The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) regulates both the construction and operation of most hydroelectric dams in the United States. In March Tim Hampshire, Director of Water Resources and Dam Safety at DLZ was approved and accepted as a Potential Failure Mode Analysis (PFMA) Moderator for FERC dam safety workshops, and in May moderated one of these workshops for FERC. A PFMA workshop investigates all potential dam failure modes whether they be geotechnical, structural, H&H, civil, mechanical, electrical, etc. As a result, DLZ finally has access to a FERC-approved PFMA dam safety Moderator! Tim is also a FERC-approved “Part 12D Independent Consultant” for the inspection of FERC dams. Approval for this designation requires having over 10 years (i.e. 20,800 hours) of documentable experience in the design, construction, and inspection of dams.

Tim has over 30 years of experience in the fields of geotechnical, structural, construction, and materials engineering, as well as drilling, field, and laboratory testing, and instrumentation installation. He has led the firm’s efforts on a number of investigations and designs for FERC, USACE, state DNRs, and conservancy district projects involving dams, levees, and locks as well as other major public infrastructure features such as large bridges and deep tunnels.