Florida International University is hosting a free webinar, “PennDOT’s Rapid Bridge Replacement Project Utilizing Folded Steel Plate Girder Bridge,” this Thursday, April 20 at 1 p.m. ET.

The Salesforce Tower -- San Francisco’s tallest building and the second-tallest west of Chicago (behind the steel-framed Wilshire Grand in Los Angeles) -- topped out last week. 

The Steel Erectors Association of America (SEAA) recently announced that its network of Ironworker Training Units has expanded from coast to coast with the addition of Orland, Calif.-based Rackley Company, Inc. (an AISC member and certified erector).

The National Institute of Building Sciences’ Building Seismic Safety Council (BSSC) is hosting a free webinar, “Design of Seismic Force-Resisting Systems in Steel-Framed Buildings,” on Friday, April 21 from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET. 

The National Steel Bridge Alliance (NSBA) invites anyone involved in steel bridge research, design or construction to submit an abstract for consideration to present at the 2018 World Steel Bridge Symposium (WSBS), which will be held in conjunction with NASCC: The Steel Conference, April 11-13 in Baltimore. 

A recent article in the New York Daily News details how buying foreign steel, often from China and usually subisidized by the Chinese government, is hurting the U.S. steel industry, reducing American jobs, and ultimately reducing the amount of taxes the government collects. 

The winning sculpture in AISC’s sixth annual Steel Sculpture Competition is “Man of Steel,” designed and fabricated by Victor Velazquez, an employee with Universal Steel of North Carolina (an AISC member and certified fabricator). 

The second quarter 2017 issue of AISC’s Engineering Journal is now available at www.aisc.org/ej. You can view, download and print the current digital edition.

April is National Welding Month, an annual event organized by the American Welding Society (AWS) to celebrate the welding industry through education, mentorship and recognition.  

AISC has issued new requirements for its Certified Building Fabricator Program and its new Hydraulic Steel Structures Program, which are now available at www.aisc.org/certification.

Have you visited Google’s homepage today? The doodle celebrates what would’ve been the 88th birthday of Fazlur Rahman Khan, the structural engineer and architect who was famous for pioneering tubular design in high-rise buildings. 

Congratulations to our winners! They are: Rajesh, digital marketing manager at CADeploy, Inc. (an AISC member); Jeff Rodeheaver, detailing manager at SWF Industrial, Inc., Wrightsville, Pa.; and Nep Viajar, civil/structural engineer at Fluor Corp., Houston.

The Iron Workers (IW) and the Ironworker Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust (IMPACT) announced a new paid maternity leave benefit at the recent 2017 Iron Workers/IMPACT Conference in San Diego. 

More than 80 structural steel fabrication and erection facilities are being honored with AISC Safety Awards for their excellent safety performance records in 2016. 

The Steel Joist Institute (SJI) is offering its Wind Design Considerations for Joists and Joist Girders webinar again on Wednesday, April 19, from 3 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. (ET), followed by a 15-minute question and answer session; it was also offered earlier this month.

AISC president Charlie Carter is slated to speak at the 2017 V1 International Steel Construction Conference, which will be held June 21-23 at the Cubo Colsubsidio in Bogotá, Colombia. 

Thirteen structural steel building projects have earned national recognition in the 2017 Innovative Design in Engineering and Architecture with Structural Steel awards program (IDEAS²). The winning projects and their respective team members were recognized today during the 2017 NASCC: The Steel Conference in San Antonio. 

Attending NASCC: The Steel Conference in San Antonio this week? Between sessions and browsing the exhibit hall, check out this year’s Steel Sculpture Competition finalists and vote for your favorite! The ultimate winner will be chosen by conference attendees.

Geoffrey L. Kulak, PE, PhD, a professor emeritus at the University of Alberta and one of the world’s leading experts on the behavior of welded and bolted connections, passed away last week. Kulak also was a recognized authority on fatigue of fabricated steel members and member stability.

The 2017 ASCE/AISC National Student Steel Bridge Competition (NSSBC) is underway! The season kicked off earlier this month with the first regional competition at the University of Texas at El Paso. Seventeen more regional competitions will follow this spring, culminating with the national competition over Memorial Day weekend, May 26-27 at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Ore.

SSPC: The Society for Protective Coatings has issued a call for papers for its SSPC 2018 featuring Greencoat conference to be held January 15-18, 2018, in New Orleans. Presenter abstracts are due May 1 for consideration.

Just one more week until NASCC: The Steel Conference! If you can't make it to San Antonio in person, NASCC Live offers the next best thing.

In conjunction with AASHTO, NSBA has released two Steel Bridge Collaboration documents for free download. The documents join a growing list of AASHTO-approved guide and specification documents for use as references during the design, fabrication and erection processes.

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) has released its 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, the quadrennial assessment of the nation's infrastructure. The report found the national grade for infrastructure remains at a "D+"—the same grade the U.S. received in 2013—suggesting only incremental progress was made over the last four years toward restoring America's infrastructure.

Patricia M. Clayton, PhD, an assistant professor with the University of Texas at Austin’s Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering’s Ferguson Structural Engineering Laboratory, is the recipient of AISC’s 2017 Milek Fellowship Award.

Attention college and university faculty: The deadline to register your students for the 17th annual ACSA/AISC Steel Design Student Competition is fast approaching! 

If you’re a steel bridge professional interested in exchanging ideas with others in the industry, come to Denver for the spring Steel Bridge Collaboration meeting, taking place May 2-4  at the Crowne Plaza hotel. 

The Steel Joist Institute (SJI) is presenting a webinar, “Wind Design Considerations for Joists and Joist Girders,” on Wednesday, March 15 from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. (ET).

When, where and why you should consider modular construction. 

AISC has released a position paper affirming its support of President Donald Trump’s call for expanded rules mandating “Buy American” and “Hire American” on infrastructure projects. 

The 2016 version of the AISC standard, Seismic Provisions for Structural Steel Buildings (ANSI/AISC 341-16), is now available as a free download at www.aisc.org/2016SP. 

OSHA's fourth annual “National Safety Stand-Down” will take place May 8-12. It’s a voluntary event for employers to talk directly to their employees about safety, including hazards, protective methods and the company's safety policies and goals. It can also be an opportunity for workers to talk to management about hazards they see. 

There’s good and bad news to report about the condition of America’s bridges. The good news is there were 2,790 fewer structurally deficient bridges in 2016 compared to 2015. The bad news is there are still 55,710 on the structurally deficient list, according to the American Road and Transportation Builders Association’s (ARTBA) recently-released 2017 Bridge Report, which analyzes the 2016 National Bridge Inventory from the Federal Highway Administration.

The Steel Deck Institute (SDI) has updated five standards and made them available for free download at www.sdi.org. These standards are included by reference in the 2018 International Building Code. 

The 8th Edition AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications contains several changes that impact steel connection design. NSBA is hosting a webinar on March 14 that will introduce the new simplified design procedure for bolted splices and present updates on changes to the shear and slip capacity of bolted connections.

Twelve leaders from across the structural steel design, construction and academic communities will be presented with awards by AISC at the 2017 NASCC: The Steel Conference (March 22-24 in San Antonio).

Full-time juniors, seniors and masters students enrolled in civil engineering, architectural engineering, construction engineering or construction management programs at U.S. universities are encouraged to apply for AISC scholarships for the 2017-18 academic year. 

A critical section of structural steel was installed on the New NY Bridge project last week. The segment is the first connection between the cable-stayed main span and the pier-supported approaches, marking another major accomplishment for the project team.

The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) will celebrate Women in Construction Week (WIC) March 5-11. This annual event is dedicated to raising awareness of the opportunities for women in the construction industry as well as to emphasize the growing role of women in the industry.

AISC is offering a free webinar, “Get Fired Up: What an Engineer Needs to Know About Fire Design,” on Wednesday, February 22 at 12:30 p.m. (CT). 

The expansion of Terminal 2 at San Diego International Airport is highlighted in AISC’s latest case study in structural steel.

This past Saturday marked 95 years of service for Chicago’s Wells Street Bridge — the longest double-deck, double-leaf, bascule bridge built over the Chicago River, and only one of two remaining bascule bridges in the city that carries both automobile and transit (Chicago Transit Authority elevated trains) traffic on two levels. 

AISC has developed a new webpage -- www.aisc.org/internships -- to connect students looking for internships with companies that have positions available within the structural steel industry. 

The newly renovated Eads Bridge at St. Louis was recently recognized with a Structure Award by SSPC: The Society for Protective Coatings.

If you’re in the Philadelphia area, tune into your local PBS - WHYY station at 9 p.m. (ET) to view the documentary film, Bridging Urban America: The Story of Ralph Modjeski. 

The Steel Erectors Association of America (SEAA) recently announced that it has completed all requirements for full endorsement as a provider of rigger, signal person and mobile crane operator certifications and credentials from the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER).

An economical all-structural-steel gravity and lateral framing system is the perfect solution for this residential mixed-use project.

Omer W. Blodgett, who died on January 11 at the age of 99, lived and breathed welding. Throughout his long career, his expertise and passion influenced countless welders and engineers around the world. 

The Platts 13th annual Steel Markets North America Conference is coming to Chicago March 13-14. The event covers North American steel market trends including economics, international markets, export trends, supply chain and new policy directions impacting the future of steel. 

Engineers Week is coming February 19-25. The annual event is aimed at celebrating how engineers make a difference in the world, increasing public dialogue about the need for engineers and bringing engineering to life for kids, educators and parents. The theme of EWeek 2017 is “Engineers Dream Big.”