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Short Courses

*Note: All times listed below are Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time (GMT-10)

Sunday, September 18

Full-Day Short Courses

7:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Vessel Mooring and Berthing

This eight-hour short course provides an introduction to the determination of vessel berthing and mooring requirements and design loads for fixed marine structures such as piers, wharves, dolphins, and other port and harbor structures. The material presented is applicable to offshore terminals as well but does not address design of free-swinging single point or spread moorings. The course is oriented toward providing civil/ structural engineers and port and marine terminal operators necessary background information for designing and evaluating berthing and mooring structures. This course is offered with the option of purchasing “Design of Marine Facilities for the Berthing, Mooring & Repair of Vessels, 3rd Edition,” at a package price.

Instructors: Bill Bruin, P.E., M. ASCE, Senior Principal, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc.; Rune Iversen, P.E., M.ASCE, Associate Principal, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc.; Cheryl Coviello, P.E., D.PE, M.ASCE, Senior Project Manager, GZA GeoEnvironmental, Inc.

Inspection, Testing, and Rehabilitation of Waterfront Structures

Waterfront infrastructure represents a significant investment. Owners have a vested interest in maintaining and extending the service life of these aging assets. Exposed to the harsh marine environment, these structures are subject to increased degradation when compared most inland assets. Most owners find the goal of providing proactive and cost-effective maintenance to be a challenge. Recognizing these drivers, the ASCE/COPRI Ports & Harbors Committee developed Waterfront Facilities Inspection and Assessment (ASCE Manuals and Reports on Engineering Practices No. 130) and is finalizing the companion manual Waterfront Facilities Rehabilitation. This course is offered with the option of purchasing “ Waterfront Facilities Inspection and Assessment,” at a package price.

The intent is to not only provide owners and engineers with guidance on choosing inspection techniques, but also to determine the assessment and appropriate rehabilitation approach. The result is a process that will assist owners in maintaining their waterfront assets and extending the service life. The eight-hour course is designed to help facility operators, owners and engineers:

  • Understand industry best practices for the professional engineering inspection and assessment of waterfront facilities - including above and below water; and
  • Develop, scope, and solicit facility inspections and assessments; and
  • Discuss nondestructive testing (NDT) and partially destructive testing (PDT) methods, which aid in the assessment and rehabilitation of facility assessments
  • Determine appropriate rehabilitation techniques.

Instructors: Thomas Spencer, P.E., S.E., D.PE, P.Eng., M.ASCE, Structural Engineer & Dive Supervisor, Moffatt & Nichol; Sean Chapman, P.E., M.ASCE, Dive Supervisor, Marine Solutions, Inc.; Daniel O’Connor, P.E., M.ASCE, Senior Vice President – Northeast Division Manager, Collins Engineers, Inc; Noah Elwood, P.E., D.PE, D.OE, M.ASCE, President, Appledore Marine Engineering LLC; Paul Roberts, P.E., West Coast Area Manager – Civil Engineer-Diver, Sea Engineering, Inc.

Can't make it to Honolulu? Enroll in the Construction of Port Facilities Guided Online Course and learn from your desk!

Modeling and Resilient Design against Tsunami Hazards

Researchers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Engineer Research & Development Center (ERDC) will offer a tsunami short course to provide hands-on numerical modeling experience of generation, propagation, and quantification of effects of both seismic and landslide-generated tsunamis. All short course participants will get access to the open-source FUNWAVE-TVD model on their desired platform (personal computer – Linux OS, Mac OS X, Windows®). In addition, federal government employees (with a Common Access Card [CAC] or YubiKey) will received free access to the FUNWAVE-TVD app in the DoD High-Performance Computing (HPC) Portal via a web browser. Presented numerical example cases will include:

  • 2011 Tohoku Tsunami (Japan) from the 9.1 magnitude earthquake, along with its impacts on the west coast of the United States (both open coast and harbors),
  • 2021 Cumbre Vieja volcano eruption on La Palmas, Canary Islands (Spain),
  • Landslide-generated tsunami near Cape Fear on the east coast of the United States, and
  • 1964 Alaska 9.2 magnitude earthquake and tsunami along the west coast of the United States.

This one-day short course will allow users to learn the basics of the FUNWAVE-TVD model, as well as experiment with different tsunami-generation mechanisms and subsequently apply these initial wave conditions to drive real-life numerical simulations in a multi-processor parallel computing environment. Finally, attendees will be provided with tools to help visualize not only the propagation and transformation of tsunami waves, but also analyze and quantify their destructive effects on shorelines and coastal communities (runup, overtopping, inundation, and debris flow).

Main Instructor: Prof. Fengyan Shi, PhD, Center of Applied Coastal Research, University of Delaware, U.S.A.

General Note: All registered participants will be contacted by the main instructor (Dr. Matt Malej) prior to the course with additional information on how/where to access to model code, along with detailed instructions and short video tutorials on how to install the FUNWAVE-TVD model on your local laptop (Linux, Mac OS X, Windows®). Those participants from the federal government, who possess a CAC, will also be given free access (no installation required) to the FUNWAVE-TVD HPC Portal App – where all model workflow can be accesses solely via a web browser (Chrome browser is recommended).

It is also recommended (but not required) to have a working version of a Python (3.x) or MATLAB® toolbox package on your personal computer, as all example cases will be accompanied by postprocessing tools/codes for those two frameworks. Instructions on how to obtain and install a Python Language package (e.g., Anaconda® ) will also be sent out prior to the course commencement.

For additional questions, please contact Dr. Matt Malej at [email protected]

Half-Day Short Courses

7:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Optimization of Port Operations Using Simulation Modeling

The course will provide a complete overview of the application of simulation modeling in the port and maritime industry in order to make tactical decisions in improving port capacity, optimizing port operations, and increasing velocity and port capacity. The course will provide an overview of:

  • Defining the capacity of a port
  • Key factors that impact port capacity
  • History and evolution of simulation technology
  • Differences between simulation modeling and spreadsheet analysis
  • Application of simulation modeling to optimizing vessel navigation and channel capacity, dredging and offshore construction projects, entry/exit gate process and landside access capacity, intermodal rail processes and port rail capacity, vessel network and increase system capacity
  • Available simulation models and software
  • Process and timeline for performing a simulation model study

This course will enable the audience to learn about this evolving technology and how it’s useful in optimizing all elements of efficient port operations including channel, wharf, yard, gate, and rail processes.

Instructors: Vijay Agrawal, P.E. M.ASCE, Vice President – Goods Movement, AECOM; Mark Sisson, P.E., M.ASCE, Vice President – Senior Port Planner/Analyst, AECOM

Design and Construction of Large Floating Structures

This course will provide civil/structural engineers and port/marine terminal operators with detailed instructions on the design and construction considerations of large floating structures such as wave attenuators, ferry and cruise ship terminals, and other passenger or vehicle platforms.  The same concepts may be scaled up for larger structures such as floating container terminals, bridges, and other concrete type floating structures. This course will introduce designers to design considerations unique to floating structures.  Discussions will include float stability and characteristics, global and local marine loadings, lateral support considerations, design methods and references, as well as construction means and methods and quality control provisions. The course will provide technical training in a topic not widely available in published guidelines and will preview information being prepared for a future ASCE Manual of Practice on Large Floating Structures. This course will primarily focus on large concrete float designs, even though many of the design concepts are directly applicable to other material types.  Topics will include:

  • The use of large floating structures such as bridges, marine terminals, ferry docks. Course will not address offshore platforms, barges or derrick, floating dry docks, or small boat marinas.
  • Environmental considerations and feasibility including bathymetry and tidal variation, hydrostatic, wind and wave pressures on hulls, and towing loads.
  • Pontoon and support design considerations, lateral supports such as guide pile dolphins, anchor chains, and float-to-shore connections.
  • Fabrication and construction considerations including fabrication facilities, quality control, launching, towing, means and methods, and quality control provisions.

This four-hour course will provide attendees with general knowledge for analyzing, designing, and constructing large floating structures. This course will include examples and lessons learned from completed large floating structure projects.

Instructors: Shannon Kinsella, P.E., PMP, M. ASCE, Principal, Reid Middleton; Frank Yang, P.E., M. ASCE, Senior Marine Structural Engineer, Moffatt & Nichol; Jim Parkins, P.E., M. ASCE, Principal, Concrete Technology Corp

Seismic Design of Piers and Wharves

This four-hour course is intended as a primer on the seismic design of piers and wharves based on the ASCE 61-14.  The course addresses major topics in seismic design in general as well as analysis and detailing of marine structures in particular.  The course is intended to provide the student with a basic understanding of:

  • Marine structural systems for lateral resistance
  • Seismic performance objectives
  • Geotechnical considerations
  • Soil-structure interaction used in seismic analysis
  • Determination of nonlinear displacement demand and capacity
  • Capacity protection and seismic detailing of marine structures

At the end of the course it is expected the student will have a basic understanding of the above topics and greater familiarity with critical items for consideration when managing, reviewing, or performing seismic design of piers and wharves. This course is offered with the option of purchasing “Seismic Design of Piers and Wharves Standard ASCE/COPRI 61-14,” at a package price.

Instructors: Julie Galbraith, P.E., M. ASCE, Senior Project Manager, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc.; Marc Percher, P.E., M. ASCE, Senior Engineer, COWI North America

12:30 PM - 5:00 PM

Planning, Design, and Implementation of Automated Terminals

The course will include a comprehensive discussion of container handling automation and the planning, design, and implementation of automated terminals. As the challenges associated with port development evolve, the course will address:

  • Next generation terminal best practices
  • Benefits of automation
  • Benefits of rail-mounted container stacking cranes
  • Process for planning and designing an automated terminal
  • Cost and schedule considerations

This four-hour course will provide attendees with interactive experience by demonstrating an actual automated terminal development process. Instructors will present case studies and offer insights into the goals, achievements, and challenges of planning and implementing automated terminals.

Instructors: Ashebir Jacob, P.E., Vice President – Senior Port Engineer/Planner; Moffatt & Nichol; Bart Vermeer, Senior Manager Terminal Automation, Moffatt & Nichol; Alan Zhang, FlexTerm Lead, Moffatt & Nichol

Can't make it to Honolulu? Enroll in the Marine Container Terminal Planning Guided Online Course and learn from your desk!

Theory and Design of Floating Wave Attenuators

This course builds on the Design and Construction of Large Floating Structures course but may be taken independently. The course will guide the marine designer and engineer through the planning and design of floating wave attenuators and will address the following:

  • Site characterization and development of an appropriate design criteria
  • The difference between fixed breakwaters and floating pontoons
  • Development of the theory for wave attenuation in deep and shallow water
  • Estimations and effectiveness of wave period and wavelength applied to wave attenuators
  • Model test and prototype measurements
  • Case examples

This four-hour course will provide attendees with an understanding of how attenuators do, and don’t work, the expected scale (size) of an attenuator needed to perform adequately, and the practical limitations in the use of attenuators.

Instructors: Jack Cox, P.E., D. CE, D. NE, D.PE, M. ASCE, Edgewater Resources

Dredging 201 - Fundamentals of Sediment Remediation

This four-hour course, sponsored by the Western Dredging Association (WEDA), will present fundamentals of contaminated waterways remediation, including site characterization, remedial strategies, and post-construction monitoring. The basics of natural recovery, enhanced natural recovery, environmental dredging, and capping as remedial strategies will be discussed, including Best Management Practices (BMPs) for residuals management, cap placement, sediment management, and other real-world construction considerations. The course will focus on developing constructible remedial strategies across a wide array of environments that provide long-term risk reduction. A model contaminated sediment site will be used to illustrate how different remedial strategies can be sewn together to reduce site-wide risk.

This course will provide attendees a broad overview of issues related to contaminated sediments from initial identification through complete remediation including a comprehensive discussion on potential management options.

Instructors: Don Hayes, Ph.D., P.E., BCEE, F.ASCE, Western Dredging Association

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