The Georgia Engineer Feb-Mar 2015

G E O R G I A

ENGINEER EXCELLENCE IN ENGINEERING Volume 22, Issue 1 February | March 2015

MICHAEL S. BURKE

LEADS AECOM INTO A WORLDWIDE MEGAFIRM

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GEORGIA EnGInEER

G E O R G I A

ENGINEER Publisher: A4 Inc. 1154 Lower Birmingham Road Canton, Georgia 30115 770-521-8877 E-mail: rfrey@a4inc.com Editor-in-chief: Roland Petersen-Frey Managing Editor: Daniel Simmons Art Direction/Design: Pam Petersen-Frey

contributing Authors Tiffany Capuan Fran Hardianto, P.E. Haiying Huang, PhD Ray James PE PhD Shane Korfike Thomas Leslie PE Stephanie Aurora-Lewis, RA, LEED AP Jo Ann J Macrina, P.E. Gary S. May, PhD, Dean Wade H. Shaw, PhD, Dean Daniel Simmons

The Georgia Engineer is published bi-monthly by A4 Inc. and pro-

vides a source of general engineering information to advance the business of engineering companies governmental agencies, municipalities, counties, department of transportation, businesses, and institutions including the university system. Opinions expressed by the authors are not necessarily those of the Georgia Engineer or its publisher nor do they accept responsibility for errors of content or omission and, as a matter of policy, neither do they endorse products or advertisements appearing herein. Parts of this publication may be reproduced with the written consent of the publisher. Correspondence regarding address changes should be sent to the publisher via e-mail to rfrey@a4inc.com or by dropping us a note at the address mentioned above. Subscriptions are available by going online at www.thegeorgiaengineer.com

Letter from the editor As the Georgia Engineer enters its 22rd year in print, it’s safe to say that the magazine had become something of an institution. This is quite an accomplishment, and we are proud of it.

This year, we have made major changes in the way your magazine is being published. We have broadened its appeal by including many more subjects than we used to cover. We decided that it was important to recognize the greater scope of disciplines that engineering is concerned with these days. Most of all, we want to inform, impress, and even entertain our broad range of readers.

This issue on Excellence in Engineering is a prime example of this shift toward innovative ideas and greater inclusion. You will find an article on Excellence in Architectural Design, featuring the beautiful main building of Florida Polytechnic University, as well as Excellence in Engineering Management, featuring the AECOM-URS acquisition. This is of particular interest in that two $10 billion engineering firms agreed to combine forces to create one of the largest engineering firms in the world with virtually unlimited project opportunities in the A/E/C realm. Another feature that we have added is the topic of Excellence in Engineering Education. We are delighted to say that all four major universities with engineering programs in the state of Georgia have participated. And, of course, we will be giving well deserved recognition to our Engineers of the Year. Such exemplary professional dedication always deserves the spotlight.

You will also note that we have included a great variety of new subjects for our readers’ enjoyment, such as hydraulic fracturing and the art and complexity of designing a foundation for a BART project in earthquake-prone San Francisco. A lot of wonderful engineering projects are happening all around us—even wildly unlikely ideas such as floating transportation tunnels. Yes, you read that right, have a look. Solving problems—this is what engineering is all about. We were particularly happy that the City of Atlanta’s Watershed Management team submitted a great presentation on going green to relieve flooding and doing, as they always do, the right thing.

This new Georgia Engineer also has a different format. You will notice that it is a bigger book with perfect binding. We hope you will like it. If you do, let us know—send me a message at rfrey@a4inc.com

Pete Roland Petersen-Frey Editor In Chief (770) 521-8877

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cOnTEnTS MICHAEL S. BURKE LEADS AECOM INTO A WORLDWIDE MEGAFIRM “Beyond the compelling benefits that this transaction creates for our combined clients, stockholders, and employees, the combination of AECOM and URS dramatically accelerates our strategy of creating an integrated delivery platform with superior capabilities to design, build, finance, and operate infrastructure assets around the world.” p30 4

ATLANTA GOES GREEN TO RELIEVE FLOODING The City of Atlanta is on a path to not only greener pastures to alleviate flooding but also a more sustainable infrastructure at the direction of the Honorable Mayor Kasim Reed and the leadership team of the Department of Watershed Management. p8 WHAT IS HYDRAULIC FRACTURING? Hydraulic fracturing or ‘fracking’ in shale gas formations has drastically changed the energy landscape in the U.S. in the last few years. Annual shale gas production in the U.S. rose from 1,293 billion cubic feet in 2007 to 11,415 billion cubic feet in 2013. p14

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ENGINEERING AWARDS Each year, Georgia spotlights excellence in engineering in our state. See page 18 for this year’s pick for outstanding individuals.

FLORIDA POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY Take a look at a brand new, innovative university that is tailored to meet the evolving demands of an evolving 21st century economy. p22

ATLANTA STREETCARS Two men dominate the story of electric streetcars in Atlanta in the last decade of the nineteenth century, and they fought very publically in what became known as the ‘Second Battle of Atlanta.’ p38

GEORGIA EnGInEER

T a b l e

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CONTENTS

GEORGIA ENGINEER February | March 2015

Atlanta Goes Green to Relieve Flooding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Submerged Floating Tunnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 What is Hydraulic Fracturing?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Georgia Engineers of the Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Florida Polytechnic University: Innovation Agent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Warm Springs Extension, Fremont, California - First MSE wall constructed above a seismic fault line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Wolf Creek Library: a living room for the community . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Michael S. Burke Leads AECOM into a Worldwide Megafirm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 How We Become a Best Company to Work For. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Atlanta Streetcars 1902-1949. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Diversifying Engineering Education. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Engineering the New U | Consolidation brings new opportunities to Kennesaw State University . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Mercer Engineering: Linking research with service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 The Importance of Examining the NSPE Code of Ethics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Georgia Engineering News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

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ADvERTISEMEnTS AMEC Foster Wheeler ....................................................................21

Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc. ................................................37

American Engineering Inc..............................................................37

MH Miles Company........................................................................48

Anderson Corporate Solutions......................................................17

Nova Engineering .............................................................................10

CARDNO ............................................................................................21

Prime Engineering Inc........................................................................3

City of Atlanta - DWM......................................................................7

Reinforced Earth Company............................................................55

Columbia Engineering ....................................................................54

RHD Utility Locating .......................................................................48

CROM Corporation..........................................................................27

ROSSER International......................................................................27

Edwards-Pitman Environmental Inc............................................43

S&ME ..................................................................................................37

Engineered Restorations Inc. .........................................................19

Schnabel Engineering......................................................................37

Georgia 811 .........................................................................................12

Silt Saver.............................................................................................35

Georgia Institute of Technology .....................Inside Back Cover

STV ......................................................................................................37

Georgia Power ..................................................................................29

Terrell Hundley Carroll Right of Way Services..........................37

Hayward Baker .................................................................Back Cover

T•H•C ..................................................................................................51

Hazen & Sawyer................................................................................41

TTL.......................................................................................................27

HDR .....................................................................................................37

T. Wayne Owens & Associates, PC.............................................37

Keck & Wood ....................................................................................25

United Consulting..............................................Inside Front Cover

Kennesaw State University ...........................................................45

Vaughn & Melton ...............................................................................6

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GEORGIA EnGInEER

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Whitehall Terrace Rain Garden

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GEORGIA EnGInEER

“What I am committed to doing is stopping the harm that is being done. I want people to know that I’m not trying to do it on the cheap. I am going to leave this office with this problem solved.”

- Mayor Kasim Reed | October 2012

Atlanta

GOES GREEn

relieve flooding

By Jo Ann J. Macrina, P.E. | Commissioner | Atlanta Department of Watershed Management

The city of Atlanta is on a path to not only greener pastures to alleviate flooding but also a more sustainable infrastructure at the direction of the Honorable Mayor Kasim Reed and the leadership team of the Department of Watershed Management.

Several communities in one of the combined sewersheds of Atlanta, Georgia experienced two consecutive high rainfall events on July 9, 2012, 2.5 inches in 45 minutes (between a ten to 25 year event), and then again on July 11, 2012, 2.0 inches in 30 minutes (between a ten to 25 year event) that overloaded the combined sewer system. These and past similar events have displaced families and impacted quality of life throughout the area. In the aftermath of the July 2012 storm events, Mayor Kasim Reed responded quickly to remedy the issue and personally assured residents that city experts would put real solutions in place within a blazingly quick 30 days.

As demonstrated by its 65 percent impervious surface, this area has experienced changes over time as highly urbanized areas will do and infrastructure improvements have not caught up. The combined system is not designed to carry high intensity peak storms and can result in overflows from both the stormwater system as well as the combined sewer system. Mayor Kasim Reed made a commitment to the residents to assess the root cause issues and through sustainable measures, deliver a solution FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

that is not only effective but appealing to the communities.

Key goals for this project include (1) maximize the use of Green Infrastructure to reduce the hydraulic loading on the existing combined sewer system during wet weather events; (2) utilize a combination of permeable pavers and other Green Infrastructure BMPs and to optimize grey solutions such as additional underground storage; (3) utilize Green Infrastructure tools, techniques, and approaches to create sustainable solutions that require little incremental maintenance; and (4) add value and aesthetic appeal to the communities and garner public support for these green solutions through proactive use of Citizen Advisory Committees, public meetings, and public outreach and education. Over the past decade, an extensive amount of work to rehabilitate and replace the aging collection system has occurred as part of the federal consent decree. Today, the city of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management recognizes the need to take a new approach, one that mimics natural infiltration and storage with minimal maintenance and intrusion with lower cost as the 9

4th Ward Capacity Relief Pond demonstrates. The decision that supported both the Mayor’s sustainability initiative and Watershed Management’s goal of a more effective, efficient, and appealing approach is what is now the first watershed/sewershed-wide implementation of a green infrastructure program in the city of Atlanta.

Going Green with Infrastructure Mayor Reed and Watershed Management committed to an accelerated schedule that included a 30-day design and construction of some best management practices (BMPs) followed by a series of shortterm projects while long-term BMPs were designed. These projects are supported by one of the nation’s strongest post-development stormwater ordinances (amended) that promote the use of green infrastructure/stormwater infiltration techniques to ensure that the Green Infrastructure Program would continue city-wide. Additionally, Watershed Management developed a Green Infrastructure Manual for residential and commercial properties within the city as the standard for the implementation of Green Infrastructure BMPs. To better understand the system hydraulics for the Peoplestown community, Watershed Management performed an engineering analysis of the area’s drainage and combined sewer system utilizing Innovize integrated catchment methodology and XPSWMM computer-simulated hydraulic modeling and best practices to select the most effective measures. These design measures are to provide relief for the 25-year, four-hour (3.68 inches of rainfall) storm event. Based on the results of the engineering analysis, Watershed Management determined that approximately 24 million gallons of additional stormwater storage was needed within the watershed in order to alleviate flooding at Peoplestown and areas upstream.

Shortly after the 2012 rain events, Watershed Management implemented Phase One of the Southeast Atlanta Green Infrastructure Initiative, which consisted of the delivery of four bioretention areas 10

with a cistern, three rain gardens, and one dry pond in the Peoplestown, Mechanicsville, and Summerhill neighborhoods.

These projects provided capacity relief to the combined sewer by selecting optimal locations that allow for maximizing the amount of infiltration from stormwater runoff. These green infrastructure facilities were designed to provide approximately 350,000 gallons of immediate capacity relief to critical portions of the combined sewer system within a mere six months.

Concurrently, the project team initiated design of Phase Two that included a permeable paver solution along more than 20 streets concentrated in the heart of the community. The storage beneath the

paver system attenuates the peak flow rate that stresses the hydraulic capacity in the system. The DWM Infoworks CS modeling team identified three zones within the neighborhoods and city streets that will reduce stormwater impacts downstream in the problem area of the combined sewer system. Approximately six miles of city streets are targeted for permeable pavement along with bioretention cells used as tree planters, making it one of the largest permeable paver programs in the country. Collectively, the pavers are estimated to provide approximately seven million gallons of additional storage that would otherwise immediately enter the combined sewer system. Construction is expected to begin spring of 2015.

GEORGIA EnGInEER

In February 2014, as part of Phase Two, Watershed Management completed construction of an award-winning vault that provides six million gallons of the required 24 million gallons. The vault provides storage for combined sewage during rainfall events relieving capacity issues downstream at Peoplestown. The system, constructed beneath the Media Lot of Turner Field, was designed to manage a 25-year, four-hour storm event. The $19 million project represented an astonishing construction feat requiring a fast-tracked design-build methodology with a fourmonth schedule to coincide with the Atlanta Braves offseason and two unprecedented winter weather events.

Greener Paths to capacity Relief in the Future The city of Atlanta will begin designing the final two projects to achieve necessary long-term flood relief in Peoplestown and the surrounding neighborhoods, a second storage vault on the Connally Trunk Line and a pond system that will provide capacity relief and serve as a greenspace amenity for the community.

Similar to the underground storage vault construction at Turner Field, the second vault will store excess combined

sewer flow from the existing trunk lines.

The proposed eight million gallon structure will help reduce peak storm flow in downstream portions of the combined sewer system during the 25-year, fourhour storm event. The area above the vault will be converted into a greenspace with a ball field adjacent to Phoenix Park. Design of the vault is underway and construction is anticipated to be completed in the summer of 2016.

Additionally, Watershed Management has proposed construction of a capacity relief system that consists of three wet ponds with waterfalls, a stream, and two bioretention cells with walking trails.

Stormwater from surrounding streets and properties will be routed to the ponds providing an additional two million gallons in stormwater capacity relief to the combined sewer system. The initial concepts include a Japanese garden (refer to photo), however, the city will seek input from residents for the final design. Additionally, having input from the neighborhood during the design process will contribute to the sustainability of projects in Peoplestown through community ownership.

Mayor Kasim Reed will have kept his

Japanese garden promise of solving this long-standing problem during his administration with a commitment of more than $65 million.

The goal with this greenspace and all of Atlanta’s infrastructure improvements is to not only reduce flooding and provide capacity relief, but to create a sustainable space for residents to utilize and enjoy as an enhancement to their community. The multi-phased project, swiftly and holistically delivered by the dedicated team of the Department of Watershed Management, is a demonstration of the inspiring new direction at the city of Atlanta. v

Turner Field Storage Vault

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GEORGIA EnGInEER

Submerged Floating Tunnel

By Daniel Simmons

T

he biggest problem with submerged floating tunnels is that no one has ever built one before. We’ve put men on the moon and used atom smashers to unlock the secrets of the universe but we somehow haven’t quite been able bring ourselves to try out a submerged floating tunnel. And it’s not because they’re inherently dangerous or outlandishly expensive, either. There’s no great hidden dilemma that’s causing us to shy away from making an attempt at this not-so-novel means of crossing a body of water. In fact, in most cases, according to cost analysis and safety studies, quite the opposite is true; they appear to be cheaper, safer, and more reliable than traditional bridges. Again, the problem really seems to come down to the fact that no one wants to be the first to build one. Until now.

Before going on about this, however, let me back up for a second and explain exactly what this off-putting bit of infrastructure is. A submerged floating tunnel (or SFT, also known as an Archimedes bridge) is a tubular road tunnel that floats at a pre-established immersion depth in a body of water, stabilized by an anchoring system, that exploits the load bearing capacity of water using the Archimedes principle. Instead of fighting against gravity and other forces with trusses and cables, a SFT relies on its own buoyancy to stay up.

And since it is not floating on the surface of the water, the SFT escapes the danger of being subject to tides, turbulence, water traffic, and a whole host of other such dangers. Unlike a submerged tunnel, which rests on the bed of the body of water that it crosses, a submerged floating tunnel does not require long gradients that gradually bring traffic down to its ultimate depth, since it has the advantage of floating at a convenient level no matter how deep the water may be.

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Different concepts for submerged floating tunnels

Despite these advantages, it seems like the one thing that engineers have been a little bit worried about is the risk that a collision with a boat or an anchor might cause a catastrophic failure. There are two ways in which this is most likely to happen and each of these ways corresponds to a different type of SFT. The first type of tunnel would be attached to the sea/lake bed by a series of cables that would counteract the buoyancy of the tunnel itself, whereas the second type of tunnel would rely on topside floats to keep the tunnel suspended, while the tunnel itself would not provide any buoyancy.

In the case of the first type of SFT a boat collision is most likely to occur with the tunnel itself, as the anchoring cables ensure that the tunnel maintains a constant distance from the sea/lake bed but does not guarantee its distance relative to the water’s surface. So an unusually low tide or an unexpected climatic event could cause the water level to drop dangerously close to the tunnel, increasing the risk that larger vessels might collide with it. In the case of the second type of tunnel a collision is most likely to occur with the surface float that keeps the bridge aloft.

While this design avoids the pitfall of the sea/lake bed anchored SFT by maintain-

ing a constant distance between the tunnel and the water’s surface, it does subject itself to certain risk by exposing key structural elements (i.e. the floats) to the possibility of collision with a boat.

These were precisely the problems that troubled the norwegian Public Roads Administration as they considered the possibility of building the world’s first submerged floating tunnel as an experimental solution to the problem of getting vehicle traffic across the country’s many fjords. However, a recently completed risk report has concluded that the likelihood of a collision-caused catastrophic failure of a SFT is not likely to occur for over 10,000 years, which makes these tunnels sound fairly safe.

So norway is proceeding with its plans to construct the very first SFT and thereby remove the longest-standing obstacle to their widespread adoption: the unknown. There are still a few tests to be done and some more red tape remains to be cut through, so there is no concrete completion date yet. But norway’s Public Roads Administration has made it clear that they are going ahead with the project, which is exciting because it will surely open new doors to innovative water crossings in the future. v 13

What is Hydraulic Fracturing?

By Haiying Huang, Ph.D. | Associate Professor | School of Civil and Environmental Engineering | Georgia Institute of Technology | haiying.huang@ce.gatech.edu

H

ydraulic fracturing or ‘fracking’ in shale gas formations has drastically changed the energy landscape in the u.S. in the last few years. Annual shale gas production in the u.S. rose from 1,293 billion cubic feet in 2007 to 11,415 billion cubic feet in 2013 [1]. The u.S. is now again the world’s top natural gas producer.

Shale gas production is currently occurring in 16 states [2], primarily from Haynesville (Texas/Louisiana/Mississippi), Barnett (Texas), Marcellus (new York/Pennsylvania/West Virginia/Ohio), Fayetteville (Arkansas), and Woodford (Oklahoma) plays. In addition, shale plays such as Eagle Ford (Texas) and Bakken (north Dakota/Montana) are producing shale oil.

Spanning across Tennessee and Alabama, the Chattanooga and Floyd shale plays, which pass through the northeast tip of Georgia, have attracted some interests in recent years. Development of these fairly small plays is at its infancy [3]. Currently, there is no drilling activity for oil/gas exploration in Georgia [4].

Ever since the onset of the ‘shale gas boom,’ heated debates and controversies on the economical benefits and societal impacts have inevitably accompanied the exploration and production activities, especially in the states with vested economical interests. Just within the last two months, Illinois approved the use of ‘fracking’ for oil/gas exploration in november 2014 [5], but the state of new York banned it in December 2014, after placing an indefinite moratorium for six years [6]. A December 4th news feature [7] in the prestigious leading science journal, nature, cast14

ing doubts about the optimistic domestic natural gas production forecast by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), prompted strongly worded exchanges between the journal and EIA [8] and the Bureau of Economic Geology (BEG) at the University of Texas, Austin [9]. The gas price dip over the last months is a reminder that volatility is the norm of the oil/gas market. hydraulic Fracturing as a Reservoir Stimulation Technique Economical and environmental pros and cons aside, technically speaking, what is exactly hydraulic fracturing?

Hydraulic fracturing as a reservoir stimulation technique generally involves first isolating a certain interval of the drilled well, pressurizing the isolated interval with a fluid to break the rock to create fractures, and finally injecting a mixture of fluid and proppants (usually sands) to keep the fractures open after fluid injection terminates and reservoir production commences.

Typically, the hydraulic fractures filled with proppants, or the propped fractures, have larger permeability than the reservoir.

The propped fractures therefore serve as the ‘highway’ for the hydrocarbon to flow from the reservoir to the well.

Hydraulic fracturing treatment involving large volume of fluid and proppants, or massive hydraulic fracturing, has been employed in oil and gas extraction since the late 1960s. Critical to the current commercial success is the combination of horizontal drilling with multistage hydraulic fracturing. Horizontal drilling enables the operators to fracture a reservoir in multiple horizontal sections, thereby increasing the contact area between the fracture faces and the reservoir, and consequently the well productivity.

GEORGIA EnGInEER

At large depth, the orientation of the hydraulic fracture in reservoir stimulation is primarily governed by the earth stresses.

The existence of the natural fracture network in shale contributes to the complexity in the hydraulic fracture geometry. nevertheless, with the overburden stress typically being the most compressive, the fractures grow on vertical planes on the whole. Since the sedimentary rock formations, where hydrocarbons can be found, are usually in horizontally stratified structures, upward growth of the hydraulic fracture is therefore constrained by the layers of rocks above the production zone.

In practice, growth of the hydraulic fractures can be monitored in real time using microseismic monitoring techniques. These techniques are similar to those used for earthquake activity monitoring in a way, since both are based on the elastic energy released when the rock breaks, except that the energy released during hydraulic fracturing treatments is at a much smaller scale, hence the prefix “micro.’ Figure 1 shows that the fracture depth obtained from microseismic measurements in the Marcellus shale is mostly below 5000 ft, while the aquifer is located within 1000 ft from the surface [11]. The risk of fracture growth reaching the aquifer is therefore rather small.

‘Fracking’ has often been used to describe any exploration and production related activities in the mass media. However, technically, hydraulic fracturing refers to only one stage in the entire life of a well, which also includes exploration, drilling, well completion, and production [12] . If properly designed and executed, the hydraulic fracturing stage is likely to have the lowest risks of polluting drinking water and inducing seismicity for the deep wells. That is because the duration of the fracturing treatment is relatively short, typically about half an hour to a few hours, and the fracturing fluids usually do not get into contact with the formations before reaching the bottomhole.

The potential of drinking water contamination resulted from surface activities (e.g., transportation, waste storage, etc.) or during drilling and completion as well as FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

the production stage is likely higher.

Risk of Induced Seismicity from Long Term Fluid Injection As concluded in a recent study by the national Research Council (nRC) [14], compared to hydraulic fracturing for reservoir stimulation, long-term fluid injection for disposal and storage, including disposal of produced water from oil and gas production, poses a much more serious risk of induced seismicity. Depending mainly on the type of fluids and

being able to predict the induced seismicity associated with fluid injection. Local seismic monitoring is therefore essentially needed in the ‘traffic light’ system to control the injection operations as proposed in the nRC study [14]. hydraulic Fracturing beyond Reservoir Stimulation Aside from reservoir stimulation, hydraulic fracturing is also a naturally occurring phenomenon and has been employed in many other engineering applications.

Figure 1. The true vertical depth (TVD) of the hydraulic fractures measured based on microseismic activities in Marcellus shale [11]. the injection objectives, underground injection wells are grouped into six classes by the EPA [15]. Currently, there are 172, 068 class II wells for “injecting brines and other fluids associated with oil and gas production, and hydrocarbons for storage.”

The first known incident of long term fluid injection leading to earthquakes occurred in the late 1960s in the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, northeast of Denver, Colorado [12]. Fluid injection is being linked to the recent increase in the rate of M > 3.0 earthquakes (felt earthquakes) in states such as Oklahoma [14, 15].

In general, it is understood that the magnitude of induced seismicity is positively correlated with the volume and the rate of injection. However, with large amount of unknowns and uncertainties in the subsurface characteristics, we are far from

Dikes and sills formed from magma flow, as can be seen on the trails of Stone Mountain, are natural hydraulic fractures.

Hydraulic fracturing is an indispensable technique to measure the earth stresses [17] . The azimuth of the hydraulic fracture is an indication of the orientation of the earth stresses. After the fracture has been created, the fluid pressure to keep the fracture open is related to the magnitude of the minimum earth stress.

In engineering applications, hydraulic fracturing mainly serves the purposes of creating space for disposal, establishing a highly conductive pathway to connect the rock matrix and the well, or breaking rocks in a controlled manner. In civil engineering, compensation grouting, or fracture grouting, as a remedial to minimize ground settlement is essentially a hydraulic fracturing technique, except that 15

(a)

(b) Figure 2. Multiple nearly vertical fractures (a) and a horizontal penny-shaped fracture (b) created in gelatin.

different types of fluids are being injected, and at a shallow depth, a horizontal fracture instead of a vertical one is expected.

A notable case is the use of compensation grouting in stabilizing the Big Ben in London when tunnel construction was ongoing underneath the tower. In enhanced geothermal systems, hydraulic fracturing is employed to image the natural fractures in the subsurface and to connect the injection well with the producing well. In mining, hydraulic fracturing has been used to ‘pre-condition’ the rocks so as to increase mining productivity and safety. concluding Remarks The engineering applications of hydraulic

fracturing go far beyond reservoir stimulation for oil and gas extraction. As with any kind of technological development, fracking or hydraulic fracturing is a double-edged sword. While we take advantage of the technology to achieve energy independence, we need to pay careful attention to the risks and manage them accordingly. countertop hydraulic Fracturing Experiments Materials: • gelatin (e.g., Jell-O, preferably unflavored, colorless) • small hollow coffee stir straw • fruit juice (or soda, syrup, etc.)

• a clear glass jar (> 16 oz.)

References 1. EIA, 2014. http://www.eia.gov/dnav/ng/hist/res_epg0_ r5302_nus_bcfa.htm 2. EIA, 2014. http://energy.gov/fe/downloads/where-shalegas-found-united-states 3. Pawlewicz, M. J. and J. R. Hatch, 2007. Petroleum Assessment of the Chattanooga Shale/Floyd Shale-Paleozoic Total Petroleum System, Black Warrior Basin, Alabama and Mississippi, USGS Report (http://pubs.usgs.gov/dds/dds069/dds-069-i/REPORTS/69_I_CH_3.pdf ).

4. http://www.fractracker.org/map/us/ 5. http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/ct-fracking-decision-1107-biz-20141105-story.html#page=1 6. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/18/nyregion/cuomo-toban-fracking-in-new-york-state-citing-healthrisks.html?_r=0 7. Inman, M., 2014. natural gas: The fracking fallacy, nature, vol. 516, p28-30.

8. EIA, 2014. http://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/article/nature_ news_feature.pdf 9. BEG, 2014. http://www.beg.utexas.edu/shale/docs/nature_Response.pdf 16

•

5 ml dispensing syringe (with a tip that can fit into the straw)

Procedures: 1) solidify gelatin in the glass jar according to the product instruction; 2) insert the coffee straw in the center of the jar 3) fill the syringe with fruit juice and inject the fluid slowly into the gelatin Expected Results: A planar fracture is expected to appear, starting from the tip of the coffee straw.

Depending on the depth of injection, rigidity of the gelatin, fluid viscosity, and rate of injection, width and orientation of the fracture will vary. v

10. Fisher, M. K., 2010. Data confirm safety of well fracturing.

The American Oil and Gas Reporter.

11. King, G. E., 2012. Hydraulic fracturing 101: What every representative, environmentalist, regulator, reporter, investor, university researcher, neighbor and engineer should know about estimating frac risk and improving frac performance in unconventional gas and oil wells, paper SPE 152596 presented at the SPE Hydraulic Fracturing Technology Conference, the Woodlands, Texas, USA. 12. nRC, 2013. Induced seismicity potential in energy technologies, national Academy of Sciences.

13. http://water.epa.gov/type/groundwater/uic/wells.cfm 14. Healy, J. H., W. W. Rubey, D. T. Griggs and C. B. Raleigh, 1968. The Denver earthquakes, Science, vol. 168, p1301.

15. McGarr, A., 2014. Maximum magnitude earthquakes induced by fluid injection, Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, vol. 119, doi:10.1002/2013JB010597.

16. World Stress Map Project, http://dc-app3-14.gfz-potsdam.de/pub/introduction/introduction_frame.html 17. Jeffrey, R. G., 2000. Hydraulic fracturing of ore bodies, U.S. Patent number 6,123,394.

GEORGIA EnGInEER

GEORGIA ENGINEERS OF THE YEAR Georgia Engineer of the year | Robert MacPherson Robert MacPherson is a Vice President at Prime Engineering Inc., a consulting engineering, architecture, and construction firm with offices in Atlanta, Georgia; Baltimore, Maryland; Tampa, Florida; Orlando, Florida; Houston, Texas; and Hong Kong, China. Mr. MacPherson’s career as a professional engineer in the state of Georgia spans 30 years. Through his career, he has worked to advance engineering as a profession, as an economic engine of the state, and as a means to a better quality of life for the citizens of the state.

His personal mission statement is “….and to use my God given talents to enhance the communities in which I work and live so that people will know my passion and love of Jesus Christ.”

Mr. MacPherson earned a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1984.

After graduating from Georgia Tech, Mr. MacPherson joined Chicago Bridge & Iron as an engineer in training. He had the opportunity to work at a refinery, paper mill, and nuclear power plant. In 1985, he joined Rindt-McDuff Associates as a project engineer. Later, he was employed by Metcalf & Eddy where he worked on municipal and industrial projects from 19911999. In May of 1999, Mr. MacPherson joined Prime Engineering Inc., where he has worked on various projects including site development, municipal, industrial, and aviation One of his favorite engineering projects includes a slow sand filtration water treatment plant in El Yunque National Forest in Puerto Rico. This plant is designed so that no power is required to operate it, thus allowing continuous operation even during devastating hurricanes.

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projects in his role as Market Segment Manager and Vice President.

With more than 30 years of experience on hundreds of local, national, and international projects, Mr. MacPherson has extensive experience in project master planning, engineering design, and construction. His career spans numerous public works and public utilities projects. Mr. MacPherson offers a strong background in civil engineering combined with expertise in water and wastewater facilities. His experience with project delivery methods provides clients with a unique project implementation perspective.

Some of his career highlights include working with great people on great projects. Two of his favorite engineering projects include a slow sand filtration water treatment plant in El Yunque national Forest in Puerto Rico. This plant is designed so that no power is required to operate it, thus allowing continuous operation even during devastating hurricanes. The second project is the detention pond at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. This discreet system was designed to allow aquatic life to grow in a water garden environment yet provide storm water quality and treatment to occur without the public realizing its purpose.

Mr. MacPherson has been an active member of the Georgia Society of Professional Engineers where has served as Secretary and President Elect. He currently serves as President.

Mr. MacPherson loves teaching confirmation to 8th graders at his church and spending time gardening in his yard.

He is married to Charlene Clark MacPherson, an electrical engineer from the same fine university. They reside in Marietta, Georgia and have two children, David a senior at Georgia Tech majoring in Mechanical Engineering and Lexi, a sophomore at Marietta High School with aspirations of attending Georgia Tech. v The second project is the detention pond at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. This discreet system was designed to allow aquatic life to grow in a water garden environment yet provide storm water quality and treatment to occur without the public realizing its purpose.

GEORGIA EnGInEER

Lifetime Achievement in Engineering | G. Edward Ellis

Ed Ellis has been in the transportation engineering profession in Atlanta since 1972.

In that time, he has worked for the Georgia Department of Transportation for six years and in the consulting business for 36 years, 15 of which included running his own firm. He is currently transitioning to retirement.

He has consulted in both the public and private sectors and has been responsi-

FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

ble for several hundred traffic studies for everything from malls to churches to mixed-use developments. Some of his public sector clients have included Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT), Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA), Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA), and many cities and counties. Ed also has worked for eight of the Atlanta area Community Improvement Districts (CIDs) and most of the major commercial developers in the Atlanta area.

Ed is often asked to speak to groups and write articles about transportation issues. The number of panel discussions, presentations, and articles he has been responsible for number in the hundreds.

Ed is a past president of the Georgia Section Institute of Transportation Engineers, past president of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Georgia, winner of the Metro Atlanta Engineer of the Year Award in 2000, and win-

ner of the Engineer of the Year in Private Practice in 1998. Ed was also awarded the Karl Bevins Award for outstanding service by the Institute of Transportation Engineers in 2001.

Ed served on the executive committee and chaired the transportation committee for the Council for Quality Growth, was active in the Georgia Conservancy Blueprints Partners, and in the ULI Smart Growth Committee, is a graduate of the first class of the Institute for Georgia Environmental Leadership, and has been a volunteer for transportation issues with the Midtown Alliance for nearly over ten years.

Ed regularly helps to advise neighborhoods regarding traffic studies and public workshops, pro bono.

Ed attended the University of South Carolina and currently lives on Saint Simons Island with Jean, his high school sweetheart and wife of 43 years. They have one daughter who is married, living in new Jersey and raising two children. v

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Engineer of the year in Private Practice | Sam Mccachern Sam Mccachern serves as president and chief executive officer.

His responsibilities include implementing the company’s strategic plan in the daily operations of five offices. He is also a project principal for engineering projects in South Carolina and Georgia, providing strategic direction on the engineering issues, regulations, and processes affecting client projects. Sam’s 29 years

of experience includes site assessment, rezoning, preliminary engineering, permit applications, engineering design, contract documents and specifications, and construction administration for a wide variety of projects.

Mr. McCachern began his career with Thomas & Hutton in 1985 upon graduation from north Carolina State University.

He served in most engineering

and management capacities at the firm. His engineering roles, with increasing responsibility, include design engineer, project manager, and client manager.

Sam’s management roles include corporate secretary, treasurer, vice–president, senior vice–president, COO, CFO, and CEO. He is also a member of the Board of Directors. v

young Engineer of the year | Angela Snyder, PE Angela Snyder serves as a Project Manager for Wolverton & Associates Inc. ( W&A) and is responsible for overseeing design activities, managing subconsultants, and coordinating with various agencies. Angela’s strength as a project manager lies in her ability to work well with people on a variety of projects, understand complex projects and deliver on her goals. Angela is driven, focused, and responsible. Her manager de-

scribes her as able to handle responsibilities beyond her years of experience. She is trusted by her colleagues and clients, organized and follows through consistently.

W&A’s Project Managers are expected to be ‘Renaissance Engineers’—tackling the three‐part role of business development, people development, and technical management. Angela has accepted this challenge with enthusiasm and passion.

In her community, Angela was involved on the Tucker Civic Association’s Safety Committee and Zoning Board from 2010 to 2012, helping to implement and provide technical merit to safety projects around her neighborhood.

Angela is an active member of the Embry Hill United Methodist Church (EHUMC), serving on the Children and

Youth Ministries Committee, volunteering with the Atlanta Food Bank, the Food Pantry, and Snack Sacks, a program that provides food for local schoolchildren who do not have food to eat during summer and winter breaks. She has recently been asked to serve on the finance committee for a three year term.

In addition to her professional commitment, she is at her core a devoted wife to Joseph and mother to Adeline, almost three years old. Much like Angela herself, Addie enjoys learning how things work and taking apart toys to learn their mechanics. Angela enjoys watching her learn and discover and supports her engineering interests. She hopes to build the next generation of women engineers through Addie.v

Engineering Student of the year | brandie banner brandie banner is a senior at Georgia Tech from Alpharetta, Georgia. She is studying civil engineering with a concentration in environmental systems, as well as certificates in international affairs and social psychology. During her time at Georgia Tech, she has served in several student leadership positions. Most no20

tably, she currently serves as Student Body Vice President.

Last year, Brandie’s all female senior design team had the pleasure of winning first place and the People’s Choice award in the Georgia Tech Inventure Prize competition for their ‘SafiChoo toilet.’ During the Summer of 2014, Brandie was testing their design in Kakuma

Refugee Camp.

After graduation, Brandie hopes to pursue a career in the international development field.

She hopes to couple her passions with her engineering education to design systems related to water and sanitation in the developing world. v GEORGIA EnGInEER

Engineering Technology Student of the year | nathan Tyler boyd A native Georgian, nathan boyd grew up with his two brothers in Lilburn. From an early age, nathan showed talents of both a scientific and artistic nature. At the age of 13, nathan participated in a competition with the national Science League, and he was one of the two students nationwide to achieve a perfect score.

After graduating from high school in

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the spring of 2011, he enrolled in the Civil Engineering Technology program at Southern Polytechnic State University for the following fall semester. As he began to get more involved on campus, he assisted with the Civil Engineering Technology Department’s Rubble House Project, an initiative to create feasible housing solutions for victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. Additionally, he began to work for Southern Polytechnic State University as a student assistant in the Civil Engineering Technology Department and as a resident assistant for the Housing and Residence Life Department. nathan’s experience with the Concrete Canoe contributed to a growing interest in composite materials, and partially led to

gaining an internship with the Georgia Department of Transportation Asphalt Mix Design Unit. During this internship, nathan assisted with the development of a sample fabrication method and several asphalt mix designs. He also gained a laboratory certification as an asphalt binder technician. He also had a brief internship with CC Land Surveyors where he most notably created 3D models for house layout plans.

After graduation, nathan plans to work and attend graduate school simultaneously. One day in the future, nathan hopes to serve as a part-time middle school math or science teacher and pursue cuttingedge research in materials engineering.v

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FLORIDA POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY: INNOVATION AGENT

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GEORGIA EnGInEER

Just three years ago, the 170-acre plot of land at exit 41 on I-4 in Polk county was nothing but a pasture – ďŹ lled with little more than weeds, cows, and brush. Today, that piece of land is the location for a brand new, innovative university that is tailored to meet the demands of an evolving 21st century economy: Florida Polytechnic university.

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Florida Poly opened its doors in Lakeland on August 25, 2014 and welcomed its Inaugural Class of more than 500 students.

Florida Poly is Florida’s 12th public university and the only one dedicated exclusively to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics). The University’s approach to education emphasizes applied research, internships with industry partners, and hands-on leadership opportunities.

“When the Florida Legislature established the university in 2012, our Board of Trustees launched considerable research into what degree programs were most needed for the economic advancement of our community, state, and nation,” says Florida Poly’s Chief Operating Officer Ava L. Parker. “Their research revealed a significant and growing need for workers with advanced technology and engineering degrees. We’ve built Florida Poly to meet that need.”

According to the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Florida is facing a major skills and talent deficit. Data from the Florida Department of Economic Growth shows job growth will be about 12 percent between now and 2021 and that STEM-related job growth is projected to be more than double that. The state simply doesn’t have enough skilled employees to meet the demand.

Florida Polytechnic university is designed to change that.

In just two and a half years, Florida Poly’s founding team designed a curriculum, built a campus, formed community partnerships, and recruited high-quality faculty, staff, and students.

Today, the University’s College of Engineering and College of Innovation and Technology offer students six undergraduate degree programs, two graduate programs and 19 concentrations like Big Data Analytics, Cloud Virtualization, Machine Intelligence, nanotechnology, Cyber Security, and Health Informatics. Degree programs and specializations were selected with input from government and business leaders to ensure that students graduate job-ready.

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Through its robust industry partnership program, Florida Polytechnic collaborates with a network of more than 70 business, government, and nongovernment organizations to offer guidance on curriculum development, participate in joint applied research projects, and offer internship opportunities that stress practical application. Companies like Cisco, Microsoft, Coca Cola, and Lockheed Martin have signed-on to support the university in this capacity—and the impressive list continues to grow.

“At Florida Poly we believe that innovation occurs when research and creativity are applied to real-world challenges and opportunities,” says university president Dr. Randy K. Avent. “As a young, nimble organization, we can continue to evolve and grow in a way that maintains this successful equation; it’s what will set us apart from other institutions.”

Even Florida Polytechnic University’s campus is designed to inspire students and facilitate hands-on learning. The University’s main classroom facility, the Innovation, Science, and Technology (IST) Building, is a state-of-the-art structure designed by world-renowned architect Dr. Santiago Calatrava.

Inside, students have access to cuttingedge laboratories, including an IBM Supercomputer and Student Data Center, a Visualization and Technology Collaboration (VTC) Lab, and a Rapid Application Development (RAD) Makerspace Lab with dozens of MakerBot 3D printers and scanners.

Florida Poly is in its early days, but its founding leaders believe in its potential as an economic engine and in the tremendous learning opportunities it is affording students.

“We are confident that our programs will produce graduates with the specialized skills, knowledge and self-assurance to immediately start work with demonstrated management abilities and skills,” says university provost Dr. Ghazi Darkazalli. “It’s an exciting time for Florida and for the university. I look forward to seeing what accomplishments lay ahead for our faculty, partners, and students.”

Already, Florida Poly has hosted an industry summit, robotics symposium, and a half dozen other events that bridge the gap between academia and business. It has become a gathering place for thought leaders in the fields of technology and engineering; it has become Florida’s new innovation agent. v GEORGIA EnGInEER

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Warm Springs Extension, Fremont, California First MSE wall constructed above a seismic fault line

By Fran Hardianto, P.E. & Shane Korfike | Reinforced Earth Company ajor construction on the Warm Springs Extension in Freemont, california, began in August of 2009 with the commencement of Fremont central Park Subway contract. Work on the Designbuild Line, Track, Station and Systems (LTSS) project, which began in October of 2011, will continue until the fall of 2015.

This project, when complete, will add 5.4miles of new track from the existing Fremont Station South to a new station in the Warm Springs District of the city of Fremont.

In 2011 the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) voted to authorize the award of the line, track, station and systems designbuild contract to Warm Springs Constructors (Kiewit/Mass. Electric, JV). The Reinforced Earth Company (RECo) was selected to design and supply the four MSE walls for this project that included two technically complex structures.

The two walls supporting Walnut Avenue Bridge are the first RECo MSE walls supporting a true abutment in California.

In a true reinforced earth abutment, the bridge beams are supported on a spread footing bearing directly on the MSE structure. One of these two walls (Abutment 2 wall) is also the first MSE wall in the U.S. that is constructed directly above a seismic fault line. A pile supported abutment cannot be used at this location because the abutment is located directly above Hayward Fault. The use of piles, which behave like anchors for the abutment, would have adverse effects on the bridge superstructure during a seismic event due to the relative movement between the two tectonic plates at this fault. Seismic differential movements at the ground level above the fault are estimated to be more than six inches vertically and 24

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Construction of Abutment 2

inches horizontally. Therefore, to protect the MSE wall and the abutment from these potential extreme differential ground movements, a two-foot thick concrete slab is constructed below the wall as a ‘fuse’ that will level up the potential sharp differential movements along the abutment.

In order to better accommodate differential settlement requirements slip joint panels were utilized at the fault lines.

The two abutment walls were designed to accommodate a horizontal seismic accel-

eration coefficient of 0.75g with a maximum allowable seismic lateral deformation of two inches. Due to these extremely high seismic design parameters, both the reinforcing strip lengths and densities (number of strips per panel) are over 2.5 times the norm for a wall of this scale.

This project required approximately 1700 panels that were cast by Harper Precast in Salt Lake City. Harper did an excellent job at casting the high strip density panels which required custom tie strip GEORGIA EnGInEER

were temporarily in place to support excavation. Ninety percent of the time, the sheet piles are removed once the retaining structure is built. The article does say that piles could not be used as they would not perform well in a seismic event. Keep in mind the abutment was built directly on a fault line. v

placement. The reinforcing strip installation was labor intensive, and extreme care was taken to adjust the layout pattern to avoid excessive overlapping. Warm Springs Constructors’ crew was very meticulous with their installation procedures which resulted in superb finished structures and a very successful project.

MSE - Mechanically Stabilized Earth walls.

Our MSE wall is called Reinforced Earth® made of precast concrete with steel reinforcing strips and are 51/2” thick. Our walls can go as high as needed. The number and length of reinforcing strips are adjusted to support the height of the wall.

Typically, the walls are between 31/2 feet to four feet below ground level and are supported by a leveling pad typically 6” deep by 12” wide The photo shows sheet piles that

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Wolf Creek Library: A living room for the community olf creek Library is one of eight libraries being newly created by Atlanta-Fulton Libraries as part of a $275 million capital Improvement Program. LEO A DALy’s design challenge was to create an iconic community destination and catalyst for future growth. Envisioned as a ‘living room for the community,’ it uses gestural shapes, a striking but warm material palette, and light-filled spaces to give the community a place to gather, be inspired, and create memories.

Situated on a semi-wooded meadow site developed to maintain its natural grading and mature trees, the design takes advantage of its spectacular views through the generous use of clear glass on the exterior facade. Interior and exterior spaces are defined and uplifted by two gestures of upward movement—one copper and one stone—suggesting the ‘future’ for the forward-thinking Wolf Creek Community.

The color palette is warm and traditional

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with a contemporary and iconic expression. The exterior property features an outdoor reading garden and terraced seating.

The library is sustainably designed to LEED-Silver standards with low-flow fixtures, sensor-operated lighting, and low-e glass, among other features. The building’s interior design suggests its role as the living room for the community, offering open, comfortable spaces equipped with

the latest technology, such as wi-fi, media & tablet checkout, and a cafe.

The library houses adult collections of 58,000 square feet, children’s collections of 5,000 square feet, computer/learning station room, teen area, music room, a subdividable community meeting room for 125 people, and two conference rooms with 12-20 seats each as well as smart boards and projectors. v

GEORGIA EnGInEER

Burke sums up his focus as CEO during the historic URS Corp. acquisition, “as our clients are expanding into emerging markets around the world, they want us to be able to deliver assets for them in faraway places. They don’t want to have to go out and hire a new design and construction firm in every new country they go to…. We are confident that we will achieve our target of US$250 million in annual cost synergies.”

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GEORGIA EnGInEER

MICHAEL S. BURKE

LEADS AECOM INTO A

WORLDWIDE MEGAFIRM

By Stephanie Aurora Lewis, RA, LEED AP

“It is a huge task to get 100,000 people to work together in harmony,” says Tom Bishop, President of Design Consulting Services for the Americas of AECOM Technology Corp. On October 17, 2014, Michael S. Burke, Chief Executive Officer of AECOM, successfully led the finalization of the ambitious acquisition of its rival & co-contributor on several projects, URS Corp. Burke initiated the planning of the details of the merger for months prior to the final acquisition. AECOM is now one of the largest architecture, engineering, construction, operations, and management firms in the world.

AECOM was originated in 1990 and came out of a merger of five Ashland Chemical companies. AECOM is an acronym for: architecture, engineering, construction, operations, and management.

Their headquarters are in Los Angeles where they are the largest, publicly traded company therein. Michael S. Burke is the current CEO as of March, 2014 after having been an AECOM executive since 2005. Burke was first hired as Senior Vice President of Corporate Strategy, then to EVP and CFO with responsibilities in finance and accounting, legal, human resources, information technology, communications, corporate strategy, and mergers and acquisitions. Some of AECOM’s prominent projects include: China national Convention Center, Hong Kong Science Park, Moses Mabhida Stadium, Liverpool One, Lakhta Center, Abu Dhabi International Airport, and Cape Town Stadium. AECOM has since won many various design and workplace awards and has been involved in some of the world’s largest and highest profile projects in many countries.

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The 2014 uRS Acquisition “Today is an exciting and historic day—for our industry, for AECOM and URS, and for our nearly 100,000 people around the world who are serving our clients in over 150 countries,” said Burke in a recent AECOM press release dated October 17, 2014.

“Beyond the compelling benefits that this transaction creates for our combined clients, stockholders and employees, the combination of AECOM and URS dramatically accelerates our strategy of creating an integrated delivery platform with superior capabilities to design, build, finance, and operate infrastructure assets around the world.” AECOM purchased URS for $6 billion with $2 billion in loans. Burke said to CnBC that AECOM plans to pay down their acquisition debt by the end of 2017 with strong cash flows coming from both AECOM and URS.

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When the vast majority of American construction professionals are small-business owners and employees of such, the construction industry is entering a new economic and commerce era where AEC businesses are quickly becoming megasized and global with a dominance that does not yet know any borders. “There are great advantages to being so large. We can share cutting-edge technology from one project to another,” says Bishop. “For example, the online traffic signaling program that will be installed within Sandy Springs, Georgia comes directly as a result of working in London to redesign the signaling program for their roads and highways.”

Before the historic acquisition, both AECOM and URS had headquarters in California with sales of approximately $10 billion each yearly. The financial outlook 32

for URS began to wobble a bit as their main gas and oil industry projects waned and their stocks decreased in value in early 2014. Burke saw the acquisition of URS as an opportunity to expand their AEC and financial services in the governmental, infrastructural, and energy sectors in which URS was a key contributor nationally as well as on an international scale. “Burke initiated conversations in June of 2014 about how to coordinate the planning phase of the integration, the definitions of the two structures, and how they would merge as all the roles were assigned before the final acquisition,” says Bishop.

“During the past three months, as we have advanced our integration planning efforts, my belief that AECOM and URS had highly complementary operations and cultures has been solidly confirmed,” Burke

said in the AECOM press release dated Oct. 17, 2014. “Our leaders have collaborated to develop a comprehensive integration plan that will leverage our greater scale across our global platform.”

AECOM views the URS acquisition as a positive for their clients, their own employees, and for communities in the United States where they were able to hire additional staff. “Our employees have been given greater career opportunities through this acquisition. For many, their opportunities are now two to three times larger, with better training and exposure to more projects overseas,” says Bishop. “In other cases, we have clients who want to use our services in several countries across the globe rather than needing to go to a new company in each country.” Right before acquiring URS, AECOM also acquired the GEORGIA EnGInEER

Indianapolis-based Hunt Construction Group that built several large arenas around the U.S. Indeed, the level of expertise that AECOM does in the building industry around the world is remarkable. For example, AECOM is working with Zaha Hadid on the 2022 FIFA World Cup stadium in Quatar. To accomplish a building of that magnitude and of such complicated construction details, it is likely that only an international mega-firm could handle the task.

2010 Tishman Acquisition The Wall Street Journal reported in 2010 that AECOM had acquired 36 different architecture, engineering, and environmental companies from around the world to date. Then in late 2010, the new York construction giant Tishman Construction, serving as general contractor for the Ground Zero reconstruction project, was acquired. Tishman Construction stated at the time of the acquisition that they were looking to go global. Tishman therefore welcomed its acquisition by AECOM after ten years of negotiations in an attempt to directly grow their impact in markets outside of the greater new York City vicinity.

Building up a broad repertoire of expertise within the AEC industry gives AECOM an edge. “There are several clients who specifically want to work with one company that can provide the initial design services, final design, construction, and even operations and management services all wrapped up in one package,” says Bishop. When AECOM purchased Tishman in 2010, it had 45,000 employees.

With the acquisition of URS Corp. only three years later, AECOM now has 100,000 employees; doubling its size in three years.

“We believe this is an opportunistic time to make investments in markets whose near—and long-term prospects remain robust,” said John Dionisio, former AECOM CEO, in the EnR Article, After Tishman Acquisition, AECOM Buys Two More Firms, dated August 11, 2010. “We’re not waiting for market conditions to improve. We’re looking for new opportunities FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

and have aligned our global resources accordingly.”

Tishman was provided a healthy buyout option and in turn was able to spread their wings to international markets such as Abu Dhabi. This type of transaction occurred in the wake of the 2008 recession which spawned a wide variety of financial decisions designed to better protect these companies from default. The 2008 recession also elevated the risk of unpaid debts by clients. Tishman escaped an unfortunate event with MGM Resorts International that ended up owing $492 million to its general contractor and subcontractors.

Right after AECOM purchased Tishman, they moved to acquire Davis Langdon, a U.K.-based cost and project management consultant firm in October, 2010. Then one day later, AECOM announced they would acquire Mcneil Technologies Inc., a Springfield, Virginia, government contractor specializing in IT and cyber security work.

The future with AEcOM With the recent URS acquisition, AECOM expects to earn $19 million annually. When URS was acquired, AECOM already had 60 percent of their projects located overseas while URS specialized in government projects and infrastructure.

The combination of the two companies is clearly complementary for both. Burke mentioned in an interview with CnBC on July 14, 2014 that AECOM was specifically looking to acquire more construction expertise in URS. An engineer may raise the question: should engineering-based firms engage in construction? In 2007, URS Corp. acquired the Washington Group International and then had them take over the ‘energy and construction division’ at URS, a business strategy similar to that of AECOM. Many journalists in past years have coupled AECOM and URS together as similar types of megafirms. Both AECOM and URS already engaged in acquiring a construction base. Their motivations seem to be driven by international clients who want one company to handle every phase of the project. As it stands, several journalists covering

the URS acquisition expressed surprise and curiosity. Many bystanders are waiting to find out how AECOM changes over the coming years and how they continue to impact change on the AEC horizon.

AEcOM capital Unlike any other engineering firm, “AECOM Capital is designed to bring capital to projects,” said Burke in the CnBC interview. In 2013, AECOM Technology Corp. launched a $150 million private equity investment fund under the name of AECOM Capital. Very soon after its inception, AECOM Capital committed $100 million to six projects totaling 2.3 billion with five in the greater nYC area and one in southern California. John Livingston, former Tishman executive, served as the chief executive of AECOM Capital.

Livingston then helped to launch AECOM Global Fund II LP with a target of $200 – 300 million for real estate and infrastructure deals. “We are proud to be able to offer an innovative financing solution— to help address shortfalls in public funding for critical infrastructure projects and to help address the tightened credit environment for private sector real estate projects,” said Burke in an AECOM press release dated April 22, 2013. “Through these investments, we now have an opportunity to participate as a vital partner in advancing projects with our clients, while also generating revenue as our clients utilize AECOM’s traditional services.”

AECOM has been slowly, quietly acquiring numerous companies to develop the megafirm they are today where they could purchase their biggest rival, URS. Burke sums up his focus as CEO during the historic URS Corp. acquisition, "as our clients are expanding into emerging markets around the world, they want us to be able to deliver assets for them in faraway places. They don’t want to have to go out and hire a new design and construction firm in every new country they go to…. We are confident that we will achieve our target of US$250 million in annual cost synergies.” v 33

How We Become a Best Company to Work For

By Arnold Olender | Vice President | Burns McDonnell ngineers by nature are numbers-centric. We love to compare numbers, and therefore climbing in the rankings is important. As the leader of our regional office for burns & McDonnell in Atlanta, it’s extremely gratifying to have our team be ranked as one of the top 25 engineering firms in the city along with being part of the number one ranked electrical transmission and distribution division in the world.

It’s the workplace rankings, however, that seem to create the most chatter—as well as a lot of interest to join our firm.

With a turnover rate of four percent, far below the national average, we continue to attract the best and brightest from around the world. Our regional office is ranked as a Top Workplace in Atlanta by the AJC, and our global firm has consistently climbed up the Best Companies to Work For rankings with FORTUnE magazine —now listed at number 14.

One of the most common questions I get from colleagues is, “What’s the secret to making your company a top company to work for?” There’s no ‘one-size fits all’ formula, but we’ve found that there are some key categories that have been critical in creating a work environment that we enjoy spending time in every day.

E

Own your career In a company that is entrepreneurially driven, we continue to implore our employee-owners to cultivate their careers and think and act like an ‘owner.’ Keeping this owner mentality live is a key to harnessing the power and spirit of our organization.

Burns & McDonnell is 117 years-old, but in 1986 the company experienced a rebirth when we took a giant leap of faith and purchased the company from Armco Steel, becoming 100 percent employeeowned. That was our turning point that 34

Employee-owners Wendy Creek and Matt Bracewell prepare breakfast for families at the Dunwoody Ronald McDonald house. united us in the passion we shared for our firm. Owning the company and being part of an Employee Stock Ownership Plan allows each employee-owner to benefit in the success of the firm—and ultimately helped define our corporate culture.

We’ve always been a great place to work, but creating a corporate culture infused with that entrepreneurial spirit into each of our employee-owners laid the foundation to build Burns & McDonnell into a best place to work. Since we all own the company, we are personally vested in the success of every project and every client. Every move we make is followed by

two key questions: Is this good for our clients? Is this good for our employeeowners?

Offer challenging Work in a Great Atmosphere We live in one of the most rapidly growing regions in the country, which allows our Atlanta office to play a key role in developing innovative design and construction solutions particularly in the areas of aviation, municipal water and wastewater, and electrical substation design. There’s a unique sense of pride that comes from collaborating with leaders in your community GEORGIA EnGInEER

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to make the city you and your family call home a best place to live.

When employers can provide your team with challenging projects and a fantastic work environment, you are on your way to nirvana. For example, at Burns & McDonnell, 92 percent of employee-owners say they often or almost always enjoy their colleagues and find their workplace to be fun and cooperative. Building a sense of camaraderie and respect among employee-owners strengthens teams and lays the groundwork for success.

With a goal to help employee-owners deliver on that ever challenging work-life balance, Burns & McDonnell offers a variety of different services at its offices around the globe to make life easier: wellness programs, flexible work hours, discounts to fitness centers, and direct access to the Alpharetta Greenway. We have an in-house travel agency, a credit union, and even an online classified service to get deals on everything from cars and homes to appliances and game tickets.

Give back and Get Involved It’s common to think of work in terms of what you get—a paycheck, a bonus, health care. We have found that employees are also invested in what they give. In fact, according to a recent study, more than 50 percent of millennials were influenced to accept a job based on that company’s involvement with causes; and 79 percent of people prefer to work for a socially responsible company, according to Cone

Atlanta employee-owners participate in Rivers Alive each year, cleaning up trails and streams.

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(R-L): Arnold Olender (Regional Office Manager), Shawn DeKold, Lucas Rice, and Oko Buckle (regional practice leaders), serve employee-owners during the annual Chili Bowl celebration. The Chili Bowl, held on the first working day of each year, commemorates January 3, 1994 when employee-owners burned the mortgage to celebrate the final payment on the loan to purchase the company from Armco Steel, then went inside to warm up with chili.

These are just a few of the key ingreResearch.

At Burns & McDonnell, community dients that contribute to a recipe for a Best involvement is a way of life. Employee- Company to Work For at Burns & Mcowners view a commitment to philan- Donnell. Each company has the power to thropy as a benefit because it feels good to uncover its own recipe for success. If you give back and make a difference. That’s would like to learn more about Burns & why we created the Burns & McDonnell McDonnell including our culture, our Foundation to reflect our strong belief in services, our people, our locations, and our giving back to the communities in which career opportunities, please stop by our we live and work that focus on four strate- Web site at burnsmcd.com. gic areas: educational outreach, environmental responsibility, human services, and Author: Arnold Olender, Vice President, arts and culture.

In the last year alone, we donated Burns & McDonnell more than $2.5 million and countless vol- aolender@burnsmcd.com unteer hours. We paint houses. We clean 3650 Mansell Road, Suite 300 nature trails and streams. We make meals. Alpharetta, GA 30002 We do anything it takes to make a differAbout burns & McDonnell ence.

Each year, Burns & McDonnell se- Burns & McDonnell is a company made lects a national charity to focus its efforts up of more than 5,000 engineers, archion a companywide level. In 2014, Burns tects, construction professionals, scientists, & McDonnell worked with the Ronald consultants and entrepreneurs with offices McDonald House Charities raising across the country and throughout the world. We strive to create amazing success more than $170,000.

In addition, we even provide a match for our clients and amazing careers for our program that allows us to support our em- employee-owners. Burns & McDonnell is ployees and nurture our communities at 100 percent employee-owned and is proud the same time. We’ll match up to $250 to be no. 14 on FORTUnE’s 2014 list of per employee-owner each year to help am- 100 Best Companies to Work For. For information visit plify charitable efforts for a number of ini- more http://burnsmcd.com v tiatives.

GEORGIA EnGInEER

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Atlanta Strtcars 1902-1949

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GEORGIA EnGInEER

by Thomas c. Leslie

TWO MEN

DOMINATE THE STORY OF ELECTRIC STREETCARS IN ATLANTA in the last decade of the nineteenth century: Joel Hurt and Henry Atkinson.

They both controlled interests in competing streetcar and electric power companies and fought each other in newspapers, at City Council, in courts and other venues in what became known as the ‘Second Battle of Atlanta.’

Photo credit: Atlanta History Center FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

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It became clear that there was room for only one streetcar /power company in Atlanta, and Hurt was induced by Boston financiers to sell to Atkinson. The deal closed in 1902, and a consolidated company was created, the Georgia Railway and Electric Company. The city of Atlanta approved the merger in short order in a ‘consolidated ordinance’ which provided for an initial cash payment to the city of $50,000 and annual payments of one percent of gross earnings per year in years one to three, two percent in years four to 23, and three percent thereafter (which remained in effect until MARTA acquired the successor transit company in 1972). The new company included streetcar, electric light, steam, and (later) gas light properties.

It represented the complete monopoly of public utilities in Atlanta (except the publically-owned waterworks).

Joel Hurt left the stage and Henry Atkinson stepped into the background and yielded leadership of the conglomerate to its new president, Preston S. Arkwright.

It was not until 1907 that state legislation gave regulatory oversight of public utilities to the Georgia Railroad Commission (renamed the Public Service Commission 1922).

Arkwright was the right person to weather these winds of change. The public had wearied of the streetcar battles, distrusted the companies, and was unhappy with service and fare levels. Arkwright saw that change was necessary and adapted skillfully. He initiated an effective advertising campaign that became an integral part of company policy and operations. In 1903, the company sponsored development of the Ponce de Leon Amusement Park (now the old Sears site being redeveloped into Ponce City Market). In 1906, the company acquired an interest in the Atlanta Crackers Baseball team (later a con-

The street railway was very well run during the decade following consolidation. Arkwright continued to market the company, but his success was aided by larger trends: no automobile competition, low inflation, and a plentiful supply of labor. Streetcar operators worked 14-hour days, six days per week.

During these go-go years, the company set its sights on another interurban line, Atlanta to Stone Mountain. It opened in November 1913 and operated until 1948. The line had run from Atlanta to Decatur for some years with a five-cent fare.

This line was extended through Ingleside (Avondale Estates), Scottdale, and Clarkston to Stone Mountain—a distance of over nine miles. The Railroad Commission approved a fare of 25 cents from Decatur to Stone Mountain and reaffirmed the Atlanta-Decatur fare of five cents.

In the following years, there were less favorable winds for streetcars: a federal income tax in 1913, a national recession in 1914, a labor strike in 1916, increasing car sales, and free-lance ‘jitneys’ that ‘robbed’ the streetcar of customers. Jitneys were private cars that solicited riders at streetcar stops on irregular schedules. (Think Uber or Lyft). In 1925, Atlanta prohibited jitneys.

While the American entry into World War I in 1917 increased inflation and tightened the supply of workers, it also dramatically increased ridership. The increased cost of labor and capital, however, exceeded the increased revenue from more patrons. The national data shown in Table 1 encompasses the World War I period and indicates how financial performance changed for streetcar systems. Nationally, the streetcar track mileage peaked in 1917.

Table 1. Percent Change in Streetcar Indicators, 1916 - 1920

trolling interest). In 1907, the Crackers moved to their new home in a stadium across Ponce de Leon Ave. from the amusement park. Streetcars were run regularly to serve both venues.

The decades following the creation of the consolidated company were bountiful years for Atlanta streetcar service. A five-cent fare was set in 1908 for the core service area and was

General Consumer Prices Streetcar Wages Operating Expenses Streetcar Fares Net Revenue

+83% +94% +123% +37% -10%

Source: Mass Motorization + Mass Transit, 2008, David W. Jones

not raised until 1919, when a 1-cent increase was approved. Between 1902 and 1912, the network expanded from 138 track miles to 195 miles (there were 220 miles of single track equivalent in 1924). The number of cars in service increased from 116 in 1904 to 264 in 1913. In addition, an interurban line opened to Marietta in 1905—a one-hour trip with a fare of 35 cents from Atlanta’s Five Points to the Marietta Square. It was closed in January 1947 largely due to the opening of US Highway 41 in 1940 and the convenience the new highway afforded competition from bus companies, as well as private automobiles.

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The diverging lines of revenue and expenses continued during the 1920s and seemed to rekindle public alienation.

Capital investment in upgrades and major maintenance became problematic and resulted in lower quality of service. Traffic congestion increased on downtown streets as automobile ownership rose. The auto drivers largely blamed streetcars for creating congestion on downtown streets, and streetcar riders blamed automobiles for ‘vehicular mayhem.’ Fares did not keep up with expenses, and filings with the Public Service GEORGIA EnGInEER

Commission for increases produced hotly contested disputes.

Adding to pubic disaffection with the street railway was the deep animosity of Mayor James L. Key toward privately owned utilities—he favored public ownership. Municipal ownership was by far the exception in the U.S. Key was mayor from 1922 – 24 and again in 1930. He opposed almost every action by the street railway company when he was in office and out.

Against this backdrop, Arkwright felt that the company had two choices: retreat from public transportation or make costly investments to upgrade track and trolley. He chose to stick with the street railway and sold $4 million in bonds to finance necessary upgrades. They bought new cars that only required one person to operate rather than two and enhanced electrical system reliability. Labor relations were good. To recapture public confidence, the company paid for a comprehensive transportation study by the New York-based firm, Beeler Organization (although the city was the client).

The Beeler Report was provided to city council in late-1924 and was construed as a successful approach to re-establishing public confidence in Georgia Power and the city. The report supported fare increases and the construction of viaducts over the railroad lines through downtown. The city sold $1,00,000 in bonds to fund the viaducts, which now formed the ‘roof’ of Underground Atlanta.

The Georgia Railway and Electric Company became the Georgia Railway and Power Company in 1911, and in 1927 Railway was dropped from the name. Preston Arkwright remained at the helm of the new Georgia Power Company.

During the Great Depression, streetcars simply survived.

There was very little money for either capital upgrades or expansion. The automobile era became firmly entrenched and was set for explosive growth in the post-World War II era. Ridership increased during the war years due to gas rationing and the general mobilization of the U. S. The Marietta interurban line set ridership records largely due to the thousands of workers at the Bell Bomber plant (now Lockheed).

Although Georgia Power bought 40 more one-man trolley cars in 1927, this was their last streetcar purchase. In 1937, Georgia Power bought its first ‘trackless trolley’ —a bus powered by overhead electrical wires. In a petition to the Public Service Commission in 1946 to eliminate the streetcar to Stone Mountain, Georgia Power stipulated that it was “now in the process of modernizing its transportation system in and in the vicinity of Atlanta by the substitution of motor buses and trackless trolleys for street railway services.”

Although the federal Securities and Exchange Commission had previously ordered Georgia Power Company to divest itself FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

of its transit operations, the order was lenient in the timing of divesture. During a labor strike and union negotiations in 1950, Georgia Power reached an agreement for the sale of its transit operation to the Atlanta Transit Company. As part of its formation, MARTA acquired the Atlanta Transit Company in 1972 for $12.9 million.

The last electric trolley rolled in Atlanta in 1949. The last trackless trolley ran in 1963. The ‘modernization’ of mass transit from electric to diesel fuel was complete. The rise of the automobile was king. In post-World War II America, there was broad prosperity, the VA guaranteed loans for veterans to buy homes, and suburban living became the American Dream.

The history shows that the first electric streetcar in Atlanta was in 1889, and it ran 1.5 miles to Inman Park. By 1924, there were 220 miles of track in service. In 1949, 25 years later, the last streetcars ran in Atlanta. The East line of MARTA’s heavy rail system opened in 1979 and reached 47.6 miles of rail and 38 stations by 2000. Just a few months ago, the new Atlanta Streetcar began operation over a 2.7-mile route. It will be an interesting journey to follow the evolution of these systems in the coming years. v *This article is largely based on Mule to MARTA, Vol. II, Jean Martin, Atlanta History Center, 1977

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Diversifying Engineering Education

By Dr. Gary S. May | Dean, College of Engineering | Georgia Institute of Technology ore than fifty years ago, Georgia Tech made history by becoming the first university in the South to integrate voluntarily, without court order. Then, as now, Georgia Tech was focused on a rigorous, high quality education, and our students and faculty believed that anyone who could do the work deserved to be here.

We have come a long way from admitting our first African American students to being the number one institution in the nation in graduating underrepresented minority engineers over the past decade. It has been a very deliberate journey on our part, and we are going to continue and strengthen our efforts to attract, retain, and graduate outstanding minority students who will be the technology leaders of tomorrow.

At Georgia Tech, we are already leading the way in a number of initiatives related to diversity in STEM education.

Tech is an institution that graduates more women and minority engineers than other engineering schools. For example, Georgia Tech graduates approximately ten percent of all African American Ph.D. engineers in the nation. At Tech, the existence of a critical mass of students and faculty from diverse backgrounds fosters a sense of community.

It is important to emphasize that Georgia Tech’s diversity programs do not exist in a vacuum. Our dual degree engineering program with the historically black colleges of the Atlanta University Center, for example, has been at the heart of our efforts to graduate minorities with engineering degrees for more than 40 years.

Partnerships such as this with minorityserving institutions are a key factor in our national leadership. Currently, we partner with 35 institutions ranging from Alabama A&M University to Xavier University.

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Atlanta high school student participating in Project ENGAGES, a science education program in partnership with three minority-serving public high schools in the City of Atlanta, to raise the awareness of students to the world of engineering, science, and technology through real-world, hands-on research projects.

Another outstanding program on campus is SURE (Summer Undergraduate Research in Engineering/Science).

SURE is a ten-week summer research program designed to attract qualified minority students into graduate school in the fields of engineering and science. The overall goal of the program is to expose minority students to engineering and science research, and as a direct consequence, interest them in opportunities available through graduate study. For a ten-week

period these students engage in meaningful research in engineering (electrical, aerospace, chemical, civil, computer, environmental, industrial, mechanical, or materials), and applied science (physics, chemistry, biology, or mathematics).

Along with another program called FOCUS, we are introducing minority undergraduates to the potential benefits of an advanced STEM degree. FOCUS has become a model for a number of other programs across the country and is one of the GEORGIA EnGInEER

nation’s premier programs for raising awareness of graduate education. Georgia Tech launched the FOCUS recruiting program in 1991 with the goal of increasing the number of master's and doctoral degrees awarded to underrepresented minorities not only at Georgia Tech but nationwide. FOCUS lays the groundwork for achieving this goal by bringing together undergraduate students to meet with faculty, peers, alumni, and speakers from the corporate and government arenas.

Also noteworthy was our Facilitating Academic Careers in Engineering and Science (FACES) program. This was a collaborative effort between Georgia Tech, Emory University, Morehouse, and Spelman. The goal was to get minority undergraduate students interested in attending graduate school, and then once enrolled, provide the financial means and support mechanisms to ensure that they obtain a Ph.D. Over the duration of FACES from 1998 to 2013, 433 underrepresented students received Ph.D.s in STEM fields at Georgia Tech—more than any university

in the nation over that span. The ultimate objective of the FACES program was to alter the ‘face’ of the engineering and science professoriate, such that it includes a greater number of people of color.

In 2013, we partnered with the Sloan Foundation to transition FACES to the University Center of Exemplary Mentoring. The new partnership, initiated through the Foundation’s Minority Ph.D. program, is designed to identify universities with a proven track record of successfully educating underrepresented minority graduate students in STEM disciplines and empower these universities to expand, strengthen, and institutionalize efforts aimed at minority recruitment, mentoring, educational support, and professional development.

This is the vision we are working to realize at Georgia Tech. And over the past 15 years, we have redoubled our commitment to attracting and keeping more women and minority students in engineering. This commitment is evident, not through a single, silver-bullet program, but

rather through a wide array of initiatives and approaches.

Our aim is to be a campus of inclusive excellence, a place that respects and values diversity in all aspects of our daily life as a campus community, and a place that provides all of our students with the resources they need to succeed.

The quality of engineering is enhanced by diversity. Without diversity, we limit our ability to find the best engineering solutions. In a global economy, we must design products which are intended for many different customers from many different cultures. Homogeneous teams will be limited in their range of possible solutions.

In celebrating excellence, Georgia Tech has been and continues to be a leader in diversifying engineering education. By doing this, we are providing engineers who can create solutions to address the multidisciplinary, global problems that we face in the future.v

DR. GARy MAy

DR. GARy S. MAy is dean of the college of Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology.

In that capacity, he serves as the chief academic officer of the college and provides leadership to over 400 faculty members and more than 13,000 students. The College of Engineering at Georgia Tech is the largest producer of engineering graduates in the United States.

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Engineering the New U | Consolidation brings new opportunities to Kennesaw State University

By Tiffany Capuano or one engineering school, the consolidation of Kennesaw State and Southern Polytechnic State university has opened a gateway for new opportunities and extraordinary possibilities.

The Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology, as the school of engineering was renamed, kept ties to its successful history, while looking ahead to its future growth.

“This consolidation provides opportunities we didn’t have, historically, as a small polytechnic,” said Thomas Currin, dean of the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology. “We will have the ability to draw on other departments and resources throughout the university.”

The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved consolidation of Kennesaw State and Southern Polytechnic State University in early 2015.

It is the state’s fifth consolidation of higher education institutions.

The ‘new University,’ named Kennesaw State University, combines the best from two of Georgia’s most respected institutions in higher education. As one of the 50 largest public universities in the country, this comprehensive university serves as a destination campus, offering students a broad spectrum of quality academics, a growing and vibrant campus life, award-winning dining facilities, and a wide array of Division I athletic offerings, including football this coming fall.

With two campuses in Kennesaw and Marietta, Kennesaw State began 2015 with three new colleges, including the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology, College of Architecture and Construction Management, and College of Computing

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and Software Engineering. The three colleges remain at the Marietta campus.

Currin, who served as dean since 2010 with SPSU and now takes the helm as the engineering dean at Kennesaw State, explained that the 15 bachelor’s degree programs and four master’s degree programs in the engineering college remain the same with consolidation.

“Our engineering degree programs will continue to be interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary in nature,” said Currin.

The Southern Polytechnic College of En-

gineering and Engineering Technology is the second-largest college of engineering in the state and enrolls more than 2,000 students.

The College is also part of the Georgia Consortium of Engineering Schools, which aligns engineering education across public and private colleges, including Georgia Tech, University of Georgia, Georgia Southern, and Mercer University.

Popular Degree Programs All of the undergraduate degree programs GEORGIA EnGInEER

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at Kennesaw State’s Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology are accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).

Kennesaw State offers one of only two undergraduate programs in systems engineering in the state of Georgia, according to Currin. Systems engineering blends engineering, systems thinking, and management to address business and technical needs. An offshoot of industrial engineering, systems engineering focuses on operational aspects.

Minors in nuclear engineering and aerospace engineering are offered within KSU’s systems engineering program.

Graduates are qualified to enter careers in the aerospace or automotive industries, or nuclear power generation.

The nuclear Regulatory Commission, the agency that regulates commercial nuclear power plants and nuclear materials, often looks to the college’s systems engineering degree program to find its newest talent. In fact, this year, more than 20 students have landed scholarships from the nRC. “The systems engineering degree is the no. 1-demanded degree by organizations who are looking to hire,” Currin said.

He added that it is one of the more popular degree programs in the college.

Mechanical engineering, specifically mechatronics engineering, is also popular among students and has seen rapid growth in recent years. Mechatronics combines computer, electrical, and mechanical engineering with project management and is one of the fastest growing careers focused on the design and enhancement of robotics and automated systems. KSU’s mechatronics, or ‘robotics on steroids’ as Currin defined it, is one of only nine such degree programs in the United States.

Prior to consolidation, the systems engineering and mechanical engineering were housed within the same department, but now operate independently. Software engineering, which is ABET accredited and falls under the College of Computing and

Software Engineering, provides bachelor’s and master’s degree options for students.

Applied Engineering Research With many engineering degrees to choose from, undergraduate student research opportunities are abundant at Kennesaw State. Engineering students assist faculty on applied research grant projects, such as the evaluation of pavement design for the Georgia DOT or solar research related to the fabrication of solar cells.

Like many engineering colleges, proprietary research is common. Many engineering firms look to the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology for research assistance, explained Currin.

“Firms often seek proof of concept to take their idea or product to venture capitalists,” he said. “Our senior design teams find ways to define a concept. This is the research component, not the development aspect, of R&D.” Currin is excited about new research grant possibilities for engineering faculty with the college’s new affiliation with Kennesaw State because many national Science Foundation (nSF) grant opportunities are based on an institution’s size and Carnegie classification.

Engineering faculty serve as advisors for students working on research projects and bring a wealth of industry experience to the university’s classrooms and laboratories. All Kennesaw State engineering faculty are Professional Engineers (PEs) and/or have no less than three years experience working in their respective fields.

“Faculty who have been out in industry bring a different viewpoint,” Currin said. “They are versed in the theoretical side, but can do the end game.”

Experienced Graduates Besides quality research experience, classroom theory, study abroad opportunities, and work in state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, students gain a wealth of knowledge by joining one of 14 student organizations and competition teams in

the college.

“Our engineers are creative, just a different type of artist,” said Currin. “They want to create new and different ways to solve problems.

“The worst thing is tell a room full of engineering students that there is no solution to a problem,” he chuckled. “The wheels start turning immediately.”

Competition teams are one way for students to use their creative problem solving outside of the classroom. KSU Motorsports builds and designs a Formula car for the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) International student competition, ranking among the nation’s top teams. The student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) concrete canoe and steel bridge teams also rank nationally with their respective creations.

“We are giving our students relevant experience so they are ready to enter the workforce. We are providing the workforce of the future, and have built a reputation of providing graduates who can go to work,” said Currin. “What we have heard from employers is that our grads understand their jobs sooner than their peers from other institutions.”

As companies and engineering firms continue to notice the strength of the university’s engineering graduates, Currin seeks to grow the number of endowments funding scholarships. The college received its first endowed engineering scholarship, named for the late Paul Radow, an engineer who helped design the launch pad elevator system for the U.S. space program, and a champion for innovating U.S. industry, prior to consolidation – something that has energized Currin and made him excited about opportunities for future KSU students.

For Currin, the vast possibilities for the Southern Polytechnic College of Engineering and Engineering Technology aren’t the only things making him one happy dean.

He’s pretty ecstatic about football starting at KSU, too. v

For more information about engineering programs and opportunities at Kennesaw State university, visit www.kennesaw.edu/engineering 46

GEORGIA EnGInEER

Mercer Engineering: Linking research with service

By Wade H. Shaw | Dean and Kaolin Chair of Engineering | Mercer University & Shawna Dooley ercer Engineering is about improving the world through education, research, discovery, inspiration, empowerment, and service. Our graduates enter their professional careers equipped with real-world education and experience, and a commitment to serving their communities. At Mercer, the AbET-accredited bachelor of Science in Engineering (bSE) degree takes an interdisciplinary path that includes a core curriculum in electrical, mechanical, and industrial engineering. Integrated within the curriculum is study of technical communication —a communication-enhancing focus on the written and spoken word. undergraduate specialties can be completed in six engineering disciplines and Mercer Engineering also offers Master of Science degrees in eleven technical fields.

The curriculum and the programs are not the whole story however. Our goal is translational research to leads to innovation and service. Mercer Engineering prepares students to serve the rapidly changing technical demands of a new century, we intentionally seek to link our research efforts with service to our community. The academic programs provide breadth across engineering core skills and depth in technical specialties while faculty and students combine technology and research with service through opportunities to serve the needs of others, particularly in under-developed places around the world.

A fine example of this orientation is Dr. Ha Van Vo’s research to develop a universal prosthetic device that can be fabricated at low cost to aid land mine victims in Vietnam with below-the-knee artificial limbs. Designed and manufactured by Dr. Vo’s student team, these prosthetics have changed the lives of over 2,000 people. He continues to refine these devices within ac-

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Dr. Ha Van Vo and Students Fit a Prosthetic in a Vietnamese Clinic ademic labs and programs and then takes sions that resulted in lost limbs. Because students to clinics in Vietnam each year to they were receiving no help from their government, or even from their fellow citfit patients. Listen to his story: izens, these amputees had been reduced to begging for money and food, making them Dr. ha van vo, Associate Professor of seem more like animals than humans to biomedical Engineering me. It was at this time I decided that helpMercer university, Macon, Georgia “As a young boy living in Vietnam, I dis- ing these individuals by creating prosthettinctly remember seeing people who had ics would be my life’s work.

“I came to America in April 1990. I no legs crawling on the ground. The war had graduated from high school, but I had ended, but many of the landmines remained—and still remain—causing explo- worked manual labor jobs until I passed a 47

college entrance exam and began taking classes. Always working toward the goal of inventing a prosthetic, which I finally accomplished and patented in 2008, I earned degrees in biomedical engineering, medicine (with specialties in podiatry and orthopedics), manufacturing, and mechanical engineering. I applied to teach biomedical engineering at Mercer University in 2005-06. I only submitted one application because I felt the mission of Mercer fit exactly with my personal mission. Having graduated from a large public university, where students rarely saw the professor, I craved personal interaction with students through smaller classes.

“I work with my students, who are all seniors or master’s level, as a partner.

Building on solid foundations of math and science, I encourage their natural curiosity by giving assignments and projects, work alongside the students in the lab and hope to inspire innovation. Since inspiration can strike at any time, I remain available to students after class, sometimes late into the evening and during weekends. In class, I take a more practical than theoretical teaching approach by using multiple text books, case studies, and x-rays. Reallife applications such as x-rays underscore the human element of biomedical engineering and remind students that their end design will personally affect someone’s quality of life.

“Several years ago, a mechanical engineering student named Jake asked to work with me. Being an upperclassman, he thought building a prosthetic would be easy. He understood robotics and the design of replacement parts for inanimate objects. He had not, however, considered the anatomy and physiology of the implant. After he observed his design, he considered its function in a patient’s gait, the flex of an ankle and the general condition of muscles in limbs supporting the prosthetic, in addition to factoring in whether the prosthetic would be comfortable because of its composition and weight. When Jake confronted the difference in designing for a human being instead of a robot, a light bulb turned on.

Beyond the classroom or lab, students are 48

continually challenged, experiencing the impact of their work through Mercer on Mission trips. Since 2009, we have traveled to Vietnam five times to conduct orthopedic field clinics, taken 81 Mercer students, and fitted over 2,000 amputees with prostheses. In addition to fitting amputees, we have seen 5,708 orthopedic patients in our field clinics in Vietnam.

“These trips are interdisciplinary and collaborative in nature—in addition to engineering and medical students and faculty, liberal arts (and other non-engineering) students participate.

Prior to the trip and based on the students’ academic disciplines, courses are taught to prepare the students for their roles in fitting prosthetics.

“Students attend academic conferences and present research with me, but some of their most impressive accomplishments have occurred in the field.

During a recent Mercer on Mission trip, several students modified our smallest prosthetic to fit a pediatric patient.

Though we currently only see adult patients, these students knew they could take apart and re-design the prosthetic to fit a young boy. They succeeded. Witnessing this experience confirmed that my students not only understand the concepts of biomedical engineering and prosthetic design, but that they have incredible empathy for their fellow human beings. For the role I have played as their teacher, I feel I have also succeeded.”

Different by Design So you see how Mercer Engineering is committed to preparing its graduates for professional practice with sensitivity to those in need. Engineering has always played an important role in raising the quality of life for a global community. It is an exciting time to study and practice engineering and be part of a discipline that brings tremendous benefits to our world.

Our labs are busy with design projects and creative innovations on the cutting edge of technology. The key ingredient is the people—faculty, staff, and students, who translate the needs of people into design problems that challenge our skills as engineers. We like to say that Mercer Engineering is ‘Different by Design’ and we like to explain why that is so! v

GEORGIA EnGInEER

The Importance of Examining the NSPE Code of Ethics

By Ray James, P.E., Ph.D. | Associate Professor of Civil Engineering | Texas A&M ecause engineering services have such a direct impact on quality of life for all people, engineers are expected to maintain the highest standard of honesty, integrity, impartiality, fairness, and equity. As outlined in the national Society of Professional Engineers (nSPE) code of Ethics, engineers must dedicate themselves to the protection of public safety, health, and welfare—something that requires continuous research, study and analysis. Today, we call this standard of behavior ‘engineering ethics.’

Above all, engineering requires public acceptance, and often public funding, which means public confidence is vital.

And just as in the cases of medicine and law, that confidence can be shaken quickly.

In order to keep up with the design field’s changing landscape and preserve public confidence, continuing education and ongoing study of the model nSPE Code of Ethics, review of state-specific requirements, and examination of case studies and board decisions is vital.

To help assess your knowledge of current ethics code and how to apply it to a real-life scenario, observe the following nSPE Board of Ethical Review case, which looks at the ethics of whether an engineer can perform work in a state for which he or she is not licensed, and whether that engineer can use a colleague licensed in that state to certify the work.

The Case: A property owner retained engineer ‘Robin’ to perform a property condition survey for an apartment complex as part of the refinancing of the property.

Robin visited the site, observed the apartment complex, asked relevant questions, and prepared a property condition report (PCR) that generally met appropriate industry and client standards.

The following week, the owner of the

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apartment complex contacts Robin and sends a blank certification document to Robin to complete, sign, and seal so that the owner can use the form to comply with the state’s condominium conversion law (under which the property owner is required to disclose the condition of various common items to potential purchasers under seal of a professional engineer licensed in the state).

Robin informs the owner that this request is not within the scope of his original services. In addition, Robin informs the owner that he agreed to perform the services with the assumption that a PE license in the state where the work was being performed was not required. Robin is not licensed in the state in which the property is located. However, Robin later locates ‘Bruce,’ a professional engineer licensed in the subject state, who agrees to review Robin’s report and sign and seal the certification document for a fee.

Can Robin ethically agree to perform the service for the owner? Can Bruce ethically agree to sign and seal the certification document?

Yes, Robin could ethically agree to perform the service for the owner. Robin

correctly assumed the owner of the property sought a general review of the property, which did not require a license from the state. However, Bruce could not ethically agree to sign and seal the certification document unless a provision exists under state law to permit successor engineers to follow strict procedures and review engineering drawings and sign and seal those drawings.

Some state boards have limited provisions that permit successor engineers to do this. Otherwise, the possibility of ‘plan stamping,’ which is inconsistent with the nSPE Code of Ethics, would be unethical and illegal.

Fundamental to the practice of professional engineering is compliance with state engineering licensure laws, performing services only in areas of your competence, and acting for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees. Licensed professional engineers must be scrupulous in fulfilling obligations for engineering licensure, which includes staying up-to-date on the nSPE Code of Ethics and satisfying engineering ethics continuing education requirements. v

For more information about engineering ethics continuing education and the NSPE Code of Ethics, Dr. James’ video-based courses can be found at www.RedVector.com.

About Ray James: Ray W. James, P.E., holds a Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics from the University of Texas. As the holder of the Bovay Faculty Fellowship, he is the Texas A&M College of Engineering’s course coordinator and regularly teaches a course titled Engineering and Ethics, which is required of all engineering majors at Texas A&M. A registered professional engineer in Texas, Dr. James has authored or co-authored more than 25 publications and is the co-author of Engineering Ethics—Concepts and Cases, Wadsworth-Cengage Learning. He has developed and taught courses on engineering ethics for professionals and firms across the country.

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GEORGIA

ENGINEERING NEWS

Michael baker International Recognized at 2014 national Accelerated bridge construction conference The Accelerated Bridge Construction– University Transportation Center (ABCUTC) recently honored Michael Baker International’s bridge experts with two project awards in recognition of design innovation and performance excellence.

ABC-UTC presented the awards at the 2014 National Accelerated Bridge Construction Conference in Miami, Florida, in December 2014. A total of four projects were given awards, and Michael Baker International was the lead designer on two of these projects.

Aaron Stover, P.E., S.E., project manager in the firm’s Louisville, Kentucky, office accepted the award for the Eggner’s Ferry Bridge project. This complex project involved rapid replacement of a major truss span carrying US 68 over Kentucky Lake in Western Kentucky, which had collapsed after an oversized cargo ship hit the bridge. This vital link to the Land Between the Lakes national Recreation Area was rapidly restored in two months, and a week ahead of schedule.

Michael Arens, P.E., S.E., project manager in the firm’s Midvale, Utah, office accepted the award for the Sam White Bridge Design-Build project. This 300foot, two-span bridge over I-15, weighing in excess of four million pounds, was moved into place using Self-Propelled Modular Transports (SPMTs) which minimized disruption to traffic flow to a single overnight closure of the interstate. At the time of the bridge move, this project represented the largest bridge ever moved into place using SPMTs. “Michael Baker International has excelled at these types of projects because of the ingenuity of our talented bridge engineers and the enthusiasm they have for creative solutions,” said John Dietrick, P.E., S.E. and the company’s Bridge and Highway Practice Director. “Actually, we were deeply involved with another similar ABCUTC award-winning project—the Milton 50

Sam White Bridge. Photo credit: Utah Department of Transportation Madison Bridge over the Ohio River between Kentucky and Indiana. Recognition through these awards is a demonstration of the commitment to innovation and excellence of our people, and we are honored to share these awards with our clients and project partners.”

As a Gold Level Sponsor of the conference, three Michael Baker International employees conducted presentations as part of the conference proceedings: • Virginia DOT I-95 Accelerated Bridge Construction Project–Jorge Suarez (with Scott Fisher, VDOT) •

Development of national Slide-In Bridge Construction Guide for Federal Highway Administration – Michael Arens

•

Accelerated Replacement of the

Eggner’s Stover.v

Ferry

Bridge–Aaron

GEORGIA EnGInEER

hnTb corporation welcomes Ananth Prasad, infrastructure expert, as leader of national transportation practice and senior vice president Ananth Prasad, PE, has joined hnTb corporation, assuming a national role as leader of the firm’s transportation practice. Prasad will develop and direct strategies that enhance hnTb’s service to state departments of transportation across the country. he is based in the firm’s Tallahassee, Florida, office.

“Having Ananth share his understanding of the immense challenges facing transportation agencies today will translate well to other DOT and transportation agencies around the country,” said Rob Slimp, PE, CEO, HnTB. “Our firm is proud to be a leading infrastructure solutions provider to DOTs—central to our 100-year legacy. Ananth’s understanding of the impact of emerging technologies on the transportation system will be especially critical to transportation agencies as they prepare for the future of our transportation system.”

Prasad departed the Florida Department of Transportation’s top position Jan. 2, 2015, following his four-year appointment by Gov. Rick Scott. In a December 2014 statement, Gov. Scott praised Prasad saying, “Secretary Prasad has been part of my administration since the very beginning, and he has been pivotal to making sure we could make a record investment of over $10 billion in our transportation system this year (2014).”

Prior to his becoming secretary of FDOT, Prasad served as assistant secretary for engineering and operations for the agency. Prasad rejoined FDOT in July 2010 after a two-year position as a vice president with HnTB. As FDOT secretary, Prasad led the agency with a budget of $10 billion and 6,500 employees responsible for providing a safe and efficient transportation system to the fastest growing state in the country.

His forward-looking leadership resulted in financial close of the state’s largest publicprivate partnership, the $2.4 billion I-4 Ultimate Improvement Project in Orlando; delivering SunRail commuter rail service in Central Florida; creating a system of manFEbRuARy | MARch 2015

responsible for implementing various innovative contracting techniques, including public-private partnerships, and he has been a proponent of advanced technologies to improve safety and mobility.

Engineering news-Record, the top trade magazine for the transportation construction industry, named Prasad one of the Top 25 newsmakers for 2013 and recognized FDOT as the Southeast Owner of the Year.

Prasad completed his undergraduate studies at national Institute of Technology in Rourkela, India, and earned a master’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Florida.

Ananth Prasad, PE Former Florida Department of Transportation secretary joins HNTB aged lanes in South Florida; securing funding for the new intermodal center at Orlando International Airport; and completion of Tampa International Airport’s master plan.

Prasad has more than 24 years of experience in the transportation industry, including 22 years with FDOT, where he previously held the positions of chief engineer and director of construction. He was

About hnTb HnTB Corporation is an employeeowned infrastructure solutions firm serving public and private owners and contractors.

With more than a century of service, HnTB understands the life cycle of infrastructure and addresses clients’ most complex technical, financial, and operational challenges. Professionals nationwide deliver a full range of infrastructure-related services, including award-winning planning, design, program management, and construction management. For more information, visit www.hntb.com. v

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All Aboard Florida All Aboard Florida will be the nation’s first privately owned, operated and maintained intercity passenger rail service operating between Miami and Orlando with intermediate stations in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm beach.

With stations planned in the downtowns of Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach and at the future Intermodal Facility at Orlando International Airport, All Aboard Florida will connect Florida’s key cities in a new way that sparks social and economic opportunities while offering an exceptional guest experience. Rail service is well suited to address travel between heavily populated and visited markets, and All Aboard Florida will be anchored by two of the most dynamic cities in the U.S., Miami and Orlando.

Siemens, a major provider of rail in the U.S. since the 1980s, will build the locomotives and passenger coaches for the All Aboard Florida passenger rail project. Importantly, both the locomotives and the passenger coaches, will be ‘Made in America’ at Siemens’ solar-powered rail manufacturing hub in Sacramento. Today in the U.S., Siemens is providing rail vehicles, locomotives, components and systems to more than 25 agencies in cities such as Washington D.C., new York, Boston, Philadelphia, Denver, Salt Lake City, Minneapolis, Houston, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, St. Louis, Atlanta, and Charlotte. Globally, Siemens designs and manufactures across the entire spectrum of rolling stock including commuter and regional passenger trains, light rail, and streetcars, metros, locomotives, passenger coaches, and high-speed trainsets.

The stainless steel passenger coaches, the first to be manufactured by Siemens in the United States, will be state-of-the-art, ADA compliant and designed for comfort, featuring special ergonomic seating and Wi-Fi. The train sets will also be level boarding, which allows for the ease of boarding without steps and provides easier access for bikes, walkers, strollers, and wheelchairs.

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Ft. Lauderedale The train will ‘set the bar’ for future rail travel by combining speed, design, technology and service. Operating at maximum speed and efficiency, All Aboard Florida will make the trip between Miami and Orlando in just under three hours, representing a time savings of 25 to 30 percent compared with existing travel options.

Compared to other passenger rail systems in the U.S. and world, and based on extensive research, this three hour travel time is known as the ‘sweet spot’ between key distances, making it “too long to drive, and too short to fly.” Additionally, the project will run on an existing corridor for the majority of its journey and will have minimal environmental impact to the areas surrounding its operation.

All Aboard Florida will serve a diverse market that includes families, business travelers, leisure travelers and groups – both international and domesti—and fills the 20-year demand for intercity passenger rail connecting Central and South Florida.

Once onboard, passengers will enjoy a hospitality-driven experience—from free WiFi, to high quality meal and beverage service, to seating options designed to meet the needs of each passenger.

In addition to the rail service itself, each All Aboard Florida station will serve as its own destination with shopping, dining and entertainment venues to be enjoyed by travelers and non-travelers alike. The

company plans to develop approximately 4 million square feet of transit oriented development near the three stations in South Florida that will include a mix of office, residential and commercial components.

All Aboard Florida is a first-of-itskind, history-making endeavor. This service will set a new standard for privately funded, operated and maintained intercity passenger rail in the U.S., marking a new era in Florida’s rich rail history by reigniting Henry Flagler’s inspired vision to create greater connectivity and fueling future growth and prosperity. The project, and the transit oriented development that will surround each station, will catalyze growth, revitalize local economies, spur tourism and generate more than 10,000 new construction and more than 2,000 permanent jobs.

The service is expected to be operational between Miami and West Palm Beach by the end of 2016 and to Orlando by early 2017. v West Palm beach

GEORGIA EnGInEER

Epsten Group headquarters First to Reach LEED Double Platinum Through v4 Always seeking to raise the bar on sustainable building solutions, Epsten Group is pleased to announce the LEED v4 beta Platinum certification for Existing buildings Operations and Maintenance (LEED Eb:O+M) of its innovative office building, The Edge. based on research, this is the world's first project ever to achieve double Platinum with an initial certification under LEED for new construction and Major Renovations (under LEED bD+c) and a subsequent certification under LEED version 4 Eb:O+M. “To the best of our knowledge, we are the only firm in the world to achieve LEED Platinum under LEED version 4 for operations, after previously achieving LEED Platinum for the building’s major renovation,” said Dagmar B. Epsten, president and CEO of Epsten Group. “Thus, we have brought this 1940s building to the latest current operational standards for LEED Platinum, and a double Platinum achievement.”

The Edge is also the first ever to achieve LEED EB:O+M certification under a process that uses an Establishment review and a Performance review, allowing for easy subsequent performance reviews and re-certifications during the building’s entire lifetime. These recognitions position this property as a model for sustainable buildings in Atlanta and beyond. The Edge earned its first LEED certification, a LEED-BD+C v2009 Platinum certification, in 2011. Epsten Group was among a distinguished group of firms selected by the U.S. Green Building Council to pilot LEED v4, becoming the world’s third LEED EB:O+M v4 Platinum certified project.

“We always think about the entire life cycle of a building and the future of sustainability,” Epsten said. “That’s why we were honored to be a part of beta testing of LEED v4, and why this certification for The Edge is so meaningful. Buildings can be constructed with the best high-performance features, but over time, their environmental benefits can diminish if they aren’t operated and managed properly.

FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

now, The Edge can serve as a standard of excellence in sustainability for the lifetime of a building.”

LEED v4 opens a new chapter in the story of LEED, in which the initial certification is just the starting point. LEED v4 focuses more on outcomes and the education of building owners. Although certified, it is The Edge’s operations and mainte-

nance that defines its ongoing contribution to sustainability. Life-cycle achievements, including energy and water use performance, a healthful environment, tracking of purchasing and waste, and verification and reporting, make a building like The Edge a model for sustainability.

Located in Atlanta’s historic Old Fourth Ward and originally constructed in 1946, The Edge has already achieved four Green Globes in addition to its two LEED certifications, as well as an AIA Georgia 2013 Design Awards-Citation Award, a TOBY Award from BOMA Atlanta, an Award of Excellence for Sustainable Design from the Atlanta Urban Design Commission, and a finalist position for the Urban Land Institute of Atlanta’s Award for Excellence. The building’s sustainable features include a thin-film photovoltaic system, a green roof, high-efficiency systems and lighting, well-insulated walls with an air barrier, water-efficient fixtures, lowVOC finishes, and salvaged wood. Under LEED EB:O+M, The Edge earned points for a wide variety of operational practices including alternative transportation, energy efficiency, sustainable purchasing and an occupant education program.

The LEED EB:O+M certification of The Edge is just the latest in a long line of achievements for Epsten Group. The firm 53

has received numerous awards for its work in all project phases from design to operation, has been recognized twice as one of the Top 300 Small Businesses of the South, one of EnR’s top 100 design firms of the Southeast, and was ranked on Inc. Magazine’s list of fastest-growing private companies in America. Epsten Group is also the global leader in LEED reviews, having conducted certification reviews for 7,000 projects in more than 50 countries. The firm was recently awarded a high-profile design project for Zoo Atlanta, converting the historic Cyclorama building into a unique event facility overlooking a mixedspecies savanna exhibit. v

Dagmar Epsten named one of 12 women honored with Womenetics 2014 POW! Award Dagmar b. Epsten, FAIA, LEED Fellow, cxA, President and cEO of Epsten Group, has been named as one of 12 women to be honored with a Womenetics 2014 POW! Award.

Dagmar Epsten, a registered architect and globally recognized leader in high-performance buildings, along with her firm Epsten Group, has pioneered best sustainable design practices in buildings nationally and internationally. Epsten Group has a successful track record of providing design, consulting, systems and building envelope commissioning, and LEED certification review services on over 7,000 buildings in more than 50 countries.

Clients include corporations, developers and institutions such as Zoo Atlanta, which has tasked Epsten Group to provide architectural and interior design, LEED consulting, and energy modeling for transforming the historic Cyclorama building into a first-class events facility.

Since 2009, Womenetics has presented the POW! Awards to recognize extraordinary female leaders who have attained a high level of transformative success in business, academia or a nonprofit, and are change agents in the community, respected for significant contributions locally and globally.

“POW! Awards recipients are dynamos,” said Elisabeth Marchant, founder and CEO of Womenetics. “They exude 54

Dagmar Epsten confidence, spark innovation and bring the ‘POW!’ factor to everything they do.”

Epsten Group’s own LEED Platinum certified office ‘The Edge,’ on Atlanta’s Edgewood Avenue, is known as a local catalyst for redevelopment in the new streetcar neighborhood and as an international pilot site for the ongoing evolution of LEED certification. The building was recently recognized as the world’s first LEED Double Platinum recipient for a major renovation followed by the latest LEED standard for operations.

Dagmar Epsten serves enthusiastically on several boards and committees, including the Board of Advisors for the Georgia Tech College of Architecture where she established the Epsten Environmental Vision Prize, given annually to seniors in the

School of Architecture.

Amanda Brown Olmstead nominated Dagmar Epsten for the award as she is impressed by Dagmar’s impact: “Dagmar Epsten is a woman we relish working with, because of the quality standards she sets for herself and all who work around her.” Epsten Group is highly regarded by clients for the high-performance building standards the company upholds and implements. The firm is also committed to its internal quality processes and is accredited to ISO 17065 for LEED certification reviews.

The Atlanta POW! Awards luncheon takes place on April 29, 2015, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. at the Georgia Aquarium.

The public is invited to network with and support these women of action and purpose by attending the event. Tickets are available now at www.womenetics.com. v

GEORGIA EnGInEER

Stevens & Wilkinson reimagines Georgia State capitol Grounds Georgia architecture and engineering firm designs Liberty Plaza, adjacent to Capitol Hill, for public and civic use.

On the heels of Governor nathan Deal’s January 12 inauguration, a new reimagination of a former plaza has been completed at the Georgia State Capitol building. The outdoor civic space, called Liberty Plaza, was redesigned by Atlantaand Columbia-based architecture and engineering firm Stevens & Wilkinson. The introduction of this area expands Capitol Hill’s grounds across Capitol Avenue for public use. As a supporter of the project, Deal attended the January 16 dedication of the space in downtown Atlanta.

Stevens & Wilkinson was selected by the Georgia Building Authority (GBA) and the Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission (GSFIC) to recreate Liberty Plaza as a gathering place for celebrations, ceremonies, and assemblies for both lawmakers and citizens. In conjunction with landscape architecture firm Hughes Good O’Leary Ryan (HGOR) and civil engineering firm Long Engineering, Stevens & Wilkinson provided full design services including the demolition of a parking deck, the creation of the plaza and an addition of strategic entryways to enhance connectivity.

“Our team of architects and engineers implemented smart design solutions to ensure the plaza is beautiful, sustainable and accessible for large numbers of citizens,” said Bill Clark, AIA, LEED AP, president of Stevens & Wilkinson Atlanta.

FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

Photo credit: Stevens & Wilkinson According to the GBA, this redesign of Liberty Plaza will enable it to become the major focal point for large and small groups holding public rallies and assemblages both during and between legislative sessions. In keeping with the GBA’s vision of the space’s use, the design team planned Liberty Plaza’s entrances with large crowds in mind. The plaza’s new strategically de-

signed, broad entryways enhance connectivity to surrounding thoroughfares, and the plaza itself can now hold more than 3,400 people.

Full design services were the undertaking of Stevens & Wilkinson’s design team. One of the first tasks to meet the project’s goals was executing the demolition of an existing decades-old parking

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structure occupying the, now, site of Liberty Plaza. Once demolition of the former parking garage had taken place, Stevens & Wilkinson implemented a recycling and reuse strategy to incorporate the materials into the new plaza.

While all of the steel from the former structure was recycled, the remaining concrete was reused as backfill material for Liberty Plaza. This strategic design idea was crucial to the repurposing of materials where possible and ensuring the new atmosphere of Liberty Plaza was in line with that of the existing, neighboring state government buildings and other surroundings.

Liberty Plaza is strategically located within walking distance of public parking and Metro Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) stations and bus stops to reduce vehicular traffic patterns around the Capitol area. Broad sidewalks, street trees and an accessible ramp connecting to an overhead pedestrian bridge were conceived and added by Stevens & Wilkinson and HGOR to enable increased walkability for groups making use of Liberty Plaza.

Given the large capacity of the plaza, Liberty Plaza was designed with safety and security in mind. Stevens & Wilkinson ensured that the plaza can be secured with gates and fencing, and the area will be continuously monitored by surveillance cameras.

In order to promote Georgia’s rich history and incorporate it into the design of Liberty Plaza, the Stevens & Wilkinson design team included installations of relocated public art. Among the public art are replicas of both the Liberty Bell and the Statue of Liberty, which draw likenesses to Liberty Plaza in both their names and American symbolism of freedom.

Visitors will enjoy plaques exhibiting excerpts from both the Declaration of Independence and Preamble to the Constitution, which are displayed alongside inscriptions with the words to The StarSpangled Banner and Pledge of Allegiance.

Furthermore, Georgia-harvested granite and a native Georgia plant palette were chosen for the design to as a representative of the state’s natural resources. These elements of the design contribute to the aesthetic concert between Liberty Plaza and 56

Photo credit: Stevens & Wilkinson

Photo credit: Stevens & Wilkinson

the existing surrounding state government buildings.

About Stevens & Wilkinson: Founded in 1919, Stevens & Wilkinson is a full-service commercial architecture, engineering and interior design firm committed to pro-

viding clients with ‘Smart Design Solutions.’ The firm’s combined design capabilities equate to projects executed with creative, innovative and holistic design solutions. www.stevens-wilkinson.com. v

GEORGIA EnGInEER

Express charging | Das Auto 2015 Washington Auto Show, two of the top automakers, volkswagen of America and bMW of north America, together with chargePoint, the largest electric vehicle charging network, announced an initiative to create express charging corridors along heavily-traveled routes on the East and West coasts. Designed to increase the number of fast charging locations, the initiative will help meet the large and growing demand for convenient, publicly available electric vehicle fast chargers, including direct current (Dc) Fast charging locations, and support the adoption of electric vehicles in the united States. In the initial phase, the aim is to install nearly 100 Dc Fast chargers across both coasts, with plans to expand the program to increase access to fast charging across the country. These newly installed Dc Fast chargers will be added to the growing chargePoint network of more than 20,000 charging spots in north America.

With more than 280,000 electric vehicles sold in the United States, EV owners need more charging flexibility while on the go. The express charging corridors will provide electric vehicle drivers access to DC Fast chargers along the most heavily populated and highly-trafficked regions on Interstate 95 on the east coast, from Boston to Washington, D.C., and on the west coast covering and connecting the metropolitan areas of Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego. The installations will occur both within and between relevant metro areas, strategically-spaced at a maximum of 50 miles apart, making it even easier to take long road trips in an EV. “A robust network of conveniently located DC Fast charging stations will go a long way toward increasing electric vehicle adoption and making electric vehicle ownership even more enjoyable,” said Robert Healey, Head of EV Infrastructure at BMW of north America. “The express charging corridors are another important step in the development of the U.S. e-mobility infrastructure that makes longer distance travel a real option for consumers, FEbRuARy | MARch 2015

particularly along the most heavily trafficked portions of both coasts—making the BMW i3 and other electric vehicles even more appealing.”

“Volkswagen believes in a holistic approach to e-mobility in order to create a seamless experience for the consumer,” said Jörg Sommer, vice president, product marketing and strategy, Volkswagen of America. “The investment in the express charging corridor will provide e-Golf and other electric vehicle owners with the added support to travel their day-to-day

and popular long distance routes.”

Each fast charging location along the express charging corridors is expected to include up to two 50 kW DC Fast chargers, or 24 kW DC Combo Fast chargers with the SAE Combo connector, used in both BMW and Volkswagen electric vehicles as well as many other electric vehicles that incorporate a DC Fast Charging capability. When charging at a 50 kW station, both the BMW i3 and the Volkswagen e-Golf can charge up to 80 percent in 20 minutes. Both vehicles can

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charge up to 80 percent in 30 minutes at a 24 kW station. Locations will also include Level Two chargers, currently the most commonly available public charging stations, which are compatible with all electric vehicles. Level Two stations can dispense up to 25 miles of range per hour of charging, providing a full charge for the BMW i3 and the VW e-Golf within 3.5 to four hours.

The DC Fast charging stations will be part of the ChargePoint network and can be easily accessed with a ChargePoint or Chargenow card or with the ChargePoint mobile app.

“Our goal at ChargePoint is to get everyone behind the wheel of an EV and provide EV charging everywhere they go,” said Pasquale Romano, ChargePoint CEO. “With strategically-placed stations where drivers need them, these express charging corridors will give EV drivers the freedom to go farther and have an EV as their only car without limitation.”

Installations have already begun on the west coast, with the first location in San Diego County. There is a target of nearly 100 DC Fast charging spots in the first phase, available by the end of 2015. DC Fast chargers along the express charging

corridors are expected to be installed in convenient locations such restaurants, shopping centers, rest stops, and more.

ChargePoint will leverage its existing customer base and knowledge on usage to pick strategic locations either where drivers currently charge, or to fill in spaces where there is currently a lack of infrastructure.

With the investment, Volkswagen, BMW and ChargePoint are providing drivers with the ability and confidence to enjoy longer distance driving and recharge their electric vehicles quickly, ultimately leading to greater electric vehicle adoption.v

AMEc combines with Foster Wheeler In november 2014, AMEc plc and Foster Wheeler AG combined to create Amec Foster Wheeler, a new force in global engineering, project delivery, asset support, power equipment, and consultancy. In creating the new company, Amec Foster Wheeler is building on the proud heritage, skills, and customers relationships of two historic engineering giants with over 150 years of experience.

The combined company, with a highly skilled workforce of over 40,000 in more than 50 countries, has a broader geographic spread, doubling its revenues from growth regions such as Latin America, and is strongly positioned across the entire oil and gas value chain and in other key markets.

More specifically, Foster Wheeler’s capabilities in the refining and processing of oil and gas complement AMEC’s upstream business in exploration and production. The two companies also make a good geographical fit, with AMEC’s north American and European footprint enhanced by Foster Wheeler’s strengths in the Middle East and Asia.

Amec Foster Wheeler is ranked number two in the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Top 25 Engineering Firms for 2014. The company operates in the oil and gas, mining, clean energy, power generation, environment and infrastructure markets. In addition, the company is a leading designer, fabricator and supplier of advanced boiler 58

systems for the power generation and industrial markets.

The firm’s history in Georgia dates back to 1946. In Georgia, Amec Foster Wheeler has more than 1,000 employees located in five metro Atlanta offices, along with locations in Warner Robins and Brunswick. These offices provide environmental services, engineering, design, and construction services to clients across multiple sectors, including conventional power, nuclear, renewables/bioprocess, power, transmission & distribution, water, government, industrial/pharmaceutical, transportation, and infrastructure.

Amec Foster Wheeler’s broad array of engineering, scientific and technical disciplines provides a full range of services to more than 8,000 public- and private-sector clients. The company’s professional and technical specialists work to become the most trusted partner for their customers by consistently delivering excellence, bringing together the knowledge, expertise and skills of its people from across their global network. On all projects, Amec Foster Wheeler strives to maintain the delicate balance between humans and nature, focusing on sustainable engineering, planning, and design principles.

Through the years, Amec Foster Wheeler has assisted clients with major Georgia development projects such as Atlantic Station and Aerotropolis (the former

Ford Motor Company site), where they provided environmental remediation and site development services; Plant Vogtle, where they conduct construction material testing and geotechnical engineering for the first new nuclear plant in the US in nearly 30 years; and engineering and construction services for the installation of a gypsum dewatering facility for the Southern Company’s Plant Bowen in Cartersville, Georgia. Plant Bowen has been described as one of the US’s cleanest coal-fired power plants and one of the largest recycling centers in the world.

Among other key projects, Amec Foster Wheeler is on the team building the new Atlanta Falcons stadium, regularly works with the Georgia Department of Transportation on projects throughout the state, and continues to assist the Savannah Harbor Expansion project by helping to meet the dissolved oxygen criterion for port deepening.

“We take pride in our involvement in Georgia’s development over the decades,” said Allen Kibler, East Group Leader for Amec Foster Wheeler’s Environment & Infrastructure business. “With our expanded footprint and resources, we’ve got a world of expertise at our clients’ disposal, enabling us to see solutions in the most challenging environments. And we’ll continue to be a trusted partner to our clients throughout Georgia.” v GEORGIA EnGInEER