ARCHITECTURAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT ? SPRING 2010 COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN Bridge Work Department Head’s Message A Really Good Year ARCE celebrates its abundant good fortune in 2009-10 W hat is your definition of a good year? Mine is Brent Nuttall winning the National Society of Professional Engi­ neers Engineering Educator Award. It includes ARCE’s Christine Cobb being named the Cal Poly Outstanding Staff Member of the Year. A good year is when five alumni and in­ dustry partners step forward to sponsor ARCE labs during trying economic times. It occurs when 21 firms still show up for Structural Forum when most are not hiring. A good year is a master’s program that grows its involvement of industry partners in the thesis projects. It includes another ARCE reception at the annual SEAOC convention hosted at the offices of Hope Engineering, with wine contributed by Jerry Lohr’s winery. A good year is marked by the first na­ tional competition for ARCE students and sending Emily Carlip and Grace Rose to Kansas City to participate. A good year is when alumni from 30 years ago return to Cal Poly to re-dedicate their Stick Structure in Poly Canyon being rebuilt by current students. A good year includes a host of research initiatives and presentations by the faculty members who are able to pursue such creative endeavors while maintaining focus on their primary mission of teaching our students. A good year is marked by the highest incoming grade-point average of any pro­ gram at Cal Poly and the graduation of a new class of highly educated structural en­ gineers to serve the citizens of California. Despite the woes of budget cuts and furloughs, 2009-10 has been a good year, and the ARCE program remains in great shape. I invite you to read further and dis­ cover the details of these successes. ALLEN C. ESTES, DEPARTMENT HEAD Dean’s Message Tremendous Support Inside Thank you, alumni and friends, for your commitment 3 6 8 16 18 19 22 E Facilities Update Interdisciplinary Program Student Achievement Student Activities Staff News Faculty News Industry Partner Profile On the Cover Senior ARCE student Megan Hanson is a member of the current Senior Project team that is working to renovate the Bridge House in Poly Canyon. Follow the group's progress at http://cpbh.info. 2 ARCE ? SPRING 2010 very year I have more and more occasion to be impressed by the commitment of our alumni and industry partners to the ARCE Department and our College. This year is no exception, with outstanding support for named labs along with the continued commitment of so many of you to scholarships and project support for our students. In this magazine you will also read about our interdisciplinary labs, faculty and staff achievements and student success. As you read I hope that each of you will take pride in your connection with this program. We cannot thank you enough for your support, whether it is through time, expert knowledge or finan­ cial commitments. Architectural Engineering plays an important role in our College, and we con­ tinue to be impressed by the accomplish­ ment of ARCE alumni. Please stay in touch, and we hope to see you on campus soon. R. THOMAS JONES, AIA Facilities Update Golden Partnerships Generous donations from industry ensure state-of-the-art facilities for ARCE students E “ nhancing the future” is how ARCE Department Head Al Estes describes the recent multi-year commitments to ARCE labs. “Our industry partners know that the best business plans think beyond today or even next year, and we have the same vision for our students. With such gener­ ous support we can continue to strengthen the program we offer.” Students and faculty are clearly corner­ stones of the program’s decades of success. The other essentials are facilities and out­ side support. This year the ARCE Depart­ ment launched a lab-naming program to unite these two and reinforce the relation­ ship between donors and the students they help. The resulting five-year financial com­ mitment creates a steady funding stream to the department to upgrade the lab space, provide support for equipment and sup­ port special student projects. Ashraf Habibullah, founder and presi­ dent of Computers and Structures, Inc. (CSI) was a leader in this effort. “We at CSI are very pleased to sponsor the creation of the new ARCE computer lab because we recognize that a modern, well-equipped lab will provide students with the resources they need to be creative and productive professionals, but also help them recognize the power of technology and instill in them a sense of pride in the work they do.” Al Estes says CSI’s leadership gift will result in a visible difference this summer. “The old Scarab lab will look new, from carpet to paint to window treatments when the students return in fall. By the time CSI’s name goes on the wall you won’t Ashraf Habibullah at the 35th anniversary celebration of CSI. “What better year to give back,” he says of CSI’s gift to ARCE. WWW.ARCE.CALPOLY.EDU ? 3 Facilities Update Students work on projects in the Scarab Lab, a space set for renovation and renaming, thanks to CSI’s gift. A gift from ARCE alum and Continental Concrete Structures President Mark Haselton (above) will sponsor F Lab. Experimental labs (right) are the next focus. Golden from page 3 believe the difference between the old and new facility.” While the link between computers and students is important to Ashraf, he has a broader view of the education of the next generation, hoping that by “encouraging students to develop that sense of pride at the beginning of their careers, we will be making a positive impact on the profession that will last for years to come.” Mark Haselton (ARCE ’63), president of Continental Concrete Structures, found the decision to support the department easy. “You follow your heart.” Mark adds that, “Through the years I found time to re­ 4 ARCE ? SPRING 2010 visit the College and Poly Canyon to see the neat projects and remember the time we did the concrete sculpture. As time passed, opportunities became available to give back to Cal Poly in the same manner that firms supported our project. It is so satisfying to be able to contribute to the ARCE Depart­ ment in much the same manner.” Long-time CAED supporter Simpson Strong-Tie, a world leader in structural connectors, has reinforced their commit­ ment to the College with a lab to be offi­ cially dedicated during the Simpson Strong-Tie symposium next spring – six months after the opening of the Simpson Strong-Tie Materials Demonstration Lab, a CAED interdisciplinary facility. Alan Hanson, regional sales manager with Simpson Strong-Tie and a member of the Dean’s Leadership Council, says, “The Simpson Strong-Tie Lab will help promote hands-on learning, particularly timber design, which is lacking at many univer­ sities. It will also help contribute to the interdisciplinary learning experience of the College, which we value for the in­ struction by both experienced practitio­ ners as well traditional academics.” College Dean R. Thomas Jones is pleased with the breadth of support for the department. “It is rewarding to see such a tremendous commitment to our students, but it is even more rewarding to see that the support comes from alumni, engineering firms, and those who produce materials our engineers will specify in their jobs.” Alan Hanson (above) says The Simpson StrongTie Lab will emphasize in timber design. Students (right, from left) Devin Daniel, Kevin Chen and Kevin Towers gear up for upgrades that will convert D Lab into The Verco Lab. ARCE’s other generous supporters Suffolk Construction ? “What better way to reinforce the connection between students and industry partners than by bringing their work into our corridors each day,” says Al Estes. “The donation of a flat-panel television by Suffolk allows us to showcase our partner’s professional work on campus.” Students at Structural Forum visit the Hilti display. The firm sees its partnership with ARCE as an “interface with the university’s best and brightest.” Marcus Oden, senior vice president and general manager with Hilti U.S. West, agrees that exposure to young engineers is a motivating factor in their decision to part­ ner with Cal Poly ARCE. As a worldwide leader in the construction industry focused on power tools, fastening and fire protec­ tion products, Hilti has developed ties to faculty of Cal Poly SLO over the past seven years and built a relationship with the stu­ dents. “During this process, we have had a chance to interface with the university’s best and brightest,” says Marcus. “We hope this next step in our partnership will fur­ ther our relationships with students and faculty and bring all involved closer to our common goal of building a better future for the design and construction industry.” Fluor Corporation ? The valuable Fluor Student Leadership Fund provides support for student projects, senior projects, competitions, field trips, student participation at national and regional conferences, and two scholarships. Verco has a long-standing relationship with ARCE. Jeff Martin, engineering man­ ager of Verco’s Fremont office, remembers that in the 1990s the first person he hired to work for Verco was a grad from the ARCE program. Since then, the company has participated in various activities in­ cluding Structural Forums, providing ma­ terial for lab improvements and senior projects, and has been involved with stu­ dents in steel design classes. “The recent opportunity to sponsor a design lab is a natural evolution of what we anticipate to be a long-term relationship with ARCE, as well as an expression of our belief in the quality of the Cal Poly program.” The labs sponsored by Hilti, Simpson Strong-Tie and Verco Decking are promi­ nently located on the main first-floor corridor of the department and are part of Al Estes’ strategy to make clear to every guest that “you are visiting the nation’s premier structural engineering program.” For the students, the strength­ ened ties with industry will mean that they will have better and more consistent access to the products they will specify through­ out their careers. “When they study timber they can see the connectors and decking materials and gain an immediate understanding. A real world understanding,” say faculty member Kevin Dong. Altogether, the ARCE facilities are starting to equal the potential of ARCE students. WWW.ARCE.CALPOLY.EDU ? 5 Interdisciplinary Studies A Welcome Reality IPD Studio’s multiple disciplines, real projects prepare students for workplace C ollaboration, integration and interdisciplinary are words fre­ quently used to describe the future of the design professions. While there are multiple inter­ disciplinary experiences available for ARCE students, the most visible opportu­ nity is the Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) Studio run jointly by Architecture, Archi­ tectural Engineering, Construction Man­ agement and Landscape Architecture. Each quarter interdisciplinary teams are created within the IPD lab context and are presented with a “real project with real 6 ARCE ? SPRING 2010 clients.” During spring quarter this year, the project was the 2010 Natural Talent Design Competition organized by the Sal­ vation Army in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council. Entrants in the competition were challenged to design an affordable 800-square-foot green home for an elderly client in the Broadmoor, New Orleans neighborhood. Elevating the stakes, the winners will only be announced after the top four entries have been con­ structed, inhabited and evaluated. The project requires that the students achieve Platinum LEED status with their design, Students collaborate in the IPD Studio (above), learning architecture, architectural engineering, construction management and landscape architecture skills in the process. engineer the structure to withstand hurri­ canes, consider Universal Design, and be ADA-accessible. This is exactly the kind of project that the IPD Studio has been committed to since its inception: real projects for real clients. While this project is “Small, Green, and Af­ fordable,” in fall quarter the project was green of a different type. The students were invited by the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden to design a 60,000-square-foot visitor’s center on a steep site with 1,200 parking spaces, all the while remaining sensitive to the core values of the gardens. Winter-quarter students focused on the renovation of an unreinforced masonry structure in San Luis Obispo: the old Sunny Acres Orphanage, which is the possible new home for the archives of the SLO His­ torical Society and Archaeological Society. “The requirement for every ARCE stu­ dent to have an interdisciplinary experi­ ence is a major change to the curriculum,” says Department Head Al Estes. “The Col­ lege has a rich history of bringing the ar­ chitecture, construction and ARCE disciplines together early in their academic careers, but this College is uniquely poised to bring the students back together for an upper-division, project-based, studio labo­ ratory experience in their senior year.” There are many practical constraints, pedagogical challenges and logistical con­ siderations to overcome in this course. Al, with faculty members Jill Nelson and Brent Nuttall, presented a paper on the topic in June at the American Society of Engineer­ ing Education conference in Louisville, Ky. There is an ongoing lively pedagogical debate surrounding the creation of a stu­ dio environment that has teaching objec­ tives beyond collaboration. “Each department’s students come into the course with different skills sets,” notes Jill Nelson. In addition, their department’s culture has molded the students’ expecta­ tions of a learning environment. “In ARCE we tend to have a large amount of direct in­ struction, whereas in other departments there is a focus on learning through student exploration. Melding the cultures while mentoring all the students in such a cre­ ative setting makes the course an exciting and fulfilling challenge.” There have been many interdiscipli­ nary successes at Cal Poly; however, in most cases, these are small enrollment elec­ tives benefitting only a few students. “The difference here is that we are bringing in­ terdisciplinary education to the masses,” states Al Estes. “Since there is no other college in the country that has architecture, construction and structural engineering in the same college, nobody else could do this – and it has been hard for us to do it.” Central to the course is the concept that at its conclusion all students will have an understanding of the needs, perspectives and constraints of the other disciplines. In addition, the students will have the basic skills to be successful and contributing members of a professional interdisciplinary team. James Mwangi, the latest ARCE faculty member to join the IPD team, al­ ready feels there is great potential, a feel­ ing reflected by his colleagues from the other disciplines. “For those who hire our graduates,” remarks Al Estes, “we hope this experience will result in fewer change orders, more value engineering in the design phase, in­ creased communication and less litigation. I want the Cal Poly ARCE grad to be even more productive on day one.” Students Anthony Stahl and Elise Noelle Thelander’s design rendering for the Sunny Acres Research Archive (above) ARCH ’99 alumnus Byron Wong (center) visits with IPD faculty members (from left): Greg Starzyk, Gary Clay, Margot McDonald and James Mwangi. WWW.ARCE.CALPOLY.EDU ? 7 Student Achievement Among those attending the rededication ceremony last fall were (below, from left): Chase Helgenberger, Brian Gottlieb Alex Barnes, Blake Roskelley, William Martin, Justin Porter, Ray Bligh and Don Morita Sticking Around Poly Canyon’s Stick Structure stands strong, thanks to ARCE students’ recent reinforcements T hirty-two years separate the stu­ dents but very little separates them in intent and commitment. In the fall of his senior year, Chase Helgenberger did what every ARCE student has done for over a half cen­ tury: deliberated about the topic for his senior project. Inspiration came in the form of a trip to Poly Canyon. There he was struck by the Stick Structure, originally designed and built by ARCE students as a senior project in 1977. The original intention of the structure was to serve as a life-sized structural stability model with elements that could be arranged and assembled in different configurations by future students. Unfor­ tunately, over 30 years of weather had taken a toll on the component parts. “I was struck by the original intention,” Chase recalls. “And I thought it would be incredible to restore it and be part of the Poly Canyon legacy.” His original dream quickly met reality, and Chase decided that a team approach would be the best solution, just as it had been with the original 1977 project. Soon after, ARCE seniors Alex Barnes, Blake Roskelley, Katie Blaesser and Justin Porter joined the effort, with help from ’09 ARCE student Lucas Hogan. The team’s senior project had high as­ pirations to completely renovate the struc­ ture using the same structural members, but with a new floor plan and lateral force resisting system. Part of the new design included the use of VERCO metal decking as shear walls and floor diaphragms. In addition to the building construc­ tion, the structure’s model frequencies were determined both experimentally through forced vibration testing and mod­ eling in ETABS and RISA. Additional sup­ port came from Hilti, which contributed technical assistance and product for the foundation and anchoring system. Team member Blake Roskelley says the experience can’t really be summed up neatly. “How can we describe all of the challenges and setbacks that we faced as a From left, Peter Zahn, Jim Bluse and Alex Barnes check out the structure. Students rose to the challenge of the labor-intensive senior project (below). team in the deconstruction, member prepa­ ration, design, foundation repair and con­ struction?” Lessons learned form another long list: “problem solving, crisis aversion, communication with retailers and industry partners, construction and even statics.” The project received a special conclu­ sion at a formal rededication ceremony on site in Poly Canyon on Oct. 23, 2009, ac­ companied by a student-hosted barbecue. During the ceremony, a dedication plaque was affixed to the structure in the presence of a number of the original project design­ ers: ARCE ’77 graduates Bill Martin, Brian Gottlieb, Don Morait and Michelle Pettit. A proud moment for the both teams and original faculty advisor Jake Feldman. Al Estes admits that senior projects continue to be a controversial curriculum topic among the faculty. “Every few years we get a project that is so magnificent that it begs to be recognized. And the students put in so much more effort than a threeunit course ever deserves; it turned into a labor of love.” He adds, “I can think of no other course in the curriculum where alumni will return 30 years after the fact to support the stu­ dents who are following in their footsteps.” Learn by doing lives on was the theme of that day! Student Achievement Bridge toto the the Future L os Angeles native Brian Planas credits his late father with his de­ cision to pursue engineering as a career. “My father was a structural steel detailer, so I was interested in architecture or engineering from the be­ ginning,” says Brian, before confessing to a time when he dreamed of being a musi­ cian. He is quick to add that his parents didn’t push him into his final decision. “Well, maybe they nudged a little,” he laughs, perfectly content with his choice to enroll in the Cal Poly ARCE program. Studying architectural engineering at Cal Poly was also a natural for Brian based on his father’s experience working with Cal Poly alumni. “They were his favorites,” Brian remembers. He coupled that recom- 10 ARCE ? SPRING 2010 Brian Planas looks beyond his senior year in ARCE to grad school mendation with research of his own and applied to Cal Poly as an early admission candidate, then crossed his fingers since he didn’t have a “back up” school. Now nearing the end of his time on campus, Brian has been busy as president of the SEAOC chapter and serving as resi­ dent caretaker in Poly Canyon. While he can’t say enough about SEAOC and the engagement of the chapter members (see article, page 16), life in Poly Canyon has also been a rewarding experience. “Amaz­ Brian Planas in Poly Canyon ing to live in a place that has so many memories for decades of students,” he says. Brian has come a long way from his first attempts to repair a roof leak with duct tape (which he claims as a success) and is work­ ing with five ARCE colleagues to structur­ ally rehabilitate the Bridge House (cover photo) as a senior project. They are still de­ fining the scope of the project but expect it to include installation of braces in the transverse direction of the building, repair to the foundation and restoration of inad­ equate welds. The group included time for analysis, which started this spring, with plans to continue their work throughout next year. Brian was also chair of the Trustees of the Architectural Engineering Student Fees Recognizing Excellence The ARCE Department’s annual awards event reflects the successes of our students and the generosity of our supporters. Award and scholarship recipients for 2009 are: Daniel L. Lazzerini ? ARCE Academic Excellence - MA Bing Y. Tsui ? ARCE Academic Excellence - BS Lucas S. Hogan ? ARCE Service Award Ryan R. Swenson ? Degenkolb Engineers Scholarship Brian A. Planas Emanuele Barelli Structural Engineering Scholarship Daniel J. Samson, Emily A. Carlip Englekirk & Sabol Engineers, Inc. Scholarships Alex L. Barnes, Katie E. Blaesser, Chase W. Helgenberger, Justin J. Porter, Blake A. Rosekelley CYS Eugene E. Cole Scholarship Sinhui E. Chang, Kenneth A. Singh Fluor Foundation Scholarships Brian is grill master at a SEAOC barbecue (above). Brian received the Emanuele Barelli Structural Engineering Scholarship in 2009, presented by Carolyn Barelli (on right). His mother, Adele Planas (in yellow), and Carolyn Barelli's daughter, Maria, added their congratulations. Jonathan N. Lund ? Forell/Elsesser Scholarship Lucas S. Hogan Fratessa Forbes Wong Senior Project Award Megan M. Stoner ? Hans Mager Scholarship Erica D. Jacobsen ? Herbert E. Collins Scholarship Alese M. Ashuckian John A. Martin & Associates Scholarship Brendan K. McNiff ? KNA Senior Project Scholarship David F. Wollin ? kpff Consulting Engineers Scholarship Jonas H. Houston ? Paul F. Fratessa Memorial Endowment Selinda A. Martinez ? RRM Design Group Scholarship Solomon C. Ives Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc. Scholarship Dago De La Rosa ? Simpson Strong-Tie Scholarship Lucas S. Hogan ? SEOASC Scholarship board, the student committee that recom­ mends how to spend the college based fees collected from students every quarter. Tak­ ing his responsibilities seriously, he was often beating on the department head’s door with creative recommendations for allocating these funds. In February, Brian attended the SEAOSC annual job fair and scholarship dinner and was awarded a $2000 SEAOSC scholarship – the highest value they award. Last year, Brian was the inaugural recipi­ ent of the Emanuele Barelli Structural En­ gineering Scholarship. With one year left before graduation Brian has his eye clearly on the future and plans to spend the summer in Europe ex­ ploring graduate school options. His short list of graduate schools includes prestigious institutions in England, Germany, Spain and Switzerland. Brian sees a European graduate school experience as a tie to his future as an engineer working on an inter­ national level. Serious side of the answer over, Brian smiles and adds, “plus I want to travel.” After the sudden death of his father last year Brian says life did change for him with an unexpected sense of jumping into an in­ dependent adulthood. He has certainly found his center and is ready to meet the next milestone of graduation. Offering ad­ vice to the next generation he says: take your time, enjoy yourself, challenge your­ self, and take advantage of every opportu­ nity that the college experience gives you. Bing Y. Tsui and Dean R. Thomas Jones WWW.ARCE.CALPOLY.EDU ? 11 Student Achievement Students (from left) Blake Roskelley, Lisa Aukeman and Margaux Burkholder collaborate on a project. Masters at Work Grad students put their all into projects, with the ultimate goal of earning their master’s degrees E “ xceeding our expectations,” is how Department Head Al Estes charac­ terizes the nascent master’s pro­ gram in architectural engineering at Cal Poly. Pleased with the cali­ ber of students who have joined the pro­ gram, Al is also pleased that the original focus of the program has been maintained. “The idea from the beginning was to build on Cal Poly’s strengths,” he says. That strength is real-world industry focus. Building partnerships between the stu­ dents and industry partners has evolved more quickly than the department could have hoped and has been an important development in strengthening the program. Students in the blended program transition from undergraduate to graduate in the spring when they enroll in a Research 12 ARCE ? SPRING 2010 Methods class. At the same time, they de­ velop a project topic and hopefully connect with an industry partner. Graduate pro­ gram director Kevin Dong says the tie to industry is critical for most projects. “We hope they can spend the first sum­ mer of graduate school interning with their industry partner,” says Kevin. This benefits the projects in multiple ways: students fine-tune their ideas or find a new one. “There are so many offices that have a specific problem that they wish they had time to research and develop, but the con­ straints of other project deadlines prohibit it,” adds Kevin. “Our students can often take on one of these exciting problems and develop a solution.” He estimates that onethird of the current group of students have industry partnerships. To this, Al Estes adds his thanks for their support. “They give of their time and expertise, which are finite resources,” says Al. He hopes that by adding the master’s degree, Cal Poly ARCE is also responding to the changing demands of the profession. “The master’s program has attracted the in­ terest of some highly technical structural firms that traditionally hire only at the master’s degree level.” Current master’s student Erica Jacobsen thinks this is very true. “So many of the firms I hope to work for require a master’s degree, so it was a natural decision.” Erica’s project and partnership formed naturally out of her internship with Degenkolb. Although she didn’t have a project in mind, she was focused on the idea of seismic retrofits. Faculty advisor Graham Archer suggested a forced vibra­ tion test on a building prior to and after a retrofit to try to detect the change through testing. Her colleagues at Degenkolb then suggested an actual project to test. Erica can’t say enough about her Degenkolb experience. “I started work for them after I won their scholarship, which included an internship.” Lisa Aukeman has a similar story. Hired by Degenkolb-Oakland after the Structural Forum in her senior year, she discovered her thesis topic with their help. “The principals brainstormed with me and explained why this particular topic affected what they did.” In the end, the most attractive part of the project for Lisa was how closely related it is to an issue in industry and that “a lot of people might be interested in my results when I’m done.” David Carmona has a slightly different variety of industry partner. “I read an article discussing sustainability published by the Structural Engineering Association of Northern California (SEAONC) Sus­ tainability Committee, and my advisor, Jill Nelson, suggested I contact the author.” The co-chairs of the sustainability com­ mittee, Erik Kneer and Lindsey Maclise, then suggested a project topic, and David was ready to develop a life-cycle and sustainability analysis of upgrading the structural design of a building from life safety to immediate occupancy. While his advisors are with prestigious engineering firms (Degenkolb and Forell/ Elsesser, respectively) he likes that his part­ nership is rooted in SEAONC. Looking to the future, Kevin Dong believes that more and more industry partners will come on board, helping the program elevate the project outcomes year after year. “This is a case where everyone wins. The student gets a master’s degree; the industry completes a project that might otherwise not get done; and the ARCE pro­ gram strengthens its partnership with the industry it serves.” Amy Ransom (above) tests gabion wall samples on the shake table in the Seismic Lab as part of her thesis project to investigate their use for structures in under­ developed countries. Erica Jacobsen’s project (left) uses micro-accelerometers and forced vibrations to investigate the dynamic characteristics of buildings. WWW.ARCE.CALPOLY.EDU ? 13 Student Achievement Test of Skill ARCE students present their projects at design and construction competitions nationwide T o say ARCE senior Emily Carlip is a fan of student competitions would be an understatement. She won last year’s Architecture Engi­ neering Institute (AEI) student competition with her essay proposing an annual student competition. This year, when the AEI announced the first annual ACSE Charles Pankow Foundation AEI Student Competition, she was “surprised and delighted.” And she knew she had to be a competitor. The 2010 competition theme was the design and construction management of the engineered aspects of a building project. Specifically, a new medical clinic located to support an underserved commu­ nity within an existing structure on an ur­ ban infill site in Tulsa, Okla. Adding to the challenge, students were required to design the space to function as a tornado shelter and triage center after severe weather events. Teams could enter in structural, integrated construction, mechanical and electrical design categories, all highlighting the talents of architectural engineering stu­ dents across the nation. Once she decided to enter, Emily next realized that she wanted to “work with an interdisciplinary team to holistically consider how our project could benefit a community.” ARCE senior Grace Rose had been with Emily the previous year in Denver when her essay won, and they knew they would be partners on this next project. They were pleased to be A team of architectural and civil engineering students designed and built a 1/72-scale building from balsa wood (left) for the EERI Seismic Design Competition. 14 ARCE ? SPRING 2010 joined by architecture major Peter Trettl and mechanical engineering major David Denio, with ARCE Professor Jim Guthrie as their advisor. As finalists, the team traveled to Kansas City, Mo. to present at the second AEI National Student Conference. There they presented integrated structural, construc­ tion, mechanical and electrical designs. The Cal Poly team placed second in the structural systems category and third in the building integration category. Although appreciative of the recognition, both Emily and Grace hope this spurs future genera­ tions of students to enter and win! While the nature of a competition was appealing, Emily was also interested in the structural implications of designing for a high-winds natural disaster area and com­ parisons to California seismic standards. For Grace, the competition was a per­ fect fit for a senior project. She wanted to not only expand her education beyond the ARCE curriculum but have the chance to work with an interdisciplinary team. A great benefit, she felt, was the ability to “ex­ plore the impact of our individual disci­ plines on each other’s design.” Cal Poly also sent a team to the seventh annual Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) Seismic Design Competi­ tion, held this year in San Francisco. The Cal Poly team designed and built a 1/72-scale, 50-story building from balsa wood. Mathematical models of the build­ ing were also created using structural analysis software (both ETABS and MatLab) and were subjected to a number of different earthquake ground motions. The team presented their designs to a panel of judges drawn from industry, and then the scale models were subjected to Emily Carlip (right) and Grace Rose received honors for their project (above) at the second AEI National Student Conference i