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2018 Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards

New Buildings Under $5 Million

Outstanding Project Award

Smith Residence
Palmer Engineering Company
 
Smith Residence is a 5000 SF, 2-story residential project located in Dawsonville GA. The building consists of Structural Concrete Insulation Panel (SCIP) System for walls and roof, conventional concrete metal deck with cold-formed joist for floor, metal grating system with supporting steel tube members for catwalk/loft level. The exterior canopy roofs were supported using open-web joist with steel tube beam and column system.  SCIP system is a 40-year-old technology in Europe and Latin America and recently gaining in popularity in the USA. A SCIP is a lightweight panel of expanded polystyrene (EPS) core sandwiched between two layers of shotcrete reinforced with galvanized steel welded wire mesh. Panels are tied together to form walls and roof of the building. 

Merit Award




Sweet Hut - Bakery and Cafe


Palmer Engineering Company














New Buildings $5 Million - $25 MILLION


Outstanding Project Award





Augusta University Connector


KSi/Structural Engineers


 


Augusta University Connector building consists of 3 story structure with approximately 30,770 square feet of private offices, collaboration spaces, conference rooms and administrative open work stations.  The Connector building is includes steel construction that spans over existing Laney Walker Boulevard connecting two existing buildings – Cancer Clinic Building (AN Building) and Cancer Research Building (CN Building). A two-story clear height was required above the roadway and the Connector could be supported only at the two points on each side of the roadway. The structure includes steel Vierendeel trusses in East-West direction along two column lines which serve as a primary support for gravity and lateral loads in addition to tabletop trusses at the third floor. The Connector is supported on four 9-foot diameter drilled shafts which support angled strut columns.




Merit Award










YANMAR Evo Center


PES Structural Engineers 










New Buildings OVER $25 MILLION


Outstanding Project Award




SunTrust Park


Walter P Moore



In November 2013, the Atlanta Braves unveiled an ambitious vision to build a new sports entertainment district in Cobb County, anchored by their new ballpark, in just over three years. Such a development had never been designed and built in such a short amount of time. The design team founded their approach on the innovative concepts of parametric modeling to deliver the incredibly complicated project within budget and in record time. Parametric modeling demonstrates the power and importance of technology and digital workflow in an ever-demanding environment of new building design and construction, and suggests a turning point in the engineering of complex structures. 




Merit Award




NCR Headquarters


Uzun+Case
















FORENSIC/RENOVATION/RETROFIT/REHABILITATION STRUCTURES


Outstanding Project Award




Carter Hall at Covenant College


Uzun+Case





The 130,000 ft2 Carter Hall building at Covenant College was built in 1928 and features a 118 ft. cast-in-place concrete tower. Over the years, the building closed and opened multiple timed and fell into disrepair before being purchased by Covenant College. Evaluation of the structure detailed significant freeze-thaw damage and deficient structural framing and slabs. To return the character of the tower to the original design, 270,000 pounds of crenelated precast panels were utilized. Strength and serviceability concerns were addressed with appropriate modification and repair details and were designed judiciously to achieve an efficient design. Due to the building’s remote location, coordination with the construction team was crucial to minimize the cost of the project to the owner, and every effort was made to reuse or repurpose the existing materials used in the building’s original construction. In the end, the college was able to successfully restore the character of this historic building, while meeting the needs of a thriving campus.




Merit Award




Fox Theatre Renovation


Bennett & Pless























Other structures


Outstanding Project Award




Montgomery Highline Trace at Fernbank Museum


Uzun+Case



The Fernbank Walkway project presented several design challenges.  From the outset, the goal of the project was to create a new structure that blended into the natural environment with minimal impact on the surrounding trees.  This goal was achieved both during and after construction.  An innovative foundation design allowed for small pipe piles to be driven into the ground while avoiding the critical root system of the surrounding trees.  The serpentine shape of the walkway was addressed through the use of a steel tube spine that could be shaped to follow the walkway profile.  This tube was used to distribute forces between multiple supports, providing the required flexibility in foundation placement.  The tall pod structures were created through a series of cantilevered steel tubes which replicate the configurations of plants which exist on the site. 


Merit Award




Mercedes-Benz Stadium Video Halo Board 


HOK














Individual Achievement Award




Rex Pless, M.Sc., P.E. 




Bennett & Pless

Rex Pless started his career as a structural engineer at Eastern Engineering and moonlighted for Moe Bennett until 1967 when Moe invited him to be his partner and they changed the name of the firm to Bennett & Pless. Together, they built one of the most prominent structural engineering firms in Atlanta. Last year, Rex celebrated his 50th anniversary with the firm. Rex understood that being a highly regarded structural engineer doesn’t just mean being respected for your individual technical skills, but involves giving back to our technical community. He has been involved as the Chairman of the Interprofessional Committee of ACEC; 8 years as an Officer of the Consulting Engineers Council of Georgia; and one of his most important roles over a 10 year period being involved and eventually Chair of the Structural Committee for the Georgia State Building Code Advisory Committee. His generous volunteer efforts on these technical associations has helped shape the Georgia engineering community.


Rex also helped shape the Georgia skyline, with iconic structures he designed like Colony Square in Midtown, the Monarch Buildings in Buckhead and the Galleria Towers in Cobb County, to name a few. He has been the engineer of record on the Fox Theatre for the past 20 years and fittingly one of his last structural achievements is the current $10M renovation that is set to open next month, where his depth of experience proved vital to achieving the owner’s vision on this historic structure. Rex also has designed numerous structures around the country and internationally from hotels in California to 40 story twin tower office buildings by Portman in Detroit and his favorite project being the complex design behind the Ritz Carlton in the Grand Cayman Islands.


Lastly, it is important to note that Rex is a true southern gentleman. He is a quiet, kind, generous man of integrity always seeking to help others. His level of professionalism and ethical behavior should be an aspirational objective for all of us in the profession. He is truly deserving of receiving this prestigious award from the Structural Engineering profession to celebrate the impact he has had on the Georgia engineering community over the past 50 years.


















eSe Awards Jury


The selection of award recipients is made by a distinguished Awards Jury, consisting of leaders in the design, construction and academic communities in Georgia. 


            

               
       


Mark B. Hultz, AIA


Mark Hults received a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Southern Methodist University and a Masters Degree in Architecture from the University of Texas at Arlington. He joined HKS, Inc. in 1984 and as a principal, supports the leadership of their Atlanta office. The primary focus of his experience has been with high rise buildings but includes education facilities, correctional institutions, sports stadiums, residential mixed-use developments and government facilities. Mark’s expertise in project management on complex, multi-firm projects has evolved through projects such as First Bank Place in Minneapolis, a 58-story 1.7 million square foot office building with I.M. Pei, to High Street in Atlanta, a 2.1 million square foot residential mixed-use project with Elkus Manfredi Architects. One of the most intriguing projects of his career was the National Archives and Records Administration building in St. Louis. This 506,000 square foot facility, completed in 2010, houses the personnel records of all branches of the nation’s armed services and required a blend of aesthetic design with rigid temperature and humidity controls as well as security provisions to meet the required federal standards. 






Gary Martin, PE


Gary Martin is a Project Engineer for the Southern Company Generation in Atlanta. Gary has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering Technology (Structures Option) from Southern Tech and a Bachelor of Civil Engineering from Georgia Tech. Prior to joining the Southern Company in 2002, Gary worked for Law Engineering where he was involved in Forensic Engineering and structural evaluations of existing facilities and structures. Over his career, Gary has gained a wide range of design experience having worked for various A/E and Structural Engineering firms. 


He is an experienced Structural engineer with over 31 years of design experience and background in the structural analysis and design of a variety of building structure types, including Aviation Maintenance Facilities, Military Facilities, Power Generation plants, Commercial/Retail, Sports Facilities/Stadiums, Correctional Facilities, Warehouse Facilities (Tilt-Up), and industrial facilities. He is a Registered Professional Engineer in the Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. He is also a member of AISC, ACI, ASCE, and SEAOG.


Gary is currently a Project Engineer with responsibility of overseeing the design and implementation of environmental controls for Power Plants. 


               

            

            
            

               




Hiral Patel, PE


Hiral is Director of the Engineering Division for the Georgia Department of Transportation, a position she appointed in November, 2015.  In 23 plus years at GDOT, She has served in a variety of leadership roles area engineer; assistant office head in the Office of Program Delivery; and State Environmental Administrator.  Hiral is a registered professional engineer.


Hiral has extensive experience in construction & project management. During her time at the Office of Environmental Services, Hiral developed and implemented various policies and procedures to ensure on time and quality environmental documents.  This includes developing strategic approaches to improve performance at all levels and enhance communication within the department and external agencies.


Hiral and her husband reside in Suwanee, Georgia with their three daughters. 





John M. Hann, PE


John Hann is a Vice President and Manager of Casualty Risk Engineering Services North America for Swiss Re Corporate Solutions. He is responsible for construction and engineering risk evaluation and assessment, underwriting support and loss control for casualty and professional lines on a global basis. Prior to joining the insurance industry in 2015, John worked for more than thirty years in the design and construction industries. His past roles include engagements with design firms, construction management firms, and capital project owners. John's experience includes mission critical, laboratory, healthcare, commercial, industrial, municipal, environmental and transportation design and construction. 


John earned a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Master of  Civil Engineering degree from Clemson University. He is licensed as a Professional Engineer and serves on the SEAoG Board of Directors. 





Kimberly E. Kurtis, PhD, FACI, FACerS


Kimberly Kurtis is Associate Dean in Georgia Tech’s College of Engineering and Professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering. In addition to her technical and educational service contributions at professional societies and government agencies and editorial service to Cement and Concrete Research, Cement and Concrete Composites and ASCE Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, she has held two leadership positions – Chairman of ACI Committee 236: Materials Science of Concrete and Chair of ACerS Cements Division – central to advancing science-based research on cement-based materials. She currently serves on the American Concrete Institute’s (ACI) twelve member Technical Activities Committee and is Fellow of both ACI and the American Ceramics Society (ACerS). 




               

            

            

            

               




2018 ESE Awards Committee


    

  • Brian Adorno, Chair
    •