December 17, 1999
SENH PRESIDENT’S NEWS LETTER
Greetings to all structural practitioners!
The year is almost over. Our organization has had a flurry of activity this fall, and there is much going on in the coming months of interest to the structural engineering community.
Next Membership Meeting
The next membership meeting is
scheduled for Thursday January 27, 2000. This
will be a joint meeting with students from the University of New Hampshire. The subject of the technical presentation will be
“Timber Shear Walls”. Please note
the change in meeting date, which was moved to later in January. Also note the early RSVP date. The meeting announcement enclosed will provide
more information regarding time, location and registration information.
October 20th Seminar
Our October 20th afternoon and evening seminar for the design and rehabilitation of concrete slabs on grade was a sell out! All seats available were filled with over 85 members and guests attending. The Northern New England Concrete Promotion Association (NNECPA) provided a field of five guest speakers on various topics related to concrete slabs. Two design manuals by the Portland Cement Association (PCA) was provided to all attendees. Meeting Minutes of the seminar are enclosed.
The Board of Directors would like to thank NNECPA for organizing such a great program. Also, NNECPA provided the two PCI Design Manuals (a $30.00 value) to our members at no cost. We appreciate very much this gracious donation.
November 9th Membership Meeting
Our November 9th meeting in Nashua, NH was great success; approximately 81 members and guests attended the presentation on “Steel Shop Drawings and Steel Connections”. Minutes of this meeting are enclosed for your review.
NCSEA News
Just a reminder that the NCSEA Structural Engineering Winter Institute is still accepting reservations. The program will be held in Miami, Florida from March 6-10 and will cover LRFD. More information on the program is included in this mailing. The entire professional staff from Steffenson Engineering in Auburn, NH has registered the Winter Institute. Can your firm top this? Remember, the registration deadline for special hotel rates is January 5, 2000.
NCSEA would like to remind us of the Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards Program for 2000. Entry forms for this prestigious awards program will be available in late winter or early spring with applications due in May of 2000. If you have a unique or challenging structural engineering project, the SENH Board would like to encourage you to enter this program. SENH will judge all entrants from New Hampshire and select one project to represent our organization in the national contest. SENH will pay the program application fee. If you have any questions, please contact SENH member Emile Troupe.
NCSEA has recently updated their website. The new and improved site can be viewed at (www.ncsea.com). This is a great site to visit with links to all 28+ member organizations through out the United States.
Design Practice Committee
The SEI-BPAD Design Practices Committee (in cooperation with NCSEA) is looking for new members. Their next meeting will be held in January in Hawaii! Information on this committee and how to become a member is enclosed in this mailing.
2000 Engineers Week
Engineer’s week will occur from February 20th to the 26th, 2000. The highlight of this year’s celebration will be the Engineering Banquet on Thursday February 24th, 2000. The Engineer Week Committee has several activities planned for February with more information provided in this mailing.
The Board of Directors is seeking nominations for “Engineer of the Year” and “Young Engineer of the Year”. If you would like to nominate an individual, contact Robert Durfee, SENH President.
2000 Budget
Enclosed you will find the 2000 budget proposed by the Board of Directors. If you have any questions on the proposed budget please contact Ray Cowan, SENH Treasurer.
NNECPA Winter Program
NNECPA is holding their Winter 2000 Concrete Lunch Box Program. Under the program, this organization will present a lunchtime technical presentation on one of several concrete subjects. This program may be a great opportunity to obtain Professional Design Hours (PDH). Information on this program and the concrete topic presentations available is enclosed.
2000 Dues
Enclosed you will find your dues renewal notice for 2000. The Board of Directors is pleased to announce there will not be an increase in dues this year. Please mail your dues renewal notice and a check for the appropriate amount as soon as possible, so SENH can meet its financial obligations.
The Little Angel
Not long ago and far away Santa was getting ready for his annual trip…but there were problems everywhere…four of the elves got sick, and the trainee elves did not produce the toys as fast as the regular ones so Santa was beginning to feel the pressure of being behind schedule…then Mrs. Claus told Santa that her mom was coming to visit…
This stressed Santa even more…when he went to harness the reindeer he found that three of them were about to give birth and two had jumped the fence and were out heaven knows where…more stress.
And then, when he began to load the sleigh one of the boards on the sleigh cracked and the toy bag fell to the ground and scattered all the toys…so, frustrated Santa went into the house for a cup of coffee and a shot of whiskey…but he found that the elves had hit the liquor cupboard and there was nothing there to drink…and in his frustration he dropped the coffee pot and it broke into hundreds of little pieces all over the kitchen floor…he went to get the broom and found that mice had eaten the straw it was made from. Just then the doorbell rang and Santa cussed on his way to the door…he opened the door and there was a little angel with a great big Christmas tree. And the angel said: Santa, where would you like to put this Christmas tree??
And that, my friends, is how the little angel came to be on top of the Christmas tree…
Happy Holidays! I hope to see you at our January 27th meeting!
Sincerely,
STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
Robert H. Durfee, P.E.
President
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