Infrastructure Outlook: Radar Tomography Provides an Underground Point Cloud
By Andrew D. Lund, GISP Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) was first patented in 1904 by Dr. Christian Hülsmeyer, a German scientist. It wasn’t until the 1970s, however, that GPR became a widely used tool for underground (or under-ice) surveying. Since then, it’s experienced widespread use in archaeology, utility detection, forensics and transportation, to name the most-common applications. Few people realize that GPR has always been a 3D technology, assuming location is known (the X/Y coordi...
Repurposing Buildings and Urban Infrastructure for a Smarter City
The smart city has many emerging definitions and the concept is touted to be the one, that will shape cities of future. All ‘smart city’ definitions encompass the idea of a sustainable, livable, intelligent and green city with continued economic growth and job opportunities for all. However, we hardly ever see the concept of adaptive reuse infused into the definition of a smart city. Is the development of new green buildings the only way to drive our cities towards a sustainable future? What...
Infrastructure Outlook: Smart Cities–Guided by People, Powered by Information
A key characteristic of a smart city is the ability to make effective connections among its citizens, assets and services. The smart city does this by using technology to support and improve the interaction among people and government. In doing so, a city enhances its citizens’ well-being as well as its overall performance and efficiency. Most cities aren’t concerned about being labeled “smart.” Rather, their concerns focus on providing a safe, pleasant and sustainable environment for its cit...
Executive Corner: Emerging Risk Trends and Best- Practices Management for A/E Firms
Michael Herlihy Russ Ryan Understanding professional liability and managing risk is an important aspect of all A/E business plans. For this installment of “Executive Corner,” Russ Ryan, principal at Rusk O’Brien Gido + Partners (e-mail: rryan@rog-partners.com), interviews Michael Herlihy, ARM, CRIS, executive vice president of Ames & Gough, insurers and risk-management service providers to A/E clients (e-mail: mherlihy@amesgough.com). Ryan: As we head into 2016, are there any emerging r...
Structural Solutions: Add True Value to Command Fees You Deserve
Many years ago, I left the security of the engineering firm I worked for right out of school and ventured out on my own. If you had asked me when I was hired after graduate school, I thought I would retire at that company. But that wasn’t the case, as I felt compelled to start my own company and try to do something different. Although I was fortunate enough to leave with some clients, and some active projects, it was painfully obvious I now had to put the marketing hat on if I was going to gr...
Environmental Considerations: A Proactive Approach to Site Revegetation
On construction projects worldwide, post-construction site stabilization often is an afterthought. With constant increases in water-quality laws and regulations—and the effect of stormwater pollution on the environment—it’s becoming more important to keep soil and nutrients onsite. Incorporating sustainable vegetation—the best erosion control available—is a proactive approach. Assessing Revegetation Not every architect or engineer who writes revegetation specifications has experience in agrono...
Managing the Model: You Live in the Future, Why Don’t You Work There?
At the end of summer 2015, I was at a family reunion in central Illinois. As I stood chatting with relatives in my uncle’s backyard, my brother-in-law walked up, took a golf-ball-sized speaker out of his pocket and said, “play some music.” I had never seen the device before, but within 60 seconds, my phone had paired with it via Bluetooth, and we were listening to a playlist of my favorite songs streaming from an Internet music service. I’m an admitted technophile, and I’m seldom awed by things...
Infrastructure Innovations: Virtual Reality as a Tool for Modern Business
For a long time, the concept of virtual reality (VR) was relegated to science fiction and entertainment such as Star Trek or The Matrix. Although a holodeck still is out of reach, the technology used for VR—the immersive technology that enables people to visit or replicate locations and objects real and imagined—has been available for years. Standard VR technology requires a headset showing 3-D images that appear to be real from the user’s perspective. Until now, VR was used for design or tra...
Executive Corner: The Dilemmas of A/E Family Ownership
During the last several years, there has been increased consulting demand for ownership transition as well as mergers and acquisitions for family owned A/E and environmental-consulting firms. These inquiries have cut across the gamut of family ties: husband/wife-, sibling- and parent/child-owned organizations. They also cross a range of firm size, discipline and geographic location. Family run businesses within this industry traditionally have been general-contractor firms (think of how many...
Structural Solutions: The State of the Engineer Address
Adversities and challenges, particularly when they don’t end well, provide the opportunity to reflect on decisions and figure out what happened. Governments have “state of the union” addresses that explain perceived difficulties in the market as well as chart a path for future growth. Large corporations have quarterly reports to educate investors on the company’s past and future performance. Sometimes the driving factors and challenges are internal. A company may have the wrong people on the...
Stormwater Interview with Robert Page, P.E., Vice President, HNTB
Santa Barbara County North Branch Jail Expansion
February Issue 2026
