The Eurocodes

The Eurocodes are a set of structural design codes for building and civil engineering works. 

It is estimated that the Eurocodes are being used by up to 500,000 professional engineers across Europe, and the wider world. The Eurocodes are now widely accepted as the basis for  structural design throughout Europe, allowing engineers to trade and tender for projects across the continent.

The Eurocode standards were adopted in Ireland in March 2010 under the designations I.S. EN 1990 to I.S. EN 1999 and incorporated into the Irish building regulations in 2012.

2nd Generation Eurocodes

The development of the 2^nd  generation Eurocodes was mandated by the European Commission in December 2012. This ambitious project to revise the Eurocodes is being overseen by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) technical committee, CEN/TC 250 – Structural Eurocodes.

The main goals of the 2^nd  generation Eurocodes will be to:

• Enhance the Eurocodes ease of use, providing clarity for the user;
• Incorporate new design, performance and robustness requirements;
• Reduce the number of nationally determined parameters (NDPs); and,
• Develop a number of new Eurocode parts to provide guidance on the following;
                   -  Assessment and retrofitting of existing structures; 
                   -  Structural Glass; and,
                   -  Actions on structures due to atmospheric icing and waves and currents.

As a result of this work the number of published Eurocode parts will increase from 58 to 64. 

All stakeholders involved in construction projects (i.e. procurement bodies, regulators, designers, engineers and clients/owners) will need to consider how any changes to the Eurocodes might affect them.
 

Getting Involved in the Eurocodes

Have Your Say
The time has now come for the Irish construction sector to take the opportunity to have its say on the content of the revised Eurocode parts. This can be done by reviewing and commenting on the revised Eurocode parts via NSAI’s public enquiry portal, Your Standards Your Say when the Enquiry drafts are made available. Read more about the current status of revisions to the Eurocodes.

Have Your Say
 

Join a Technical Committee
Irish experts are contributing to the development of the 2^nd  Generation Eurocodes. You can too by joining NSAI's technical committee on the Structural Eurocodes - NSAI/TC 15. The benefits of getting involved include:

• Gaining early access to information that will shape the direction of the construction sector over the next 10 years;
• Giving you, your organisation or association a voice in the development of the standards both at national and international level;
• Providing you, your organisation or association with an opportunity to raise any needs or concerns in relation to the codes which may well affect you or your business in the future;
• Increased opportunities for networking in the industry at national and international level; and,
• The work on standards is recognised by many professional institutions as a way of demonstrating continued professional development.

There is also an opportunity to influence and contribute to the revision of the associated Irish National Annexes (NAs) and national non-conflicting guidance documents developed by the NSAI that will accompany the revised Eurocodes.

Register Your Interest

If you have any queries in relation to the Eurocodes, please email Ken Murphy, Technical Secretary to the National Eurocodes Consultative Committee at: ken.murphy@nsai.ie