Background to Eurocode 2

The background to Eurocode 2 can be traced back to 1975 and the Treaty of Rome. The European Commission asked CEN (Centre European de Normalisation) to draft structural design standards that could be used across the Common Market.

The first published draft of Eurocode 2 was produced in 1985. Following a period of comment, the voluntary ENV version was produced in 1993. After another period of comment, the current version of EN 1992 was produced under UK Chairmanship and secretariat and published in 2004. The main background is considered to be fib Model Code 1990 but provisions were modified in committee.

The development of the second generation of Eurocodes is currently underway with the aim of incorporating developments in our understanding of structures and materials, including provisions for assessment of existing structures and improving ease of use. The draft document passed ‘Enquiry’ stage early in 2022 and is now being edited to address the comments received. The final document, once approved, should be made available to National Standards Bodies (NSB) in 2024. They will have until the end of 2027 to publish the revised code. It is hoped that it will be published, along with the UK National Annex, much sooner in the UK.

Given the scale of the change and the interaction with other codes of practice, BSI are considering whether to provide an overlap period where both the existing and the new code are available, although under CEN rules the existing code will need to be withdrawn in 2028 at the latest.

Further information on the Eurocodes:

• About the EN Eurocodes
• Standardisation for 2G Eurocodes

Table 1: The progression of Eurocode 2 in relation to UK standards and CEB/fip (now fib) Model Codes.

CEN/TC 250

The revisions to all the Eurocodes are being supervised by the head European structural design committee, CEN TC250. The current priority for TC250 is the response to Mandate M/515 (Dec 2012) for ‘amending existing Eurocodes and extending the scope of structural Eurocodes’. This involves:

• Adding rules for assessment, re-use and retrofitting of existing structures
• Strengthening of the requirements for robustness
• Improving the practical use for day-to-day calculations
• Adding a new Eurocode on structural glass
• Incorporating of ISO Standards into the Eurocodes family, such as atmospheric icing of structures and actions from waves and currents on coastal structures.

In 2014, TC250 undertook a systematic review of all Eurocodes and comments received were used and/or disseminated to subcommittees. A Chairman’s Advisory Panel conferred and determined that the primary audience for the revised standards was to be practicing engineers and the prime target was to be ease of use.

Redrafting of the Eurocodes is undertaken by project teams and their work is ongoing.

CEN/TC 250/SC2  

The committee dealing with Eurocode 2, CEN/TC 250/SC2 has been working on the revision of EN1992 since 2015. Its Working Group, SC2/WG1, has overall responsibility for the revision, for editing and for 10 Task Groups:

TG 1: Fibre reinforced strengthening
TG 2: Fibre reinforced concrete
TG 3: Assessment
TG 4: Shear, punching shear & torsion
TG 5: Fire
TG 6: Structural analysis
TG 7: Time dependent effects
TG 8: Fatigue
TG 9: Bridges
TG 10/JWG: Serviceability Design

BSI B525/2

The UK mirror committee to CEN/TC 250/SC2, B525/2, is overseeing the UK’s review of and comments on the draft code as it is developed. B525/2 has representatives on the Working Group and each of the TGs above.