Las Vegas Sphere: The Engineer’s Perspective
On Dec. 23, 2023, I had the pleasure of interviewing Steve Reichwein, P.E., S.E., principal with Severud Associates and the lead engineer on the Sphere in Las Vegas. There have been many articles and news stories about this incredible new venue and its amazing architecture, audio and visual systems, stunning outer LED shell, and even the structural steel framing. In this article, I’m sharing highlights from this enlightening interview that looks at the Sphere from the lead engineer’s perspectiv...
Montreal Adds Stunning New Bridges to Reimagined Historic Downtown
Ambient LED lighting creates a nice mix of night-time drama and secure intimacy. In late 2022, the massive three-phase, approximately $131 million redevelopment of Montreal’s Sainte-Catherine Street West and Square Phillips was declared complete, ending a dramatic eight-year downtown transformation that began with the city’s simple, prudent desire to replace aging underground water infrastructure. After that work was completed, rather than simply replacing the existing surfac...
Waskita Karya Designs Toll Road Network to Support Development of Indonesia’s New Smart Sustainable Capital City
The digital twin solution improved communication, eliminating 20,000 truck movements during initial construction, lowering diesel fuel consumption by 32,800 liters to save IDR 590 million. (Credit: PT Waskita Karya (Persero) Tbk) Nusantara (IKN) is scheduled to be inaugurated in August 2024 as Indonesia’s new national capital, replacing Jakarta. Spanning approximately 2,560 square kilometers, the newly planned city is located on the east coast of Borneo in East Kalimantan province...
Historic Nantucket’s Sea Street Third Sewer Force Main Project
Located about 30 miles south of Cape Cod off the coast of Massachusetts, the island of Nantucket—originally settled in 1641—is a long-time tourist destination and vacation haven. Designated as a National Historic Landmark District, Nantucket is noted for its 18th- and 19th-century architecture and may only be reached by boat, ferry or airplane. During the summer months, when tourism reaches its highest point, the population on the island swells from just more than 14,000 to more than 80,000. To...
With Modular Construction, Learn Through Creation
How can modular building systems change the way we think about building today? Ideas about prefabricated building systems have been in consideration for decades, and now these offsite-built solutions appear to be here to stay. Yet challenges persist in their use, in part because the modular building industry still is in its relative infancy. Also, the roles played by engineers, architects and other consultants in traditional building delivery haven’t been defined clearly or universally for modul...
Mode Shift: High-Speed Rail Readies for Arrival Across California’s Central Valley
Stretching back to 2008 when Californians voted to invest in electrified high-speed rail, the plan for CA HSR is to connect each of the state’s major population centers faster, safer and smarter than ever before. Along the way, from Merced to Bakersfield, California’s grapevine communities will benefit from an infusion of place-based purpose and forthcoming pride. Fundamentally, the aim of infrastructure is to make life easier; in an ideal world, equitably for all. Be it a bridge...
Needing Every Last Drop: Western States Are Recycling Wastewater in a Variety of Ways
A rendering shows the interior view of the membrane treatment area at the Advanced Water Purification Facility being developed in El Paso, Texas. As water scarcity continues to be a concern—particularly in the western United States and as growing populations place more demand on water-delivery systems—communities are engineering ways to mitigate the challenge through recycled water projects. Texas-Sized Water Recycling In El Paso, Texas, El Paso Water (EPWater) is designin...
Effects of the EPA WOTUS SCOTUS Decision on Engineering
The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision limiting the Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdiction over “adjacent wetlands” to those having a continuous surface connection to bodies that are “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) with no clear demarcation between the “waters” and wetlands has been hailed by some and criticized by others. EPA’s New WOTUS Rule to Conform with Sackett On Aug. 29, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced a final rule a...
Off Rope! Drones for Bridge Inspection Increase Safety, Decrease Costs
It requires a few things for a bridge engineer to become a rope-access technician and climb up and down the most-difficult and complicated bridges: • No strong fear of heights. The photos in this article show that to be obvious. • A lot of training. Any technician needs to become certified by the Society of Professional Rope Access Technicians (SPRAT). The highest level (Level Three) requires hundreds of hours of rope work as well as completing three training programs and exams. • An interest...
AI Brings a New Era of Sustainability to Structural Engineering
Construction workers put together a truss frame designed through AI. Every year brings new technological innovation to the engineering sector. For example, the industry now is in an age in which 3D-printed structural parts and generative-design artificial intelligence (AI) work together to suggest bridge concepts. The pressure to balance resource-intensive machinery and tech tools with sustainability is more critical, especially as more people and businesses are aware of the dang...
Stormwater Interview with Robert Page, P.E., Vice President, HNTB
Santa Barbara County North Branch Jail Expansion
February Issue 2026
