CSIR-Structural Engineering Research Centre (CSIR-SERC) celebrated its 60^th Foundation Day and Inauguration of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations with great enthusiasm on 10 June 2024 at the CSIR Campus, Chennai. The function was presided over by Dr. N. Anandavalli, Director, CSIR-SERC and Coordinating Director, CMC. Dr. Vijay Kumar Saraswat, Hon’ble Member, NITI Aayog, was the Chief Guest of the function. Dr. S. Gomathinayagam, Former Director General, National Institute of Wind Energy, was the Guest of Honour.

Dr. Anandavalli extended a warm welcome to the chief guest and guest of honour and congratulated all the staff members on the occasion of the 60^th foundation day of CSIR-SERC. In her welcome address, the Director mentioned that civil engineering is a way of life and brought out the analogy between the five elements viz earth, air, fire, water, space, and structural engineering. She mentioned that the establishment of SERC as a National Laboratory under CSIR on 10^th June 1965 was the result of the fore-sighted vision of Prof. G. S. Ramasamy. The journey of CSIR-SERC ever since and its role played in shaping the Infrastructure of the country through its significant achievements and societal contributions in the form of cyclone shelters, etc., were elaborated. She further emphasized the various researches and technologies developed at CSIR-SERC and said that at present, CSIR-SERC primally focuses on the six thrust areas viz. Structural Health Monitoring & Life Extension., Disaster Mitigation, Advanced Materials for Sustainable Structures, Special and Multi-functional Structures, Energy Infrastructure and Offshore Structures. She further highlighted that the Scientists at CSIR-SERC are part of many committees in the formulation of standards and codal provisions in the field of Structural Engineering. She further mentioned that the Journal of Structural Engineering (JoSE), the unique Journal from CSIR-SERC in the field of Structural Engineering has been in existence for the past 50 years since its inception in 1973.

Dr. S. Parivallal, Chief Scientist and Advisor (M), CSIR-SERC, introduced the Guest of Honour, Dr. S. Gomathinayagam, to the audience.

Dr. Gomathinayagam delivered the First lecture of the CSIR-SERC Diamond Jubilee Series. In his address, he reminisced about his association with CSIR-SERC. His address was on the “Emerging Trends in Energy Engineering Structures.” He reiterated the commitment of the Nation to generate 500GW of energy through renewable sources by 2030 and the roles and responsibilities of the structural engineers in achieving the target. The challenges in traditional energy engineering due to limited resources and the need for innovative materials and technologies to overcome these limitations to achieve net zero objectives by 2070 were enumerated in his detailed presentation. He portrayed that the future lay in energy-efficient strategies, passive design solutions, IOT-enabled operations, etc. He further showcased through a video the efforts of India in developing the world’s biggest Solar park and said that the future of solar and wind power generation is not just limited to traditional superstructures but also has to foray into offshore floating structures and systems. He said that the future of Energy lies in Green Hydrogen Innovation, Renewal Energy dependency, Novel Engineering Solutions, Smart Grid Integration, Storage technologies, transportation innovations, etc.

Dr. J. Rajasankar, Chief Scientist, CSIR-SERC, introduced the Chief Guest, Dr. Vijay Kumar Saraswat, to the audience.

Dr. Saraswat congratulated CSIR-SERC for entering into its Diamond Jubilee year and delivered the Prof. G.S. Ramaswamy Memorial Lecture on Structural Engineering Advances. He mentioned that the Growth in infrastructural engineering is an indicator of the country’s economic growth, and therefore, investments made in infrastructures not only act as a catalyst to the economic growth of the country but also ensure public safety against disasters. He briefed on the evolution of Structural Engineering from the Pyramid era to the current Building Information Modelling. He insisted on the real-time approach to keep pace with the demand through proactive means. The advances in Structural Engineering methods, including design, analysis, and monitoring, were enumerated. The need for adopting Integrated Interdisciplinary tools and technologies, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning tools, and IoT were emphasized. He further added that advanced technologies, including digital twin technologies coupled with advanced sensors and predictive analysis, unmanned aerial vehicles for monitoring offshore structures, 3D printing, viz. additive manufacturing, advanced material composites, etc., are the future. Aerogel, Bioplastics, Cross-laminated timber, graphene, microbial concrete, etc., are the new sustainable materials. He pointed out that visual programming and parametric Modelling, prefabrication / onsite fabrication, performance-based design, analysis, modelling, and simulation will not only improve the project efficiency through reduced construction time but will also ensure a reduction in the carbon footprint. He emphasized that structural engineers have diverse responsibilities in analysis, design, and quality control, including compliance with regulations and guidelines, and should design structures through coordinated project management. The challenges in Structural Engineering mainly comprise sustainability and environmental concerns, aging of infrastructures, resilience to natural disasters and man-made disasters like cyber security threats in Smart cities, advances in materials, resource constraints, regulatory compliance, interdisciplinary collaboration, and globalization. Therefore, the way forward would be constantly evolving, adapting new techniques/ technologies, focusing on sustainability, develop skills to cope with the challenges to build structures that would enhance the quality of life.

Dr. Saraswat, Honourable Chief Guest, released the Diamond Jubilee Logo, launched the online submission portal of the Journal of Structural Engineering, and released the Compendium of Projects handled by CSIR-SERC. The CSIR-SERC Diamond Jubilee Conference Flyer of the International Conference on Monitoring, Assessment, and Predictive Maintenance of Critical Infrastructures (i-MAP)was released by the Guest of Honour, Dr. S. Gomathinayagam.

An MoU was signed between CSIR-SERC and M/s. Pedvak Technologies Pvt. Ltd., Hyderabad. The broad scope of the MoU is for cooperation in Developing advanced protective structures/components for ballistic/bulletproof/baffle range products for advanced protection of personnel and property in India in a phased manner.

Shri Lokanath Patnayak, Administrative Officer, CSIR-SERC, proposed the vote of thanks.

    

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