Rima Taher

Spotlight

As weather disasters mount, how prepared are we for the next hurricane?

2022-05-31

Hurricane season is here – are we ready for another Category 3 like Sandy?

2019-08-08

Media

Publications Photos Videos Documents Audio/Podcasts

Publications:

Documents:

Photos:

Videos:

Audio/Podcasts:

Social

Biography

Rima Taher, Ph.D., P.E., is a senior university lecturer at the College of Architecture & Design, at NJIT, and is a part-time instructor in the graduate program at the NJIT Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering. She is a licensed professional engineer in New Jersey and practices as a civil/structural engineer with her own consulting firm Taher Engineering, LLC. Dr. Taher earned her bachelor's of civil engineering from INSA de Lyon, France, in 1982. She earned her master's and her doctorate from École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées, Paris, France, in building technology (Ph.D. in 1986).

Dr. Taher participated in building technology research in the field of building design for high winds and hurricanes, and she has several published articles in this field. She has authored and co-authored several published books in structural technology and engineering. Dr. Taher is currently serving as the President of the ASCE/SEI (Structural Engineering Institute) Chapter of North Jersey.

Areas of Expertise (6)

Hurricanes

Structural Engineering

Engineering & Technical Design

Structural Design

Engineering

Architectural Engineering

Accomplishments (2)

Reviewer for the National Science Foundation, Directorate of Engineering (professional)

Ongoing

Teaching Excellence Award, New Jersey Institute of Technology (professional)

1999

Education (3)

École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (ENPC): Ph.D., Civil Engineering 1986

École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (ENPC): M.A., Civil Engineering 1983

Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon: Bachelor, Civil Engineering and Urbanism 1982

Affiliations (6)

• American Association for Wind Engineering
• American Society of Civil Engineers, Member
• Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Member and President of the SEI Chapter at the North Jersey Branch
• American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), Member
• American Association of University Professors, Member
• Taher Engineering LLC : Principal / Structural Engineer

Links (1)

• NJIT Faculty Profile Page

Languages (2)

• English
• French

Media Appearances (4)

Home of the Future Will Withstand Whatever Wild Weather Comes

Bloomberg  online

2019-05-13

Rima Taher, a civil and structural engineer who teaches at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, has published the textbook “Building Design for Wind Forces.” The strategies behind recent improvements in housing resiliency can be attributed to improved building codes based on research in wind engineering that started back in the 1960s, she said. "We have more knowledge in this field now, and building codes and standards are stronger," Taher said.

view more

How to Prepare Your House and Life for Hurricane Season

Interesting Engineering  

2017-10-03

Civil engineers around the world have spent years analyzing what styles and shapes of houses outlast others. Engineer Rima Taher with the New Jersey Institute of Technology developed a major study in 2007. The study came two years after Hurricane Katrina devastated the New Orleans area...

view more

Redesigned Roofs Withstand Tornadoes and Hurricanes

Live Science  

2011-05-26

The tornado that stormed through Joplin, Mo., on May 22 shredded an estimated 8,000 buildings and stranded desperate families that now must decide whether to rebuild or find a new home. For those choosing to rebuild, Rima Taher, an expert on wind-resistant structures, has a bit of advice: don't do it the old way. "You wonder why we keep doing the same things, making the same buildings," Taher told InnovationNewsDaily...

view more

Architect Professor Advocates Best-building Practices For High Wind Regions

ScienceDaily  

2008-07-13

More than ever before, building design and construction can be significantly improved to reduce wind pressures on building surfaces and to help better resist high winds and hurricanes in residential or commercial construction, said NJIT architecture professor Rima Taher, PhD...

view more

Event Appearances (11)

Wind Load Provisions of the ASCE 7-16 Standard

ASCE/ Structural Engineering Institute Chapter of Lehigh Valley  Lehigh University

2018-08-16

Structural Design for Practitioners

American Institute of Architects Continuing Education Seminar  

2016-11-09

Design and Construction of Low-Rise Buildings for High Winds and Hurricanes

Continuing Education Department of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)  

2013-05-21

Best Building Practices for Hurricane and Earthquake Prone Areas

Construction Specifications Canada (CSC) Annual Conference  Montreal, Canada

2011-05-25

Design and Strengthening of Educational Facilities for the Risks of Earthquakes and Hurricanes

Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Regional Policy Conference  Santiago, Chile

2010-10-15

Working with Architects & Contractors: An Engineer’s Perspective

NJIT Lecture Series  New Jersey Institute of Technology

2010-10-30

Flooding Expert Panelist

Flooding Conference Hosted by Senator Robert Menendez  New Brunswick, New Jersey

2008-08-20

Cable-Supported Structures

Annual Structural Spring Seminar of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)  New Jersey Institute of Technology

2008-03-10

Structural Solutions for the Design of a Hurricane Resisting Home

Lecture Series at Wind Engineering Research Center  Tokyo Polytechnic University

2003-09-12

Structural Solutions for the Design of a Cyclonic or Hurricane Resisting Home

International Conference on Wind Engineering  Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas

2003-06-02

Structural Solutions for the Design of a “Cyclonic” or Hurricane Resisting Home Adapted to Simple Construction Methods

International Conference on Architectural Research  McGill University, Montreal, Canada

2002-05-22

Research Grants (2)

Structural Solutions for the Design of a Hurricane Resistant Home

New Jersey Institute of Technology 

2001

Construction Practices in New York City

New York City Department of Buildings 

2017 This award was given to a research team consisting of members from Tufts University, Columbia University and New Jersey Institute of Technology under the Tow+Gown Academic Consortium Contract.

Articles (2)

Improved Building Practices for Hurricanes

Caribbean Construction Digest

Rima Taher

2009 The Caribbean Construction Digest (CCD) aims to be an important tool in the development of the Caribbean’s construction industry by providing readers with industry specific news, tips, information, academic discussions and debates on critical issues, people, projects and programs.

Design of Low-Rise Buildings for Extreme Wind Events

Journal of Architectural Engineering

Rima Taher

2007 Damages from hurricanes and various windstorm events represent a loss of several billions of dollars in the United States. A loss of $30 billion was attributed to Hurricane Andrew alone in Florida in 1993. In 2004 and 2005, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and other locations in the southeast United States and the Caribbean saw an unprecedented wave of major hurricanes causing great destruction and property damage...

view more