Professor Keith Molenaar has been awarded the 2021 Peurifoy Construction Research Award by the American Society of Civil Engineers Construction Institute (ASCE-CI) Construction Research Council.
The annual award goes to an individual who has “made outstanding contributions to the advancement of construction engineering through research and development of new technology, principles or practices.” Molenaar is currently serving as the interim dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science and is the K. Stanton Lewis Professor of Construction Engineering and Management. He was received this award for “his groundbreaking research in project delivery mechanisms, cost estimating and risk engineering as well as for his significant impact on the construction engineering and management profession.” He is the primary author of more than 250 technical reports and articles. He has performed project delivery and risk-related work for the California, Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, Texas, and Washington State.
Molenaar is an active member of the National Academy of Construction, the Transportation Research Board, American Society of Civil Engineers, and the Design Build Institute of America. He has also served on numerous technical review committees for projects including the Columbia River Bridge in Oregon the SR520 Floating Bridge in Washington State, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in California, the Panama Canal Expansion project in Panama, and ITER Fusion Generator project in France.
Molenaar received his Bachelor of Science in Architectural Engineering (1990), his Master of Science in Civil Engineering (1995), and his PhD in Civil Engineering (1997), all at the University of Colorado Boulder.
In addition to the Perifuoy Award, Molenaar has also received the CEAS Outstanding Graduate Advisor (2020), the CEAE Distinguished Achievement Award (2018), the CU Campus Global Citizen of the Year (2017), CU Provost Faculty Achievement Award (2006), and the CEAE Young Researcher Award (2002). Molenaar was inducted into the Pan-American Academy of Engineering in 2012, the National Academy of Construction in 2017, and was designated as a Fellow of the Design-Build Institute of America in 2019.
The American Society of Civil Engineers is a nonprofit organization made up of over 150,000 members in the civil engineering profession throughout 177 countries. ASCE strives to advance civil engineering while protecting public health, welfare, and safety. ASCE provides “technical and professional conferences and continuing education, [is] the world's largest publisher of civil engineering content, and an authoritative source for codes and standards to protect the public.” . ASCE is also the nation’s oldest engineering society, having been founded in 1852.
Molenaar will have the opportunity to present a “Peurifoy Construction Advancement Address” to the ASCE. The Peurifoy Construction Research Award is made possible through contributed funds from friends, former students, and associates of Dr. R. L. Peurifoy. The ASCE-CI Awards Committee is comprised of Professors Vineet Kamat (Chair), Dulcy Abraham, Chema de la Garza, Carl Haas, Iris Tommelein, and Ms. Katerina Lachinova (ASCE). The Peurifoy Award Selection Panel is composed of all prior Peurifoy Awardees.
Congratulations Professor Molenaar on this well-deserved honor!