Professor David Dinehart, PhD, chair of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, was an invited presenter at the Structural Engineers Association of Pennsylvania (SEAoP) statewide conference in early June. This was the second annual conference for the organization, which was formed in 2009 to further the advancement of the practice of structural engineering in Pennsylvania and to provide a unified voice for structural engineers across the Commonwealth.
In “Applied Research in Structural Engineering,” Dr. Dinehart presented the challenges and benefits of conducting large scale experimental structural research. He reviewed case studies including load to failure tests of open web steel joists, composite floor systems, timber I-joists, fatigue tests of concrete bridge decks reinforced with steel and GFRP, and dynamic tests of wood frame shear walls and cellular beam moment connections. Experimental outcomes and lessons learned also were presented.
Other topics addressed by industry experts during the full day meeting included voided-slab construction, the role of the structural engineer in urban search and rescue, and implementing a 3D model submittal review process.