversity of colleagues all over the world. Together with the variety of projects that we have, it makes for a stimulating work environment, where we are learning all the time.

I’ve been very fortunate that WSP has the leadership and structure that encourages people to take up new challenges. I’ve had the opportunity to deliver many complex and interesting projects and move into increasingly senior roles, managing teams and dealing with clients.

Since joining WSP in 1998, Jane has moved into increasingly senior roles, managing teams and dealing with clients.

What are your hopes for the future of the Property & Buildings industry?

The industry is waking up to the fact that we have a huge impact on climate change and the future of our planet in terms of embodied carbon, which means using our limited resources wisely. I’m not against new build – after all, great architecture adds to our enjoyment as human beings. But while we continue to build new, creative and interesting buildings, we also have a massive responsibility not only to build well, but to make use of our existing buildings and adapt them to change of use rather than thinking about demolition first.

Finally, what advice would you give to the younger you, starting out on your career as a structural engineer?

I remember how, at the beginning of my career, everything was completely new, and just as I got comfortable with one aspect of the job, the next challenge would arrive to test me. It took around ten years until everything clicked into place. I would tell that young version of myself not to be daunted, but to embrace everything new that you learn. Eventually, it will all come together, and you will have a wealth of amazing experience to draw on, for a highly rewarding and enjoyable career.