ASCE Sixth Congress on Forensic Engineering

Abstract

The Sixth Congress on Forensic Engineering will take place in San Francisco from October 31 to November 3, 2012. The three-day technical program is designed with four concurrent technical tracks, committee meetings, panel discussions, and workshops. More than 200 technical papers will be presented. The opening keynote speaker will be Raymond “Paul” Giroux, P.E., M.ASCE, who will present “The Building of the Golden Gate Bridge.” Giroux is chair of this year’s 75th anniversary celebration of the opening of the city’s signature bridge. The Forensic Engineering Congresses have been organized by the ASCE Technical Council on Forensic Engineering (TCFE) every 3 years since 1997. They are recognized internationally as a premier event for the forensic civil engineering community. This year’s location is particularly inviting because San Francisco is a major destination for tourism. In conjunction with the Congress, several tours are planned to enhance the Congress theme, “Gateway to a Safer Tomorrow.” These include a project tour of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge, one of the largest construction projects currently under way in the United States; a tour of the historic and elegant base-isolated San Francisco City Hall building; an exclusive evening event at the California Academy of Sciences, including a tour of the innovative award-winning museum designed by Renzo Piano; and a postconference tour of California’s wine country. Several new editions of TCFE publications are expected to become available at the time of the Congress. The second edition of Failure Case Studies in Civil Engineering—Structural, Foundation and Geoenvironmental is a product of the TCFE Education Committee. The TCFE Forensic Practices Committee will publish the second edition of Guidelines for Forensic Engineering Practice. A third publication, Guidelines for Failure Investigation, 2nd Ed., will be presented by the TCFE Forensic Investigation Committee. Authors will be available to discuss the content of these new publications. Opportunities will also be provided to attend TCFE committee meetings and to become committee members. Congress attendees are expected to include forensic engineers, civil engineers, architects and architectural engineers, building owners and managers, attorneys, educators, and invited guests. Registrants will benefit from an exchange of practices and procedures, educational opportunities, dissemination of information, and opportunities for publishing and networking. Professional development credits will be available. For further information, visit the Congress website at www.asce .org/forensiccongress.