Scientific schools of the department of structural mechanics and strength of materials

Abstract

The history of the Department of Structural Mechanics and Strength of Materials is entirely related with the development of Prydniprovska State Academy of Civil Engineering and Architecture, which has grown over 90 years into one of the leading technical universities in Ukraine. During this time, the Department has passed a long and difficult path of its formation and development, which can be divided into several stages. In the first period, after the establishment of Dnipropetrovsk Civil Engineering Institute in 1930, due to a small number of students there were no separate departments. However, already in 1932 the Department of Structural Mechanics was organized to provide the more effective teaching of students to the most important engineering disciplines. During the Second World War, from 1941 till 1944, the Institute was evacuated to Novosybirsk, where the staff of the Department carried out teaching on strength of materials and structural mechanics. The Department underwent great difficulties after returning from evacuation in 1944. In 1960, a new stage in the history of the Department started: a course of strength of materials was separated and transferred to the newly organized Department of Strength of Materials. In the period from 1960 to 2000, the Department of Structural Mechanics performed many studies of real engineering structures. The second branch of the history in the period from 1960 to 2000 is associated with the Department of Strength of Materials, which from the beginning was headed by professor A.P. Prusakov. The third stage of the history started after the merger of the both Departments in 2000. The united department was named the Department of Structural Mechanics and Strength of Materials. Nowadays, the staff of the Department makes a lot of efforts to arm the graduates of the Academy with deep knowledge of modern methods for calculating Civil Engineering structures, which is the basis for their effective design.