Analyzing hazards in combination reduces the cost of protecting infrastructure and promises improved safety. Weidlinger principals spoke at a symposium that considered new methods of addressing the multiple threats of blast, earthquake, wind, flood, and wave surge.

NEW YORK – Weidlinger principals Dr. Mohammed Ettouney and Dr. Stephanie King presented papers at a symposium on "Emerging Developments in Multi-hazard Engineering," jointly organized by the Architecture Engineering Institute (AEI) and the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER), in cooperation with the Steel Institute of New York. The symposium took place at the McGraw-Hill Conference Center in New York City on September 18, 2007. Weidlinger is well known for its pioneering analysis and design of structures resistant to the multiple threats under consideration. As past president and current member of AEI’s Board of Governors, Dr. Ettouney has been active in focusing attention on a more holistic approach to these hazards. He is co-chairman of the symposium, which addressed various aspects of engineering such as risk, reliability, design, analysis, cost-benefit, life-cycle costs, and structural health monitoring from a multi-hazard point of view.

Changing weather patterns and terrorism have underscored the importance of protecting infrastructure against deterioration and extreme events. The emergence and increasing popularity of the new field of multi-hazard engineering is understandable in this context but it is also based on practical considerations. Addressing the effects of multiple hazards independently is actually less efficient and more costly and can cause unintended reductions in safety and security, as interventions are often competitive or inconsistent. "Much work remains to be done to develop the quantitative and integrated methods required for widespread implementation of solutions to multi-hazard problems that meet the ultimate goal of reducing costs while maintaining, or improving, safety and security," stated Dr. Ettouney. The symposium represents a milestone effort by the built environment profession to forge ahead in this task, taking advantage of new design philosophies and technologies as well as recent developments and innovations in computing, analytical design, and sensing technologies.

Dr. Ettouney, who discussed the “Theory of Multi-Hazards: A Quantification Procedure in the Process,” is one of the leading authorities in the emerging field of multi-hazard engineering. He has more than 38 years of experience in conventional structural engineering and hazard-related disciplines, including earthquake engineering, blast engineering, vibration and acoustic mitigation, soil mechanics and dynamics, and structural health engineering. He has published more than 275 papers on these subjects and is currently co-authoring books on building security and on the structural health of infrastructure. Dr. Ettouney was one of the writers of the first NYC-specific seismic design code (1995), and is on the steering committee for development of a second-generation performance-based seismic design code (ATC-58), under FEMA sponsorship. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Building Security Council and recently published a new theory of progressive collapse and co-developed a general and special theory of experimentation.

Dr. Stephanie King, Weidlinger Associate Principal, discussed a “Framework for Risk Assessment of Infrastructure in a Multi-Hazard Environment. ” Dr. King was one of the first developers of a method for quantifying terrorism risk to bridges, tunnels, and other critical infrastructure. She is the former Associate Director of the Earthquake Engineering Center at Stanford University and the author of more than 60 publications. She provides expertise on risk-related issues for several research, standards, and code committees. As Weidlinger’s Director of Risk Analysis, Dr. King has worked with many public agencies to quantify threats to existing infrastructure from man-made, accidental, and natural hazards and to develop performance-based design criteria for new facilities. Her work is focused on the cost-benefit trade-offs that are required for rational decision-making by authorities with finite resources.

Headquartered at the University at Buffalo, the State University of New York, MCEER was originally established by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 1986 as the first National Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (NCEER). It became known as the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER) in 1998, as its original focus on earthquake engineering was broadened to include a variety of hazards, both natural and human-made, and their effects on critical infrastructure, facilities, and society. The American Society of Civil Engineers’ (ASCE’s) Architectural Engineering Institute (AEI) is a national forum for the structural, mechanical, electrical, and architectural engineering communities. It is the only professional group that brings architects and engineers together to consider technical, educational, scientific, and professional issues unique to the civil engineering industry.