The International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering (IABSE) has recently completed a key milestone in its global congress series with the IABSE Symposium 2026 held in Copenhagen, which took place from 21 to 24 April 2026. The event brought together the international structural engineering community under the theme “Bridging Advanced Technologies – Structural Innovation”, focusing on how digitalisation, advanced modelling, new materials and data-driven approaches are transforming the design, construction and maintenance of infrastructure. The symposium also highlighted the growing importance of sustainability, resilience and cross-border technical collaboration in the sector.
Following Copenhagen, the next major event in the series is the IABSE Congress 2026 in Incheon, scheduled for 16 to 18 September 2026. This congress will focus on the theme “Structural Engineering: Towards Evolution and Hyper-Expansion”, addressing how rapid technological development is reshaping the profession. Key topics will include digital transformation, artificial intelligence, sustainability and emerging structural systems, as well as the challenges associated with increasing urbanisation and infrastructure demand.
Looking ahead, IABSE has already confirmed the next edition of its congress series: the IABSE Congress 2027 in Guwahati, which will take place from 22 to 24 April 2027. This edition will focus on “Structural Failures – Causes, Investigation, Resilience, Mitigation & Standardisation”, placing emphasis on structural safety, forensic engineering and risk reduction. The programme is expected to explore lessons learned from failures, strategies for improving resilience, and approaches to strengthening international standards in structural engineering practice.
Together, these three consecutive events reflect the continuity of IABSE’s role as a global platform for knowledge exchange, connecting innovation, safety and performance across the structural engineering community worldwide.