GeoCongress 2006 Workshop: IJGCH Case Histories in the Information Technology Age

The workshop "International Journal of Geoengineering Case Histories: Case histories in the information technology age" was successfully held on Sunday February 26th, 2006 as part of the GEOCONGRESS 2006 ASCE-GEOINSTITUTE annual conference from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm.

The workshop aimed to explore the means by which case histories can be more effectively documented and promoted so as to better serve the research and practice of our Profession.

A series of talks were presented by various speakers. Powerpoint presentations, are available to download at the bottom of the page.

Following a short introduction, Dr. Bonaparte talked about "The importance of case histories in Geoengineering research and practice". Dr. Bonaparte provided his perspective and also expressed some first recommendations for the future of the journal.

Adda Athanasopoulos presented the results of a recent survey that intended to identify the relationship of Geoengineering with case histories and refereed journals.

Professor Prakash talked about the upcoming 6th International Conference in Geotechnical Engineering Case Histories. Professor Prakash also talked about the difficulties, challenges and efforts made to establish the case histories conferences.

Professor Prakash also talked about the efforts of a new joint Committee by ISSMGE, IAEG and ISRM on case histories.

Dimitrios Zekkos presented the scope, characteristics, present status and future plans of the newly established International Journal of Geoengineering Case Histories.

Professor Kavazanjian gave his perspective on the challenges of case histories documentation, from the side of the academia, the practitioners and the owners of the projects.

A series of talks were presented by representatives of Geoengineering Associations: Mrs. Rolland presented the activities and perspective of the Association of Engineering Geologists, Mr. Compton presented the perspective of the Deep Foundations Institute, and Professor Puppala Anand talked about the USUCGER's perspective.

The discussion was initiated by the interesting remarks of Mr. Seychuk, representative and Vice President of the ISSMGE. A lively discussion followed among the participants, who offered their ideas and concerns on the effort initiated by the International Journal of Geoengineering Case Histories. These remarks were noted and will be taken under consideration by the management of the International Journal of Geoengineering Case Histories. Some key remarks are:

• The distinct characteristics of the journal make this journal a particularly useful tool for the Geoengineering Profession.
• The journal must not compete with existing journals, but act complimentary to key journals in the field such as the ASCE Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering.
• The Geoengineering associations that participated to the workshop support the idea of the journal and will explore opportunities for collaboration with the Case Histories journal. Coordinated efforts will be made for collaboration between the journal and the Geoengineering Associations. The non-profit character of the journal should help in facilitating this collaboration.

The workshop was organized by Professor Shamsher Prakash, Dimitris Zekkos, and Adda Athanasopoulos.