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The University of Southampton
Engineering

International award for Southampton structural engineering lecturer

Published: 20 May 2022
ahmed-alkady

A Southampton structural engineering lecturer has been awarded an international prize for his part in a research publication that has made an outstanding contribution to the applications of structural engineering research. 

Dr Ahmed Elkady collaborated with colleagues at the EPFL University in Switzerland on a research paper that used experimental data and finite element simulations to update a 50-year-old numerical model with a new robust one that is capable of predicting the shear behaviour of beam-to-column connections in steel frame buildings, under static and dynamic loads. 

The new model will assist engineers and researchers conduct more efficient designs and more accurate numerical simulations. It is readily available for practical implantation and is also being incorporated in the future versions of the Canadian and American standards. 

The paper was selected by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) for the 2022 Raymond C Reese Research Prize that recognises publications with outstanding contributions in the field of structural engineering research. 

Ahmed said: “The prize recognises the impact of our research to the structural engineering field. Myself and my co-authors – EPFL Professor Dimitrios Lignos and EPFL PhD candidate Andronikos Skiadopoulos - felt highly honoured to receive this award as it celebrates years of hard work. It also further motivates us to keep pushing for the development of more robust numerical tools and design guidelines that leads to a safe and robust built environment.  

The research included in the paper builds on research projects that Ahmed started when he was a postdoctoral research scientist at EPFL. He said: “The award will help support my ongoing research direction which focuses on the utilisation of test data and high fidelity simulations to develop deep understanding of the underlying physical phenomena that affects the behaviour of structural component, subassemblies and systems.”

 

finite element simulations image
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