Thoughts From Engineers: Reusing Captured Stormwater
The residents of ancient Mediterranean cities presumed a state of water scarcity, which meant they valued water and collected it any way they could. The central hallways of homes of the wealthy in the ancient city of Pompeii, for example, often featured a large basin positioned directly below a circular opening in the roof—ready to collect vital rainwater. Just 15 or so miles from Pompeii, the city of Naples has enormous aqueducts below city streets—nearly as substantial as the built environment...
Executive Corner: Will M&A Drive Value in 2025?
The value of a business is fundamentally defined as its expected future cash flow, discounted to their present using a risk-adjusted rate of return. As we look toward 2025 and how architecture and engineering (A/E) firms’ values may change, it’s crucial to consider what these cash flows will look like and the risks associated with not achieving them. Rates of Return in a Volatile Environment Determining the appropriate rate of return in a fluctuating interest-rate landscape poses challenges. I...
Future Forward: Help Recruit the Next Generation of Engineers To Shape Their Future
Powered by: It’s no secret that the engineering industry, like many others, is facing a shortage of qualified workers. In fact, it could be said that our industry has become a victim of its own success. After years of advocating for increased spending on infrastructure, post-COVID recovery legislation delivered an infusion of more than $1 trillion toward roads and bridges, rail, transit, airports, the electric grid, and water systems. For the engineering industry, what was once a dream is...
Water Works: The Loading Rate Wars May Not Have a Winner
I expect most of us agree that innovation is good, and that sentiment holds true in the field of stormwater management. More than two decades of focus on improving the water quality and reducing the total quantity of stormwater discharges has spawned a substantial amount of innovation in the stormwater control measure (SCM) space. We’ve learned invaluable lessons through trial and error paired with laboratory and field monitoring that allow us to design SCMs to be increasingly effective, and our...
Getting Geotechnical: ASTM International Publishes First-Ever Preliminary Karst Assessment Standard Practice
Multiple factors paved the way for the first-ever standard practice produced by ASTM International for preliminary karst assessments, including: • Alarming stories about sinkholes widely followed by consumers. • An emerging hodgepodge of karst assessment requirements as local development boards tried to respond to public interest. • Increasing demand for liability protection. ASTM International’s D8512-23 “Standard Practice for Preliminary Karst Assessments for Site Development” was publishe...
From the Editors: Work Underway to Level the Field of Infrastructure
It seems the topic of infrastructure has been increasingly coming up in my readings and conversations. I’m not sure of the reason—perhaps it’s because the due date for this column is near—but I think it’s more likely that this time of year causes the impact of our infrastructure to be more evident. Cold weather and the freeze/thaw cycles cause temporary road and bridge distress. It also puts a strain on heating and plumbing in our homes and buildings. When something does go wrong, the effort to...
Thoughts From Engineers: Coastal Barrier Protection Informs Adaptation Strategies
We’ve closed out 2024 with record-breaking national disasters and, as a country, we’re starting to rethink foundational paradigms and long-established policies. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a new Federal Flood Risk Management Standard, effective Sept. 4, 2024, to better reflect current and future flood risks and fortify structures accordingly. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is revising precipitation forecasts to better integrate climate-scienc...
Executive Corner: Takeaways on 2024 A/E M&A Activity: The Supercycle Era
As 2024 concluded, many A/E leaders were basking in another year of strong growth and profitability. Record performance continues to be driven by escalating backlogs of traditional infrastructure, building and environmental projects as well as in the burgeoning “innovation revolution” consisting of new data centers, renewable energy, decarbonization and climate adaptation, and high-tech manufacturing facilities, among others. Despite persistent headwinds of acute talent shortages, a two-year lac...
Transportation Troubleshooting: Igniting Change: How EV Battery Blazes Are Revolutionizing Transit Facility Design
It’s encouraging to see U.S. transit agencies accelerating their transition to zero-emission battery electric bus (BEB) fleets. But that shift brings with it a need to rethink how bus garages and transit yards are designed to withstand vehicle fires. Fortunately, electric vehicles (EVs) are no more at risk of catching fire than their internal-combustion engine counterparts. But when an EV battery does ignite, it burns hotter and longer than a traditional vehicle fire with increased explosion ha...
Future Forward: Engineering 2025: Navigating Change, Seizing Opportunity, and Shaping the Future
For the engineering industry, 2025 will be a year of change, some uncertainty, but mostly tremendous opportunity. All told, there has never been a better time to be an engineer or an engineering firm. Metric by metric, market by market, and sector by sector, there’s reason for excitement about the future of the industry. The ACEC Research Institute is the thought leadership center for the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC), the business voice of the nation’s engineering industry....
Stormwater Interview with Robert Page, P.E., Vice President, HNTB
Santa Barbara County North Branch Jail Expansion
February Issue 2026
