SEAoAL Storm Shelter Design

SEAoAL Storm Shelter Design Series (via Zoom - link to follow)
May 4th, 2021 (1PDH) & May 11th, 2021 (2PDHs)

May 4th, 2021: Tornado Shelter/Safe Room Design
12:00-1:00PM

Brian Orr, PE, SE, Toth & Associates
Bio: Brian has been the Structural Engineer of Record on countless buildings and bridges throughout his career. He has worked with buildings, bridges, structural reviews, failure investigations, and specification writing with projects including multi-story office buildings, bridges, and FEMA safe rooms. His experience includes design of over 400 structures nationwide, plus the design of structures in extreme loading conditions including high seismic areas, hurricane region zones, and FEMA safe rooms.

Brian is also a FEMA Committee member for publications regarding the design and operation of Tornado Safe Rooms. He has secured over $200,000,000 in FEMA grants for the Construction of FEMA Tornado Safe Rooms in the State of Missouri. He is often a guest speaker at Architectural and Engineering conferences, providing insight on how to efficiently integrate Tornado Safe Rooms into K-12 school projects.

Abstract: Disaster resilience and recovery are increasingly important considerations in building design. The design of Tornado Shelters and Safe Rooms requires familiarity with new design criteria in recent editions of building codes.  The presentation will discuss the relevant codes and how they apply to structural design, review advantages of various construction materials used in the construction of hardened facilities, discuss detailing requirements, and present case studies along with various challenges and solutions. 

May 11th, 2021: Lessons Learned from Tornado Shelter Peer Reviews-Basic Do’s & Don'ts of Shelter Design

11:00AM-1:00PM

Corey Schultz, AIA, LEED AP, BD +C
Bio: Corey Schultz AIA is a licensed architect with over 37 years of experience.  He is Vice-President of Schultz Squared Architects LLC in Wichita, Kansas.  He has recently served on the FEMA P-361 and FEMA P-320 steering committees, has been a voting member for all three editions of the ICC 500 committee, and currently serves as the only architect that is a voting member.  He is also a professional member of the National Storm Shelter Association and is the 2019 recipient of the NSSA’s Kiesling Award for leadership in the storm shelter industry.

Corey designed the first tornado shelter in the United States that meets 250 mph wind design criteria.  He has over 52 tornado shelter projects to his credit and 172 peer reviews primarily associated with K-12 schools but also in post-secondary schools, fire and police stations, and emergency operation centers, located in the states of Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Corey is a graduate of the University of Kansas with two degrees; Bachelor of Environmental Design (1983) and Bachelor of Architecture (1984).

Larry Curtis, Kirkpatrick Forest Curtis PC
Bio: Mr. Curtis has 36 years of experience as a structural project engineer; 28 years of experience as a project manager/reviewing engineer; and 20 years as a principal engineer and co-founder of KFC Engineering. In this role, he serves as the client’s contact and administers project goals, budgets and schedules. He has extensive experience working with steel, concrete, wood and masonry, and provides management for projects from inception through construction completion.

Mr. Curtis is a member of many professional organizations, including the National Storm Shelter Association where he has developed an affinity for storm shelter design. Mr. Curtis has completed numerous tornado storm shelter designs, including EOC’s and K-12 facilities, structural peer reviews for storm shelters in multiple states, and best available refuge area evaluations. Mr. Curtis has given technical presentations to various organizations regarding the structural design of shelters and how they are ICC-500 or FEMA 361 compliant. Mr. Curtis is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, receiving a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (Structural Emphasis) in 1983, and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering (Structural Emphasis) in 1985. He currently maintains professional engineering licensure in thirteen states.

Abstract: Shelter design can be very complicated for experienced and inexperienced shelter designers. The FEMA P-361 Design and Construction Guidance for Community Shelters and the ICC-500 Standard for the Design and Construction of Storm Shelters both state the requirements that a shelter must meet but they don’t tell a designer how to get there. Successful tornado shelter design goes beyond the code minimum requirements and include shelter component manufactures’ requirements. With over 170 tornado shelter peer reviews conducted to date, the presenters have experienced common shelter design mistakes. This presentation addresses many of the major issues for tornado shelter designers to consider during the design process from broad conceptual considerations down to the smallest of details with an emphasis on masonry and concrete storm shelters.