Guest Lecture at the University of Toronto
Our Principal Engineer, Sasa Dzekic, was recently at the University of Toronto guest lecturing on investigations of structural failures for the Forensic Engineering program directed and taught by Prof. Doug Perovic, Ph.D. In his presentation, Sasa used a powerful visual to explain the process—the Swiss Cheese Model of Accident Causation, developed by Prof. James T. Reason, Ph.D. from the University of Manchester. The basic principle is that in any complex system there are multiple layers of defense against accidents. However, each layer has “holes” or weaknesses, and can be modeled as a Swiss cheese slice. A catastrophe—a “loss”—happens when the holes in all slices align perfectly, creating a clear path from a hazard to an incident.
Sasa’s lecture was developed from his work on forensic investigations over many years, ranging from regular to large complex losses including the collapses at Algo Centre Mall in Elliot Lake Ontario (2012) and Champlain Towers South Condominium in Surfside Florida (2021). The lecture presented the investigative procedures of identifying the “holes” in “slices”, finding out where the alignment happened and, most importantly, determining how to “plug the holes” and minimize a risk of similar failures in the future.
Proud to see Sasa sharing these critical industry insights with the next generation of engineers!