AUS civil engineering professor and international expert contributes to a US flagship building design standard

Dr. Mohammad AlHamaydeh, Professor of Civil Engineering at American University of Sharjah (AUS), lent his expertise to developing the 2022 edition of the American design standard "Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures (ASCE/SEI 7-22)."

Developed by the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the ASCE/SEI 7-22 standard is a flagship structural engineering standard that specifies minimum design loads in construction, such as dead, live, earthquake, wind and tsunami loads, as well as their critical combinations. It also prescribes the various analysis procedures utilized for all structural design purposes. It is of paramount importance for the structural engineering profession and practice in the USA, and is one of the most widely accepted and used standards outside the USA, including in the UAE.

As a member of the technical committee responsible for the design standard development and as the first fellow of the SEI in the MENA region, Dr. AlHamaydeh enjoys internationally recognized expertise that qualified him to be invited to join numerous technical committees related to the ASCE/SEI 7-22. Since 2017, he has served on the ASCE/SEI 7-22 standard’s main committee as well as the following subcommittees: Seismic Loads, Non-Linear General Provisions, Concrete, and Seismic Isolation and Damping Systems.

“Developing structural engineering standards is a very thorough and rigorous process. It is a massive responsibility demanding a substantial level of preparation to effectively execute such a vital role. On the personal level, I found the process exceptionally fulfilling. Throughout this whole experience, I have been blessed with a secret ingredient that made the journey worthwhile: my loving family. None of this would have been accomplished it weren’t for them and their unyielding support,” he said.  

Dr. AlHamaydeh has over 25 years of experience in structural engineering design practice, teaching and research with experience that spans Jordan, the United States and the United Arab Emirates. A published researcher in various high-caliber journals, his current areas of research focus on structural and earthquake engineering with a specific attention to nonlinear dynamic response analysis and modeling, passive control and supplemental damping devices, nonlinear finite element analysis, soil-structure interaction, structural optimization, experimental analysis of full-scale structures, damage detection, ultra-high performance concrete, structural health monitoring, nothing-on-road bridge weigh-in-motion systems, and artificial intelligence and machine learning for structural/earthquake applications.

He teaches several structural engineering courses at the undergraduate level at AUS such as Statics, Structural Steel Design, Fundamentals of Structural Dynamics and Computer Methods in Structural Analysis. At the graduate level, he teaches Structural Earthquake Engineering and Analysis and Design of Tall Buildings.

The AUS Department of Civil Engineering is recognized throughout the region for the exceptional education it offers through undergraduate and graduate programs. AUS is ranked number one (tied) in the UAE and among the top 200 universities globally for civil and structural engineering, according to QS World University Subject Rankings (2021).  For more information, please visit www.aus.edu/cen/department-of-civil-engineering.