
<p>Forell Elsesser provided structural engineering services for the historic landmark building that formerly housed the Berkeley Art Museum. The existing building is a cast-in-place, three-story concrete structure with two sub-grade levels, and encompasses approximately 92,000 sq. ft. The restored building will be used for biomedical research for the University of California, Berkeley, and QB3. The goal for the space is to bridge the gap between UC graduate students, life science startups, and established biotech companies by providing well-equipped research space, which is typically cost-prohibitive for young companies.</p>


How do you convert an abandoned and tired but well-loved architectural gem into a new usable space for the next generation?


<p>As Director of Business Strategy, Allen Nudel is a Principal and a member of Forell | Elsesser’s executive leadership team. Allen is a licensed Structural Engineer and has been with the firm since 2000. In addition to project work, Allen’s role includes overseeing the firm’s business development activities, new market sectors, new clients, and geographic expansion. With over 25 years of experience, Allen’s greatest strengths are a love of teaching and facilitating understanding between engineers, architects, and contractors. Constantly striving for mutual understanding makes him an excellent communicator and effective engineer.</p>



<p>Allen’s dedication and expertise throughout all phases of design and construction leads to successful, on budget project deliveries that achieve programmatic and design goals. He excels in client relations, drawing coordination, specifications and construction administration. He has a particular interest in collaborating with architects to maintain exposed structure of buildings. His wide range of experience includes education, institutional, commercial/corporate, athletic facilities, performing arts, multi-family housing, and tenant improvement projects. Allen is&nbsp;a licensed Structural Engineer in California, Arizona, and Colorado. He has a Bachelor’s degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and a Master’s degree from UC Berkeley.</p>



<p>When Allen is not busy at work, he enjoys completing home renovation projects, spending time with his wife and two young daughters, and following pro baseball.</p>



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



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC), Former Co-Chair and member, Sustainable Design Committee</li>



<li>City of Hope Real Estate and Construction Council, Northern California</li>



<li>Berkeley Unified School District Construction Advisory and Bond Oversight Committee</li>



<li>San Francisco Planning &amp; Urban Research&nbsp;Association (SPUR)</li>
</ul>


Salesforce, East Tower, Office TI

City of Elk Grove, Aquatics Center

City of Mountain View, Rengstorff Aquatics Center

Peninsula Temple Sholom, Burlingame, CA

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

Congregation Emanu-El, Seismic Retrofit and Addition

Martin Luther King, Jr. Civic Center, Berkeley, CA

Sacramento Airport, International Terminal Renovations

San Francisco Olympic Club

Jewish Home of San Francisco, Rosenberg Family Center & Synagogue

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

Levi Strauss & Co. Headquarters Renovation

Klamath Ferry Boat, Tenant Improvement

345 Brannan, Office Complex

Portola Valley Town Center

Hiram W. Johnson State Office Building + Earl Warren Supreme Court Building

JCC, Mono County Courthouse, Mammoth Lakes, CA

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

Jewish Community Center of San Francisco

Cupertino Civic Center & Library

University of the Pacific Dugoni School of Dentistry

City of South San Francisco, Police Operations & 911 Dispatch Center

Masonic Homes, Assisted Living and Memory Care Building

University of California, Berkeley, Legends Aquatics Center

San Jose State University, Spartan Athletics Center

Napa Valley College Performing Arts Center

Las Positas College Science & Technical Building

College of Marin, Miwok Center

City College of San Francisco Chinatown/North Beach Campus

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

Airbnb TI

Pinterest TI

Dolby Headquarters Screening Room

Dropbox TI at Brannan Street

University of California, Berkeley, Bakar BioEnginuity Hub

California State University, East Bay, CORE Building

City of South San Francisco, Library, Parks & Recreation Center

San Francisco International Airport Rental Car Parking Garage

San Francisco International Airport North & South Public Parking Garages

Cañada College, Kinesiology & Wellness Building

Millbrae Recreation Center

Director of Business Strategy

Allen Nudel


<p>With the firm since 1984, Mason is a Senior Principal at Forell | Elsesser. One of Mason’s most effective roles at the firm is orchestrating teams of engineers to leverage their varied areas of expertise, and quickly develop solutions to even the most complex problems. He constantly explores solution concepts and ideas that are outside the norm, leading to unexpectedly elegant and efficient solutions–a practice he encourages with those he mentors. Mason has also had success in crossing lines between engineering disciplines and construction processes to improve existing structural engineering methods to the benefit of F/E’s clients.</p>



<p>As a well-known industry leader, Mason is a resource for in-house staff and colleagues. His engineering expertise includes such diverse areas as sustainable concrete mix design, seismic isolation of new and historic buildings, long-span bridge design, and performance-based seismic design of steel structures. He excels at the analysis, testing, and design for unusual projects that fall outside the scope of traditional building codes. In the early 1990’s, he developed specifications and testing requirements that were used for the U.S. Court of Appeals seismic retrofit in San Francisco, the first federally funded seismic isolation project.&nbsp;Mason is&nbsp;a licensed Structural Engineer in California, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon and Washington, and licensed Professional Engineer in D.C. Mason earned a Bachelor’s degree in Architectural Engineering from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and a Master of Engineering degree in Structural Engineering and Structural Mechanics from UC Berkeley.</p>



<p>Mason’s recreational interests include hiking, fly fishing, cinema, metalworking, and carpentry.  He sometimes integrates the latter two interests into his structural engineering practice by building physical models of structures and structural hardware to quickly enhance the clients’ and colleagues’ grasp of complex structural concepts.</p>



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



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>University of California Office of the President Seismic Advisory Board (Charter Member, Chair 2017-2022)</li>



<li>Caltrans Seismic Advisory Board</li>



<li>Structural Engineers Association of California (SEAOC), Solar Photovoltaic Systems Seismic Committee, Voting Member</li>



<li>Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (SEAONC), Director (2003-2005); Convention Technical Committee, Former Co-Chair;&nbsp;Program Committee, Former Chair; Subcommittee on Protective Systems;&nbsp;Subcommittee on Non-Building Structures</li>



<li>American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)</li>



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



<li>International Association for Bridge &amp; Structural Engineering (IABSE)</li>
</ul>


University of California, Berkeley, Archeology Building

University of California, Berkeley, Hildebrand Hall

University of California, Berkeley, Latimer Hall

San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), Biosolids Digester Facilities Project

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

GSA, James R. Browning, U.S. Court of Appeals Building

San Francisco Mint, Seismic Evaluation & Seismic Upgrade

Laguna Honda Hospital & Rehabilitation Center

PG&E HQ, 245 Market Street Complex

Meta, MPK 20

Utah State Capitol Seismic Retrofit

San Francisco City Hall, Seismic Retrofit

San Francisco 911 Emergency Communications Center

Oakland City Hall Seismic Rehabilitation

LLNL, Building 453 Terascale Simulation Facility

East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) Mokelumne Aqueduct Seismic Upgrade

San Francisco International Airport Concourse H BART Station

West Cargo Facility

UCSF Mission Bay Arthur & Toni Rembe Rock Hall

UC Berkeley, Sutardja Dai Hall, CITRIS HQ

University of California, Berkeley, Simpson Training Center

UC Berkeley Jacobs Institute of Design Innovation

UC Berkeley California Memorial Stadium Seismic Upgrade

UC Berkeley, Blum Center for Developing Economies

UC Berkeley Barker Hall Seismic Upgrade

Stanford University, McMurtry Art & Art History Building

Stanford University, Bass Biology Research Building

Lick-Wilmerding High School, Expansion & Renovation

UCSF Parnassus Ray & Dagmar Dolby Regeneration Medicine

San Diego Coronado Bay Bridge Seismic Retrofit

SFJAZZ Center

Congregation Beth Sholom

Tulare County (Porterville) Courthouse

SFMTA, Central Subway Chinatown – Rose Pak Station

Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA)

UCSF Parnassus Clinical Sciences Building

Senior Principal

Mason Walters


<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>


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Highlights

Team

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