Prof. Sam Salem, Ph.D., P.Eng.

Full Professor - Structural and Fire Safety Engineering
Professor

Department: 
Civil Engineering
Email: 
sam.salem@lakeheadu.ca
Phone Number: 
+1 (807) 343-8010ext. 8011
Office Location: 
CB 4112
Academic Qualifications: 
  • Ph.D. in Structural Fire Engineering, Dept. of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Carleton University, Canada
  • M.A.Sc. in Structural Engineering, Dept. of Structural Engineering, ZU, Egypt
  • B.A.Sc. (Honour) in Civil Engineering, Dept. of Civil Engineering, ZU, Egypt

 

Date joined Lakehead: 
July, 2012
Previous Teaching/Work: 

Dr. Salem is a tenured Full Professor in the Dept. of Civil Engineering. Prior to his leadership role as the elected Dept. Chair from 2021-2023, he served as the Coordinator for the Civil Engineering graduate programs, PhD and M.A.Sc., since 2017. Dr. Salem’s industrial and academic experiences expanded over more than two decades are profoundly allied within the areas of structural and fire safety engineering. He is the founder and director of the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)-sponsored Fire Testing and Research Laboratory at Lakehead University (LUFTRL), a world-class facility and the only one of its kind in a Canadian University.

Dr. Salem is recognized nationally and internationally as expert in the field of structural fire engineering, as he has supervised and overseen the operation of numerous research projects. Dr. Salem has two patents in Canada and the USA on innovative beam-end connecting mechanism for mass timber buildings. He authored/co-authored more than 60 peer-reviewed, refereed publications in this fast-developing area of research in highly ranked international journals and top-tier conference proceedings. He also trained more than 40 highly qualified personnels including PDF, PhD and master’s students, and senior undergraduate research interns. Dr. Salem has been successful in attracting more than $2.1 million in research grants and awards from different funding entities, including NSERC, CFI, OCE, OMRI, NOHFC, MNRF, MTI, and others.

Dr. Salem’s solid performance and dedication to excellent research, creative scholarly activities and teaching have been recognized by receiving numerous academic awards and honors; including Lakehead University 2023 Research Excellence Award, Lakehead University Merit Award for excellence in research (2022), Lakehead University Merit Award for excellence in teaching and research (2020 and 2015), Contribution to Teaching Award (2022, 2018 and 2014), Lakehead University’s nominee for the 2020 Outstanding Graduate Mentorship Award of the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (CAGS), Outstanding Paper Award from the 6th International Conference on Applications of Structural Fire Engineering (ASFE 2019), and others.

In addition to the leadership roles that Dr. Salem has hold, he served in various committees at both the Faculty of Engineering and university levels. For instance, he served as the Chair of the Faculty of Engineering Research and Graduate Studies Committee (2020-2021); and voting member in the Lakehead University Academic Leaders Council (2021-present), Senate Teaching and Learning Committee (2022-present), Faculty of Graduate Studies Council (2017-2021), Senate Academic Committee (2014-2017), Senate Research Committee (2015), and others.

Being a renowned expert in the field of structural fire engineering, Dr. Salem sets in different important technical committees, such as the Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC) Standards Technical Committee on Fire Tests (S100A), the Standing Committee on Structural Design (SCSD) of the Canadian Commission on Building and Fire Codes (2015-2020), and others. Dr. Salem has been invited as a speaker, scientific committee member, and chair of presentation sessions in several international conferences and research events. He is also serving as a technical reviewer for editorial boards of several top-ranked international journals in the fields of structural and fire safety engineering.

For Dr. Salem's current teaching assignments, click here.

Research Interests: 

Dr. Salem’s research interests lie primarily in the field of structural engineering, including structural integrity and failure, structural design optimization, large-size experimental testing, and finite element computer modelling of steel, concrete, and timber structures. His research expertise is mainly in the field of structural fire engineering, including performance-based fire resistance design, computer modelling of structures subjected to fire, and large-size fire endurance testing. Dr. Salem established his unique research program at Lakehead University since 2012 to investigate the structural fire performance of innovative building systems with focus on those made of engineered-wood products used in mass timber construction through large-size experimental testing, computer modelling and advanced analytical studies.

Dr. Salem has been successful in securing more than $2.1 million in research grants from different federal and provincial funding entities, as well as research institutions and industry partners. His state-of-the-art applied research program on fire performance of innovative building systems is mainly supported by Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation (OMRI), Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC), Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF), Mass Timber Institute (MTI), and Lakehead University. 

Dr. Salem is always seeking brilliant and enthusiastic highly qualified personnels (HQP) to join his research team and benefit from the unique applied research in the field of structural fire engineering. He has been very successful over the years in promoting a balanced training approach with equal emphases on, (a) academic and research excellence; (b) real-time implementation and problem-solving skills; (c) professional skills development; and (d) career-related interpersonal skills development. Such multi-objective training approach is not only profitable in cultivating the interest in research excellence within Dr. Salem’s research team, but also offers a combination of core technical training and practical skills that are needed for young HQP to be well prepared for modern workplaces whether in industry or academia.

For Dr. Salem's current research projects, click here.