Civil Engineering Research in Ireland 2018: Conference Proceedings

On behalf of the Civil Engineering Research Association of Ireland (CERAI), I am delighted to welcome you to the Civil Engineering Research in Ireland 2018 (CERI2018) conference run in conjunction with Irish Transportation Research Network (ITRN) 2018 conference. This is the first time where the two have come together and I can only hope that we move from strength to strength in future. The Civil Engineering Research Association of Ireland (CERAI) was formed in 2012 for promoting civil engineering research and practice in Ireland, and its communication to academics and practitioners. The principal activity is the sponsoring and overseeing of the organisation of a conference series dedicated to this goal. The Civil Engineering Research in Ireland (CERI) conference series has grown initially from Concrete Research Ireland (CRI) and Bridge Research Ireland (BRI) symposiums, which subsequently held joint symposiums that became Bridge and Concrete Research Ireland (BCRI). Over the years, the themes of the conference broadened significantly, attracting submission from the titular areas, as well as from other areas in civil engineering. As the research needs broaden, and the range of submission widened correspondingly, the Organising Committee of BCRI 2012 recommended renaming the conference series to Civil Engineering Research in Ireland (CERI). The first CERI conference was held in Queens University Belfast in 2014.