Postgraduate Diploma in Maritime Structures and Maintenance
Online postgraduate diploma of 800 hours in maritime structures and maintenance, structured in 8 modules covering maritime actions and wave climate, breakwaters, berthing and mooring structures, marine durability, inspection, diagnosis, and repair and maintenance, with an assigned technical tutor.
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
Determine the actions of the maritime climate on structures.
Analyse the behaviour of rubble-mound and vertical breakwaters.
Assess berthing and mooring structures and their limit states.
Select materials using durability criteria for the marine environment.
Plan inspections of emerged and submerged maritime structures.
Diagnose damage and assess the residual capacity of structures.
Draw up a port maintenance plan based on asset management.
Who it's for
- Maritime structural engineers.
- Port works inspectors.
- Port infrastructure maintenance managers.
- Concrete durability specialists.
- Breakwater designers.
- Port authority maintenance technicians.
- Engineering or science graduates looking to join a port authority.
What you'll work with
- ROM 0.2-90 (actions in the design of maritime works)
- ROM 1.0-09 (breakwaters)
- ROM 2.0-11 (berthing and mooring structures)
- EN 1504 (protection and repair of concrete)
- Real Decreto 470/2021 (Spanish Structural Code)
- EN 206 (concrete: specification)
- ISO 55001 (asset management)
- SAP2000
- PLAXIS
- AutoCAD
- BREAKWAT
- Advanced Excel
8 modules · 800 h
1.1Waves: generation, propagation and breaking1.2Mean and extreme wave regimes1.3Tides, water levels and storm surge1.4Currents and wind1.5ROM 0.0 and ROM 1.0 of Puertos del Estado1.6Design life and probability of failure1.7Propagation with SWAN and MSP models1.8Climate change and sea-level rise1.9Databases: Puertos del Estado and Copernicus1.10Workshop: extreme wave regime from a buoy
2.1Rubble-mound breakwaters: rock and concrete-block armour layers2.2Hudson and Van der Meer formulae2.3Special armour units: Core-Loc, Xbloc and cubes2.4Vertical breakwaters and caissons2.5Goda formula and wave pressures2.6Overtopping and EurOtop formulae2.7Crown walls and their stability2.8Breakwater failure modes2.9Physical model testing2.10Practical exercise: preliminary design of a main armour layer
3.1Gravity quay walls: caissons and blocks3.2Piled quays and platforms3.3Sheet piles and anchored retaining walls3.4Operational and vessel loads3.5Fenders and bollards according to PIANC3.6Dolphins and jetties3.7Berthing of large container ships3.8ROM 2.0 on berthing structures3.9Soil-structure interaction3.10Case study: check of a caisson quay wall
4.1Marine environment: exposure zones4.2Chloride and sulphate attack4.3Corrosion of reinforcement in concrete4.4Spanish Structural Code and durability4.5Coatings and admixtures4.6Corrosion of steel in sheet piles and piles4.7Cathodic protection with sacrificial anodes4.8Biofouling and biological degradation4.9Wear from abrasion and wave action4.10Laboratory: interpretation of chloride profiles
5.1Routine and principal inspection plans5.2Underwater inspection by divers5.3ROV and multibeam bathymetry5.4Topographic surveys and LiDAR5.5Non-destructive testing of concrete5.6Thickness measurement in steel5.7Corrosion potential to ASTM C8765.8Condition and damage indices5.9Continuous structural monitoring5.10Practical exercise: inspection plan for a breakwater
6.1Condition assessment of rubble-mound breakwaters6.2Loss of armour units and damage profiles6.3Toe scour at structures6.4Settlement and movement of caissons6.5Residual bearing capacity6.6Failure risk assessment6.7Analysis of storm events6.8Remaining service life6.9Prioritisation of interventions6.10Case study: diagnosis after a storm
7.1Breakwater maintenance strategies7.2Armour layer replacement and crest raising7.3Concrete repair according to EN 15047.4Jacketing and protection of piles7.5Sheet pile repair7.6Maintenance dredging7.7Marine plant and weather windows7.8Safety in maritime works7.9Port asset management7.10Workshop: repair project for a quay
8.1Description of the infrastructure8.2Wave climate analysis8.3Inventory and condition of the structures8.4Inspection plan8.5Diagnosis and prioritisation8.6Repair design8.7Maintenance plan and budget8.8Climate adaptation plan8.9Report and presentation8.10Final project: final review with the tutor
How you'll learn
The programme is delivered 100% online on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and an assigned technical tutor. There are no fixed timetables: you progress at your own pace within each intake, so it fits around your job.
Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is SAP2000, PLAXIS, AutoCAD, BREAKWAT and Advanced Excel, in free, academic or evaluation versions. Practical work is based on real procedures: underwater inspections of structures, chloride penetration tests on concrete and multibeam surveys of breakwater armour layers. Assessment is continuous by module, plus the final project.
Standards covered: ROM 0.2-90; ROM 1.0-09; ROM 2.0-11; EN 1504; Real Decreto 470/2021; EN 206; ISO 55001.
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
- Prior technical training or professional experience in the sector. No university degree is required.
- An internet connection and a computer able to run 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 800 hours over 6–8 months. You set your own pace within each intake, and your tutor helps you plan the workload around your job.
You work with SAP2000, PLAXIS, AutoCAD, BREAKWAT and Advanced Excel, using free, academic or evaluation versions. Your tutor indicates the free alternative wherever one exists.
A SEIUM Institute diploma, 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.
Prior technical training or professional experience in the sector (no university degree required), a computer able to run the 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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