Dr William Brown
As a bridge designer, civil and consulting engineer and mentor, Bill Brown was unique. His eye for design and detail was uncanny; his flexibilty in designing for changing technologies examplary. In a career spanning more than five decades, Bill designed more than a dozen major suspension bridges, including the Severn Bridge, the Bosphorus Bridge, the second Bosphorus Bridge and the proposed Messina Strait crossing. His designs were modern, yet true to engineering heritage. Above all, they were always elegant.
Foundations of a remarkable career
Bill’s engineering story began at school, where he excelled in mathematics and physics. From a young age, he was engrossed by such diverse skills as woodwork, learnt in his grandfather’s workshop, and the aerodynamics of the Second World War fighter planes that flew over his childhood home in South Wales. As he grew into adulthood, Bill developed a keen interest in bridges, technology, steel, teamwork, surveying, racing cars, sketching and photography. His chosen career required huge intellect, courage and an ethos of hard work. All of these came naturally to Bill.
It was Bill’s range of skills that culminated in the creation of several innovative schemes for long-span suspension bridges in steel. He would work in pencil at a drawing board, where clarity of thought and complex calculations were at the centre of a multitude of tasks. Years of knowledge, experience and ideas came together in bridge designs and schemes. He had a liberal mind and saw everyone as equal.
Bridges
Bill Brown lead the design and engineering of some of the UK's and Europe's great bridges from the 1950s to the 1980s. He established his innovative reputation with the design of the streamlined deck of the Severn Bridge. On later projects in northern Europe he was the consulting engineer on bridge suspension cable erection using optimised aerial-spinning techniques.
Proposed Bridges
Governments across the world commissioned Bill Brown to create ultra-long span suspension bridge designs for some of the most challenging proposed crossings. It is perhaps the design for the Messina Straits, with its multi-box deck, that Bill is most recognised.
Cranes & Telescopes
At Freeman Fox & Partners, Dr William Brown applied his design and engineering expertise to the techniques of manufacturing and erecting of swing bridges, cranes and telescope mountings.
Papers
Bill Brown was always enthusiastic about furthering the development of long-span bridge design and construction. He shared ideas, proposals, developments and his project experience. He presented at conferences across the world and published many technical papers.
Published Work
Development of the Deck for the 3,300m Span Messina Crossing
Proceedings of the 15th Congress of IABSE. Copenhagen, Denmark, pp.1019-1030.
June 1996
Published Work
Design Aspects for Long Span Bridges
IV International Colloquium on the Gibraltar Strait Fixed Link
1995
Published Work
Strength Through Shape
Journal of Royal Society of Arts, No. 5321 Vol. CXXX1
April 1983, p.258
Published Work
Suspension Bridges with Box Girder Decks
Symposium, Crossing of the Gibraltar Straits
1987
Published Work
Long-Span Suspension Bridges - A British Approach
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 352(1), 1-26
1980
Published Work
A brief comment of Long Span Bridge Aerodynamics
1995
Published Work
Importance of higher strength steel wire in ultra long span designs
IABSE Symposium: Long-Span and High-Rise Structures, Kobe, Japan
September 1998
Co-Author
Bosporus Bridge Design and Construction
Proc. Institution of Civil Engineers. Volume 58
1975
Co-Author
Basis of Rules for Design of Plate Girders to BS 153
Proc. Institution of Civil Engineers.
1956
Co-Author
The Erskine Bridge
The Structural Engineer Volume 50
April 1972
Co-Author
New Bridges for Better Communications
1989
Book
Bill Brown's Bridges
The official biography of Dr William Brown was launched in December 2015 at the Institution of Civil Engineers, London, in front of friends, family and key figures from the international engineering industry.
The 148-page hardback biography was researched, written, designed and published by 301 Design. It features more than 100 stunning photographs and illustrations of bridges including the Severn Bridge, two bridges over the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul and the proposed 3,300m crossing of the Messina Strait in Italy.