SIMPSON GUMPERTZ & HEGER ANNOUNCES 2006 STAFF HONORS

Throughout 2006, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc. (SGH) received numerous awards in recognition of its individual staff accomplishments.

"Our firm has a long history of giving back to the engineering community by actively participating in industry associations, contributing to the development of codes and standards, and sharing research and knowledge with academic institutions," said Glenn R. Bell, CEO of SGH. "These accolades are the result of our ongoing commitment to pursuing excellence in engineering, and I applaud our staff for their contributions and achievements."

Several members of SGH's staff were honored for their contributions to advance the engineering profession:

  • Thomas Schwartz, President and Senior Principal, received the prestigious Walter C. Voss Award from ASTM International. ASTM presents this award to an engineer or scientist who has contributed notably to the advancement and innovation of the building technology field.

  • Ronald Hamburger, Senior Principal, received the Applied Technology Council Award of Recognition for "Extraordinary Achievement in Steel Moment Frame Building Earthquake Reduction." The award recognizes his leadership role in the SAC Program, an extensive multi-year effort aimed at improving the seismic performance of steel moment frames in the wake of problems experienced in the 1994 Northridge Earthquake. Hamburger also received the James M. Delahay Award by the National Council of Structural Engineers Association (NCSEA). Bestowed at the recommendation of the NCSEA Code Advisory Committee, the award recognizes outstanding individual contributions to the development of building codes and standards.

    Additionally, Engineering News-Record named Hamburger one of the top 25 Newsmakers of 2006 for his work on behalf of the American Institute of Steel Construction in leading the development of a new connection standard for moment frames designed for seismic applications.

  • Ronald Mayes, Staff Consultant, received one of the two "Structural Engineer of the Year" awards granted by the Wiley Journal, "The Structural Design of Tall and Special Buildings" in recognition of his contributions to the industry throughout his career. This journal provides structural engineers and contractors with a detailed written presentation of innovative structural engineering and construction practices for tall and special buildings.

  • James Parker, Senior Principal, earned the Boston Society of Civil Engineers Section (BSCES), Technical Group Award for coauthoring "Effective Use of Computer Software for Structural Design of Buildings."

Other staff recognitions include:

  • Leonard Morse-Fortier, Staff Consultant, was named to the Executive Committee of the American Society of Civil Engineers' Technical Council of Forensic Engineering (TCFE). The purpose of TCFE is to develop practices and procedures to reduce the number of failures, to disseminate information on failures and their causes, to provide guidelines for conducting failure investigations, and to provide guidelines for ethical conduct in forensic engineering.

  • Matthew Bronski, Staff Engineer, joined the editorial board of ArchitectureBoston, the magazine of the Boston Society of Architects, the largest chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The magazine appears bimonthly.