To strengthen mutual understanding and involvement about each of the organization’s own technologies, researches, and projects and to build up the basis of collaboration for joint research and project, the Eight-Japan Engineering Consultants Inc. (EJEC) and the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) held a Technical Exchange Seminar on 23 April 2015 at the AIT Conference Center.
The seminar kicked off with three presentations introducing: AIT by Dr. Gabrielle Groves Punyaratabandhu, Head, External Relations and Communications Office; AIT Consulting by Dr. Naveed Anwar, Executive Director, AIT Consulting; and EJEC by Mr. Atsuyuki Nakaseko, Head, International Department, EJEC.
Three parallel sessions were conducted in the afternoon focusing on: Disaster Mitigation; Tunnels; and Solid Waste Management and Energy.
Prof. Pennung Warnitchai, Professor, School of Engineering and Technology and Dr. Naveed Anwar presented the Disaster Mitigation Research Activities in AIT, followed by an Overview of Sediment-related Disaster Investigation and Countermeasure Planning by Dr. Soichi Kaihara, Project Manager, Geo-Engineering Section, Chugoku Regional Office, EJEC. Another presentation on Seismic Evaluation and Retrofit of Structures in Japan was discussed by Mr. Ryoichi Fujita, Project Manager, Seismic Engineering and Facility Maintenance Section, Kansai Regional Office, EJEC. Mr. Kentaro Kuribayashi, Chief, Seismic Engineering and Facility Maintenance Section, Chugoku Regional Office, EJEC presented Seismic Evaluation of Earth Structures in Japan. A number of structural engineers and students attended this session which concluded with a Question and Discussion session with the experts.
During the session on Tunnel, Mr. Muhammad Shakeel, Representative, Geotechnical and Geo-Environmental Engineering Field, School of Engineering shared his investigation on the effect of shield tunneling on piled foundations by means of 3D numerical analyses while Mr. Teppei Tomita, Senior Engineer, Geo-Engineering Section, Kyushu Regional Office, EJEC presented the design of a mountain tunnel, one of the projects of EJEC.
For Solid Waste Management and Energy session, AIT was represented by Dr. P. Abdul Salam, Associate Professor, Energy, and Thematic Leader, Low Carbon and Sustainable Production and Consumption Technologies and Management, School of Environment, Resources and Development to share AIT’s experiences in the solid waste management and energy. Mr. Haruhiko Nakao, Project Manager, Waste Management Division, EJEC and Mr. Manabu Etou, Senior Engineer, Waste Management Division, EJEC, on the other hand, presented EJEC’s solid waste management and energy work.
EJEC also had a meeting with Dr. Noppadol Phien-wej, Associate Professor, Geotechnical and Earth Resources Engineering; Geosystem Exploration and Petroleum Geoengineering, School of Engineering and Technology on 24 April for possible collaboration on geotechnical-related projects.
About EJEC
Founded in 1955, Eight-Japan Engineering Consultants Inc. (EJEC) is one of the most experienced consulting firms in Japan specializing in urban planning and development, disaster risk reduction, seismic design, waste and environmental management, geo-engineering, infrastructure and facility management, and transport infrastructure. In the past 60 years, EJEC worked on major projects in bridges, tunnels, highways, station plazas, parks, river, ports, water and sewage, incineration, landfill site in Japan and other countries including Ethiopia, Tanzania, Papua New Guinea, Afghanistan, Palau, China, India, Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand. Recently, EJEC was awarded by the Japan Civil Engineering Association with two major bridge projects, Ohta River bridge in Hiroshima and Irabu bridge in Okinawa which received international recognition for its interesting and one-of-a-kind design.
