In this Issue1 The Canada Line2 Message from the Head

Graduate Student Awards3 Professor Doug Anderson

Professor Borg Madsen

Construction on Canada Line, a new 18.5 kilometerrapid transit system that connects DowntownVancouver with Vancouver International Airport(YVR) and Richmond City Centre, started in late2005. Full transit service will commence on or before November 2009, in time for the 2010 WinterOlympics. Following is an overview and update on the project.

The $2 billion project is a public-private partnership between various levels of government and InTransitBC, the private sector concessionaire.SNC Lavalin Inc. (SLI) is responsible for all design,procurement and construction.

The alignment (see map on page 8) travels fromsouth to north from near Richmond Centre(Brighouse), along Number 3 Road to BridgeportStation. From here the alignment splits in two. One segment travels westbound over the Middle Arm of the Fraser River and parallels Grant McConachie Way to a terminus at YVR Airport Station. The second segment crosses over the North Arm of the Fraser

River to the City of Vancouver. The alignment is elevated over Marine Drive and enters a tunnel portal at 63rdAvenue. The alignment then continues in a tunnel underthe northbound lanes of Cambie Street until it reachesOlympic Village Station. The alignment downtown travelsin twin tunnels under False Creek, Davie Street andGranville Street to a terminus at Waterfront Station.

There are three major types of structures which form the guideway:• a 2.5 km long bored tunnel,• a 6.5 km cut and cover tunnel, and • a 7.5 km elevated guideway which includes two bridges.

Near the airport the guideway also includes a twokilometer at-grade section. There are 16 stations on theline, eight underground, six elevated and two at-grade.

The elevated guideway was constructed using theprecast segmental methodology. The three meter precastsegments were lifted into place using a special truss andpost tensioned together into a beam (see image, page 8).The majority of the elevated alignment is dual guidewaywith track for both directions of travel. Single guideway

Faculty of Applied ScienceEngineering News

spr ing 2009

Continued on page 8

4 Simulating Disasters6 Message from the Dean

Giving back to Civil

7 Passionate about Structural Engineering

9 Student Co-op Tongji Symposium

10 Meet the Faces of Civil Engineering

12 Faculty Awards

The Canada Line

Civil Engineering News @ The University of British Columbia

Canada Line car travels across the North Arm Bridge connecting Richmond/YVR with Vancouver

Welcome to this issue of the civil@ubc newsletter. Havingbeen appointed as the Head of the Civil EngineeringDepartment since July 1, 2008, I hope to make a positiveimpact on the Department which has already benefitted from strong leadership and an impressive resume of achieve-ments. We have a world-class facility here that I am proud to have the opportunity to lead. As the Head of theDepartment, I hope to help guide the faculty and students on an educational journey that, I believe, will teach us all how we can improve the world with our combined efforts.

Transition has certainly been a theme over the last severalmonths; we welcome the new Dean of Applied Science, Dr.Tyseer Aboulnasr; our department has undergone an invigorat-ing facelift, from which we will benefit from updated spacesfor our faculty and a learning environment that will give students an opportunity to excel in their studies; we have successfully completed a review from the CanadianEngineering Accreditation Board (CEAB) ensuring that we can provide a top-notch education with worldwide recognitionto our graduates; we have completed a new strategic planwith one of its major goals being the improvement of the cur-riculum that we offer so we can build on the momentum ofour previous achievements and deliver the very best graduateswho make a positive and enduring difference in the quality ofpeople’s lives.

I hope you will find this issue of civil@ubc interesting and informative. Our focus in this issue is on the researchwithin the Structural and Earthquake Engineering group. Dr.Carlos Ventura gives an overview of his research which simulates human interaction tools to coordinate joint actionsby various organizations before and during large scale emergency events. Mr. John Pao, Chair of the StructuralEngineers Association of B.C. (SEABC) discusses his passionfor structural engineering. We welcome some of the peoplewho have joined Civil Engineering, and bid farewell to thosewho’ve left us. I hope you gain some insight into the hardwork and dedication of the men and women who contributeto the Department, the University and ultimately to the world.

I welcome your comments and suggestions about this newsletter; please feel free to send me a message atreza.vaziri@ubc.ca

Reza Vaziri, Ph.D., P.Eng.Head, Department of Civil Engineering 2

Message from the Head

Congratulationsto these Graduate Students for being selected for these awards!

Ali Abedini •BCWWA Award

Syed Abdullah•Pacific Century GraduateScholarship UBC GraduateFellowship

Kerry Black •Dr. C. GuarnaschelliScholarship

•UBC EnvironmentalEngineering ResearchScholarship

•AMEC Masters Scholarshipfor Canadian Engineering Memorial Foundation

Alexander Forrest •Canadian Water ResourcesAssociation Scholarship

•Canadian Space Agency(CSA) Student Travel Grant

Blair Fulton•Canadian Association onWater Quality Scholarship

•Dr. C. GuarnaschelliResearch Scholarship

•UMA Scholarship in CivilEngineering

•Ian S. Ross Memorial Awardin Engineering

•J. Fred Muir MemorialScholarship

Parvez Fattah•Donald R. Stanley award forBest Paper

Sepideh Jankhah •NSERC (PGSD3) Scholarship•Killam Predoctoral Award

Bill Johnstone•Public Safety CanadaFellowship in Honour of Stuart Nesbitt White

•Earl R. Peterson MemorialScholarship in CivilEngineering

Isabel Londono •IAWQ Water QualityScholarship

Chad Novotny•CAWQ Water QualityScholarship

Saifur Rahaman •BCWWA Award

Ryan Thoren •UBC EnvironmentalEngineering ResearchScholarship

leading@civil

In our NEXT issue:• The forward thinking team behind redeveloping the UBC Civil

Engineering undergraduate Curriculum work to create learningopportunities for students.

• Highlights from the third in a series of lectures commemorating the late Professor Noel Nathan, and his contributions to the Department of Civil Engineering.

• Professor Ventura is ecstatic about the donation of a newShaker Table, courtesy of Nokia Products of Burnaby, which will enhance the Earthquake Engineering Program.… and much more!

OUR MISSIONThe Department of Civil Engineering at the University of British Columbia provides an outstanding learning and researchenvironment inspiring technical innovation, and leadership, insocial and environmental responsibility, to address current andfuture challenges.

3

Professor Emeritus,John Douglas (Doug)Anderson, 1922-2006

Doug Anderson, long timeCivil Engineering facultymember, passed awayDecember 8, 2006 at theage of 84. He experiencedprogressive dementia overthe last decade.

From 1948-1956, Dougworked for the engineeringdepartment of the CanadianPacific Railway (CPR), andduring his career ascendedto the fourth ranked engi-neering position for the CPR system, the AssistantEngineer of Track.

In 1958, Doug broughthis wealth of experience andknowledge to UBC as an

Professor Emeritus,Borg Madsen, 1926-2008

Professor Borg Madsen, amember of the CivilEngineering departmentfrom 1970 until his retire-ment in 1991, passed awayin January, 2008. We were saddened by this loss. Borg focused on timberengineering and he was fond of saying that he was studying “timber” and not “wood”. This distinctionled him to a series of inter-nationally recognizedachievements on the proper-ties of timber as it is used in

engineering applications (he coined the words “in-grade testing”). He was awell known national andinternational figure, with anenthusiastic approachtowards innovations in theforest industries.

His passion for timberengineering included presenting his ideas aroundthe globe, at educational or research institutions inMexico, Chile, Russia, SouthAfrica and, of course,Denmark, his native land.

A modest man, Borgwas particularly proud of twoaccomplishments: of hisparticipation in the Danish

Assistant Professor in Civil Engineering and waspromoted to AssociateProfessor in 1966. He con-tinued to serve the depart-ment and Faculty of AppliedScience (APSC) from 1964until his retirement in 1987in various roles, includingAssistant to the Head ofCivil Engineering, Assistantto the Dean of APSC andAssistant Dean of APSC.

Doug was an unassum-ing person not given to wildoutbursts of enthusiasm,but one who has a goodsense of humour and was afaithful friend. He lovedgood bicycles and expensivecars — Jaguars, Cadillacs (inthe days when Cadillacs still had some panache) andMercedes. He also loved art, and had collected

enough paintings by theGroup of Seven that hecould leave one to each ofhis nieces and nephews.

Born in Prince Rupert,Doug grew up in Vancouverand studied at UBC, gradu-ating in 1945 with a B.A.Sc.in Civil Engineering. Upongraduation, he was awardeda Graduate ResearchFellowship at the Universityof Washington where heobtained an M.Sc. degree in 1947. Prior to beginninghis career at CPR, Doug was an Instructor in Civil Engineering at UBCfrom 1946 to 1948.

Doug lived in the familyhome in the Dunbar areaand cared for his aged parents for many years.

resistance towards the endof WWII, and of his almamater, Technical Universityof Denmark, conferringupon him an HonoraryDoctorate degree in 1990.

He was extraordinarilyactive in national and international Codes for tim-ber engineering and was a Fellow of the CanadianSociety of Civil Engineering.At UBC he never missed amorning or afternoon coffeebreak, or lunch at the oldFaculty Club, with the rest ofthe faculty. In fact, he promoted these gatheringsto maintain the traditional“civility” of our department.

Borg Madsen will bemissed, and his unique andoutstanding contributions tothe advancement of timberengineering, to the Canadianforest industries, and toengineering education atUBC will not be forgotten.

Remembers UBC Civil Engineering

flashback@civil

This article describes a research project con-ducted at UBC to develop a new integratedhazard analysis methodology to study inter-dependencies among critical infrastructures.

The “Decision Coordination for CriticalLinkages in a National Network ofInfrastructures” project is an initiative by thegovernment of Canada, being conducted by a multidisciplinary team at UBC, in coop-eration with private and public Canadianinfrastructure companies in the areas ofenergy, water, transportation and data networks. The purpose of the research is todevelop simulation and human interactiontools to better coordinate joint actions by various organizations before and duringlarge-scale emergencies, such as an earth-quake event in a given region.

The Joint Infrastructure InterdependenciesResearch Program (JIIRP)

A system of critical infrastructures (CIs) (power grid,water network, health system, etc.) constitutes the backbone of modern societies. Even though interdepen-dencies exist among these components, operations are centered on each individual infrastructure. During alarge disaster (e.g., earthquakes, hurricanes, terroristattacks, etc.), the situation is very different from normallife since the infrastructures are often affected simulta-neously. Unless actions are coordinated, the overallresponse process may suffer serious stalls. For exam-ple, a damaged bridge has to be repaired before a sparetransformer can be delivered to a power substation; if the power available at a substation that supplies ahospital and a water station has been reduced becauseof damage to the substation and all power is sent tothe nearby hospital and none to the local water station,the hospital will have power, but will not be able tooperate due to lack of water.

The government of Canada, through the NaturalSciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)and Public Safety Canada has funded research todevelop innovative ways to mitigate large disaster sit-uations. The JIIRP started in 2005 with six universitiesacross Canada involved.

UBC-JIIRP aims to model the real-time effects of a disaster situation and identify the interdependen-cies among critical infrastructure networks. There aresix principal components of the project’s architec-

4

ture: the physical layers, damage assessment, the human lay-ers, database, the infrastructure interdependencies simulator(I2Sim) and visualization. UBC’s damage assessment moduleinvolves the estimation of physical damage to the component,the number of casualties, the economic loss and the loss offunction that results from the damage. The data generated inthe human and physical layers are aggregated into a database called I2DB used to create the I2Sim environment.

The I2Sim simulation environment provides a multi-sys-tem representation of all infrastructures involved in the disaster response at multiple hierarchical levels (local, munici-pal, provincial, etc.) of the global system response. In thiscombined environment, each member infrastructure uses itsown internal models to determine its possible operatingstates, while I2Sim combines the operating states into a system-of-systems solution.

Damage to infrastructures during a disaster and greaterdemand for resources creates a situation where decisionsneed to be made to optimize time and allocation of availableresources. The simulator supports look-ahead and rewindfunctions to predict the evolution of system dynamics toassess the effects of suggested decisions before they are actually applied, and a mathematical formulation permits theanalysis and discovery of vulnerable points in the system as well as gaps in policies and procedures.

The UBC Point Grey campus was modeled as a case studyimplementation of the simulator methodology. The geographi-cal location, infrastructure complexity, and the diversity of its population made it an ideal test case to develop, assessand validate I2Sim. The university has a population of approxi-mately 10,000 full time residents and 47,000 transitory occupants and most of the utility systems are managed inter-nally, whereby it shares many of the attributes of a small city.

Based on the British Columbia Provincial EmergencyProgram’s (PEP) risk matrix, a ranking of critical events for theUBC campus was developed and an earthquake scenario wasselected as the disaster to be simulated. Realistic estimates of the damage to buildings and lifeline systems were requiredin order to carry out an accurate disaster simulation. Due tothe size of the study area and the amount of time andresources available, Risk Assessment for buildings and lifelinenetworks on campus was deemed to be the most appropriatemethod of determining the probable seismic damage.

The methodology developed was then used to identifyinterdependencies among critical infrastructures. The “studiedspace” was disassembled representing the critical infrastruc-tures, each containing both the buildings and lifeline systems.Risks are estimated separately and interdependencies areassessed by superimposing the layers, one by one.

Carlos Ventura, Ph.D., P.Eng.

Simulating Disastersresearch@civil

5

Example of Interdependency among critical infrastructure on the UBC campus (water systemand buildings)

Assuming an earthquake in the region will produce shakingon campus corresponding to Mercalli intensity IX, we apply our damage estimation methodology to estimate thebuilding damage. Figure 1 shows the estimated levels of damage for buildings within a sector of campus. The majorityof buildings will be non-functional (orange and red = moderate to heavy damage). Non-structural components and damage to building contents will also affect the overall functionality of buildings.

A separate damage assessment to the water supply on campus is conducted. The estimated damage to the waterpipelines is also shown in Figure 1. Overlaying both damage assessments does not show the hidden conse-quences of the interdependencies of these two critical infrastructure systems.

We apply the methodology to estimate interdependenciesbetween the two infrastructures, shown in Figure 2, the trunkline providing water to the water station has an accumulatedloss of 8%, but the water station is non-functional due to the extended damage to its structural and non-structural com-ponents. When the entire campus is considered, it can bedetermined that UBC will suffer significant water shortagesand remain non-functional until water service is restored.

In this simple example, only two infrastructures are considered. When the methodology is applied to all the infra-structures on campus, a clear “picture” of the situation immediately following an earthquake can be developed. I2Simcan then be used to evaluate other scenarios and the possible ways to restore all functions on campus.

A better understanding of critical interdependenciesamong core infrastructures is one of the most importantrequirements to mitigate the impact of extreme events andimprove survivability. The extent of the damage resulting from a catastrophe must and can be minimized by the imple-mentation of better preparedness organization and actionplans among the National Critical Infrastructures operators at federal, provincial and regional levels. The UBC-JIIRPhas contributed to the development of novel strategies ofeffective collaboration among public and the private sectors before and during the emergency period.

Bio: Carlos Ventura is a Professor of Civil Engineering and Director

of the Earthquake Engineering Research Facility at the University

of British Columbia.

Acknowledgements: The UBC-JIIRP project includes twelve UBC and SFU researchers in multidisciplinary areas. UBC faculty and graduate students from

Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Science, Geography, the Sauder School of Business and the Centre for Teaching and Academic Growth have

all made contributions to this unique research project. Civil Engineering is well represented in this project and has provided seminal information to develop

the earthquake damage scenarios and interdependencies between infrastructures. Graduate students Hugon Juarez and Kate Thibert are Civil Engineering stu-

dents who have made significant contributions to this project.

Fig. 1: Estimated damage to buildings within a sector of campus(orange and red = moderate to heavy damage)

Fig. 2: I2Sim Interdependency Damage Assessment

6

The Department of Civil Engineering works hard tocreate programs of education and research that ablyprepare our students for their careers as civil engineers and at the same time support our indus-tries and our profession. As part of this goal, we continually strive to ensure that students and facultyhave the resources they need to pursue their learning and research.

One of our most successful ventures was the cre-ation, three years ago, of the Civil Design Studio — a project that could not have happened without thedirect financial support from industry partners. The studio provides a platform for industry andalumni to interact directly with our students

Giving back to Civil through guest lecturing, attending events or throughthe Designer-in-Residence program. This facility, runand used almost exclusively by students, provideswork spaces for communal study and design projects,and is in use every day of the term — even on Sunday mornings, it can be hard to find a seat!

Improvements to our programs such as this areoften a result of the generous contributions from our industry partners and you, our alumni. Each timeyou contribute to Civil Engineering in UBC’s AnnualCampaign, it provides us with the opportunity to sup-port research initiatives or provide students with fieldtrips, projects, and study spaces that ensure their education is as broad and encompassing as it can be.

Civil Engineering would like to thank all our alumni and friends who contribute to our success —your contributions make a huge difference in the livesof our faculty and students, and in turn allow us tomake a real contribution to our chosen field. Thankyou very much!

If you would like any information on making a contribution to Civil Engineering, please contact EmmaStarritt, Major Gift Officer, at 604-822-6197 oremma.starritt@ubc.ca.

The Civil Design Studio provides work spaces for students’ study and design projects.

Message from the Dean

Since my term as Dean of Applied Science began lastfall, I have consistently been impressed by theDepartment of Civil Engineering. From research toteaching, to service within the Faculty and across theuniversity, Civil Engineering is a department of dedicat-ed people who care about their students, their research,the campus community and society at large.

Faculty, staff and students have recently shared theirknowledge with the public during Engineering OpenHouse and UBC’s Celebrate Research Week. The depart-ment’s engagement with and support of communityservice learning projects is truly a source of pride for allof Applied Science. And your efforts are reflected in themany awards for teaching and research excellencereceived by faculty members.

As an electrical engineer who loves her own disci-pline, I have always held civil engineering in the highestof regard. Not only is it at the foundation of engineer-ing, it has also been the source of the one contributionin human history that has saved and continues to savethe most lives to date: clean water!

With the responsibility to “build”our society on your shoulders, it isno surprise that you care—as students, alumni andfaculty—and it shows.

As I gradually get to know the professors, studentsand staff in Civil Engineering, I really look forward tomeeting more alumni to discuss how Applied Scienceand the department can continue to make a world of difference in our communities at large.

Tyseer Aboulnasr, Ph.D., O.ONT., P.EngDean, UBC Faculty of Applied Science

Bio: Tyseer Aboulnasr is currently Dean of The Faculty of AppliedScience and Professor of Electrical Engineering at The University ofBritish Columbia. As Dean, she leads the Faculty of Applied Science,bringing together 11 engineering programs along with three schools:Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Nursing and the School ofEngineering at the Okanagan campus. Together with more than400 faculty and staff, she oversees the education of more than 4,000undergraduate and 1,400 graduate and professional students.

development@civil

7

Passionatesmall, unusually shaped andfloating structures, and in a variety of materials such asreinforced concrete, steel,wood, masonry, aluminum,cables, plastic and glass fibre,etc.—in the greater Vancouverarea.

More importantly, I havebeen able to apply the knowl-edge that originated from myeducation from UBC to otherregions of the world.

We are currently designing three tall blast hardened airtraffic control towers for the Federal Aviation Administrationin the western United States. We have seismically strength-ened buildings damaged by the Nisqually earthquake inSeattle. We have taken our brand of problem solving tech-niques to southern California and designed a large number ofbuildings including parking structures, museums, medical and office buildings. In China, we introduced loadbearing steel studs building technology to the city of Dalianand showed them how to design, manufacture and build large residential projects. In India, we have worked on hotelsand housing projects using light gauge steel. In Taiwan, we introduced Canadian concrete formwork technology to itscentral region and showed them how to build concrete structures rapidly.

In summary, this is my advice to every student aspiring to have a rewarding structural engineering career: “if you arepassionate about structural engineering, live it and breathe it all the time, your career will follow you wherever you go”.

Bio: Mr. John Pao is president of Bogdonov Pao Associates Ltd. and chief

engineer and designer of many buildings in Greater Vancouver and worldwide.

He received his B.A.Sc. in 1980 and M.Eng. in 1984 from UBC and is

currently very active in his profession. Mr. Pao is a driving force behind several

initiatives to enhance the structural engineering profession in British

Columbia. In 2005, Mr. Pao co-authored a textbook on reinforced concrete

design that is widely adopted by professors and lecturers at Universities

and Colleges across Canada.

When I was in the third year of my undergraduate studies at

UBC, I met a structural engineer who had practiced for over 20

years. He told me, “if you are passionate about structural engi-

neering, learn it well, you can apply your skills and knowledge

anywhere in the world”. Now after almost 30 years of practicing

structural engineering, I can certainly confirm that what he said

to me has been very true.

I will definitely offer the same advice to young undergraduatestudents. The fundamentals that we learned from the UBCundergraduate program allow for the potential of a broadly applied and rewarding structural engineering career.

It starts with a relentless attitude in one’s pursuit of knowl-edge. To this extent, one’s course mark should be secondary tothe actual knowledge gained from each course. It is importantto understand the principle behind what is taught by profes-sors and not to apply formulae without due consideration. Inpractice, I have often told young engineers, “If you understandstructural fundamentals well, you will be able to apply buildingcodes in an effective manner to help solve your design prob-lems”.

In practice, the challenge of a good structural engineeringdesign also involves understanding the building owner’s objec-tives and construction methods and costs, an appreciation ofarchitectural design issues, such as life and fire safety require-ments, and geotechnical engineering problems.

Although these are not structural engineering problemsper se, the issues of construction, geotechnical, and architec-tural constraints must be properly understood by the structuralengineer in order to produce the most effective structural solu-tion that meets the building owner’s overall needs. This is taking problem solving to a most rewarding level.

The potential geographically diverse application of thisoverall problem solving knowledge cannot be understated.Although building codes may vary between countries, structur-al engineering principles do not. In other countries, the chal-lenge of producing a good structural engineering solutionwould be to apply sound engineering principles with consider-ation for specific local and cultural constraints.

Since receiving my B.A.Sc. in 1980 and M.Eng. in 1984from UBC, I have applied the engineering principles I learnedto a large variety of building types—tall, slender, short, large,

John Pao, P.Eng., Struct.Eng., S.E.

about Structural Engineering

industry@civil

sections are located near the termini and at the junctionbetween the airport and Richmond lines.

The bridge over the North Arm of the Fraser River (picturedon the cover) has a 180 meter main span and is the firstExtradosed Cable Stayed Bridge built in North America. Since it is located on the flight path to YVR, the towers had to be shorter than normal which led to a relatively flat cableangle. The structure was built using the balanced cantilevermethod as was the Middle Arm Bridge.

Between 63rd Avenue and 2nd Avenue in Vancouver the cutand cover technique was employed to build the tunnel (pic-tured below). In this method a trench was excavated from thesurface using backhoes. The sides of the excavation were sup-ported using soil anchors and shotcrete. The cast-in-place con-crete tunnels were then constructed, backfill was placed overthe top and the road surface reinstated. The tunnels were ofboth side-by-side and stacked configurations depending onthe space available for construction.

A Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) was used to tunnel underFalse Creek in Vancouver. Twin bored tunnels were construct-ed between 2nd Avenue in the south and Granville andPender Streets in the north. The tunnels are lined with pre-cast concrete segments.

The Canada Line is a traditional metro transit system witha fully segregated alignment. The vehicles are powered viapick up shoes from a power rail alongside the running rails.

The system operates with fully automated trains on threeminute headways to provide frequent service and meet capaci-ty requirements.

SNC-Lavalin Inc. is delivering the contract through a seriesof design-build joint ventures formed by its affiliate SNC-Lavalin Constructors (Pacific) Inc. (SLCP), certain design andsupply subcontracts and conventional design-bid-build subcontracts as follows.•A Joint Venture (RSL JV) was formed by SLCP and Rizzani deEccher of Italy to design/build the elevated guideway and theNorth and Middle Arm Bridges over the Fraser River(Buckland and Taylor designed the North Arm Bridge).

•The twin bored tunnels underneath downtown Vancouverwere designed and built by a Joint Venture (SSJV) formed bySLCP and SELI an Italian Contractor.

•SLCP acted as Construction Managers for the cut and coversection; Cambie Street Constructors were the contractor. SLIprovided the design.

•Trackwork and some of the E&M systems were installed byRSL JV. SLI provided the design.

•E&M systems, stations and other fixed support facilities suchas the Operations and Maintenance Centre (OMC) were gen-erally delivered using design-bid-build subcontracts.

•The vehicles, automatic train control system and communica-tions system were delivered through three design/supply subcontracts awarded to specialist suppliers. SLI is the systems integrator.

The Canada Line project is thus far on track to meet transportation needs for the 2010 Olympic Games.

Bio: Roger Woodhead, Ph.D., P.Eng. is the Technical Director of the

Canada Line Project. He is founder and principal of Woodhead Consulting Inc.

and an Adjunct Professor at UBC Civil Engineering.

Above: A special Truss is used to lift precast segments into place along the elevated portion of the Canada Line. Below: Cut-and-covertunnel lined with shotcrete runs under Cambie Street on the way to Richmond and YVR.

Alignment Map of the Canada Line, travels from Downtown Vancouver toBrighouse, near Richmond Centre, and Vancouver Airport (YVR)

8

Canada Linecontinued from page 1

9

Summer 2007, view near Bridgeport Station of the elevated guidewaybranching to the airport (top two) and to Richmond (bottom right).

As a recent graduate of Engineering Co-op, there is probablyno better time to reflect on my professional experiences.Since many of the most exciting opportunities came as Ihoned my skills in later work terms, I will focus on my experi-ence at SNC Lavalin, an international engineering and con-struction firm associated with many large-scale projectsaround the world, including the Canada Line here inVancouver.

Working at a new company involves building trust andproving yourself early on, and the best way to do this is toperform ordinary tasks exceptionally well. In the first twomonths at SNC, I was responsible for reviewing the elevatedguideway shop drawings to ensure they complied with ourdesign drawings. I gained valuable experience in understand-ing the interplay of different disciplines and the importance of effective communication. As my managers gained confi-dence in me, shop drawing review was replaced by program-ming in Excel, designing a sanitary tank for an Athabasca Oil Sands project, and cost-estimating for a Northern Portand Road project. I was also paired with EIT’s and senior personnel on several Canada Line site visits.

This past summer with the company was much different than the previous one. In the first week, I wasalready applying the technical knowledge I had gained at university and later came to experience ‘real design work’by managing small structural projects for the Canada Line, including concrete walkways, platforms, machinery

A student’sco-op experience

at SNC Lavalin covers and signage connections. I also acted as a mentor for the junior students in the structural group. The highlight of the term was following the detailed steps of thedesign process—all the way from conceptualization to review to drawing issue—to create something that will con-tribute to a high-profile engineering project.

The culture at SNC is very relaxed and flexible; my manag-er checked on me every once in a while, but the responsibilityto take the initiative, ask questions, and remain diligent was mine. The co-op experience I had at SNL helped instill a confidence in me to use the knowledge I’ve acquired and resources that surround me to best solve problems.

Bio: Chris Bazett is a graduate of the UBC Civil Engineering program. He is currently working with the department on Curriculum Redevelopment.

by Chris Bazett

On October 12, 2008, 16 delegates from Vancouver — 10 grad-uate students and four faculty members from UBC and twopracticing engineers — arrived in Beijing, China to give presen-tations at the 14th World Conference in EarthquakeEngineering. The conference provided an international forumto present current research being conducted at UBC.

After the end of the conference, the UBC team travelledfrom Beijing to Shanghai to visit one of the top engineeringuniversities in China, the Tongji University, to collaborate onthe First Tongji & UBC Earthquake Engineering Symposium.The symposium provided an opportunity for researchers andpracticing engineers to exchange their extensive knowledge,ideas and culture.

The symposium permitted a successful means of technicaland social exchange and established the interest of professorsfor future joint research efforts. The symposium included tech-nical visits to the Shanghai World Financial Center, the world’stallest building, and the Hangzhou Bay Bridge, a 35.6 kilometerbridge with a cable-stayed bridge portion that connects themunicipalities of Shanghai and Ningbo in Zhejiang province.

First Tongji University & UBC Earthquake Engineering Symposium

The UBC earthquake engineering group has invited a Tongjidelegation, consisting of students and faculty members to visit UBC. The Second Tongji & UBC Earthquake EngineeringSymposium will take place on July 21, 2009 in Vancouver.

The UBC delegation included Professors Dharma Wijewickreme, Perry Adebar, CarlosVentura and Ken Elwood, UBC technical staff, Felix Yao, Max Nazar, UBC graduate stu-dents Juan Carlos Carvajal, Bishnu Pandey, Otton Lara, Mehrtash Motamedi, SoheilYavari, Hugon Juarez, Jose Centeno, Freddy Pina and Katherine Thibert and PracticingEngineers from Vancouver, Sharlie Huffmann and John Pao.

collaboration@civil

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This past January Greg Johnson was appointed to the position of Instructor, a positionshared jointly between theSchool of Architecture and the Department of CivilEngineering. He will befamiliar to some in thedepartment through his2002-2006 teaching ofCIVL/WOOD 478—BuildingScience & Enclosure Design,an elective course initiallydeveloped as a response tothe widespread buildingenvelope failures in theLower Mainland of BritishColumbia.

Greg received a B.A.Sc.from UBC in MechanicalEngineering (1974), thenpursued studies in the field

of architecture, obtaining a B.Arch. (1977) followed by an M.Sc.A. (1980) fromthe Université de Montréal.His thesis research, support-ed by a Natural Science &Engineering CouncilPostgraduate ResearchScholarship, involved studiesin the field of wind engineer-ing and snow drifting in built environments.

Since returning toVancouver in 1981, Gregbecame registered with theAIBC and APEGBC, and haspractised architecture since, with a strong technicalfocus on issues of energyconservation, building enve-lope performance and sustainability. While a princi-pal in his own firm, he

began teaching on a part-time basis at UBC in 2002.

With this cross-discipli-nary background, Greg’steaching strengths lie in bringing these two disci-plines closer together and developing a betterappreciation of what eachhas to offer. This coincideswith a trend in practice —integrated design— whichencourages a greater integration of the many con-sultants contributing to abuilding project throughoutall phases of design.

As a complementary andsupportive activity to histeaching, Greg hopes to beable to maintain a minorinvolvement in his architec-tural practice.

Andrew Wood, Ph.D., P.Eng., recently appointed as Adjunct Professor, holds B.A.Sc. (1987), M.Eng.(1999), and Ph.D. (2007)degrees in Civil Engineeringfrom UBC. Working for over 18 years in publicworks, he is currently theMunicipal Engineer for Maple Ridge, and hisresearch area focuses on public works engineering,management, operationsand policy, civil infrastruc-ture planning and assetmanagement. He currentlyteaches a graduate course on managing civil infrastructure.

After completing hisundergraduate degree,Andrew practiced in consult-

ing with regional and localgovernments before completing his master’sdegree with ProfessorsDenis Russell and BarbaraLence. While working withmunicipalities, Andrew identified the need for practi-cal approaches to improvemunicipal asset analysis and management practices,and focused his doctoralresearch on how managerscan collect, assess and utilize water main break datato improve asset manage-ment practices.

He has published andpresented on a number oftopics including asset management practices forwater and road systems,public sector business planning, improving flood

risk management using task forces and reducingproject tendering risks. Hispaper, co-authored withProfessor Lence, titled“Assessment of Water MainBreak Data for AssetManagement”, was awardedthe 2007 American Water Works Association,Best Distribution and PlantOperations Division paper.

Andrew is currently aDirector of the Public Works Association of BritishColumbia and Chair of the Association’s TechnicalCommittee. He is also amember of the CanadianSociety of Civil EngineersHydro-technical Council and the TransportationAssociation of Canada’sSmall Municipalities Task Force.

Meet the faces of Civil Engineering at UBC

Andrew Wood, Ph.D., P.Eng. Adjunct Professor

Greg Johnson, P.Eng.Instructor

people@civil

Juan Carlos Carvajal received his B.Sc. degree in Civil Engineering at theIndustrial University ofSantander (UIS) inBucaramanga, Columbia in1996. He received his M.Sc. in Mechanics of Soilsfrom the NationalAutonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in 2000. He also worked as aresearch assistant from 1971to 2001 at the Institute ofEngineering in projects relat-ed to liquefaction, dynamicresponse of pile groups, andevaluation of dynamic prop-

erties of soil deposits usingdownhole records.

After his research workat UNAM, he worked as aproject manager, and lateras a consultant on projectsrelated to design and con-struction of deep founda-tions, excavations, groundwater control, and founda-tion retrofit in difficult sub-soil conditions at a localcompany in Mexico City.

Juan Carlos is currentlydoing his Ph.D. inEarthquake Engineeringunder the supervision ofProfessor Ventura at UBC.

His thesis is focused onseismic response of bridges with integral deck-abutments, which includescalibration of finite elementmodels using experimentaltests and dynamic soil-structure interaction. Hisresearch includes static anddynamic slope stabilityanalysis, site response analysis for retrofitting ofschools in B.C., soil/struc-ture interaction of underground structures inliquefiable soil deposits, geophysical explorationusing micro-tremor

11

Retirement@civilAt the end of May 2008, the Department of CivilEngineering offered its bestwishes to Doug Smith, ourlong-time staff colleague,upon his retirement. Dougworked for 14 years as an

engineering technician in the department’s machineshop. During this time, he established himself as a major resource for theMaterials Lab and theStructures Lab, among otherareas of responsibility.

Doug also became widelyknown in the department for his succinct, yet insight-ful mastery of the emailmessage. Since he retired,reading email has beenmuch less interesting. Wewish Doug all the best.

Ye Zhou, Ph.D., P.Eng., is apracticing structural engineerlong associated with UBCCivil Engineering. In January2009, he joined the depart-ment as a Sessional Lecturer,teaching CIVL 331—Steel andTimber Design.

Ye began studying engi-neering at the South ChinaUniversity of Technology, andcontinued his undergraduatestudies at UBC CivilEngineering in 1992. Hereceived his M.A.Sc. in 1998and, under the supervision ofProfessor Siegfried Stiemerand Adjunct Professor, DavidHalliday, earned his Ph.D. in 2003.

During his Master’sresearch, Ye started workingat Dynamic Structures, Ltd.,a company providing largemovable structures to a vari-ety of industries includingastronomy and entertain-ment rides. Working withProfessors Stiemer andHalliday (who is also vicepresident of the company),Ye introduced techniques ofartificial intelligence to helptackle problems of weldingdistortion and metal fatigue.

He continued his Ph.D.research developing a solverusing numerical qualitativereasoning methods, leadingto a set of algorithms capa-ble of depicting engineering

uncertainties, complexityand nonlinearity in designspace. After completing hisdoctoral degree, Ye contin-ued at Dynamic Structures.One of his latest projectswas the Atacama CosmologyTelescope, a first-of-its-kindradio telescope for PrincetonUniversity, which must befabricated and aligned to 15microns and a few arcsec-onds while in motion.Equipped with the best UBCeducation, Ye expanded hisknowledge beyond typicalstructural engineering intoastronomy, precision fabrica-tions and motion controls.Working in the thin air at5100 m above sea level, he

eventually took his concep-tual design to create a fullyfunctional scientific instru-ment, which turned out tobe the highest ground-basedtelescope in the world.

measurements, field testingof bridges, and damagedetection of structures usingambient vibration tests.

Doug Smith,Machine Shop Technician

Juan Carlos CarvajalPh.D. Candidate

Ye Zhou, Ph.D., P.Eng., Sessional Lecturer

Professor Reza Vaziriwas appointed Head of theDepartment of CivilEngineering as of July 1, 2008.

Professor Vaziri wasappointed as a member of the Editorial Board of the International Journal ofImpact Engineering.

The Civil Club has announcedthat its choices for top undergraduate professors for2008-2009 were ProfessorReza Vaziri for 2nd year,Professors Rob Millar andVioleta Martin for 3rd year andProfessor Don Mavinic for 4th year. Professors BarbaraLence and Sheryl Staub-Frenchwere noted for theirExceptional Commitment to Students.

civil@ubc is published by theDepartment of Civil Engineering inThe Faculty of Applied Science at The University of British Columbia.

Production Contributors:Dr. Reza Vaziri Editor Department Head

Ms. Clare Quirk Manager Administration

Mr. Brandon Laviolette Production Assistant

Ms. ErinRose Handy Communications Officer, Dean’s Office

For further information please contact us at:

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Professor Ken Hall was honoured for SignificantAchievement in AquaticConservation on October 8,2008 at the 14th Annual Murray A. Newman Awards for Excellence in AquaticScience and Conservation at the Vancouver Aquarium.

Professor Greg Lawrence’s Tier1 Canada Research Chair forEnvironmental Fluid Mechanicswas renewed for the next seven years.

Professor Loretta Li has beenawarded a UBC Killam FacultyResearch Fellowship to assisther in undertaking the researchproject proposed in her studyleave application during the aca-demic year of 2009/2010.

Professor Alan Russell, and co-authors were awarded the2007 Stephen G. Revay Awardby the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE) fortheir paper entitled, “ProjectInnovation—a function of procurement mode?”, CanadianJournal of Civil Engineering(CJCE), v.33, No.12, pp.1519-1537.

Professor Tarek Sayed wasappointed Co-Editor of theCanadian Journal of CivilEngineering (CJCE) sinceJanuary 1, 2009.

Professor Sheryl Staub-Frenchwas appointed the MarshallBauder Chair in EngineeringEconomics in June 2008. TheChair is intended to enhanceeducation in engineering economics within the Faculty of Applied Science, which may occur through the BAScprograms, the Master ofEngineering, and possiblyContinuing Education activities.

Congratulations on a year of success

Professor Nemy Banthiajoined the Editorial Boards ofAmerican Society for Testingand Materials (ASTM), Journalof Testing and Evaluation(JOTE), Bentham Science—Open Materials Science Journal,and the Indian Concrete Journal. Professor Banthia wasalso appointed to the Board of Directors of the CanadianAcademy of Engineering.

Professors Nemy Banthia andPierre Bérubé each received oneof one-hundred 2008 DiscoveryAccelerator Supplements (DAS)from the Natural Sciences and Engineering ResearchCouncil of Canada (NSERC).DAS represents a new compo-nent of the Discovery Grantsprogram which aims at provid-ing resources to accelerateprogress, and maximize theimpact of outstanding research.

Professor Pierre Bérubé wasawarded a Strategic NetworkGrant that focuses on providingsafe drinking water for smalland rural communities. Theproject, led by Professor MadjidMohseni, from the Departmentof Chemical and BiologicalEngineering involves a team of researchers from BrockUniversity, Ecole Polytechnique,Simon Fraser University,University of Calgary and theUniversity of Victoria.

The Engineering Institute ofCanada (EIC) honoured CivilEngineering Professor EmeritusPeter Byrne with the Julian C.Smith Medal in recognition ofhis outstanding achievementsin the development of Canada.Peter received his medal at theEIC annual awards gala inOttawa on March 7, 2009.

Professor Ken Elwood and co-authors received theOutstanding Paper for 2007award from the EarthquakeEngineering Research Institutefor their paper entitled, “Updateto ASCE/SEI 41 ConcreteProvisions,”: EarthquakeSpectra, v.23, No.3, August2007, pp.493-523.

The UBC Civil Engineering teamincluding Professors KenElwood, Terje Haukaas, PerryAdebar, Carlos Ventura andLiam Finn were awarded aStrategic Network Grant (SNG)on “Reducing Urban SeismicRisk”, a project investigatingrehabilitating existing buildingsand bridges, led by DenisMitchell of McGill University,and involving a team of 26researchers from acrossCanada. UBC, the west node of the network, has the largestnumber of researchers.

Professor Jonathan Fanninheld a Distinguished VisitingFellowship from the UK RoyalAcademy of Engineering atImperial College London, inJune and July 2008, where heconducted forensic research onthe micro-mechanical structureof soils from Canadian dams.

Professor Fannin receivedthe APEGBC 2008 Award forTeaching at the President’sAwards Gala, held at the GrandOkanagan Resort in Kelowna on October 17, 2008.

achievements@civil