Rainwater Harvesting and Make Up Water: The Why, When, and How
Rainwater harvesting (RWH) stores rainwater for reuse to supply non-potable uses like irrigation, wash water, toilet flushing, and laundry. During long dry periods the demand will drain the storage cistern down to a critical level where the pressurization pump(s) will need to shut down to prevent dry run damage. Make up water is typically a potable connection to the rainwater harvesting system to supply water, allowing the RWH system to continue to supply the non-potable end use applications u...
Maintaining a Safe and Secure Tunnel Infrastructure
By Urs Rufener, Security Applications Director, Siemens Building Technologies Globalization – the ongoing process by which regional economies, societies, and cultures have become integrated through a worldwide network of communication, trade and travel – has shown tremendous acceleration over the past few decades. Global trade has increased nearly thirty-fold since 1950. This is also reflected in transport networks. Freight transport worldwide is forecast to increase over 60 percent by 2030....
Creating Real-time Navigable 3D Infrastructure Models
Designing successful infrastructure projects is one thing. Communicating and demonstrating those designs to clients and other stakeholders before construction is another. Bringing a design to life for people without a civil engineering background is always a challenge, whether your goal is to sell the design or communicate its impact. Over the decades, civil engineers have used everything from elaborate hand drawings to carefully constructed physical models for this purpose. Then, in the 1990s...
Water Supply Planning and Drought
The Environment Agency’s draft guidance for the next generation of Water Resource Management Plans makes it clear that water companies must understand how their systems will perform during periods of drought. Ralph Ledbetter is a senior hydrologist at HR Wallingford. He explains why water companies need to look beyond their historic records if they want to see the bigger picture when it comes to effective planning for drought. Why consider droughts beyond the historical record? The draft En...
Smart Cities: Revolution in Every Area of Life
By Enzo Peduzzi, Director of Industry Affairs, Siemens Building Technologies, and President of Euralarm The current process of urbanization is reflected not only in housing shortages and sky-rocketing rents. European cities, in particular, were built based on 19th-century principles, and the individual supply systems are often viewed in isolation. The exploding population is rapidly driving cities to their limits with respect to energy supply, security, digital communication, transportation a...
Connected Traffic—Learning from Smartphones to Develop Smart Cities
Back in the waning years of the 19th century, two innovative inventions were beginning their revolutionary paths to change the world. Telephones were just becoming available, and they brought with them the promise of instant and direct voice communication. Meanwhile, growing urban density and horse-drawn traffic created the need for safety and standards to keep streets safe, and the traffic signal was born. Despite not having much in common on the surface, telephony and traffic signals follow...
Copenhagen-based Firm AG5 Wins with BIM Workflow
AG5, a small architecture practice based in Copenhagen, Denmark, specializes in simple, sustainable design. “That’s our main focus,” explained Brian Sheldon, partner at AG5. “And by using technology-enabled processes, we’re able to maintain a consistent approach throughout the design process, from conception to construction – and deliver a unique design response to a project’s location and purpose.” The firm’s three partners and five full-time employees collaborate with a diverse range of client...
Sustainability – An essential Facet of Architectural Design
Green building design, energy efficiency, power usage efficiency, sustainability etc, are the buzzwords that are making waves across the architectural design industry. This is a two-way tunnel, where architecture is guiding social impact, and this very social awareness is driving the changes in architecture. Architects shall lead the way and introduce sustainable innovation to architecture and concentrate on green building characteristics like: Well-designed ventilation for effective hea...
Preparing Today’s Students to Create a Smarter Tomorrow
There is a great deal of buzz in recent years about the concept of “Smarter Cities.” Despite increasing numbers moving to urban areas, there is significant concern that our nation’s infrastructure still ranks woefully behind the rest of the world in terms of quality. With no solid long-term plans to fund required repairs and renovations, much less building the new infrastructure required to support our evolving needs, the conversation is sharply focused on how to do more with less by leveraging...
Three Ideas That Are Likely to Change the Way DOTs Work
It has been 100 years since the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, or AASHTO, was conceived by visionary leaders. In this significant anniversary year, we acknowledge innovations and achievements that have changed the way transportation projects are planned, designed, built and managed. More change is on the way and many people would say we are on the brink of technological and process changes that will transform the industry. While civil engineers may not like...
Stormwater Interview with Robert Page, P.E., Vice President, HNTB
Santa Barbara County North Branch Jail Expansion
February Issue 2026
