On August 7-8, OSU hosted the executive committee meeting of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Geomatics Division (GMD). Committee members from CCE included Assistant Professors Dan Gillins and Mike Olsen, and Associate Professor Chris Parrish as well PhD Graduate Student Michael Dennis. The focus of the meeting was to develop a new version of the ASCE Engineering Surveying Manual – last updated in 1984. This manual, to be edited by Prof. Gillins is intended to provide important concepts for practicing engineering surveyors and will cover significant advances in geomatics over the past few decades and their role in civil engineering. Topics at the executive committee meeting included discussions on model law and the future of surveying as well as ASCE’s newly formed Utility Engineering and Surveying Institute (UESI), which takes effect October 1, 2015.

ASCE Executive Committee Geomatics Division
Executive Committee of the ASCE Geomatics Division

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On Thursday, August 13 from 11:45 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. PST, Andre Barbosa and other members of the NSF-RAPID project team will discuss recent observations in the 2015 Nepal (Gorkha) Debriefing, hosted by the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center (PEER).

Join the debriefing online at: bit.ly/1MoxIJv 

Learn more about the NSF-RAPID Grant for Post-Disaster Data Collection.

The Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) announced that Oregon State University earned second place amongst competitors from throughout the nation in the annual Big Beam Contest. The OSU CCE student team was comprised of Karryn Johnsohn, Jason Anderson, and Curtis Blank and was advised by Keith Kaufman of the Knife River Corporation.

The objective of the Big Beam contest is for student teams to fabricate and test a precast/prestressed concrete beam with the help of local PCI members. The beam must be made primarily of concrete without any trusses, arches, or other non-flexural members – and prizes are awarded in consideration of efficient design, highest load capacity, and other categories.

OSU has a long history of performing well in the competition. Since the contest began in 2001, OSU has captured four national championships. This year, OSU placed second in North America, ahead of 18 other recognized teams.

Congratulations students on your excellent work!

CCE 2015 Big Beam Team
CCE 2015 Big Beam Team