Join more than 100 geotechnical practitioners in Dallas for this regional event. Attendees can earn 14 professional development hours (PDHs) over two full days while learning the latest developments in geosynthetics materials and the best practices for designing with geosynthetics. Event theme: Geosynthetics in Transportation and Environmental Applications.
VIEW PROGRAM ON GEODALLAS SITE
GeoDallas is organized by the Industrial Fabrics Association International and co-located with the IFAI Expo and CAMX, the Composites and Advanced Materials Expo. GeoDallas attendees will be given three days of complimentary access to the combined show floor, which includes a Geosynthetics Pavilion.
IGS North America members interested in attending should contact Barbara Connett at bjconnett@ifai.com to receive an IGS-NA members registration discount.
The IGS-North America in concert with IFAI and the GeoInstitute will host Geotechnical Frontiers 2017. This unique conference brings together professionals from three different, leading organizations in the geotechnical, geosynthetic and environmental engineering communities. If you are looking for an event with an extensive technical scope and international networking this is the event for you!
IGS North America members receive discounted pricing, if your not a member Join Now to receive this benefit!
Connect with more than 2,000 geotechnical professionals representing all facets of the geotechnical industry during Geotechnical Frontiers 2017. Immerse yourself in a sea of knowledge through a full schedule of short courses, workshops, training lectures, plenary sessions, technical papers, and panel discussions presented by experts in the field. Walk the show floor to see the latest developments in geotechnical products and services offered by the industry’s top companies and organizations. Plan for plenty of opportunities to network and socialize.
The trade show and all of events and education will be held at the Hyatt Regency Orlando, convenient to airports, hotels and major attractions.
Visit the conference web site to learn more: http://geotechnicalfrontiers.com
The North American Geosynthetics Society and the Geosynthetic Materials Association co-sponsored a day and half seminar in Syracuse, NY on the design of waste containment systems on March 22 and 23rd. Over 100 attendees with representatives from the New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation, the New Jersey State Dept. of Environmental Protection, the Maryland State Dept. of the Environment, and US EPA’s Region 2 Headquarters, graduate students and their professor from Syracuse University, several landfill owners and operators, design consultants, contractors, and manufacturers/suppliers of various geosynthetic materials also participated.
Left, Dave Suits, NAGS Executive Director, & Right, Jonathan Curry, GMA Division Director, Welcoming Attendees
Dr. Richard Brachman, Queen’s University, and president-elect of NAGS, was the lead lecturer. Robert Phaneuf, NYS DEC’s Division of Materials Management, presented overviews of the proposed revisions to New York State’s solid waste regulations, 6 NYCRR Part 360, as they relate to landfill liner and final cover systems. Mr. Phaneuf also provided a brief introduction of the points of interest from a New York State regulatory perspective for each of Dr. Brachman’s design topic lectures. Abigail Beck, TRI Environmental, provided information on electrical leak detection with a video demonstration of the test, and guidance in designing an electrical leak detection program. The program concluded with a panel representing three consultant firms presenting “Take Home Points” from the design consultant perspective. The panel members included Cory McDowell, representing Baron and Loguidice, D.P.C, Bradford Smith, representing GHD Consulting Services, Inc., and Mark Swyka, representing Cornerstone Environmental Group.
L-R, Robert Phaneuf, Abigail Beck, Richard Brachman, Cory McDowell, Mark Swyka, Brad Smith
Providing sponsorships from the Geosynthetic Materials Association membership were GSE, Inc., Agru Americas, Titan, and Terrifix. Sponsorship included the opportunity for table top displays¸ along with a fifteen-minute time slot during meals to speak about projects that their companies had been involved with. Upon adjourning the seminar, Mr. Phaneuf expressed appreciation on behalf of the Division of Materials Management to the seminar sponsors (NAGS and GMA) for bringing this training opportunity to a New York State location and providing a venue where both regulators and design engineers have an opportunity learn together at a very reasonable cost.
Syracuse University Students w/Dr. Shobha Bhatia on the right next to the sign
“We found the technical seminar both comprehensive and enjoyable. As graduate students, it was stimulating as well as valuable to not only learn about the proper selection, design and construction of geosynthetic materials being used in today’s landfill liner and final cover systems but also be cognizant of the many reasons for failures encountered in real projects. The opportunity enabled us to widen our knowledge of the fundamentals when it comes to landfill engineering, design, and construction—while complementing that knowledge with the technological tools, techniques, and advances available to us today, as well as get the unique opportunity to understand the many regulatory concerns associated with each area of discussion.”
A comment from one of the regulators in attendance: “Simply the best professional technical training opportunity that I have had while being at the DEC”.
Meal and Networking Time
Instructor: GARY ROSS
Oldcastle APG
Wednesday, 13 April 2016 – 10:15 am – 1:15pm
“Smart Prospecting, Simplified”
When planning your staff travel, please consider which members would benefit from this complimentary, 3-hour sales workshop held immediately after the close of the exhibition.
GeoAmericas 2016 is proud to present a bonus session for exhibitors! Attend a 3-hour sales workshop led by Gary Ross, to be held immediately after the close of the exhibit hall.
Gary Ross is the Director of Sales Training & Coaching and is a Motivational Speaker for Oldcastle APG. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Resource Management from Palm Beach Atlantic University, and earned his certificate in Supervisory Development from the University of Notre Dame.
Prior to his role as Director of Sales Training & Coaching, Gary was the Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Coastal, an Oldcastle Company based in Florida. He has over 38 years of sales experience including 13 years in Sales Management.
Gary resides in West Palm Beach, Florida with his wife, Daryl.
The Sales Workshop – “Smart Prospecting, Simplified” will focus on:
Full information on GeoAmericas 2016, including registration, venue, and social/networking opportunities can be found at www.GeoAmericas2016.org.
Full information on GeoAmericas 2016, including registration, venue, and social/networking opportunities can be found at www.GeoAmericas2016.org.
We open the week with an unexpected gift: The early registration discount for GeoAmericas 2016 has been extended to January 29. The conference, which is the 3rd Pan-American Conference on Geosynthetics, will be held 10 – 13 April 2016 at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel in Miami.
Highlights for the event include:
Additionally, the conference will feature a large range of meetings from essential organizations in the geotechnical engineering field. They include the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) Council, the Geosynthetic Institute (GSI), the International Association of Geosynthetic Installers (IAGI), the Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI), the Geosynthetic Materials Association (GMA), the Erosion Control Technology Council (ECTC), the International Erosion Control Association (IECA) Ibero-American Chapter, and the Federation of International Geo-Engineering Societies (FedIGS).
All activities for GeoAmericas 2016 will take place on Miami’s historic South Beach at the five-star Loews Miami Beach Hotel. The 790-room venue is just 20 minutes from Miami International Airport and 35 minutes from Fort Lauderdale International Airport. The Loews offers direct beach access and concierge service in multiple languages.
More than 60% of the room block has been reserved. Organizers encourage all bookings to take place online. The BOOK TODAY link on the GeoAmericas 2016 venue page should be used in order to get the special conference rate.
A few sponsorship and advertising opportunities are available. For questions regarding sponsorship and advertising opportunities with GeoAmericas 2016 or its publishing partner (Geosynthetica), contact André Lacerda, andre@geosynthetica.net, +1 561 570 1061.
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Visit www.geoamericas2016.org for the latest conference information.
The 3rd Pan-American Conference on Geosynthetics (GeoAmericas 2016) will be held 10 – 13 April 2016 in Miami at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel. This quadrennial regional conference from the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS) features 3.5 days of high-quality geotechnical and civil engineering short courses, technical sessions, panel discussions, training lectures, keynote addresses, and networking in a sold out international exhibit hall.
Geosynthetic materials are used extensively in coastal protection projects. The modern geotextiles industry, in fact, emerged in the 1950s in response to flooding in the Netherlands and tropical storm damage in the United States. Since then, a large industry and innovative coastal designs have come along. Geosynthetic tubes and containers provide dewatering and solids separation for large-scale dredging operations and the construction of artificial islands. They build up dune systems for hurricane defense and create artificial reefs. Geotextiles and affiliated gabion systems provide shoreline stabilization and erosion control. Geosynthetic bags provide scour protection for shorelines, infrastructure (e.g., ports), and even off-shore wind turbines. Geosynthetics reinforce levees, enhance the sustainability of waterfront construction, and provide highly effective, economical solutions to long-term coastal engineering goals.
GeoAmericas 2016 features multiple opportunities for coastal protection professionals. Just some of the technical offerings well suited to engineers working in coastal protection include:
Training lectures on embankments on soft soils
Full information on GeoAmericas 2016, including registration, venue, and social/networking opportunities can be found at www.GeoAmericas2016.org.
The North American Geosynthetics Society hosted “Educate the Educators: A Geosynthetics Training Program for University Professors” on 28–29 July 2015 in Austin, Texas.
This program provided core geosynthetic content, background information, and materials for use in the classroom so that participants can offer fundamental geosynthetics instruction in their engineering programs. The primary goal of the event was to teach every participant how to offer at least one 50-minute class on geosynthetics at the undergraduate level. Lecture notes and a hands-on learning module were provided to support this fundamental lecture. Additional class content and resources for senior undergraduate and graduate courses was also presented, discussed and provided.
The training sessions were be led by NAGS members Dr. Jorge Zornberg of The University of Texas at Austin, geotechnical consultant Dr. Barry Christopher and Dr. Richard Brachman of Queen’s University. Corporate sponsors contributed to technical education by providing informative and interesting case histories as well as special hands-on laboratory explanations and demonstrations by technical experts.
“The quality of the program and the reception of the material by the attendees was excellent,” stated John Henderson, PE, President of NAGS. “Educate the Educators is one of the key strategic programs for NAGS to fulfill our mission to improve the knowledge base of civil engineering professionals about geosynthetics.”
Educate the Educators hosted 43 visiting professors from North America and participants from Italy, Peru, China, Indonesia and Egypt.
This non-commercial educational event was chaired by Mr. Boyd Ramsey of GSE Environmental and created by the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS). The event was hosted by the IGS’s North American Chapter (NAGS) and supported by generous sponsors: Geosynthetic Materials Association, Geosynthetic Institute, TenCate Geosynthetics, Erosion Control Technology Council, Presto Geosystems, GSE Environmental, Huesker, Thrace-Linq, and TRI.
Too many engineers enter the field without state-of-the-art geotechnical knowledge, because their formal schooling overlooks a key piece of modern practice: geosynthetics.
Let the geosynthetics community provide resources to teach your students about geosynthetics.
Geosynthetics were the only new class of construction materials developed in the 20th century. Over the past 40 years, they have become fully integrated into all areas of environmental and civil infrastructure design and execution. Their cost-effective, environmentally strong performance has been well documented. In some cases, federal regulations even require their use (e.g., waste management). Today, every major engineering firm has designated geosynthetic experts on staff. Yet, geosynthetics are taught in less than 45 engineering programs in North American colleges and universities. This has produced an enormous knowledge gap.
Multiple geotechnical and geosynthetics professional societies and organizations are joining together to sponsor a geosynthetics education program specific to supporting educators. “Educate the Educators: A Geosynthetics Training Program for University Professors” will be held 28 – 29 July 2015 in Austin, Texas. This program will provide core geosynthetic content, background information, and materials for use in the classroom so that participants may include geosynthetics in their engineering curricula. The event presents a single 50-minute class on geosynthetics for the undergraduate level; but it also provides a framework for additional class content and resources up to and including a graduate-level class on geosynthetics.
Please apply on line at: http://www.ifai.com/forms/educatetheeducators
The sessions will be led by Dr. Richard Brachman of Queen’s University, Dr. Jorge Zornberg of The University of Texas at Austin, and field veteran Barry Christopher.
This is a non-commercial event being conducted under the auspices of the IGS North America and created by the International Geosynthetics Society , and supported by the Geosynthetic Institute, the Geosynthetic Materials Association, and other industry groups and companies.
There are approximately 40 seats in the course. Successful applicants will be provided with hotel, meals, and transportation in Austin. Successful applicants will need only to fund their travel to Austin.
When: 28 – 29 July 2015 Where: Austin, Texas
In applying for participation, please include:
Applicants will be notified of their enrollment status during the second week in June. Priority will be given to those individuals judged to have influence over the content of the programs at their respective institutions.
APPLY ONLINE TO PARTICIPATEPlease apply today. We encourage you to spread the word on this program to your colleagues in education. Spaces are limited, so act promptly. Please contact me using the information below if you have any additional questions.
Sincerely,
Boyd Ramsey
Chief Engineer – GSE Environmental LLC
GMA Chairman
IGS Council Member
Co-Chair IGS Technical Committee on Barriers
Co-Chair IGS North America Educate the Educators Program
+1.281.797.6183
Why are your students, students from your alma mater and other Universities you hire from not graduating with knowledge of the “state of the art” of geotechnical engineering practices?
Let the geosynthetics industry teach you how to teach your students about geosynthetics.
Geosynthetics are the newest addition to “state of the art” engineering design and execution. Used for over 30 years, geosynthetics are critical to environmental and infrastructure civil construction. Geosynthetics are cost-effective, environmentally friendly and in many cases required by federal US regulations. Every major engineering firm has designated geosynthetic experts on staff.
Yet geosynthetics are taught in less than 45 engineering programs within the universities in the North America.
All of the geosynthetic industry societies and organizations are joining to sponsor a program to provide content and knowledge for geosynthetic education. Called “Educate the Educators: A Geosynthetics Training Program for University Professors.” It will be held in July 2015 in Austin, Texas. This program will provide content, materials and background to include geosynthetics in your universities engineering curriculum. The event presents a single 50 minute class on geosynthetics for the undergraduate level but also provides a framework for additional class content and resources up to and including a graduate level class on geosynthetics.
APPLY ONLINE TO PARTICIPATEThe sessions will be led by Dr. Richard Brachman of Queen’s University, Dr. Jorge Zornberg of The University of Texas and Barry Christopher. This is a non-commercial event being conducted under the auspices of the North American Geosynthetics Society and supported by the International Geosynthetics Society, the Geosynthetic Institute, the Geosynthetic Materials Association and other industry groups and companies.
With the exception of travel to and from Austin, all expenses will be paid. Priority will be given to those individuals judged to have influence over the content of the programs at their respective institutions.
Dates: July 28-29, 2015
Location: Austin, Texas
What is needed to apply: Copy of CV, listing of courses taught and a short commentary telling us how you can include this content in your universities curriculum.
We encourage you to both apply today and to spread the word on this program to those colleges and universities we may not reach. Please act promptly, spaces are limited. Please contact me using the information below if you have any additional questions.
APPLY ONLINE TO PARTICIPATESincerely,
Boyd Ramsey
Chief Engineer – GSE Environmental LLC
GMA Chairman
Co-Chair IGS Technical Committee on Barriers
Email: BRamsey@GSEworld.com
Phone: +1.281.797.6183
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
The Geosynthetic Institute (GSI) is delighted to announce a worldwide call for requests for proposals (RFPs) focusing on innovative geosynthetics research and development projects. There will be numerous awards given, each for $5,000 (Note that this is a change from previous years of the program in that the terms are different and that the students can be pursuing either masters or doctoral degrees). Emphasis will be placed on relevant topics of interest and/or concern to the geosynthetics community. A list of possible topics (there are obviously many others) is available upon request. The proposals must be submitted in the following four page format (with no exceptions).
The RFPs for the 2015-2016 academic year must be submitted to the undersigned by e-mail by June 12, 2015. Awards will be announced on, or before, July 30, 2015. Review of the proposals is by the nine-person Board of Directors of GSI. For information on the Geosynthetic Institute and past recipients, visit us at the following website: www.geosynthetic-institute.org/gsifellows.htm
-Jamie R. Koerner, Special Projects Coordinator, jrkoerner@verizon.net
We are the North American Chapter of the International Geosynthetics Society (IGS), serving and representing infrastructure and sustainability professionals in Canada and the United States.
