Course Overview
This course explores the modern challenges and opportunities in the design of large-scale building structures, with a focus on tall buildings as a platform for engineering innovation and leadership. Students will engage in a comprehensive, team-based design project, developing a tall structure from concept through all major design phases.
Through a combination of lectures, case studies, and hands-on design work, students will gain insight into the full scope of large-scale structural engineering. Topics include structural systems for gravity and lateral loads, integration with architectural design, geotechnical considerations, dynamic performance under wind and seismic forces, and strategies for blast resistance and post-9/11 design challenges. Emerging topics such as mass timber construction, AI applications in structural design, and advanced modeling techniques will also be covered.
By the end of the course, students will have developed a refined 3D computer model of a tall structure and tackled real-world considerations such as vibration mitigation, wind tunnel testing, legal responsibilities, and failure forensics—preparing them for leadership roles in the design of the built environment’s most ambitious projects.
