Professor David Brohn’s visual approach to teaching structural mechanics has transformed my understanding of structural behaviour. The course brilliantly connects theoretical concepts with practical applications through clear visualisation of bending moments, shear forces and deflected shapes.

The “golden rules” emphasised throughout the lectures such as “if a part remains straight after deflection, there is no bending moment” and “at a simple support, the bending moment is always zero” provide invaluable conceptual anchors that help develop engineering intuition beyond calculations.

The systematic progression from simple beams to complex frames built my knowledge logically, whilst the practice exercises reinforced key concepts. I particularly valued the visual correlation between loading conditions and resulting forces, which helps immediately identify critical design areas.

This course will enhance my professional practice by enabling quick identification of structural behaviour patterns without relying solely on computer analysis. The visual thinking methods will prove invaluable for efficient design verification and structural optimisation.

To fellow civil and structural engineers, I strongly recommend this course as an essential foundation. The conceptual understanding gained provides crucial “sanity checks” when reviewing software outputs and develops the engineering judgement that distinguishes exceptional structural engineers.

For IStructE exam preparation, the course directly supports success by developing the exact skills needed for the institution’s challenging design questions. Similarly, for the Certificate of Structural Behaviour exam, the focus on fundamental principles provides the conceptual framework necessary to approach structural design questions with confidence and clarity.

Thank you for providing such an excellent and valuable learning experience.