Fred H. Schott, June 19th 1935 - May 13th 2015
ASCE Life Member
ASCE Life Member
Just over fourteen years ago I was packing my car for spring
break when I got the phone call. It was
Fred Schott calling to offer me an interview for a summer internship. I had just finished my third year finals for
the Architectural Engineering program at Cal Poly and little did I know my
hardest test of the week was yet to come.
I spent the afternoon sitting across from the man who would become my
mentor as he quizzed me about everything I had learned in my years at school,
and then told I didn't know anything yet.
There may have even been a few Berkeley/Cal Poly comparisons mixed in
there. However, I must have passed
because I have worked for Fred every day since!
Just about everyone you talk to in the
engineering/construction industry on the central coast has a "Fred
Schott" story and his reputation extends even greater distances. His years pitching softballs and running one
of the biggest engineering firms in the area are just a couple of the many stories
I have heard. I was a personal witness
to a somewhat calmer version of that man. When I joined his company, he had
dramatically reduced the size of his firm so he could step away from the roll
of "business man" and get back to the engineering he loved. Just five short years ago you could still find
him climbing the sides of concrete trucks to check the quality of the mud. He did not just love his job, he lived
it. His mind was constantly working,
numerous mornings I would arrive at the office and before I could even set down
my bag he would be at my desk with an idea that had come to him in his sleep.
I still cannot fathom how he knew all that he knew. This was a man who could do moment
distribution in his head. He was an
expert in concrete mix design, designed steel plate shear walls before they
were allowed, and pushed the limits of Structural Engineering at every
turn. He had a love-hate relationship
with computers; he loved getting rid of the pencil lead, eraser shavings and
vellum, but hated when "new" engineers would rely on them without knowing
how to do the calculation by hand first.
He had to put some of that aside with our recent time-history damper
analysis work, but he could still spot a modeling error within minutes of
looking at our computer results.
Fred spent almost 80 years on this earth with his mind still
as sharp as a tack, and I am beyond thankful for the years I was able to spend
learning from him. He truly was the
greatest engineer I will ever know and he was right, I didn't know
anything. I will spend the rest of my
career trying to remember everything he taught me.
Written by Jillian van Enckevort, SE
Fred Schott & Associates
Fred Schott & Associates
(Comment posted on behalf of John Wallace, by Wes Thomson, ASCE SLO Newsletter Editor.)
ReplyDeleteFred Schott, an outstanding local civil and structural engineer….
Fred was a true believer in the practice of engineering and never failed to express his opinion on the subject. He was also a great mentor to many of the local engineers and students at Cal Poly. I believe we have had several of our staff work at Fred’s office in earlier years and graduate from the “Fred Schott School of Engineering”.
I met Fred when I worked at the County Engineering Dept. starting in 1978…and I soon found out what a strong personality he had. He was serious, almost always right (according to Fred), but also a funny man and enjoyed a good joke or two. Ever ask him for a pen? Check out his pocket protector below…he always came well-armed!!
In 1985 when I was acting as the Dir of Public Works of the City of Atascadero, Fred was hired to retrofit the dome on top of city hall that had shifted in an earlier earthquake. He did a very unique design and when the most recent last big earthquake significantly damaged the building, the only thing that kept the dome from collapsing was Fred’s previous work!
He was also a very active member of ASCE and always contributed to the professionalism of the other members. (He always asked the speaker questions!) And he always brought some of his staff to the meetings in order to further their understanding of the profession and to meet their counterparts in the engineering community.
We will miss him.
Thx
John
Just to show and demonstrate how much influence and teaching Fred had on his employees, to the best of my knowledge, every one of them passed the State CE licensing exam on their first try. He did yell a lot, he always knew what he wanted in any particular design, and he did appreciate those who got the answers without the benefit of some computer program.
ReplyDeleteHe loved engineering, solving problems and getting things done. I'll never forget one of our Friday night gathering when we discussed some better business practices and making more profit. Fred said he wasn't in business to make money, he wanted to do engineering, and it's engineering that we did.
Simply put, Fred was an Engineer and a damn good one.
George
in SLO, CA
(Posted on behalf of Mike Cannon, by Wes Thomson, ASCE SLO Newsletter Editor.)
ReplyDeleteI’ve known Fred for over 30 years. Bombastic, smart, cantankerous, dedicated, obstreperous, participatory, fearless, mentoring and loveable. He was an icon. I will miss him.
Mike Cannon
I have known Fred for a number of years. We met through CLSA, California Land Surveyors Assoc. Fed was a very regular member at our monthly meeting, and as previously mentioned, he always questioned the speaker. Fred was one of a kind. You Engineers all say he was a great Engineer, to that I say, he was a great Land Surveyor too.
ReplyDeleteWe were all lucky to have Fredin our professional lives.
Jonathan Walsh PLS
Central Coast Chapter President CLSA