Understanding how infrastructure ages — and how to make it last.

Bridges to the Future is a research lab based in the National Infrastructure Laboratory at the University of Southampton's School of Engineering, led by Dr Mohammad Mehdi Kashani. The lab studies how bridges, railways and civil structures deteriorate over time — through corrosion, fatigue, seismic loading and changing climate — and develops the experimental data, computational models and monitoring tools needed to keep that infrastructure safe for longer.

Our work sits at the intersection of structural engineering, materials science and data science: full-scale and laboratory testing of corroded and ageing components, nonlinear computational modelling, distributed fibre-optic and acoustic sensing, and increasingly, machine learning for automated structural health monitoring.

Current work spans the REVIVE consortium (€1.03M, Horizon Europe MSCA), heavy-axle-weight railway bridge assessment, and climate-driven degradation of railway earthworks.