Solomon Tesfamariam

Dr. Solomon Tesfamariam is a Professor and University Research Chair in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Waterloo. For over twenty years, Professor Tesfamariam has been a leader in the pedagogy and research on sustainable design of tall-timber building and decision-making tools for infrastructure (asset) management.

Prior to the University Waterloo, he was a professor at the University of British Columbia (UBC) (2008-2023) where he held Principal’s Research Chair in the Resilient and Sustainable Built Environment. In addition, Professor Tesfamariam worked at the National Research Council Canada (2000-2007) on developing different decision support tools for buried infrastructure management. The unique blend of the academic and research experience has enabled Professor Tesfamariam to understand the challenges in the industry and develop unique solutions.

Professor Tesfamariam has pushed the boundary for tall timber (hybrid) building under multi-hazard design considerations. Professor Tesfamariam is a designated expert in the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH). He is also a subcommittee member of CSA O86 - Engineering Design in Wood on Systems Design and Connection. His contributions have directly resulted in the expansion of tall timber (hybrid) structure guidelines and gained international recognition throughout academia and industry. His research activities in infrastructure management entail developing decision making tools for seismic risk assessment and management of civil infrastructure systems and risk-based aging infrastructure management (buried pipes, buildings, bridges, etc.).

Professor Tesfamariam has published over 210 peer-reviewed papers in prestigious journals (e.g., ASCE Journal of Structural Engineering, Structural Safety, Earthquake Spectra, and Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics) and co-edited a book “Handbook of Seismic Risk Analysis and Management of Civil Infrastructure Systems”. Professor Tesfamariam is in the editorial board member of various international journals (ASCE Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, Frontiers in Built Environment: section Earthquake Engineering, Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure, ICE’s International Journal Infrastructure Asset Management).

• Mid- and high-rise timber structures
• Multi-hazard design with consideration of earthquake, wind and fire
• Performance-based design
• Energy dissipation systems
• Multi-fidelity modeling
• Energy- and displacement-based design
• Infrastructure management
• Decision making under uncertainty
• Risk-based prioritization
• Vulnerability assessment of spatially distributed assets (e.g., power transmission network, water distribution network)

• PhD – Civil Engineering - University of Ottawa, ON
• MASc – Civil Engineering - University of Toronto, ON
• BEng – Civil Engineering- Ryerson University, ON

• Tesfamariam, S. 2022. Performance-based design of tall timber buildings under earthquake and wind multi-hazard loads: Past, present and future. Frontier in Built Environment: Earthquake Engineering, 8:848698. doi: 10.3389/fbuil.2022.848698.
• Das, S. and Tesfamariam, S. 2023. Reliability analysis of structures using probability density evolution method and stochastic spectral embedding surrogate model. Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics, 52(8), 2480-2497.
• Han, T. and Tesfamariam, S. 2023. Numerical analysis of CLT shear walls using high-fidelity model: Connection to building system. Journal of Building Engineering, 72, 106458.
• Odikamnoro, I., Badal, P.S., Burton, H., and Tesfamariam, S. 2022. Seismic collapse risk of RC-timber hybrid building with different energy dissipation connections considering NBCC 2020 hazard. Journal of Infrastructure Preservation and Resilience, 3, 14 (2022)
• Tweldebrhan, B.T. and Tesfamariam, S. 2022. Performance-based design of tall-coupled cross-laminated timber wall building. Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics, 51(7), 1677-1696.
• Skandalos, K., Chakraborty, S. and Tesfamariam, S. 2022. Seismic reliability analysis using a multi-fidelity surrogate model: Example of base-isolated buildings, Structural Safety, 97, 102222.
• Woldesellasse, H., and Tesfamariam, S. 2022. Prediction of lateral spreading displacement using conditional Generative Adversarial Network (cGAN). Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, 156, 107214.
• Dey, S. and Tesfamariam, S. 2022. Multi-fidelity approach for uncertainty quantification of buried pipeline response undergoing fault rupture displacements in sand. Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, 155, 107174.
• Martίnez, E.R. and Tesfamariam, S. 2022. Multiphysics modeling of environment assisted cracking of buried pipelines in contact with solutions of near-neutral pH. International Journal of Pressure Vessels and Piping, 196, 104607.

• Civil prof recognized as one of Canada’s top innovators
• UBC helps smaller utilities up water infrastructure game
• New research could make pipelines safer
• Researchers Develop New Tool To Assess Aging Water Infrastructure For Small Communities
• Team of researchers developing new tools to save millions on road design
• UBC Okanagan researchers look to create homes that withstand tornadoes