Juan Carlos Araiza GaraygordÓbil

Senior Consultant

Education

Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes, México
Civil Engineering, 1996

Universidad Politécnica de Catalũna, Spain
Doctorate of Engineering, Civil Engineering, 2003
 

Career Summary

Dr. Araiza began his career in engineering as a construction supervisor in México, becoming a Structural Design assistant while he was working on his undergraduate degree. Upon graduation he continued his work as a Structural Design assistant for the State Government of Aguascalientes, specializing in bridges. Building on this experience with bridge design, he then took a position as a full Structural Designer for ICC engineering, a subsidiary of Freyssinet México. After three years working in bridge design, and after the completion of his second degree in London, he took up a position at Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes where he was an Associate Professor in Structural Analysis for a year. While teaching, he also served as the Head of the Technical Department for Consorcio Hogar before returning to school to earn a PhD in Structural Engineering. Since graduating he has worked as a freelance consultant of the National Institute of Anthropology and History on structural analysis of ancient structures. Dr. Araiza has also done research in several countries on a wide array of engineering areas of study.

Professional Registration/Memberships

Professional Engineer

Representative Projects

      Fine Arts Palace, Mexico City
Dynamic testing was use to identify internal damage of the marble sculptures. Two accelerometers were attached simultaneously and a hummer impact was applied. The recorded response was used to identify internal damage on the marble.

Palacio Guell de Antonio Gaudí, Barcelona
Identification of internal composition of stone blocks by dynamic tests - A finite element model was updated using dynamic field information. In a non-destructive manner, the internal composition of the masonry was identified, locating massive and layered stones.

Cacaxtla mural paintings, Mexico
Damage and delamination identification by dynamic tests - The mural painting, original from 600 AD is suffering a strong deterioration due to athmosferic agression. It was necessary to identify delamination conditions in order to prevent more damage. Dynamic testing was used to identify dettachment of the paintings from the adobe support wall.

Laken Cathedral, Brussels, Belgium
A series of dynamic testing test were carried out in the stone cantilevers in the main tower of the cathedral. The objective of testing was to identify any irregularities that can lead to local collapses. First three natural modes were identified and used to update a numerical model of the stones.