Ayman S. Mosallam
Title
INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES FOR RAPID REHABILITATION AND RECONSTRUCTION OF DISASTER-STRICKEN URBAN AREAS: INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGY & HUMANITIES
ABSTRACT
In recent few years, the world has been witnessing increasing number of disasters, both man-made and sever natural disasters. Following the occurrence of such events, it is necessary that impacted zones are rapidly rehabilitated and rebuilt to provide decent shelters, restore infrastructure lifelines, and reestablish security for the affected communities. Communities affected by such disastrous event could face prolonged relocation, economic hardships, and psychological and emotional trauma if efforts to rebuild are prolonged. The lecture explores innovative techniques that emphasize safety, sustainability, and cultural sensitivity while integrating innovative construction technology together with a design that emphasizes people ideology to accelerate recovery.
In this lecture, the prefabricated sandwich panels are considered to be state-of-the-art building systems that offer lightweight, sustainable, and structurally-sound method for rapid construction, will be used as an example. The systems’ components could be prefabricated at a nearby site and then transported to the impacted locations, or they could be built on-site by labors with least amount of skills. In fact, it is possible to train members of the community as well as volunteers to construct the building unites under the supervision of a small numbers with skilled foremen and engineers. These sandwich panels guarantee accuracy, quality, and less on-site labor because they are prefabricated in regulated manufacturing environments, significantly reducing building time. For these reasons, this technique is appropriate for emergency shelters, and vital infrastructure in impacted areas because of different characteristics that include its modular nature, which also permit flexible, foldable, and expandable layouts. In addition to their technical advantages, prefabricated sandwich panels could easily achieve energy-efficient requirements, utilization of recycled materials, and reduce on-site waste, all of which contribute to achieving sustainable rapid reconstruction.
The lecture will emphasize the social and humanitarian aspects of disaster recovery, with a strong emphasis on engaging civil communities, fostering social awareness, and promoting collaboration across various sectors. By combining advanced technologies with a people-first mindset, this approach seeks to do more than just reconstruct physical infrastructure—it aims to rebuild the social connections and well-being of vulnerable communities. The ultimate vision is to establish a recovery process that is not only swift and effective but also fair, inclusive, and equipped to withstand future challenges.
Biography
Dr. Ayman S. Mosallam is a Professor of Structural and Earthquake Engineering, also a Professor, Materials & Manufacturing Engineering Technology. He is a Fellow the American Society of Civil Engineers, and a Fellow of the International Association of Advanced Materials (IAAM). Prof. Mosallam is the Founder of the Egyptian Green Building Council and the principal author of the Green Pyramid Rating System (GPRS). He is the current Chairman of the International Committee of ASCE LA Chapter. He is a registered Structural Professional Engineer in the District of Colombia (USA) and has over 45 years of experience in structural engineering with a particular interest in, green and sustainable materials and building systems, 3D printing, prefabricated houses, polymer composites, structural health monitoring and repair and rehabilitation of buildings and bridges. Professor Mosallam is a leading authority on manufacturing, design, construction and system certification of structural sandwich panels. Professor Mosallam serves on the Technical Advisory Board of the International Accreditation Service (IAS). He is the founder of the Egyptian national committee on non-conventional building systems and the developer and author of Egyptian Acceptance Criteria for Structural panels. He has designed, constructed and supervised over 500 hundred structural panels’ and modular housing projects worldwide. Dr. Mosallam is a member of ASCE Construction Institute Materials Directorate (Executive Committee) and a Control Member on the ASCE Structural Composites and Polymer Committee (SCAP). He has several patents on innovative sustainable building systems and smart composite repair and joining systems. During his academic career, Dr. Mosallam has published over 500 technical papers, chapters, and reports on structural performance of structural systems and authored, edited and co-edited nine books in this area. In 2019 through 2024, he was listed among the top 2% researchers in Civil Engineering worldwide and one of his paper was listed as the top downloaded article by Wiley publisher. He is the author of the ASCE Design Manual for FRP Composites Connections (ASCE MOP 102) Also, Professor Mosallam co-authored the ASCE Prestandard document on pultruded composite structures, which laid the foundation for the recent ASCE Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) for Pultruded Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Structures (ASCE 74-23). He served on the advisory board for this standard, ensuring its practical applicability and alignment with industry advancements. Prof. Mosallam is serving on the editorial board of Composites: Part B Journal and Guest Editor for special issues on Infrastructure Applications for several journals including Composites Part B: Engineering, Journal, Materials & Design, Advances in Civil Engineering, Journal of Smart Structures, Advances in Civil Engineering Journal and others. Professor Mosallam is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards including the Outstanding Research Award from the International Conference of Composites Engineering, OCEC President’s Award, Best Design Paper Award from Composite Institute, the Industry Impact Award from McGraw Hill, Best Paper Award from SPI, and the Outstanding Engineering Educator of Year Award from American Society of Civil Engineers, among other numerous national and international awards.