Last month, GMS was thrilled to attend the in-person National Council of Structural Engineers Associations (NCSEA) Structural Engineering Summit.
Held at the Hilton Midtown in Manhattan over four days, the summit brought structural engineers together from across the country, uniting and networking over our shared passion. With a robust trade show, inspiring presentations from industry experts, informative panels, and a celebratory awards reception, the summit had it all!
GMS was honored to attend for two reasons: Associate Partner, Vicki Arbitrio, was a keynote speaker, presenting on lessons learned from 9/11, and Partner, Ramon Gilsanz, was presented with the NCSEA James Delahay Award.
On day two of the summit, the Keynote was a moving, thought-provoking presentation of research and discoveries made in the investigation of the damage after the September 11th attacks. Vicki (who was one of the first engineers involved in the 9/11 structural response efforts) was joined by Dan Eschenasy of the NYC DOB, James W. Feuerborn Jr. of Thornton Tomasetti, and Therese McAllister of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to present “20 Years After 9/11: Lessons Learned & More to Research.” You can read more on GMS’ involvement in the 9/11 response efforts in our previous article, “Remembering 9/11 and the Unity Sparked Within the Engineering Community.”
Day three of the summit included the awards celebration, where top industry leaders were recognized for their contributions to the field. Surrounded by friends, family, 
and colleagues, GMS’ Ramon Gilsanz was awarded the NCSEA James Delahay Award by NCSEA President Ed Quesenberry. Honored and humbled, Ramon accepted his award and took the time to thank those who helped write the upcoming NYC Existing Buildings Code, his family, and his supporters. You can read more on Ramon’s award in our previous article, “Ramon Gilsanz Awarded NCSEA James Delahay Award.”
Other GMS attendees included Partners Karl Rubenacker, Jonathan Hernandez, and Joe Mugford; and Associate Partner, Eugene Kim, who participated in networking events, visited the trade show, and attended the awards ceremony to support their fellow GMS colleagues.
Thank you to NCSEA for putting on such a fantastic event. Every year, we gain more knowledge, connections, and memories than the last, and we can’t wait until next time. See below for more pictures of our time at the NCSEA Structural Engineering Summit.