Committee Updates
Code Advisory Committee
Chair: Dan Martel PE; Members: Joaquin Denoya PE, Tom Lamb PE, Lily Beyer PE
Board Liaison: Dan Martel PE
The Code Advisory Committee has been busy tracking and responding to proposed legislation this year! Here are important updates for bills relevant to structural engineers:
House Bill 1159 - Updates to State Building Code to include the 2024 ICC Codes (except the 2018 Energy Code remains)
Passed by the House and Senate; expected to be signed into law by the Governor soon
The 2024 IBC contains a number of structural changes that you should be aware of. Chief among them is the adoption of ASCE 7-22, including changes to ground snow loads, and how roof snow loads are calculated. There are good resources available to explain, including these Structure Magazine articles discussing the change to snow and rain loads:
Snow and Rain Loads in ASCE 7-22
Ground Snow Loads for ASCE 7-22
Yes, this all means that the Army Corps CRREL document no longer provides ground snow loads in New Hampshire!
Buddy Showalter of the ICC prepared a series of Structure Magazine articles discussing most of the structural changes. Here is the first of nine:
IBC Significant Changes Part 1
Once the bill is signed into law by the Governor, there will be a 6-month grace period where the current Codes can still be referenced on building permit submissions.
House Bill 1204 - Permits NH-Harvested Spruce-Pine-Fir (South) lumber to be considered Spruce-Pine-Fir
Signed by the Governor; becomes law October 19, 2026
This bill attempts to eliminate what is perceived by the authors to be an "unfair" standard of grading lumber harvested in the United States differently than similar lumber harvested in Canada. This law circumvents the Voluntary Product Standard PS 20 maintained by the American Lumber Standards Committee which requires SPF to be harvested in Canada and SPFs to be harvested in the U.S. The bill allows lumber harvested in New Hampshire above the 44th parallel, to be eligible to be graded as SPF if the species harvested is in the SPF species group. The law also requires that material specifications on state funded projects “give preference to lumber harvested in New Hampshire, unless design criteria necessitates utilizing imported sources."
SENH objected to this bill because:
- It contradicts the building code
- We expect it will cause confusion amongst specifiers, suppliers, and building officials.
- We don't believe it is practical to ignore the PS-20, the ALSC, industry standards and the building code.
- No test data has been presented to prove that the current grading is unfair, and no test data has been presented to show that lumber harvested above the 44th parallel in New Hampshire has equivalent design values to SPF.
What does this mean for structural engineers? Engineers should be aware that graders are now allowed to grade NH Harvested lumber above the 44th parallel as SPF. SENH cautions designers when they consider using higher SPF design values for this lumber given the lack of data presented with this new law. Also note, it is not likely that graders will grade NH lumber harvest about the 44th parallel as SPF because it conflicts with PS-20/the grading rules and doing so would put their accreditation at risk. It is also worth noting that this only applies to New Hampshire-harvested lumber, which is only a part of the market where SPFs is harvested.
Senate Bill 503 – This bill allows NH-Harvested Spruce-Pine-Fir (South) lumber to be “accepted wherever spruce-pine-fir (SPF) is specified” Passed by the House and Senate - status unknown (it may not proceed, since the similar HB1204 is adopted)
The bill goes on to require designers to “use the published SPFS design values for the grade and size provided” and further clarifies that “When SPFS lumber is installed, the values for SPFS shall govern” Additionally, this bill requires that “Licensed architects and structural engineers shall also consider and shall provide alternative options of construction utilizing SPFs lumber.”
This bill allows anyone to substitute SPFs for SPF. If this bill passes, then Engineers need to be aware that:
- If SPF is specified and SPFs is substituted, then designs need to be rechecked for the lower SPFs design values.
- This bill appears to require specifiers provide SPFs alternate options in their designs.
Senate Bill 529 - Requires preference be given to lumber sourced in the United States for all state-funded building projects
Passed by the House and Senate; expected to be signed into law by the Governor
This bill requires that NH state-funded building projects give preference to US harvested lumber. It goes on to require that “drawings or design specifications utilizing softwood framing lumber harvested in the United States shall reference United States-sourced spruce-pine-fir lumber (SPFs)”
If this passes, then Engineers need to be aware that:
- On state funded projects engineers should plan on specifying SPFs where practical and other US species groups (SYP, HF, DFL, etc.) when SPFs is not practical.
- If you choose to specify SPF, be prepared for suppliers to request that SPF be substituted with SPFs, and since they do not have equal structural properties, plan to review the alternative.
House Bill 1060 – proposes to provide an “alternate path to PE licensure” by substituting 4 years of PE-supervised experience with 10 years of professional experience that is not PE-supervised.
The bill was opposed by the House Committee, and therefore is not proceeding.
SENH objected to the legislation, and so did ACEC-NH and NSPE-NH.
Professional Development Committee
Co-Chair: Katelyn Welch, PE; Co-Chair: Eric Caron, PE; Members: Blaise Imbembe, Holly Lauzon, Dustin Wells
Board Liaisons: Kayla Hampe, PE; Rebecca Lubrano, PE; Jonathan Sproul, PE
Information about upcoming events can be found on the SENH website Events page.
Public Relations Committee
Chair: Sean Brown PE; Members: Bob Durfee PE
SENH Announces 2026 Scholarship Winners!
Structural Engineers of New Hampshire is very pleased to announce that two University of New Hampshire Civil Engineering students have been selected to receive the 2026 SENH Scholarships of $1,000 each. Students are eligible for these scholarships if they are entering their junior and senior years of study with a focus on structural engineering. This year, Mr. William Fogarty was named the winner of the Arthur W. Rose, Jr. Memorial Scholarship and Mr. Hoang Nguyen was named the winner of the SENH Younger Members Group Scholarship. These scholarship recipients were recognized for their achievements at the Engineer’s Week Banquet and Awards Ceremony at the Grappone Center on Tuesday February 24th.
SENH is proud to support students as they pursue their undergraduate degrees, as this is the first step in becoming tomorrow’s engineers and problem solvers. Congratulations Will & Hoang! And a very big thank you to everyone who participated in our scholarship raffle at the January membership meeting. Your support made it possible for SENH to offer two scholarships in 2026.
Lastly, the recipients have agreed to share their interest statements which were part of the scholarship application. The prompt was “Provide a brief statement presenting your interest in structural engineering and the occupation you would pursue upon graduation. Please see their responses below.
Mr. William Fogarty:
My interest in structural engineering has been apparent since a high school popsicle bridge design project. Using CAD and basic geometric design, my fellow classmates and I crafted a bridge that held 150 lbs. It opened my eyes to how much time and thought was required to design a structure as simple as a popsicle bridge. I was thoroughly intrigued by how different bridge designs could return drastically different competition results. This led me to the UNH Civil Engineering Program, where I have deeply valued my last three and a half years. This semester I began taking structural design courses and it has been a great shift in my academic
career. Reinforced concrete and structural design in masonry are two classes I presently enjoy spending time on. I plan to primarily take structural design courses for my final semester.
I have been pleasantly surprised with the combination of creativity and analytical demand required for the structural design courses I have taken over the past couple months. These multi-dimensional problems are rewarding to complete and require more than just memorization, but a thorough understanding of the content. It has been refreshing to be able to attack problems knowing the fundamentals and being able to apply them to various examples throughout the duration of my time in reinforced concrete. For example, during my last reinforced concrete exam we were tasked with doing a shear design for a hollow beam. Although we had never designed hollow beams, I was able to apply my knowledge on the principles of shear design to answer the problem.
Structural problems require innovative solutions, ensuring the safety and welfare of the public. It is exciting to think how my career will lead me to designing infrastructure that will directly benefit the public. Along with this honor comes a responsibility to verify that one’s structural design is adequate for that community. To guarantee the safety of the public, an engineer must refer to the central pillars of engineering. The most important of these pillars being engineering ethics. These codes guide our projects ensuring the infrastructure we design is optimal and safe for everyone.
I have been incredibly fortunate to have accepted a job as an entry level structural
engineer at The Turner Group located in Concord, New Hampshire. The Turner group works on a variety of projects, but what I am most excited about is the accelerated school projects. I am elated to start working in the real world and creating infrastructure that benefits the public.
Mr. Hoang Nguyen:
As a transfer student from NHTI and entering the junior year of Civil Engineering at
University of New Hampshire, I am excited to complete my requirements and begin taking advanced structural engineering electives. My passion for this field began early in my studies at NHTI, where courses such as Statics, Strength of Materials, and Reinforced Concrete Design sparked my curiosity about how structures perform under load and different components. That initial interest grew even stronger during my internship with NH DOT in Bridge Design.
Through that internship, I was fortunate enough to have a supportive supervisor who guided me through my first practice design project, and later I was able to perform a mounted sign design on a bridge overhang, not a huge project but meaningful for me as a student engineer. Being able to apply what I had learned in the classroom to actual tasks and projects had given me confidence and showed me the importance of structural engineering in the infrastructure. What impressed me most was the variety of bridge types I encountered, from modern designs and especially the historic masonry arch bridges that still span rivers across New Hampshire. These bridges have lasted for over a hundred years, and while they require maintenance, it is incredible to think about the lasting impact of an engineer’s work. Seeing this diversity of structural systems in practice inspired me to pursue bridges as a long-term career interest.
I’m driven to structural engineering because it combines technical knowledge, problem solving, and creativity in ways that directly impact society and community life. Growing up in a developing country, I understand the importance of infrastructure and how much it can shape lives. Bridges, for example, are not just functional, they connect people, communities, and economies. Being able to contribute to the design and preservation of such critical infrastructure is both a professional ambition and personal fulfilment.
My career plan is to become a licensed Civil Engineer and eventually earn a Professional Engineer (PE) license, hopefully in Structural Engineering. To prepare, I plan to take the FE Exam later this semester, which will allow me to take on more responsibilities during internships in the Summer of 2026 and beyond. Looking ahead, my career path will include gaining practical experience in Bridge and Structural design, pursuing a master’s degree in Civil Engineering, and ultimately achieving PE licensure.
Membership Committee
Chair: Dan Martel, PE; Members: Rebecca Lubrano, PE, Michael Richard, PE
Board Liaison: Dan Martel, PE
Welcome to new member Julie Reilly of Engineering Ventures in Burlington, VT!
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