3.0

Average Course Rating

The renovation of existing buildings often holds many advantages over new construction, including greater economy, improved sustainability, and the maintenance of engineering heritage and architectural character in our built environment. Yet, the renovation of existing structures presents many challenges to structural engineers. These challenges include structural materials that are no longer in widespread use (e.g., unreinforced masonry arches and vaults, cast iron, and wrought iron) as well as structural materials for which analysis and design practices have changed significantly over the last half-century (e.g., wood, steel, and reinforced concrete).This course will examine structures made of a wide variety of materials and instruct the student how to evaluate their condition, determine their existing capacity, and design repairs and/or reinforcement. The investigation and analysis procedures learned from this course may then be applied to create economical and durable structural alterations that allow for the reuse of older buildings. Site visits near Homewood campus will supplement lectures. co-listed with 560.429.