Meet the Organising Committee

We have a great team putting together the first IABSE Future of Design Conference to be held in Birmingham. Nice to see the faces and names behind the scenes:

[separator headline=”h2″ title=”Mandy van Zaanen | WSP“]

Mandy graduated with a BSc in Architecture and Structural Engineering from the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences in 2016. In a six month internship during her bachelor degree she worked on the transformation of a floating concrete prison into a hotel in Amsterdam. After completion of the internship she took an exchange term at the University of Birmingham after which she stayed in the UK to complete her dissertation focused on the Exploded Buncefield Oil Depot in Hemel Hempstead and to take a placement with WSP in Birmingham. After completion of her BSc she started an MSc in Structural Engineering at the University of Birmingham, from which she graduated with distinction in 2017. During her dissertation she studied the use of design spectra, typically used in seismic design, in wind loading on tall structures.

Once graduated, Mandy went back to WSP and joined their Building Structures team in Birmingham. Since then, she has worked on retail, office, and residential projects including the development of a new retail park which she has seen from concept to tender stage. The retail park consists of a total number of 18 units with steel/concrete and timber structures and different numbers of storeys. Mandy is responsible for both the sub- and superstructures and is now working towards construction information. Furthermore, Mandy is part of the team designing a 42-storey residential tower in Birmingham, which will be its tallest when built. In its design Mandy has played a significant role in the development of the building’s stability system and the design of both the sub- and superstructure. Both projects are due to commence on site within a few months, in which Mandy will play an active role.


[separator headline=”h2″ title=”Paul Mills | Arup“]

Paul graduated with an MEng in Civil Engineering from the University of Warwick in 2013. As a student he carried out a Year in Industry with the Atkins Water team, was a site engineer for the civil works on a pico-hydroelectricity project in Uganda and completed a summer placement with Atkins Rail, where he developed an interest in bridge and structural design.

After graduation Paul joined the Bridges and Civil Structures team in Arup, Solihull and has worked on a variety of different projects from scheme design through to detailed design stages of both bridges and civil structures for a variety of different clients. In 2014, he had the amazing opportunity to work as part of an Arup team and Bridges to Prosperity to design and build a footbridge in rural Panama. He then went on to work as part of the Employer’s Delivery Team on the Queensferry Crossing cable stay bridge construction site in Edinburgh for 18 months monitoring the construction of the post-tensioned precast deck segments. Paul is now working towards achieving Chartered status with the Institution of Civil Engineers.


[separator headline=”h2″ title=”Harpreet Sidhu | WSP“]

Harpreet is currently a Structural Engineer within the Property and Buildings Business Unit at WSP. He is responsible for structural engineering calculations and designs on a variety of projects; from national high-rise towers to international snow-park structures.

His previous project background includes site management and engineering posts within the water industry for a principle contractor and various operative posts in the construction industry via his voluntary internship. Harpreet is passionate about new technologies and materials and has previously designed and conducted pioneering research on the structural connection behaviour of Glass Fibre Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) hollow profiles.


[separator headline=”h2″ title=”Kirstin Walling | Arup“]

Kirstin graduated from University of Birmingham in 2017 with an MEng in Civil Engineering. During her degree she carried out several summer placements with the bridges and highways teams at Arup Campus. She developed an interest in structures and carried out her dissertation looking at the effect of wind at the base of tall buildings.

Since then she has been working in the Bridges and Civil Structures team at Arup.  She has worked on a variety of projects in the year and a half she has been working at Arup including smaller projects detailed design and larger infrastructure projects like HS2.


[separator headline=”h2″ title=”Stuart Nash | Arup“]

Stuart graduated with an MEng in Civil Engineering from the University of Nottingham in 2016. Whilst at university he completed summer placements in both the transport planning and hydraulic structures departments of Royal HaskoningDHV, as well as a structural engineering placement at Arup.

After graduating Stuart joined the Building Midlands team in Nottingham as a structural engineer. Over the last 2 years Stuart has worked through all design phases to deliver award winning education and industrial facilities in the UK and Russia.

Stuart has a passion for STEM activities, and particularly in promoting diversity in the industry. He recently lead a unique concept design workshop in Nottingham for students to develop the concept for a temporary pavilion to be constructed in Nottingham in 2019. Stuart is also an active member of Engineers For Overseas Development in the West Midlands, who are currently designing a maize mill in rural Uganda, to be constructed this year.

Back to homepage