Australian Geomechanics Society

ACIGS Seminar Basal Reinforced Embankments

admin — Mon, 20 May 2013 23:51:00 +0000

Sydney – 28 May, 124 Pacific Hwy, St Leonards NSW
Auckland – 31 May, L2, Nielsen Centre, 129 Hurstmere Rd, Auckland NZ
Brisbane – 4 June, 147 Coronation Dr, Milton QLD
Adelaide – 12 June, 121 King William St, Adelaide SA
Perth – 14 June, L3, 1 Havelock St, West Perth WA
Flyer

New Zealand Geotechnical Society 19th Symposium

admin — Mon, 20 May 2013 23:28:21 +0000

November 20-23, 2013
Millennium Hotel in Queenstown, New Zealand
Website

New Zealand Geotechnical Society 19th Symposium

admin — Mon, 20 May 2013 23:26:34 +0000

Registrations for the New Zealand Geotechnical Society’s 19th Symposium are now open. The early bird deadline for registration is 31 August 2013.

Refer to the following for links to the Symposium Website.

2013 AGS NSW Research Award presentations in Newcastle

admin — Mon, 20 May 2013 13:04:16 +0000

Finalists for the 2013 AGS NSW Research Award. Pictured from left to right are Dr Jim Hambleton, Newcastle Chapter YGP Representative, and finalists Xue Zhang, Kourosh Kianfar and Pavlick Harutoonian. Photograph by Anastasia Suchowerska

The finalists for the 2013 AGS NSW Research Award presented their work to the Newcastle Chapter on 14 May, one week after giving their presentations to the Sydney Chapter. The three finalists are as follows:

Pavlick Harutoonian from the University of Western Sydney, whose talk was entitled “Geotechnical characterisation of compacted ground by passive ambient vibration techniques”;
Xue Zhang from The University of Newcastle, who presented his work on “Particle finite element limit analysis for geotechnical problems”; and
Kourosh Kianfar from the University of Wollongong, who gave a presentation entitled “Advantages of vacuum pressure for soft soil consolidation”.

Following their presentations, the finalists were treated to dinner at Talulah Restaurant, The Junction. The winner will be announced by the Sydney Chapter later in the month.

The AGS NSW Research Award aims to provide a forum for research students from universities in New South Wales to showcase their research to the wider geotechnical community, and it is open to students undertaking research in geotechnical engineering or engineering geology. Finalists are selected on the basis of written submissions that will be published in the Australian Geomechanics journal. The finalists and winner are selected by a review panel, and the winner receives $1,600.

SA Footings Group Technical Meeting

admin — Mon, 20 May 2013 12:26:11 +0000

Thursday 23rd May 2013
Engineers Australia, SA Division, Level 11, 108 King William St, Adelaide
Flyer

The meeting will commence at 6.00pm preceded by refreshments from 5.30pm.

Overview of “Introduction to the engineering geology of Hobart”

admin — Mon, 13 May 2013 00:44:55 +0000

The Australian Geomechanics Society – Tasmanian Chapter hosted a field trip on Tuesday 30 April 2013 to explore the engineering geology of Hobart. The field trip was attended by 18 people ranging from recent engineering graduates to retired geologists to professors from China.

Our first stop was Little Sandy Bay, Blinking Billy Point and Blinking Billy Beach. Interestingly, Charles Darwin explored this same area in February 1836. Our host was Bill Cromer, an independent consulting engineering geologist who grew up in the area. We inspected the Tertiary basalt flows and tuff which are evidence of an ancient volcano located further up the slope. We viewed the geological boundaries of the sedimentary rocks and the volcanic rocks and also saw evidence that the rocks have been folded since their deposition. Finally, we discussed some of the engineering properties of these rocks given the intense development in the area.

Our second stop was to the Taroona landslide. Our host was Colin Mazengarb, an engineering geologist with Mineral Resources Tasmania. We inspected some steep cliffs comprised of Tertiary fluvial deposits showing distinct bedding. These cliffs are susceptible to recession which poses problems for the nearby property. We walked around the extent of the landslide, stopping to discuss investigations, monitoring, deformation rates and impacts of the landslide on infrastructure. Along the shoreline we inspected the low-strength Tertiary sedimentary deposits (montmorillonite clays) which are responsible for the landslide. We also discussed sea level changes and saw evidence of an ancient shoreline, 1m higher than the current shoreline.

Geotechnical Engineering and the Law

admin — Thu, 09 May 2013 11:45:31 +0000

Jeremy and Nick will discuss practical legal information of relevance to geotechnical practitioners. Topics include:

Expert Witness: When might courts refuse to admit an expert’s report? Dura (Aust) Constructions v Hue Boutique Living [2012] VSC 99
Latent conditions: Who should take the risk for ground related risk?
Proportionate liability: Who can be a ‘concurrent wrongdoer’? Utility Services Corporation v SPI Electricity [2012] VSCA 158
Dispute Resolution: Advantages and disadvantages of court litigation, arbitration, mediation, negotiation
Administering contracts to minimise disputes
Negligence claims
Without prejudice communications – how can they help you?

The Presenters

Jeremy is a member of the Allens commercial litigation team and specializes in helping clients to resolve disputes on major projects in the resources sector. He has over 10 year’s experience assisting clients with the resolution of disputes through negotiation, mediation, litigation and arbitration. In addition to his legal qualifications, Jeremy has an honours degree in mechanical engineering which enables him to give practical legal advice on matters involving technical issues.

Nick is a commercial litigation lawyer with construction industry dispute resolution experience. Before joining Allens in 2007, he was a principal engineer, project manager and project director with AECOM. He has acted for private and government clients in the mining, energy generation, heavy rail and large retail sectors on a range of disputes and advises on strategies to minimise disputes in complex construction engineering projects, expert evidence, calls on securities, contract administration and the mediation and negotiation of construction disputes.

AGS Young Geotechnical Professionals’ Evening Seminar and the 12th Dr Baden Clegg Award

admin — Thu, 09 May 2013 11:38:57 +0000

The Western Australian Chapter of the Australian Geomechanics Society (AGS) invites participants for the 2013 Young Geotechnical Professional’s Seminar Evening. Participants must be under 35 years of age on 30 June 2013 and may be geotechnical engineers, geologists, mining engineers, hydrogeologists or other geotechnical professionals working in industry or academia.

Three speakers will be chosen to give a 15 minute presentation, based on an abstract of about 300 words. Talks need not be overly technical or theoretical, but should reflect interesting and challenging aspects of the speaker’s work that would be of interest to the geotechnical community.

Prizes

FIRST PLACE: Trophy, $500 + a copy of the Australian Geomechanics Journal Collection on DVD
RUNNERS UP: $100 + a copy of the Australian Geomechancis Journal Collection on DVD

Most of the WA geotechnical community will be represented on the night and the speakers will be given great exposure. There will be food and drinks available before the talks and opportunities to network with representatives from various geotechnical companies.

2013 AGM

admin — Wed, 08 May 2013 03:18:55 +0000

52nd Rankine Lecture

admin — Wed, 08 May 2013 03:18:09 +0000