International Committee

Purpose

The ASCE Los Angeles Section International Committee is a committee composed of dedicated ASCE members who prepare a multi-disciplinary forum with several symposia covering a wide range of engineering areas with emphasis on engineering design and construction. The goal of the organization is to enhance the lines of communication between researchers and technical professionals to exchange innovative research and technological advancements. The International Committee has hosted five conferences in the ASCE Los Angeles Section.

Conference Synopsis

The 5th International Engineering and Construction Conference (IECC’5) was held at the Hilton Irvine/Orange County Airport, Irvine, California during August 27-29, 2008. The conference was jointly organized by the ASCE Los Angeles Section International Committee, University of California, Irvine and the UCI-ASCE Student Chapter.

The theme of the conference was: “Challenges in the Development of Energy Efficient and Environmentally Compatible Civil Infrastructure Systems in the 21st Century.” The conference was attended by more than 120 professionals and guests from within USA and abroad. The countries represented at the conference include: Russia, Spain, Mexico, Canada, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, South Korea, United Arab Emirates, Belgium, Egypt, Sweden, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Latvia, Brazil, Libya and Iraq.

The conference program comprised over 125 technical papers, and the presentation sessions focused on various areas relating to the conference theme. The topics included general engineering; engineering analysis, testing, modeling and materials; building codes; geotechnical studies; water resources and development; concrete structures; composites in construction; structural health monitoring; construction management; energy and environment; seismic analysis and design; repair and retrofit of structures; artificial intelligence; bridge engineering and sustainable development. The highlight of the conference was the Panel Discussion on August 28, 2008, focusing on the conference theme. The session was chaired by Dr. Masanobu Shinozuka, Distinguished Professor and Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Irvine. The following Keynote Lectures presented by various seasoned professionals also attracted the attention of all the participants:

  • Safety of California Bridges, by Mr. Mike Keever, Director of Earthquake Engineering, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Sacramento.
  • Sustainability and Green Buildings in Egypt, by Prof. Amr Salama, Counselor for the American University in Cairo, Former Minister of Higher Education & Scientific Research, Egypt and former Chairman of Housing and Building National Research Center, Egypt.
  • Research and Implementation of Structural Health Monitoring, Part II: Diagnostic Methods and Experimental Validation, by Dr. Maria Feng, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Uni. of California, Irvine.
  • Bamboo, Soil, Vegetable Fibers Composites for Affordable and Sustainable Construction, by Dr. Khosrow Ghavami, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The Plenary Session and ASCE Luncheon was held at noon on August 27, 2008. Dr. C.T. Bathala presided over the meeting and invited the guests to the conference. Mr. Tim Hancuff elaborated the committee’s commitment on encouraging students to pursue civil engineering as a career. Mr. Mark Norton, President of the ASCE Los Angeles Section delivered the keynote address and he highlighted the latest activities of the Los Angeles Section as well as those of the ASCE National. Dr. Ayman Mosallam, Chairman of the conference and Professor at UCI thanked all the participants, sponsors and student volunteers for their contribution. The conference proceedings is available in two volumes (Total: 1280 Pages) including two CD-ROMs.

Award certificates and checks were presented to the following winners of the Student Paper Contest at the conference banquet dinner on 8/28/08:

  • First Prize:  Tadeh Zirakian—- Elastic Lateral-Distortional Buckling of Doubly Symmetric I-Beams: The 2005 AISC Specification.
  • Second Prize: Mohamed A. Salama—- Numerical Modeling of Concrete Masonry Walls Strengthened by Fiber Reinforced Polymers under Lateral Loads.
  • Third Prize: Ahmed El-Sadek—- Analytical Algorithm for Simulation of Pounding Process under Seismic Effect.

The International Committee appreciates the help offered by Mr. Ahmed Nasr, Mr. Mohamed Salama, Dr. Rashid Miraj, Ms. Alison Kagamaster, Ms. Erica Philips and all members of the UCI-ASCE Student Chapter. We thank the following sponsors and exhibitors for their generous support and participation: BEKAERT, APATECH, Nakheel, CNCA/PCA, Physical Acoustics, ICC, John Wayne Airport, Linford, COMPTEK, Alphastar Corp., Orange County Santitation District, Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County, Smith-McCoy & Associates, LLC and Earth Mechanics, Inc.