Xulai - Personal Portfolio

About me

California-licensed Civil Engineer (Structural) at Nabih Youssef & Associates, San Francisco office. Driven to develop efficient software tools for structural design, calculations, and client consultations. Committed to improving delivery methods while ensuring all results meet rigorous engineering standards.

Developing PE and SE exam prep website for engineers. Visit CertSherpa on this website to sign up and ace your exam with confidence!

Focus

Structural Engineering

Safe and efficient solutions for structural designs.

S.E. exam Oct 2025.
CertSherpa Dev

Professional-level licensing exam prep to enhance civil engineering practice.
Triathlon & Ironman

GGTC SDP 2025

- Lake Folsom Olympic May 10

- Hawai'i Honu Ironman 70.3 May 31

- Lake Tahoe Olympic Aug 24

- Santa Cruz Ironman 70.3 Sep 21
SEAONC

SEAONC YMF and LTM program

Licensures & Accolades

Professional Engineer's License

Structural #C94300 - Issued Sept 2022
AWS Cloud Practitioner Certificate

Issued April 11, 2024
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Resume

Education

University of Pennsylvania
2023 — 2026
M.S. in Computer Information and Technology

- Cloud engineering, Software development, UI/UX web design
University of California, Berkeley
2019 — 2020
M.S. in Civil Engineering (SEMM - Structural)

- Seismic reinforced concrete design, earthquake resistant design
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2014 — 2019
B.S. in Civil Engineering (Structural)

B.S. in Physics

- Steel + composite design, reinforced concrete designs, structural dynamics, foundation engineering and design, experimental dynamic forensics, robotics and computer vision

Professional Experience

Senior Engineer – Nabih Youssef Associates
2023 — Present
Developed an agile API in Dynamo framework in Autodesk Revit, enabling real-time heat map visualization of MEP point loads on floor plans, updated dynamically with cloud model changes by MEP trades to inform design changes with little reaction time.
Project Engineer – KPFF Consulting Engineers
2020 — 2023
- Steel Design (HRS and CFS)
NASA + Google Aviation Hangars (Hangar 1) – Seismic (ASCE41) and Wind (ASCE7) Retrofit.
• Designed code-compliance retrofit checks w/ design team for approximately 10,000 unique steel connections based on 1931 shop-drawings of an iconic 200ft tall, 1200ft x 300ft hangar. Modelled in SAP2000 and designed steel staircase on all levels.
• Developed spreadsheet tools to dynamically update retrofit plans efficiently in response to inter-disciplinary requests & changes.
Google Caribbean Campus design – New Building Design.
• Designed guardrails, stairs, posts, beams. Hot-rolled steel sizing. Cold-formed steel framing design for strength and deflection.
• Conducted study in floor vibration of composite steel deck for office space converted to laboratories (AISC Design Guide 11).
Tesla, Rivian Factory MEP Anchorage (5 projects) – Large scale platform and equipment anchorage; Satisfying unique looks.
• Developed software tools in Excel VBA, designed API tool to interact with website tool (HILTI web), standardized calc template.
• Designed unique storefront with glazing for serviceable deflection and strength requirements with built-up steel and CFS shapes.

Reinforced Concrete Design
DSA K-12 Public School Modernization and Code-Compliance – Seismic Retrofit (ASCE41)
• Checked and developed retrofit plans on stringent budget for foundation, beams, retaining walls, shear walls, diaphragms, collectors, metal studs, unistrut for anchorage. Built ETABS model for linear static (ELF), and linear dynamic analyses (MRSA).
UCSF 9-story Mid-rise Garage Design. many Tenant-Improvement designs – New Building Designs.
• Dimensioned and developed details for piles, pile caps, grade beams, columns, beams, retaining walls, diaphragms, collectors, P/T slabs, façade & sign anchorage, metal studs, unistrut for anchorage, canopies. Helped build ETABS model for linear static analysis.

Wood and Hybrid Design
Timber-Concrete Hybrid Affordable Housing design (2 projects) – New Building Designs.
• Dimensioned, and developed details for joists, beams, diaphragms, studs, posts, tiedowns, anchors and plywood shear walls.
Plumas district hospital seismic evaluation and retrofit - Seismic retrofit to SPC-4D Performance level per HCAI Regulations.
• Using as-built document, developed retrofit plans and details for rafters, diaphragms, studs, posts, tiedowns, shear walls.
Local Kitchen MEP Anchorage and Tenant Improvement (10+ projects) – MEP anchorage and changes of existing framing.
• Using unistrut, metal studs and fasteners, designed equipment anchorage plans and details and reframing of existing structure.
• Independent client outreach and site visit; timeline and deliverable establishment; drawing and calc pack production for permit.

Project Collaboration and Leadership – San Francisco Office and San Diego Offices
Teamwork and Operations – Team goal alignment, task delegation, risk mitigation, and drafter communication and coordination.
• Led weekly calls with international teams and stakeholders to validate progress, coordinate future steps and mitigate risks.
• Coordinated with design and drafting team on Autodesk Revit, AutoCAD, and Bluebeam. Developed, marked-up and back-checked drawing sets. Supported project managers to ensure timely delivery of construction documents for permit.
• Proactively responded to plan checks, SSKs and RFIs, reviewed vendor cutsheets and shop-drawings, delivered field reports.
President - EERI Illinois Student Chapter
2017 — 2018
Research Institutes – Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI)-2019, Urban Design and Construction Institute (UDCI)-2018
• Conducted forensic analysis and demolition designs at UDCI in Shanghai. Produced CAD drawing for infrastructure construction.
• Elevated EERI presence via marketing campaigns as chapter president at UIUC in 2018. Won awards and WJE sponsorship.