The Saudi Council of Engineers (SCE) has invited four top Filipino engineers to speak at the Structural Engineering Summit in Dhahran on July 29 and 30.

“The contribution of Philippine engineers to the development of Saudi Arabia over the past decades is well-recognized by the SCE. Therefore, the Philippine-Saudi relationship is a special one at all levels,” said Hamad N. Al-Shagawi, SCE's chairman.

Al-Shagawi said the SCE and the Philippine Council of Engineers and Architects (PCEA) has signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance relations through the development of professional services.

“The professional services include engineering accreditation, continuous development training programs, engineering events and exchange of expertise and know-how between the two countries,” he said.

Two of the invited speakers are Adam Abinales and Carlos Villaraza. Abinales is an engineer who runs his own consulting firm as managing partner of @PAR Consulting Engineers Managers & Consultants. He is an accredited civil and structural engineer and consultant to various firms in the Philippines.

Villaraza is the newly elected president of the Association of Structural Engineers of the Philippines (ASEP) and an authority in earthquake engineering who is consulting for various Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) missions on earthquake provisions of the Philippine Code. He has been extensively involved in the review of the seismic provisions of the National Structural Code of the Philippines.

The other two experts are Anthony Pimentel, ASEP past president and an authority in wind engineering; and Federico Monsada, the founding co-chair and executive director of the Philippine Technological Council (PTC) Accreditation and Certification Board for Engineering and Technology (ACBET) and an authority in mutual frameworks agreements.

Melvin Candelario, an engineer and PCEA's public relations officer, thanked the SCE and noted that the forthcoming summit will be the third time that the SCE has sponsored visas for Filipino experts to attend a technical conference.

He said the summit is being organized by the ACEP, a founding member of the PCEA, and that the members are grateful to the SCE for having made learning opportunities possible for Filipino engineers.

“We are likewise eagerly looking forward to further future collaboration, such as on mutual recognition frameworks for professional growth,” he said.