Life is beautiful – both visible and invisible elements cross over and join to make up the world around us. As engineers, where our work is interacting with multiple trades, people and ideas, every structure we build is a testament to that creativity and dedication.”
Having moved to the New York metropolitan area over two decades ago, Erik has been helping shape its skyline since 2001, even before he co-founded Madsen Engineering (now DCI+Madsen) in 2010. Prior to moving to New York, Erik worked at a civil engineering design firm in Chicago, focusing on bridges and roads, before moving to New York and reorienting his focus toward buildings. Erik has taught as an adjunct professor at a number of schools and universities in New York City, including NYU Schack, Pratt Institute, NYIT and NYCCT.
During his career, Erik has designed numerous new high-rise buildings including residential, office and hotel projects. He has performed significant design with concrete flat-plate buildings as well as steel-framed, masonry, wood and cold-formed steel. Working in New York, Erik is also known for his work on renovation projects, from buildings constructed in the 1830s to the present, and working with all different materials including historic concrete, steel, cast iron, wrought iron, rubble, brick, terra cotta slabs, wood frame, etc.
Erik has been involved with the Structural Engineers Associations of New York (SEAoNY) where he served in 2022-23 as President and previously as the New York State delegate to the National Council of Structural Engineers Associations (NCSEA) for almost 20 years, as well as participating on the Code Committee and other committees.
Erik has been honored to contribute to the building codes. After serving in 2014 and 2022 to assist with the NYC Building Code editions, he is continuing as a member of the current NYC Department of Buildings Code Revision Structural Technical Committee and the potential new NYC Existing Building Code. He is happy to serve as vice-chair of NCSEA’s Code Advisory General Requirements Subcommittee, as well as a member of the upcoming ASCE 7-28.
Erik is the recipient of the NCSEA's 2024 Robert Cornforth Special Award for his dedication and service to a member organization and to the engineering profession.
What are your favorite parts of a project?
I love assessing existing buildings. Walking in and figuring out how it was put together, modifications over the years, the materials, the methods, the codes used to design and construct it... I sometimes refer to it as getting to play Sherlock on a project and solve the mystery of the building.
