Course on Urban Maritime Works (Docks, Breakwaters)
Online course of 300 hours in urban maritime works (breakwaters and groynes). 6 modules covering maritime works in the city, marine actions, rubble-mound breakwaters, vertical breakwaters and groynes, and construction and maintenance, applying ROM 0.0-01, ROM 1.0-09 and ROM 0.2-90 with SMC and MIKE 21, with an assigned technical tutor.
Course on Urban Maritime Works (Docks, Breakwaters) — studying from New Zealand
Civil engineering is one of New Zealand's largest engineering employers, driven by the need for earthquake-resilient infrastructure, roading, water and wastewater systems across a seismically active country. Major projects include Auckland's City Rail Link and Wellington's transport upgrades, with rail maintained largely by KiwiRail. Engineers work for consultancies, contractors and councils, and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment administers the Building Act and related standards, while Waka Kotahi manages the national land transport network.
Fees for New Zealand: NZ$1,280 (New Zealand dollar), with instalments and employer sponsorship available.
Relevant bodies in New Zealand
Typical roles
Questions from New Zealand
What is the recognition pathway for civil and rail engineers in New Zealand?
Engineering New Zealand administers Chartered Professional Engineer registration, which is the main recognised professional standard for civil engineers. Rail is regulated through the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi and the Ministry of Transport. SEIUM's qualifications are private and not accredited by a national body, so employers or the relevant body decide how much weight to give them.
Who hires civil, rail and smart city engineers in New Zealand?
Employers include city and regional councils, central government agencies, consultancies, contractors, and rail and transport operators. Smart city roles increasingly combine infrastructure knowledge with data and digital systems. Hiring usually depends on registration, experience and project records, so a private qualification is a supporting credential rather than a guaranteed entry point.
Will I need a visa, and how do fees and employer funding work?
No student visa is needed to study from home, because all programmes are 100% online and taught in English. Each programme includes an assigned technical tutor and a final project. Fees are payable in instalments, and employer sponsorship is possible. Master's programmes take 1,900 hours, postgraduate diplomas 800 and specialist courses 300, so check the time commitment against your workload.
Take the controls.
Run a real engineering trade-off from this field. Move the sliders, watch the model react in real time and beat the challenge.
What you will be able to do
Identify the types of maritime works in urban environments.
Determine the design marine actions.
Carry out the preliminary sizing of rubble-mound breakwaters using recognised formulae.
Check the stability of vertical breakwaters and groynes.
Plan the construction and maintenance of maritime works.
Apply the Recommendations for Maritime Works (ROM).
Develop the preliminary design of an urban maritime work.
Who it's for
- Maritime works engineers.
- Maritime site managers.
- Port designers.
- Port authority technicians.
- Inspectors of breakwaters and shelter works.
- Coastal engineering consultants.
- Engineering or science graduates seeking to join port authorities.
What you'll work with
- ROM 0.0-01 (general procedure and design bases for maritime and port works)
- ROM 1.0-09 (design and construction of breakwaters and shelter works)
- ROM 0.2-90 (actions in the design of maritime and port works)
- EurOtop (2018) (manual on wave overtopping)
- The Rock Manual (CIRIA C683) (use of rock in hydraulic engineering)
- Law 22/1988 (Spanish Coastal Law)
- Royal Decree 1627/1997 (minimum health and safety requirements on construction sites)
- Law 21/2013 (environmental assessment)
- SMC (Coastal Modelling System)
- MIKE 21
- Breakwat
- AutoCAD Civil 3D
- SWAN
6 modules
1.1Types of urban maritime works1.2Waterfronts and promenades1.3Breakwaters in urban docks1.4Groynes and their role on urban beaches1.5Quays, pontoons and slipways1.6Recommendations for Maritime Works (ROM)1.7Design life and safety level1.8Interaction with public use1.9Landscape integration of the scheme1.10Case study: analysis of an urban waterfront
2.1Mean and extreme maritime climate2.2Wave propagation to the structure2.3Breaking, refraction and diffraction2.4Design water levels and tides2.5Sea-level rise2.6Forces on vertical breakwaters: Goda2.7Overtopping and admissible discharges2.8Toe scour2.9Actions on piles2.10Practical exercise: design wave height in a dock
3.1Parts of the breakwater: core, filters and armour layers3.2Armour units: rock and concrete blocks3.3Cubes, tetrapods and Accropodes3.4Stability with Hudson and Van der Meer3.5Filter sizing3.6Toe berm and protection3.7Crown walls and crest level3.8Failure modes3.9Physical model tests3.10Workshop: preliminary sizing of a rubble-mound breakwater
4.1Caisson breakwaters and their construction4.2Stability against sliding and overturning4.3Composite breakwaters and berms4.4Permeable and perforated breakwaters4.5Design of beach groynes4.6Length, spacing and orientation4.7T-shaped and L-shaped groynes4.8Alternative materials and geotextiles4.9Effects on coastal dynamics4.10Lab: stability check of a caisson
5.1Maritime construction procedures5.2Marine and land-based plant5.3Quarries and rock armour supply5.4Manufacture and placement of blocks5.5On-site quality control5.6Occupational safety in maritime works5.7Inspection and monitoring of breakwaters5.8Repair of storm damage5.9Environmental impact of the works5.10Case study: repair of a breakwater after a storm
6.1Definition of the problem and site6.2Maritime climate study6.3Structural type alternatives6.4Preliminary structural sizing of the works6.5Overtopping and functionality check6.6Construction procedure and plant6.7Budget and schedule6.8Impact study and monitoring plan6.9Report and presentation6.10Final project: final review with your tutor
How you'll learn
100% online training on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and an assigned technical tutor. No fixed timetables: you progress at your own pace within the intake, so it fits around your work.
Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is SMC (Coastal Modelling System), MIKE 21, Breakwat, AutoCAD Civil 3D and SWAN, in free, academic or evaluation versions. Tests are studied on real procedures for preliminary sizing of rubble-mound and vertical breakwaters, overtopping and stability calculations and construction planning of maritime works. Assessment is continuous per module, plus the final project.
Standards covered: ROM 0.0-01, ROM 1.0-09, ROM 0.2-90, EurOtop (2018), The Rock Manual (CIRIA C683), Law 22/1988, Royal Decree 1627/1997, Law 21/2013.
Build it end to end
Your final project follows the real engineering workflow, step by step, reviewed by your tutor.
Where this takes you
Requirements
- No prior qualification is required.
- An internet connection and a computer capable of running the programme software.
- English sufficient to read technical standards.
Ready to start?
Send your application today. Our admissions team replies within 72 hours with your study plan and funding options.
Frequently asked questions
The programme totals 300 hours over 3 months. You set your own pace within each intake, and your tutor helps you plan the workload around your job.
You work with SMC (Coastal Modelling System), MIKE 21, Breakwat, AutoCAD Civil 3D and SWAN, using free, academic or evaluation versions. Your tutor indicates the free alternative wherever one exists.
A SEIUM Institute certificate, awarded on passing the continuous assessment and the final project. It is SEIUM's own qualification, not an official state degree; its recognition depends on the programme completed and the regulations of each country.
Yes. Modules passed are recognised in a higher programme in the same area (postgraduate diploma or master's). Ask about the recognition policy when you enrol.
No prior qualification is required; you need an internet connection, a computer able to run the programme software and English sufficient to read technical standards.
Start dates are set by SEIUM's faculty for each intake. Our admissions team will confirm the next available date when you apply.
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