St. Louis Chapter of the Geo-Institute Monthly Meeting Minutes

Transcription

1 Meeting Location: January 8, 2014, 7:30am PSI Office, 8669 Olive Boulevard Conference Call #: (Access # ) Nicholas Roth (Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Allen Minks, Lyle Simonton 1. Geo-Institute Chapter Finances a. Lyle reported that the contributions and transfer noted in the December 2013 minutes have been completed, with the exception of the contribution to SIUE. He is communicating with SIUE to confirm how to address the check and will complete this contribution soon. b. Discussion of the 30% contribution of the committee s net yearly surplus to the ASCE St. Louis section and how these section funds are used. c. G-I chapter s annual budget Nick suggested presenting a budget at our March or April meeting, to be discussed/revised and then approved in May, for the fiscal year beginning September 1. d. Explore opportunities for a joint event with another technical committee or institute. e. Brief review of G-I chapter bylaws and officer responsibilities. Will be discussed at subsequent meeting(s). 2. ASCE Luncheon, March 11, 2014 a. No updates. Speaker will be Dale Smith from Geotechnology with a presentation on the new MSD tunnel project. All G-I members are encouraged to attend. 3. Case Histories Night, April 3, 2014 a. Dennis, Pat, and Reza are checking on projects that may be presented. b. Lyle will check with Shawna about the Streets of St. Charles project (former Noah s Ark site near I-70 at 5 th Street). c. Nick will contact ASCE newsletter editor Joe Sturgeon to insert a Save the Date note in the February newsletter and details of the Case Histories event in the March newsletter. 4. Permeable Pavement Webinar, January 10, 2014 a. Scheduled from 10:30am to 12:00pm. Webinar begins at 11:00am. b. Training room at Geotechnology has been reserved for our use, and Dennis is working with his IT personnel to set up the webinar for viewing.

2 c. Nick has received very few RSVPs so far. Will send another today to G-I members, and request Joe Sturgeon send an announcement to ASCE St. Louis chapter members. d. Discussed details for pizza and drinks, payments, receipts, and PDH credits. 5. Other Business a. Mike Alizadeh Graduate Studies Scholarship i. Lyle is working on the application for the 2014 scholarship, and will bring more information to the next meeting. b. LRFD driven pile design i. Allen has some additional information about the design implications for driven piles using LRFD methods. Discussion will continue at the next meeting. c. G-I chapter website i. Suggestions are welcome to improve the functionality and content of our G-I chapter website,. 6. Next Meeting: Wednesday, February 12, 2014, 7:30am a. Note new location: Subsurface Constructors, Inc. 110 Angelica St. St. Louis, MO b. G-I member feedback is requested regarding the meeting location. New members are always welcome to attend. STL GI Minutes Page 2

3 February 12, 2014, 7:30am Meeting Location: Subsurface Constructors, 101 Angelica St., St. Louis MO Conference Call #: (Access # ) Nicholas Roth (Chair), Dennis Boll (Vice Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Allen Minks, Lyle Simonton, Jared Holland, Travis Kassebaum, Sean Hibbits, Reza Osouli (by phone), Pat Kinsella (by phone) 1. ASCE Luncheon, March 11, 2014 a. Dale Smith of Geotechnology will be the luncheon speaker, presenting on the MSD tunnel project. b. All GI members are urged to attend. RSVP by contacting Kurt at the Engineers Club by noon the Friday before the event by phone , fax , or kurt.krispin@engineersclub.net. 2. Case Histories Night, April 3, 2014 at Engineer s Club of St. Louis a. Reza will present from his mine subsidence projects. b. Other possible topics i. Dennis to follow up with Omaha office about the Tucker Blvd tunnel fill project. ii. Lyle to check with Shawna about Streets of Saint Charles, as well as other possible topics/speakers. c. Discussion about reimbursing speakers travel costs. This hasn t been offered in the past but can be discussed/voted on at future meetings if necessary. d. Nick to a reminder about student presentations. e. Nick to submit a flyer for the ASCE section s March newsletter with the date, time, cost, and other information. 3. GeoConfluence 2014 a. Planned for Friday, November 7, b. Contract with St. Charles Convention Center is with Lyle for review. c. Nick will submit an application for this year s Geo-Institute cross-country lecturer. d. Jeff Hill is asking the G-I committee for speaker suggestions. Invited speakers will be contacted in the near future regarding availability and topics.

4 4. Geo-Institute Chapter Finances a. Shari, Dennis, and Nick will discuss a draft 2015 budget which should be prepared before the April G-I meeting. Plan is to discuss at the April committee meeting, approve by committee at our May meeting so that it can be submitted to the St. Louis Section before the new fiscal year begins September 1. b. Clarification memo was approved at the most recent board meeting regarding the 30% contribution of technical committees net yearly surplus to the St. Louis Section. 5. Other Business a. Mike Alizadeh Graduate Studies Scholarship i. Lyle is working on the 2014 scholarship application. b. G-I chapter website i. Nick will follow up about updates/changes to our chapter website to improve its functionality and content. c. LRFD driven pile design i. Not discussed at this meeting. Will be discussed at subsequent meeting(s). d. ASCE St. Louis Section 100 th Anniversary i. Gala is scheduled for Saturday, September 20 at Norwood Country Club. ii. Allen received a few suggestions for after-dinner entertainment. 6. Next Meeting: TUESDAY MARCH 11, 2014, 11:00AM (NOTE CHANGE IN DAY & TIME) Meeting will start 30 minutes before the ASCE luncheon begins, and will wrap up after the luncheon if necessary. STL GI Minutes Page 2

5 Meeting Location: Conference Call #: March 11, 2014, 11:00am Engineer s Club of St. Louis N/A Nicholas Roth (Chair), Dennis Boll (Vice Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Pat Kinsella, Allen Minks, Jared Holland, Jeff Hill, Shawnna Erter 1. Case Histories Seminar a. Thursday, April 3, 2014 at Engineer s Club b. Student Posters - Nick to inquire about number of students with posters expected from each school. Maximum of 12 posters to be presented, 4 from each school, to fit into the allotted time. c. Food order Nick has talked with Kurt Krispin about the expected number of attendees, and will keep him updated. Offer cash bar & heavy appetizers. Cost will be $25 per person or $15 for students. d. Gifts Dennis will purchase $20 gift cards for the students presenting posters. No speaker gifts. 2. GeoConfluence 2014 a. Confirmed date: Friday, November 7, 2014 at the St. Charles Convention Center b. Suggestions for invited speakers and contacts for abstracts should be submitted to Jeff c. Call for Abstracts w/ conference date announcement will be submitted to GeoStrata for publication in the next issue. d. Greg Hempen suggested via that the registration fees be reviewed with respect to conference costs. Also look at simplifying the fee structure and streamlining the registration process. e. Discussion about ways to grow the conference, such as a short course or site visit the day before, or cocktails and networking the night before. 3. LRFD Driven Pile Design a. Jeff is looking into having a speaker at GeoConfluence to address concerns and questions about driven pile design using LRFD. 4. Next Meeting: Wednesday, April 9, 2014 at 7:30am PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard

6 Meeting Location: April 9, 2014, 7:30am PSI Office, 8669 Olive Boulevard Conference Call #: (Access # ) Nicholas Roth (Chair), Dennis Boll (Vice Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Lyle Simonton, Jared Holland, Sean Hibbits, Pat Kinsella (by phone), Erik Loehr (by phone) 1. Case Histories Seminar - Recap a. Event was held Thursday, April 3, 2014 at Engineer s Club b. Approximately 52 attended, including 3 scheduled speakers and 6 student posters. Cost was $25 per person and $15 for students, no charge for scheduled speakers or students with posters. Committee presented $20 gift cards to Barnes & Noble to the students with posters. Buffet dinner was served. Corporate sponsorships were provided by Subsurface Constructors and Hayward Baker. c. Lyle has not received the invoice from the Engineer s Club or catering company. d. Discussion for future Case Histories: i. Reach out to other potential corporate sponsors. ii. Review income & expenses from this year when setting the price for next year, and consider raising the price slightly since buffet dinner was served instead of appetizers. iii. Student posters consider restricting the number of posters to 9 (3 each from MS&T, MU, and SIUE) instead of 12; consider eliminating the poster presentations and instead have posters on display in the lobby/bar area for attendees to visit one-on-one with the students; if budget is a concern, consider eliminating gift cards for students. iv. Schedule consider registration from 5:00pm to 5:30pm with posters on display, dinner buffet starts at 5:45 in the auditorium, then 3 40 minutes each beginning at 6:00pm. Other considerations brief break between speakers, student posters remain on display at the end of the night for additional discussion.

7 2. Draft Budget for GeoInstitute, Fiscal Year a. First draft of proposed budget was presented for discussion. Lyle suggested balancing budget for each event if possible, in addition to balancing the overall committee budget. b. Lyle will send updated income/expenses to Shari for the current year. Greg Hempen has been asked for the final income/expense data from GeoConfluence 2013 for use in budget preparation. c. Draft budget will be revised and presented to the committee at the next meeting for review and approval. 3. GeoConfluence 2014 a. Confirmed date: Friday, November 7, 2014 at the St. Charles Convention Center b. Pat reported that the Call for Abstracts w/ conference date announcement will be published in the May/June issue of GeoStrata, and is on our committee website. Needs to be added to the ASCE St. Louis section monthly newsletter. c. Nick is finalizing our application for GeoInstistute s Cross-Country Lecture, and will send to Pat for review this week. Application is due April 15. d. Review the registration fees for 2014, once the final 2013 income/expense data is received. e. Jeff Hill and Lyle are compiling a list of potential invited speakers. Erik added several suggestions. f. Jeff will schedule a committee meeting for conference planning. 4. Other Business a. Lyle reported that the GeoInstistute committee has approximately $12,000 in the ASCE checking account. Income and expenses from the Case Histories Seminar are not in that balance, and the $1,000 donation to SIUE approved in September will be sent soon. b. Lyle also reported that application forms for the Mike Alizadeh Graduate Studies Scholarship have been sent out. Applications are due in May. 5. Next Meeting a. New date: Thursday, May 15, 2014, 4:00pm b. New location: Outdoor patio at Schlafly Bottleworks 7260 Southwest Avenue St. Louis, Missouri c. G-I member feedback is requested regarding the meeting location. New members are always welcome to attend. STL GI Minutes Page 2

8 May 15, 2014, 4:00pm Meeting Location: Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Ave., St. Louis MO Nicholas Roth (Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Jake Schaeffer, Pat Kinsella, Erik Loehr 1. GeoInstitute Committee Budget, Fiscal Year a. A draft budget was ed to committee members before the meeting. b. Discussed the anticipated expenses and income from each planned event. An addition was made to the budget for a panel discussion event that could address concerns with driven pile design using LRFD methods. c. A revised budget was voted on and passed. Shari will submit the budget to Lyle Simonton for review by the board. 2. GeoInstitute Committee Funds a. Income and expenses from 2013 GeoConfluence and 2014 Case Histories events have been finalized. As of 4/30/2014, the G-I committee has a net surplus of approximately $4,600 for the current fiscal year ending September 30. b. Committee voted on and passed a motion to request an additional $1,500 be transferred to our investment account at Edward Jones. The transfer will need board approval since it was not budgeted. Shari will submit this request to Lyle Simonton for discussion at an upcoming board meeting. 3. GeoConfluence 2014 a. Pat provided an update from the GeoConfluence planning committee. Our application was submitted for the GeoInstitute s Cross-Country Lecture. The recipients are typically notified in mid- to late-summer. b. Save the Date and Call for Abstracts was included in the May newsletter for the St. Louis section, and will be published in the upcoming May/June issue of GeoStrata. Members are encouraged to forward the flyer to organizations or institutions that may be interested in submitting abstratcts or attending. Sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities are also available. c. The committee has invited four speakers so far. Greg Hempen (current Jahns Distinguished Lecturer in Applied Geology) and Rich Finno (Northwestern University) are confirmed as speakers. The committee is awaiting responses from two others. 4. Next Meeting a. GeoInstitute committee meetings will resume in September. Date and location are TBD.

9 September 17, 2014, 7:30am Meeting Location: PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri Conference Call #: , Conference ID# Nicholas Roth (Chair), Dennis Boll (Vice Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Jake Schaeffer, Lyle Simonton, Jared Holland, Travis Kassebaum, Reza Osouli, Allen Minks, Pat Kinsella (by phone), Erik Loehr (by phone), Jeff Hill (by phone) 1. GeoInstitute Committee Budget, Fiscal Year a. Lyle Simonton reported that the GeoInstitute committee budget for the upcoming fiscal year was discussed at the recent board meeting. Final approval of committee and board budgets is expected at the October 7 board meeting. b. Request to transfer $1,500 to the GeoInstitute committee s investment account at Edward Jones was approved. c. Lyle reminded the committee of the board memorandum issued earlier this year regarding the contribution to the ASCE St. Louis Section of 30% of each committee s net yearly surplus. Transfers to an investment account will not be counted against a yearly surplus to reduce the contribution to the section. A suggestion was made to revise our GeoInstitute committee budget to show 30% of the projected surplus to the section, with any remaining surplus targeted for transfer to the investment account. d. An abstract submitted by Erik Lohr for GeoConfluence 2014 was not selected for the conference, as the conference committee thought the subject might be better addressed at a separate event. A revised committee budget could reflect anticipated income and expenses for this event. The discussion would focus on site characterization methods, and could include additional presentations or a panel discussion with an engineering consultant, design-build contractor, and/or an owner or owner s representative. Nick will follow up with Erik about the format, other presenters, and potential dates. 2. GeoConfluence 2014 a. Conference will be Friday, November 7, Registration and continental breakfast start at 7:30am, with conference proceedings from 8:00am to 4:30pm. b. Pat reported that the speaker lineup has been finalized, and a flyer with registration information was ed today to committee members. There will be four invited speakers, three presentations selected from the abstracts submitted, and two student presentations. We were again awarded with the GeoInstitute s Cross Country lecture by Dr. Ken Stokoe.

10 c. Jeff reported that he is setting up online registration and it will be live shortly. d. Shannon & Wilson has offered to sponsor the flash drives for attendees which will include all of the presentations from the conference. Lunch sponsorship is still available, as well as morning and afternoon break sponsors. Contact Lyle for sponsorship information. e. Members are asked to forward the announcement to other organizations whose members may be interested. 3. Webinars a. ASCE webinars are discounted through the end of the year. Dennis will research the schedule for live and on-demand webinars, and will check on the availability of Geotechnology s training room. 4. Next Meeting: Wednesday, October 8, 2014, 7:30am Subsurface Constructors, Inc. 110 Angelica St. St. Louis, MO a. New business GeoInstitute will provide a speaker & topic for the monthly ASCE luncheon in March STL GI Minutes Page 2

11 October 8, 2014, 7:30am Meeting Location: PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri Conference Call #: , conference ID Nicholas Roth (Chair), Dennis Boll (Vice Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Ronaldo Luna, Jared Holland, Allen Minks, Reza Osouli, Pat Kinsella (by phone), Lyle Simonton (by phone) 1. GeoConfluence 2014 a. Conference will be Friday, November 7, Registration and continental breakfast start at 7:30am, with conference proceedings from 8:00am to 4:30pm. b. Speaker gifts will be the same as last year, since the speakers are all new to our conference. Nick will coordinate the gifts. c. Student presentations GI committee has not made contact with MS&T since Ronaldo s move to chair the civil engineering department at SLU. Ronaldo will contact Erik Loehr (MU) and Bate Bate (MS&T) about student speakers for the conference. Reza has several students who would be ready to present if needed. Pat is asking conference speakers, including students, to send their bio, abstract, and presentation slides to him by October 24 th to be copied onto flash drives for conference attendees. d. Name badges Nick will check with Reitz & Jens about providing printed name badges again this year. Possibly use name badges in plastic sleeves (clip-on or lanyard) instead of stick-on badges. e. Flash drives Shannon & Wilson is sponsoring the flash drives for attendees again this year. Pat will notify members of a date & time a few days before the conference when volunteers can help copy conference materials onto the drives. f. Handouts Pat will coordinate printing the conference schedule, list of exhibitors and sponsors, and speaker bios to distribute at the conference. g. Sponsors Lyle advised the committee that break sponsor and lunch sponsor opportunities are still available! Members are encouraged to inquire with employers about sponsoring one of these at the conference. h. Lyle volunteered to be the emcee for the conference. i. Speaker dinner plans have not been finalized for dinner with the visiting speakers the night before the conference. Dennis volunteered to look into additional venues for the dinner. j. GeoConfluence committee will meet once more before the conference. Volunteer opportunities will be communicated via .

12 2. Webinars a. Dennis will look into available live and on-demand webinars, for discussion at the November meeting. 3. Site Characterization Presentation/Forum a. Ronaldo will contact Erik about the topic and the most suitable format for the presentation. Meeting discussion centered on a keynote presentation followed by a panel discussion, with opportunities for comments and discussion with attendees. Panel discussion members could include representatives from MoDOT, geotechnical consulting firms, foundation or ground improvement contractors, or structural engineers. b. Dennis volunteered to coordinate the panel discussion and venue. c. If possible, the date and topic could be announced at GeoConfluence. 4. ASCE St. Louis Section 100-year Anniversary a. On behalf of the planning committee, Allen thanked the GeoInstitute chapter for our contribution toward the September 20, 2014 gala dinner. 5. Next Meeting: Wednesday, November 19, 2014, 7:30am a. Location PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri b. Bring ideas for speakers/topics for the ASCE March 2015 luncheon and our spring 2015 Case Histories Night. STL GI Minutes Page 2

13 November 19, 2014, 7:30am Meeting Location: PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri Conference Call #: , conference ID Nicholas Roth (Chair), Dennis Boll (Vice Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Jared Holland, Travis Kassebaum, Reza Osouli, Shawnna Erter, Erik Loehr (by phone), Ronaldo Luna (by phone) 1. Value of Site Characterization - Panel Discussion featuring Dr. Erik Loehr a. Date changed to Tuesday, February 3, b. Tentative schedule: Registration and informal buffet dinner at 5:30pm, Dr. Loehr s presentation (1 hour +/-) followed by panel discussion from 6pm to 8pm. c. Dennis will confirm availability of Geotechnology s training room and make the reservation. d. Erik will contact MoDOT to invite a representative to participate in the panel discussion from an Owner s perspective (possible panelists Dennis Heckman or Dave Albers). e. Shawnna will contact Corps of Engineers and structural engineers to ask about participating on the panel (possibly Pat Conroy from USACE). f. Nick will contact contractor/developers (Clayco, MOAM Water) to ask about participating on the panel. g. Nick will prepare a save the date announcement for ASCE s newsletter with the preliminary title Value of Site Characterization h. Nick will look into dinner catering options and costs. Anticipated attendee fee will be $20-30 per person. 2. GeoConfluence 2014 a. Held on Friday, November 7, 2014 b. Total attendance 123; comprised of 25 students, 62 early professional registrants, 10 registered the week of the conference or on-site, 15 exhibitors, and 11 speakers. These numbers are very similar to the 2011 and 2012 conferences. c. A summary of the completed evaluation forms was distributed at the meeting. There were many positive comments, as well as detailed suggestions for next year s topics and ways to improve the conference. d. Discussed possible improvements to the printed handouts, such as printing the presentation outlines or 1-2 key slides with room for note-taking, in lieu of printing the bios and abstracts.

14 e. Student participation for GeoConfluence 2015 i. Plan two presentation slots for student presentations, as in previous years. ii. Request students submit abstracts by late July, with the same deadlines as the professional abstracts. iii. Conference committee will select top abstract from each university and then conduct brief telephone interviews to select 2 students from all of the submitted abstracts to present at GeoConfluence iv. Dr. Luna suggested getting the word out early, particularly for graduate students who may be wrapping up and defending their thesis around this time of year. f. Preliminary accounting summary by conference treasurer Greg Hempen indicates a net surplus of $6,576.90, subject to change with final income and expenses from all sources. 3. Case Histories Night, Spring 2015 a. To be discussed at the December meeting. b. GI members are asked to bring ideas for speakers & topics. 4. ASCE luncheon, March 2015 a. GeoInstitute provides luncheon speaker for the monthly ASCE meeting on March 10, b. Nick was contacted by Dr. Gerrarro Marino from Urbana, IL. Possible topics include construction over karst terrain or mine subsidence engineering. Nick will contact Dr. Marino to ask that he provide a presentation on karst construction at the March luncheon. 5. GI chapter website a. Shari will check with Matt Glisson about posting our recent meeting minutes and updating the calendar of events with the Panel Discussion and Case Histories dates. 6. Next meeting: Wednesday, December 10, 2014, 7:30am a. Location: PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri b. Bring ideas for speakers/topics at the spring 2015 Case Histories Night. STL GI Minutes Page 2

15 December 10, 2014, 7:30am Meeting Location: PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri Conference Call #: , conference ID Nicholas Roth (Chair), Shari Cunningham (Secretary/Treasurer), Jared Holland, Ronaldo Luna, Dennis Boll (Vice Chair, by phone), Pat Kinsella (by phone), Lyle Simonton (by phone), Jeff Hill (by phone) 1. Site Characterization Practices for Geotechnical Design - Panel Discussion featuring Dr. Erik Loehr Tuesday, February 3, 2015 a. Schedule: Registration and buffet dinner at 5:30pm, presentations from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. b. Dennis has reserved the training room at Geotechnology for the event. c. Nick priced two catering options for buffet-style dinner. d. Panel Participants i. Mike Maven at US Army Corps of Engineers has confirmed his participation. ii. Other participants TBD Ronaldo is checking with Erik about the presentation outline and whether he has contacted MoDOT for panel participation. iii. Discussed preparing panelists with an agenda or talking points, and having a few questions ready to ask the panel after the presentation. e. Nick is preparing the event flyer today and will forward a copy for inclusion in the upcoming newsletter & blasts. 2. GeoConfluence 2015 a. Scheduled for Friday, November 6, May change to a Thursday date within 6 months before the event, pending conference room availability. b. Per the November meeting discussion, will need a flyer to advertise to students in the spring semester. c. Conference committee will meet next week to review GeoConfluence 2014 and start planning GeoConfluence ASCE luncheon, March 10, 2015 a. Dr. Gerrarro Marino from Urbana, IL has confirmed that he will speak at the luncheon. b. GeoInstitute members are encouraged to attend and bring a colleague.

16 4. Case Histories Night, April 2015 a. Nick contacted the Engineer s Club about availability. Will follow up and request a reservation for Thursday, April 16. b. Discussed potential projects of interest to geotechnical engineers: i. IKEA site under construction ii. Wrigley Field renovations iii. Streets of St. Charles (Shawnna & Lyle) iv. MSD tunnel if updates can be presented (prelim. geotechnical presentation was given at the March 2014 ASCE luncheon) v. GeoInstitute members should bring ideas to the January meeting. Out of town projects are fine, although the committee tries to keep reimbursed travel expenses low. 5. SLU Civil Engineering Program a. Ronaldo encouraged committee members to consider SLU civil engineering students for summer internships or co-op opportunities. A luncheon will be planned in the spring to meet the students who are available for summer work. b. Campus facilities and catering could be available for future GeoInstitute events. 6. Next meeting: Wednesday, January 14, 2015, 7:30am a. Location: PSI, 8669 Olive Boulevard, Saint Louis, Missouri b. Be prepared to finalize panelists and agenda for the Site Characterization event. c. Bring ideas for speakers/topics at the spring 2015 Case Histories Night. STL GI Minutes Page 2