Building Seismic Safety Council elects new chair

San Francisco—David Bonneville, senior principal at Degenkolb Engineers, accepted the role as chairman of the Building Seismic Safety Council (BSSC) after being elected by the board of directors earlier this month. Bonneville assumes his new responsibilities beginning in 2009.

"I have no doubt that David will provide pace-setting and visionary leadership as the chair of the BSSC, just as he has for numerous other professional organizations and here at Degenkolb Engineers," said Chris Poland, CEO of Degenkolb. "For more than 30 years his expertise in structural engineering and earthquake engineering has made significant contributions to our industry and to our firm as one of our finest senior principals."

Previously vice chair of the BSSC board, Bonneville will remain a member of the BSSC’s Code Resource Support Committee. As chair, Bonneville will use his clout and expertise in seismic safety programs to advocate for inclusion of BSSC-recommended codes and standards in existing organizations’ and institutions’ legislation, regulations, practices, rules, codes, relief procedures, and loan requirements.

Bonneville heads an engineering group at Degenkolb that specializes in seismic evaluation, design, and upgrade of buildings for the science and technology and government sectors. He has advised companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Agilent Technologies, Western Digital, and Intel, as well as the General Services Administration. He has also contributed to writing California and federal seismic codes and standards.

In addition to his multiple positions on the BSSC, Bonneville is a long-time member and current chair of the Lateral Forces Advisory Committee for the California Building Standards Commission. He is past chair of the Seismic Code Advisory Committee for the National Council of Structural Engineers Associations and past chair of the Seismology Committee for the Structural Engineers Association of California.

The BSSC was established in 1979 as a Council of the National Institute of Building Sciences. Developed as an entirely new type of instrument, the BSSC deals with the complex regulatory, technical, social, and economic issues involved in developing and promulgating building earthquake risk mitigation regulatory provisions that are national in scope.