Bentley Systems, Incorporated, the leading company dedicated to providing comprehensive software solutions for sustaining infrastructure, today announced that the Chief Donald J. Burns Research Grant for 2012 has been awarded on its behalf to Dr. Ofodike Ezekoye and Austin Anderson, of the University of Texas Fire Research Group (UTFRG), by the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) Scientific and Educational Foundation.
The $25,000 grant is named in memory of FDNY Assistant Chief Donald Burns, who died in the collapse of the World Trade Center Towers on September 11, 2001, while setting up his command post to direct the evacuation. The purpose of this grant is to help advance the integration of information modeling as a means of improving infrastructure safety and first-responder preparedness.
Dr. Ezekoye, UTFRG director, said, “We are deeply honored to accept this award dedicated to Chief Donald Burns, who was among the 343 firefighters and paramedics that gave their lives in the collapse of New York City’s Twin Towers. With this grant, UTFRG hopes to produce software and hardware solutions to better predict fire hazards and mitigate their impact in commercial and governmental buildings, thereby reducing both civilian and firefighter deaths and injuries caused by fires.”
Lew Reed, Bentley Systems vice president and Chief Burns’ brother-in-law, said, “I know that Don would be so pleased to see such important research being carried out in his name – research that may one day save the lives of his fellow first responders across the country and around the world. There is no better way to recognize his devotion to serving his community and the ultimate sacrifice he made trying to save the lives of others.”
In explaining the UTFRG project, Austin Anderson, graduate research assistant, said, “Our project seeks to create a statistical fire heat release rate (HRR) distribution for a structure that has been described by a building information model. We believe this can be used to create a fire risk map of a burning structure that will be useful to firefighters as they initiate operations within it. Knowledge of the fire propagation through alarms, coupled with a model that uses best likely estimates for the fire intensity (HRR) in a building’s compartments, would allow arriving first responders to better allocate their firefighting resources.”
Each year, over a five-year period, the Chief Donald J. Burns Memorial Research Grant will fund one or more baccalaureate, master’s, or doctorate student global research projects that apply information modeling to improving emergency responder safety when training for, responding to, and operating during building emergencies. The grant is being awarded by Bentley through its partnership with the SFPE Scientific and Education Foundation.
The grant is awarded to research focused on the use of information management technology that:
- provides “real-time” building-specific information to key fire department personnel during and in response to emergency operations;
- utilizes the principles of fire dynamics to predict how fire service operations will impact conditions within a building;
- provides information to fire department personnel regarding the design of a building’s structural framework, structural fire protection, and how the fire may impact structural stability during a fire;
- predicts how humans will behave in a specific structure during a building fire and how their actions will impact fire department operations.
“This grant provides an important opportunity to advance the science and technology that help protect the lives of the men and women who share Chief Burns’ passion for serving the public in the honorable and selfless profession of firefighting,” said SFPE Engineering Program Manager Chris Jelenewicz. “Specifically, this grant incorporates the principles of fire protection engineering into building information management to provide tools that can be used by first responders.”
About Chief Donald J. Burns
Chief Donald Burns was a decorated 39-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY). He was known for his in-depth knowledge of firefighting and the FDNY, and is fondly remembered as a walking encyclopedia for his broad knowledge of New York City. Fighting fires was his passion, and he inspired many of his colleagues within the department, who hailed him as an exceptional leader and brilliant tactician and strategist. Burns was elevated to lieutenant and later captain before being named chief of operations after the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993. He was promoted to Citywide Tour Commander in 1997. Burns is survived by his wife Elizabeth and his children Lori; Michael, a police officer; and Patrick, a lieutenant in the FDNY.
About Society of Fire Protection Engineers
Organized in 1950, the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) is the professional organization that represents engineers engaged in fire protection worldwide. Through its membership of over 5,000 professionals and 65 international chapters, SFPE advances the science and practice of fire protection engineering while maintaining a high ethical standard. SFPE and its members serve to make the world a safer place by reducing the burden of unwanted fire through the application of science and technology. For more information about SFPE, visit www.sfpe.org or email education@sfpe.org.
About Bentley Systems, Incorporated
Bentley is the global leader dedicated to providing architects, engineers, geospatial professionals, constructors, and owner-operators with comprehensive software solutions for sustaining infrastructure. Bentley Systems applies information mobility to improve asset performance by leveraging information modeling through integrated projects for intelligent infrastructure. Its solutions encompass the MicroStation platform for infrastructure design and modeling, the ProjectWise platform for infrastructure project team collaboration and work sharing, and the AssetWise platform for infrastructure asset operations – all supporting a broad portfolio of interoperable applications and complemented by worldwide professional services. Founded in 1984, Bentley has more than 3,000 colleagues in 50 countries, more than $500 million in annual revenues, and since 2005 has invested more than $1 billion in research, development, and acquisitions.
Additional information about Bentley is available at www.bentley.com and in Bentley’s annual report. For Bentley news as it happens, subscribe to an RSS feed of Bentley press releases and news alerts. To view a searchable collection of innovative infrastructure projects from the annual Be Inspired Awards, access Bentley’s Year in Infrastructure publications. To access a professional networking site that enables members of the infrastructure community to connect, communicate, and learn from each other, visit Be Communities.
To download the Bentley Infrastructure 500 Top Owners ranking, a unique global compendium of the top public- and private-sector owners of infrastructure based on the value of their cumulative infrastructure investments, visit www.bentley.com/500.
Related Stories
| Sep 13, 2010
Data Centers Keeping Energy, Security in Check
Power consumption for data centers doubled from 2000 and 2006, and it is anticipated to double again by 2011, making these mission-critical facilities the nation's largest commercial user of electric power. With major technology companies investing heavily in new data centers, it's no wonder Building Teams see these mission-critical facilities as a golden opportunity, and why they are working hard to keep energy costs at data centers in check.
| Sep 13, 2010
3D Prototyping Goes Low-cost
Today’s less costly 3D color printers are attracting the attention of AEC firms looking to rapidly prototype designs and communicate design intent to clients.
| Aug 11, 2010
Nemetschek North America Announces New U.S. Partnership with Apple
Nemetschek North America (NNA) has entered a new partnership with Apple in the United States. Under the terms of this partnership, three of NNA's Vectorworks software products can now be purchased through the U.S. online Apple Store. Vectorworks and ArchiCAD, another Nemetschek product, are the only BIM programs available for the Mac platform.
| Aug 11, 2010
Turner edges out Perkins+Will for the top spot on BD+C's Top 200 Building Team LEED APs ranking
With 1,006 LEED Accredited Professionals on staff, Turner Construction took the top spot on Building Design+Construction’s 2009 ranking of AEC firms with the most LEED APs, published as part of the Giants 300 report. Turner added more than 580 LEED APs during the past year to surpass Perkins+Will, which held the top spot four years running.
| Aug 11, 2010
Guggenheim and Google team up on shelter design competition
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Google yesterday announced the launch of Design It: Shelter Competition, a global, online initiative that invites the public to use Google Earth and Google SketchUp to create and submit designs for virtual 3-D shelters for a location of their choice anywhere on Earth. The competition opened on June 8, 2009, in honor of Frank Lloyd Wright’s birthday, and closes to submissions on August 23.
| Aug 11, 2010
EwingCole to merge with healthcare specialist Robert D. Lynn Associates
EwingCole, a nationally recognized architectural, engineering, interior design, and planning firm with more than 320 professionals, today announced that it will combine its practice with Robert D. Lynn Associates of Philadelphia, a 40-person firm with a robust portfolio of healthcare projects. The combination will create the Delaware Valley¹s largest and most comprehensive firm with an emphasis on healthcare architecture, and a national scope and presence.
| Aug 11, 2010
Jacobs, Arup, AECOM top BD+C's ranking of the nation's 75 largest international design firms
A ranking of the Top 75 International Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
BIM adoption rate exceeds 80% among nation’s largest AEC firms
The nation’s largest architecture, engineering, and construction companies are on the BIM bandwagon in a big way, according to Building Design+Construction’s premier Top 170 BIM Adopters ranking, published as part of the 2009 Giants 300 survey. Of the 320 AEC firms that participated in Giants survey, 83% report having at least one BIM seat license in house, and nearly a quarter (23%) have 100-plus seats.
| Aug 11, 2010
Architecture Billings Index flat in May, according to AIA
After a slight decline in April, the Architecture Billings Index was up a tenth of a point to 42.9 in May. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. Any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings.
| Aug 11, 2010
Architecture Billings Index drops to lowest level since June
Another stall in the recovery for the construction industry as the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) dropped to its lowest level since June. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the August ABI rating was 41.7, down slightly from 43.1 in July. This score indicates a decline in demand for design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings).
