Mobile Technology Drives the Need to Change Heavy Civil Construction
SYNCHRO Field allows users to alert the team to an issue from the jobsite, automatically adding map coordinates and linking the project issue directly to the model view with a simple workflow. Heavy civil infrastructure projects are getting larger and more complex. As a result, more than 50 percent of projects fail to meet budget and schedule. Many factors drive such complexity, including the following: • No two projects are the same. Each project has its own set of circumstances....
Shoreline Stabilization: Teamwork and Technology Tackle a Growing Concern
The team at GZA—a Massachusetts-based firm providing geotechnical, environmental, ecological, water and construction-management services—had their work cut out for them. They were tasked to design a stabilization project for 1,500 linear feet of coastal shoreline to protect a 14-acre 350-unit residential waterfront development—North Harbor—in Lynn, Mass. The project (a partnership initiated in 2016 between the Minco development firm and property management company Dolben) had inherent challenge...
Infrastructure Outlook: Making Progress on Infrastructure Requires a New Approach to Technology Adoption
Infrastructure has a powerful impact on the social and economic health of the regions it serves, and the value of establishing strong and resilient infrastructure is difficult to understate—especially as global populations continue to increase. In the greater New York City area, which is home to nearly 17 percent of the U.S. population, the North River Tunnel is the only tunnel connecting the city to its western neighbors. Its traffic is responsible for supporting the region’s nearly 20 percent...
Pigs in the Water? Houston’s Largest Surface-Water Project Brings Engineering Value and Confidence
By Josh Tebbe and Wayne Biery The Greater Houston region’s reliance on groundwater created the nation’s largest areas of ground subsidence and placed the metro area on a path toward a potential water shortage as its population grows. Recognizing these issues, district officials established the Surface Water Supply Project and required Harris and Fort Bend counties to convert from using groundwater to surface-water sources such as lakes and rivers. The goal of the initiative is to have...
Engineered Solutions: Remote Design Collaboration as the New Norm
Sponsored By: How Design Teams of All Sizes Are Remaining Connected and Keeping Productive By James Kelly Facing the New Industry Challenges in this New Normal During the last few months, the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted business across numerous industries and caused firms to reevaluate and adjust their practices to keep up. In the AEC industry, this situation has accelerated an existing, growing trend toward remote design collaboration. In addit...
Change Leader: Designing Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Requires Coordination
These profiles are based on interviews, and the opinions and statements are those of the subject and are not necessarily shared or endorsed by this publication. Justin Merkel, P.E., is a senior distribution engineer in HDR’s Missoula office. Transportation departments worldwide are transitioning (or at least looking into) fleets to all-electric systems. However, this involves a lot more than buying new vehicles and accepting the charge they provide. There are many infrastructure ne...
Code Update: CJP HSS Welds: Be Informed Before You Specify
Weld design isn’t exempt from the numerous differences between wide-flange (WF) and hollow structural section (HSS) connection design. Unlike open sections where welding is possible on both sides of the flanges and web, the interior of HSS sections commonly used in building structures can’t be accessed. Complete joint penetration (CJP) welds are unquestionably the least-preferred weld type from a fabrication and cost point of view. Unfortunately, they tend to be a frequently specified weld for...
Engineered Solutions: BIM Methodology Helps Design the World’s Longest Double-Decker Bridge, Saving Time and Costs
OpenRoads helped WIKA review the alignment of the main road, ramps and approaching structures. Sponsored by: Connecting a Patchwork of Highways When PT. Wijaya Karya (WIKA), an Indonesia-based company that provides construction, mechanical and electrical services to the civil construction industry, was contracted to design the Design and Build Harbour Road 2 Project in North Jakarta, Indonesia, budgeted at USD $530 million, the project team quickly realized that...
Executive Corner: Growth 2.0: The A/E Industry Reflects and Restarts
It’s been approximately 100 days since the United States joined nations around the world in an unprecedented series of events to contain the coronavirus pandemic. Societal norms and business practices were overturned almost instantaneously, while slogans such as “flatten the curve,” “social distancing” and “shelter in place” became part of the national conversation. The A/E community was no different, mobilizing workforces and operations at lightning speed as well as undertaking a “hunker down”...
Future Forward: Most People Want to Help You
These profiles are based on interviews, and the opinions and statements are those of the subject and are not necessarily shared or endorsed by this publication. Erin Rothman is the founder of StormSensor and an environmental consultant. She didn’t invent the technique, but Rothman is finding success launching and building a new infrastructure sensor company, StormSensor, via a commitment to a simple concept: asking for help. An extremely shy person by nature, she has steadily over...
Stormwater Interview with Robert Page, P.E., Vice President, HNTB
TriMet’s Banfield Type 1 Substation Replacement Project
February Issue 2026
