JUNE 2019
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Mehran Pourzanjani,SE
President

Culmination of Culture of Change: Relevancy of SEAOSC 

June marks the last month of the SEAOSC calendar. The year has sailed by faster than expected. It has been a privilege and honor to serve as SEAOSC‘s 90th President. I am particularly proud to be part of the association’s a rich heritage, history, and traditions. In these dynamic times communities and cultures are changing at an unprecedented increasing rate. To survive associations must remain relevant. This realization has driven our vision and activities over the past year. An association must continually be changing, adapting and modernizing at an ever faster pace to remain relevant.  This year our motto has been to question every tradition and way with SEAOSC in favor of a new refreshed approach. I am pleased to report that with the support of the Executive Committee, the board, and you the members, we have managed daring transformations in the Association which will continue to serve future generations of SEAOSC. In the process we have managed to instill a culture of change and adaptability in the Association.  It is only through our collective efforts, beliefs, and volunteerism that we can continue to transform and modernize. What follows is a recap of some of the major events and transformations we managed together over the course of last year.

SEAOSC NEWS
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SEAOSC has the professional distinction and influence it does today because of our past leaders, you and 1,100 of our colleagues. Your membership strengthens our organization and helps to position it as the premier professional organization to which local structural engineers belong. SEAOSC represents you in the noble profession of structural engineering by fostering and promoting the contributions of structural engineers to society.

To maximize your membership, we encourage you take advantage of the many of the member benefits intended for you and these are shown in our Make an Impact membership flyer. One of the benefits available to SEAOSC SE and PE members for a fee is the ability to participate in the online SEAOSC Member Search service . This service is intended to help the public find Structural Engineers and Professional Engineers specializing in a particular area of structural engineering.

Your membership and participation helps increase the visibility of our profession and its value as well as increasing our influence and impact to make a greater positive difference together than we could individually.
Incoming Board Members
Henry Burton, Ph.D., S.E.
University of California, Los Angeles

Dr. Henry V. Burton is an Assistant Professor and the Englekirk Presidential Endowed Chair in Structural Engineering in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). His research aims to understand and model the relationship between the performance of infrastructure systems within the built environment, and the ability of communities to minimize the extent of socioeconomic disruption following extreme events such as major earthquakes. He teaches graduate courses on Advanced Structural Analysis and Structural Reliability and an undergraduate course on Structural Testing and Analysis. Dr. Burton is a registered structural engineer in the state of California. Prior to obtaining his PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University, he spent six years in practice at Degenkolb Engineers, where he worked on numerous projects involving design of new buildings and seismic evaluation and retrofit of existing buildings. He is a recipient of the National Science Foundation Next Generation of Disaster Researchers Fellowship (2014) and the National Science Foundation CAREER Award (2016).
Kelsey Anne Parolini, P.E., S.E.
Senior Structural Engineer, SSG Structural Engineers, LLP

Kelsey is a Senior Structural Engineer with SSG Structural Engineers, LLP in their San Luis Obispo, CA office. With sixteen years of engineering design and project management experience, her portfolio is brimming with successful mixed-use commercial complexes, multi-family developments, high-end winery facilities, and custom single-family residential projects. She brings a critical eye to each project; ensuring that the proper structural systems are well-coordinated with all disciplines. Kelsey first came to California’s Central Coast to study in the Architectural Engineering Department at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, graduating with her B.S. degree in 2003. She has a passion for education and communication which she currently harnesses to head SSG’s intern development program and spent nearly a decade as a part-time lecturer for her alma mater. She also volunteers in various capacities to help introduce science and math along with the profession of engineering to local school age children through panel discussions, activities and presentations. She has served on SEAOSC’s Board of Directors with emphasis on Tri-County relations, development and growth of the Membership Committee, and the organization’s strategic forward planning. Kelsey is a proud Central Coast resident and lives with her husband and two Jack Russel Terriers in San Luis Obispo.  
Kim Caravalho, S.E.
Vice President, Brandow & Johnston

Kim Caravalho is Vice President of Brandow & Johnston.  She has developed long-standing relationships with a number of clients throughout her 2 5+ years of structural design experience.  Working on a wide array of building types and materials, she has experience in design of new structures, seismic retrofit, modernizations and tenant improvements, as well as DSA plan review. Kim’s portfolio includes K-12 schools, higher education, public facilities, student housing, laboratories and tenant improvement projects, among others. She is comfortable taking on challenging projects and providing safe, high-quality and award-winning design solutions for her clients.  In addition to being a leader in the office, Kim has also been working with the Board of Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists on various aspects of the exam development for more than 10 years .  She earned a Master of Science from the University of Southern California and is licensed in over 15 states.
Tom Harris, S.E.
President and Founder, California Code Check

Tom is president and founder of California Code Check, providing building department services to government. Prior to California Code Check, Tom’s firm, Harris Engineering, was deeply involved in the inspection, assessment, and recovery from the disaster of the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Tom has a deep commitment to serving and strengthening the cities and counties that he works with and where he is needed. He previously served on the SEAOSC board of directors in 1998-99. He was the SEAOC convention chair in 2006 and 2014 and continues to serve on the convention committee. Tom was named SEAOSC “structural engineer of the year“ in 2015. He was also named Industry Member of the Year by CBOAC in 2014 and by CALBO in 2015. Tom graduated from California State University, Northridge with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering. 
Victor Cuevas P.E.
Assistant Chief, Permit and Engineering Bureau

Mr. Cuevas has worked for the City of Los Angeles, Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) for 19 years and is currently in charge of Plan Check operations. Prior to this assignment, he managed the department’s Counter Plan Check Operations. He served as the Department’s Code Engineer for 10 years, where he was responsible to amend and adopt the latest California codes and publishing the City’s Building, Residential, Green Code, Electrical, Mechanical and Plumbing codes. He has worked and managed Engineering Researched and also worked in plan check, supervised and managed all LADBS plan check offices. Prior to joining LADBS, Mr. Cuevas was an Estimator and Project Manager in general engineering construction and seismic retrofit of buildings for several years where he specialized in structural concrete construction. He holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and is a licensed Civil Engineer in the State of California. He is the Past Board President of the Los Angeles Basin Chapter of ICC and a current CALBO Board member. He also served as Planning Commissioner for the City of Montebello for six years.
Outgoing Board Members
Robert “Bob” Lyons. S.E.
Principal, Risha Engineering

Bob is Principal at Risha Engineering, with over 36 years of structural design experience. He has served on various SEAOSC, SEAOC, AISC and other technical committees. He obtained his BS degree in civil engineering from UCLA in 1978.



Donny Harris, S.E., LEED AP
Associate at KPFF Consulting Engineers

Donny joined KPFF in 2002 where he was already familiar with the construction industry practices. He has worked on various project types including, Healthcare, Education, Airport, Port, Residential, Retail, Entertainment, and Corporate. Along with many other technical skills, Donny specializes in Shoring Design which he has done for many types of clients including the Port of Long Beach, where he has become proficient in the codes and regulations of maritime projects. He enjoys sharing his understanding of construction materials and building practices to get to the most effective structural solutions as a team. Donny’s passionate about improving our community and living spaces using modern innovations with traditional ideas of the past.
Massoud Abolhoda, S.E.
Santa Barbara County Planning and Development

Massoud Abolhoda is a California licensed Structural Engineer. He received his Masters of Science in structural engineering from UCLA in 1981 and his Bachelor of Science in civil engineering in 1980. Massoud practiced structural engineering for 8 years before joining the public sector. He led the Building and Safety Division of the City of Fremont from 1996 to 2009, where he introduced the first mandatory soft-story seismic retrofit in 2008. Under his leadership, the City of Fremont received the first ISO #1 award in the United States in 1999 for superior building code adoption and enforcement services. Massoud has been serving as the Building Official of the County of Santa Barbara since 2011. Massoud was the recipient of the CALBO 2007-2008 Building Official of the Year Award.
Patti Harburg-Petrich, S.E., LEED AP BD+C
Associate Principal at BuroHappold Engineering

Patti Harburg-Petrich has designed structural solutions for many building types, including commercial, healthcare, education, sports, and industrial. She has a particular interest in historic retrofit projects and sustainable design and she has a passion for community-centric work. Patti is a licensed Structural Engineer in the state of California, LEED Accredited Professional, Building Design + Construction, and certified Disaster Service Worker for the State of California Safety Assessment Program. She serves on the board of the ACE Mentor Program and volunteers for the Spark Mentor Program.
Truong Huynh, P.E.
General Superintendent of Development Services at City of Long Beach

Mr. Truong Huynh is the General Superintendent of Development Services, a manager in the Building and Safety Bureau within the City of Long Beach’s Department of Development Services. Mr. Huynh is a licensed professional engineer and a certified building official with over 20 years of experience in the building and safety profession. Mr. Huynh began his career with the City of Long Beach in July of 2005 and is responsible for planning, organizing, directing and coordinating the programs and activities of the Engineering and Plan Check Services Division. Previously, Mr. Huynh worked for 9 years at the City of Los Angeles’ Department of Building and Safety.
Membership Appreciation Event – Downtown Food Tour
The procession was guided by Seaosc’s public relation consultant, John Bwarie. His insight into the largely unknown heroes and their often unseen tributes to the fabric of downtown produced inspiring stories and informative background. The lively walk, food, and great weather created the perfect opportunity for mingling in the multi-generational group. It definitely did not disappoint either the hunger or curiosity..
If you missed out, keep your ears open next spring for the announcement of next year’s event. It will be hard to beat the food tour, but the membership committee will certainly try.
SEAOSC MEMBER NEWS
Welcome New Members
Member SE
Patrick Noll, Arup
Lee Pursell, Buehler

Member
Ann Jiras, Arup
Eduardo Zarate, EZ Studio Inc.
Alan Tonissen, KPFF Consulting Engineers
Sikandar Porter-Gill, Kurt Fischer Structural Engineering
Jackie Steiner, DuraFuse Frames
Amber Freund, RISA

Associate
Edward Salazar, TRC

Young Associate
Christine Pang, John A. Martin & Assoc.
Hai Ngo, The Raymond Group
Srikar Gunisetty, John Labib + Associates Structural Engineers
Mark Patterson, KNA Structural Engineers, Inc.

Affiliate
Ron Takiguchi, City of Burbank
SEAOSC EVENTS
Past May 2019 Dinner Event Highlights

Continuing an annual tradition, the SEAOSC May dinner meeting was jointly hosted by ACI, and featured a presentation by Androush Danielians on Measure M funding and the projects that are currently underway. He provides a status of some of the large Metro projects and discussed the type of structures being designed and constructed at Metro, highlighting the codes and standard that Metro uses and the seismic criteria and requirements that are being followed. Thanks to ACI, Mr. Danielians, and the event sponsors for their help in putting on this great event!


INDUSTRY NEWS
ANNOUNCEMENTS & LINKS
MEMBER REFERRAL PROGRAM:
Member Referral Program
SEAOSC Members can opt-in to the Referral Program for $100 annually. You may opt-in anytime by contacting the SEAOSC office at [email protected] . A listing will appear on seaosc.org/Member-Services-Search which includes your name, license number, business address and your selected categories.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM:

While California not does have mandatory continuing education for your license renewal, SEAOSC created this voluntary program to recognize and record members’ seminar attendance. You can enroll for $50 annually during dues renewals. Credit is issued for your attendance at qualifying dinner meetings, seminars and educational events based on 1 credit for each contact hour of continuing education. Click Here to learn more.
DIRECTORY / CLASSIFIEDS