Civil and Structural ENGINEER - April 2015

APR 2015 Vol.
2 Issue 1
ARCTIC LIVING
Modular, mobile base supports polar research
Rising Stars in Civil + Structural Engineering

Geospatial survey: A client's dream
Historic structure transformed
Successful sustainable infrastructure
Schedule-driven design
Strong Structures Come
From Strong Designs
With RAM™, STAAD® and ProStructures,

Bentley offers proven applications for:
• Metal Buildings
• Steel/Steel Composite
• Aluminum
• Reinforced Concrete
Build it with Bentley! Integrated projects, • Foundation Design
• Steel Connections
teams and software. • Structural Drawings and Details
Bentley’s Structural Software provides you the tools you need for strong designs and supports an … all easily coordinated with the
integrated workflow all the way around. Having all the applications you need for the tasks at hand, along Architect and other team members
with the ability to easily synchronize your work with the rest of the project team, helps you get your job and their design applications –
done right, fast and profitably. such as AutoCAD, Revit, MicroStation®
and more.
Visit www.bentley.com/Structural
to learn more!
© 2014 Bentley Systems, Incorporated. Bentley, the “B” Bentley logo, ProjectWise and MicroStation are either registered or unregistered trademarks or service marks of
Bentley Systems, Incorporated or one of its direct or indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. Other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners.
Contents APR 2015
ON THE COVER
The futuristic design of British Antarctic Survey’s
modular, mobile base by AECOM and Hugh
Broughton Architects signals a new dawn for polar
research — story on page 44. Photo: Courtesy of
AECOM
14 40 60
On the rise 42 Community-based green roof projects in New York City

14 2015 Rising Stars in Civil + Structural Engineering 44 Arctic living
48 Living and working on top of the world
Firms in focus
52 Two-span bridge still usable after quake test
24 Geospatial survey: A client’s dream
53 Replicating historic bridges
28 Discover why your firm does what it does
54 Integrated stormwater management
30 Tips for using community outreach to head off problems
55 Potable hydropower
Project + Technology portfolio
SUSTAINABLE DESIGN
32 Historic San Antonio structure is transformed into a modern
office facility 56 Successful sustainable infrastructure
38 Bi-directionally curved walls support large slabs and beams
Materials
40 Mead & Hunt project adds hydropower to Mahoning Creek Dam
58 Precast concrete enables schedule-driven design
41 Gas transmission station built in record time
60 August Komendant helped turn abstract ideas into monuments
APRIL 2015 cenews.com 3

Contents APR 2015
Volume 2, Number 1
www.cenews.com
Publisher Marketing
MARK C. ZWEIG SHANNON BURNETT
Founder & CEO Advertising &
Departments 508-380-0469
[email protected]
Sales Marketing Manager
800-466-6275
[email protected]
12 events Sales
BOB DORAN Production
13 Civil + Structural Engineer Online Director of Sales WYLIE MCINTYRE
770-587-9421 Art Director
64 Product + software guide [email protected] 800-466-6275
[email protected]
Editorial
65 Reader index BOB DRAKE Events
Editor-in-Chief MICHELLE SUDAN
66 Civil + Structural Design Tools 210-973-5070 Program Manager
[email protected] 239-280-2319
[email protected]
Columns CHAD CLINEHENS, P.E.

Senior Editor Circulation
501-551-2659 SONYA LEA H. STOUT
06 From the Publisher: Listening and observing

By Mark Zweig
[email protected]
DAVID EVANS, P.E., PLS, F.ASCE

Business Manager
800-466-6275
[email protected]
Senior Editor
08 ENGINEERING OUR FUTURE: Bigger is not always better

By Chad Clinehens, P.E.
[email protected]
ANDREA BENNETT
GRANT TUCKER
Circulation Manager
800-466-6275
10 FIRM THOUGHTS: Never-ending issue

By David Evans, P.E., PLS, F.ASCE
Associate Editor
479-435-6520
[email protected]
[email protected]
Customer Service
For subscriptions or change of
CHRISTINA ZWEIG address, please visit our website
Contributing Editor WWW.ZWEIGGROUP.COM/SUBSCRIBE
479-445-7564 or call 800-466-6275, or fax
[email protected] 800-842-1560.
Continuing Education
RYAN RENARD
508-651-1559
[email protected]
38 West Trenton Blvd, Suite 101, Fayetteville, AR 72701

800-466-6275 | Fax: 800-842-1560
P.O. BOX 1528, Fayetteville, AR 72702-1528
MARK C. ZWEIG, CHAIRMAN & CEO, ZWEIG GROUP LLC
Civil + Structural Engineer (ISSN 23726717) is published monthly by Zweig Group, 38 West Trenton Blvd., Suite 101, Fayetteville, AR 72701. Telephone: 800-466-6275. Copyright© 2015,
Zweig Group. Articles may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the written permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of
Zweig Group. Unsolicited manuscripts will not be returned unless accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Subscriptions: Annual domestic print subscription rate is $100
for 12 issues or $180 for 24 issues. Annual domestic digital subscription rate is $10 for 12 issues or $18 for 24 issues. All print subscribers receive digital editions in addition to print
subscription. Call or write for international rates. To subscribe or update your subscription information, please visit our web site www.zweiggroup.com/subscribe; or mail subscription
requests and changes to Circulation Dept, C + S Engineer , 38 West Trenton Blvd, Suite 101, Fayetteville, AR 72701; or call 800-466-6275. POSTMASTER: Send changes of address to
C + S Engineer , P.O. BOX 1528 Fayetteville, AR 72702-1528. Periodicals postage paid at Fayetteville, AR, and additional mailing offices.
4 cenews.com APRIL 2015

Design with
When facing new or unfamiliar materials, how do you know if they comply with building
codes and standards?
• ICC-ES® Evaluation Reports are the most widely accepted and trusted technical reports for code compliance. When you specify
products or materials with an ICC-ES report, you avoid delays on project and improve your bottom line.
• ICC-ES is a subsidiary of ICC®, the publisher of the codes used throughout the U.S. and many global markets, so you can be
confident in their code expertise.
• ICC-ES provides you with a free online directory of code compliant products at:
www.icc-es.org/Evaluation_Reports and CEU courses that help you design with confidence.
WWW.ICC-ES.ORG | 800-423-6587
14-10502
From the publisher
Listening and observing

It’s been said that God gave us two ears and one mouth so we could listen twice as much as we talk. That’s Use your ears and eyes to get
not a bad rule to live by because, if you are listening, you are (possibly) learning something. ahead. C
M
The thought occurred to me that God also gave us two eyes — two eyes for seeing and observing. You
can learn so much through your eyes, too. Engineers who have good observational skills are way ahead of Y
those who don’t. Combined with effective listening skills, you really have a powerful combination. CM
MY
Some years back, I was a co-founder of another business in which the majority owner was an engineer
CY
who didn’t have these observational (and listening skills). He didn’t listen to or observe the users of our
products. They were trying to tell us what they didn’t like about it and how to change it for the better. But CMY
in fact, he really thought he knew more than they did about what they needed in a product like the one we K
were providing. As a result, we failed.
I see the same thing in a lot of engineers and other people I work with in client organizations today. These
aren’t arrogant people by any stretch of the imagination, but they aren’t listening and observing as keenly
as they should be and that hurts their effectiveness.
The next time you are presenting an idea or proposal, or discussing a design or construction problem in the
field, look around at the other people. How are they reacting to what you are saying? Do they like it? Or
do they clearly not like it? This can be useful information later on as things develop because you may need
intelligence on who you need to win over to your way of thinking. Engineers who understand that they
have to (heaven forbid) sell their ideas will get a lot further in their careers than those who don’t.
Speaking of using your eyes to learn, we have a great issue of Civil + Structural Engineer for you right here
with our April 2015 issue. It may be April, but you certainly aren’t a fool, so read this one and pass it along
to someone else who could benefit from it. Thanks and happy reading!
MARK C. ZWEIG
[email protected]

ENGINEERING OUR FUTURE
Bigger is not
always better
Many readers of this magazine find themselves in an almost daily struggle for relevance in the A/E Proving you are the right firm
marketplace. We are constantly fighting commoditization of our services and trying to set ourselves apart in for the job takes more than a
selection processes that shortlist firms that are strikingly similar to each other. Our industry constantly battles long résumé.
an identity crisis. How do we set ourselves apart and truly bring merit to the “most qualified firm” selection
processes?
Interestingly, the firms that struggle the most with this are often those that have been in business the longest
and have the largest résumés. Sometimes, the newer, less-established firms are more entrepreneurial and
more creative in finding unique ways to prove they are the most qualified firm for the project. They do this
with a résumé that is a fraction the size of other competing firms — not a long track record of successes —
and a brand that might not be well recognized.
Sometimes small firms are better at creating unique value propositions because they cannot rely on a lengthy
résumé. They know that if they are going to win, they have to come up with compelling benefits for the client
that compensate for less experience and a smaller résumé than the competition. Boil it down, and smaller
firms are sometimes better at marketing and business development because they simply try harder.
The same goes for individuals who have an ambition to develop their careers at a faster pace than their peers.
Keeping your head down and getting lost in project work can actually keep you off the radar of your superiors.
Getting the prize, whether it is your firm getting selected for a project or you getting that promotion, takes
action above and beyond what everyone else is doing.
Doing your job and doing good work is important, but you have to market and sell yourself — as a firm and
as an individual — to advance faster than the competition. Be more than just an engineer with a long résumé
of experience. Be visible and nimble, able to respond to clients’ needs faster than anyone else, able to develop
a truly custom approach to a project challenge, and able to show a commitment that is free from large firm
bureaucracy. That is how the small firms win projects when against the big competition. That is how young
engineers get big promotions over their peers.
CHAD CLINEHENS, P.E., is Zweig Group’s executive vice president. Contact him at [email protected].

Choose health care by the numbers
99% Access to
Coverage1
93%
Renewal
Rate2
More options. Preferred pricing. You belong with

the engineering firms that consistently choose the
ACEC Life/Health Trust to deliver value in numbers.
Call 1-877-267-2829 or visit uhctogether.com/acec26

for more information and to download
“3 Keys for Choosing a Health Plan.”
Insured and serviced by:
1
Network statistic based on GeoAccess information and UnitedHealthcare standard network access mileage criteria, 2013.
2
Renewal rate based on average year-over-year ACEC Life/Health Trust persistency metrics.
The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC), the ACEC Life/Health Insurance Trust and UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company are three separate legal operating entities and,
as such, the organizations are governed and function independently. UnitedHealthcare’s services are provided with the authorization of the ACEC Life/Health Trust. Questions related to health
benefits offered through the Life/Health Trust should be directed to 1-800-573-0415. Must be UnitedHealthcare insurance license products; and HMO products do not apply. ACEC
membership qualification is determined by the association.
Insurance coverage provided by or through UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company or its affiliates.
© 2015 United HealthCare Services, Inc. UHCEW733303-000
Firm thoughts
“The wages of sin are death, but by the time

taxes are taken out, it is just a tired feeling.”
— Paula Poundstone
“The difference between death and taxes is

death doesn’t get any worse every time Congress
is in session.”
— Will Rogers
Never-ending
issue
Yes, that second quote is a rerun from last May, but Congress is in session and taxes — to somehow create This never-ending, unresolved,
funding for infrastructure rebuilding — do need to get raised. It was last November that a stop-gap measure crumbling infrastructure issue
was passed to save the Highway Trust Fund with the assurance that before May 2015 our new Congress is leaving me with “just a tired
would come up with “a long-term transportation funding bill.” As I must write my column in March to have feeling.”
it appear in the April magazine, well, when you read this, you will see how well our newly elected leaders
are doing.
It seems to this private-practice engineer that the economy is better, and finding good employees is a tougher
challenge than a year or two ago. But imagine that a long-term solution was in place and the $1 trillion
infrastructure bill Senator Bernie Sanders (an independent from Vermont!) has proposed was the law of the
land. That is twice the amount that our president suggested with his Grow America Act. Think $200 billion
per year!
The Keystone XL pipeline (currently in limbo after the president’s veto) was expected to create 9,000
construction jobs and 7,000 manufacturing jobs with a budget of just $5.3 billion. How many jobs would
Senator Sanders’ bill create? The numbers just get too big.
So as you read this, you will be able to see what is going to happen before the stop-gap bill becomes just a
stop sign. Be ready for a hiring frenzy or for just keeping your fingers crossed that something positive can
come out of Congress before the Highway Trust Fund becomes another empty, unfunded program from our
elected leaders.
DAVID EVANS, P.E., PLS, F.ASCE, is the founder (1976) and a member of the board of David Evans Enterprises, Inc., the holding
company for David Evans and Associates (www.deainc.com), and the author of “Achieving Zero,” a book on the life of the firm.
He can be contacted at [email protected].

Tekla Structural Designer is here.
Revolutionary Analysis & Design Software.
Work faster, more efficiently and win more projects.
Tekla Structural Designer helps you do all this and more.
NEW for Structural Engineers.
W www.tekla.com
Events
APRIL Structures Congress

April 23-25, 2015, Portland, Ore.
Congress on the Future of Engineering Software Some of the major topics for this Structural Engineering Institute of
April 16-19, 2015, Scottsdale, Ariz. ASCE conference are bridge design, construction, and management;
Executives from design, engineering, architectural, development, and foundations; innovations in structural design; resilience and
technology companies discuss the role engineering technology will sustainability; rehabilitation; and seismic.
play in the future survival and success of the business. http://content.asce.org/conferences/structures2015
http://cofes.com
PTI Technical Conference & Exhibition
APA National Planning Conference April 26-29, 2015, Houston
April 18-21, 2015, Seattle The annual PTI convention features technical sessions with presentations
Conference sessions cover trends, tools, and best practices on the on a wide variety of post-tensioning design and construction topics;
leading edge of planning; facilitated discussions explore topics of more than 25 committee meetings; the 2015 PTI Awards Reception and
shared interest in informal, interactive discussions; and “Fast, Funny & Dinner; and a concurrent exhibition of industry suppliers, showcasing
Passionate Sessions” present quick and quirky takes on planning issues the latest in post-tensioning services and products.
and projects; plus workshops and a Planning Expo. www.post-tensioning.org/annual_conference.php
https://conference.planning.org/conference
BIM Forum
ACEC Annual Convention and Legislative Summit April 29-30, 2015, San Diego
April 19-22, 2015, Washington, D.C. Under the theme, Transforming Deliverables, presentations will
A/E industry policy and political lobbying issues plus the Engineering address using BIM, but still improving traditional deliverables;
Excellence Awards Gala, which recognizes preeminent engineering creating innovative model-based deliverables; managing the risk of
achievements for 2014 from throughout the world, including the Grand model sharing; yielding better results in the field; evolving owner
Conceptor Award for the best overall engineering accomplishment. requirements to allow new deliverables; and improving AHJ reviews
www.acec.org/conferences/annual-conference-2015 with BIM deliverables.
http://meetings.bimforum.org/annual
Collection Systems 2015
April 19-22, 2015, Cincinnati
This Water Environment Federation conference includes two interactive MAY
workshops, 13 technical sessions, facility tours, and a large exhibit
floor. Topics include trenchless construction, odors, combined sewer Water Reuse & Desalination Research Conference
overflows, operation and maintenance, integrated planning, inflow and May 4-5, 2015, Huntington Beach, Calif.
infiltration, pump stations, modeling, asset management, and sewer Program includes two tracks featuring presentations, posters, and
assessment and rehabilitation. panel discussions highlighting the ongoing results of research to find
www.wef.org/conferences/page_details.aspx?id=12884904150 solutions that address water scarcity issues, while protecting public
health and the environment.
AASHTO Subcommittee on Bridges and Structures www.watereuse.org/foundation/research-conference
April 19-24, 2015, Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Technical committees discuss the latest industry issues and finalize any Becoming a Better Project Manager
changes needed to the AASHTO Bridges and Structures publications. May 5, 2015, Miami
Then, in a general session, all changes to the AASHTO Bridges and May 7, 2015, Dallas
Structures publications are presented by the full subcommittee and May 19, 2015, Philadelphia
balloted. May 20, 2015, Chicago
http://bridgemeeting2015.org June 9, 2015, Los Angeles
June 16, 2015, San Francisco
WQA Aquatech USA This course provides a fundamental understanding and some specific
April 21-24, 2015, Las Vegas tools that new and aspiring project managers can use to be more
The Water Quality Association’s annual convention and exposition effective in an A/E/P or environmental firm.
represents every segment of the water treatment and supply market. https://zweiggroup.com/seminars/better_pm/registration.php
Five learning tracks include Water treatment basics; Residential
applications and regulatory matters; Commercial applications; Process Send information about upcoming conferences, seminars,
water applications; and Business operations and management. and exhibitions relevant to civil and structural engineering
www.wqa.org/aquatech to Bob Drake at [email protected].

CIvil + Structural engineer online
Every month, Civil + Structural Engineer provides
additional columns and articles online to supplement
the content in this print issue. Check out the following
articles posted online with the April issue:
Project Profitability:
Before signing the design
services contract
By Howard Birnberg, Association for Project Managers
Advanced Stormwater Biofiltration
A contract is the baseline understanding for a project, and
the project manager is heavily involved in determining
the contents of this document. The project manager is
Plant A Wetland. Without natural
primarily responsible for the project scope of services, wetlands our cities are deprived of water
schedule, and design budget. Factors to consider before purification, flood control, and land sta-
signing a design services contract include: bility. Modular Wetlands and the MWS
• marketing objectives/potential client targets; Linear re-establish nature’s presence and
rejuvenate water ways in urban areas.
• ability to provide the services that potential clients require;
• experiences working with similar clients;
• knowledge gained by staff in working on past similar projects; Take the Next Step! Revitalize
your city with our proven technology and
• inexperience with the project or client type; and
bring back the natural benefits of wet-
• current/projected workloads. lands to an urban environment. Contact
us for details or schedule a lunch & learn
today!
Does size matter for public TAPE / GULD Approval.
works directors?
By Robert R. Gordon, P.E., City of Temple Terrace, Fla., Public Works Agency,
The MWS Linear has been accredited by the
industry’s most prestigious testing agencies,
and recently received Washington State DOE
Approval / GULD Designation for basic, phos-
phorus, and enhanced treatment.
and Harry Lorick, P.E., PWLF, LA Consulting, Inc.
MASTEP TAPE-DOE DEM DEQ
A public works organization’s size can vary from a two-
person agency to one such as Los Angeles County with VA
nearly 4,000 members. The function is the same — maintain,
operate, and plan infrastructure that serves city or county
residents and visitors.
However, the skills and attributes necessary to lead this

function as director of public works (DPW) may vary. One
of the key factors is span of control and the depth of an
organization. The DPW’s attributes, skills, and management
style are influenced by the capabilities of the staff and the
DPW, as well as the scope of the work.
With a working example from the City of Temple Terrace,

www.ModularWetlands.com | [email protected] | (855) 5MOD-WET
Fla., this article outlines how a DPW may be optimal at one
size of organization yet be marginal at another.
Find these web-exclusive articles with the APRIL 2015 issue of

Civil + Structural Engineer at www.cenews.com.

Rising stars
2015 Rising StarS

in Civil + Structural Engineering
Civil + Structural Engineer recognizes exceptional professionals 40 years old or younger
By Bob Drake
This fourth annual Rising Stars in Civil Engineering and Rising Stars in Structural Engineering
recognizes 20 professionals, 40 years old or younger, working in the United States, who have
shown exceptional technical capability, leadership ability, effective teaching or research, or public
service benefiting the civil engineering profession, their employers, project owners, and society.
Civil + Structural Engineer editors selected the engineers highlighted on the following pages (in
alphabetical order) from an impressive group of nominees from both the private and public
sectors. Limited space allows only a brief summary of each Rising Star’s many accomplishments,
projects, and activities to date.
Rising Stars in Civil Engineering
Alejandro Angel, Ph.D., P.E., PTOE, ENV SP, (age 39) principal/vice president, Psomas, Tucson, Ariz., oversees all of
Psomas’ engineering teams in Arizona and San Diego and has been involved in the design of some of the firm’s
largest highway and roadway projects. His expertise includes a combination of roadway and traffic engineering
design. Angel is the youngest-ever principal at Psomas. He founded the firm’s Traffic Engineering team and, in
addition to leading the traffic operations, he travels to Psomas offices across the Western U.S. to conduct traffic
engineering training for employees. As an adjunct faculty member at the University of Arizona he helped create
and taught parts of an engineering course titled, Integrated Highway Bridge Design Using LRFD Methodology.
Angel was the transportation leader of a pro-bono team in charge of circulation and landscaping enhancements
for the historic Iron Horse Neighborhood Improvement Plan in downtown Tucson.
14 Cenews.com APRIL 2015

CIVIL ENGINEERING Rising Stars
Bree Carrico, P.E., (age 35) water resources engineer, ARCADIS U.S., Inc., Austin, Texas, has shown outstanding
public service in her work for municipal water utilities across the U.S. and internationally. In her early
consulting years in Denver, she primarily worked on projects to assist small public water systems improve their
technical, managerial, and financial capacity. She assessed and trained more than 50 water utility operators
and managers. In 2009, she relocated with Malcom Pirnie to Muscat, Oman, for nine months, concurrently
running a project and helping establish the company’s first office in Muscat. Since 2010, she has worked
out of the Austin, Texas, office of ARCADIS, managing and leading a variety of projects related to water
treatment plant assessments and expansions, water quality challenges, watershed protection planning, and
water resources evaluations. She has been involved with Water for People since 2005, including volunteering
in Honduras to assist with water supply and treatment projects (shown in photo).
Christi Fu, P.E., LEED AP, ENV SP, (age 34) deputy West Region manager, Contract Solutions, ARCADIS U.S., Inc., Los
Angeles, has more than 10 years of experience in the construction and project management field, including
evaluation and resolution of high-volume, high-dollar, complex claims and disputes. Since September 2013, Fu
has been a part of the construction management team at Port of Long Beach’s Middle Harbor Redevelopment
program. The program consists of eight separate construction projects totaling $1.8 billion. In her current role,
Fu is responsible for managing contracts with one of ARCADIS’ biggest clients. She has been an active ASCE
member and officer and served as a co-trainer for its Project Management and Claims Management workshop.
She is also an active member of the Women’s Transportation Seminar, USGBC, and CMAA. For the last eight
years, Fu has been a mentor with the ACE Mentor Program.
Capt. Naseem Ghandour, EIT, CGC, (age 34) engineering flight, deputy commander, 554th Red Horse Squadron, U.S. Air
Force, Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, has led a 14-person design team for 10 facility and three heavy horizontal
projects, while also acting as a project engineer overseeing five construction projects. He redesigned the roof
structural system for troop construction projects on Guam, saving $239,000 and 37 weeks of construction
over six projects and paving the way to more than $400,000 in savings for three upcoming building projects.
While at McConnell Air Force Base from 2010 to 2013, Captain Ghandour developed several base projects,
including a $582,000 building renovation, a $4 million fitness project, and a $68 million runway renovation.
During a 2013 deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, he managed a construction program
of 34 projects. A member of the Society of American Military Engineers, he has organized a tour to educate
professional engineering leaders, conducted engineering presentations to local schools, and provided
mentoring for upcoming engineers.

Rising stars CIVIL ENGINEERING
James Newberry, P.E., CCM, TCS, (age 30) operations support branch manager, Maricopa County Department of
Transportation (MCDOT), Phoenix, has distinguished himself in the areas of construction management, owner’s
representation, teaching, and public service. Newberry has served as owner’s representative and project
manager/construction manager for multiple municipalities in Arizona. Gilbert and Maricopa, Ariz., specifically
requested him to lead their complex, controversial, or difficult projects. In his current position, Newberry
has helped to consolidate and bring much needed leadership to several previously disjointed and struggling
programs at MCDOT. He teaches several modules of the CMAA Certified Construction Manager certification
exam preparation course and also teaches construction and scheduling for ASCE’s twice yearly professional
engineer exam study course. He serves on the Volunteers Committee for the 2015 American Public Works
Association (APWA) International Congress and Exposition and was selected by APWA National to participate
in its Emerging Leaders Academy, one of only 12 participants chosen nationwide for the 2015 class.
Carl P. O’Brien, P.E., P.P., C.M.E., C.P.W.M., (age 38) senior project manager, Maser Consulting P.A., Red Bank, N.J., has
been providing municipal and civil engineering services for more than 15 years in more than 50 municipalities.
He is also the lead engineer for the Sports and Recreation Division for the firm and has designed recreational
facilities and athletic complexes for municipalities, boards of education, counties, colleges, and high-profile
universities. O’Brien’s expertise includes design and construction oversight of pedestrian, barrier-free,
and bicycle realms; downtown streetscape and beautification improvements; infrastructure upgrades and
maintenance programs; complete road reconstructions, including utility relocations; and drainage and sanitary
sewer improvement projects. As borough engineer, planning board engineer, and zoning board engineer for
the Borough of Roselle, N.J., he worked tirelessly with the Office of Emergency Management after Hurricane
Irene, assisting with the clean-up and planning alternate routes that enabled residents to navigate from one
side of the borough to the other.
Matthew Schnobrich, P.E., (age 36) principal engineer/director of remediation, ARCADIS U.S., Inc., Lexington, Ky.,
is responsible for providing direction for remediation strategy development and providing oversight and
best practice management of technology selection, design, and implementation for remediation services. He
and his team, with more than 500 members, are directly involved in supporting regulatory engagement on
cleanup efforts and promoting the identification of green and sustainable remediation practices to minimize
hazardous waste handling, transport, and impact on communities. Schnobrich has published six peer-reviewed
journal articles (including the 2011 ASCE Greeley Award winner), presented on more than 20 environmental
remediation topics at multiple industry-wide conferences, and is a member of the Interstate Technology and
Regulatory Council group for Remediation Management of Complex Sites. During the first four years of his
tenure with ARCADIS, he balanced a near full-time ARCADIS workload with intensive athletic training,
representing the U.S. at three consecutive World Rowing Championships and winning a bronze medal at the
2008 Olympics.

CIVIL ENGINEERING Rising Stars
Helga Sommer, P.E., (age 36) program manager, AECOM, Coral Gables, Fla., fluent in English, German,
Portuguese, and Spanish, has more than 16 years of engineering consulting experience, encompassing all
aspects of program and project management, planning, design, and construction, including seaport cargo
and cruise facilities. She is the day-to-day lead at the Port of Miami for AECOM’s program management
contract, involved in all aspects of the port’s $1 billion capital development initiative. She has managed
interdisciplinary coordination to develop plans, specifications, cost estimates, schedules, permits,
operation plans, constructability reviews, and value engineering, as well as interagency/client/stakeholder
coordination. Sommer has also participated in and led construction management, bidding assistance,
construction support, and engineering during construction services, including taking part in water resources
planning projects such as hydrologic assessments, modeling, operations, data collection and review, and
permitting. She also has assumed a dynamic role with Water For People.
Aaron Swenson, P.E., (age 37) project manager, Forsgren Associates, Rexburg, Idaho, has made a name for himself
solving infrastructure problems for cash-strapped communities throughout rural Idaho. He has been successful
doing more with less — whether it be innovative pavement management or creative ideas for stormwater
management and bridge replacement — and bringing federal dollars to Eastern Idaho with grants totaling
nearly $25 million in seven years. The highlight of Swenson’s career so far has been the A2 highway project
in Clark County, Idaho, a critical link and emergency evacuation route. He brought disparate stakeholders
together and prepared proposals that eventually led to funding. Swenson has been a mentor for Engineers
Without Borders for Utah State students working in South America. He has been involved for many years
in local groups, including Eastern Idaho Counties Highway Organization, Madison Jefferson Transportation
Committee, and nearly a dozen Technical Advisory Committees for transportation planning projects in rural
communities.
Katie Zehnder, P.E., PTOE, AICP, (age 38) vice president and Ohio officer leader, HNTB Corporation, Columbus, Ohio,
leads HNTB’s Ohio practice and oversees 41 staff in the Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati offices. She
is responsible for all aspects of the operation and is at the heart of the transportation program and the firm’s
largest and most complex transportation projects. Zehnder has been responsible for the quality delivery of final
design plans on numerous significant projects, including the $300 million Opportunity Corridor in Cleveland;
$287 million Cleveland Innerbelt Bridge Design-Build Procurement (as part of the Walsh Construction Team);
$250 million LUC-75/475 Systems Interchange in Toledo, Ohio; $230 million MOT-75 Elevated Downtown
Interchange in Dayton, Ohio; and $200 million I-270/SR 315/US 23 Systems Interchange in Columbus.
Her community involvement activities include Junior League (Cleveland and Columbus), STEM education
volunteer, Leadership Columbus, Habitat for Humanity (budget mentor), and Tax Assistance Program certified
tax preparer volunteer.
APRIL 2015 cenews.com

CEnews.com 17
ADVERTISEMENT
RoLanka’s Strong and Durable GeoNatural™ Coir Products

Successfully Restore Eroded Shorelines and Streambanks
Figure 1: BioD-Roll, densely-packed coir logs, provide Figure 2: Constructed vegetated soil-lifts with BioD-Block system. Figure 3: Planting on BioD-Pillow.
strong toe support.
Since 1993, RoLanka International, Inc. has been the most reliable supplier thicker coir pillows are used to establish vegetation in areas where soil
of high quality GeoNatural™ products made of coir (coconut fiber) for erosion conditions do not favor the establishment of vegetation. Coir pillows can also
& sediment control and soil bioengineering in the USA. Throughout the past be planted at nurseries and transported to a site for quick re-vegetation
22 years RoLanka has introduced a number of new coir products for erosion (Figure 3). Coir pillows are also used to establish vegetation on hard armor
and sediment control applications. Coir fiber is one of the most durable and materials, such as wire gabions. Coir pillows should be secured to gabions
readily available natural fibers. These products do not contain any synthetic using coir twine or metal wire. The use of floating islands to improve fish
materials that can interfere with wildlife or other natural resources. Its habitats is becoming popular in the USA.
tensile strength and durability exceed that of straw, excelsior (wood fiber),
and jute. Coir fiber is unpalatable to wildlife, which makes it a more suitable RoLanka proudly introduces the BioD-SuperLog for streambank and
green resource for environmental restorations and wildlife habitat shoreline restoration. The BioD-SuperLog is a hybrid of the coir log and coir
improvements. Semi-permanent coir restoration products provide strong block system with holes for planting. These holes are plugged with coir fiber
erosion resistance, friendliness to wildlife and support for the establishment plugs. Planting through the SuperLog can be done by removing the plugs.
of sustainable mature vegetation. Another feature of BioD-SuperLog is that they come with male and female
ends to facilitate strong connections between units. BioD-SuperLog has a
The most common coir restoration product is the densely packed coir logs/rolls square shape (12”x12”) cross section and comes in 10’ lengths.
(BioD-Roll). Coir logs are currently available in 12 in (30 cm), 16 in (40 cm) and
20 in (50 cm) diameters with densities as high as 9 lbs/cu. ft. (144 kg/m3). RoLanka’s BioD-Mat® woven bristle coir blankets have a higher tensile
They are excellent tools for providing strong toe support in streambanks. strength and a four- to six-year functional life. This carefully researched
Densely packed coir logs are generally used to provide initial structural stability product provides higher resistance against erosive forces upon installation,
to the toe of a streambank by resisting wave action and flow velocity (Figure 1). hold moisture and support seed germination and seedling growth. The
ability to plant through the mat without having to cut into it is a big advantage
The BioD-Block™ coir block system is a patented product for construction of in these semi-permanent, open weave blankets. They are excellent to
vegetated soil lifts (Figure 2). It consists of a densely-packed 10-ft long protect and restore streambanks and shorelines. Vegetation successfully
mattress coir fiber block with attached woven bristle coir fabric with 780 comes through these mats and field experiences support these products
g/m2. This block system is available in 12 in (30 cm) and 16 in (40 cm) tall further due to the ease of mowing and maintenance of the restored areas.
coir blocks with different fabric lengths. The coir fabric is tightly wrapped
around the coir block and connected to the block on three sides, leaving the
other side open for filling with soil. The female and male ends on each block
create a strong, easy-to-handle connection. This strong connection provides
an excellent face for soil layers and assures no failures though the joint.
Combining a coir block system and native woody vegetation with appropriate
vegetation to construct soil lifts is an excellent way to stabilize cut and fill
slopes as well as streambanks.
Figure 4: Planting on BioD-SuperLog. Figure 5: Successful streambank restoration with
BioD-Mat blanket.
The BioD-Pillow, coir pillow is a 5 cm thick pad of mattress coir fiber filled in
a coir twine net case. These are 3 ft. (1 m) wide and 15 ft (5 m) long. The
RoLanka products are readily available in

Stockbridge, GA and Portland, OR.
More information about RoLanka products is available at www.rolanka.com
www.geo-naturals.com or at 1-800-760-3215
ENGINEERS
AN
CH
OR
U CTURAL STEEL •CO
• TR
S•
LD
A LLS -FO
CON
RM
MAKE THE WORLD GO ‘ROUND

W
L•
I SE ED
O
C
TRO
RETE F
ST
•
EE
ON
RS
L•
IE
NT C
ORMS • PRECAST CON
• FO
RR
ST
ONCRE
S•C
RU
A
R TE
•B
E
UND
HO
CTUR
F
RETE • EROSION AND SEDIM
C
TED
O
ALL
ATIONS • HARDWARE
RM
•A
AL MONITO
IES • PREFABRICA
URES • RETAINING W
S • PRECAS
STADIUMS
R
CO
C
ING
NCRETE •
N•
RET
IG
•W
E•
ACCESSOR
ES
O
ERO
D
D
• AS
LE •H
UCT
B
NA
NC
YD
SIO
AI R
P
T AULIC
S • SUS
STR
H
T CO
ALT
AND
AN
ED
CAS
•P
AT
SE
PIPE
IP
C
RE
DI
RI
EA
M
B
•P
FA
EN
ND
•
CO
LT
T
S
PR
RM
AC
• N
HA
ES TR
CE
FO
I OL
P
OR
S
SS
S •F
•A
TE
ES
O
C UN O
RE
RI
AC
E
DA
ES
NC
D
AR
AN TIO
PIPE NS
•
CO
DW
• HAR
PR
DWARE • ASPHALT • AB
EF
•
R
R
HA
O RI
H CA
NC
•
TE
S
A D
N
IO
AT
D
UN
50% OFF
FO
order now for the cover price
click here to purchase click here to purchase

a PRINT & DIGITAL a DIGITAL ONLY
subscription for $25 subscription for $10
Contact us at 1-800-466-6275 for more information or to place your order by phone.

DID YOU KNOW?
Zweig Group offers a full portfolio of products and services designed
to help ENGINEERING FIRMS become industry leaders.
Strategic Planning In-House Training
Mergers & Acquisitions PDH Series
Executive Search Industry Awards
Ownership Transition Conference
Marketing & Business Development The Zweig Letter
Civil + Structural Engineer Magazine Valuation
Seminars Benchmark Surveys
Webcasts Books
Lear n more online at ZWEIGGROUP . COM

or email INFO @ ZWEIGGROUP . COM .
TM
Roll sizes
6 in x 15 ft
BioD-Watl coir wattles
9 in x 15 ft Provides the most cost effective, environmentally
9 in x 20 ft
12 in x 10 ft
friendly GeoNatural BMP’s for sediment control
Advantages
i nlet
b
Cur tection * 100% Natural and biodegradable.
pro
* No synthetic materials in the
matrix.
* Filter sediment effectively than Perimeter
any other materials. sediment control
* Easy to cut and join to any
desired length.
* Stronger and durable outer net.
* Wildlife will not feed on coir
wattles.
* No need for removal at the end Grade inlet

Shoreline of construction. protection
proteection * Upon use they become mulch
and improve soil conditions.
* Economical and provide
aesthetically pleasing
applications. Slope reduction
Difference between coir

1 800 760 3215 logs and coir wattles
ww.rolanka.com
Channel restoration Stockbridge, GA and
Portland, OR
Excellent check dams

No more sediment pollution
Experience the effective sediment control
with natural products.
Rising stars Structural ENGINEERING
Rising Stars in Structural Engineering
Michael Baer, P.E., LEED AP, (age 40) Building Structures Group manager, Mulkey Engineers & Consultants, Cary, N.C.,
has more than 17 years of experience and has worked on almost 200 projects in the seven years he has been
at Mulkey, providing structural design for high-rises, office buildings, multi-family, and mixed-use facilities,
including many challenging projects in high wind and seismic areas. In 2014, two of Baer’s projects received
ACEC of North Carolina Engineering Excellence Awards. In 2011, he won the ACEC-NC Engineering
Excellence award for structural engineering of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art in Charlotte. As a group
manager, Baer continually invests in the next generation of structural engineers, supervising employees at
Mulkey’s Charlotte and Raleigh offices. He maintains active membership in CREW Charlotte, American
Institute of Architects, North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, and National Council of Examiners
for Engineering and Surveying.
Fernando Frontera, S.E., LEED AP, (age 32) associate, Baldridge & Associates Structural Engineering, Honolulu, joined
the firm in 2006 as structural designer, working in high seismic regions such as Hawaii, Guam, and India. With
an interest in blast and antiterrorism design, Frontera studied the principals of design under an experienced
engineer and eventually developed his own spreadsheets to perform blast analysis on his first blast hardening
project in 2009. Since then, he has further developed his expertise by independent study, and formal blast
training courses. He is now managing blast hardening and antiterrorism projects at BASE, such as the $70
million Joint Traffic Management Center in Honolulu. He was one of the first employees at BASE to become a
LEED Accredited Professional. Once the mentee, Frontera is now the mentor and is recognized by colleagues
as a leader. He is currently the president of the Structural Engineers Association of Hawaii and has been a
catalyst of change in the organization.
Jacob H. Gonzalez, P.E., (age 39) principal/director of Parking Services, Walter P Moore, Houston, is the youngest
director at the firm, having grown the Parking Group by 20 percent and doubled his new business billings
since 2012. He has developed diverse expertise, including design team project management of parking
facilities, parking functional design, parking access and revenue control systems (PARCS), existing facility
improvements, parking studies, due diligence reports, parking count and guidance systems, signage/pavement
markings, and master planning. Gonzalez managed the largest PARCS replacement in the world at the Texas
Medical Center. Internally at Walter P Moore, he is involved in many firm-building committees and initiatives,
assisting with strategic planning efforts as the sole representative for the Parking Group and for the 440-person
firm as a whole. Among other projects, Gonzalez was the design team project manager for the Texas Medical
Center Garage 19, an eight-level true-transit garage that houses 1,800 cars, ground floor retail space, and two
transit-area lobbies.

Structural ENGINEERING Rising Stars
Elizabeth D. Marcantonio-Hartney, P.E., (age 34) project manager, AECOM, New York, has more than eight years
of experience that includes the Ennery Bridge in Haiti (a USAID-funded project recognized by ACEC-New
York Engineering Excellence Awards), Marine Transfer Stations for the NYC Department of Sanitation, and
the Environmental Impact Statement for the Tappan Zee Bridge I-287 Corridor Expansion. Currently, she
represents AECOM at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, where for the last two-plus years
she has been running large- and small-scale capital and operating projects. A significant amount of her time
has been guiding development of a 10-acre undeveloped “mountain” for use as a staging area to support a
$1 billion construction initiative at LaGuardia Airport, which will create a new central terminal building.
She regularly volunteers to help promote engineering with students and recent college graduates. She has
presented to inner city children as part of “A Day in the Life of an Engineer” program.
Jindrich Potucek, P.E., (age 30) bridge engineer, Finley Engineering Group, Inc., Tallahassee, Fla., has worked on
some of the most complex bridges currently under design. He has five years of experience in design and
construction engineering for bridge types including cable-stayed and segmental. Jindrich has a solid academic
and research background. He received his bachelor’s degree from Czech Technical University of Prague and
his master’s degree from Europe’s top civil engineering university, the Ecole des Ponts ParisTech in Paris. At
Ecole des Ponts ParisTech, Jindrich studied bridge design under internationally recognized complex bridge
designer, Jacques Combault, who is also technical director at Finley Engineering Group, Inc. Jindrich has
worked on bridge engineering for significant structures in Minnesota, Ohio, Texas, Florida, and Israel. During
his time at Finley, Jindrich has demonstrated his leadership capabilities by overseeing the hiring of interns and
supporting entry-level bridge designers and CADD technicians.
Josh Reynolds, S.E., (age 31) senior associate, Miyamoto International, Inc., Santa Ana, Calif., has taken a leadership
role on several internal initiatives that have changed the way projects are tracked and proposals are structured.
He spearheaded an initiative to develop a “Project Life Form” that tracks a project from award to completion
and captures data and project information key to developing project profiles and case studies while assisting
with teaming and providing financial information for future use. In 2006, Reynolds started an internal resource
library for the engineers at Miyamoto. This library grew into a comprehensive archive containing more than
20,000 reference materials, specifications, codes, standards, engineering tools, typical details, prototypical
drawings, company design standards, and templates. Each month, a newsletter is distributed to the engineers
that keeps them updated on new code, upcoming training events, and research papers that are specific to the
structural engineering field. Reynolds has been selected to open a new office in San Jose, Calif.

Rising stars Structural ENGINEERING
Jared P. Stewart, P.E., S.E. 1, CDT, (age 39) senior structural engineer, ARCADIS U.S., Inc., Tampa, Fla., is intimately
familiar with the intricate and often competing issues involved in providing optimal design solutions for
clients’ needs. He adeptly navigates between immersion in the details of the design work he oversees and
the larger, overarching issues that must be constantly monitored by managers. His vast depth of knowledge
allows him to rapidly assess a project’s structural design needs, but as importantly, he recognizes potential
impediments that must be addressed and the necessary points of communication and coordination that will be
needed to ensure project success. He continues to leverage this ability on behalf of municipal clients as well as
industrial clients in the oil and gas sector. Steward sees the cultivation and stewardship of junior talent as one
of his most important roles, and he consistently goes above and beyond to provide mentorship and support to
all levels of staff.
Aaron Stover, P.E., S.E., (age 39) project manager, Michael Baker International, Louisville, Ky., has led the engineering effort
for numerous large, complex, and signature bridges throughout the Ohio Valley. Among his accomplishments are
the preliminary design for a new cable stay interstate bridge and approaches over the Ohio River in downtown
Louisville. He also was a major contributor to the Kentucky and Indiana transportation agencies during
preparation of design-build construction procurement documents. His assistance is ongoing as the lead design
review engineer and technical advisor for this project. In addition, Stover assisted the Kentucky Transportation
Cabinet with evaluating an adjacent five-span, 2,498-foot-long truss on I-65, providing recommendations to
extend its useful life and accommodate new traffic patterns. Under Stover’s leadership, a team of Baker engineers
developed an innovative and time- and cost-saving approach to replace the US 421 bridge between Milton, Ky.,
and Madison, Ind. — assembling the new truss on temporary piers and sliding it laterally onto the strengthened
existing piers, making it the longest bridge slide in North America.
Sam Wilke, P.E., (age 33) Structural Division manager, Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc., Fargo,
N.D., is responsible for leading numerous structural engineering projects as well as the firm’s structural
engineering team, which experienced 20 percent growth in personnel in 2014. He is experienced in three
broad-based engineering sectors, including building services, heavy industrial, and forensic investigations.
Two of Wilke’s projects received major awards in the state. The Red River High School Performance Hall
Addition in Grand Forks, N.D., received the Gold Star Award in 2013 from the North Dakota Ready Mix &
Concrete Products Association. He also developed the conceptual layout and was lead structural designer for
the Grand Forks Public Works Addition project in Grand Forks, N.D., which received the 2012 Project of the
Year award from the ND Chapter of the American Public Works Association. In 2014, Wilke received North
Dakota Society of Professional Engineers Young Engineer of the Year awards at the chapter and state levels.
Sui (Charles) Yiu, P.E., (age 34) associate, Miyamoto International, Inc., Los Angeles, exhibits focused, client-driven
thinking in the areas of project design and leadership. His passion to give back to the engineering community
through student mentoring plays an important role in his life. He received the 2011 SEAOC Nabih Youssef
Young Engineers award after presenting the seismic retrofit project for the AlaskaUSA Federal Credit Union.
Based on experience, performance, and efficiency, Yiu prepared a seismic report for three retrofit options: base
isolation, buckling restrained braced frame, and special concentrically braced frame. Yiu facilitates a weekly
scheduling meeting with all engineers and the CAD manager to discuss availability and need for support to
balance everyone’s workload. He also coordinates his Los Angeles office workload with that of the other
regional and national offices. He spearheaded an internal company mentor program and mentors a group of 20
high school students interested in engineering fields.

Firms in focus
Mobile LiDAR unit in the mountains near Denver.
Geospatial survey: Geospatial Dream Team
A client’s dream
Beginning his career in survey as a field technician, Ponzio worked his
way to the front lines of Maser Consulting. His hands-on awareness
of the survey industry, knowledge of technological advancements, and
Rapidly evolving technologies provide an array of options for faster, foresight in the firm’s strategies and direction has enabled the firm’s
Survey Services to grow successfully into a nationwide market. The
safer, and more accurate surveying. accelerated rate of growth in survey technology prompted him to
By Maraliese Beveridge purchase equipment and hire a number of industry experts, matching
Compass and transit, theodolites, latitude and longitude, Meridian them to this advanced instrumentation and pace of this growth. These
Stone. These centuries-old terms are familiar to surveyors today actions resulted in establishment of an entirely new offshoot into
because modern methods are still based on these foundations. The geospatial services and, subsequently, the gathering of professionals
contrast between conventional boots-on-the-ground field survey and from throughout the country into a Geospatial Dream Team.
data collected using LiDAR (light detection and ranging) may seem
worlds apart, but in reality, each method has a common baseline while So who are the faces behind the Geospatial Dream Team? All of them,
maintaining its own appropriate and best application. The relatively forerunners within the industry, have 20 to 30 years of survey field
rapid evolution of new surveying instrumentation during the last two experience. Employing ground survey techniques from conventional
decades has been staggering. Today, we can perform survey data survey methods to global positioning systems (GPS) and static (ground-
collection faster, safer, and more accurately than ever before. based) 3D high-definition laser scanning (HDS), 3D modeling, and
mobile LiDAR has given them a thorough, hands-on comprehension
“Technology has developed and advanced the survey industry in and appreciation for the new tools available to today’s surveyor.
ways we never dreamed of in a relatively short period of time,” said
Leonardo Ponzio, PLS, CAO, and division leader of Survey Services Paul DiGiacobbe, P.E., DBIA, director of Geospatial Survey Services,
for Maser Consulting P.A. “We are learning at such an accelerated rate oversees these activities. His innovative approaches with geospatial
that the more we use LiDAR, the more applications we find it useful data acquisition have earned him a name for orchestrating landmark
for in benefitting clients.” events for the transportation infrastructure industry.

Collecting data using static 3D high-definition scanning on US 41 and Gulf
Stream Avenue in downtown Sarasota, Fla.
“Two years ago, I never would have thought that I would be working
with a group of such talented professional surveyors,” DiGiacobbe said.
“Most of us knew each other either professionally or by reputation, and
now that we are working under the same flag, there is no telling how far
we can push the limits of this technology.”
Earlier on, recognizing the need for terrestrial scanning, Ponzio

implemented static HDS methods. As technology developed, the firm
purchased new equipment, including the Amberg GRP trolley rail
system and mobile LiDAR. Since then, Maser Consulting has expanded
its geospatial survey services nationwide by strategically hiring some
of the best survey professionals from around the country.
When you have marketing needs
Exploiting the portable nature of geospatial instrumentation, this team has
literally scanned its way across the nation and back again for a multitude but you don’t have marketing time . . .
of project types. Scanning a project in Alaska one day and another one in
Virginia the next is just part of a week’s work. Each team member generally outsource to a proven professional
travels with its own crew. The exchange of experiences and ideas between
these teams has created camaraderie and a fertile environment that has
fostered innovation to project approaches as well as deliverable formats.
The Siben Consult, LLC
“One of the major challenges facing LiDAR technology is the creation
“Out-of-the-box” thinking
of something useable for everyone else in the design process,” “Out-of-the-park” performance
DiGiacobbe said. “Planners, engineers, architects, etc. all want this
technology used on their projects without having to reinvent the wheel. “seller-doer” support, strategic planning,
Our team excels in creating standard deliverables, which are much
more detailed when compared to traditional techniques.” marketing processes, SOQ and proposal
development, short-list presentation
What LiDAR can do development, interview coaching, other
Just because static conventional methods may seem more time
consuming than say, mobile LiDAR that collects data at highway marketing needs
speeds, doesn’t mean that it is no longer a viable method. The trick is in
knowing which method is most appropriate for the project and having
the skill to interpret the data accurately.
For instance, you can drive a mobile LiDAR unit down a highway
and collect more than 1 million points of highly accurate data per

second from everything it detects, but surveyors still have to go into
the field, using static LiDAR, to collect supplemental information from
obstructed objects and features that the mobile LiDAR can’t see.
Data produced from multiple sources, such as GPS, robotic total stations,
and LiDAR (static, mobile, or aerial) can be synchronized, or fused, into
one comprehensive digital file. This data fusion entails extraction of data
from all sources and combining it into a single file. The data manipulation
requires highly experienced professionals to maintain data integrity and
transform it into a viable end product suitable for clients’ needs.
LiDAR enables surveyors to collect highly detailed data from large

projects with a quicker turnaround time. When properly controlled,
mobile LiDAR mounted on moving vehicles is capable of gathering
continuous design-grade data, traveling as fast as 70 mph, while Geospatial Dream Team Tampa Division
maintaining the integrity of all attributes inherent to static HDS.
Surveyors can scan miles of roadway corridor in a matter of hours
compared with what used to take weeks using conventional methods.
Employing mobile LiDAR also takes equipment operators out of the
roadway and out of harm’s way while decreasing the need for costly
traffic control measures.
Prudent quality control procedures must be in place to expedite data

turnaround time while maintaining a reliable level of quality. Once
the fieldwork is complete, CADD specialists create customized digital
and visual deliverables from the scanned data, including standard
planimetric design files, detailed digital terrain models (DTM), as-built
3D models, fly-through videos, georeferenced photography, design
animations, project site animations, and a host of others to fulfill even
the most unique client requirements. Tampa team with new mobile LiDAR rig ready to roll in Albuquerque, N.M.
Precast Concrete Modular Stormwater Management System
Precast Concrete
Modular Stormwater
Management Solutions
StormTrap® offers the industry’s best solutions for managing runoff,
protecting waterways and improving the use of your property.
Our stormwater management systems reduce overall footprint,

accommodate any site restraints, and lower overall costs. Whether
you are concerned about detention, infiltration, water quality or
rainwater harvesting, StormTrap has a design to meet your specific
needs. Find out more at www.StormTrap.com.

Conclusion
In the last few years, the industry has produced a variety of powerful
HDS and LiDAR technologies, adding an entirely new dimension to
survey data acquisition. Maser Consulting’s Geospatial Dream Team has
been entrenched in equipment and technology advancements within the
industry, while continually adapting it to new uses. Reinforced by project
managers, survey technicians, and CADD professionals, the Dream
Team encompasses a large field of members with a common bond of
pride in their work. The attraction of geospatial survey methodologies
from data collection to creation of final deliverables is so strong, the
fact that something new could happen every day has created a rich work
environment in which the entire Dream Team can thrive.
It’s important for clients to be aware of what this technology can do for
them because every developer, authority, municipality, or industrial client
needs to have some sort of survey performed at some point in time. They
need to know the advantages and that there are a wealth of options available
that can save them time and money while being extremely accurate.
It’s an exciting time in the survey industry. The Dream Team of experts
is constantly on the move, driving new technology, sharing information,
learning from and feeding off of one another while collectively pushing
the technological envelope. If you ask any member of the team, they will
tell you they are all just humble surveyors. But we know different.
MARALIESE BEVERIDGE is the senior technical writer for Maser Consulting P.A.
(www.maserconsulting.com), a multi-discipline engineering firm with a network
of offices nationwide. With more than 20 years of experience in journalism and
an expertise writing about technical topics, her work has been published in
numerous national publications on a variety of engineering subjects.
Getting the mobile LiDAR unit rigged for a road trip out of Tampa, Fla.
Earn PDH credits

with StormTrap’s
Stormwater
lunch and Learn
presentation
Scan here to schedule
1-877- 867- 6872

www.stormtrap.com
Copyright © 2011 StormTrap. StormTrap, SingleTrap

and DoubleTrap are registered trademarks of StormTrap.
U.S. Patent Numbers: 6,991,402 B2; 7,160,058 B2; 7,344,335

PROFILEin focus
Firms
Most organizations’ stories are based on two distinct components:

Cutting through what they know and what they’ve done. The average engineering
firm’s website or brochure is just a listing of service areas and a library
the noise
Discover why your firm does what it does and articulate that vision.
of projects they have been involved with. Both of these elements
are important, since a client is certainly going to need to know a
firm’s technical capabilities and see evidence that demonstrates it.
However, this tends to be the only story that firms tell, leaving only a
By Brent Robertson few options for how to make it relevant — constantly redesigning the
website or collateral, continually increasing the diversity of services,
There is no escaping change. Firms in the engineering field have or endlessly cataloging every possible project in elaborate detail.
experienced more change during the last five years than in the last 50.
One of the more pronounced changes is the number of firms competing None of those efforts will differentiate a firm successfully. In fact,
for the same business. This is the age of choice: From smaller virtual since it’s just more of the same material that all the other firms are
firms able to serve larger clients to huge national firms playing in putting out there, it creates more noise and dilutes your message
smaller and smaller ponds, clients now have more options than ever further. If this seems like an endless battle with no winner, you
when hiring an engineer. are right. And that doesn’t mean that anything is wrong, just that
something is missing.
From a marketing and business development perspective, most firms
look and sound the same. Here’s a simple test: Do an Internet search of Differentiation lives in your ‘why’
“engineering firms” in your state and print out the home pages of a few Most firms don’t include the part of their firm’s story that is critical to
firms, including yours. If you cover up the logos, do they look and sound differentiation: what the firm stands for and why you do what you do.
similar? Chances are they do. If they are different, could a potential This is where true differentiation lies. In his TED talk, Simon Sinek
client tell the difference? If so, does the difference matter to them? does a wonderful job of simply and elegantly explaining the power of
declaring your “why” as the “Golden Circle.”
Looking competent is cheap
It used to be that if your firm looked and sounded competent (and had If engineering firms transform communities and make life more
a project portfolio as evidence of its competency) that was enough enjoyable, healthier, more livable, more productive, and more
to stand out. In the age of choice, however, looking and sounding sustainable for all of us, then why does this story remain hidden?
competent is merely the cost of admission, and it’s cheap — you can One of two reasons:
purchase high-quality website templates and subscribe to third-party 1. The firm doesn’t know what it stands for, or
content marketing services that will ghost write blog posts for you and 2. The firm has a sense of it, but hasn’t found the language to be able to
distribute your content far and wide. And when looking competent is put it forward in any coherent form.
cheap, everyone can and, for the most part, does.

The journey of discovering your “why” starts with an inquiry Second, it takes commitment from the leadership team that declaring what
designed to generate a conversation that might be new territory for you stand for and will live up to is essential to the success of the firm.
the firm. This conversation needs to reach beyond the firm and out
to those who you are in a relationship with or whom you impact. Third, it is imperative that the firm does not attempt to facilitate the
Questions that provoke this kind of conversation include: discussions and do the work to generate this story alone. Like trying
• What is it about the world that your firm wants to change? to read the wine label from inside the bottle, it is impossible. Ideally,
• If you could realize this change, what difference would it make? a firm should hire a trusted partner (such as a brand strategy or brand
• What is the firm willing to commit to in creating the world it seeks? transformation firm) with expertise helping organizations articulate
• What are the values and beliefs the firm demonstrates and holds true? their vision and establish brands that have meaning for the marketplace.
At first glance, these questions may seem big and idealistic. But look Firms that don’t find their “why” are already on the path to
closer. Don’t they really go to the heart of why your firm exists? commoditization, or worse, irrelevancy. You can get a sense of where
Engineering — more so than other vocations — is about changing the you stand on the basis of how your customers relate to you. Are you
world. It’s about transforming what currently exists. seen as a vendor performing a lowest-bid transaction, or a partner that
helps your client make the biggest difference?
Discuss these questions with partners, employees, current and former
clients, strategic partners, and others who are intimately familiar with Firms willing to invest the necessary time and resources to examine
your firm. You’ll find that you can learn a lot about your firm by seeing what they stand for, and to declare and demonstrate that to the
how others view you. Observe any patterns or themes that emerge from marketplace, can give themselves an extraordinary competitive edge.
these conversations, as these are the clues that can begin to point you The results of the investment include:
toward the answer. • more success attracting ideal business relationships;
• clients that value what you stand for and pay a premium for it;
From conversation to differentiation • a story that will reach much further, with more impact, than ever before;
What does it take to convert this inquiry into language that best tells • a firm positioned for the future, not limited by the past; and
your unique story? First and foremost it assumes that your firm has an • a team willing to work hard, fight for, and defend what it stands for.
established reputation of being able to deliver on its promises reliably
and predictably. If not, you have operational issues to deal with first. BRENT ROBERTSON is a partner with the brand transformation firm Fathom
(www.fathom.net). He can be reached at [email protected].

Firms in focus
The elderly lady who won’t be able to pick up her prescriptions because
Forewarned is of a detour, the pizza shop that may lose business because of the
construction blocking access to the restaurant, or the religious community
forearmed
using community outreach to head off problems on your next project.
that won’t be able to have its annual parade because of a street closure,
are all examples of issues that may seem small when viewed through
the lens of a project that costs hundreds of millions of dollars. However,
they won’t seem so small when elected officials are calling your phone,
By Hugh Smith and television anchors interview the weeping senior whose lumbago is
acting up because she can’t get to the pharmacy. Often, problems like
A few years ago, I was thrilled to find out that my firm was on the these can be mitigated with a little dialogue and some compromise — if
winning team for the project that would rehabilitate a famous East you handle them before they grow out of control.
River bridge. I’ve always admired this iconic New York City landmark
and was happy for the opportunity to be part of the team that would 2. Never underestimate the value of face time
help preserve it for decades to come. Yes, you are busy and, yes, there are a million things clamoring for your
attention, but if you don’t devote some of your initial project startup time
Community outreach for the project would be complex and challenging. to some face time, then you might find yourself at a huge disadvantage
The detours would be complicated; communicating with the residents, when the project actually begins. Face time is invaluable. Getting to
businesses, and various elected officials on the Brooklyn and Manhattan know the players in your project area and taking a few minutes to find
sides of the bridge would be a challenge; the thousands of motorists who out what their issues are will be appreciated and not soon forgotten.
use the bridge daily would have to be alerted; and we would also have to
take into account the many tourists who visit the bridge every day. Too often, big projects engender an “us-against-them” mentality in a
community, and nothing galvanizes a movement more than when people feel
Then, while thinking about all the far-reaching, big-picture problems, they are banding together to battle a giant. These problems can be avoided by
the project team informed us that an area under the bridge frequented by meeting with people face to face and taking the time to listen to their concerns.
skateboarders would have to be closed. We visited the area, watching
as skateboarders of varying ages did complicated-looking kicks and 3. The Internet is your friend
flips in the shadow of the bridge. Looking at it, it didn’t look like much; Sometimes, problems slip through the cracks simply because no one on
it was your typical urban area that skaters use to practice their sport. the project team knew they even existed. It is easy to miss those localized
issues that everyone inside the community is aware of but outsiders have
Later, after doing some research, we found to our surprise that the area no clue about. While this is understandable, in this age where all of the
was world famous, known and revered by skateboarders as far away as world’s information can be carried around in our pockets, it’s inexcusable.
Eastern Europe and Australia. Armed with this knowledge we reached
out to the skateboarding community to let them know well in advance There are many resources that a project can use to find out about the things
of the plans for the area and the reasons for the closure, and worked going on in the project area. The following resources are free or low cost.
closely with them to get the word out.
• Google alerts — Simply go to https://www.google.com/alerts and input
When the news of the closure went out, we received hundreds of emails a word or phrase. Google will scour the web for that term or terms and
from skateboarders from as far away as the Ukraine. While they were not deliver the results to you every day via email.
happy, to be sure, the reaction was far less visceral than if we had not worked
with the leaders of the skateboarding community to get the word out. • Mention.com – Mention is a real-time social media monitoring tool that is
available in either a free or paid version. Mention helps us to know when things
We’d always known the importance of outreach before a project start, are being said on social media, alert the client, then act on them accordingly.
but that incident only served to drive it home. Our advance intelligence
combined with quick and well thought out action by the client and our • Patch.com — A great free resource, Patch allows you to search local
project team avoided what could have been a huge problem and a real news sources for a particular area. You may search through topics from
black eye for a high-profile project that was barely under way. arts and entertainment to small business. If a topic is important to an area,
there is a good chance you can find out about it on Patch.
Before you begin your next project here are some tips that will help you
identify problems and deal with them before they grow out of control. So, the next time you’re beginning a project, keep in mind that there may
be issues brewing in the community that, left unaddressed, could quickly
1. Sweat the ‘small’ stuff grow out of control. Community outreach, performed proactively before
Too many times, we only look at the big project issues — roadway the project start, will bring those problems into focus and help ensure
detours, staging areas, environmental issues, and the like. Those are that they do not give the project a black eye, or even worse, cause delays.
critical, no doubt about it, but often we miss the “small” issues that,
before we know it, grow larger and larger and could have been avoided HUGH SMITH is director of community outreach and an associate with Sam
had you known about them in the first place. Schwartz Engineering, D.P.C. (www.samschwartz.com). He can be contacted
at [email protected].

PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
COMMERCIAL/INDUSTRIAL/GOVERNMENT
BIM rendering of Plaza De Armas, Building 1 through Building 4 (from right to left).
New life
Historic San Antonio structure is
transformed into a modern office facility.
By Larry Rickels, P.E.
Built in phases between 1880 and 1892, the buildings that would become capped with a glass skylight. It is presumed that this was added in a
known as the Plaza de Armas were located at the edge of the once- recent renovation, although the National Register of Historic Places
popular Military Plaza, the then-epicenter of San Antonio’s culture notes that the original building was used as a fashion theater and
and trade. Its neighbor to the north is the historic Spanish Governor’s possessed an operable skylight for ventilation. Exterior walls and party
Palace, and it sits across a small plaza from the city’s 19th century walls between buildings range from 18 to 24 inches in thickness and
city hall. The Plaza de Armas’ 59,000-square-foot, two-story, wood are composed of a variety of clay and stone masonry and limestone
and load-bearing masonry structure is a Registered Texas Historic block. Each building has a full basement, with basement floors on-
Landmark, and on the National Register of Historic Places. grade at approximately 10 feet below street level.
With all possible respect to this rich cultural heritage, a design-build The first and second floor systems of all buildings are composed of
team led by T.S. Byrne and Ford Powell & Carson was challenged solid sawn wood joists measuring 2-1/2 inches wide by 16 inches deep.
with the task of reviving and transforming this structure into a modern These joists span wall-to-wall in the narrow structures and rest on an
facility meeting the needs of two city departments — the Office of interior timber girder with solid sawn wood or cast iron columns in
Communication and Public Affairs and the Department for Culture and the wider structures. Other than the skylight in Building 2, the roof
Creative Development. Though most of the space would be used for structures for the buildings were typically composed of site-built wood
offices, the program also included spaces for an art gallery, light retail, trusses and wood decking with varying slopes.
and modern television production filming.
Evaluation of existing wood framing
The starting point for this $12 million project was a well-used and The first significant challenge for the design-build team was evaluation
frequently modified structure, purchased by the City of San Antonio in of the existing facility for its capacity to support the proposed program.
1979. Beginning at the south wall of the Spanish Governor’s Palace, A previous study, with modest assumptions of material qualities, had
the first and second structures to be built were each approximately 50 deemed the vast majority of the wood floor and roof framing inadequate
feet wide, and the third and fourth were vertical additions to existing for modern office loading. The architect’s vision for the character
single-story buildings. Building 2 housed a two-story atrium volume of the renovated offices included exposing the floor and roof joists,

so strengthening these members with supplemental framing was not foundations, Datum developed a wall-bracing method using 50-foot-
aesthetically desirable. Also, reinforcing the members was a significant long, wide-flange beams spanning between the party walls.
expense and did not fit within the city’s budget for the project.
These beams were carefully positioned vertically to meet three criteria.
Datum Engineers researched and evaluated several options for this First, they had to be placed before demolition of the floors and roof.
challenge, and concluded that an in-place grading of the existing This required threading the beams through masonry openings in small
members was the best approach. For that grading,
Datum directed the efforts of Ft. Collins, Colo.-
based Anthony & Associates. This in-place grading
required visual observation of not less than 20 percent
of each distinct area of the framing members to be
statistically relevant. T. S. Byrne accelerated some
selective demolition of ceilings to accommodate
these observations, and within a few days, Anthony
& Associates was able to evaluate the framing and
report on species and grade of the lumber as well as
fire damage, rot, and termite damage in various areas
throughout the building.
With this data in hand, Datum evaluated and

reported to the team the structural adequacy of each
floor and roof. With the exception of the ground
floor of Building 3 and a few other exceptions, the
framing was deemed adequate. Some miscellaneous
members, primarily girders and other members that
had been cut or damaged, required reinforcing.
Creating a modern TV studio

The second challenge for this project was the
television studio, which required a 50-foot by 116- GLOBALLY ACCEPTED. LOWER INSTALLED COSTS.
foot, column-free, acoustically isolated room with a
floor-to-ceiling height of 14 feet plus vertical space
PROVEN PERFORMANCE. GREATER EFFICIENCIES.
requirements for ductwork, and an isolated ceiling. • 100 Year Service Life • Lightweight, Longer Pipe Lengths
Previous programming studies for the project,
including consideration for acoustic isolation from • Water-Tight Joint Performance • Less Labor & Equipment for
major streets, suggested placing the new television Installations
• AASHTO, AREMA, FAA, ASTM
studio in Building 2 with direct access from the plaza • Supports Green Building or
level on the east side. With the results of the wood
& CSA Specifications
framing study in hand, Datum proposed several Sustainability Credits on Projects
• Documented Use Under
options for reinforcing and/or re-framing the Building Heavy Cyclical Loads
2 structure. The design-build team selected an option
that involved demolition of the existing Building 2
framing and rebuilding a modern steel frame structure
within the volume.
During demolition and reconstruction of Building

2, the east and west façades of this historic building
© 2015 PLASTICS PIPE INSTITUTE
would be temporarily unbraced by floor or roof

diaphragms, and therefore unstable. In close
cooperation with T. S. Byrne, and in consideration
of the equipment that would ultimately need to move
around within the building volume to install new

REINFORCED EARTH ®
C.I.P. Crown Beam TechSpan®

is a three-pin, two-piece, funicular
curve shaped precast arch. The design
Joint Material or
Waterproofing
methodology utilizes finite element
(if required) analysis and funicular curve theory,
Select resulting in minimum use of materials,
Fill
maximum arch durability, and a cost
C.I.P. or Precast
effective total solution that is simple and
Typical Section Footing efficient to install.
Each TechSpan arch is carefully tailored and optimized, structurally and geometrically, to
meet the individual needs of the project. The system can be designed to accommodate
high fills, heavy live loads, and altering loading conditions. TechSpan arches can be
installed over existing roads and waterways, live rail or other service, with minimal
disruption.
ˊ Durability of precast
concrete gives long service
life with low maintenance
ˊ No maintenance of
bearings or joints
ˊ High quality control
standards
ˊ Shape minimizes bending
moments
ˊ Designed to clearance box
dimensions
www.reinforcedearth.com
[email protected]
1.800.446.5700
The Reinforced Earth Company.... REINFORCED EARTH ®
Our experienced team of professionals offers assistance at every stage of the project:
conception, design, and construction. Each project is treated individually, combining
innovation with technical expertise gained through proven performance. Above all,
RECo’s reputation for finding solutions to complex engineering problems, and our high
level of customer service, is renowned throughout the world.
...The Value of Experience
MSE Retaining Walls • Precast Arches • Noise Barriers

www.reinforcedearth.com
enough pieces to be managed without heavy equipment. Second, the
beams had to remain throughout new construction, including placement
of new framing, before they could be removed. Finally, the beams had
to be able to tie into solid wall rather than window or door openings.
After much refinement, the beams were placed and demolition of
Building 2 could begin.
Additional architectural programing and structural studies for the

studio aligned a new vibration-sensitive second floor with the existing
second floors, placed an acoustically separate ceiling/pipe grid structure
immediately below the second floor, and then pushed the studio floor 4
feet below the existing first floor level.
Datum directed investigations of the existing foundations and

discovered that the party walls for this building bore directly on grade
and without a continuous concrete spread footing. The bearing width For the television studios in Building 2, piers support a composite steel and
and allowable soil pressures limited the potential for additional loading concrete floor, which was ultimately overlain with a 3-1/2-inch-thick concrete slab on
isolation pads.
and led to a framing scheme in which the studio floor, studio ceiling,
and second floor were supported on new foundations with the roof
supported on the existing stone walls.
In an effort to preserve an 18th century deposit of Spanish-Colonial

artifacts below the basement level of the building, a drilled pier
foundation system was used in lieu of the originally proposed spread
footings. These piers supported a composite steel and concrete studio
floor, which was ultimately overlain with a 3-1/2-inch-thick concrete
slab on isolation pads.
Hollow steel columns spring from the perimeter of the studio floor
to support clear-span arrays of steel joists at the studio ceiling and
second floor. Vibration calculations were carefully reviewed for the
second floor, considering its long span and support on light framing
members. Finally, the perimeter of all framing levels was designed for
field adjustment against existing walls, which were neither parallel nor
planar. Partial demolition of Building 1 with elevator framing in place.
Conserving and repurposing historic materials

Throughout the design and construction process, the design team took
preservation seriously, especially in the case of the existing wood
resources within the building. Evaluating and preserving the in-place
framing was a significant win in these efforts, but not the only success.
Adjacent studio support spaces, programmatically located in Buildings
1 and 3, were required to be demolished and rebuilt at the new studio
floor elevation. In careful cooperation with T. S. Byrne and Ford Powell
& Carson, Datum designed a system wherein the existing wood floor
framing was selectively removed and replaced at the new elevation.
This also allowed the team to address the structural deficiencies
previously mentioned in the Building 3 ground floor framing. Similar
efforts were required at the southwest corner of Building 4 to renovate
access into the building. Wood joists and timbers from Building 2 were
used for new structural framing elsewhere in the building, and to create
new permanent furniture and wood floors throughout the buildings.
Datum developed a wall-bracing method for Building 2 using 50-foot-long, wide-flange
beams spanning between the party walls.

buildings. Datum also worked with Ford Powell & Carson and local
mason experts to address deterioration of the masonry due to rising
damp in the basement, existing wall cracks, new holes for ductwork
and corridors through the party walls, and connection of new framing
to the existing walls. Temporary support of soils was also required for
perimeter exterior damp-proofing work, with additional complications
brought on by the historical significance of adjacent structures.
Results
Design for this project began in the fall of 2012, and the project was
turned over to the city in December 2014. Throughout that time,
this project’s success was a direct result of the tightly coordinated
effort between engineers, architects, preservationists, archeologists,
construction project managers, construction trades, and the city’s staff
members. This cooperation has resulted in rejuvenation of a century-old
and centrally located facility into a coveted office space that respects
Most of the renovated space is used for offices, but the program also included the city’s heritage, and the addition of a state-of-the-art filming studio
spaces for an art gallery (shown here in Building 1), light retail, and a modern for the city’s modern broadcast needs.
television studio.
These challenges certainly dwarfed the remaining tasks, but there LARRY RICKELS, P.E., principal in Datum Engineers’ San Antonio office, served
were further hurdles to clear with the wood, the masonry, and as principal-in-charge for the Plaza de Armas project. He was supported by
adjacent structures on the project. Design and detailing was required Tim Stocks, P.E., who was the lead project engineer for this project. Datum
for a variety of reinforcing requirements for the wood framing in the Engineers (www.datumengineers.com), founded in 1937, is a Texas-based
structural engineering firm with offices in San Antonio, Dallas, and Austin.

PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
Education/Health Care/Religious
The curved-wall design of the BHAU Institute of Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Leadership saved the large tamarind
tree that occupies the building site, and blends the building with its surrounding protected heritage structure.
Unconventional to be one of the protected heritage structures in India. Perhaps the

single greatest challenge, however, was to preserve a mature tamarind
analysis
Shibanee and Kamal Architects designs bi-directionally
tree, which became the nexus of the design.
Shibanee and Kamal conceived a circular space built up around the

tree and spreading over a ground floor plus two floors for classrooms,
curved walls to support large slabs and beams. incubation rooms, auditorium, conference facilities, and faculty rooms.
By Katherine Flesh The circular shape of the building not only preserved the mature
tamarind tree but also fulfilled the requirements for good circulation
Shibanee and Kamal Architects, principal architects of Bangalore-based space for the classrooms and auditorium. A bridge connecting the two
Total Environment Building Systems Pvt Ltd (www.total-environment. ends of the building on either side of the tree made sure that not a
com), designed the BHAU Institute of Innovation, Entrepreneurship, single branch of the tree had to be cut.
and Leadership (BIEL) for the College of Engineering, Pune. Located
on the bank of river Mula in Maharashtra, India, the institute is The roof slab of the building was partly converted into a landscaped
intended to nurture innovation, encourage entrepreneurship, and terrace garden, helping to integrate the building with its historic
develop leadership. The INR 60 million building provides educational surroundings. A viewing gallery and amphitheater intended for
and research space within an unconventional, bi-directionally curved recreation and relaxation overlook the river Mula, which flows along
structure that blends in visually with the college’s 160-year-old campus. the northern side of the building. This alignment ensured that each
habitable space has natural, glare-free north light and ventilation. In
Structural engineers used Bentley System’s STAAD.Pro to deliver the addition, the curvilinear change in elevation provided the maximum
precise analysis and visualization that enabled evaluation of the curved road width at the ground level, where the site was tightly constrained
wall itself as a load-bearing element. This substantially reduced the on three sides.
cost of the entire project.
The structure’s unconventional shape posed several challenges during
Preserving campus heritage the design development stage, including:
Chartered in 1854, the College of Engineering, Pune is consistently • feasibility of using bi-directionally curved walls to support large slabs and
ranked among the top 20 technical colleges in India. The college’s beams;
newest institute will help students cultivate entrepreneurship qualities • dynamics of the interaction of curved walls with slabs, beams, and
and support them while they set up new companies. The architects kept columns;
this mission in mind as they conceived a space that would integrate • predicting the behavior of curved concrete walls during earthquakes;
physical, social, and environmental considerations for a business • modeling and analyzing curved walls and irregularly shaped slabs as plate
incubator. The building had to fit on a site bounded on three sides by elements; and
existing buildings, as well as blend organically into a campus declared • accommodating a large number of revisions in a short period of time.

Curved-wall analysis and design
The architects’ design dictated that concrete walls were essential to
support brick cladding on the exteriors and to provide concrete form
finish on the interiors. The main challenge for the structural engineers
was to employ and exploit these walls to support gravity and lateral
forces. First, the engineers had to answer numerous questions:
• Can bi-directionally curved walls of restricted thickness support slabs
without excessive deflection?
• Can the structure resist the high seismic forces expected in this locality?
• Can large openings be made in the curved walls without compromising
structural integrity?
• Can a curved wall be placed on a set of beams that, in turn, rests on
another curved wall?
The complexity of the BIEL building, which covered a built-up plan area
of 2,128 square meters, demanded highly accurate modeling. STAAD.
Pro was found to be the most versatile software for modeling and Rendered 3D structural model in STAAD.Pro
analyzing this structure because of its flexible modeling environment, The unconventional structure challenged the firm’s engineers to analyze
advanced features, powerful text editor, and interoperability. The and design for all the expected load combinations, satisfying the limit
Bentley software enabled the engineers to perform comprehensive states of safety and serviceability. It was essential to understand the
and integrated finite element analysis, including analyzing for static exact behavior of the structure before designing the structural elements.
loading; dynamic response; soil-structure interaction; and wind, STAAD.Pro helped the engineers to achieve this understanding.
earthquake, and moving loads.
Unconventional alternative
STAAD.Pro allowed walls to be modeled as plate elements, and The unconventional design of the BIEL building may appear to be
because of the software’s hybrid formulation, it could simulate the extravagant, but a more conventional design alternative that involved
behavior of both thick and thin plates. It also allowed the engineers to the use of cantilevers was, in fact, uneconomical and certainly less
model openings within the walls. The engineers were able to perform aesthetic. The architects chose the more challenging design and made it
both static and dynamic analysis to understand the behavior of the work. Consideration of the curved wall as a load-bearing element (both
structure, including the steel bridge, under different loading conditions. gravity and seismic) ultimately resulted in substantial cost savings.
STAAD.Pro also helped the engineers design the walls using its cut-
line method, where the software outputs the design forces along a user- Major cost benefits during the design phase were realized through
defined cut line. effective coordination among the architectural and service teams.
This was due to the 3D visualization of the frame, the flexibility of
The 3D structural model was prepared easily by importing the vertical the structural analysis, and the reliability of the results delivered by
curved profile of the wall from AutoCAD into STAAD.Pro and then STAAD.Pro.
using the extrude, mirror, and copy features to model the curved wall.
Designed to create an excellent ambience for innovation and learning,
Optimal material quantities the BIEL building fits within the context of the campus’ protected
To meet the load-bearing requirements of the structure, which included heritage. The scale of the structure and use of materials do not disturb
rooftop gardens in some areas, the final design called for 1,452 cubic the existing skyline in the vicinity, and yet the new building has its own
meters of concrete and 178 metric tons of steel. The curved walls alone identity. Shibanee and Kamal Architects made every effort, from design
called for 200 cubic meters of concrete and 47 metric tons of steel. through construction, to protect the prized tamarind tree. With this tree
While the quantity of steel required was quite high, the engineers were as its focal point, the building blends in with its surroundings through
confident that their analysis yielded optimal quantities to reinforce the the application of natural cladding materials and terrace gardens.
beams and slabs connected to the downward and laterally deflected
curved wall. In addition, architectural constraints required minor axes KATHERINE FLESH, senior manager, Applications Advantage, Structural, Bentley
of many columns to be oriented along the beam. In fact, one curved Systems, Incorporated, leads the marketing strategy and positioning for Bentley’s
wall rests on the beams, acting as a load rather than a support. structural analysis, design, and documentation software products. She has more
than 20 years of experience in channel sales, marketing, and technical writing for
high-tech solutions in the enterprise, mid-size, and consumer markets.
The BIEL building is one of the rare structures where bi-directionally
curved walls support slabs and beams, and the same beams and slabs
prevent the wall from falling away.

PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
Energy/mining
The new powerhouse (foreground) has two turbine and generator units and a self- The Mahoning Creek Dam project featured an intake structure with a buried steel
contained equipment skid with controls. penstock.
Green energy gains

Mead & Hunt project adds hydropower to Mahoning Creek Dam
•
•
•
municipal solid waste,
geothermal,
solar,
• incremental hydropower, and
The United States has a large amount of untapped hydropower potential in its • wind.
existing dams. In fact, only 3 percent of U.S. dams are powered, and estimates
indicate the Department of Energy goal is to double U.S. hydropower The Mahoning Creek Hydroelectric Project, commissioned in January
generation by 2030. Mead & Hunt worked with the Federal Energy 2014, can generate as much as 6 megawatts of electricity, enough to
Regulatory Commission and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to transform a power roughly 1,800 homes. The project features an intake structure
very small portion of that hydropower potential into real green energy. with a buried steel penstock. The powerhouse has two turbine and
generator units and a self-contained equipment skid with controls, office,
Mead & Hunt received a 2014 Engineering Excellence Award for its and switchgear. The powerhouse interconnects to the power grid.
design, project management, and construction administration of the
new hydropower development on Mahoning Creek Dam. Owned by To bring the Mahoning Creek Hydro project online and gain
the Army Corps of Engineers - Pittsburgh District, the dam is one of 27 commissioning, Mead & Hunt overcame many challenges. Financing
hydropower projects partially funded by the 1603 Grant program, and and regulatory approvals, existing operational impacts, political
one of only seven that added new hydropower. perceptions, and safety were at the top of the list.
According to the U.S. Treasury, the 1603 program, a provision of “In the process, we learned important lessons on how to plan,
the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act, offers renewable design, approve, and build these projects quicker, for less cost, while
energy project developers cash payments in lieu of investment tax maximizing the interests of all players,” said Miro Kurka, P.E., PMP,
credits. Qualifying technologies include: vice president at Mead & Hunt. “The lessons learned at the Mahoning
• biomass, Creek Hydroelectric Project and at other similar facilities combined
• marine hydrokinetic, with renewed financial incentives could provide the U.S with substantial
• combined heat and power, new clean, sustainable energy.”
• microturbine,
• fuel cells, Information provided by Mead & Hunt (www.meadhunt.com).

Project+Technology
Energy/MINING
Gas transmission station

built in record time
Workflow automation increases productivity and saves design time.
The Thai multinational energy company, PTT Public Company Limited
(PTT), is a state-owned oil and gas company that was established
in 1978. It is one of the largest corporations in Thailand and is also
the only Thai company that is ranked in the top 100 list of Fortune’s
Global 500 companies. PTT owns extensive submarine gas pipelines in
Thailand, runs a network of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) terminals
throughout the country, and also connects with various gas pipelines in
the Gulf of Thailand. Its primary mission is to accelerate the supply of
adequate oil for domestic consumption. PTT’s engineering team designed a gas transmission pipeline Block Valve Station that
controls and measures the supply of natural gas to South Bangkok Power Plant.
PTT’s engineering team was assigned to design a gas transmission
pipeline Block Valve Station called BV12. The station controls and Key benefits included ease and precision in design, with the ability
measures the supply of natural gas to South Bangkok Power Plant. Its to create and update the drawing and engineering documents and to
main objective is to ensure that the gas dispatch is consistent and safe develop piping bill of material. The team saved more than 50 percent
and is conducted accurately. of its design time and saw a significant reduction in manpower
requirements of about 40 percent, as many aspects of the project
Lertrit Sabpipatana (Pete), engineer in the Academy and Information workflow were automated within the software.
Division of PTT Limited, said, “Our mission was to design an efficient
plant which adhered to highest safety standards. Along with it, we also “We have benefited greatly from the intelligent AutoCAD P&ID
have to maintain our company’s image of being an environmentally drawings, piping isometric, and general arrangement drawings for
friendly and socially responsible organization.” BV12. Previously, we had to create all these drawings separately, which
was extremely time-consuming and would require extra manpower
With this brief, and a strict timeline to complete the project, the marketing from the team. Using the precise drawings and bill of materials
and engineering departments at PTT came together to conceptualize and generated from AutoCAD Plant 3D, any construction or modification
work on the design ideas. Considering the project size, critical nature of is now done easily and accurately,” Pete said.
the project, and the need for operational efficiency, the team decided to
adopt Autodesk Plant Design software for this project. Comprehensive plant design and a 3D model have helped BV12 internal
stakeholders such as operation and maintenance, procurement, and safety
“With just 12 months to complete the BV12 project, it was crucial that we and security divisions to be more operationally efficient. “With precise
work efficiently while reducing downtime errors,” Pete said. “By using 3D model drawings and Navisworks Simulate Software, construction
Autodesk Plant Design Suite, we were able to be more competent and and modifications are done more easily and accurately,” Pete said.
efficient, ensuring that every gas pipeline laid was in accordance to stringent “Furthermore, using this software can generate piping and equipment lists
safety regulations. We have greatly benefitted from adopting these solutions automatically. This allows us to plan our emergency response procedures
and have achieved tremendous savings in terms of time and costs.” more efficiently. Our piping and equipment maintenance and procurement
division also benefited as this allowed them to operate more cohesively.”
Saving design time
Autodesk Plant’s intuitive user interface allowed the project team For the BV12 project, PTT achieved a 65-percent increase in human
to maximize efficiency in the design processes. This allowed them productivity, resulting in major cost savings and better utilization of
to better manage their efforts and resources, and ensure all project resources. The company had initially provisioned three draftsmen for the
requirements were met. project. With the adoption of Autodesk Plant Design Suite, the team could
automate many workflow processes using one draftsman to complete the
Since most engineering departments in public and private organizations required work without compromising on the quality of output.
in Thailand use Autodesk solutions extensively, the familiarity of the
software enabled the PTT team to work with partners seamlessly in “Design technology definitely poses a clear advantage, and we expect
sharing and reviewing drawings. PTT uses Autodesk Plant Design to see more companies start to adopt it more extensively throughout
Suite Premium, which includes AutoCAD P&ID, AutoCAD Plant 3D, their projects,” Pete said.
and Autodesk Navisworks Simulate.
Information provided by Autodesk (www.autodesk.com).
PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
environment
Green infrastructure grants

Community-based green roof projects expected to manage more than 6 million gallons of stormwater.
Six community-based stormwater management projects were

selected to receive more than $3 million in funding through the New
York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Green
Infrastructure Grant program, which will be augmented by nearly
$1 million in matching funds from the recipients. Once completed,
the six projects selected for funding will prevent more than 6
million gallons of stormwater from entering the combined sewer
system each year, thereby helping to reduce sewer overflows into
local waterways.
The grant program will help meet the goals of the New York City
Green Infrastructure Plan, which aims to capture the first inch of rain
that falls on 10 percent of the city’s impervious surfaces in combined
sewer areas through a combination of city-built projects in streets and
sidewalks, regulations for new development and redevelopment, and
retrofits of existing development, including through the grant program.
A new round of grant funding will be made available in 2015 for
private property owners throughout the city, including commercial
buildings, private schools and hospitals, and community and faith-
The Gowanus Arts Rooftop Farm will consist of a large green roof installation
based organizations. including vegetable gardens, as well as significant areas of riverstone blue roof to
retain and slow the flow of stormwater from the roof.
“By soaking up rainwater, these projects will help to reduce pollution
in our local waterways, including the East River, Gowanus Canal, and Gowanus Arts Rooftop Farm, Park Slope/Gowanus, Brooklyn —
Jamaica Bay,” said DEP Commissioner Emily Lloyd. “From Ozone The Gowanus Arts Building is a three-story former soap factory
Park to Melrose to Sunset Park, we are thrilled to contribute funding with a 6,000-square-foot roof area. The building is owned by a
to these projects that will provide many additional benefits for local small partnership of individuals committed to promoting arts in
residents, including a greener landscape and cleaner air.” the neighborhood. This project will consist of a large green roof
installation including vegetable gardens, as well as significant areas
This was the fourth year of the Green Infrastructure Grant Program. of riverstone blue roof to retain and slow the flow of stormwater
In total, DEP has committed more than $13.2 million in funding to 33 from the roof. The vegetable gardens will be used and enjoyed by the
partners, who in turn have contributed $6.4 million in matching funds. building tenants, most notably Spoke the Hub, which has a children’s
Notable completed projects include a 43,400-square-foot rooftop farm nutrition, healthy eating, and cooking program. The project will
at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and a series of permeable pavers and rain manage 6,000 square feet of impervious area and more than 9,300
gardens at the Queens College campus. gallons of stormwater during each storm. It is located within the
Gowanus Canal watershed.
Preference for grant funding is given to applicants that can provide
cost-effective stormwater controls, matching funds or other in-kind Madani Halal Rooftop Farm, Ozone Park, Queens — Madani Halal is an
contributions, and other community benefits such as increased shade, industrial abattoir and meat-processing facility. The proposed project
decreased energy use for cooling buildings, increased awareness about will involve installation of intensive green roof vegetable gardens on
stormwater management and water quality, and opportunities for two of the property’s roofs. The green roofs will manage 6,400 square
workforce development and/or community stewardship. feet of impervious area and almost 9,000 gallons of stormwater. It is
located within the Jamaica Bay watershed.
The 2014 Green Infrastructure Grant winners are:

Paradise on Earth Community Garden, Morrisania/Melrose, Bronx
— The New York Restoration Project’s (NYRP) Paradise on Earth
Community Garden is located within the East River watershed and is
comprised of three abutting lots totaling approximately 10,807 square
feet. The garden renovation will include retrofitting existing features
into permeable paving and rain gardens/vegetated swales. NYRP’s
goals for the garden renovation include facilitating environmental
education, supporting urban agriculture, providing a green oasis for
the community, hosting local artist and cultural events, in addition to
filtering and reducing stormwater flows. The project will manage more
than 6,500 square feet of impervious area and approximately 15,000
gallons of stormwater.
Salmar Building Roof Meadow, Sunset Park, Brooklyn — The Salmar

Building is a privately owned, mixed commercial/industrial building
Montefiore’s green roof project will be constructed atop a parking garage that is wedged between 3rd Avenue and the NY Harbor waterfront. The
located adjacent to a 28-story residential building.
project is located within the Gowanus Canal watershed and consists
Montefiore Moses Campus, Norwood, Bronx — Montefiore’s green of the installation of a semi-intensive green roof, with 5.5-inch-
roof project will be constructed atop a parking garage that is located deep green roof media spread across a total area of 61,050 square
adjacent to a 28-story residential building currently utilized to house feet. The meadow plant mix will be varied to ensure longevity and
Montefiore’s Residents/House Staff. The design includes both extensive sustainability, and plants that grow best on the roof will be allowed to
and intensive green roof systems that will be accessible to residents. flourish as others die back. The featured plant on the roof will be native
The extensive areas will be provided in a pre-planted unitized tray blue lupine (Lupinus polyphyllus), which is a common northeastern
system. The intensive areas will be comprised of custom fabricated alpine perennial flower that is known to flourish in harsh climates with
planters with integrated seating. As the largest provider of health care mediocre soils. The project will manage 150,000 square feet, or almost
in the Bronx, Montefiore is committed to treating their patients and 3.5 acres, of impervious area and 105,000 gallons of stormwater.
community holistically. The project is located within the East River
watershed and will manage 24,000 square feet of impervious area and
more than 15,000 gallons of stormwater.
Lafayette is a new construction project that will incorporate a green roof on the
3rd floor roof. The inaccessible space will be cultivated as a habitat node for
pollinators. Photo: Two Trees Management
Lafayette Construction, LLC, Ft. Greene/Downtown, Brooklyn —

Lafayette is a new construction project that will incorporate a green
roof on the third floor roof. The project consists of an extensive green
roof system. This space will not be directly accessible to residents or
visitors but will be visible from a public lobby and the residential units
above. Due to the inaccessible nature of the space, the project will be
cultivated as a habitat node for pollinators. The project will manage
15,500 square feet of impervious area and manage more than 9,500
gallons of stormwater within the East River watershed.
The Paradise on Earth Community Garden renovation will include retrofitting Information provided by the New York City Department of Environmental
existing features into permeable paving and rain gardens/vegetated swales. Protection (www.nyc.gov/dep).

PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
residential/land development
AECOM and Hugh Broughton Architects won a Royal Institute of British Architects international
competition to design Halley VI with a futuristic, modular design. Hydraulic legs lift the station out
of the snow and, attached to giant skis, make relocation possible. Photo: Courtesy of AECOM
Arctic living
Futuristic design of British Antarctic Survey’s modular,
AECOM and Hugh Broughton Architects won a Royal Institute of
British Architects international competition to design Halley VI with a
futuristic, modular design. Designed to lift itself out of rising snow, the
facility is one of the most technically complex buildings ever delivered
mobile base signals a new dawn for polar research. in the earth’s harshest climate. On the world’s edge, Halley VI is the
By Peter Ayres, BEng, CEng, MICE, MIStructE BAS’s most southerly station, located on a floating, 500-foot-thick ice
shelf, with snow levels rising 5 feet annually, winter temperatures as
The task was daunting: The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) was low as 69 degrees below freezing, and wind speeds of 100 miles per
charged with performing pioneering earth science research in the hour. Hydraulic legs lift the station out of the snow and, attached to
extreme environment of Antarctica, where snow levels change and the giant skis, make relocation possible.
ice pack shifts. Halley VI — the world’s first permanently manned,
wholly mobile Antarctic research station — has achieved that objective Technical challenges
and ushers in a new age for polar research, design, and architecture. The technical challenges in designing Halley VI were formidable, given
considerations of logistics, extreme cold, rising snow, moving ice,
Britain’s first four Antarctic bases, dating back to 1956, were often narrow construction windows, environmental protocols, and financial
buried by snow. Halley V was the first facility to stay above it, but by constraints. The hydraulic legs and ski attachment form the building’s
being locked into the shelf and unable to move, there was a growing foundation and allow each module to be relocated. Snow modeling
risk that the ice would break, setting the base adrift. For the next- analysis and site testing using scale models defined the distinctive
generation station, mobility was deemed essential. alignment of the modules perpendicular to the prevailing wind. This

Assembly work was restricted to the Antarctic’s two-month summer window. With A high level of design coordination ensured that all the components from a large
the basic structural frame being mobile, a production line was formed to install number of global suppliers fit together when assembled onsite. Photo: Courtesy of
services, flooring, room pads, and cladding. Photo: Courtesy of AECOM AECOM
minimized the impact of snow accumulation immediately beneath the addition to the hydraulic legs on skis, a unique, aerodynamic design
base, reducing the maintenance needed to keep the station operational. optimizes snow management.
Almost all of the components of Halley VI were prefabricated, which The base features glazing from the aerospace industry. Translucent
reduced assembly time. Products were sourced largely from the U.K. nanoaerogel panels, the most thermally efficient material available,
and Europe. The center of preconstruction was in South Africa, where were used extensively, reducing energy loss. Flexible connectors from
full-scale trial erection and testing of the modules were undertaken the rail industry, modified for the cold climate, also have been used to
prior to shipping. The cladding and steelwork also were sourced from connect the station’s modules. Standardization of parts and innovative
South Africa. design of on-platform storage have reduced from 20 to four the number
of storage containers required to service the base.
Components were delivered to the Antarctic by ice-strengthened cargo
ship and then on skis across fragile sea-ice just over 3 feet thick. This Highly insulated pods are used for activities ranging from research
meant that nothing heavier than 6.5 tons could be delivered in one to recreation. The modules are clad in 9-inch-thick, closed-cell,
piece, with onsite delivery and work restricted to the Antarctic’s two- polyisocyanurate foam insulation, helping to keep out extreme
month summer window. With the basic structural frame being mobile, cold. Air infiltration is 100 times better than current U.K. Building
a production line was formed to install services, flooring, room pads, Regulation limits.
and cladding. A high level of design coordination ensured that all the
components from a large number of global suppliers fit together when Construction of Halley VI was carried out in two stages, allowing
assembled onsite. for extensive research and development, as well as engagement with
international experts and suppliers. Because of the considerable
Since the facility was launched in 2013, the ability to relocate the base effort put forth in the pre-contract phase, it was possible to begin
has been tested successfully. The modules, each weighing as much as construction with the assurance that the design innovations were tried
220 tons, have been pulled 10 miles by bulldozers from the site of and tested, with a thorough understanding and management of the
Halley V to the new location. The new design is significantly more project risks.
efficient than its predecessors. Lifting the base out of snow can now
be carried out by two people in a week. Previously, it took six steel Sustainability considerations
workers two months to prepare the structural frame necessary to lift Halley VI is the first British research station to be built since
the old Halley V platforms. This, as well as other innovations, has introduction of the Environmental Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty.
drastically reduced onsite maintenance. Providing safety and comfort, the base is split in two, with each
half potentially self-sustaining. A bridge allows sharing of drainage
New technologies and innovations and water to improve efficiency. Vacuum drainage, energy-efficient
Halley VI not only used innovations designed specifically for the project, equipment, and sewage treatment help minimize its environmental
but also employed technologies transferred from other industries. In impact. Energy consumption per square foot is 26 percent lower

Since the facility was launched in 2013, the modules have been pulled 10 miles by
bulldozers from the site of Halley V to the new location. Photo: Courtesy of AECOM
than for Halley V, and water consumption on the base is less than 15 affective disorder, supporting residents during the long winters. The
gallons per person, per day, less than one third of the average used by central pod is designed to provide a comfortable social living space
a U.K. resident. that can flexibly accommodate as many as 60 people during the
summer months. Large areas of high-performance glazing bring the
The station also features the latest energy-saving technology, including outdoors inside, providing insulation and stunning views across the ice.
bioreactors for sewage treatment and two-stage incinerators for clean Naturally scented timber veneers remind residents living in a landscape
burning of certain types of waste. The combination of a well-insulated, without trees of an altogether different natural environment.
sealed enclosure; combined heat and power; precisely controlled
energy balance; and low-energy equipment ensures efficient water and Steps were taken to enhance safety and avert misfortune. Antarctica’s
fuel consumption around the clock. harsh conditions make it a difficult, even dangerous, place to live and
work. With the nearest hospital more than 1,000 miles and up to three
Halley VI was designed to be a visitor to Antarctica, not a resident. weeks away, even a minor incident can have serious consequences.
Low on environmental impact during construction, with an extremely Halley VI was completed without a single reportable incident or injury.
efficient, environmentally aware performance life cycle, the facility
can be taken apart when it is time for its decommissioning, leaving With the base on a floating, 500-foot-thick ice sheet, the fluidity creates
nothing behind. the possibility that crevasses, sometimes hundreds of feet deep, might
emerge quickly. Strict regulations and team specialists combined to
The human component neutralize those hazards.
The design for Halley VI centered on the need for survivability,
maintainability, and livability. It was conceived to be not only a high- Working in extreme conditions presents problems, including frostbite,
functioning, economical science base, but also a well-crafted social snow blindness, and even sunburn. Personal protective equipment was
space — a home away from home for the dozens of scientists stationed issued to all staff members, backed up by regular briefings on practices
there for as long as 18 months at a time. The design team worked to avoid such perils.
closely with BAS to achieve the project’s goals and the needs of the
people living there. A site-wide safety culture was established. Detailed emergency
procedures were put in place. The team worked with BAS to set up a
Attention to detail was accorded the highest priority. Daybreak full-scale emergency program, testing response capabilities. A logistics
simulation lights and color psychology were used to counter seasonal manager was appointed to offer advice on adverse weather conditions,

Halley VI was designed to be a high-functioning, economical science base, as well as The central pod is designed to provide a comfortable social living space that can
a well-crafted social space — a home away from home for the dozens of scientists flexibly accommodate as many as 60 people during the summer months. Photo:
stationed there for as long as 18 months at a time. Photo: Courtesy of AECOM Courtesy of AECOM
and daily and weekly safety reports were made and inspections The vast, unspoiled landscape of Antarctica provides a unique
conducted, ensuring that all activities were closely monitored. environment for the study of critical earth system science. The location
Reporting of near misses was encouraged and staff members were told allows scientists to look into the earth’s upper atmosphere as well as
to stop a job at any time if they felt that they, or others, were at risk. deep into space. One of the 20th century’s most significant discoveries
— evidence of a man-made depletion of the earth’s ozone layer —
With outdoor activities restricted, measures were taken to provide the was made at Halley IV in 1985. Conceivably, a discovery of similar
staff with indoor forms of diversion. Activities ranged from movie magnitude might be forthcoming from Halley VI.
evenings to spinning classes, from folk nights to barbecues.
PETER AYRES, BENG, CENG, MICE, MISTRUCTE, is AECOM Haley VI Design Team
director, London, U.K.
CORROSION RESISTANT AND HIGH STRENGTH

STEEL GRADE CHART
REINFORCING STEELS BY MMFX
MMFX Steel introduces a family of steel alloys providing high strength with
PRICE
% Grade
Cr ksi varying levels of corrosion resistance under its ChrōmX brand name.
CORROSION RESISTANCE
9120 ChrōmX 9100® (formally MMFX2®) rebar provides uncoated, corrosion

resistance 5X that of black steel.
9100 ChrōmX 4100® rebar offers high strength with mid-level corrosion protection.
4120
ChrōmX 2100® Series rebar is our most cost competitive solution for non-
corrosive applications.
4100
Mat Foundations,
Foundations Shear Walls,
Walls Confinement Ties,
Ties
2100
Drilled
i Shafts, Bridges,
i Precast Beams.
Learn more at
www.mmfx.com
Call us (866) 466-7878

PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
residential/land development
Figure 1: Thule Air Base is located in the northwestern corner of Greenland.
Living and working on In the early 1950s, the United States secretly and quickly constructed
top of the world

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers maintains Arctic Air Base to
Thule Air Base, located in the northwestern corner of Greenland in the
Arctic Circle (see Figure 1). In record time, massive amounts of supplies,
equipment, and 120,000 men were transported to Thule to construct the
base. This enormous effort, which included the U.S. Army Corps of
support national security. Engineers, was an incredible feat fueled by the country’s security needs.
By JoAnne Castagna, Ed.D.

For decades, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New York District has constructed facilities for the
base under extreme Arctic conditions. These projects have included aircraft runways, dormitories, Cable Inspection with
and medical centers. Presently, they are constructing two much-needed dormitories.
BlueView 3D Sonar
Are Your
“These new dormitories will help to provide airmen with the quality of life they deserve on a difficult
assignment to Thule Air Base in the Arctic Circle,” said New York District Commander Col. Paul
Owen. “Thule’s remoteness and harsh climate restricts all personnel assigned there to live on base,
Cables
which is why it’s so important to provide top notch housing facilities.”
Thule Air Base — “Two Lee” — is the U.S. Armed Forces’ northernmost installation that was
Exposed?
established to perform national security. The Air Force performs several missions there, including
monitoring U.S. airspace for foreign missiles.
To perform these missions, hundreds of active-duty U.S. Air Force personnel and American,
Danish, and Greenlandic civilian contractors are stationed there. Quality housing is needed for these
individuals to keep them safe from the harsh weather and to keep their morale up in this remote area
of the world.
Both of the new dormitories were designed by the Army Corps New York District and are being Exposed
constructed by Danish contractors with Army Corps supervision. Greenland is a province of Denmark. cable
The dorms will be ready for occupation in 2015 and are replacing old structures constructed in the
1950s that have seen wear from the harsh arctic climate.
One of the dorms will house 54 people and is being constructed by Contractor MT Højgaard Gronland
A/S of Søborg, Denmark; the other will house 48 people and is being constructed by Contractor
Pilegaard-Henriksen of Denmark.
BV5000 3D Mechanical
Scanning Sonar
Please visit
www.blueview.com
for free sample data and
for further information!
MnDOT case study video:

www.youtube.com/watch?
v=aD686zjcfaQ&feature=youtu.be
Thule Air Base, Greenland, is located in the Arctic. Photo: JoAnne Castagna, Public Affairs, New York
District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Prefabricated materials for this 54-person dormitory include concrete foundations, Because of permafrost, both dorms are being constructed with special Arctic
structural steel, insulated metal walls, and roof panels. Photo: JoAnne Castagna, Public foundations with spread footings that are about 10 feet deep and concrete columns that
Affairs, New York District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers elevate the floor system above the ground. Photo: JoAnne Castagna, Public Affairs,
New York District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
The dorms will house junior and senior non-commissioned officers During the rest of the year, there is no sunlight and the weather is too
visiting or on temporary duty. Both dorms will be three stories. Rooms severe to work outdoors. Temperatures can drop as low as minus 30
will be divided into four-bedroom modules with individual bathrooms, degrees Fahrenheit.
walk-in closets, a shared social space, housekeeping areas, and laundry
rooms on each floor. There is also a common area day room with a It is also only during the summer months that shipments of building
kitchen with appliances in the center on each floor with large windows materials and fuel can be received via cargo ship. During the summer,
overlooking the base, providing occupants with a place to relax and Greenland’s iced shipping lanes can be broken up to allow supply ships
socialize. into port. Greenland is locked in by ice nine months out of the year.
Arctic construction challenges Since work needs to be performed rapidly, most of the building materials
Construction in the Arctic can be challenging because of severe are prefabricated elsewhere before being shipped in. Prefabricating
weather and limited daylight, which requires the use of unique building the parts helps the workers to rapidly perform the construction. These
techniques and fast-paced construction. The dorms are being constructed materials include concrete foundations, structural steel, insulated metal
using techniques that will help them withstand the harsh Arctic elements, walls, and roof panels.
including special arctic foundations, steel frames, insulated panel
exteriors, and pitched metal roofs. The dorms’ outer shells must be completed so that interior work is
not interrupted during the winter months. This interior work includes
One of the challenges is ice. Most of northern Greenland is covered with constructing mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection
permafrost — permanently frozen ground, ranging from 6 to 1,600 feet systems that are designed to withstand extreme frigid sub-zero
in depth. Because of permafrost, both dorms are being constructed with temperatures.
a special, elevated Arctic foundation. If buildings are not constructed off
of the ground, the heat from inside the building can melt the permafrost, Many things about Thule Air Base remain unchanged since the Air Force
making the ground unstable and causing buildings to sink. Buildings are arrived in the 1950s — harsh weather conditions, the importance of the
elevated with the use of spread footings that are about 10 feet deep and base to our national security, and the dedication of the men and women
concrete columns that support the floor system above the ground. who serve our nation. However, construction of two dormitories for
our dedicated service members and contractors is a welcome change!
Another challenge is limited daylight. Because of Thule’s proximity to
the North Pole, it has 24 hours of sunlight from May thru August and 24 JOANNE CASTAGNA, ED.D., is a public affairs specialist and writer for the U.S.
hours of darkness from November thru February. Therefore, construction Army Corps of Engineers, New York District. She can be reached at joanne.
is limited to the summer and autumn months, May thru October, because [email protected].
there is sufficient sunlight and temperatures are bearable to work in.
Temperatures can reach 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

SPONSORED BY
WEBCAST Every Engineering Project

Begins with Data Acquisition
SERIES
Ron Gant Derricke Gray
Industry Marketing Director, Roads Product Manager, Bentley Civil Americas
Bentley Systems, Inc. Bentley Systems, Inc.
Bob Drake
Editor in-Chief
Civil+Structural Engineer
Join our webcast to see how existing data from virtually

any source can be included in your preliminary and final
engineering, empowering more informed decisions. OpenRoads
enables information from traditional surveys, GPS, point clouds,
CAD graphics, photogrammetry, contour maps and more. Raw data
can be imported, reduced and verified for accuracy. OpenRoads
facilitates building hybrid intelligent models from disparate data
into workable 3D topography for your design decisions. Also
see new tools for creating Subsurface Utility models, as well as the
latest technology for using 3D imagery for design.
Learning objectives for the data acquisition webcast include the

following:
• See how to use Point Clouds for preliminary and final designs
• Learn to easily merge traditional survey data with point clouds
• Discover how Bentley and Trimble work together to provide
an integrated solution from preliminary concept to design to
construction
• Hear user successes in building hybrid models
• Understand the importance of knowing your data source.
Airing on April 23, 2015 @ 12pm CT 1

Register today or view the archive at PDH
www.cenews.com/webcasts
PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
transportation
SUPER structures
Tough, two-span bridge still usable after severe shaking in
quake engineering test.
Engineers have demonstrated that bridges built with innovative materials

and designs are not only still standing, but usable in the aftermath of a strong
earthquake or hurricane. In a large-scale experiment that ended Feb. 6 at the
University of Nevada, Reno’s Earthquake Engineering Laboratory, a bridge
withstood multiple simulated earthquakes and showed little signs of stress.
The bridge design is the culmination of years of testing and simulations.
“We have solved the problem of survivability. We can keep a bridge Engineering students at the University of Nevada, Reno’s Earthquake Engineering
Laboratory watch as a large-scale bridge model is shaken to test innovative new materials
usable after a strong earthquake,” said M. Saiid Saiidi, Ph.D., P.E., civil with shape memory alloys such as nickel titanium and copper-aluminum-manganese
engineering professor. “With these techniques and materials, we will alloys. The new designs and materials allow bridges to remain in use following large
usher in a new era of super earthquake-resilient structures.” earthquakes or hurricanes. Photo: Mike Wolterbeek, University of Nevada, Reno
The 50-ton, 70-foot-long higher seismic-performing bridge, designed The shape memory alloys, in contrast to steel rebar used in conventional
of precast concrete columns and beams, was built atop three, 14-foot construction, are super-elastic. They can be distorted about 20 times as
by 14-foot, 50-ton-capacity hydraulically driven shake tables. It was much as the steel components they replace before they reach their elastic
shaken Feb. 6, 2015, in a simulated earthquake, mimicking the large limits. They are expensive, but the shake table experiments show where
ground motions of the deadly and damaging 1994 Northridge, Calif., they can best be deployed to keep costs down while keeping bridges up.
earthquake. Researchers used 230 sensors and gauges to monitor the Saiidi introduced the copper-aluminum manganese alloy, which is more
stresses on the bridge and its components. easily machined, as an alternative to the higher-cost titanium.
“It had an incredible 9 percent drift with little or no damage,” Saiidi said. In the first phase of the project, with three different quarter-scale
“I’m excited to see the results and pleased with how well the bridge modular bridge columns, the models were disassembled, inspected,
performed under extreme conditions. We subjected this bridge to a series and reassembled six times — once for each test. All models exhibited
of earthquakes, took it apart, and reassembled it before the final experiment. minimal or no damage despite drifts exceeding 6 percent.
There’s a lot of data analysis ahead of us, but the initial result shows success.”
These accelerated bridge construction (ABC) method experiments are
The bridge moved more than 6 inches off center at the base and returned also part of the university’s national Tier-1 Transportation Center project
to its original position, as designed, in an upright and stable position. in the College of Engineering led by Florida International University,
Using the computer-controlled hydraulics, the lab can increase the which, along with Iowa State University, will study other aspects of
intensity of the recorded earthquake. Saiidi turned the dial up to 250 bridge technology.
percent of the design parameters and still had excellent results.
Through the Florida grant, this project will be expanded and integrated
“This is a highly impulsive earthquake that we simulate,” he said. “It is within with the ultimate goal of widespread implementation of the technology
10 miles of the earthquake fault that shook Northridge and the Los Angeles in areas with high potential for seismic events, hurricanes, and storms,
area in 1994. This earthquake tends to push the bridge to one side, causing a among other disasters, that could affect bridges.
permanent tilt. The innovative materials we use help bring the bridge back to
upright position. The simulated earthquake is 10 seconds long.” Seattle showcase
The first real-life application of Saiidi’s materials and techniques is the
This bridge combines shape memory alloys, such as nickel-titanium construction of a showcase bridge in downtown Seattle. The 400-foot-
and copper-aluminum bars, with rubber and carbon fiber shells around long bridge, part of the tunnel project that bypasses the downtown area,
the columns and includes special fibers in the concrete to ensure that it will use shape memory alloys and spliced connections pioneered in past
remains operational even after devastating earthquakes. experiments conducted by Saiidi.
The novel materials and techniques used in this experiment are the He has been working closely with bridge engineers in the Washington
culmination of nearly 12 years of testing and computer simulations, with State Department of Transportation in design of the elevated on-ramps at
six large-scale bridge models, some as long as 110 feet and weighing 100 the ends of the tunnel on State Route 99. They planned to break ground on
tons. The bridge design also has the unique feature that allows it to be the project in March. This is the first time any shape memory alloys have
disassembled and reused instead of heading for the dump when it is obsolete. been implemented in any bridge project anywhere in the United States.

ENGINEERS
AN
CH
OR
U CTURAL STEEL •CO
• TR
S•
LD
A LLS -FO
CON
RM
MAKE THE WORLD GO ‘ROUND

W
L•
I SE ED
O
C
TRO
RETE F
ST
•
EE
ON
RS
L•
IE
NT C
ORMS • PRECAST CON
• FO
RR
ST
ONCRE
S•C
RU
A
R TE
•B
E
UND
HO
CTUR
F
RETE • EROSION AND SEDIM
C
TED
O
ALL
ATIONS • HARDWARE
RM
•A
AL MONITO
IES • PREFABRICA
URES • RETAINING W
S • PRECAS
STADIUMS
R
CO
C
ING
NCRETE •
N•
RET
IG
•W
E•
ACCESSOR
ES
O
ERO
D
D
• AS
LE •H
UCT
B
NA
NC
YD
SIO
AI R
P
T AULIC
S • SUS
STR
H
T CO
ALT
AND
AN
ED
CAS
•P
AT
SE
PIPE
IP
C
RE
DI
RI
EA
M
B
•P
FA
EN
ND
•
CO
LT
T
S
PR
RM
AC
• N
HA
ES TR
CE
FO
I OL
P
OR
S
SS
S •F
•A
TE
ES
O
C UN O
RE
RI
AC
E
DA
ES
NC
D
AR
AN TIO
PIPE NS
•
CO
DW
• HAR
PR
DWARE • ASPHALT • AB
EF
•
R
R
HA
O RI
H CA
NC
•
TE
S
A D
N
IO
AT
D
UN
50% OFF
FO
order now for the cover price
click here to purchase click here to purchase

a PRINT & DIGITAL a DIGITAL ONLY
subscription for $25 subscription for $10
Contact us at 1-800-466-6275 for more information or to place your order by phone.

DID YOU KNOW?
Zweig Group offers a full portfolio of products and services designed
to help ENGINEERING FIRMS become industry leaders.
Strategic Planning In-House Training
Mergers & Acquisitions PDH Series
Executive Search Industry Awards
Ownership Transition Conference
Marketing & Business Development The Zweig Letter
Civil + Structural Engineer Magazine Valuation
Seminars Benchmark Surveys
Webcasts Books
Lear n more online at ZWEIGGROUP . COM

or email INFO @ ZWEIGGROUP . COM .
Project+Technology
Transportation
“We are the first state to adopt this new method for bridge construction,” Nevada and two from California — and an advanced materials company
Bijan Khaleghi, state bridge design engineer in the Bridge and Structures from Japan are cooperating with Saiidi on this seismic safety project.
Office, said. “This is a heavily used highway. This is a good approach,
especially for structures in areas with high seismic hazard potential.” The university’s new Earthquake Engineering Laboratory, combined
with the Large-Scale Structures Laboratory, comprise the biggest, most
Khaleghi said he and his agency have collaborated with Saiidi through versatile large-scale structures, earthquake/seismic engineering facility
his work with the National Science Foundation, the Federal Highway in the United States, according to National Institute of Standards and
Administration, and the Transportation Research Board. Technology, and possibly the largest university-based facility of its
kind in the world.
The current study is funded by the National Science Foundation Partnership
for Innovation Program. Four small businesses — two from northern Information provided by the University of Nevada, Reno (www.unr.edu/engineering).
Replicating
historic bridges
Precast concrete curtain wall panels give new structures the
look of old arch bridges.
The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) selected precast

concrete bridge components to replace the aging 15 Mile Creek
Bridge, which spans a 60-foot-deep canyon. The intent of the project
was to construct a new bridge using current technology to replicate
the appearance of the original bridge, an old arch bridge. The $9.4
million, I-84 Corridor, 15 Mile Creek Bridge and barrier replacement
project is part of ODOT’s $1.3 billion State Bridge Delivery Program Decorative precast curtain wall panels suspended from the outside edge of the bridge
are similar to those on other historic structures in the Columbia River Gorge.
for highway improvements.
Wildish Standard Paving Company of Salem, Ore., the general new Moffett Creek Bridge along Oregon’s I-84 Corridor, which was
contractor, contracted Oldcastle Precast-Spokane, Wash., to manufacture similar to this project.
and deliver 26 bulb-tee girders, each 7 feet deep by 150 feet long, and 44
varying sized curtain wall panels with an exterior “stacked stone” form Under its State Bridge Delivery Program for highway improvements,
liner finish to construct the 15 Mile Creek Bridge. The bulb-tee girders ODOT developed a context-sensitive and sustainable solutions (CS3)
are precast, prestressed concrete girders used with a cast-in-place deck. decision-making framework for bridges. This approach combines the
practices of context-sensitive design (stimulate economy; employ
According to Oldcastle, this type of bridge construction provides efficient and cost-effective delivery practices; keep traffic moving; take
the benefits of rapid construction, improved safety for construction community needs, environment, and landscape into consideration; and
personnel and the public, and improved structural performance and capitalize on funding opportunities) with the principles of sustainable
durability. design while improving transportation infrastructure and facilitating
economic development. In other words, providing transportation
The decorative panels suspended from the outside edge of the structure infrastructure that preserves and enhances scenic, aesthetic, and
are similar to those on other historic structures in the Columbia River historic value while improving infrastructure conditions.
Gorge. The precast curtain wall panels, with an exterior “stacked
stone” design, were custom made and installed along the sides of the A major test of the CS3 program involved development of the I-84 corridor
bridge girders to create the arch appearance. The concrete was stained strategy, which provided a framework for revamping infrastructure along
at Oldcastle Precast-Spokane’s plant to mimic the color of the original a section of the interstate that passes through the Columbia River Gorge
stone to simulate an old arch bridge. National Scenic Area. The bridges constructed over 15 Mile Creek and
Moffett Creek were two of 16 bridges updated as part of the strategy.
In addition to the15 Mile Creek Bridge, Oldcastle Precast-Spokane
supplied and delivered the precast concrete bridge components for the Information provided by Oldcastle Precast (www.oldcastleprecast.com).

PROJECT+TECHNOLOGY
Water
Integrated stormwater
management
Combination of underground chambers and an open pond
maximize stormwater storage and leasable retail space.
Toronto Premium Outlets is the first Premium Outlet Center in Canada.

The unenclosed center sits on a 45-acre site approximately 20 minutes
west of Toronto in Halton Hills. Four entrances invite shoppers into
The underground stormwater detention bed comprises 2,782 chambers installed in
a single-level, village-style setting with outdoor pedestrian courtyards 125 rows, providing 272,254 cubic feet of storage.
that provide sufficient coverage for all-weather shopping.
“Integrating a pond and CULTEC’s chambers on the same site was
During the planning stages, engineers from The Odan/Detech Group quite unusual, but it was an innovative way of getting the job done,”
Inc. collaborated with site owners Simon Property Group and Calloway said Mark Harris with The Odan/Detech Group, Inc.
REIT, as well as architects from The Collaborative Inc., to develop
the layout for the mall and surrounding parking lots and a stormwater One major issue engineers faced during the project was determining
management system that would primarily provide detention, but would how to remove sediment that enters the chambers and how the chambers
also allow a portion of the runoff to infiltrate back into the ground after themselves would be maintained. Ultimately, engineers decided to
a rainwater event. install a number of CULTEC Separator Rows as part of the stormwater
chamber system to function as pretreatment as well as infiltration.
To best manage the runoff, project managers determined that a
combination of underground plastic chambers and an open detention Non-woven geotextile was wrapped around a complete row of chambers
pond would provide the best stormwater solution because it would and a polyethylene woven geotextile was placed below them, creating
allow the property owners to efficiently control stormwater while a Separator Row. The Separator Row pretreats runoff by capturing silts
maximizing the amount of leasable space on the site. and fine particles in a single row of chambers prior to runoff overflowing
into the rest of the CULTEC infiltration basin. To help maintain the
Untreated stormwater initially enters the first section of the detention stormwater system, debris can be vacuumed out using a water jet, which
pond through the forebay, where the silt sediment settles out of the backflushes sediment and other debris toward a manhole and sump. A
water to the bottom of the pond. The clean stormwater remains in the hydro-excavtor/vac truck removes the sediment for disposal offsite. In
forebay until there is sufficient volume to flow over into a micro-pool. addition, each Separator Row in this system features two access ports so
Finally, the water slowly drains through a headwall into a natural creek. regular inspection may occur from either end.
With just over 236,000 cubic feet of volume provided by the pond, this
process helps to slow the flow of water as much as possible before it A second design concern was the possibility of erosion. Releasing
outlets into the creek in order to avoid an overflow or erosion problem. water too quickly can alter a water course, affecting the natural wild
and amphibious life that make their home along the creek. Creating
Given the space restrictions of the shallow site and the additional storage a detention pond consisting of a forebay and micro-pool, and using
requirement of 272,000 cubic feet, Odan/Detech Group engineers chose chambers for additional quantity control, helped to slow the progression
to install CULTEC’s Recharger V8HD chambers to detain stormwater of the water flow, thus minimizing any potential erosion or disturbance
onsite. The Recharger V8HD provides a balance of maximizing storage to the water course.
in a small footprint that best satisfies the requirements of the Toronto
Premium Outlets site. Each chamber measures 32 inches high and 60 Vaughn, Ontario-based GeoStorm Inc. supplied the CULTEC
inches wide and has a bare chamber capacity of 8.68 cubic feet per chambers, assisted in design, and oversaw installation. Metric Group,
linear foot. The large bed consists of 2,782 chambers installed in 125 was the installing subcontractor for PCL Constructors.
rows and provides a total of 272,254 cubic feet of storage. In addition,
the V8HD model is able to withstand traffic loading with minimal Information provided by CULTEC (www.cultec.com).
cover – a major site requirement.

Project+Technology
Potable hydropower
Portland Water Bureau installs in-pipe turbines to produce
Water
electricity from gravity-fed flow.

The Portland Water Bureau (PWB) and Lucid Energy, a provider of
renewable energy systems for in-pipe hydropower and smart water
infrastructure, turned one of the city’s major water pipelines into a generator
of renewable energy. The LucidPipe Power System uses the gravity-fed
flow of water inside a PWB pipeline to spin four, 42-inch turbines to
produce electricity for Portland General Electric (PGE) customers under a
20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with the utility.
The system, which was installed at no cost to PWB or the City of

Portland, is the first project in the United States to secure a 20-year PPA
for renewable energy produced by in-pipe hydropower in a municipal
water pipeline. The system was expected to begin full energy production The Portland Water Bureau installed four, 42-inch LucidPipe turbines inside one of its
by April. LucidPipe has been tested and certified by NSF International water pipelines to produce electricity. Photo: Jennifer Newton
to NSF/ANSI Standard 61 for use in potable water systems.
LucidPipe uses a lift-based, vertical-axis spherical turbine that fits

inside 24-inch- to 96-inch-diameter water pipes. Water flows through
the hydrodynamic turbine, generating power as the turbine spins. The
system extracts 1 to 6 psi head pressure per turbine, the company said.
Multiple units can be installed into a single pipeline.
Because of the turbine’s lift-based design, the system generates power

across a wide range of flow conditions, volumes, and velocities,
according to Lucid Energy, and power generated is proportional to the
pipeline water velocity, which typically is 4 to 7 feet per second. In
most cases, it is necessary to reduce the diameter of the pipeline where
a LucidPipe system is installed, which increases water velocity through
the turbine for increased energy output.
“The Water Bureau welcomed the opportunity to explore the innovative LucidPipe uses a lift-based, vertical-axis spherical turbine. Photo: Sherri Kaven
use of a Portland pipe delivering water to create hydroelectric power
as well,” said Water Bureau Administrator David Shaff. “Water and
energy are closely linked. The LucidPipe system provides a way for the
Water Bureau to contribute to generating electricity for our community
in a clean, low-cost, and renewable way.”
The Portland LucidPipe system was fully financed in October 2014

with capital from Harbourton Alternative Energy, a subsidiary of
Harbourton Enterprises. The project will generate approximately $2
million worth of renewable energy capacity over the 20-year PPA
period, enough electricity for more than 150 homes in Portland. PWB
and Harbourton will share the revenue. After 20 years, PWB will have
the right to own the system and all the energy it produces.
“Water agencies are looking for ways to be more energy efficient, energy
utilities are seeking more renewable sources of energy, and investors are
seeking opportunities in smart water and energy infrastructure,” said In most cases, it is necessary to reduce the diameter of the pipeline where a
Gregg Semler, president and CEO of Lucid Energy, Inc. “The industry is LucidPipe system is installed to increase water velocity for increased energy
output. Photo: Sherri Kaven
looking to Portland as an example of how all of these entities can partner
to take advantage of in-pipe hydropower to generate investment returns
and reduce the cost of delivering clean, safe drinking water.” Information provided by Lucid Energy (www.lucidenergy.com).

Sustainable design
Successful sustainable
infrastructure
By Bill Bertera
The idea of sustainability is based in a recognition of finite resources

— that there is just so much of everything to go around and increased
demand by a growing global population for goods and services causes
us to make choices. When considerations of global warming and climate
change are added to the conversation, the argument for minimizing and
reducing our footprint, as reflected in our industrial and agricultural
profile, becomes compelling.
The societal conflicts are immense. The natural tendency to avoid the
worst-case scenarios by simply “doing more with less” or “conserving” Site plan for the Grand Bend Area Wastewater Treatment Facility
begs the question and the issue. It assumes that change can be avoided
or delayed; that we can “adjust” our way around the obvious: There is
less to do more with.
First Envision-verified wastewater
The engineering community saw this coming when it joined with
facility in North America
Harvard University several years ago to develop a tool to help plan The Grand Bend Area Wastewater Treatment Facility, located
for a future where infrastructure investment of all kinds, but especially in Ontario on the shoreline of Lake Huron, earned the Envision
civil infrastructure investment, would need to be related to the realities sustainable infrastructure rating system’s Platinum award.
of supply and demand while being sensitive to other important This project is the first Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure
considerations in infrastructure development. (ISI) Envision verification in Canada, and the first wastewater
facility to be ISI Envision-verified in North America.
Envision is a free, Web-based tool developed to help public- and private-
sector planners, engineers, contractors, and public administrators For the project, the municipalities of Lambton Shores and
produce infrastructure that is both cost effective and sustainable. It can South Huron commissioned Stantec to convert one of four
be used at any point in the life cycle of an infrastructure project and is existing lagoons into an extended aeration mechanical
unique in that it encourages considerations of the triple bottom line in treatment facility and wetland nature reserve. The facility
its application. prevents effluent discharges from adversely impacting
surface and groundwater quality and allows for responsible
As with all new concepts, technologies, and products, there has been community development. Stantec used the ISI Envision
some caution about complete immersion and commitment — a “let’s framework during the design to integrate sustainable
wait and see” to assess whether this is going to catch on before we features throughout the facility.
get too excited. As in all industries, there are leaders who see into the
future and plan for a role in it. Leading engineering, construction, and Key sustainable features include:
architectural firms were among the first to promote the tool with their • a constructed wetland to support native wildlife species
public-sector clients — the owners of most of the civil infrastructure and further buffer treated effluent;
that Envision was designed to address.
• flexible design that makes the facility responsive to
changing sewage flows;
Innovators in the public sector were themselves quick to see the
possibilities for better, more efficient, and effective service delivery • reduced construction and operational costs through a
to voters, taxpayers, ratepayers, and users of all kinds. With little focus on efficiency;
promotion, organizations as geographically dispersed as the New • constructing the project within the boundaries of the
York City Department of Environmental Protection and the County of original facility’s footprint to protect prime farmland; and
Los Angeles Department of Public Works began using Envision on a • trails and interpretive signage to encourage community
variety of projects and discovered an easily available self-assessment visitors.
tool to help them make better decisions.

What both the public and private sector realized and needed was a The marketplace is responding to this need. Both academia and the
way to document that sustainable infrastructure is not just about “doing private sector are beginning to produce tools that work with Envision
good or right.” It is also about making defensible business decisions to make the business case for sustainability more definitive still, to
on behalf of clients and citizens that deliver a positive return on document the economics of good decision-making. These tools show
investment, which creates benefits that are worth paying for and help that “doing the right thing” can often be the most cost-effective thing,
communities get the infrastructure they need and want. that sustainability can involve spending less rather than more, and
that sustainable alternatives often produce benefits that far exceed any
Return on investment is as important a concept in the public sector as additional investment that might be required.
it is in the private, though it is not often articulated in the same way.
Fiscal considerations are always important with the allocation of scarce Successful and sustainable civil infrastructure supports community
public resources, but in addition to the need to be fiscally responsible, goals and creates voter and taxpayer satisfaction. That satisfaction is
public decision-making for infrastructure investment must also meet reflected in increased support for infrastructure bond initiatives, the
other critical tests. Those tests are equally important but more difficult election and reelection of public officials who support infrastructure
to document — and clear success is more difficult to measure. investment, in voter or ratepayer satisfaction surveys, and in overall
confidence in public decision making.
But first, the numbers have to work. If we are going to spend scarce
resources making our infrastructure projects more sustainable, we In the final analysis, successful civil infrastructure, in addition to
have to be able to show that doing so is not just about expense, but being fiscally responsible, must also be responsive to community
also about fiscal benefit. The perception that sustainability is all about values and priorities, protect environmental assets, promote economic
cost and not about parallel benefits is just wrong. The Envision tool wellbeing, and otherwise contribute to a perception and expectation of
helps decision makers recognize that fact. Still, there remains a need a community’s definition of quality of life.
for more specific and definitive tools to prove that point.
BILL BERTERA is president and CEO of the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure
(www.sustainableinfrastructure.org).
Structural Engineers Axiom #7
Professional Liability
®
is essential.
HydroCAD
Stormwater Modeling
Overpaying is not. Preferred by the majority of
the top civil engineering firms
for its broad technical
capabilities and ease-of-use,
It pays to have the right profes- Get a quote — overnight. HydroCAD takes the TR-20
sional liability coverage. But you and TR-55 methodology to
shouldn’t overpay. Visit: the next level, with powerful
www.fenner-esler.com options for outlet devices,
At Fenner & Esler, we’re more pond storage, rainfall
than just brokers. We’re A/E Click “Need a Quote”
libraries, pumps, vortex
specialists. Delivering the right Call toll-free: valves, underground
coverage and value to design 866-PE-PROTEK chambers, CAD import, and
firms of all sizes since 1923. (866-737-7683 x.208) much, much, more.
With multiple insurance carriers. Ask for Tim Esler.
Complete NRCS TR-20, TR-55, SBUH, & Rational hydrology,
And a proven track record Email: plus hydraulics, pond design, chamber layout & much more!
serving the unique risks of [email protected]
structural engineers. HydroCAD is surprisingly affordable, with a unique pricing
structure that lets you expand your node capacity and user-
count as your needs grow. With the extensive Help system,
tutorials, web articles, self-study program, webinars, and
free email support you’ve got all the resources you need to
get the job done right and on-time.
Try our Free HydroCAD Sampler at www.hydrocad.net
HydroCAD Software Solutions LLC, Box 477, Chocorua, NH 03817 1-800-927-7246
S I N C E 1 9 2 3
T H E P RO F E S S I O N A L’ S C H O I C E

materials
Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems Manned Aircraft Design Center of Excellence – A structural steel framing grid was employed with an exterior
Building 228 project reached completion 58 weeks from the start of design to occupancy, and cladding system comprising approximately 400 precast concrete
42 weeks from groundbreaking to occupancy. Photo: The Austin Company/Northrop Grumman panels. Photo: The Austin Company/Northrop Grumman
Schedule-driven Due to the extreme overlapping of design and construction for this
project, it was necessary to devise all building systems to allow for
design
change during construction as final design decisions were made. In
short, engineering and construction proceeded based on the best
information available at the time, and then was adjusted.
Precast concrete cladding and structural steel framing enable
flexible sequencing to meet a compressed construction schedule. To this end, a structural steel framing grid was employed with an
By Tony Su, S.E., P.E., LEED AP; Dan Wiegandt, AIA, LEED AP BD+C; and Jim Robinson, RA exterior cladding system. Use of the exterior skin as load-bearing or
shear elements was not considered because of the required flexibility
In early 2013, Northrop Grumman announced the creation of five Centers requirements described above.
of Excellence around the country to improve its strategic alignment with
customers’ need for increasingly innovative and affordable products, Several veneer cladding systems were considered, such as glass fiber-
services, and solutions. Northrop Grumman selected The Austin reinforced concrete and insulated metal panel. However, these systems
Company to provide architectural design, engineering, and construction lacked the intrusion resistance and outright durability of concrete. The
management services in support of this national program. Northrop exterior walls of this building are required to resist hurricane-force
Grumman’s campus in Melbourne, Fla., was designated as one of the winds, wind-driven rain, and impact by large debris resulting from
five Centers of Excellence — A Manned Aircraft Design Center of high winds. The efficacy of concrete panels was evident.
Excellence. In support of this designation, Northrop Grumman relocated
one of its major manned aircraft programs from Bethpage, N.Y., to the While the building envelope system was being finalized, certain design
Melbourne campus, requiring construction of Building 228. assumptions had to be made in terms of how to support the exterior
cladding system during the structural steel design to meet the aggressive
To meet the target schedule for this relocation, the new 210,000-square- schedule. The precast panels, along with the glazing system, had to be
foot building would have to be implemented in just over one year. designed to withstand components and cladding wind pressures of up
The approach required flexibility to develop design and engineering to approximately 100 pounds per square foot due to the ultimate design
drawings out of traditional sequence. A project-specific Risk Points and wind speed of 150 mph, as required per Florida Building Code.
Mitigation Measures Plan helped identify potential risk factors, with a
Work Package Control Schedule serving as the project “guidebook” Overall, approximately 400 pieces of precast panels were used,
and work plan for design, engineering, and procurement activities. including the service yard enclosure panels. Most floor-to-floor solid
panels were stacking and self-supporting by gravity on the concrete
Austin’s design and engineering team was driven by the construction pad footings, while connected to the slab-on-grade and the floor deck
schedule and maintained close coordination with Austin’s Construction for transferring the lateral (wind) forces. Spandrel panels and column
Management team. Following this fast-track schedule, the project panels were supported by the exterior steel beams and columns. A few
reached completion 58 weeks from the start of design to occupancy, panels were supported on the elevated floor deck, due to the unique
and 42 weeks from groundbreaking to occupancy. building enclosure configuration at certain locations.
Construction sequencing was devised so that the early shipments of Building information modeling (Revit) was used to coordinate every
concrete panels were being erected before the structural frame erection single connection between the precast panels and the structural steel. Not a
was complete. This approach required careful selection of support single significant structural steel modification was made to accommodate
details and field coordination. the precast panel connection in the field. A number of openings were
also carefully coordinated on certain panels to allow the structural steel
penetrations to support the canopies at the building entrances.
A particularly unique challenge occurred during construction. The
building includes a technology on the roof to support program functions
relating to the user program. As the structural steel was being erected
(more than 65 percent complete), the program team determined that the
three large main air handler penthouses atop three building perimeter
circulation towers were going to interfere with this technology — the
towers could not exceed the height of the parapet on the balance of the
building and the air handlers would have to move.
The A/E team quickly accommodated the air handlers within the building
without compromise to the functional layout of the building floors and
reworked the distribution ductwork. A few, very limited structural steel
Use of architectural panels with the long dimension horizontal allowed for panelization changes were made, precast panels revised in fabrication, and “no one
consistent with the overall aesthetic, and allowed for pleasing joint and reveal locations was the wiser” to an otherwise major design change. Not one day in
without increasing material cost. Photo: The Austin Company/Northrop Grumman
schedule was lost.
The architectural precast panels were of the insulated type, which LEED certification
reduced thermal conductance. Managing the shop drawing submittal The Building 228 project is striving for LEED Silver certification
process on an aggressive schedule while not sacrificing the thermal and required a high level of energy efficiency to obtain the necessary
value of the panels was challenging, but ultimately successful. performance criteria. The site, a reclaimed brownfield, effectively
manages stormwater discharge in terms of quality and discharge rates,
Building design provides priority parking for fuel-efficient vehicles, and reduces the
With an anticipated 50-plus-year building life and changing program heat island effect by means of concrete pavement in lieu of asphalt.
assignments, the facility design affords a high degree of internal Landscaping irrigation is provided by a municipal gray-water system.
flexibility, capacity, and security.
The precast panels were continuously insulated from edge to edge
Internal flexibility is provided by three large floor plates and the location to meet ASHRAE 90-1 requirements for continuous insulation. The
of building support cores at the building perimeter, rather than at the center inner and outer concrete faces were connected thru the insulation with
of the floors. Lab and a portion of the office areas are located on access a series of non-metallic composite ties. This formed a robust structural
flooring to facilitate utility delivery and spatial reconfiguration. Partitions concrete-insulation-concrete sandwich with excellent thermal qualities.
are located on-module to minimize disruption in future reconfigurations. The composite ties prevent the transfer of thermal energy through the
insulation that is typical with metal ties. This contributed to the overall
Security is viewed from two perspectives — physical access to and within high thermal efficiency of the precast wall panels. The joints between
the building; and protecting the building, its occupants, and sophisticated panels used spray foam to provide continuity of the insulation and were
equipment from potentially harsh Florida hurricanes and flooding. caulked to provide a weather-tight joint.
From an aesthetic standpoint, the use of architectural panels with the long BIM was used to locate and coordinate the panel and connection
dimension horizontal allowed for a panelization consistent with the overall design. The structural steel model was utilized as a reference to attach
aesthetic, and allowed for pleasing joint and reveal locations without the precast design. Several coordination meetings were held “virtually”
increasing material cost. Both architectural and functional elements are so that team members from multiple locations could participate to
employed to achieve this result and include a rhythm of architectural expedite the shop drawing creation and review process.
precast concrete and fenestration with horizontal lights and sunshades.
Successful outcome
Exterior architectural precast panels run laterally and are designed with Nearly 1,400 construction tradesmen worked on the project up to 18
strong horizontal reveals and decorative metal banding to emphasize the hours a day in shifts, six days a week, over the course of the project. At
horizontality. Windows utilize low-e high-performance and hurricane any time, more than 300 construction tradesmen and supervisors were
projectile-resistant heavily tinted blue glazing. Concrete panels omit glazing working on the project’s construction.
altogether in areas of highest security and instead utilize a ribbed pattern
design. A prominent roof feature is the 80-foot-diameter specialized aircraft Building 228 is a true demonstration of what can be accomplished when
equipment enclosure, which shields equipment visually and functionally. a team focuses on what can be done, and not on what cannot be done.
Project challenges TONY SU, S.E., P.E., LEED AP, is chief structural engineer with The Austin Company.
The project also mandated innovative approaches for the specific He can be contacted at, [email protected]. DAN WIEGANDT, AIA, LEED
technology required. The unique integration and simulation lab conditions AP BD+C, is manager of engineering with The Austin Company. He can be
to support the user program placed special requirements on the building contacted at [email protected]. JIM ROBINSON, RA, is senior architect
and project manager with The Austin Company. He can be contacted at jim.
across multiple MEP, architectural, and structural systems.
[email protected].

Materials
Structure meets
architecture
Extending the use of precast, post-tensioned, and prestressed concrete,
August Komendant helped turn abstract ideas into monuments.
By Rick Wilmath
August Komendant may not be a name that triggers immediate recall,

but his signature is all over some of the monuments of the 20th century.
He was a structural engineer who immigrated to the United States from
Europe and brought advanced concrete methods and analysis with
him. If that was all he did, he would be a distinguished member of the
engineering community, but he went much further. It is fair to say that Habitat 67 features 158 apartments placed on top of each other and set back, like a
pyramid. Photo: Timothy Hursley
if he had not been at Louis Kahn’s side, the well-known architect might
have slipped beneath the waves unnoticed by the public and architects. create an amazing ceiling in which light came in through the light wells
Louis Kahn was a prominent architect before he met Komendant, but at the four corners and echoed the vaults of the great cathedrals.
their collaboration transformed his reputation into that of a genius.
The Salk Institute for Biological Studies was the next big project
Komendant was born in Estonia in 1906 and received his engineering for Kahn, and Komendant was right at his side from the start. Post-
degree at the technical institute in Dresden, Germany. His early engineering tensioned concrete was just getting started in the United States.
included a stint working for General Patton, examining buildings and Builders and building inspectors were new to this type of structure, but
bridges at the end of World War II. He later said he acquired much Komendant was able to shepherd his plans through building officials
knowledge from those inspections that went beyond accepted theory. with a mix of grace and bulletproof analysis to get the permit.
His first association with Kahn was with the Medical Research In 1966, Komendant collaborated with Moshe Safdie to create an
Laboratory in Philadelphia in 1957. incredible apartment complex in Montreal. Safdie was only 28 years
old and Habitat 67 (www.habitat67.com) was his first building. The
Komendant was one of the first engineers to use precast and post- apartment complex, an astounding sight and a structural marvel, was
stressing in a multistory frame building by creating one of the first built entirely out of prefabricated components.
entirely precast buildings in the United States. Even the columns were
post-tensioned. In this building he designed a structural system based Going into the design phase of Habitat, Safdie was unsure about the
on the Vierendeel truss, which had been used in Europe but was new structure of the building. There were different ways to accomplish
to America. He designed a two-way structural system in which there prefab, including building a frame and inserting apartment modules.
are two long Vierendeel trusses in one direction and smaller Vierendeel Safdie thought having each module contribute to the overall structure
trusses connected with post-tensioning in the other direction. During was the way to go and asked Komendant about it. After studying the
this period, architects wanted to have the structure of the building plans, Komendant declared, “Yes it can be done.” Safdie later referred
clearly visible. This building does this in an interesting and elegant to that as “the famous, ‘Yes it can be done’” because engineers who
way by exposing the trusses at a corner at the entrance. With that followed told him that it couldn’t be done. Safdie also said unequivocally
orientation, one sees the trusses coming together. that without Komendant, Habitat wouldn’t have been built.
Komendant often went way beyond the normal role of an engineer. Habitat 67 features 158 apartments placed on top of each other and
If he saw something that didn’t look right, especially if it looked set back, like a pyramid. But this could hardly be called an ordinary
structurally wrong, he would bring it to Kahn’s attention. Kahn didn’t array because some apartments are moved forward, some back, some
always appreciate the often unsolicited advice but usually accepted it. up, some down, and a few straddle the space between two apartments.
Safdie wanted this arrangement so that each apartment could have an
In 1959, Komendant helped with both the engineering and design of outdoor space, which was actually on top of the module below. The
the First Unitarian Church in Rochester, N.Y. Kahn had delineated design was unique but the brave part was making each module an
the spaces but could not figure out what to do with the roof. He had inherent part of the structure.
proposed large beams going across with slabs on top, but Komedant
pointed out that the beams might instill fear in the congregation rather Although the apartments varied in size and layout, they were all based
than comfort. Komendant proposed a roof using two-way folded plates. out of a single box whose dimensions were 17-1/2 feet by 38-1/2 feet
Kahn was impressed and asked Komendant to come up with some by 10-1/2 feet. All were load bearing and connected to each other
variations of this proposal. Komendant came up with nine ways to do with post-tensioning. When completed, the building was hailed as an
it. The plates would not only furnish a sturdy structural system but also important milestone and was a big attraction at the Expo67 world fair.

AIA Convention 2015: May 14–16, Atlanta
Get on the A-list! Visit aia.org/convention
In 1966, Komendant collaborated with Moshe Safdie to create Habitat 67, built August Komendant in the 1980s standing in front of Habitat 67.Photo courtesy of
entirely out of prefabricated components. Photo: Jerry Spearman Merike Komendant
While Komendant was working on Habitat 67, Kahn was given the The Kimball Art Museum in Ft. Worth, Texas, is a structural paradox.
commission for a factory by the Olivetti Company and soon after he To the casual observer it is a series of barrel vaults. Barrel vaults have
engaged Komendant to help him with the job. The Olivetti-Underwood been around since ancient Rome and this building wouldn’t have
factory in Harrisburg Pa., a structural and architectural success, was aroused much notice. However, beneath the surface are some striking
delivered in a dramatic fashion. discrepancies.
Early in 1967, Komendant and Kahn’s offices made preliminary studies of Kahn’s first draft design was a series of barrel vaults, but the museum
the layout, structure, and parking. Kahn wanted to design a showplace but director objected to the high ceilings. The director saw a cycloid in
couldn’t come up with anything and for months the commission languished. a book on shell structures, which was almost like a flattened arch.
Finally, Kahn, in a fit of desperation, called Komendant. Olivetti had However, it is derived from a completely different source. A cycloid is
scheduled a meeting the next day and was expecting Kahn to show them the a curve that is plotted from the points of a rolling circle.
final design. But Kahn had nothing! He begged Komendant to bail him out
of this tremendous jam, incredibly, less than 24 hours before the meeting. But that is just the first aspect of the paradox. For a barrel vault or even
a flattened arch to work, it must be supported on both sides along its
Komendant told him there was no way to create something in that short length. The forces are transmitted from the ridge of the roof to the eaves
period of time and to reschedule to at least the next day. Olivetti was and then to the ground. However, in the Kimball Art Museum there are
impatient and irritated because they needed that factory online soon vast stretches of open space directly beneath the edge of the vaults.
and Kahn was apparently dawdling.
How can this be? It doesn't make structural sense!
Komendant had been working on the project all along and had mostly
completed one proposal. But at the last minute he had another idea. He There is one other aspect of this building that also doesn’t make
worked through the night and the next day and came up with a dramatic structural sense. Normally in a barrel vault, the greatest stress would
alternative that was architecturally and structurally innovative. be at the ridge. However, in the Kimball Art Museum there is a skylight
Company officers, including Olivetti himself, were impressed and at that exact location. At this point, the original engineers on the project
asked Kahn and Komendant to proceed with the working drawings. requested Komendant be called in to help.
Structurally, the design was economical and daring. The factory is The roof structure of the Kimball Art Museum doesn’t work as a vault but
covered by a series of inverted mushrooms, each having a diameter as a beam. Komendant designed a beam section that is half of one vault
of 59 feet. At the corners are skylights. The upper rim of the inverted and half of the adjacent vault. When two of them are adjacent to each
mushrooms is bolstered by prestressing. other they form a vault. By cleverly reinterpreting sound engineering
principles, Komendant was able to create a 20th century masterpiece.
Safdie described Komendant as “extremely dogmatic, stubborn, and
autocratic,” but he could also relax. In his book, 18 Years with Architect Komendant was a gifted engineer who looked at structure not just as
Louis Kahn, Komendant repeatedly recalled good times “downing a support of the building but also as architecture. He was able to turn
few.” He delighted in telling jokes only an engineer would relate to. architects’ abstract ideas into monuments. In 1978 he was awarded the
AIA allied professions medal. He also wrote four books, three of which
When theorizing about the best space for a church, Kahn came to the were engineering books, and was 85 years old when he died in 1992.
conclusion that light and silence were crucial. Then he asked, “What is
silence?” Komendant answered, “Zero density of sound.” View additional photos and drawings online at cenews.com.
Komendant’s office was his home and his staff numbered only two. Although
computers weren’t as prevalent as they are now, they were being used in
RICK WILMATH has worked in construction for the last 30 years. He is now owner
engineering, but Komendant did his own calculations and his own drawings. of Rubia Roofing (www.rubiaroofing.com).

Becoming a Better Project Manager
New and aspiring project managers in architecture, engineering, planning
and environmental consulting firms, come join us for A BRAND NEW SEMINAR!
Miami, FL May 5
Dallas, TX May 7
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA May 19 REGISTER TODAY
Chi g IL
Chicago, May
M y 20 zweiggroup.com/seminars/
Los Angeles, CA June 9
San Francisco,
i CA June
J 166 This course is approved for 6 CEUs
This course will provide attendees with fundamentals and specific tools they can use to be the best project managers
possible. A dynamic and interactive seminar, attendees will get specific examples based on real-life construction
industry experience by a long-time industry consultant, trained as an architect, Howard Birnberg. As one of the
foremost experts on the subject of project management, Birnberg is the author of numerous project management
books, is active in a number of PM-related organizations--and has given virtually hundreds of seminars to thousands of
architects, engineers, planners and scientists over the years.
zweiggroup.com/seminars/better_pm/registration
Please email [email protected] or call 800.466.6275 for more information.
product + Software guide
02. Bridge condition assessment

Geophysical Survey Systems, Inc. (GSSI) said
its BridgeScan is an affordable and flexible
ground penetrating radar (GPR) system ideal
for assessing concrete condition on bridge
decks, parking structures, and balconies.
BridgeScan can identify rebar location and
depth, measure slab thickness, and detect
01. Stormwater chambers voids. Engineers also can use the unit as a
Prinsco, Inc. and Lane Enterprises introduced two stormwater chamber lines built from the same, basis for a utility locating GPR system to
engineered design. The companies co-developed an injection-molded chamber design to meet or map and locate underground infrastructure,
exceed ASTM F2418. Each company will offer two chamber sizes under its own brand. Prinsco pinpointing the depth and position of metallic
will sell the HydroStor line and Lane will sell the StormKeeper line. The larger chamber will store and non-metallic pipes in real time, according
180 cubic feet of stormwater per chamber or 25 cubic feet per linear foot and is designed for high- to GSSI. The BridgeScan system features
volume projects. The smaller chamber will store 75 cubic feet of stormwater per chamber or 11 display capability for in-the-field 3D imaging.
cubic feet per linear foot and is designed for projects with limited burial depths. Geophysical Survey Systems, Inc.
Prinsco, Inc. www.prinsco.com/hydrostor www.geophysical.com
Lane Enterprises www.lane-enterprises.com/stormkeeper
03. Geomembrane resource 04. Point cloud processing software 05. LED streetlight
Raven Industries’ Engineered Films Arithmetica released a new version of its GE’s Evolve ERL1 LED streetlight is
Division launched a website to bring product automated point cloud processing software, designed to meet recommended luminance
information and industry resources to all Pointfuse, which uses advanced statistical and illuminance requirements for local and
devices. Raven customers can download techniques to create vector models that can collector roadway classifications. The heat
product literature, utilize custom application be manipulated using any industry-standard sink is incorporated directly into the unit for
calculators, and submit design requests for CAD system. Pointfuse Pro includes new heat transfer, prolonging LED life. Utilizing
new products. Resources on the site include 2D tools that allow for creation of plans, high brightness LEDs, Evolve optimizes
new architectural and engineering courses elevations, and sections from highly detailed application efficiency and minimizes glare.
for construction and environmental markets: laser scan data and orthorectified images. Because it’s a low-wattage fixture, GE Evolve
“Critical Elements in Specifying Underslab Pointfuse also includes support for a wide LED streetlight also provides significant
Moisture & Gas Barriers,” an (AIA CES) range of raw data, including a new open energy savings and, with a rated lifetime of
approved course for construction building standard file format, and for data generated 50,000 hours, it offers reduced maintenance
design; and “Innovations in Advanced by handheld laser scanners. needs and costs over the life of the fixture, the
Geomembrane Technologies” for sustainable Arithmetica company said.
environmental project design specifications. www.pointfuse.com GE
Raven Industries’ Engineered Films Division www.gelighting.com/lightingweb/na
www.ravenefd.com

Reader index
Like our advertisers? Visit their site and tell them we sent you!
Reference this convenient list to visit advertisers’ websites and learn more about the products and services they offer. Contact
companies directly for more information and be sure to reference Civil + Structural Engineer in your email or phone call.
Company Name Page Company Name Page

Agru America 23 Plastic Solutions, Inc. 37
www.agruamerica.com www.plastic-solution.com
AIA Convention 2015 61 Plastics Pipe Institute 33

www.aia.org/convention www.plasticpipe.org/drainage
Bentley Systems, Inc. 2 Presto Geosystems 29

www.bentley.com/Structural www.prestogeo.com
Bentley Systems, Inc. / SITEOPS 31 Prinsco 7

www.bentley.com/SITEOPS www.prinsco.com/hydrostor
Bentley Systems, Inc. RoLanka International, Inc. 18-19

TLI & Open Roads Webcast 51 www.rolanka.com
www.cenews.com/continuingeducation/
StormTrap 26-27
Mark C. Zweig ClearSpan Fabric Structures 25 www.stormtrap.com
Publisher
www.clearspan.com/ADCSE
508-380-0469
[email protected] Tekla, Inc. 11
Contech Engineered Services, LLC 68 www.tekla.com
www.conteches.com
Bob Doran Teledyne BlueView 49
Director of Sales Fenner & Esler Agency, Inc. 57 www.blueview.com
770-587-9421
www.fenner-esler.com
[email protected]
The Reinforced Earth Company 34-35
HydroCAD 57 www.reinforcedearth.com
Shannon Burnett www.hydrocad.net
Advertising & Sales The Siben Consult, LLC 25
Marketing Manager ICC Evaluation Service, LLC 5 www.sibenconsult.com
800-466-6275
[email protected] www.icc-es.org
UnitedHealthcare 9
Lane Enterprises 67 www.uhctogether.com/acec26
www.lane-enterprises.com/StormKeeper
Zweig Group
MMFX Steel 47 Project Management Seminars 63
www.mmfx.com www.zweiggroup.com/seminars/better_pm
38 West Trenton Blvd, Suite 101 Modular Wetlands 13

Fayetteville, AR 72701 www.modularwetlands.com
Phone: 800-466-6275
Fax: 800-842-1560
www.zweigwhite.com
NOTICE: Articles and advertisements in this publication are often contributed by third parties. Owners and staff of this publication attempt to
Zweig Group publishes and produces
assure accuracy of content. In the publication process, it is possible that typographical, editorial, or other errors may occur. The reader is
resources for the AEC industry including
books and surveys as well as civil + warned to make independent verification of any techniques, methods, or processes contained herein before implementation. Techniques,
structural ENGINEER magazine, The methods, or processes published in this magazine have not been independently verified or tested by the staff of this publication and are
Zweig Letter, Zweig Group Hot Firm not endorsed or recommended by this publication, which disclaims any responsibility for results or consequences of their implementation.
and A/E Industry Awards Conference, Reader assumes full risk of loss, damage, or injury to persons or property from the implementation. Anyone who purchased this publication
continuing education and eLearning under the mistaken impression that the contents herein had been independently tested or verified by this publication may submit a written
programs, and management consulting request for a full refund of subscription price within thirty (30) days of date of purchase. The foregoing is the sole remedy hereunder against
services. the publisher, its staff, and owners for any claim related to any techniques, methods, or processes set forth herein.

Civil + Structural Design Tools
Tekla Structural Designer provides features for optimizing concrete and steel
design, including the ability to compare alternative design schemes.
Structural design programs enhance

analysis and collaboration
By Bob Drake
In early March, Trimble launched Tekla Structural Designer, which it Architecture and Revit MEP allows for better collaboration, enhanced
said combines analysis and design into a single, seamless process and control, and change management through Industry Foundation Classes
allows engineers to more efficiently and cost effectively analyze and (IFC) file exchanges. An automated model and drawing export function
design multi-material buildings. Instead of creating multiple models saves time and makes downstream workflows smoother, the company
for various aspects of a project — such as steel frame and concrete slab said, and Tekla Structures improves import and export functions with
design — in separate tools, and then combining those by recreating a Trimble SketchUp.
new building information model (BIM) from scratch, Tekla Structural
Designer allows engineers to work from the same analysis and design “By providing tight integration with other popular BIM software — as
model throughout the entire process. Through integration with Tekla well as our own analysis and design software Tekla Structural Designer
Structures, Trimble’s 3D modeling software, and other tools, Tekla — and incorporating deep support for IFC, Tekla Structures 21 allows
Structural Designer facilitates more collaborative BIM processes, the project team members from all disciplines to work together to address
company said. potential problems during the modeling stage, when they can be
inexpensively and expediently addressed,” said Risto Räty, executive
Tekla Structural Designer provides features for optimizing concrete vice president of Tekla, and general manager of Trimble Buildings’
and steel design, including the ability to compare alternative design Structures Division.
schemes. Creating a single analysis and design model eliminates the
need for post-processing analysis results. Additionally, fully automated The platform-neutral IFC file format is a key component of Open BIM,
loading and design includes wind loading and finite element analysis. a broad-based approach to the collaborative design, construction, and
operation of buildings based on open standards and workflows.
Trimble also introduced Tekla Structures 21, the latest version of its
BIM software. According to the company, the new version delivers Two new services have also been introduced concurrent with Tekla
benefits to structural steel and precast concrete designers, detailers and Structures 21:
fabricators, concrete contractors and general contractors, and enhanced • Tekla Model Sharing allows project team members to work on the same
collaboration with mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) design project from any location or time zone; and
engineers, architects, and others. • Tekla Warehouse, a free online library of Tekla Structures modeling tools,
intelligent parts, and templates.
Tekla Structures 21 is fully interoperable with industrial plant design
software such as AVEVA PDMS and Intergraph Smart 3D. Plus, Information provided by Trimble. Tekla’s Building & Construction business is
improved integration between Tekla Structures and Autodesk’s Revit part of Trimble Buildings (http://buildings.trimble.com).

Civil and Structural ENGINEER - April 2015

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Civil and Structural ENGINEER - April 2015

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Civil and Structural ENGINEER - April 2015

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

APR 2015 Vol.

Rising Stars in Civil + Structural Engineering

With RAM™, STAAD® and ProStructures,

On the rise 42 Community-based green roof projects in New York City

APRIL 2015 cenews.com 3

Columns CHAD CLINEHENS, P.E.

06 From the Publisher: Listening and observing

DAVID EVANS, P.E., PLS, F.ASCE

08 ENGINEERING OUR FUTURE: Bigger is not always better

10 FIRM THOUGHTS: Never-ending issue

38 West Trenton Blvd, Suite 101, Fayetteville, AR 72701

P.O. BOX 1528, Fayetteville, AR 72702-1528

MARK C. ZWEIG, CHAIRMAN & CEO, ZWEIG GROUP LLC

4 cenews.com APRIL 2015

Listening and observing

were providing. As a result, we failed.

6 cenews.com APRIL 2015

8 cenews.com APRIL 2015

More options. Preferred pricing. You belong with

Call 1-877-267-2829 or visit uhctogether.com/acec26

Insured and serviced by:

“The wages of sin are death, but by the time

“The difference between death and taxes is

10 cenews.com APRIL 2015

NEW for Structural Engineers.

APRIL Structures Congress

12 cenews.com APRIL 2015

Does size matter for public TAPE / GULD Approval.

However, the skills and attributes necessary to lead this

With a working example from the City of Temple Terrace,

Find these web-exclusive articles with the APRIL 2015 issue of

APRIL 2015 cenews.com 13

2015 Rising StarS

Rising Stars in Civil Engineering

14 Cenews.com APRIL 2015

APRIL 2015 cenews.com 15

16 cenews.com APRIL 2015

APRIL 2015 cenews.com

RoLanka’s Strong and Durable GeoNatural™ Coir Products

RoLanka products are readily available in

MAKE THE WORLD GO ‘ROUND

ORMS • PRECAST CON

order now for the cover price

click here to purchase click here to purchase

Contact us at 1-800-466-6275 for more information or to place your order by phone.

Strategic Planning In-House Training

Mergers & Acquisitions PDH Series

Executive Search Industry Awards

Ownership Transition Conference

Marketing & Business Development The Zweig Letter

Civil + Structural Engineer Magazine Valuation

Seminars Benchmark Surveys

Lear n more online at ZWEIGGROUP . COM

* No need for removal at the end Grade inlet

Difference between coir

Excellent check dams

Rising Stars in Structural Engineering

20 cenews.com APRIL 2015

APRIL 2015 cenews.com 21

22 cenews.com APRIL 2015