From the Editor: Celebrating the Work We Do
Timing is everything, and I couldn’t have timed my joining Informed Infrastructure any better. The AEC industry continues to grow at a rapid rate, and the key technologies such as BIM, reality capture and even virtual and augmented reality are finally growing in adoption, which is going to lead to all of us working smarter, better and faster. And I wouldn’t be doing my new job if I didn’t note that this multi-platform media company I recently joined seems like it’s poised to take off in major...
Engineer Spotlight: Differentiate Your Business to Achieve Success
As a brief personal background, I created RAM International back in 1998, which was one of the first companies to incorporate an entire building model into one dataset with a Windows interface, setting the stage for a lot of the AEC technology that exists today. After I sold RAM to Bentley Systems in 2005, I went into mergers and acquisitions at Bentley, and I did about 10 of those in structural, architectural, electrical and other software technologies. I later led a global sales team for th...
Structural Solutions: Proper Communication - Engineers Need It Just Like Everyone Else
I’m sure there are many readers of this column who can remember when the telephone was the only substitute for an in-person meeting—it wasn’t that long ago. Today, we have myriad ways to communicate through the internet: talking to multiple people at once via conference calling and video conferencing, talking and watching via screen-sharing apps, and writing via e-mail. And where would we be without chatting, blogging, texting and messaging? One thing that hasn’t changed is the need to commun...
Infrastructure Outlook: Liberate Data for Integrated Infrastructure Development
The world is changing around us, with disruptive and efficiency-enabling technology supporting a whole new level of communication, collaboration and productivity. We have a lot more data, tools and technological options in all aspects of our business, including data acquisition, analysis, storage, visualization and sharing. This creates new realities, challenges and opportunities, and infrastructure projects are no exception. Lack of collaboration among the various stages of infrastructure pr...
Final Thoughts: The Joy of Witnessing Engineering’s Evolution
I consider myself lucky to have begun my career when I did, seeing firsthand so many dramatic changes in engineering. Let’s take a quick look back at how different things were in 1971, when I started, and how the work environment has changed during the 45 years I have been working. Fresh out of Valparaiso University, I showed up at work with the tools of the trade: mechanical pencils, triangles, scales (engineering and architectural) and, of course, my slide rule. I was assigned a work area c...
Executive Corner: Does the Valuation of Your Company’s Stock Reflect ALL its Risk?
Whether a business valuation is done for purposes of transferring ownership internally from one employee to another, or for meeting the regulatory requirements of sponsoring an employee stock-ownership plan, the risk associated with such an investment is a critical element in determining its value. An appraiser often looks at risk from a business operating point of view. When valuing a closely held firm operating in the A/E industry, we look for risk in areas such as key personnel, customer...
Structural Solutions: We’re All Busy....
As a business owner, you have to deal with a lot of things. Some are simple: Where to order copier paper? Where should we have the Christmas party this year? Others are not so simple: Is it time to consider moving the office to the cloud? How can we grow our company or expand our offerings? Some are downright difficult: (usually involving people). And some issues are totally out of our control: the economy. Humble Pie From 2009 to mid-2014, the economy reminded us what it feels like to not...
From The Editor: An Honor and Privilege to Serve Our AEC Community
Ten years ago, I gave a presentation at the Trimble Dimensions annual training and networking seminar. The session was focused on the interoperability between Trimble’s data collection and reduction software, and Autodesk’s CAD modeling software, so it wasn’t surprising to find a packed room when the session began. I had spoken to large crowds before, but this was different. Many in the room were older than me, had been in the industry longer than me, and, while we were all tackling the same...
Engineer Spotlight: The Unhappy State of U.S. Bridges and Highways
An interesting article ran in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Journal of Leadership and Management in Engineering in 2008: “A Tale of Two Bridges: Dangerous and Still Standing.” Robert W. Clark, P.E., authored the piece about two well-used bridges in Stuyvesant, N.Y. One of the bridges had passed safety inspections by the state DOT every year. The other bridge, owned by CSX Railroad, also had cleared corporate safety standards. Clark inspected the bridges and determined that they...
Code Update: Change the Oil to Avoid Paying More Later
I often ask audiences if they’ve read the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) Code of Standard Practice. As I do so, I picture the oil-filter commercial Fram used to run, with one mechanic who changes oil and another who rebuilds engines. “You should pay me now,” said the first mechanic. “Or you can pay me later,” said the second. All too often, the answer to my question is “only when we have a problem.” That second mechanic just morphed into an attorney! There’s no time like t...
Video: Crashes Drop Measurably After Rural Road Safety Improvement Project on US 521 in Lancaster County
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June Issue 2026
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