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  • Champlain Towers Collapse: Professional & Legal Implications for Design Firms

Champlain Towers Collapse: Professional & Legal Implications for Design Firms

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Description

This session will center around the events that occurred before and after the catastrophic collapse of the Champlain Towers South in Surfside, Florida, in 2021. Discussion will include the ongoing intensive analysis by forensic investigators to determine a root cause, or causes, of the structural failure. Examine how this tragedy will affect our current and future legal and business operations for years to come. Understand how failure analysis is a part of our ongoing learning experience as architects. Course expires 06/25/2026

Learning Objectives

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Examine the timeline of events on the day of the collapse of the Champlain Towers.

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Identify the issues in the forensic analysis of the building’s construction and maintenance history that possibly contributed to its deterioration and ultimate collapse.         

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Review the professional and legal responsibility of architects and firms in the design and construction of buildings.

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Discuss how the Champlain Towers collapse and past building disasters shape the professional and legal direction of the industry. 

Instructors
Glenn Birx
FAIA

Glenn W. Birx, FAIA, is a Vice President and member of the Board of Directors of Ayers Saint Gross. He was the Chief Operating Officer for twenty years. He has served on the Board of Visitors of the University of Maryland School of Architecture for 25 years, and is a past Chair. He is currently Chair of the AIA Trust, and has been a Trustee for five years. He was an editor of the Architects Handbook of Professional Practice, and wrote the section on Defining Project Services. He was been involved in the design of technically complex building types across the United States and internationally. For over 50 years Glenn lead the technical and management side of the firm, overseeing contracts, quality control, construction document QC, and construction administration. Glenn endeavors to share his knowledge and experience with the next generation of architects through his work as past president and board member of the Maryland and Baltimore AIA chapters, and through the AIA Trust.

Daniel  McKelvey
AIA

Daniel S. McKelvey, AIA, LEED AP, NIBS, Principal, Ayers Saint Gross

Dan is an architect with the architectural firm of Ayers Saint Gross in Baltimore, Maryland where he manages projects from design through construction in the firm’s Arts and Sciences Studio. Dan has over 40 years of experience in architectural design and construction with project types in higher education, performing arts, and health care. Dan is committed to architectural education and has spoken at numerous international and national conferences and academic institutions. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects, a LEEP Accredited Professional, and a member of the National Institute of Building Sciences and is the co-founder of the Building Enclosure Council-Baltimore, an organization that brings building professionals together to share ideas and experiences on the built environment.

Dan’s current project, among other completed buildings on the Johns Hopkins medical campus, is the design and construction of the CMSC North Tower Addition, a project that includes over 440,000 SF of new and renovated space, with 200,000 SF of research laboratory space.

The recently completed Skip Viragh Building at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Care Center. A 10-story, 184,000 SF building focused on an interdisciplinary approach to treating cancer through an array of diagnostic and treatment programs and multidisciplinary clinics. This building occupies a prominent hilltop location on the campus and in the city.

The Nelson Harvey Building, a 10-story, 180,000 SF facility renovated and repurposed to provide patient care for the Department of Medicine, pulmonology, gastroenterology, and cardiac medicine. To address the needs of the aging Nelson Harvey Building in this renovation project required an innovative and sustainable approach in developing a hybrid double-skin exterior envelope that resulted in a high-performance thermal skin with a modern design aesthetic that is energy efficient, environmentally sustainable, and highly resilient.

Bruce  Furukawa

A Partner in the Design Professionals Defense & Counseling Group, primarily representing and counseling architects and engineers. He has represented design professionals, in a wide range of projects. As an experienced trial attorney, Mr. Furukawa has litigated complex construction delay and cost claims, construction defect, land use and personal injury lawsuits. Mr. Furukawa has special expertise in legal technology. He supervises effective review and production of electronic documents for leading design and real estate firms.