How do you turn the roof of a boring parking garage into a glorious urban outdoor space?


<p>René Vignos is a Principal and licensed structural engineer at &nbsp;Forell | Elsesser. After entering the firm in 1999 and after more than two decades of experience, he is still invigorated by the challenge of creating the most elegant, inspired engineering solutions possible to translate an architect’s vision into a constructible reality.</p>



<p>As &nbsp;Forell | Elsesser’s Chief Operations Officer, René Vignos serves as part of the executive management team that guides the firm as a whole in addition to his responsibilities overseeing the operations of the core engineering practice.&nbsp; His skills in organization, administration, and collaboration serve him well as one of the leaders of the firm.</p>



<p>René has developed broad engineering skills in new design and retrofit, with a specialty in preserving and protecting historic landmark structures. He is currently providing state-of-the-art structural engineering design services for the complex rehabilitation and seismic strengthening of the historic Salt Lake Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This project involves the unprecedented base isolation and retrofit of a massive unreinforced stone masonry structure. In addition to his cultural facilities experience, he also works on athletic facilities, education facilities, national laboratory facilities, and overseas earthquake reconnaissance efforts. René is a licensed Structural Engineer in California, Utah, Oregon, and Wyoming. He has a Bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and a Master’s degree from the University of Texas, Austin.</p>



<p>In his downtime he enjoys tinkering with home improvement projects, camping with his family, and following the latest NHL hockey game.</p>



<h6 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Professional Associations</strong></h6>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>San Francisco Code Advisory Committee, Structural Subcommittee</li>
</ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>University of California at Berkeley, Seismic Review Committee</li>
</ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC), Protective Systems Committee, Past-Chair &amp; Member</li>
</ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), Member</li>
</ul>



<p></p>


Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City Main Temple, Seismic Retrofit

Dignity Health, Saint Joseph’s Hospital Patient Pavilion, Women’s & Children’s Center

Meta, MPK 21

Meta, MPK 20

Baker & Hamilton Building, Adobe HQ

Utah State Capitol Seismic Retrofit

Oregon Supreme Court, Modernization and Seismic Retrofit

LBNL, Building 33, General Purpose Laboratory

USF, John Lo Schiavo Center for Science and Innovation

UCSF Mission Bay Arthur & Toni Rembe Rock Hall

Oregon State Capitol, Seismic Retrofit

University of California, Berkeley, Simpson Training Center

UC Berkeley California Memorial Stadium Seismic Upgrade

UC Berkeley, Blum Center for Developing Economies

UC Berkeley Barker Hall Seismic Upgrade

San Francisco Conservatory of Music

California Maritime Academy Simulation Center

California Maritime Academy Dining Center & Bookstore Complex

Build Change Haiti Reconstruction Effort

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Rooftop Garden

San Francisco Planning + Urban Research (SPUR) Urban Center

Meta, MPK 22

Chief Operating Officer

René Vignos


<p>Paul Rodler has been with the firm since 1986 and is a Senior Principal and past COO of Forell | Elsesser. His straightforward approach to design is directly linked to his keen awareness of issues surrounding the constructability of buildings. He focuses on ease and economy of construction while creating buildable structural solutions for his clients.</p>



<p>As COO, Paul developed the company’s information technology systems to support Forell | Elsesser’s advanced BIM capabilities, and continues to help advance the firm to the leading edge of technical advancements within the industry. He also advocates for Integrated Project Delivery techniques to enable the efficiency and fast pace of design-build projects. Through his embrace of advancements in project design and delivery methods, Paul has made valued contributions to the success of numerous civic, education, healthcare, and data center projects. Paul is a licensed structural engineer in California and Missouri. He has both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from Stanford University.</p>



<p>Paul can be found enjoying his passion for open-wheel car racing when he is not busy finding solutions to engineering challenges.</p>



<h6 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Professional Associations</strong></h6>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI)</li>



<li>Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC)</li>
</ul>


Cloud Gate “The Bean”

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Emergency Operation Center, Building 31

Kramlich Residence

San Francisco Olympic Club

Kaiser Permanente, San Mateo Medical Office Building

San Rafael Corporate Center

Kaiser Permanente Data Center

350 Rhode Island Street Office Complex

San Francisco City Hall, Seismic Retrofit

Portola Valley Town Center

Oakland City Hall Seismic Rehabilitation

LBNL, Building 15, Advance Light Source User Support

Taube-Koret Campus for Jewish Life, Oshman Family JCC & Moldaw Residences

San Francisco Asian Art Museum

UCSF Mission Bay William J. Rutter Center

California State University, Maritime Academy, Mayo Hall

Los Medanos College, Brentwood Center

Foothill Community College Physical Sciences & Engineering Center

College of San Mateo College Center Building 10

College of San Mateo Health & Wellness Building 5

California State University, Monterey Bay, College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences Building

The Yard at Mission Rock

Red Bay Coffee

Wareham Development, Parking Structure

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

SFMTA, Central Subway Chinatown – Rose Pak Station

Presidio Children’s Theatre

Senior Principal

Paul Rodler


<p>Masume is a Principal and licensed Structural Engineer at Forell | Elsesser who brings over 16 years of experience and a breadth of knowledge that includes all major construction materials for educational, cultural, laboratory, and commercial buildings. She is proactive in her problem-solving approach and always looks at an issue from different perspectives to find the most appropriate solution.</p>



<p>Masume possesses a broad skill base in the seismic analysis of structures including linear, nonlinear, static, and dynamic analysis techniques. She has experience with foundation design including various piling systems, pre-stressed and reinforced concrete design, steel design, viscous dampers, and Buckling Restrained Braced Frames (BRBF). She has particular expertise in data analysis and advanced computer modeling of buildings. In particular, her modeling of earthquake loading is used to demonstrate structural capacity and pinpoint the deficient areas of a building requiring retrofit work. Masume earned a Bachelor’s degree from Sharif University of Technology in Iran, and obtained Master’s degrees at both the University of Arizona and UC Berkeley.</p>



<p>Masume enjoys hiking, yoga, and Persian calligraphy. She is passionate about what she does—so much that she recently finished a seismic hazard analysis on her own home.</p>



<h6 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Professional Associations</strong></h6>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC), Continuing Education Committee Chair (2009-2010)</li>



<li>Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI)</li>



<li>San Francisco Planning + Urban Research Association (SPUR)</li>
</ul>



<h6 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Recent Awards</strong></h6>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC), Giles Scholarship Recipient (2010)</li>
</ul>


Google, Office Building TI, 1001 Shoreline, Mountain View, CA

University of California, Berkeley, Heathcock Hall, College of Chemistry

BioMed Realty, Lincoln Center, Life Science Development

College of Alameda/Merritt College 860 Atlantic Avenue Adaptive Re-Use

Saints Peter & Paul Church Seismic Retrofit

Jewish Home of San Francisco, Frank Residences, and Byer Square

Pixar Animation Studios’ Film Production Facility

LinkedIn, Middlefield Campus

JCC, Mono County Courthouse, Mammoth Lakes, CA

University of the Pacific Dugoni School of Dentistry

UC Berkeley Undergraduate Academic Building

UC Berkeley Jacobs Institute of Design Innovation

San Francisco Friends School Seismic Retrofit

California State University, East Bay, Student Services & Administration Building

Projects

Customized Solution

Highlights

Team

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