SGH NEW YORK SEMINAR: Exploring Famous Failures and Why They Happened

It is critical that we learn from failures lest we repeat the mistakes that cause them. While the analysis of structural failure can involve complex technical and procedural issues, common themes repeat themselves. In this seminar, we will review lessons learned from several catastrophic failures, such as the Hyatt Regency walkway collapse in Kansas City, the John Hancock Tower glass failure in Boston, and the collapse of the World Trade Center towers in New York City on 9/11. We will also explore the responses to these incidents to avoid similar failures in the future.
After attending this seminar, participants will be able to:

• Understand the importance of learning from failures
• Identify common technical and procedural causes of structural failures
• Recognize conditions that lead to human error
• Discuss how failures may be avoided

Speaker
Glenn R. Bell, P.E., S.E., C.Eng | Chairman and Senior Principal Glenn Bell has more than four decades of experience designing complex, creative structures and investigating catastrophic structural failures. Learning from failures has been a lifelong passion for Glenn, and he has written and spoken widely on the topic. He was cofounder of the ASCE Technical Council on Forensic Engineering and received ASCE’s Forensic Engineer of the Year Award in 2015. Glenn was Chief Executive Officer of Simpson Gumpertz & Heger for twenty-two years and now serves as the firm’s Chairman.