Phd Supervisors
Dr. Wallied Orabi is an associate professor and the undergraduate program director at the Moss School of Construction, Infrastructure, and Sustainability within the FIU College of Engineering & Computing.
Academic Background: Dr. Orabi has extensive training and academic credentials spanning civil and construction engineering:
Ph.D. in Civil Engineering (2010) – University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
M.Sc. in Construction Engineering (2004) – The American University in Cairo
B.Sc. in Civil Engineering (1996) – Cairo University
Research & Expertise: His research primarily targets optimization, decision-making, and planning models for civil infrastructure systems. Key focus areas include:
Post-Disaster Reconstruction: Optimizing the recovery and resource utilization of heavily damaged transportation networks and infrastructure.
Sustainable Construction: Developing resilient, sustainable building systems and analyzing the relationships between time, cost, and environmental impacts.
Accelerated Bridge Construction (ABC): Formulating frameworks to evaluate the cost-benefit trade-offs of accelerated versus conventional bridge construction techniques.
His academic contributions are widely published in prominent American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) journals. He received national recognition as a co-recipient of the ASCE Journal of Construction Engineering and Management Best Paper of 2009 award.
Summary:
Dr. Omar M. Nofal, an assistant professor at Florida International University, specializes in structural engineering and risk and reliability analysis of structures. His research aims to enhance the resilience and functionality of the built environment against natural hazards, focusing on flood and hurricane impacts. He employs advanced techniques, including digital twin modeling, to improve high-resolution risk assessments for buildings and communities.
Educational Background
Ph.D. in Civil Engineering
Colorado State University, 2021
Focus: Hazard, exposure, and vulnerability modeling; risk and resilience analysis; multi-hazard risk assessment for coastal communities.
Master’s Degree in Structural Engineering
Cairo University, 2014-2017
Research focused on structural engineering topics, specifically lateral load analysis and the design of lateral load-resisting systems.
Bachelor's Degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering
Cairo University, 2008-2013
Community Engagement: Participated in post-hazard field studies and community recovery tracking activities.
Federally Funded Research: Contributed to NSF, NIST, NOAA, and DHS-funded projects during his Ph.D. and postdoctoral fellowship.
Current Work: Developing digital twin models for communities to enhance high-resolution risk and resilience assessments for buildings and communities.