Engineering News-Record Conference Will Address Planning and Building for Resiliency

NEW YORK, Jan. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- One year after Haiti's catastrophic earthquake shattered homes and office buildings, McGraw-Hill Construction's Engineering News-Record (ENR) is partnering with the American Society of Civil Engineers and the National Building Museum to host a thought-provoking conference, "Mitigating Disaster through Design & Construction," at the Renaissance Washington, D.C. Dupont Circle Hotel on March 2-3, 2011. This conference will provide a forum for 200 attendees to discuss the latest policies, practices, and building and design strategies that could make a significant difference before the next devastating flood, tornado, hurricane, volcanic eruption, wildfire, earthquake or landslide hits.

"Architects, builders and policymakers are at the epicenter of the challenges arising from natural disasters— and through their leadership can influence and minimize human and financial loss," said Keith Fox, president, McGraw-Hill Construction. "We're excited to provide a forum that will advance this critical area of study and practice."

The conference will provide actionable advice on creating risk-assessment methodologies and standards, developing inspection mechanisms and training programs, managing society's expectations, determining funding priorities, and adding value to green building by taking it a step further to address natural disasters. Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer will provide a keynote address about how the Federal government intends to better partner with local communities to help them withstand the outcomes of natural disasters. Other prominent speakers include:

• Najib Abboud, Principal and Chief Technology Officer, Weidlinger Associates, Inc.
• Anisa Baldwin Metzger, Fellowship Program Manager, U.S. Green Building Council
• Harvey Bernstein, Vice President, Global Thought Leadership and Business Development, McGraw-Hill Construction
• Kurt Culbertson, Chairman of the Board, Design Workshop
• Robert Fenza, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Liberty Property & Trust
• Stephen Flynn, President, Center for National Policy
• Louis Gritzo, Vice President, Research, FM Global
• Lewis Link, Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Maryland
• M. John Plodinec, Associate Director for Resilience Benefits, Community & Regional Resilience Institute
• Julie Rochman, President & CEO, Institute for Business & Home Safety
• Spencer Rogers, Coastal Construction and Erosion Specialist, North Carolina Sea Grant Program
• Tom Sawyer, Senior Editor, Information Technology, Engineering News-Record
• James Schwab, Senior Research Associate and Manager, APA Hazards Planning Research Center, American Planning Association, and Co-Editor, Zoning Practice
• Janice Tuchman, Editor-in-Chief, Engineering News-Record
• Tanya Washington, Chief of Staff, D.C. Office of Planning
• Robert Wible, Founder and Principal, Robert Wible & Associates
• Joan Woodward, Executive Vice President, Public Policy Travelers

For more information or to register, visit http://construction.com/events/2011/mitigatingdisaster or download the National Building Museum's "Designing for Disaster" whitepaper. Discounts are available prior to Feb. 11 and to APA, ASCE, ICC, NBM, SMPS and USGBC members. To request a press pass, call 1-800-371-3238. This conference qualifies for 6.5 professional development hours.

Mitigating Disaster through Design & Construction is produced by Engineering News-Record, the construction industry's leading provider of multimedia news and analysis. Event partners include the American Society of Civil Engineers and the National Building Museum. Sponsors include the American Planning Association, the International Code Council, the Society for Marketing Professional Services, and the U.S. Green Building Council.

About McGraw-Hill Construction:

McGraw-Hill Construction connects people, projects and products across the construction industry. For more than a century, it has remained North America's leading provider of project and product information, plans and specifications, and industry news, trends and forecasts. McGraw-Hill Construction serves more than one million customers in the global construction industry through Dodge, Sweets, Architectural Record, Engineering News-Record, GreenSource, and SNAP. To learn more, visit www.construction.com or follow @mhconstruction on Twitter.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies:

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global education and financial information company that plays a crucial role in the knowledge economy with leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, Platts energy information services, and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has approximately 21,000 employees with more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Additional information is available at www.mcgraw-hill.com.

SOURCE McGraw-Hill Construction