Dr. Phung Duc Long, VSSMGE President
The Sven Hansbo Lecture in Geotec Hanoi Conference Series
Geotec Hanoi has become a favorable international geotechnical conference, which was successfully organised in Hanoi in 2011, 2013, 2016 and 2019 in Hanoi. Since the third conference GH2016, a special lecture named SVEN HANSBO LECTURE has been given. Prof. Sven Hansbo has contributed much to the development of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering in Vietnam. He made many visits to Vietnam since in 1979, when he first came to our country. He supported enormously to Vietnam by presenting guest lectures and participating in conferences, and, not least, by taking on many Vietnamese students and doctoral students. In order to recognize Dr. Hansbo’s contributions to Vietnam, the Geotec Hanoi Conference Organizing Committee has decided to instigate a special lecture in his honor addressing either Soil Improvement or Deep Foundations. Since then the following Sven Hansbo lectures were and will be presented:
- The first Sven Hansbo Lecture was be presented by Prof. Bengt H. Fellenius (Canada) “The Unified Design of Piled Foundations” at GH2016, November 2016
- The secon Sven Hansbo Lecture was be presented by Prof. Harry G. Poulos (Australia) “ Deep foundation design – Issues, procedures and inadequacies” at GH2019, November 2019
- The third Sven Hansbo Lecture will be presented by Prof. K. Rainer Massarsch (Sweden) “Applications of deep vertical vibratory compaction” at GH2023, December 2023
Prof. Sven Hansbo (1924-2018)
Sven Gunnar Hansbo was born in Sweden on the 29th of December 1924. He completed his MSc. in 1949 and his Ph.D. in 1960 at Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden. 1964–1990 he was a professor at the Department of Geotechnical Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology. Among other positions: 1974–1982: President of the Swedish Geotechnical Society; 1982–1985: President of the Swedish Society of Civil Engineers; 1981: Chairman of 10th ICSMFE in Stockholm. He passed away on 8th January 2018 in Stockholm.
Prof. Hansbo has published more than 100 papers in Scientific Conference Proceedings and Journals, State-of-the-Art Reports, General Reports, Keynote Lectures, etc. His 1960 Ph.D. thesis “Consolidation of clay with special reference to influence of vertical sand drains” is still a major reference for those working with vertical drains to accelerate consolidation of clays. He has written some textbooks on topics ranging from consolidation of clay, soil improvement, and foundation response, as
- Soil Material Science, 218 pp. (AWE/GEBERS),
- Foundation Engineering, 519 pp. (ELSEVIER, Developments in Geotechnical Engineeing, 75)
- Fundamentals of Geotechnology, 173 pp. (Geotechnical e-Books on Geoforum.com)
- Ground Improvement, 139 pp. (Geotechnical e-Books on Geoforum.com).
Awards
1973 Price of honour Stockholm Building Society: “A new approach to development of the compensation method applied in foundation on friction piles”
1974 Swedish Geotechnical Society: Price of honour
1986 The Golden Award of Merits of the Academic Senate of the Warsaw Agricultural University
1995 Polytechnica Gdanska: Medal for promoting the scientific cooperation between Chalmers Univ. of technology and Polytechnica Gdanska
2009 ISSMGE: Kevin Nash Gold Medal
