News

The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI) is pleased to welcome its newest Associate Member, SCS Engineers. SCS Engineers is an environmental consulting and contracting firm servicing clients in solid and hazardous waste management, renewable energy, remediation, and environmental compliance. SCS Engineers specializes in the assessment, design, permitting, construction, operation, maintenance, and monitoring of sustainable environmental solutions.  The corporate headquarters is in Long Beach, California with offices throughout the country. Their FGI liaison is Neil Nowak, Project Director, who can be reached at NNowak@scsengineers.com. Please help us welcome SCS Engineers to the FGI!!!!

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Highlights Include:

New 3-Part Video Podcast Series on Reinforced Geomembranes

December Live Panel Webinar on Allowable Leakage Rates

New FGI Guideline for Desert Installation of Fabricated Geomembranes

Geomembrane Lab & Field Test Videos Library

The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI) is pleased to welcome its newest Associate Member, GO2CQA.  GO2CQA was established in 2010 to assist design engineers and owners with third party geosynthetics construction quality assurance (CQA) specialty inspections, documentation, and reporting services. GO2CQA is an industry leader in inspection services with over 30 years of fabricated geomembrane liner system design experience with a focus on heavy civil, mechanical, and structural construction applications. GO2CQA specializes in both reinforced and non-reinforced geomembrane tension floating covers for a multitude of applications including: water storage reservoirs, wastewater treatment facilities, solid waste landfills, mining expansions and closures, agricultural lagoons, and anaerobic digesters (AD) biogas floating cover systems. Their FGI liaison is Shannon Goodrich, Founder and Principal, who can be reached at sgoodrich@go2cqa.com. Please help us welcome GO2CQA to the FGI!!!!

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The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI) is pleased to welcome its newest Government/Regulatory Agency Member, State University of New York (SUNY) Polytechnic Institute’s College of Engineering. SUNY Poly serves as a world wide resource for pioneering education, research and development, technology deployment, and commercialization. It is anchored by two academic locations in Utica and Albany, New York.  With approximately 3,000 students currently enrolled, SUNY Poly recognizes that a strong, student-centered educational program is the foundation for baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral education. The mission of SUNY Poly’s College of Engineering is to provide the knowledge necessary to design and manufacture state-of-the-art products and systems needed to meet the current and future needs of society. The FGI Liaison is Dr. Asif Ahmed, P.E., Assistant Professor. He can be reached at ahmeda3@sunypoly.edu.  Please help us welcome SUNY Polytechnic Institute’s College of Engineering to the FGI!!!!

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Highlights Include:

Maerkle Reservoir Project Spotlight

Remaining 2021 Webinars

Newest Podcasts Released

New FGI Installation Cost Comparison Calculator Available

The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI) is pleased to welcome its newest manufacturer member, Sioen Industries.  Sioen is a producer of yarns, woven and nonwoven fabrics, technical textiles, fine chemicals and protective clothing.  Sioen has the entire production process under one roof, from the yarn, raw fabric and pigment pastes, to the coating and production of technical apparel. Sioen prides itself on its ability to find imaginative solutions to the challenges and ever-changing concerns and demands of our customers, the marketplace and all our stakeholders. The company headquarters are located in Belgium, with factories throughout North America, Europe, Australia, Africa, and Asia and their FGI liaison is Greg Roscoe, General Manager, who can be reached at Greg.Roscoe@sioen.com or www.sioen.com.  Please help us welcome Sioen Industries to the FGI!!!!

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The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI) is pleased to welcome its newest Associate Member, Alphard Group (Alphard).  Alphard is a Canadian consulting engineering firm specializing in industrial projects, construction management, and environmental performance. Incorporated in 2010,Alphard has built a team of engineers, environmental technicians and specialists, as well as a network of collaborators and strategic partners in the industry to offer a wide range of solutions and specialized services.

Alphard is also known for its leak location expertise participating in projects all over the world, and it has developed its own technology in-house for the past 10 years.

Their FGI liaison is Marina Villarroel, Director of International Projects, who can be reached at mvillarroel@alphard.com. Please help us welcome Alphard Group to the FGI!!!!

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Highlights include:

FGI Elects New Board of Directors

2021 Webinar Series

Project Spotlight: Below Ground Double Lined Brine Storage Pond

Top Trending Podcasts

Spanish Speaking Webinar Series

The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute(FGI) is pleased to welcome its newest College/University Member, Prairie View A&M University, Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering.  Prairie View A&M University is the second-oldest public institution of higher education in the state of Texas.  It is an Historically Black College and University (HBCU) consisting of nine colleges and schools and 70-degreeprograms. The Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering offers a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering. The Roy G. Perry College of Engineering offers a Master of Science in Engineering degree with concentrations in Civil Engineering as well as Environmental Engineering. The Civil& Environmental Engineering faculty are committed to excellence in teaching, research, and service to the university and its constituents. The FGI Liaison is Dr. Jobair Bin Alam, PE, Assistant Professor. He can be reached at mdalam@pvamu.edu.  Please help us welcome Prairie View A&M University’s Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering to the FGI!!!!

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The Fabricated Geomembrane Institute (FGI) held its biennial membership meeting on 24 February 2021 during the Geosynthetics 2021 Conference.  The meeting was attended by 26 people and held in conjunction with the Industrial Fabrics Association International organized conference.  During the membership meeting, the newly elected FGI Officers and Board of Directors were introduced for their two (2) year term.

 Before introducing the new Officers and Directors, Timothy D. Stark, FGI Technical Director and Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, acknowledged the service of the outgoing Officers and Board Members:  Greg Scales (Titan Environmental), Bill Shehane (Seaman Corporation), and Ed Silva (E Squared). Tim also acknowledged the recent retirement of John Heap from Colorado Lining International. John served as President of the PVC Geomembrane Institute(PGI) for four (4) years and was instrumental in expanding the PGI to the Fabricated Geomembrane Institute. The newly elected FGI Officers will serve a two-year term (2021-2023) and are:

• President – Patrick Elliott (Raven/Colorado Lining International)
• Treasurer – Brian Fraser (Layfield Group)
• Secretary – Duff Simbeck (Simbeck and Associates)

 The following newly elected FGI Board of Directors also will serve a two-year term (2021-2023) and are listed below in alphabetical order:

• Doug Hilts (Hilts Consulting Group)
• Ray Peebles (Cooley Group)
• Steve Thaxton (Owens Corning)
• Jordan Wiechmann (Intertape Polymer Group)

Other topics on the FGI’s Biennial Meeting agenda included:  current and future research activities, accomplishments since the last membership meeting at Geosynthetics 2019, and the future direction and goals of the FGI.  

 The following research topics are being pursued by the FGI at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign:

 ·        fPP Case History

·        fPP Air Channel Seam Testing

·        PVC Specification for Desert Applications

·        Reinforced Geomembrane Thermal/Wrinkle Testing

 Other accomplishments of the FGI over the last two years include:

·        Publication of several technical articles and papers

·        Hosted short courses in Bogota, Colombia and Charlotte, North Carolina

·        Publication of three new geomembrane calculators for cost comparisons, leakage rates, and panel weight shipping

·        Publication of Installation Details and Drawings

·        Created Geo-Engineering Audio and Video Podcast Series

·        Created Geo-Engineering Pop Quiz Series

·        Hosted 23 live webinars, averaging 250 attendees and 450 registrants per webinar

·        Created on-line PDH Certificate Program with about 500 people receiving a PDH Certificate for downloading and listening to a webinar

·        Created Women in Geosynthetics Program – hosting two successful Round Table Discussions and quarterly virtual meetings

 The final portion of the FGI Biennial Membership Meeting was dedicated to a lively discussion on the future direction and goals of the FGI by its members.  The FGI has five membership classifications:  manufacturers, fabricators and Installers, Installer Only, Associate, and Government/Regulatory Agency.  The FGI’s membership spans four continents:  North America, South America, Australia, and Europe.

 The FGI is dedicated to advancing the use of fabricated geomembranes through education, research, and technology transfer.  The FGI is a consortium of manufacturers, fabricators/installers, designers, regulators, and material suppliers of fabricated geomembranes.  For more information on the FGI, please visit www.fabricatedgeomembrane.com.