Full Program

Tuesday, April 5

  • Napa Earthquake and Winery Field Trip, 9:00am-6:00pm (Tour)

    Leaders: Michael Germeraad and Josh Marrow
    Location: Meet in the first floor lobby of the Parc 55 Hotel
    Cost: $100

    The August 24, 2014 M6.0 South Napa Earthquake showcased fault rupture, building damage, and social and economic impacts in the nation’s most prominent wine region. A tour bus will pick up attendees at the hotel and drive to three Napa stops. A discussion of the region's geologic history will be presented at Saintsbury Winery, one vineyard that experienced visible fault rupture. The group will be treated to lunch followed by a walking tour of downtown Napa where repair and reconstruction continues. The day will end with wine and views of the Napa Valley before the bus returns to the hotel. Number of participants capped at 45. Questions about this trip can be directed to Ken Mark at kmark@bechtel.com

  • Rapid Visual Screening of Buildings for Potential Seismic Hazards (FEMA P-154) Training, 8:00am-12:00pm (Workshop)

    Instructor: Mike Griffin, Cost: $35 (covers A/V and venue fees)
    Location: Market Street room

    Training on the Third Edition of FEMA P-154, Rapid Visual Screening of Buildings for Potential Seismic Hazards, covers methods and processes that enable users to rapidly identify, inventory, and screen buildings that are potentially seismically hazardous before earthquakes occur. Local officials can use these data to plan and prioritize further engineering and vulnerability analysis, emergency-response needs, and mitigation projects. This training is based on the third edition of the document published by FEMA in January 2015. Although some of the material remains unchanged from the second edition FEMA P-154 (published in 2002), the Third Edition provides major enhancements. The target audience for this training includes structural engineers, architects, other design professionals, building officials, construction contractors, architectural and engineering students, or other individuals with a background in building design and construction. Questions about this workshop can be directed to Veronica Cedillos at vcedillos@atcouncil.org

  • Post-Earthquake Reconnaissance Workshop, 1:00pm-4:30pm (Workshop)

    Hosted by: The Student Leadership Council and EERI Learning from Earthquakes program, Cost: $30

    Sponsored by: Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates

    Location: Market Street room

    This workshop will provide overviews of conducting post-earthquake reconnaissance in structural and geotechnical engineering and demonstrations of EERI field data collection tools. The workshop will include a field exercise that will give participants the opportunity to practice making reconnaissance observations using the demonstrated tools. EERI members who complete this training will be well-positioned to contribute effectively to reconnaissance efforts following an earthquake in their area.

  • Downtown San Francisco in Earthquake, Fire and Recovery Walking Tour, 2:00pm-5:30pm (Tour)

    Leader: Stephen Tobriner, UCB

    Location: Meet in the first floor lobby of the Parc 55 Hotel

    Cost: $20

    This walking tour will highlight the buildings that survived the earthquake and fire of 1906 and those built during the early reconstruction of San Francisco. We will be looking at steel-frame and brick load-bearing masonry buildings, primarily on Market and Mission Streets, examining damage from the 1906 earthquake and the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. We will tour the interiors of the old Call (Claus Spreckel’s) Building that survived the earthquake and fire and the Humboldt Bank Building, regarded as one of the most earthquake resistant and fire-resistant buildings of 1906 San Francisco. Our tour will be passing or touring through important pre- and post-earthquake buildings including the Atlas Building, the Wells Fargo Building, Burdette’s Building, the Rialto Building, the Chronicle Building, the Aronson Building, the Phelan Building, Hoffman’s Grill, the Sharon Building, and the Palace Hotel. Number of participants capped at 25. Questions about this tour can be directed to Ken Mark at kmark@bechtel.com

  • Registration Opens, 5:00pm-7:30pm

    Location: Cyril Magnin Foyer

  • Welcome Reception, 5:30pm-7:00pm

    The 2016 EERI Annual Meeting officially kicks off with food, drink, and a chance to catch up with colleagues and visit exhibitors. Join us!

    Location: Cyril Magnin Foyer

Wednesday, April 6

  • Registration Open, 7:00am

    Location: Cyril Magnin Foyer

  • Welcome and Opening Statement, 8:00am-8:30am (Plenary)

    Speakers: Mary Comerio, EERI Board President; Lindsey Maclise and Danielle Mieler, Organizing Committee Chairs

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

  • Opening Plenary Presentations and Recognitions, 8:30am-10:00am

    Moderators: Lindsey Maclise and Danielle Mieler
    Speakers: Laurie A. Johnson, Laurie Johnson Consulting | Research; Mark Petersen, USGS National Seismic Modeling Project; Brett Maurer, EERI-FEMA NEHRP Graduate Fellow

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

    Welcome from EERI and the local organizing committee with an introduction to the 68th Annual Meeting. A review of recent USGS efforts focused on concerns at regional and national levels, including induced seismicity and Haywired, a scenario on ramifications on an Internet-dependent society in a sequence of earthquakes on the Hayward fault. Presentation by the EERI/FEMA Graduate Fellow on liquefaction research and awards to Reagan Chandramohan and Nathan Jo, winners of the 2015 EERI Student Paper Competition.

    Download Presentations:
    • National Seismic Hazard Maps and Induced Seismicity by Mark PetersenClick Here
    • Lessons in liquefaction hazard assessment resulting from the Canterbury, New ZEALAND, earthquake sequence by Brett MaurerClick Here

  • Break (Sponsored by California Earthquake Authority), 10:00am-10:30am

  • Community Resilience: What Are the Objectives and Outcomes?, 10:30am-12:00pm (Plenary)

    Moderator: Chris Barkley, AECOM

    Speakers: Arrietta Chakos, Urban Resilience Strategies;  Steve Moddemeyer, CollinsWoerman;  Chris Poland, Chris D Poland Consulting Engineer

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

    For the past several years, many communities have initiated efforts to become more resilient. Additionally, organizations from the Rockefeller Foundation to the United Nations have implemented programs to enhance community resiliency. What outcomes should communities strive to achieve, and what outcomes are communities actually seeing? What can communities do to enhance their efforts? How can communities sustain resiliency efforts beyond current trends and funding programs? Although the focus will be on earthquakes, the degree to which earthquake resilience encourages broader resiliency will also be discussed.

    Download Presentations:
    • America’s Resilience Movement: Policy & Application by Arietta ChakosClick Here
    • Community Resilience: Lifelines by Chris BarkleyClick Here
    • Community Resilience: What are the Objectives and Outcomes by Chris PolandClick Here

  • Lunch - EERI Distinguished Lecture, (Sponsored by ARUP and AMEC Foster Wheeler), 12:00pm-2:00pm

    Presenter: Gregory G. Deierlein, Stanford University
    Title: "From Performance-Based Engineering to Earthquake Resilience"

    Location: Embarcadero room

    Performance-based earthquake engineering has matured over the past twenty years from a conceptual framework into a formal methodology that can enable quantitative assessment of the seismic risks to buildings and infrastructure. Enabled by advanced nonlinear analysis, performance-based methods provide for more transparent design and decision making that takes advantage of the latest research in characterizing earthquake ground motion hazards, simulating structural behavior, and assessing earthquake damage and its consequences. Performance-based approaches are facilitating the design of innovative structures and influencing building code requirements and public policies for earthquake safety. Yet, many challenges remain to evaluate recovery from earthquake damage and implications on the socio-economic functions of society. This talk will examine the major developments in performance-based earthquake engineering and ways it can be applied to reduce earthquake risks and improve earthquake resilience.

    Download Presentation:
    • Performance-based engineering to Earthquake Resilience by Gregory G. DeierleinClick Here

  • Emerging Tools for Risk Awareness and Reduction, 2:00pm-3:30pm (Concurrent Session)

    Moderator: Lauren Biscombe, Arup

    Speakers: Curt Haselton, Haselton Baker Risk Group;  Anna Lang, Rochester Institute of Technology;  Ross S. Stein, Temblor Inc.;  Ahmad Wani, One Concern

    Location: Cyril Magnin III room

    How can engineers engage with communities to help better understand earthquake (and related) risk and what steps can they personally take to reduce that risk? This session will attempt to answer these questions by introducing new tools that make earthquake information and technology accessible to all. Panelists working on a wide range of applications will highlight features of their tools, describe their target audiences, and outline what they hope to achieve. Together, the audience and panel members will brainstorm ways to educate clients and the community about these tools, make their usage more widespread, improve them to better achieve their goals, and create value for engineers.

    Download Presentation:
    • The Seismic Performance Prediction Program (SP3) by Curt HaseltonClick Here

  • Designing for Multiple Hazards, 2:00pm-3:30pm (Concurrent Session)

    Moderator: Jennifer Donahue, Geosyntec Consultants

    Speakers: Jeff Berman, University of Washington;  Dana Brechwald, Association of Bay Area Governments;  William Lehman, Hydrologic Engineering Center;  Keith Porter, SPA Risk LLC

    Location: Cyril Magnin II room

    Often, we prepare and establish mitigation measures for earthquakes independent of other possible hazards. Tsunamis, fires, landslides, and atmospheric hazards, such as hurricanes, pose additional threats to communities and may cause deaths, disruption of commerce, and destruction of critical infrastructure. It is not incomprehensible that these hazards may occur simultaneously. Review of multiple hazards requires multi-disciplinary, collaborative work amongst practitioners in order to improve personal and business resiliency.

    Download Presentations:
    • Cascadia Megathrust Earthquakes: Reducing Risk through Science, Engineering and Planning by Jeff BermanClick Here
    • Analysis and Strategies for Seismic and Flood Risks by Dana BrechwaldClick Here
    • Evaluating System Risk by William LehmanClick Here

  • Break (Sponsored by California Earthquake Authority), and Poster Session (Sponsored by MTS), 3:30pm-4:00pm

  • Improving Seismic Safety of Schools, 4:00pm-5:15pm (Concurrent Session)

    Moderator: Veronica Cedillos, ATC

    Speakers: Rebekah Paci-Green, Western Washington University;  Brian Tucker, GeoHazards International;  Carlos Ventura, University of British Columbia;  Yumei Wang, DOGAMI;  Barry Welliver, BHW Engineers, LLC

    Location: Cyril Magnin II room

    Schools are an integral part of communities and are critically important during and after disasters. If an earthquake occurs during school hours, the lives of the next generation depend on the structural safety of the school building and its contents. Recovery is deeply affected if schools are unable to re-open soon after an earthquake; in some cases, children never manage to return to school. Many communities plan to use their schools as emergency shelters after a disaster, yet this will not be possible if the school building is unsafe. There are many initiatives throughout the U.S. and abroad to improve the resiliency of schools. The purpose of this session is to share lessons learned and identify common issues and challenges in order to help strengthen each of these initiatives.

    Download Presentation:
    • Panelist Information by Veronica CedillosClick Here

  • Committee Meetings, 5:30pm-7:00pm

    Learning From Earthquakes Program Executive Committee (Closed meeting)
    Location: Cyril Magnin III Room

  • Meet the Leaders Event, 5:30pm-6:30pm

    Location: Embarcadero Room

    At this year’s EERI Annual Meeting, the EERI Younger Members Committee is hosting an event for Young Professionals and Academics! During this 1.5-hour session, younger members will identify a leader they wish to meet, and join the leader at their numbered table for a 30 minute discussion about their experiences within the earthquake engineering industry and EERI community. We encourage younger members to ask leaders beneficial ways to get involved within the EERI organization.

  • SDC Auction, Model Presentation, and Poster Reception (Sponsored by MTS) 6:00pm-7:30pm

Thursday, April 7

  • Committee Meetings, 7:00am-8:30am

    Strong Motion Forum (Open Meeting)
    Location: Embarcadero Room

    Earthquake Spectra Editorial Board (Closed Meeting)
    Location: Fillmore Room

    Public Policy and Advocacy Committee (Open Meeting)
    Location: Davidson Room

  • Learning from Earthquakes: Napa to Nepal (and Taiwan), 8:30am-10:00am (Plenary)

    Moderator: Erica Fischer, Degenkolb and Veronica Cedillos, ATC

    Speakers: Marko Schotanus, Rutherford + Chekene;  David Lallemant, World Bank;  Surya Shrestha, NSET;  Maryann Phipps, Estructure;  Charles Huyck, ImageCat;  Daniel Zepeda, Degenkolb

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

    EERI participated in reconnaissance work after both the 2014 South Napa Earthquake and the 2015 Nepal/Ghorka Earthquakes. This session will address lessons learned from these earthquakes, how to measure recovery (e.g., quick reconstruction of a community in the same way vs. a slower recovery effort that involves relocation and/or integration of better standards), and corresponding challenges. Panelists will be asked questions to initiate discussion between the audience and panel experts. All panelists participated in reconnaissance efforts after the earthquakes, or conducted seismic-related research/work in the areas damaged by the earthquakes.

    Download Presentation:
    • Learning from Earthquakes: Napa to Nepal (and Taiwan) by Erica FischerClick Here

  • Break (Sponsored by Applied Technology Council) 10:00am-10:30am

  • Earthquakes and Social Justice: Protecting Vulnerable Populations in the U.S., 10:30am-12:00pm (Plenary)

    Moderator: David Friedman, Forell/Elsesser Engineers

    Speakers: Lindy Lowe, San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission;  Kathleen Tierney, Natural Hazards Center;  Rebekah Green, Western Washington University

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

    According to a recent ABAG study, vulnerable populations tend to live in buildings and in neighborhoods that are more susceptible to seismic and other land hazards such as liquefaction and flooding. In hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, damage disproportionately affected the more economically vulnerable populations. How can we learn from this to ensure that low income and vulnerable residents are not subjected to living in seismically unsafe buildings? Are we further compounding the problem with the introduction of seismic rating systems that don’t require mandatory retrofit?

  • Lunch - Honors and Business Meeting (Sponsored by PG&E), 12:00pm-2:00pm

    Location: Embarcadero room

    Download Presentation:
    • EERI Honors & Business Meeting by James MalleyClick Here

  • Issues at the Intersection of Geotechnical and Structural Engineering, 2:00pm-3:30pm (Concurrent Session)

    Moderator: Jennifer Donahue, Geosyntec Consultants

    Speakers:  Sjoerd van Ballegooy, Tonkin & Taylor;  Youssef Hashash, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign;  Ellen Rathje, The University of Texas at Austin;  Jonathan D. Bray, University of California, Berkeley

    Location: Cyril Magnin II room

    Geotechnical earthquake engineering continues to make great strides in the advancement of the practice leading toward greater understanding of earthquake hazards. Current research, coupled with recent seismic events, is refining traditional concepts and moving from a deterministic (factor of safety) based analysis, to a probabilistic and risk-informed analysis. Additionally, evolving site characterization techniques further improves the ability to quantify hazards at specific locations and to specific lifelines.

    Download Presentations:
    • Prediction of Liquefaction Damage in Christchurch ,New Zealand and Rebuilding with Increased Resiliency by Sjoerd van BallegooyClick Here
    • Lessons Learned about Site Response Analysis from Borehole Arrays by Ellen RathjeClick Here
    • Multistory Buildings by Jonathan BrayClick Here

  • Metrics and Models for Measuring Resilience: How do we quantify resilience? 2:00pm-3:30pm (Concurrent Session)

    Moderator: Chris Barkley, AECOM

    Speakers:  Laurie Johnson, Laurie Johnson Consulting;  Alan Kwok, Massey University, NZ;  Michael Mieler, Johns Hopkins/ University of CA, Berkeley

    Location: Cyril Magnin III room

    As a follow-up to the plenary session on community resilience the day before, this session will discuss specific metrics and models for quantifying and evaluating resilience across a spectrum of societal domains, including social, economic, institutional, infrastructural, and natural. Panelists will describe recent efforts to measure the social resilience of communities throughout New Zealand following the Canterbury Earthquake Sequence, review new frameworks and models for evaluating the performance of buildings, lifelines, and the critical community services they support, and highlight important differences in metrics for assessing resilience before versus after a disaster. The session will conclude with a conversation between panelists and audience members that aims to identify significant challenges in measuring community resilience and develop strategies for implementing models and metrics in practice.

    Download Presentations:
    • Metrics and Models: How Do We Quantify Resilience? by Chris BarkleyClick Here
    • Measuring Community Resilience: Pre- and Post-Disaster by Laurie JohnsonClick Here
    • Evaluating social resilience of communities to disasters by Alan KwokClick Here
    • Measuring the resilience of the built environment across multiple scales by Michael MielerClick Here

  • Break (Sponsored by Simpson Gumpertz & Heger) and Poster Session (Sponsored by SGH), 3:30pm-4:00pm

  • Moving from ideas to action: public policy for earthquake resilience, 4:00pm-5:15pm (Concurrent Session)

    Moderator: Sharyl Rabinovici

    Speakers:  Arrietta Chakos, Urban Resilience Strategies;  David Cocke, Structural Focus;  Laura Samant, Laura Samant Consulting;  Yumei Wang, DOGAMI

    Location: Cyril Magnin III room

    The earthquake engineering community has a wealth of ideas for reducing urban earthquake risk, but these ideas are not always translated to action and adopted by the wider public. The rarity of severe earthquakes in one location presents some unique challenges to galvanizing the public to take action, but we have had successes that demonstrate the possibilities.

    Download Presentation:
    • Policy Session Outline by Laura SamantClick Here

  • Lifelines – Approaches to Mitigation, 4:00pm-5:15pm (Concurrent Session)

    Moderator: Grace Kang, PEER

    Speakers:  Tom O'Rourke, Cornell University;  Craig Davis, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power;  Tom Shantz, Caltrans;  Dan Wade, SFPUC;  Kent Ferre, PG&E

    Location: Cyril Magnin II room

    This session will work to understand what lifeline systems are in a community and the impact of their vulnerability to different types of hazards. Social and economic impact of lifeline vulnerabilities will be explored, and authorities and jurisdictions involved will be discussed. Technical presentations that identify vulnerabilities and mitigating measures will be presented. Common and different approaches will be compared.

    Download Presentations:
    • Lifelines: Approaches to Mitigation by Tom O'RourkeClick Here
    • Pacific Gas and Electric Earthquake Risk Management of Gas and Electric by Kent FerreClick Here
    • Los Angeles Water System Seismic Resilience Program by Craig DavisClick Here
    • Water System Improvement Program by Dan WadeClick Here

  • Committee Meetings, 5:30pm-7:00pm

    Oral History Committee (Closed Meeting)
    Location: Mason Room

    Women in Engineering-WISE (Open Meeting)
    Location: Fillmore Room

    Initiatives Development Committee (Closed Meeting, begins at 4pm)
    Location: Davidson Room

    Student Activities Committee (Open Meeting)
    Location: Hearst Room

  • Subscribing Member and Major Donor Reception, 7:00pm-8:00pm

Friday, April 8

  • Committee Meetings, 7:00am-8:30am

    School Earthquake Safety Initiative Info Session and Program Committee (Open)
    Location: Mission Room

    Nominating Committee (Closed Meeting)
    Location: Fillmore Room

  • Buildings: New Technologies and Protective Systems, 8:30am-9:45am (Plenary)

    Moderator: Jeff Berman, University of Washington

    Speakers:  Hans-Erik Blomgren, Arup;  Keri L. Ryan, University of Nevada, Reno;  Reid Zimmerman, KPFF;  James Ricles, Lehigh University

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

    The session will consist of talks by selected speakers highlighting the development and implementation of new technologies and protective systems that enable resilient building performance. The session will feature a mix of researchers who are investigating the performance of new technologies and developing performance-based design methods, and practitioners who will present implementation examples. Example presentation topics include development and implementation of: (i) rocking and self-centering systems, (ii) innovative damping systems, (iii) protective systems for tall buildings, and (iv) performance-based design methods for new technologies.

    Download Presentations:
    • Heavy Timber Buckling-Restrained Braced Frames by Hans-Erik BlomgrenClick Here
    • Lessons Learned from 3D Shake Table Testing of a Full-Scale Seismically-Isolated Building by Keri L. RyanClick Here
    • Self-Centering Damage-Free Earthquake-Resistant Rocking Braced Frame Systems by James RiclesClick Here

  • Break, 9:45am-10:00am

  • Learning from Earthquakes: Recovery Approaches from the Past 10 Years, 10:00am-11:15am (Plenary)

    Moderator: Lindsey Maclise, Forell/Elsesser Engineers

    Speakers:  Rob Olshansky, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign;  William Siembieda, Cal Poly State University;  Lizzie Blaisdell, Build Change

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

    The session will take a look back at some of the major earthquakes that have occurred over the past decade and assess where these communities are in their path to recovery. The session will aim to understand how different communities address recover and explore what type of recovery is “right” for a community. The session will specifically focus on the Chile, Tohoko, Christchurch, and the Mineral, VA, events. It will explore how the various communities have taken steps to address their risk, or if they haven’t, why not?

    Download Presentations:
    • The Recovery and Reconstruction Process following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami by Rob OlshanskyClick Here
    • Learning from the Last 10 years: The Case of Chile by William SiembiedaClick Here
    • Housing Reconstruction by Lizzie BlaisdellClick Here

  • Joyner Lecture and Seismic Design Competition Awards Ceremony, 11:15am-12:45pm (Plenary)

    Presenter: Jonathan P. Stewart, University of California, Los Angeles
    Title: "Site response uncertainty and its implications for seismic risk characterization"

    Location: Cyril Magnin II and III room

    This presentation offers fresh perspectives on the familiar topic of site response and its effects on seismic risk characterization. Although site effects are widely accounted for in engineering practice, limited understanding of underlying physical processes and limited availability of suitable analysis tools too often results in mis-characterizations. Intended for a broad audience, the speaker will address four main considerations:

    1. The physical processes responsible for site effects;

    2. The manner by which these processes are (or are not) reflected in relatively generic site factors used in GMPEs and in building codes;

    3. Effectiveness of site-specific geotechnical ground response analyses to estimate site effects;

    4. Recommended procedures for evaluating site-specific site response and its implementation in risk characterization for critical facilities.

    Download Presentations:
    • Performance-based Design in Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering – III by Jonathan BrayClick Here
    • Site response uncertainty and its implications for seismic risk characterization by Jonathan StewartClick Here

  • Geotechnical/Geologic Overview of San Francisco’s Telegraph Hill and Waterfront, 2:00pm-5:30pm (Tour)

    Leader: Frank L. Rollo
    Location: Lobby of the Park 55 Hotel at 2:00pm or at 1500 Sansome Street at 2:45pm, Cost: $20 (includes $2.25 transit fare if leaving from hotel)

    This is a walking tour of the San Francisco’s Telegraph Hill and vicinity. The tour will encompass Telegraph Hill, Coit Tower, the surrounding waterfront, and a trek up the Filbert Steps. Frank Rollo is a San Francisco native, raised in North Beach, and a geotechnical engineer with fascinating tales of San Francisco’s slides, settlement, slips, quarries, faults, and fractures and their notorious past. Questions about this tour can be directed to Ken Mark at kmark@bechtel.com

  • Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge Boat Tour, 3:00pm-7:30pm (Tour)

    Speaker: Rafael Manzanarez, Design Manager, ARUP
    Location: Meet in Lobby of the Park 55 Hotel, Transportation: SF Muni F Line Street Car ride and Boat Ride on Hornblower Hybrid, Cost: $80

    Boat trip from San Francisco Pier, stopping at the Bay Bridge to hear about the new signature bridge and some of the construction/design issues affecting the potential seismic performance of the bridge. It also includes travelling to the Golden Gate Bridge to hear about the seismic retrofits that were carried out there. The boat will pass by Alcatraz and will arrive back at the pier near sunset.
    Raphael Manzanarez was the Design Manager for the replacement of the 2.25 mile long East Span of the Bay Bridge. He was also responsible for the Seismic and Wind Retrofit of the Golden Gate Bridge. Questions about the tour can be directed to Ken Mark at kmark@bechtel.com