We come to remember James and record his achievements

This picture, of a man in his element, has been provided by Malcolm Tucker.

In James' own words

James contributed a piece to a book on "Eminent Civil Engineers" edited by David Doran (ref to follow). He talked of his work on the Laingspan system buildings and the lessons he learnt.

Laingsapn was not my only new commitment, but as its development led to new beliefs and a new way of thinking about materials and structures behave. The idea of a single right way of approaching any design could no longer be contemplated, analytical methods laid down in textbooks and codes being only convenient models by which routine structures can be made to work. Clearly the ‘answers’ given by such analyses bear little relation to the way in which structures actually behave. Once built, a bridge or building will decide for itself how it will behave, often far better than conventional models indicate. Further, the structure may well change its ‘mind’ about its action as a time passes and conditions change. Thus, in any design or analysis I believe that we should recognize the limitations of our methods and look for means of extending these limits. Full reality may not be achievable but the search for it can be rewarding. These beliefs have remained with me throughout my career. They may have developed and been clarified but initially they stem more from experience on the Laingspan system than anything else. I recommend such thoughts for consideration by others, particularly those either appraising existing structures or trying to help in the resolution of disputes.

At one stage I wondered whether my first ten years of heavy civil engineering had been wasted, but later I decided that they had not. They provided a sound background from which to develop and also something to rebel against. Later, when tackling civil engineering on my own, for roads and bridges and major mixed projects such as the new universities of Essex and Bath, with their lakes, level changes and extensive earthworks as well as buildings, this early experience was reassuring. However, the lessons of Laingspan still applied, although the scale was vastly greater.

How to contribute

The normal arrangement of a blog would be for me to post lots of messages and for anyone who wishes, to respond. In this case, I propose to say very little. If you have a story of James, his work and how he touched your life, please place it here by clicking comment and saying what you wish. I have sent the link to Julia who can therefore see the response develop.

We hope to put together a paper for The Structural Engineer about James' life and work, so longer comments that might contribute are welcome.

If you have images you want to load, you may need to email them to me [email protected].

Bill

Comments

[Andrew Smith]

James seemed rarely to actually reach the end of a sentence as the next thought had already improved on the one before: it was well worth trying to follow them as they flew past.

[Bob Lamb]

All who attended those first meetings of what became the History Study Group were fired and encouraged by James enthusiasm.
It was James view that a possible reason for Telford's name not being associated with the Iron Bridge at Aldford nr Chester was that he did it as a 'foreigner'. And his description of the blue and white colour scheme made it look like a wedding cake.

[Alek Vilcinskas]

James Sutherland was my first boss when I joined Harris & Sutherland in Victoria Street SW1, having just graduated in 1960. I shall always remember him as a really kind man and a wonderful mentor. H&S was a fun place in which to work, and their basement canteen produced a fearsome curry amongst other 'delicacies'.
Load-bearing brickwork was James's 'passion' at the time, but of course his expertise encompassed a vast range of structural engineering.
Alek Vilcinskas, MIStructE retired.

[Arthur Taylor]

I only knew James for the last five years of his life but he made an everlasting impression on me. He was an interesting man who gained my respect very quickly after our first meeting.

[Rob Thomas]

I can’t in all honesty say I knew James well and I only knew him in his retirement but what I do know is that everyone that came into contact with him respected him and loved him in equal measures, engineers and non-engineers alike. He was a link to a now almost bygone generation and I was always fascinated by his anecdotes of how things used to be. James was obviously a brilliant engineer and hugely admired Alan Harris. He was fun to be around and, I’m sure, believed that history is about people and how they thought. With his entries for the Biographical dictionary of civil engineers James always wanted to dig deeper and find out about the person. It’s sad to think we won’t see him again but his was a life well lived and that makes me happy.

[Tom Swailes]

Twenty years ago James arranged for some large cast iron sections from Chatham to be delivered to Manchester for testing in UMIST's heavy structures laboratory. He made several visits to Manchester in connection with that research project and others, but the meeting I remember best was at Dean Clough Mills in Halifax where my friend Stuart Millns was carrying out some floor load tests in an iron-framed building. I had organised a coach load of first year civil engineering students from UMIST to visit and to hear from Stuart what was being done - and James came along too. James was very interested in the test results but I saw he was equally if not more interested in talking with the students about their impressions of the work and finding out about their motivations for becoming engineers. That day I think he convinced a few doubters about the rewards of a structural engineering career. Doing my own research I came across a problem to do with structural iron that James had found insoluble decades earlier. James was full of encouragement, generous with his sharing of information and sympathetic rather than frustrated when unsurprisingly I found the problem insoluble too. James seemed to me a man drawn to mysteries and enthusiastic in his pursuit of them in a way that encouraged others who were fortunate enough to be along with him for the ride.

[Gavin Watson]

James burst over my horizon in 1980, when I moved (reluctantly) to take over the Building Regulations Divisions of the then Department of the Environment, with the remit to undertake a root-and-branch revision in the interests of simplicity and flexibility. In those distant days, when Governments still believed it necessary to think through the consequences of their actions, and to seek ideas outside the Westminster bubble from people who really knew what they were talking about, a standing Building Regulations Advisory Committee operated as an independent jury. One of its outstanding members was James Sutherland, and I was warned from the start that he "could be awkward". His awkwardness consisted in a restless questioning of the status quo, and a refusal to accept that the way we had always done things was the best guide to what we should do in the future. He not only challenged the way we did things; he challenged the need to do them at all.

This awkwardness was just what was required. James's relentless curiosity, lively imagination, genuine creativity, and his ability to back up his ideas from a depth of practical experience were essential in pushing through a series of changes which produced a radically shorter set of regulations which squared the difficult circle of giving freedom to truly creative designers, while at the same time giving clear guidance to less expert and less imaginative colleagues.

The structure of these new regulations provided a template for a whole new generation of regulatory sytems for technologically complex processes in both national and international contexts. Together, they are monuments to James's unusal intelligence, to his wise judgement, and to his skills and courage in cutting through difficulties to reach an elegant conclusion.

I am very glad indeed that I knew him.

Gavin Watson

[Daniel H W Hayton]

I met James many years ago through the Newcomen Society and continued our acquaintance at lectures, visits and trips.

He supported my application for Fellowship of the Royal Society of Arts thirty years ago.

Meeting on site or over a drink he was always, charming and informative.

I enjoyed many years of meeting and conversations which gave me insights into the history of engineering.

[Bryn Bird]

I started working for James' section of Harris and Sutherland in about 1970 in Old Pye Street. This meant that James had to visit this outpost from the main Victoria Street office but the fact that he did so and that he took an interest in me as a fresh young engineer boosted my interest and enthusiasm enormously. Later in Whitfield Street the contact was easier and more frequent. He opened my eyes to the way structures really worked and how this was usually not how the codes could lead you to believe. He always seemed to have the time to debate an engineering point and I was always enthused by the discussion. This lead me to a quick intuitive understanding of structures which was not based on but merely assisted and honed by calculation. A gift from James that I have appreciated all my engineering career.
Bryn Bird

[Melvin Hurst]

James Sutherland was also my first boss, or one of them, as I started at Harris and Sutherland ten years later than Alek Vilcinskas, in 1970, just before Bryn Bird, I believe. I have vivid memories of James, as well as of both Alan and John Harris (quite a triumvirate) doing their rounds of the design office in Whitfield Street, chatting to the engineers about their work. James had a particular habit of putting one foot up on a desk, exposing both sock and bare leg, and talking away animatedly about the latest project. As a recent graduate I could only listen on the sidelines, but it was fascinating to hear the views of such an experienced engineer.
Many years later when I was a lecturer in Singapore, James visited my university as part of the Joint Board of Moderators' accreditation team. I got chatting to him and reminded him of my time at H&S. He remembered me, and we enjoyed swapping reminiscences of the Victoria Street and Old Pye Street days.
As I have read his name many times over the years I have always been very gratifiedthat he was one of the first engineers under whom I worked, and I'm very sorry for his passing.

[Hossam]

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