Lab Tour for Cal State University San Bernardino Engineering Geology Students

April 28, 20220

Mike Cook, Jeff Diaz, and Julian Calderon gave students a tour of the Kleinfelder Ontario materials lab

Michael Cook, PG, CEG, Senior Engineering Geologist in the Riverside office was asked by Dr. Kerry Cato to coordinate a tour of the Kleinfelder Ontario materials testing lab for a California State University San Bernardino Geosciences Department, Geol 4100 Engineering Geology class on Friday April 22, 2022.

Mike began the tour with a presentation on his nearly 40 years as a professional geologist, with the last 22 years at Kleinfelder, giving the students some examples of what it means to be an engineering geologist and sharing photos of projects he has worked on. The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer period with some project specific questions; but of course, questions concerning “I am graduating soon do you have suggestions on how to get a job?” had priority.

The lab tour was conducted by Kleinfelder staff, Jeff Diaz and Julian Calderon. They presented excellent examples of the major types of materials testing Kleinfelder performs, starting with the different types of concrete samples they test, such as concrete cylinders, grout cubes, and pavement beams. This was followed by a review of the concrete cure room and then a discussion on how rebar is tested.  The soils lab had a wide range of soil samples being tested, so the students were presented with several examples of the different types of testing requirement/standards that must be followed depending on a project’s specifications.

The tour was an enriching experience for the students, as it was enlightening to see how some of the tests they’d discussed in the classroom were run in a real lab.

“A special thanks to Jeff Diaz and Julian Calderon for doing the tour on such a short notice,” Mike said. “Dr. Cato contacted me on Wednesday evening (April 20th) about coordinating a tour because the field trip he had planned for that Friday had to cancel. All the Ontario staff worked hard to make this happen; what a great group!”