The Design Process of Landmark Buildings, by David Scott from Arup NY

David Scott, structural engineer and Principal at Arup New York, has visited the fire group and gave the seminar "The Design Process of Landmark Buildings" on Feb 2nd 2009.

Abstract
The current tallest building in the world is Taipei 101 at 508m; Emaar’s Burj Dubai, by SOM, now under construction, will set the new world record when it tops out at approximately 750m. These buildings are enormous and demonstrate a very high level of confidence in the performance of tall buildings. But few new buildings are targeting the tallest spot, and the drive to be tallest has moved out of reach for most developers. New technology, however, is changing the design landscape faster than ever. Scott will discuss his involvement in a wide variety of very tall and significant building projects around the world and his work toward a better understanding of the key issues that affect tall building design.


Scott's Vita
David Scott, a structural engineer and principal at Arup (New York). He is chair of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, an international body and leading independent authority on planning, design, construction and operation of tall buildings and urban areas.

David graduated with a first class BSc in Engineering from The University of Edinburgh and joined the London office of Arup in 1977 as a structural engineer.

Scott has led Arup’s structural design work on numerous large and prestigious building projects throughout the world. His career in tall buildings started with Sir Norman Foster’s Hong Kong Bank in 1981, where he was involved from concept to completion, as designer to site engineer. He has worked on high-rise buildings throughout the world in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. Based in New York since 1998, he has been involved in projects such as the master planning and structural schemes for the Freedom Tower with Daniel Libeskind, and overseas projects in London and Korea. Scott’s additional assignments have included the award-winning design for the international terminal at Hong Kong Airport, the 300m Cheung Kong Center and the 425m Landmark Tower in Hong Kong; the Orca tower in Warsaw, Poland; and the Northeast Asia Tower in Songdo, Korea. He was a team leader working with contractors on the search, recovery and clean-up of the World Trade Center site after the Sept. 11 attack and was extensively involved in the subsequent industry review of building design and standards. He has authored papers on seismic design, wind engineering, the performance of tall buildings in fire, composite structures and the design of long-span roofs.