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David W. Sykora, Ph.D., P.E., G.E.

Principal Engineer and Office Director

Civil Engineering

Professional Profile


Dr. Sykora specializes in geotechnical engineering and earthquake engineering, including the evaluation of natural hazards, construction defects, system performance, and failures. He has a wide range of project experience including planning studies, building code development, due diligence or feasibility assessments, engineering analyses, geotechnical design, design review for municipalities, construction monitoring, performance evaluations, and failure analyses for reservoir dams, mine tailings dams, levees, embankments, flood control channels, basins, pressurized and gravity pipelines, commercial buildings, hospitals, schools, manufacturing facilities, natural gas transportation systems and crude oil refineries, a nuclear power plant, gaseous diffusion plants, retaining and revetment walls, soil nail and soil screw walls, bridges, highways, parks, recreation areas, and residential developments. He has experience with drilling and sampling, mass grading, micro-tunneling, slope stability and landslides, expansive soil, collapsible soil, sensitive soils, saprolite, stiff fissured clays, peat, sinkholes, loss of lateral support, internal soil erosion (“piping”), ground vibrations, foundation design, earth pressures, soil settlement, slope creep, moisture intrusion, earthquake ground shaking, liquefaction, lateral spread, performance of pavement systems, soil-structure interaction, soil-slab interaction, soil-pipe interaction, fly ash amendment, and differing site conditions.

Dr. Sykora’s professional background includes over 25 years of experience as a consulting engineer and in applied government research at the former U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station (presently ERDC). He has worked on projects in 25 states. Dr. Sykora has international experience on five continents in the countries of Canada, Venezuela, Peru, South Korea, Japan, Turkey, Panama, and Egypt. His professional career has benefited from extensive involvement in, and leadership of, multi-disciplinary engineering, scientific, and technical teams, including working closely with engineering geologists, hydrologists, structural, mechanical, materials and electrical engineers, architects, instrumentation specialists, seismologists, and geophysicists. Dr. Sykora has provided instruction for graduate-level engineering courses, including organizing and serving as lead instructor for a week-long training course for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers entitled: “Seismic Stability of Earth Dams.”

  • Ph.D., Civil Engineering, University of Texas, Austin, 1993
  • M.S., Engineering (Geotechnical), University of Texas, Austin, 1983
  • B.S., Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 1980
  • Chi Epsilon
  • Sigma Xi

    • Professional Engineer, Alabama, #29964-E
    • Professional Engineer, Arizona, #39650
    • Geotechnical Engineer, California, #GE2399
    • Professional Engineer, California, #C54650
    • Professional Engineer, Colorado, #PE-39008
    • Professional Engineer, Hawaii, #12034-C
    • Professional Engineer, Idaho, #10890
    • Professional Engineer, Illinois, #062-058097
    • Professional Engineer, Louisiana, #33328
    • Professional Engineer, Massachusetts, #47928
    • Professional Engineer, Missouri, #PE-2004001383
    • Professional Engineer, Nevada, #13789
    • Professional Engineer, New Mexico, #17339
    • Professional Engineer, New York, #086897
    • Professional Engineer, Tennessee, #00113004
    • Professional Engineer, Texas, #100949
    • Professional Engineer, Utah, #6929147-2202
    • National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying, #22706

    • California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, Graduate School Lecturer, Department of Civil Engineering