| During Australian Engineering Week Dr De Silva, a senior lecturer/researcher in structural engineering at RMIT University, will present on failures of world’s iconic structures which are currently in public domain. This is a presentation not to be missed! | |
| Venue | RMIT city campus - Conference Room Level 7 of Storey Hall, corner of Swanston and Latrobe streets, Melbourne, VIC |
| Date | Thursday 9 August at 5:30pm - 8:30pm |
| Members Cost | Nil |
| Non Members Cost | Nil |
| Event Contact | The Victorian Structural Branch |
| Contact Email | StructuralBranchVic@engineersaustralia.org.au |
| Hosted By | The Victorian Structural Branch |
| Downloads | directions_1.pdf(133KB) |
Structural failures are events which could be prevented. Yet they occur, luckily not often. By investigating failures, engineers learn some of their most valuable lessons and it’s from failures that often great advancements are made in engineering knowledge.
It is therefore imperative that all failures are examined closely and the information obtained shared not only with other engineers but also with the general public. This is often difficult due to the regulative field that engineers work in and especially the restriction of a highly litigious environment. Yet transparency is the essence, since without it not only do engineering professionals loose public confidence but engineers are destined to repeat their mistakes.
One of the consequences in the investigation of failures has been the advancements made in the relatively new discipline of “forensic” structural engineering. This presentation will discuss these advancements in the context of the failure of some of the world’s iconic buildings. From a number of representative examples, the presentation will discuss lessons learnt from failures due to design, methods of construction, aging and extreme events.
Presenter
Dr Saman de Silva is a senior lecturer/researcher, in structural engineering, at RMIT University. He has fourteen years of industry experience as a structural/civil engineering consultant before joining academia in 1999. He has worked as a senior structural engineer in the design of Melbourne’s major developments such as Etihad stadium, Crown entertainment complex, Quaywest apartments. Dr De Silva has been consulted by the media, for expert’s views, on structural failures due to extreme events – the structural collapse of the WTC, the Mississippi Bridge, Christchurch Earthquake, and Melbourne Observation Wheel. He has published widely in structural engineering and sustainable built assets related topics.
