Engineering grounded in understanding.
I am Tara Fraser, a Chartered Structural Engineer with more than 35 years of experience in structural engineering, building pathology, forensic investigation and professional witness work.
Designing with consequence. Advocating with clarity. Building with care.
Throughout my career I have worked with homeowners, architects, developers, contractors, insurers, solicitors and self-builders. Those experiences have shaped a practice built on understanding buildings, risk and people.
Why I founded Aniso Structures
The name Aniso derives from anisotropic. Real materials are rarely simple. Timber has a grain. Masonry has a history. Concrete changes throughout its life. Steel derives its behaviour from manufacture, detailing and connection.
What thirty-five years has taught me
Problems often arise because assumptions went unchallenged: ground conditions were not investigated, a layout became fixed too early, materials were selected by habit, construction sequencing was overlooked, or the disciplines stopped talking.
The best engineering solution may be the problem that never needed to exist.
Learning from failure
Professional witness and forensic work has sharpened how I design. Reviewing defects, disputes and failed projects reveals where information was missing, where assumptions became risks and where convenience replaced evidence.
Independent professional judgement
Clients are not paying for agreement. They are paying for experience, judgement and honesty. If an idea is unsafe, unnecessarily risky or likely to create avoidable cost, I will explain why. If risk can be understood and managed appropriately, I will explain that too.
Engineering you can understand
I take time to explain what is happening, why it matters, what risks exist and what realistic options are available. Clients should understand the reasoning as well as the recommendation.
Working with future architects
Each year I contribute as a Visiting Tutor in the Architecture Department at UWE Bristol. I encourage students to see engineering not as a constraint on creativity, but as part of the creative process. Architecture and engineering are strongest when they develop together.
Understanding buildings means understanding people
Alongside engineering, I am also a qualified therapist. Both disciplines begin in the same place: listening.
A crack in a wall is rarely just a crack in a wall. Behind every building there may be a person, family, ambition, investment, source of stress or fear that something has gone wrong.
Buildings are made from materials.
Projects are delivered by people.
Good engineering requires understanding both.
Professional background
Tara Fraser BEng (Hons), PgDip, CEng, MICE, MIStructE
- Chartered Engineer
- Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers
- Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers
- More than 35 years of structural engineering experience
- Structural design and temporary works
- Building pathology and forensic investigation
- Professional witness and expert witness services
- Existing buildings, retrofit and sustainable design
- Self-build mentorship and technical support
- Visiting Tutor, UWE Bristol Architecture Department