Timber Education Workshop
Timber Education Workshop
at Cal Poly Pomona, CA
October 17 - 19, 2024
(Registration for this event has closed)
Overview
Timber education is either non-existent or limited in approximately 50% of undergraduate Civil Engineering programs. The graduate level courses in timber engineering are non-existent and a limited number of academics are involved in wood-related research. The advances in use of wood as structural material for high-rise and long-span construction during the last decades make wood education an important part of Civil Engineering education. The Cal Poly Timber Education Workshop is dedicated to helping university faculty interested in teaching Timber Design to champion this subject matter in their university program by providing tools and sharing resources by the faculty that have been teaching this subject for decades.
The two-day program begins with an overview of the undergraduate and graduate course options that have been successfully taught at Cal Poly Pomona over four decades and available educational materials, including a book that is used in almost every course in wood design; first written by Donald E. Breyer, Cal Poly Professor Emeritus and now 8th edition with co-authors: Donald E. Breyer, P.E., Kelly E. Cobeen, S.E., and Zeno Martin, S.E. The workshop is led by faculty from California State Polytechnic University, with decades of teaching undergraduate, graduate engineering, and interdisciplinary courses in Timber Design.
Location and Format
The workshop will be held at the Kellogg West Conference Center Cal Poly Pomona, CA. The two-day program will include tours, lectures, and hands-on activities. The first day will be dedicated to field trips, material basics, overview of wood educational options in undergraduate and graduate programs, and research opportunities in wood. The emphasis will be on light-frame wood construction and the use of a Timber Design course to expose students to fundamental concepts of structural engineering design not usually taught in other design courses. The second day’s discussions will focus on the content of the Timber Design course with a detailed plan of weekly lectures, student activities, and assessment. This workshop is all-inclusive for participants. Travel expenses, lodging, and meals are funded through a sponsorship from the Softwood Lumber Board and U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities.
Agenda
(Schedule may be adjusted as needed)
16:00 – 22:00 Participants arrive and Hotel Check-In
07:30 – 08:00 Breakfast
08:00 – 09:30 Introductions. From Forest to Buildings (Edie Sonne Hall, TDI)
09:30 – 12:30 Field Trips (TBD)
12:30 – 13:15 Lunch
13:!5 – 14:30 Teaching undergraduate, graduate civil engineering programs (Mikhail Gershfeld, Judith Sheine)
14:30 – 15:45 Research opportunities in wood design and construction (Andre Barbosa, PhD, Weichiang Pang, PhD)
15:45 – 16:00 Break
16:00 – 17:00 Teaching wood design courses in undergraduate programs and opportunities to introduce basic principles of structural engineering design
08:00 – 08:30 Breakfast
08:30 – 10:00 Timber design (light-wood frame and mass timber construction). In-depth discussion and example of structuring light frame wood construction design course (Mikhail Gershfeld)
10:00 – 12:00 In-depth discussion of design exercises and assessments
12:00 – 13:00 Lunch
13:00 – 13:45 In-depth discussion of design exercises and assessments
13:45 – 15:15 Hands-on team exercise to develop your own course structural and syllabus
15:15 – 17:00 Presenting proposed course syllabus
07:00 – 12:00 Participants depart
Target Audience
This workshop is designed for pre-tenured civil engineering faculty in college and university departments interested in offering timber design courses as part of their program elective or required courses or considering wood-related research opportunities. All participants will be civil engineering faculty with a structural engineering interest. Through the workshop activities, participants will develop an understanding of the value of offering a timber engineering course and the approaches available for its successful implementation.
The workshop will host up to 20 participants. A wait list will be used if applications exceed spaces.
Expertise
Primary Instructor
Mikhail Gershfeld, S.E., Practice Professor Civil Engineering Department Cal Poly Pomona University, former student of Donald E. Breyer, with over four decades in structural consulting, manufacturing, and academia. Gershfeld is a licensed structural engineer in California, Senior Advisor for the TallWood Design Institute, Advisory Board Member of Joint Institute for Wood Product Innovation (JIWPI) (Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, Department of Natural Resources, State of California), and a Board Member of the Structural Engineers Association of Southern California. He is an engineer of record for over 750 institutional, commercial, and industrial buildings in Southern California (city halls, schools, hospitals, churches, shopping centers, banks, etc.). He has taught structural design courses in Cal Poly Civil Engineering graduate and undergraduate programs for over two decades.
Guest Speakers and Facilitators Include:
- Judith Sheine, Director of Design, TallWood Design Institute, former Department Chair of Architectural Department of Cal Poly Pomona and University of Oregon
- Weichiang Pang, PhD, Professor Clemson University
- Andre Barbosa, PhD, Professor Oregon State University
- Iain Macdonald, Director, TallWood Design Institute
- Edie Sonne Hall, PhD, Forester
Learning Objectives
Attendees will develop a basic understanding of:
- Light frame and mass timber construction
- The variety of offerings related to wood design currently taught in undergraduate and graduate programs
- Available wood-related research opportunities
- How design of wood structures can be used to teach fundamental structural design principles often not taught in other materials courses
- The state of mass timber construction in the U.S. today and sustainable forest management practices used in the U.S.
Apply Here
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Registration for this event has closed.
