Engineer under starters orders for National

The Randox Health Grand National 2018 is set to be the biggest yet - and a Lancashire-based structural engineer is working to get Liverpool’s Aintree racecourse ready for the world’s greatest steeplechase.

Thousands of people will attend the three-day event from Thursday April 12 to Saturday, April 14, and millions worldwide will witness the racing drama on television.

The Grand National festival has grown dramatically over recent years and is now much more than a sporting event, with a host of entertainment for visitors who flock to Aintree from across the globe. And as a result the impressive hospitality village there continues to grow.

Leading structural engineer TRP Consulting, which has offices in Preston, is on site co-ordinating the construction of the temporary accommodation now taking shape at the iconic racecoursefor the Grand National Meeting

TRP Consulting co-ordinates and supervises the erection of all the temporary structures that make up the large-scale hospitality village that supports the three day meeting and which delivers the world-class entertainment for racegoers.

The TRP team is also responsible for the inspection of all permanent structures and crowd barriers at the racecourse, which will play host to tens of thousands of race fans during the meeting.

The impressive ‘festival zone’ will begin to take shape over the next few weeks. And TRP, which specialises in providing civil, structural and environmental engineering consultancy services, plays a key role.

Its structural engineers have a strong track record of delivery on large complex building works and have widespread expertise in the leisure and hospitality sector. And this is the 17th year that the practice has worked on the event.

TRP Consulting director Geoff Wilks said: “It is amazing how the Grand National festival and the village have grown over that time. The meeting continues to grow and develop every year.

“The horses and the great race are at the heart of the event but it is now so much more, with a fantastic amount of entertainment and hospitality, which make Aintree such a special place to be over the three days.

“We’re on site and the construction work is now underway. Over the next few weeks you will see an amazing transformation of the racecourse.

“A lot of hard work goes into the planning and the construction process; it is a complex but well planned, precision operation. It’s always extremely fulfilling to see things take shape as the big day approaches.”

Structural engineer TRP has helped successfully deliver leisure and sporting developments across the UK and was part of the project team that delivered the impressive new main stand at Doncaster that has won widespread acclaim since opening in 2007 a part of a £32m revamp of the racecourse.

It has also been appointed to work on the creation of a new hotel at Doncaster – home of the world’s oldest ‘classic’ horse race.

Construction work on the 154-room Hilton Garden Inn will start early this year and the hotel is scheduled to open next summer.

TRP Consulting’s highly-experienced engineers are also working on the redevelopment of Newbury racecourse.

The company provides a full range of civil, structural and environmental engineering consultancy services - providing a broad knowledge base and promoting a proactive approach to project delivery.