CFSEI Names 2014 Design Excellence And Distinguished Service Award Winners
Washington, DC - The Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute (CFSEI) has named DSi Engineering, LLC as the winner of its 2014 Design Excellence Award and Robert Madsen, P.E., Senior Project Engineer at Devco Engineering, Inc. in Corvallis, Oregon as the recipient of its 2014 Distinguished Service Award. The awards were presented recently during the 2014 CFSEI Annual Expo and Meeting at the Peabody Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee.
Design Excellence Award
The Design Excellence Award recognizes small and large projects that exemplify excellence in the structural design of new or renovated structures utilizing cold-formed steel products.
DSi Engineering, LLC was recognized for its innovative work on the David C. Barrow Elementary School in Athens, Georgia. The project called for renovating a portion of the building that was originally built in 1923 (which now houses the administrative offices and classrooms for pre-kindergarten through first grade) and adding a new two-story structure that houses classrooms for second through fifth grades, a media center, specialty classrooms, a new gymnasium, and a new dining facility.
“This project presented some stringent time, cost and architectural constraints that challenged the principals involved to come up with several design innovations so that the school could open for the 2013-2014 school year,” said Maribeth Rizzuto, LEED AP-BD+C, Managing Director of the Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute. “The design innovations included composite steel beams with the poured concrete slabs, load distribution members, special alignment techniques for the shear walls, and composite slabs with bar-joists that allowed the loadbearing steel portion of the project to be completed in just a few weeks. The innovations, along with the inherent durability, straightness and quality of cold-formed steel framing, enabled the construction process to be completed on time and under budget―the very definition of ‘design excellence.’
“We congratulate the project team of DSi Structures; DSi Engineering, led by Steve Haddad, Project Manager; GW Design Group, LLC; Odom Construction Systems, Inc.; Piedmont Construction Group, LLC; SP Design Group, Architects and Engineers; and the Clarke County School District on meeting all of the project parameters with innovative cold-formed steel solutions,” said Rizzuto.
The design team utilized DSi Structures’ proprietary IntelliModel software to integrate the panel design with the architectural and structural design. Using 100% building information modeling (BIM) technology, the panels and shear walls were laid out in 3D along with the composite floor systems using Ecospan floor joists. The innovative DSi header system was used to ensure efficiency. To read more about the project, click here.
All CFSEI award entries were judged by a panel of cold-formed steel professionals on demonstrated excellence and achievement in the use of cold-formed steel based on the following criteria: design creativity, technical innovation, system efficiency and economy, constructability, complexity of problems solved, and design integration.
Distinguished Service Award
The Distinguished Service Award recognizes the significant contributions of an individual who has volunteered time, talent and resources to the cold-formed steel industry.
“Rob Madsen is considered one of the premier structural engineers in the cold-formed steel design arena, and we are proud to recognize him with our highest award for individual achievement,” said Rizzuto. “He has made extensive contributions to the design of cold-formed steel structures, and has also developed a widely used, well-respected family of software programs that is used by engineers worldwide. These programs include AISIWIN™ and LGBEAMER™.”
Madsen is chairman of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) Committee on Framing Standards (COFS) Lateral Design Subcommittee, which is leading an industry-wide effort to develop a new standard—AISI S400, North American Standard for the Seismic Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Systems. The standard will provide a platform for the growth of new cold-formed steel seismic force-resisting systems.
He was the design engineer for the two structures tested during the CFS-NEES project conducted during the summer of 2013, which was the final phase of a three-year National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded research project to increase the seismic safety of buildings that use cold-formed steel light-frame construction for their primary support. The structure—which was designed using the most advanced computational models developed by the researchers—performed better than expected on the shake tables at the University at Buffalo. The full-scale testing provided the first look at the full system effect for cold-formed steel light-frame buildings.
An original member of the Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute, Madsen is chairman of the Technical Review Committee, a position he has held since 2006. In that capacity, Madsen and his team are charged with reviewing the content for all of CFSEI’s Technical Notes, which provide technical information to engineers and designers for the safe and efficient design of cold-formed steel structures.
The 2014 CFSEI Annual Expo and Meeting was attended by architects, builders/contractors, engineers and other construction industry professionals. The event provided opportunities for education, networking, and an exposition featuring state-of-the-art innovations, technologies and principles in cold-formed steel framing.
About The Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute
The Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute comprises hundreds of structural engineers and other design professionals who are finding a better way to produce safe and efficient designs for commercial and residential structures with cold-formed steel. CFSEI members work together to develop and evolve industry standards and design methods, produce and issue technical bulletins, and provide seminars and online training to improve the knowledge and skills base of engineers and design professionals. For more information, visit www.cfsei.org.