
<p>When tasked with retrofitting a national landmark that sits directly atop the Hayward faultline,  Forell | Elsesser worked closely with architects, contractors, geologists, and the owner to design a customized structural solution to accommodate the inevitable movement of the fault while maintaining the structural integrity of the stadium—all in time for the next football season!</p>


How do you rebuild a historic stadium that straddles a faultline?


<p>Chris Petteys serves as the fourth CEO in &nbsp;Forell | Elsesser’s six decades but drives the firm in collaboration with the rest of the executive management team. With a collective focus on building upon the firm’s strong reputation for technical leadership in seismic design, growing talent from within, and creating new opportunities and career paths for staff; Chris leads a firm rooted in engineering fundamentals, client service, performance-based design, and sustainable/resilient structures. From his experience leading large, complex structural projects, Chris has proven the effectiveness of his hands-on management style and enjoys interaction with clients and partners.</p>



<p>In his twenty years practicing as a structural engineer, Chris has navigated complex issues with a level head and taken unexpected approaches to successfully solving problems. He has a broad knowledge of all major construction materials for commercial, multi-family housing, and institutional structures; and is recognized for his efficient buildings and constructability of his designs for unique structures in high seismic regions. His more notable projects include the UC Berkeley California Memorial Stadium seismic upgrade and LinkedIn Middlefield Campus. Chris has both a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree from UCLA.</p>



<p>When Chris is not working through creative solutions or managing the firm, he enjoys golfing, skiing, and spending time with his family.</p>



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



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


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

Longfellow, Life Science Development, Parking Structures, San Diego, CA

SteelWave, The Lab Parking Structure, 4th Street, Berkeley, CA

Kilroy, Oyster Point, Parking Structure

BioMed Realty, Emery Yards, Parking Structure, Building 14

BioMed Realty, Emery Yards, Life Science Development

Masonic Homes-Skilled Nursing Facility, Covina

Jewish Home of San Francisco, Goodman Building

San Francisco Mint, Seismic Evaluation & Seismic Upgrade

Presidio Quartermaster Reach Culvert

Confidential Precast Parking Structure

East Palo Alto Youth Arts and Music Center

UC Merced Downtown Campus

Sacred Heart Academic Arts Building

Peninsula Healthcare District Residential Care Facility for the Elderly

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

LinkedIn, Middlefield Campus

345 Brannan, Office Complex

LLNL, Building 453 Terascale Simulation Facility

UC Berkeley Jacobs Institute of Design Innovation

UC Berkeley California Memorial Stadium Seismic Upgrade

LLNL, Building 855 High Explosive Ban Saw

LLNL, Building 805 Renovation

LLNL, Building 581 National Ignition Facility Master Plan

LLNL, Building 217 Renovation

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Building 191, HEAF Atrium Addition

Dropbox TI at Brannan Street

Wareham Development, Parking Structure

President and CEO

Christopher Petteys


<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, 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>As Director of Engineering Operations, Geoff Bomba is a Principal and a member of the Forell | Elsesser’s executive management team. Geoff helps drive business growth through resource planning and ensuring efficiency and creativity of our delivery methodology. Using cutting-edge performance-based design methodologies, Geoff develops engineering standards, systems, and quality controls that enhance Forell | Elsesser’s forward-thinking approach to bringing architectural visions alive. He maintains our high bar for exceptional work through a consistent embrace of technology and tools across all projects.</p>



<p>Since joining the firm in 2003, Geoff has been a leader in the engineering design of complex buildings and he has worked on educational, institutional, performing arts, laboratory, and historic renovation projects. Emphasizing customized solutions, Geoff plays a hands-on role in design-focused projects, taking challenging architectural visions and transforming them into elegant, buildable solutions, while always keeping a project’s specific needs in mind. Through his work on existing buildings and historic retrofits, Geoff brings new technologies to leverage the existing building structure capacity and minimize the impact of upgrades on the building itself.</p>



<p>Geoff is dedicated to advancing seismic design and structural performance. He was part of a collaborative team with the National Science Foundation and the Earthquake Engineering Resource Institute to better understand the structural response of high-performance structures in the 2011 Tohoku Japanese Earthquake. He also works with local university researchers to explore new composite connections for steel structures, evaluate damage from earthquakes, and develop new seismic isolation technology. Geoff is a California licensed Structural Engineer and received a Bachelor’s degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) and a Master’s degree in Earthquake Engineering from Stanford University.</p>



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



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Structural Engineers Association of California (SEAOC),&nbsp;Seismology Committee, Past State Chair</li>



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



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



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


Salesforce, East Tower, Office TI

Nueva School, Arts & Administration Building

Nueva School, Library Addition

Gregory Bateson Office Building, Seismic Retrofit

OBO Consular Office Building, Adana Turkey

Kramlich Residence

Laguna Honda Hospital & Rehabilitation Center

Pasadena City Hall, Seismic Retrofit

LBNL, Building 15, Advance Light Source User Support

UC Santa Cruz Porter College Residence B Retrofit & Additions

UC Santa Cruz Porter College Residence A Retrofit & Additions

Stanford University, Bass Biology Research Building

Nueva School, Hillside Complex

Lick-Wilmerding High School, Expansion & Renovation

Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA)

Director of Engineering Operations

Geoff Bomba


<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>


Projects

Customized Solution

Highlights

Team

Categories