NEWS 2018

Posted April 19, 2018 (Updated May 2, 2018)

Event: May 23, 2018

GSE 2018 AGM: Dr. Gregory Baecher, University of Maryland - Geotechnical Risk Analysis and its History in Four Case Stories

Location: Faculty Club, University of Alberta (11435 Saskatchewan Drive)

Time: 5:30pm Registration, 6:00pm Dinner, 6:45pm AGM and Presentation

Cost: $40 Members, $50 Non-Members, $20 Students
An additional $5 will be charged for payments made at the door.

Please register for this event using the Google Form by May 20, 2018.

The quantitative analysis of risk in geotechnical engineering traces its roots to the early 1970s. Since then, the concept has evolved considerably. What began as a simple consideration of statistical variability in engineering parameters and models has evolved into a complex evaluation of the nature of uncertainty, the interplay of data and engineering judgment, and the tolerability of risk. Today, the evaluation of quantitative risk in so-called probabilistic risk assessments (PRA) has begun to drive geotechnical decisions in large projects. A progression of four significant case studies involving probabilistic risk assessments - beginning in the 1980s and progressing until today - is used to illustrate the evolution of this endeavor and where the practice of geotechnical risk analysis and management is headed. The four case histories are the TONEN tank farm in Kawasaki, Japan (1980); Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, USA (2005); the Panama Canal operations and expansion in Panama (2015); and the Mattagami cascade of dams in Ontario, Canada (2018).

Dr. Gregory B. Baecher is Glenn L Martin Institute Professor of Engineering at the University of Maryland. He holds a BSCE from UC Berkeley and a PhD in civil engineering from MIT. He is the author of four books on risk, safety, and the protection of civil infrastructure, and 200+ technical publications. He is recipient of the USACE Commander's Award for Public Service, the Panamanian National Award for Science and Technology Innovation, and is a member of the US National Academy of Engineering. Dr. Baecher consults to government and industry on project risk management related to civil infrastructure.

Registration is closed.