He gave a small speech at the ENR banquet recalling how he gradually was able to increase bearing capacity of not only the rock at Chicago's caissons, but world wide on tall buildings. As I recall, the cook-book bearings were upped as much as 10 times at times. The speech was on a video at the ENR web site. The ENR published article was very detailed and well written (if you can imagine a reporter doing that), with comments by various contractors and developers he has worked with
He has made use of the Osterberg's pressure measuring equipment as part of the background in doing this. A small write up about him also was there. Apparently Osterberg is still living, and I'd guess age is over 90.
I met Clyde back in the 50's when each of us had a parallel role in the soils investigation aspects of the three sections of the Tri-State at Chicago.
His age is 77, (but I still am older). I'd call him an "engineer's engineer".
Jorj Osterberg is still around, and living in Aurora CO. I haven't seen him for several years, but I don't think he's 90 yet. Well into his '80s, however.
Jorj Osterberg was born in 1915 , so he is around 93. I took his Soil Mechanics classes in 1981 at Northwestern and I believe he stopped teaching the year after but he kept on as a Consultant and I am quite sure he is still somewhat active in the field of geotechnical engineering !
I had a chance to meet him back in 1983 or so when he gave a presentation in Vancouver for the Deep Foundation Institute. Then at the San Francisco ISSMFE conference in 1985 - spent about an hour chatting - he is truly a great engineer and the type of engineers we are going to miss over the course of the next decade.
Osterberg gave me some help when I was working on my dissertation almost 20 years ago, shortly after he moved to CO. Nice guy, and seemed to know his stuff.
So, who's bigger, Big H or Big Harvey? (I was once known as Big G, but it was done ironically, since I was often the smallest boy in my class, having been a year younger than my classmates, and coming from short stock.)
As to fond memories about him here is one. With the firm I was with some years back ('73 or so), he was advising us during a week long arbitration case with an unhappy contractor. After I got off the stand after one session he commented "Cliff, I could have kissed you when you explained why those piles had to get down there". A real practical guy he (Osterberg).
184 cm/115 kg but I was only 82 Kg at NU where I got that nickname from Ray Krizek !
Osterberg was also teaching a law class ( with a lawyer ) adapted to the construction industry. I took it and found it quite interesting mainly because we have a very different legal approach in France.
BigHarvey - getting that moniker at only 82 kg!! Must have been in a school of little ones! Me, when people here tell me I'm "big"/"fat", I just tell them that back in Canada, I'm small!! My Molson muscle is only a babe in the woods. Watch their eyes go wild! - either that or a modified old Churchill one about being drunk but you're ugly!
