Professional Biography
Dave Amori is a Regional Manager and Director at YA Group, bringing over 30 years of civil, structural, and geotechnical engineering experience to his role. He leads regional operations and oversees key service offerings, applying his deep technical knowledge to support complex projects and strategic initiatives across the organization.
Throughout his career, Dave has built extensive expertise in building envelope consulting and construction management for both heavy civil and vertical construction. For the past two decades, he has focused on construction litigation and forensic investigations, providing detailed analyses related to building structures, geotechnical conditions, construction defects, design issues, standard of care evaluations, and building envelope performance.
Dave’s background includes significant domestic and international project work, including several years living and working in South America, which contributes to his broad global perspective. He is a licensed professional engineer in multiple states and a registered roof consultant, complementing his specialized industry focus and technical proficiency.
Credentials & Certifications
- PhD
- Professional Engineer (PE)
- Registered Roof Consultant (RRC)
- FAA Certified Drone Pilot
- Certified Infrared Thermographer (Level I)
- Texas Department of Insurance Qualified Inspector
- Private Pilot (FAA Part 61 ASEL/Inurement)
Representative Consulting Assignments
- Commercial/Residential | Construction Defect Litigation Support — Provided investigation and opined on construction defects, design errors and omissions, construction vibration assessments, foundation evaluations, building envelope performance, and standard of care for hundreds of cases. Provided expert witness testimony in Deposition, Trial, and Arbitration.
- Commercial/Residential | Forensic Structural/Geotechnical — Windstorm and surge related assessments for dozens of hurricanes in the US Gulf Coast, New York, and Caribbean. Conducted hundreds of foundation assessments and structural failures to determine root cause of observed distress and provided repair recommendations.
- Commercial/Residential | Roof/Building Envelope Evaluation — Conducted thousands of storm-related roof assessments to determine root cause of observed distress and provided repair recommendations. Inspected, analyzed, and provided retrofit design documents for building envelope (roof replacement, window/façade retrofit, veneer repairs).
- Casino/Hotel | Forensic Structural — Investigated, analyzed, and provided expert opinions on the cause and origin of the collapse of a 17-story hotel and casino under construction.
- Tilt-Up Wall Warehouse | Forensic Structural — Investigated, analyzed, and opined regarding the cause and origin of a concrete tilt-up wall warehouse collapse after a wind event.
- Hydroelectric | Forensic Geotechnical/Structural — Investigated, analyzed, and opined regarding the cause and origin of damage to a conventionally reinforced concrete liner of a 400 ft tall, 150 ft diameter water intake shaft associated with a hydroelectric plant.
- High-Rise Building | Forensic Geotechnical/Structural — Investigation of the cause of differential settlement of a 30+ story post-tension concrete multi-family residential building and attached 4-story parking structure.
Professional Experience
- Director of Engineering | YA Group | 2025 - Current
- Vice President, Engineering/Corporate Advisor | MC Consultants, Inc. | 2024 - 2025
- Vice President, Engineering | EFI Global, Inc. | 2006 - 2024
- Senior District Manager | EFI Global, Inc. | 2006 - 2013
- Branch Manager | Professional Service Industries | 2003 - 2006
- Senior Consultant | Brown Engineering | 2002 - 2003
- Project Manager | RC Heath Construction Company | 2001 - 2002
- Project Manager | The Neenan Co. | 1999 - 2001
- Staff Engineer | Knight Piésold | 1991 - 1998
Practices & Skillsets
- Condition Assessment
- Construction Administration
- Failure Analysis
Publications and Presentations
- Post-Fire Structural Assessment Considerations of Buildings and Parking Structures, D. Amori and E. Lalli, ASCE Forensics Conference, November 2024 (November 2024)
- Seismic Performance of Power Actuated Fasteners in Light and Normal-Weight Concrete, A. Schultz, D. Amori, S. Overacker, P. Grzesik, C. Gill, World Conference on Earthquake Engineering, June 2024 (June 2024)
- Performance of Power Actuated Fastener Connections for Cold-Formed Steel Framing Elements, Schultz, Overacker, Amori, and Grzesik, Fifth International Workshop on the Seismic Performance of Non-Structural Elements, December 2022 (December 2022)
- Eulerian-Lagrangian Simulation of Wave Impact on Coastal Bridges, Majlesi, Nasouri, Amori, A. Montoya, A. Du & A. Matamoros, January 2022 (January 2022)
- Explicit Finite Element Analysis of Coastal Bridges Under Extreme Hurricane Waves, Majlesi, Nasouri, Shahriar, Amori, Montoya, Du, Matamoros, ASCE Tran-Set 2021 (2021)
Education
- PhD, Civil Engineering (Emphasis Building Structures), University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
- Master of Science, Civil Engineering (Emphasis Building Structures), Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, Missouri
- Master of Science, Construction Management, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- Bachelor of Science, Civil Engineering, University of Colorado, Denver, Colorado
Affiliations
- American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
- International Institute of Building Enclosure Consultants (IIBEC)
- Seismic Performance of Non-Structural Elements (SPONSE)
Professional Licenses
- Civil Engineer - Arizona - License #82229
- Civil Engineer - California - License #97206
- Professional Engineer - Colorado - License #35124
- Professional Engineer - Florida - License #77844
- Civil Engineer - Louisiana - License #32976
- Professional Engineer - Michigan - License #6201067818
- Civil Engineer - Massachusetts - License #55830
- Civil Engineer - Nevada - License #23945
- Professional Engineer - New York - License #92046
- Professional Engineer - Oklahoma - License #26644
- Professional Engineer - Texas - License #90564
- Professional Engineer - Utah - License #14193371-2202