Our Team
Engineers Researchers Pioneers
Throughout our careers we collaborated on a variety of projects with the most eminent architects of our times on bringing their vision to life by successfully incorporating innovative structural systems into striking architectural designs. We take pride in serving our clients with superb efficiency and commitment.
Liam is a Co-Founder and Principal of AVANT and a recognized expert in the structural design of new buildings and seismic evaluation and retrofit of existing buildings. During his twenty-year-long career as an associate of prominent Los Angeles and San Francisco companies, he designed landmark buildings in California and internationally. His portfolio ranges from residential and commercial projects, schools, and corporate headquarters to large-scale projects, including tall buildings, international airports, and bridges.
Throughout his career, Liam collaborated with some of the greatest architects and designers of our time on bringing their vision to life by successfully incorporating innovative structural systems into striking architectural designs. His notable project achievements include:
NVIDIA Headquarters, Santa Clara, CA
Hamad International Airport, Qatar
Wisma Mulia 2, Indonesia
Linkedin Corporation - Building J, Sunnyvale, CA
Mercedes-Benz Research & Development North America, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA
CCPE Building, California State University, Long Beach, CA
Advanced Technology & Education Park, Tustin, CA
Liam's portfolio includes numerous seismic evaluations and retrofits of existing buildings utilizing both conventional retrofit methods and the latest seismic engineering technology. He is an expert in the ASCE 41 seismic evaluation of buildings mandated by the recent non-ductile concrete, steel moment frames, and unreinforced masonry ordinances adopted by cities throughout California. His significant seismic evaluation and retrofit projects include:
Appointments
Principal, AVANT Advanced Structural Solutions, Long Beach CA
MHP Structural Engineers, Long Beach CA
Louie International Structural Engineers, San Francisco, CA
Middlebrook + Louie Structural Engineers, San Francisco CA
TEAC Structural Engineering, San Ramon, CA
Licenses
SE Structural Engineer, California
PE Professional Civil Engineer, California
Education
MS University Ss. Cyril and Methodius, North Macedonia, Earthquake Engineering (2006)
BS University of Belgrade, Serbia, Structural Engineering (2003)
Vesna is the co-founder and principal of AVANT and an associate professor at the Department of Civil Engineering at the California State University, Long Beach (CSULB). Vesna obtained her PhD degree in structural engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, where she was granted the Popert Fellowship in recognition of her “hard work, excellence, and promise”. Upon completion of graduate school, she continued her professional career as a researcher and a lecturer at the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research (PEER) Center at UC Berkeley for another 4 years. She is a recipient of the prestigious ACI Chester Paul Siess Award for Excellence in Structural Research.
Vesna's expertise includes the development of advanced models and tools for seismic performance assessment and resilience evaluation (e.g., repair cost model, recovery time model, performance estimation tool), evaluation of nonlinear dynamic behavior of structures and their protective systems, probabilistic performance-based seismic design and evaluation of buildings, and seismic hazard evaluation and ground motion selection. She is the principal investigator for several research projects supported by the National Science Foundation and PEER Center. She was a member of the OpenSees development team, a lead analyst of the FEMA-P58-2 performance products team, and a member of the FEMA 138 project management committee.
Selected Awards
Popert Fellowship in recognition of hard work, excellence, and promise awarded by Civil Engineering Department at UC Berkeley. (2009)
ACI Chester Paul Siess Award for Excellence in Structural Research for the paper, “Evaluation of Post-Earthquake Axial Load Capacity of Circular Bridge Columns,” published in ACI in 2015. (2017)
Education
PhD University of California, Berkeley, Structural Engineering (2009)
MS University Ss. Cyril and Methodius, North Macedonia, Earthquake Engineering (2005)
BS University of Belgrade, Serbia, Structural Engineering (2003)
Appointments
Principal, AVANT Advanced Structural Solutions, Long Beach CA (2018 - present)
Associate Professor, California State University Long Beach (2014 - present)
Project Scientist, Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley (2014)
Postdoctoral Researcher, Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley (2010 - 2013)
Adjunct Professor, Santa Clara University, California (2011)
Teaching
Performance-Based Earthquake Engineering, UC Berkeley
Advanced Structural Analysis, CSULB
Dynamics of Structures, CSULB
Reinforced Concrete Design, CSULB and Santa Clara University
Structures Lab, CSULB
Statics, CSULB
Kristijan is the co-founder and principal at AVANT and a professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the California State University, Fullerton. He earned his BS degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Belgrade, Serbia, and his MS and PhD degrees, specializing in Structural-Earthquake Engineering, from the University of California, Los Angeles. He is a California-licensed professional engineer with industry experience that spans across various branches of structural engineering, including structural design of buildings and bridges, seismic-resistant design of tall buildings, performance-based seismic design, structural evaluation and retrofit, nonlinear structural analysis, and in seismic risk assessment.
Kristijan is actively involved in research in the field of earthquake engineering where he develops and applies high-fidelity analytical models, computational frameworks, and numerical tools to analyze various aspects of structural behavior of buildings under earthquakes with the goal of improving the seismic resilience of existing and new constructions. Kristijan is a task group leader at SAVI: Virtual International Institute for Seismic Performance Assessment of Structural Wall Systems, where he collaborates with prominent academics, researchers, and engineers from the U.S., Chile, Japan, New Zealand, and Europe on contemporary earthquake engineering challenges worldwide. He is a co-principal investigator for projects that are funded by the National Science Foundation, the Charles Pankow Foundation, and several industry partners, and he is a working group member in FEMA-funded projects of the Applied Technology Council.
Education
PhD University of California, Los Angeles, Structural-Earthquake Engineering (2013)
MS University of California, Los Angeles, Structural-Earthquake Engineering (2010)
BS University of Belgrade, Serbia, Structural Engineering (2006)
Appointments
Principal, AVANT Advanced Structural Solutions, Long Beach CA (2018 - present)
Associate Professor, California State University Fullerton (2014 - present)
Staff Research Associate, University of California, Los Angeles (2014)
Senior Engineer/Analyst, Saiful-Bouquet Structural Engineers, Pasadena, CA (2013 - 2014)
Intern, Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger, Newport Beach, CA (2013)
Intern, Arup, Advanced Technology and Research, San Francisco, CA (2012)
Structural Engineer, Del-Ing, Belgrade, Serbia (2006 - 2009)
Affiliations
American Concrete Institute (374 Committee)
SAVI: International Institute for Seismic Performance Assessment of Structural Wall Systems
Licenses
PE Professional Civil Engineer, California
Teaching
Evaluation and Retrofit of New and Existing Buildings
Finite Element Method
Reinforced Concrete Design
Advanced Structural Analysis
Djordje joined AVANT while working on his master’s degree in structural engineering. In two years since becoming part of the team, he worked on the structural design of a variety of projects, including new single and multi-family residences, commercial and healthcare buildings, as well as seismic retrofit of existing buildings and equipment anchorage.
Djordje is skilled in structural design and drafting and has an outstanding talent and enthusiasm for solving complex structural problems. His most notable experience includes work on a six-story wood and reinforced concrete building and a three-story residential building of high complexity:
Catalina Apartments, Los Angeles, CA
Lido Lane Residence, Long Beach, CA
His experience with various building materials, including wood, steel, concrete, masonry, and cold-formed steel, combined with expertise in structural modeling and an excellent understanding of the dynamic and static behavior of buildings, makes him a valuable member of the design team.
Education
BS University of Belgrade, Serbia, Structural Engineering (2019)
MS University of Belgrade, Serbia, Structural Engineering (2022)
Appointments
Design Engineer, AVANT Advanced Structural Solutions, Long Beach CA
