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January e.Geo

 

January 2019




In this issue:

  1. Loss Prevention Seminars: REGISTER NOW
  2. Tower of Power
  3. Outstanding Project Awards - DEADLINE JAN. 30th
  4. Conference Speaker Spotlight: Barry Thacker & the Coal Creek Watershed
  5. Conference Update: Bring an EP & save $250!
  6. February Regional Dinner Meetings: Haywired Scenario
  7. Rocscience 2-day seminar in San Francisco
  8. New members, welcome!
  9. The e.Calendar & upcoming events

Loss Prevention Seminars: REGISTER NOW

Early-bird registration extended until January 4th. Only $130 for members - REGISTER NOW!

Our Loss Prevention Seminars are geared towards field technicians of all experience levels, staff engineers and staff geologists. These seminars will educate your staff and help them to do a better job in the field and therefore reduce the risk of mistakes and losses. That in turn, reduces liability and risk on every project.

Attendees will earn valuable Professional Development Hours (PDH) or CEU credits without losing time at the office. The Saturday morning course includes a full breakfast and 4-hours of practical training and skill development for technical and field personnel. Only held once-a-year and not to be missed!

These seminars are designed for:

  • Field staff
  • New hires
  • Inspectors
  • Technicians
  • Anyone interested in brushing up on their safety, liability, and knowledge of new technology.

Each seminar provides 4 PDH/CEU's! Click the links on the date above for more information on the speakers and topics.

**Hotel Locations have changed this year**

January 26: Southern California - Courtyard Marriott, Santa Ana (still off the 55 but one exit down @ MacArthur)

February 9: Northern California - Hilton Garden Inn, Fairfield

Program:

7:30am Breakfast & Registration

8:00am Introduction & Welcome

Session 1: Rammed Aggregate Pier Installation & Quality Control, Aaron Bishop or Adam Killinger, Western Ground Improvement/GeoPier

This presentation will focus on the quality control aspects of rammed aggregate piers.  Theory and application will be discussed for context.

Session 2: Pre-Task Planning, Matt Boos, Terracon

Pre-Task Planning is the process of examining all hazards prior to starting work.   These usually start with a Job Hazard Analysis or Job Safety Analysis or Tool Box Talk, I apply the common sense approach so that everyone is a participant in the review and is encouraged to say something if they see something.

It centers around active listening and situational awareness.  Everyone brings something to the table and shares. 

Session 3: Communication in the Construction Environment, Eric Swenson, Geo-Engineering Solutions

Session 4: Expert witness & case histories on liability, Gary Jacobsen or

12:00pm Conclusion, survey collection and PDH/CEU certificates

Cost:

$150 Members ($130 until Jan.4th)   $225 Non-Members

Seminar includes: full breakfast (extra bacon will be available!) and parking at the hotel.

Sponsorships still available! Click the date above to register and select "Sponsor"

Sponsorship includes opportunity to speak to attendees for 5-10mins about your product or service and a table-top exhibit booth at the event. Also includes logo placement and advertisement in all e.Geo announcements and marketing materials.


Tower of Power

Malcolm Drilling, one of our new Affiliate members is busy at work in San Francisco this past month.

Trinity Place is a large, four-tower residential development in downtown San Francisco, with three towers completed and the fourth and final tower well-underway. Malcolm installed the basement foundation for Tower 3, and is now hard at work on the basement foundation for Tower 4, including an excavation that will reach 67 feet and has 6 basement levels with internal bracing! To learn more about this exciting project, visit Malcolm's project page or contact Adam Hinton.


Outstanding Project Awards - DEADLINE Jan. 30th!

You've put in all the hard work this year completing an amazing project - why not submit it for CalGeo's Outstanding Project Award. Members and non-members are invited to apply under a wide range of categories including:

Large, Medium & Small budget, Private Projects

Large, Medium & Small budget, Public Projects

Each year at our Annual Conference, CalGeo puts the spotlight on the best geotechnical projects in the state with our Outstanding Project Awards. A panel of peers selects the year's finest work in a number of categories, providing winners with a powerful new marketing message, and everyone with the opportunity to learn from exciting, innovative approaches to challenging situations.

If you win...

  • Receive a beautiful award to display prominently in your office
  • Present your project to the CalGeo conference attendees during the awards luncheon
  • Recognition and an article in the e.Geo in late spring/early summer
  • Marketing opportunity about your award for your website, social media, newsletters and clients

Mark Your Calendars

The 2019 CalGeo Annual Conference will be held April 10-12, 2019 at the Kona Kai Resort on Shelter Island, San Diego, CA. The Outstanding Project Awards luncheon will take place the final afternoon, Friday April 12, 2019.

Easy submittal on-line

Download the entry forms below. The deadline for Outstanding Project Award Entries is January 30, 2019. A fee of $100/members and $300/non-members is required for each entry. Firms/individuals may submit multiple entries but will only be awarded a maximum of one award.

SUBMIT APPLICATION ON-LINE

DOWNLOAD SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

*Please note: Our application form & fee payment is available online at the link above. You may still submit a paper copy application if you wish with a check payment by downloading the PDF (Submission requirements).


Conference Speaker Spotlight: Barry Thacker

CalGeo is excited to host Barry Thacker as a speaker at this year's conference in San Diego on Friday afternoon, April 12.

Barry Thacker is a principal engineer with Schnabel Engineering in Knoxville, TN. He is the founder of the Coal Creek Watershed Foundation, a not-for-profit watershed restoration group. He frequently speaks to engineering groups about giving back to their communities and embraces his theatrical side by portraying famous engineers from history.

Check out this news article and video by CBS 10 news, Jim Matheny (WBIR):

"You may hear the name "Coal Creek Watershed Foundation" and wonder what in the world the non-profit group has to do with helping students in Briceville become doctors, therapists, or graphic designers.

The simple answer is Barry Thacker and Carol Moore.  The duo from Schnabel Engineering worked on a project to improve water quality in the area decades ago, but soon poured their hearts into the community itself.

In 2000, Thacker and Moore decided to create a scholarship program to help students from Briceville go to college. The idea was met by skepticism from some county leaders.

Since the start of the program, the Coal Creek Watershed Foundation has awarded $520,000 worth of college scholarships to students who attended Briceville Elementary School.  The students who accept the $10,000 scholarship are merely required to return to the elementary school and tell the children they can do it, too."

Learn more about the Coal Creek Watershed foundation and how you can give-back to your community at our Annual Conference April 10-12, 2019 where Barry Thacker will be a presenter.

Not just a job, but an adventure!

What can geo-professionals do to be recognized as leaders in their communities?  Try teaching history in K-12 classrooms by portraying a legend of the geoprofession as a living historian who made that history.  This presentation will illustrate how it's done.  In the process, you might learn that decision makers—potential client representatives, elected officials, and government leaders—share your passion for improving education in your community.   


Conference Update: Bring an EP, save $250

To encourage more companies to send younger emerging professionals to events that will increase their technical and overall industry knowledge, we are introducing a new program for our conference in 2019.

Register one attendee at full price and bring an EP to save $250!

Here's how it works: Register at least one attendee from your company at full price ($900 until Feb. 10th) and you can bring an emerging professional (EP) from your company for only $650 - you SAVE $250 off their registration! And you invest in the future of your firm by showing commitment to their personal growth and leadership training.

Step 1: Register someone from your firm for the conference

Step 2: Select "Register Linked Profile" or "Register Guest" to add an additional registrant.

Step 3: Select "Add an EP" in the registration field.

Download our Conference Brochure to get all the details on topics and speakers! Keep your eyes on your mail as we'll be sending out conference flyers and postcards shortly. Please distribute these around your office to make sure everyone is "in the know".

Thinking of attending our Annual Conference April 10-12, 2019? Here are a couple reasons why you shouldn't miss it:

 

  • Great hotel and location - make it a getaway! No more Saturday sessions lets you enjoy San Diego for the weekend.
  • Everything's included: 2 Breakfasts, 2 Lunches, 2 Reception style dinners and 1 Banquet dinner. We don't nickle and dime you for tickets to everything.
  • We're growing: Out membership is growing and so is attendance at our events.
  • Quality key-note speakers: We are bringing in knowledgeable speakers to cover the topics California's Geotechnical Engineers want. All speakers get an hour to dive deeper into their topic.
  • Mix and mingle: Enjoy great food and drinks and network with suppliers, peers and students. Groom your new hires from our talented student chapter attendees. Plus we're a fun group!
  • Short courses: Send some staff members to the short courses April 9th and 10th to invest in their knowledge and training. Or attend them yourself and make the trip worth your time and money. Limited space: THESE WILL SELL OUT!

Don't forget to submit your project for our Outstanding Project Awards and get recognized by your peers - not to mention a cool award to display in your office.

Sponsorships available!

Important Dates:

REGISTRATION OPEN: Click here to register

January 31, 2019: Deadline to submit application for our Outstanding Project Award - more details coming soon!

February 10, 2019: Early-bird registration deadline - savings on short courses and registration!

March 18, 2018: Deadline to book your hotel room at the Kona Kai Resort. Late registration fees for conference go into effect.

Download our Conference Brochure to get all the details on topics and speakers!


February Regional Dinner Meetings: Haywired Scenario

Please join us for a large, fun group meeting in partnership with AEG:

Monday Feb. 11, 2019: SoCal Meeting, Kellogg Conference Center, Cal Poly Pomona

Tuesday Feb. 12, 2019: NorCal Meeting, Scott's Seafood, Oakland

We are bringing out Keith Porter from the University of Colorado at Boulder so you can hear about the HayWired scenario from the lead engineer himself. Don't miss this opportunity!

The U.S. Geological Survey’s HayWired earthquake planning scenario examines the earth-science, engineering, and social-science outcomes of a hypothetical moment-magnitude (Mw) 7 earthquake on the Hayward Fault near San Francisco. It presumes mainshock shaking using recent broadband simulation, but adds substantially to common practice. HayWired includes an epidemic-type aftershock sequence, coseismic slip and afterslip, landslide simulation from the California Geological Survey, and liquefaction from the US Geological Survey. To this broad and rich earth-science scenario, engineers added new fundamental research into earthquake effects on the built environment, including water supply recovery, building collapse, urban search and rescue, life-safety benefits of earthquake early warning, building-code performance, and public preferences for new buildings. Researchers performed a standard Hazus analysis using a new building inventory and considering aftershocks, quantified losses from fire following earthquake, and applied performance-based earthquake engineering to examine highrise buildings. A coalition of regional stakeholders is using HayWired to help businesses and individuals prepare for a large metropolitan earthquake and to outsmart disaster.

Dr. Keith Porter is a research professor at the University of Colorado Boulder and principal of the risk consulting company SPA Risk LLC. He has 30 years of professional and research experience addressing natural-hazard risk management and structural design. He led the engineering treatment of the US Geological Survey's HayWired, ShakeOut, ARkStorm, and SAFRR Tsunami disaster planning scenarios. He leads the new Natural Hazard Mitigation Saves benefit-cost analyses of code adoption, above-code design, and retrofit of buildings and lifelines. Other activities: the San Francisco Community Action Plan for Seismic Safety, the CUREE-Caltech Woodframe Project, PEER and FEMA P-58 performance-based earthquake engineering, the Global Earthquake Model, and the Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast Version 3 Time-Dependent model. Dr. Porter is a licensed California Professional Engineer, with civil and structural engineering degrees from UC Davis, UC Berkeley, and Stanford University.

For more information on both regional meetings, click the date links below:

Monday Feb. 11, 2019: SoCal Meeting, Kellogg Conference Center, Cal Poly Pomona

Tuesday Feb. 12, 2019: NorCal Meeting, Scott's Seafood, Oakland


Rocscience 2-Day Short Course in San Francisco

Rocscience has an upcoming technical course that will help you become more familiar with our finite element software tools - RS2 and RS3. This course will enhance your expertise through a balanced mixture of lectures and computer demonstrations using practical examples collected over the years. Check out the complete course outline.

Registration Cost: USD$1,350/person
Special Early Bird Offer: USD$1,250/person (deadline: January 15, 2019)
*Rocscience Maintenance Plan subscribers receive a 10% discount on registration fees.

Register HERE


Welcome CalGeo's Newest Members

Our new membership campaign has kicked off and we're getting lots of inquiries. Please refer a colleague today to get your $300 conference discount, starbucks card and free CalGeo polo shirt!

Please welcome our newest organizational member:  

  


The e.Calendar & Upcoming Events - The Geo-Calendar

Please note: There will be no November Emerging Professional Meeting due to Thanksgiving

Quick Browse: SoCal events in ORANGE, NorCal events in GREEN

Jan. 26, 2019: SoCal Loss Prevention Seminar - get your technician & field staff trained and earn CEU's, Santa Ana

Jan. 30, 2019: Deadline for Outstanding Project Award Submittal

Feb. 9, 2019: NorCal Loss Prevention Seminar, Fairfield

Feb. 10, 2019: Deadline for early-bird registration for CalGeo's Annual Conference

Feb. 11, 2019: SoCal Regional Dinner Meeting w/AEG: Haywired Earthquake Planning Scenario, Pomona

Feb. 12, 2019: NorCal Regional Dinner Meeting w/AEG & ASCE-GI: Haywired Earthquake Planning Scenario, Oakland

Feb. 22, 2019: Ray Taber Foundation Annual Drill Seminar, Taber Ranch, Capay Valley (Presented by the Ray Taber Foundation, AEG & CalGeo)