Code Update: SuRe: The Standard for Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure

Infrastructure is a key component of a functioning economy and fundamental to the livelihoods of billions of people throughout the world. Infrastructure supports social and economic systems by enabling access to critical services such as provision of water, health and education; increasing connectivity among cities through roads and other means of transport; and providing housing to the whole population. Infrastructure is developed to last for decades, and a large part of the infrastructure t...

Executive Corner: Is Your Business Focus Hurting Profitability?

Companies often say they’re client-, design- or employee-focused. The purpose of identifying your focus helps to communicate how you execute business strategies with your employees, clients, competitors and shareholders. Firms employ these focused strategies to create a path for delivering value and enhancing profitability. These are excellent examples of the types of possible focus areas to consider for your company. However, do they truly capture the essence of your company? An increasing n...

Thoughts From Engineers: Look to the Watershed to Protect Water Quality

The results of an in-depth study of groundwater released in early 2019 showed that 42 percent of private wells in southwest Wisconsin are contaminated with bacteria associated with farm operations and failing septic systems. In northeast Wisconsin, the region’s geology consists of a thin layer of topsoil over fractured limestone. Groundwater is vulnerable here, as cows outnumber people 5 to 1 in Brown County, Wis., and agriculture is the main economic driver (think Green Bay Packers), generating...

From the Editor: The Vocabulary and Eras Change, But Smart Engineering Is Timeless

Thousands of words are added to the dictionary every year. Some are “made-up” words added because they’re often used, like “buzzy” or “guac.” Some are old words with new definitions, such as “cloud” and “footprint.” Other words have even changed from nouns to verbs, as in “friend” and “text.” Some are new because we needed them, including “airplane mode” or “page view.” The language used in the engineering design world today is almost completely different from the language I learned in colleg...

Change Leader: Automated Information Collection and Analysis On Job Sites

These profiles are based on interviews, and the opinions and statements are those of the subject and are not necessarily shared or endorsed by this publication. Rory San Miguel is the co-founder and CEO of Propeller, which creates tools and software for construction companies, mines, quarries and landfills to collect, process and visualize accurate survey data. “I think we’re past the point of no return with drones on construction sites,” says San Miguel. “It’s not actually risky a...

Grid Modernization Will Require Active, Holistic Network Management

As concerns about aging infrastructure in the electric industry fester, the promise of grid modernization is gaining increasing sway as power suppliers pursue optimized uptime and resilience while satisfying consumer cravings for lowered carbon footprints. Utility business models are changing to accommodate growing volumes of renewable energy coming onto the grid. New services are being demanded by customers, and new and divergent forms of energy are testing the flexibility and capacity of th...

ReEngineering the Engineer: Sustainability: How Can We Help?

At about the time I was leaving my old firm in 2004, one of the large national architectural firms we worked with made a corporate announcement. Their firm would be focusing on the green movement (predominantly LEED at the time) and were committed to designing their buildings to be more sustainable. They planned to have everyone in their firms, presumably the architects, achieve LEED certification within the next year, and they were asking all their consultants to do the same. They wanted everyo...

2019 Road Construction Product Innovation Study

Reef Re-Creation for Shoreline Protection

  The Terrebonne Bay Shore Protection Demonstration Project points to one technique to help reduce shoreline erosion as well as promote oyster reef building. As climate change and subsidence begin to endanger America’s coastal communities, city and state governments are struggling to stand their ground as it literally sinks below them. Larger cities such as Miami and Atlantic City are constructing seawalls and water pumps to fight back against the rising waters, but community member...

Mobile 3D Scanning Technology Gaining Traction in Home-Renovation Market

A complete 3D point cloud of an entire property is viewed in CloudCompare. As residential real estate prices continue to climb in many parts of the United States, property owners are increasingly investing in renovations and additions to their existing homes. To meet the demand, architects seek digital as-built documentation of the structures so they can design the new construction. Many are asking for mobile 3D scanning by name as the technology they prefer to quickly capture the...