Per Christoffersen remembered with fondness and admiration

Canada has lost one of its most distinguished structural engineers with the death of Per Christoffersen in July.
Mr. Christoffersen was a partner in the company Read Jones Christoffersen of Vancouver, and designed many remarkable buildings, including Westminster Abbey in Mission, B.C., and Canada Place in Vancouver. Shortly after John Read hired him as an employee in 1951, Per developed the RJC Mat System, a simple and cheaper method for reinforcing concrete floor slabs that was decades ahead of its time and is now endorsed by the building codes. He was a pioneer in designing earthquake resistant structures and designed high rises in many Canadian cities.
Per was born in Trondheim, Norway in 1924 and served in the Norwegian Underground during World War II. He studied civil engineering in Switzerland and came to Canada in 1951.
He is remembered fondly by the staff at the firm, who remember him as “an engineer and a gentleman” and someone who always had time to help anyone who asked.
He was also a champion yachtsman, an excellent skier and a Ham radio enthusiast.