From Design to Delivery: Why Chartership Matters More Than Ever
The quality of a project is shaped early, and by who is trusted to make the decisions that matter.
Four engineers at Design 4 Structures have recently achieved ICE Chartership, strengthening the level of experience and accountability across our team.
It’s a significant milestone for each of them, but also a reflection of how we support people to develop within the business, through real project exposure, responsibility and the right level of challenge over time. For a team of 60, having four engineers achieve chartership at the same time is something we are so proud of.
What this means for those we work with
Chartership is often described as a benchmark of competence, but in practice, it’s about the ability to take responsibility for decisions that directly affect safety, cost, and delivery.
For the teams we work with, that means confidence in the people shaping your projects. Engineers who are not just producing design outputs, but can assess risk, challenge assumptions, and make informed decisions with a clear understanding of how things will be built. Too often, engineering is treated as a separate design exercise, disconnected from delivery. That’s where issues tend to surface later on site. Our approach is to stay closer to the reality of construction from the outset, working across coordination and constructability alongside the design itself. Chartership supports that way of working, giving confidence in both the thinking and the accountability behind it.
Where this fits with our direction
Strong engineering has always been about more than calculations – it’s about judgement, responsibility and understanding how decisions play out in practice.
What’s changing is when and how that thinking is applied. We’re focused on bringing that level of clarity earlier, understanding interfaces properly, working through constraints and making decisions with a full view of how projects will be delivered. Developing chartered engineers is a key part of that, building a team that is comfortable taking responsibility and engaging with the wider picture from the outset. Ultimately, it supports better outcomes, less rework, fewer unknowns and a smoother route through delivery.
Our newly Chartered Engineers
One of the strengths of the team is the range of experience and perspectives they bring. There’s no single route to chartership, and that’s reflected in the pathways each of our newly chartered engineers have followed.
Top row, from l to r: James Atkinson and Callum MacHugh Bottom row, from l to r: Katerina Psora and Alex Kearney-Bambridge
James Atkinson, Associate – Midlands (Top left) James works across residential developments, including a number of Passivhaus schemes, and brings a breadth of experience that goes beyond a single sector.
His approach is practical, clear and always focused on how things will actually come together. Alongside strong technical capability, James has a real strength in project management, keeping things moving and working closely with teams to resolve issues as they arise.
Alex Kearney, Associate – Midlands (Bottom right)
Alex leads our offsite and LSF delivery, bringing a specialist skillset in a rapidly evolving area of the industry. He has played a key role in exploring new approaches, including the use of aluminium systems and parametric design to develop more efficient, buildable solutions.
Callum MacHugh, Senior Engineer – London (Top right)
A technically focused engineer who has led structural design and project delivery across all RIBA stages, within a range of sectors. Having joined D4S in the last 12 months, he’s quickly made an impact, bringing a clear level of commitment and focus to his work. He brings consistency and clarity from concept through to completion, helping ensure high-quality outcomes at every stage of the process.
Katerina Psora, Senior Engineer – London (Bottom left) Katerina has six years’ experience delivering structural solutions across residential and commercial projects, with a strong focus on refurbishment and retrofit engineering. She has acted as lead engineer on a number of complex schemes involving existing and heritage structures, bringing a careful and considered approach to working within constraints.
Together, they represent the breadth of capability within the team, from high-performance housing and offsite delivery through to complex retrofit and full lifecycle project leadership.
A well-earned achievement for all four – congratulations to each of them! They will be formally recognised at the ICE Chartership ceremony in December, and we can’t wait to see how they continue to develop their careers and contributions across the business and our projects.
