Dr. Randall Poston, Sr. Principal at Pivot Engineers and Neil Armstrong Distinguished Visiting Fellow, held a webinar on Tuesday, October 20th titled, "Failure of long-span cable-supported timber pedestrian bridges."

Abstract

On November 13, 2014, during construction a pedestrian bridge on the Wake Tech Community College campus in Raleigh, North Carolina collapsed killing one worker and injuring four others. During the early morning of November 14, 2015, a twin pedestrian bridge failed even though there was no construction activity occurring. This presentation will detail the design concepts of the twin pedestrian bridges, the post-collapse failure investigation, the structural analysis of the bridges and selected connection components, and will present the probably cause(s) of the bridge failures and other conclusions from the investigation.

An internationally recognized expert in structural engineering and member of the National Academy of Engineering, Randall Poston has established himself as one of the preeminent structural consultants in the United States. Dr. Poston has authored and delivered hundreds of papers and presentations related to the structural engineering industry, championed the repair of existing structures for upwards of 30 years, and dedicated his career to advancing the state of structural engineering knowledge. As past Chair of the American Concrete Institute (ACI) Committee 318 Structural Building Code (2008-2014), he oversaw a monumental effort to  completely reorganize the concrete code, the first undertaking of its kind in the history of ACI. Engineering News-Record (ENR) named him a "Top 25 Newsmaker" of 2014 for his code reorganization leadership and ACI bestowed him with the Henry L. Kennedy Award for this work. Dr. Poston became the 96th President of the American Concrete Institute at the conclusion of the ACI Convention in Quebec City on March 28, 2019.

Neil Armstrong Distinguished Visiting Fellows

2019 marked 50 years since Purdue Engineering alumnus Neil Armstrong’s "one small step" inspired the world towards seemingly limitless human and technological achievement. On this historic occasion, Purdue Engineering is proud to launch the prestigious Neil Armstrong Distinguished Visiting Fellows program, which brings highly accomplished and recognized scholars and practitioners to the college to catalyze collaborations with faculty and students. Fellows are individuals who have been eminently recognized for their impact and achievements in engineering or related disciplines, who collaborate with Purdue Engineering faculty members on research projects and initiatives including new research directions, industry engagement, on-campus and online educational efforts, increasing diversity and inclusion, as well as entrepreneurship. Their selections are based on nominations made by faculty and the proposed impact of their research and visit on Purdue Engineering.