Dr. Oscar Faber CBE was a structural engineer

Structural engineer

Structural engineers analyze, design, plan, and research structural components and structural systems to achieve design goals and ensure the safety and comfort of users or occupants...

 born in 1886 to the son of the Danish Commissioner of Agriculture

Agriculture

Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...

 in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. In Faber's career he was influential in the development of the use of reinforced concrete

Reinforced concrete

Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...

 in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

. Because many engineers were not certain of the material, Faber pioneered simple deflection

Deflection (engineering)

In engineering, deflection is the degree to which a structural element is displaced under a load. It may refer to an angle or a distance.The deflection distance of a member under a load is directly related to the slope of the deflected shape of the member under that load and can be calculated by...

 tests, which enabled him to develop his theory of ‘Plastic yield in concrete

Concrete

Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...

’, and to calculate shear

Shear strength

Shear strength in engineering is a term used to describe the strength of a material or component against the type of yield or structural failure where the material or component fails in shear. A shear load is a force that tends to produce a sliding failure on a material along a plane that is...

 in reinforced concrete beams

Beams

Beams is a Japanese clothing brand, established in 1976, whose chief executive officer is Yo Shitara. Besides stores in many places in Japan, they have branch offices in New York, Milan, London, and Paris....

.

Notable projects include the Bank of England

Bank of England

The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694, it is the second oldest central bank in the world...

, the House of Commons, Africa House and India House

India House

India House was an informal Indian nationalist organisation based in London between 1905 and 1910. With the patronage of Shyamji Krishna Varma, its home in a student residence in Highgate, North London was launched to promote nationalist views among Indian students in Britain...

 in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. He co-authored the book, Reinforced Concrete Design with P.G.Bowie, which became a standard work. Faber's work on the House of Commons won him a CBE

CBE

CBE and C.B.E. are abbreviations for "Commander of the Order of the British Empire", a grade in the Order of the British Empire.Other uses include:* Chemical and Biochemical Engineering...

 in 1951. Snowhill, Bath, re-development scheme - 11 storey block of 56 maisonettes opened by Alderman Sam Day in March 1958 - in association with architects Snailum, Huggins and Lefevre.

Faber was president of the Institution of Structural Engineers

Institution of Structural Engineers

The Institution of Structural Engineers is a professional body for structural engineering based in the United Kingdom. It has 27,000 members in 105 countries. The Institution provides professional accreditation for structural engineers...

 between 1935 and 1936. The Institution named an award after him, the Oscar Faber Medal, one of which was presented to Fazlur Khan

Fazlur Khan

Fazlur Rahman Khan was a Bangladeshi born architect and structural engineer. He is a central figure behind the "Second Chicago School" of architecture, and is regarded as the "Father of tubular design for high-rises"...

 in 1973.

Faber's company Oscar Faber & Partners eventually merged with Maunsell

Maunsell

Maunsell may refer to a number of different people or things with that name:Things:* The Maunsell Sea Forts defence system.People:* Guy Maunsell, designer of the Maunsell Sea Fort defence system....

 to become Faber Maunsell. On 2009-05-04 Faber Maunsell was rebranded AECOM

AECOM

AECOM Technology Corporation is a professional technical and management support services firm. The company is ranked as the number one design firm for 2010 and 2011 by Engineering News-Record and number one by Architectural Record. It provides services in the areas of transportation, planning,...

.