Alexander Suma, Recepient 2007
Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands, Architecture and Structural Engineering
Host University, University of Miami, School of Engineering

Alexander Suma is a student in Architectural Engineering at the Technical University of Eindhoven. Alexander is working towards a PhD. His host is the Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering of the University of Miami. He will be in Miami April through July.

Alexander:
One week before my arrival in Miami, I defended my graduation thesis at the Eindhoven University of Technology as an architect and structural engineer. Here in Miami I am starting my PhD on a research to a deformable façade element. A quick summary; I am trying to make buildings which can deform in shape. My tutor dr. Nanni, Civil engineering, University of Miami, thinks this can be very interesting for extreme loads like hurricanes by not traditionally stiffen the building, but just change the shape, like a water drop.

Next to the many hours in my office, I am of course enjoying the sites of Miami. I have seen already a lot of places now and in the beginning it was very hard to travel without a car. Since I met some friends at UM, things got a lot easier. The beaches are gorges and nature is beautiful. My friends show me the places which are not in my tourist travel book and of course they are much more interesting, like eating Pappa’s Fritas on Calle Ocho or stone crabs at Joe’s on South Beach. I already spoke some words of Spanish. The university is very nice with the huge sport facilities and many more. During the graduation ceremonies I met the architect Cesar Pele (Petronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur) at a graduation project’s exhibition at the School of Architecture. It was a great honor to have a conversation with him.

Next to my research I helped my tutor dr. Nanni with a proposal for a transatlantic scholarship proposal. This scholarship, granted by the US and European governments, will give six students from each university per year the possibility to study in Miami, Eindhoven and Napels. They study one semester at each university and earn a transatlantic Master’s degree after completion. Even Prof. van de Kreeke contributed in the submission at the part for cultural preparation of the students. The proposal is submitted and we are waiting for the outcome.

In the first week of June I went for five days to a Masonry conference in St. Louis, Missouri. It was a great experience to be able to see another part of the US. These regions are culturally very different from Miami. I got to see the Arch, a boot trip on the Mississippi, a tour at the Budweiser brewery, the historical court house of Dred Scott and of course the pool on the roof of the hotel was also very nice. The loft district and the many big governmental buildings downtown were very interesting for architecture. During my last night in St. Louis, I went to a ball game of the Cardinals. I bought a baseball bat, a glove and a ball for my son Ruben (4) as a present. For my daughter Sarah (5), I will by a swimming suite of UM.

By the time ‘t Krantje will be delivered in your mail box, I might be back home again. I will go back to Maastricht at the 10th of July. My tutor asked me to finish my PhD in Miami and return in January with my wife and two children. At this moment, I am figuring out the visas and expenses versus salary to live in Miami. Maybe we will meet in 2008.

I am very grateful that the Netherlands-Florida Scholarship Foundation gave me this opportunity and I would especially like to thank Prof. van de Kreeke, who spends much time and effort for me and other students to give us the opportunity for an exciting and good educational experience.


Best regards,


Alexander Suma


More information can be found on my website: www.alexandersuma.nl or weblog blog.alexandersuma.nl