Applied Laboratory for Advanced Materials & Structures

UBC Okanagan

Resilient and sustainable structures

The Applied Laboratory for Advanced Materials and Structures (ALAMS) is a research group in the School of Engineering at the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan campus, led by Dr. M. Shahria Alam. Its research focuses on resilient and sustainable civil infrastructure, including shape memory alloys and smart materials in earthquake engineering; seismic resilience, rehabilitation, and retrofit of structures and bridges; low-carbon and sustainable construction materials; and performance-based, life-cycle, and machine-learning-based design.

280+Peer-reviewed journal articles
50+Graduate students graduated
20+Keynote & plenary lectures
2009Leading research at UBC Okanagan since

Research supported by NSERC, Mitacs, NRC, and industry and government partners.

Recent Highlights

2026

Horst Leipholz Medal

Awarded to Dr. M. Shahria Alam by the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE).

2026

Fellow, Engineering Institute of Canada

Dr. Alam elected Fellow of the EIC, following elected Fellowships of ASCE and CSCE in 2024.

2024

Killam Faculty Research Prize

Awarded to Dr. Alam by the University of British Columbia.

Research Areas

Featured Publications

  • Hybrid machine learning-enabled multivariate bridge-specific seismic vulnerability and resilience assessment of UHPC bridgesWakjira, T. G., & Alam, M. S. (2025). Resilient Cities and Structures, 4(2), 92–102.
  • Self-centering steel structures for seismic resilience: a critical review of the latest trends and future needsHu, S., Chen, Y., Guo, T., Karavasilis, T. L., Alam, M. S., & Koetaka, Y. (2026). Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 244, 110441.
  • High-performance mortars incorporating copper–molybdenum mine tailings: mechanical and durability characteristicsKanaan, D., & Alam, M. S. (2026). Cement and Concrete Composites.

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Get in touch

For research collaborations or inquiries about our work, contact the lab.

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