Structural Forum 2017 - "Framing the Future"
feb 11, 2017
SEAOC and the ARCE department held the 27th annual Structural Forum on Saturday, February 11th. The theme this year was “Framing the Future.” SEAOC board and the Structural Forum committee was responsible for the planning and execution of Structural Forum 2017, Kate Cuddington, the 2016-2017 Structural Forum Chair, led their efforts.
The morning portion of the event was held on Cal Poly’s campus in the Multi Activity Center (MAC) in the Recreation Center. The first speaker of the morning was Omar Garza from Nous Engineering who spoke about the Pulp Pavillion project for the Coachella Music Festival. Next was Laura Whitehurst, from Walter P Moore, who talked about the San Francisco Airport Control Tower and the challenges and success of its design. The second half of the morning portion began with Eric McDonnell, a Cal Poly ARCE alum now working for KPFF, who highlighted his experience with Cross Laminated Timber as a structural material. Concluding the morning session, Mark Sarkisian from SOM, passionately spoke about the future of the built environment and the role of sustainability, structural clarity and simplicity.
After the conclusion of the morning portion of Forum, everyone transitioned to the Degenkolb Graduate Lab for the dedication ceremony. Stacy Bartoletti and Gordy Wray, from Degenkolb cut the ribbon to dedicate the lab. Following the dedication ceremony, Degenkolb and the ARCE department sponsored lunch in the KTGY gallery.
The evening portion of Structural Forum began with the “no resume” career exposition portion of the event at 5 PM. SEAOC hosted a record breaking 52 companies. Over 200 students mingled with company representatives. Prior to Structural Forum, every student chose a company that he or she wanted to sit with for the dinner portion of the event. Al Estes, the ARCE department head, welcomed everyone to the event. Following the career exposition portion of the day, everyone joined their respective company table for dinner. Stacy Bartoletti, the CEO of Degenkolb, gave the keynote address, speaking about the future of the structural engineering profession. The event concluded with a thank you from both Kate Cuddington and Aaron Cook (SEAOC President). To wrap up the day’s festivities, company representatives and students met at Luna Red downtown to continue getting to know each other.