Fall 2014 | Volume 84 | No. 4
Connecting Houston and Dallas by Bullet Tr ain Future Cities Competition Sir Sandford Fleming Inventor of Universal Standard Time
Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage Paid Austin, Texas PERMIT NO. 879
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Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
On the Cover: Texas Central Railway is working to bring Japan Railway Central’s (JRC) latest version of the world-class high-speed rail technology to Texas. Photos of the N700 used under permission of JR Central. TEXAS SECTION OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Crespin Guzman PE OPERATIONS MANAGER: Elizabeth R. Greenwood COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER: Annemarie Gasser DATA MANAGER: Lauren Marcotte 1524 S. Interstate 35, Suite 180 Austin, Texas 78704 Phone: 512-472-8905 E-mail: office@texasce.org Website: www.texasce.org 2013–2014 OFFICERS PRESIDENT: Tim C. Newton PE PAST PRESIDENT: John N. Furlong PE PRESIDENT ELECT: Curtis B. Beitel PE VP-EDUCATIONAL: Eric L. Fisher PE VP-EDUCATIONAL ELECT: Lawrence D. Goldberg PE VP-PROFESSIONAL: Patrick M. Beecher PE VP-PROFESSIONAL ELECT: Roman D. Grijalva PE VP-TECHNICAL: John D. Garcia PE VP-TECHNICAL ELECT: Peter E. Falletta PE TREASURER: David J. Matocha ASSISTANT TREASURER: Curtis R. Steger PE DIRECTORS AT LARGE SENIOR DIRECTOR AT LARGE: Brett A. Pope PE SECOND YEAR DIRECTOR AT LARGE: Vanessa I. Rosales-Herrera PE FIRST YEAR DIRECTOR AT LARGE: Brad M. Hernandez PE FIRST YEAR DIRECTOR AT LARGE: Christina L. Hickey PE SECTION DIRECTORS Brandon E. Hammann PE, Austin Branch Robert Lys Jr PE, Brazos Branch Russell R. Carter PE, Caprock Branch Devon K. Dreyer PE, Central Texas Branch Anthony B. Gavlik PE, Corpus Christi Branch Chula B. Ellepola PE, Dallas Branch J. Gilberto Andujo PE, El Paso Branch Kimberly K. Cornett PE, Fort Worth Branch Martin D. Morris PE, High Plains Branch Andrea Cheng Ranft PE, Houston Branch Arthur M. Clendenin PE, Northeast Texas Branch Alfonso A. Soto PE, Rio Grande Valley Branch James A. Lutz PE, San Antonio Branch Robert C. Hickman PE, Southeast Texas Branch Andrew L. Mellen PE, West Texas Branch ASCE - Region 6 Kenneth B. Morris PE Director and Board of Governors Chair 2014-2017 Nancy S. Cline PE Governor—Texas Section 2011–2014 Ken A. Rainwater PhD PE Governor—Texas Section 2012–2015 Elvidio V. Diniz PE Governor—New Mexico Section 2012–2015 Jeremy P. Stahle PE Governor—Oklahoma Section 2013-2016 Sean P. Merrell PE Governor—Appointed (Texas Section) 2013-2016
In This Issue
Fall 2014 | Volume 84 | Number 4 Calendar of Events 4 CPD Opportunities 4 President’s Message 5 Message From the Executive Director
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Report From Region 6 7 Connecting Houston and Dallas by Bullet Train
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Future City Competition & Sim City
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Branch News 11 The Twenty-Second Buchanan Lecture
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2014 Webinars 13 ASCE Texas Section Award Nominations
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Student’s Center 16 Membership Report 17 Younger Members Corner 18 ASCE News 19 Sir Sandford Fleming 20 Procard Directory 21
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Calendar of Events
CPD Opportunities
Texas Section Meetings 2015 - San Marcos Sept. 29 - Oct. 2 2016 - San Marcos Sept. 20 - Sept. 23
To enhance communications between ASCE and ASCE’s Regions, Sections, and Branches, Geographic Services is pleased to advise you of the following seminars scheduled in our area:
Texas Civil Engineer Deadlines
Austin
Winter 2015 - Volume 85, No. 1 November 17 Ad Insertion Deadline November 3 Copy Submittal Deadline Spring 2015 - Volume 85, No. 2 February 20 Ad Insertion Deadline February 6 Copy Submittal Deadline Summer 2015 - Volume 85, No. 3 May 18 Ad Insertion Deadline May 4 Copy Submittal Deadline Fall 2015 - Volume 85, No. 4 August 24 Ad Insertion Deadline August 10 Copy Submittal Deadline
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11/12/14
Design of Foundations for Dynamic Loads
Houston 12/3/14
Structural Design for Bomb Blast Loads and Accidental Chemical Explosions (Buildings and Industrial Facilities)
Oklahoma City 11/12/14
Slope Stability Analysis & Slope Stabilization In Engineering Practice
San Antonio 12/10/14 HEC-RAS Computer Workshop Detailed descriptions of seminars are available at www.asce.org/knowledge-learning/ continuing-education/
Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
President’s Message By the time you read this we will have held the first annual Texas Civil Engineering Conference – Texas CECON 2014 in Galveston, Texas. It will be a success because of the tremendous amount of effort and the number of volunteer hours dedicated to the planning and execution of the event. Participation in the semi-annual Section Meetings, held for many years, has been waning. We knew you were telling us to do a better job in serving you, so we did just that. Thanks to Co-Chairs Ronald M. Reichert and Leanne M. Napolillo PE, F.ASCE, CECON has been totally redesigned. Other key contributors include Curtis B. Beitel PE, CFM, ENV SP, B. Andrea Cheng Ranft PE, Carol E. Haddock PE, Larry D. Goldberg PE and Donald J. Anderson Jr. PE along with numerous committee chairs and volunteers. A special thanks to these Houston Branch leaders for their contributions. Here are some of the highlights of the new format: • One conference a year for more focused program planning • Collaboration with partner organizations, including the Texas Concrete Pipe Association • Section wide planning committee • Lower annual cost for participants and their employers • More keynote speakers • Fewer breakout sessions featuring notable statewide and regional speakers and panelists • Lightning rounds for members to make technical presentations with rewards for best presentations
Tim C. Newton PE Texas Section President
Congratulations on a job well done on CECON 2014. Here is a recapping and a status report of the six presidential/board/ staff priorities for this year: 1. Working with smaller Branches to stabilize their structure and help in finding ways to effectively serve their members – Ongoing with more focused Section support. 2. Relationship building between the Section, Branches and Student Chapters – Significant progress with calls by Tim Newton, Section President to each Branch president, and Student Chapter campus visitations by Executive Director, Crespin Guzman PE. 3. Focusing energy on our first annual meeting – Texas CECON 2014, Galveston, TX – Success. 4. Ramping up efforts for webinars, especially in the winter and spring, to fill the training gap since there will be no Spring Section Meeting – Success with at least one Webinar each month – total estimated average attendance of 75. 5. Community involvement – Success through the Centennial Habitat House, the Texas Department of Public Safety Critical Infrastructure Advisory Council and more. 6. More visibility and transparency to the public about who we are and the state of our infrastructure – Success with Get Out the Vote (GOTV) initiatives in November, 2013 on water funding, and November, 2014 on transportation funding. Pre-college outreach is an important way to increase interest in STEM (Sci-
ence Technology Engineering and Math) education and to ultimately stimulate more STEM college degrees (TCE Volume 84, Number 2, spring 2014, and President’s Message). Let us remember our history and heritage. Learning from our past is the path to our future. Continue to find ways to proudly present the stories of our successful members and projects in Texas. Most of all, remember the benefits of being a member of ASCE. The American Society of Civil Engineers is the ONLY organization that serves civil engineers across the globe with all of the following benefits: • Networking with peers • Leadership training • Technical training • Mentoring – opportunity for personal growth • A sense of belonging • Technical resources nationwide • A global society – the ASCE brand is unlike any other worldwide Become an ASCE Texas Section member and remain a member! The success of the ASCE Texas Section is dependent upon you, our members. We need you to serve as Section officers, committee chairs and committee members. Please step up to the plate – it will help the Section grow and will be a rewarding experience for you. It has been a pleasure serving you as your Texas Section President. I pray for our continued success in delivering programs, education and conferences that benefit our members.
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Message From The Executive Director
Crespin Guzman PE Executive Director
Staying Current by Changing With the Times
With all the changes the Section has been implementing this year and those that are still to come, we continue to reach out in new directions to enhance the value of membership. The most obvious effort is that of CECON 2014, which just ushered in a new era for all civil engineers in Texas— not just Section subscribing or assigned Members. This annual meeting conference experience will only improve in the years to come. We have learned much during the planning and execution phases of the new conference held recently in Galveston. You can expect bigger and better from CECON 2015 & 2016 in the San Marcos area!
Non-dues Revenue
Just as new and different, is the pursuit of non-dues revenue stream opportunities in the form of grants, history book sales and advertising online and in print. The staff has identified several entities to target for history and her-
itage grant funding and some community events to display and sell our centennial history book. We encourage all Branches to look within their communities and find opportunities to pursue similar opportunities for book sales - an excellent way to raise money for scholarship funds or events. Additionally, we have been comparing several enterprises that would partner with the Section to solicit advertising on our website and magazine and/or a combination thereof. All of these efforts are both exciting and challenging. We are venturing out of our comfort zones and following less trodden paths in search of funds to support new projects!
STEM
In order to jump start the new STEM Standing Committee, the Section is also working toward being more visibly involved with STEM activities that serve kindergarten through 12th graders with interest in science, technology, engineering and math. We are looking to partner with community and/or state level organizations where we can share resources and avoid having to “reinvent the wheel”. As we work with our ASCE Student Chapters, we find that most of them already are connected with local area level K-12 students. One goal of the Section is to help develop and support clubs at the high school level. This initiative has great promise, would you like to help make it happen? Contact Patrick M. Beecher PE, pmbeecher@terracon. com, STEM Committee lead Section officer.
GEOCACHING
Do you enjoy traveling around Texas and finding treasure? See the sights of Texas and its civil engineering landmarks with our statewide geocaching experience! The program should be in place in most Branch areas by the time you read this article. Learn how the game works on the Section’s site: www. texasce.org/geocaching. Consider it yet another dimension to enhance your pride in being an ASCE Texas Section Member!
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Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
report from region 6
Kenneth B. Morris PE PTOE Region 6 Director
Region 6 represents three Sections (Oklahoma, New Mexico and Texas), 19 Branches, and 22 Student Chapters. We are one of the largest regions in terms of populations, and we are definitely one of the most complex in terms of the number of geographic units represented.
The Region 6 Board of Governors (BOG) held their fall meeting at Texas CECON in Galveston, September 19. I think the attendees had a great time and there were many good sessions and presentations. The BOG is in the process of developing a strategic plan for Region 6. The strategic plan asked a series of questions in order to develop a plan that can be implemented given our resources and constraints. The questions that must be answered are 1. Where are we currently allocating our resources? 2. What resources do we have to work with? 3. Where do we want to emphasize our efforts in the future? 4. How do we plan on getting there? These are simple questions but they take some time and thought to come up with a good plan. At the present time, one of our goals is to visit each Branch in Region 6 at least once a year. This requires each Governor to attend four or five Branch meetings per year. If we include the Student Chapters, each Governor would make an additional four or five visits annually. On the surface it doesn’t sound like much, however I know that everyone stays busy with their jobs and family and it is not always easy to find the time to travel to these meetings. These are some of the issues that we must tackle and we would welcome any input from our ASCE members. Another item that was discussed by the Region 6 Board of Governors was the Region 6 budget for FY15. Our fiscal year runs from October 1, 2014 to September 30, 2015 to coincide with the Society’s budgeting. Most members are not aware that Region 6 like all of the regions only receives about $14,000 per year for our budget. That’s not a lot of money - but we stretch it as far as possible. Most of it is used for travel by our Governors but we are also committed to helping our Branches, Younger Member Groups and Student Chapters whenever possible. This is one issue that I plan on taking up with the Society’s President and Board of Direction this next year. Most of the other Region Directors believe the additional funds should be passed through to the Region, Section or Branch to better serve our members. The Board of Governors discussed in more detail how we could help to fund the travel for the winning teams of Regional Concrete Canoe or Steel Bridge Competitions. The Texas Section has requested that we support the students with a stipend next year for their travel. The BOG
has agreed that we should make an effort to fund these requests and that we must receive funding requests prior to the regional competition, so that we can approve the travel funds quickly once the winners are decided. We are working on a funding request form that can be distributed to the Student Chapter Faculty Advisors. At the Society level, the Board of Direction is also working on updating its Strategic Plan. As many of you are aware, the three strategic initiatives are 1. Infrastructure 2. Sustainability 3. Raise the Bar These initiatives fall in line with our ASCE Vision 2025 Report. The Vision 2025 document acknowledges that we live in a changing world and that we as civil engineers must adapt our profession to current trends in order to provide the necessary sustainable infrastructure based upon future demands. The civil engineer of the future must be better trained and educated not only with technical skills but with the understanding of public policy, the political process and funding mechanisms. In a global economy, a global initiative is necessary to bring all civil engineers together with a common goal. If you have not read the Vision 2025 Report, I suggest that you take the time to read it and understand the future direction of ASCE and civil engineers in general. It is available on the ASCE website.
IN Memorium - Elvidio Diniz
It is with great sadness that I must report the passing of Elvidio Diniz PE, D.WRE, our Region 6 Governor from New Mexico. He will be greatly missed. Photo provided by Elvidio’s family Please remember his family in your thoughts and prayers. Sincerely, Kenneth B. Morris, PE, PTOE Region 6 Director Civil Engineers are global leaders building a better quality of life.
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To ensure safe operations, high-speed rail in Texas will operate on dedicated, grade-separated tracks. To the greatest extent possible, these new tracks will be built within or adjacent to existing rights of way. Photos of the N700 used under permission of JR Central.
Connecting Houston and Dallas by Bullet Tr ain By Robert Eckels, President, Texas Central High-Speed Railway A sustained record of economic expansion has drawn over a million Americans to Texas since the year 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and both Dallas and Houston are two of the fastest growing metropolitan regions in the nation. With these opportunities come challenges, including a serious strain on the transit system, as anyone who has recently traveled the state’s crowded roadways or busy airports will attest. Once again, however, the Lone Star State’s model of low taxes, common-sense regulation and a business-friendly climate is pointing the way forward. Texas Central Railway (TCR) is a free-market response to the current—and growing—consumer demand for safe, comfortable, affordable, fast and convenient travel between Dallas and Houston. Utilizing the proven highspeed rail technology that Japan Railway Central (JRC) has deployed and constantly improved over the past 50 years, passengers will soon be whisked between Texas’ two residential and economic powerhouse communities in less than 90 minutes.
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A Better Alternative Currently, US I-45 is the only major roadway between Houston and Dallas, along which 50,000 “super commuters” travel back and forth between the cities more than once each week. According to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), drive time between the two cities today is close to five hours without traffic delays or highway construction. By 2035, traffic congestion is expected to double, causing the average travel speed to drop by nearly 33 percent—from 60 miles per hour to 40. That would mean drivers could expect to be in their cars for six hours or more. The current main alternative is air travel, with its increasing inconvenience and unpredictable delays. With population growth poised to overwhelm the existing transportation capacity, Texans deserve more options than a choice between traffic jams or airport delays. All of these factors—combined with millions of dollars in privately-funded research over four years, studying 97 different possible city pairs—have led TCR to conclude
Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
that the relatively flat, rural terrain along the 240-mile corridor between Dallas and Houston makes this project an optimal opportunity for the first privately funded highspeed rail system in America. High-Speed Technology TCR is collaborating with JRC to deploy a high-speed train based on their N700 bullet train system, which is capable of going from a full stop to its top cruising speed of 205 mph in two and a half minutes. The N700 technology has operated for nearly 50 years in Japan, boasting a perfect safety record of zero passenger fatalities or injuries from accidents, an on-time performance with less than a one minute average delay and the capability of operating safely in torrential rains and high winds. Unlike cars and planes, JRC’s all electric bullet train technology emits a fraction of the carbon dioxide emissions of a typical commercial airliner. It also employs an advanced regenerative braking system, recapturing much of the energy used to slow or stop the train and reducing the N700’s overall power consumption by returning the captured power back into the system. The Lay of the Land To determine possible routes, station locations and overall project costs, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and TxDOT are preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the project, analyzing the impact it will have on the communities within the corridor. TCR is paying for 100% of the costs involved in completing this study - no taxpayer dollars are being used. TCR respects and is committed to honoring the private property rights of fellow Texans—so as route and alignment options are evaluated, a strong emphasis is being placed on maximizing the use of existing rights of way— potentially including interstates, freight rail corridors, and power and utility corridors. The N700’s double-track system can be deployed with a very narrow footprint (as little as 40 feet in width to 100 feet, including security fencing), but of course any corridor, no matter how narrow, becomes an obstacle if you need to get to the other side. TCR is therefore working closely with individual landowners, local governments and community organizations to ensure those who live along our route will continue to enjoy the ability to farm, ranch, commute and go about their lives as usual. Road and rail intersections separated by underpasses, overpasses or addressed by elevated tracks will play a
While the trains’ interior layout is still under active consideration, current plans feature substantive, wide-bodied seats arranged one-by-two or two-by-two and separated by an aisle, ensuring plenty of elbow-room and no middle seat squeeze. Cabins will be spacious, offering Wi-Fi, power outlets and food and beverage service, as well as dependable mobile phone connectivity.
central role in the final determinations regarding routes and station locations. Making High-Speed Rail a Reality One of the key reasons TCR leadership knows this project will be successful is its unprecedented approach to financing. Rather than being dependent on federal, state or local grants and taxpayer subsidies—which can increase the project’s cost and lengthen the construction timeline—this system will be designed along free-market principles and be paid for using private-investment. The commercial operation is estimated to employ over one thousand Texans on a long-term basis in highly skilled engineering, operational and customer service roles in addition to its significant impact on facilitating new income and commerce for the state. The proposed project will not require the use of public grants or subsidies, but will potentially take advantage of policies and incentives that other private corporations are offered when bringing a large investment and thousands of jobs to a region. Earlier this year, the mayors of Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth announced their public support for the TCR project, praising the company for providing a faster alternative and tackling growing traffic concerns. While the project has not broken ground, the Environmental Impact Statement process is underway with a release of potential alignments for the route to be made later this fall. In the meantime, TCR is working tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure the project is a financially viable, environmentally friendly, and most importantly, a pleasurable travel alternative for Texans and visitors to the Lone Star State.
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Inspiring A Generation of Civil Engineers:
Future City Competition
Future City Competition & Sim City
During the last couple years, I’ve had the privilege of serving as a mentor with Future City CompetitionTM – a national competition for middle school students that focuses on developing basic engineering principles. Students plan, research, build, and present their ideas for building and sustaining cities of the future. To design their city, and help them begin thinking about the basics of city planning, they use the software SimCityTM. Students have to create logical zoning areas, provide necessary city services, establish appropriate tax levels, and consider environmental impacts. The SimCity component of the competition accounts for about 20 percent of the overall score. One of the objectives of Future City Competition is to get kids interested in an engineering-related career. The students that put forth the effort throughout the competition, including the SimCity component, were the ones I could see working in an engineering field. They were enthusiastic, committed, inquisitive, thorough, driven, and team-oriented. The students that weren’t engaged, and had their interests elsewhere, seemed less likely to end up in an engineering career. They participated because they had to. Regardless of their level of engagement, a computer game didn’t pique their interest. In fact, the grading matrix for the SimCity component was so challenging that it caused many to lose interest throughout the rest of the competition.
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By Ryan C. Chapin PE
However, the program did have other educational benefits. The biggest advantage was that it forced students to think about basic aspects of city planning. Where does sewage go after it leaves the house? How is drinking water processed? Why can’t industrial zones be placed next to residential areas? Why do some streets get so crowed? What’s the best way to balance the budget? During the presentation component of the competition, volunteers from different industries grade each team based on their response to questions covering specific aspects of city planning and engineering. They might ask how their city handles pollution, relieves congestion, funds emergency response services, or handles natural disasters. I can’t remember the number of times I heard the response “I never thought of that.” Though that response doesn’t bode well for their grade, hearing that answer was very rewarding as a mentor. While the integration of SimCity in Future City Competition does not spark an interest in middle school students to enter an engineering profession, it does provide an educational benefit that makes it a useful tool.
Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
Branch News
Christina L. Hickey PE First Year Director at Large
Even though summer officially began on June 21 this year, I think most Texans will agree that summer begins long before that. And while some Branches decrease the frequency of activities during the summer months, other Branches utilize the summer to expand opportunities for members. The following two Branches provided some great examples on how they can capitalize on the summer months to offer unique activities for their members. Rio Gr ande Valley Br anch The normal schedule of the Rio Grande Valley Branch typically includes a monthly Lunch and Learn in the Upper Valley—the Branch goes on a hiatus during the summer months. However, this year the Board decided to try to increase their reach to the Lower Valley by offering a Lunch and Learn in the Brownsville area. Like many Texas Section Branches, the reach of membership area for the Rio Grande Valley Branch spans several counties and a couple hours drive. The members in the Brownsville and surrounding areas are located more than an hour and half from the usual Branch meeting location, making travel for a one hour lunch seminar impractical. Instead of continuing the summer hiatus, the Board used the summer months to provide additional opportunities to a group of members that do not benefit from normal branch meetings due to geography.
We have found that we are not the only ones trying to beat the heat in North Texas, the local Habitat for Humanity shortens their build when higher temperatures are anticipated. Several of our Younger Members recently volunteered on a Saturday morning build for a future South Dallas homeowner. The build included the tasks of loading, setting and bracing the roof trusses as well as hanging insulation board on the exterior walls. The build crew successfully loaded all of the trusses and set 85 percent of them, 95 percent of the insulation board was installed and several other miscellaneous tasks completed, which made it a successful build day. The work day was shortened due to a severe storm, most volunteers left before any bracing could be completed and we risked the trusses falling over like dominoes. A couple of the ASCE volunteers stayed the course and ensured that the necessary bracing was installed prior to them coming down from the roof.ďƒł
Dallas Br anch Written By: Fabian Herrera, EIT In Dallas the summer heat factors into the events that our members are willing and able to participate in. The biggest event on the summer agenda is the July joint meeting with the Fort Worth Branch which also serves as a mini conference, offering several technical seminars and an ethics seminar to help engineers fulfill their PDH requirements. Fortunately, this entire event is in the air conditioning. We also typically wait for the From Left to Right: Fabian Herrera EIT, Julie Jones PE, Ashley Chronister EIT, and Jose Lopez end of the summer to orgaEIT. Photo by Fabian Herrera nize a Texas Rangers outing.
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THE TWENTY-SECOND SPENCER J. BUCHANAN LECTURE
Two additional lecturers will be featured: Professor Marika Santagata of Purdue University and Professor Arvid Landva of the University of New Brunswick in Canada.
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Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
2014 Webinars
Eric Fisher PE VP-Educational
Branches and Student Chapters get one free connection per Webinar. Texas Section Members pay $25 per Webinar or may buy a July 2014 – December 2014 Prepaid Subscription for $100. Non-members pay $75 per Webinar or may buy the July 2014 – December 2014 Prepaid Subscription for $200. Visit TexASCE.org>Education>Webinars
NOVEMBER 2014 TXDOT UPDATE ON FUNDING ENERGY SECTOR ROADWAYS BY MARK McDANIEL, TxDOT DECEMBER 2014 BRIDGE SCOUR - THE OBESERVATIONAL METHOD BY JEAN-LOUIS BRIAUD PhD, PE, D.GE, Dist.M.ASCE
Regulatory Compliance NEPA Wetlands Archeology Endangered Species Geology TxDOT Categorical Exclusion SWPPP/Erosion Control Reservoir Permitting
Specializing in Infrastructure Projects Water/Wastewater Roadway Schools Parks & Recreation Oil & Gas Electric Utility Flood Control Wind Power Waste Management
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Texas Section Awards for Outstanding Civil The Honors Committee is seeking nominations of individuals who provide outstanding service to their profession and the community. The official call for nominations will go out in January 2015. Each Branch has engineers who are exceptional not only in their careers, but also in their community efforts. The Texas Section wants to recognize these individuals at the 2015 Texas Civil Engineering Conference (CECON). Consider your co-workers, colleagues or mentors, who are deserving of recognition and provide the candidate’s name to your Branch President or Branch Honors Chair.
Nominations will be due by April 1, 2015 to the Texas Section office. The following are summaries of the awards that ASCE Texas Section bestows. Additional information and lists of past recipients can be found on the Texas Section website at http://texasce.org/honors, as well as a simple form that can be completed in a matter of minutes. AWARD OF HONOR The Award of Honor was established by the Texas Section-ASCE to be presented to a limited number of members of the Texas Section “in recognition of service to the Texas Section and outstanding professional achievement in civil engineering”. This is the most prestigious award presented by the Texas Section.
PROFESSIONAL SERVICE AWARD The Texas Section Professional Service Award is conferred on a subscribing member of the Texas Section for meritorious service to the Texas Section and to one or more of the Section’s Branches upon recommendations of the Honors Committee. Section Presidents, Past Presidents, Society Officers and Past Society Officers are not eligible for the award. HISTORY AND HERITAGE AWARD The Texas Section History and Heritage Award is given to an individual (not necessarily a member of the Texas Section) or Branch for making special contributions to recording and/or recognizing the history and heritage of civil engineering in Texas. Nominations should be sent to the History & Heritage Committee. Nominations endorsed or originating with the History & Heritage committee should be sent, as described in the Section Rules of Operation, to the Honors Committee with accompanying documentation on the Branch or individual’s specific contributions. SERVICE TO PEOPLE AWARD The Texas Section Service to People Award is made to a civil engineer (not necessarily a member of the Texas Section) who has distinguished himself or herself with special service to people. The award is intended to recognize civil engineers who bring credit to their profession through community activities that are visible to the general public. PROFESSIONAL SERVICE TO STUDENTS AWARD The Professional Service to Students Award is conferred on a subscribing member of the Texas Section for meritorious service to the Texas Section through service to one or more of the Texas/Mexico Regional Conference’s Student Chapters or Clubs. Section Presidents, Past Presidents, Society Officers and Past Society Officers are not eligible for the award. GOVERNMENT CIVIL ENGINEER AWARD The Texas Section Government Civil Engineer Award is
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Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
Engineers
Andrea Cheng Ranft PE Honors Committee Chair
conferred on a subscribing member of the Texas Section employed by a governmental organization for meritorious service to the Texas Section and to one or more of the Section’s Branches. Eligibility for this award requires that the recipient be a current subscribing member of the Texas Section-ASCE. The nominees for this award will be evaluated in the following areas: a. years in public service and involvement with elected officials and the media b. engineering achievements in public service c. civic, humanitarian and social activities d. professional activities e. publications, papers and presentations JOHN A. FOCHT JR. CITIZEN ENGINEER AWARD This Award was established to recognize John A. Focht, Jr.’s outstanding and continued dedication to the Texas Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Eligibility for this award requires that the recipient be a current subscribing member of the Texas Section-ASCE who has demonstrated during the previous calendar year “volunteer efforts that better our world such as local or national legislation, education on all levels, nonprofit volunteer organizations, community activities, and so forth”. The nominees for this award will be evaluated on the following: a. overall positive impact and overall contribution as a result of the effort b. number of people involved or reached by the effort c. originality of the effort or its component parts d. level of effort.
No more than one award shall be awarded in any year and the presentation will be made at the annual conference. TEXAS HISTORIC CIVIL ENGINEERING LANDMARK National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark status is conferred by ASCE upon projects that are at least 50 years old from the time of completion, and which demonstrate a design or construction which expanded the limits of the profession. For a project that may not qualify on the national scale but is deemed significant for the region or local area as a noteworthy project, the Section may designate it to be a Texas Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. If you or your Branch has an interest in this award, please contact the History and Heritage Committee Chair, Melinda Luna PE. The nomination process may take up to a year, and the Texas Historic Civil Engineering Landmark would be conferred at a meeting/location requested by the recipient (project owner).
Visit: Tex ASCE.org > Organization > Awards and Honors
for
a list of past recipients or nom ination procedures texasce.org
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Student’s Center By Jonathan Brower EIT Dallas Branch Education Chair After leading one of the few Civil Engineering Club pilot programs for ASCE in early 2013, the ASCE Brad Hernandez PE Dallas Branch continued to First Year Director at Large expand and build excitement around the club at Woodrow Wilson High School during the 2013-2014 academic school year. The goal of this club is to get high school students interested and hooked on civil engineering. Over the course of the semester, professionals from all branches of civil engineering gave presentations and led group activities. WWHS was a natural fit in that they actually have an “Engineering Academy” sponsored by Project Lead the Way where students can take classes in either civil or aerospace engineering. The Engineering Academy allows students to take focused engineering classes through all 4 years of high school. At the end of the 20132014 school year, WWHS received their certification from Project Lead the Way, making it the first school in the Dallas Independent School District to do so. We are told that the presence of the CE Club, along with all the guest professional speakers, were major factors in WWHS earning this certification. ASCE Student Chapter leaders from UT-Arlington started off the year by talking to WWHS students about getting into college, engineering classes, and the challenges involved with finding jobs after graduation. Last year’s UTA steel bridge was set up on the front lawn for all the students to look at. Students were also invited to attend the Texas Section Student Symposium in April and Regional Steel Bridge Competition at UT-Arlington in January. The remainder of the school year included presentations
Jonathan Brower
from Corgan Architects, water resources engineers at Kimley-Horn & Associates and Lockwood, Andrews, & Newnam, structural engineers from L.A. Fuess Partners, environmental and transportation engineers from Halff Associates, a field trip to the Terracon office and lab, and a surveying demonstration led by the Texas Society of Professional Surveyors. A more detailed description of the CE Club can be found on the ASCE Dallas website here: http://dallasasce.org/articles. php?id=475
Jonathan Brower
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Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
Membership Report We’ve got new members...NOW WHAT DO WE DO? Sometimes the easy
part is getting someone to sign up for ASCE. Perhaps their company signs them up, perhaps it’s the automatic member upgrade when graduating college; so now that your Branch has Travis Attanasio PE new members, what do you do next? Membership Chair
6 suggestions for retaining members:
1. Encourage member involvement Members do not want to sit passively on the sidelines while your Branch quietly works toward its goals. If they can’t take action - any action - they will lose interest in ASCE. In many cases, an uninterested member will drop his membership and move on to something else. To keep members engaged, do what you can to help them get involved. 2. Create value Your members want to feel like they are helping the organization serve its purpose, but they also want to get something out of it. By providing members with valuable resources and experiences, you can ensure that they don’t forget the value of their membership. A lot of this can be accomplished by promoting the exclusive, members-only benefits offered by the Society. 3. Communicate appropriately When it comes to communicating with members, quality is more important than quantity. Make sure that all communications you send are relevant to your members, to the point and timely. Let your members choose their favorite methods of communication, and let them opt-out of certain channels. 4. Segment your membership Segmenting your membership allows you to communicate more effectively and personally with each member. For every member of your organization, make sure that you know the reason they joined, the issues that are most important to them and what type of communications they would like to receive from you. 5. Survey your former members Even with the best renewal strategies, some members will leave your organization. When members choose not to renew, survey them to find out why they left, which services they liked and which areas of your organization need improvement. Use their responses to improve your organization’s offerings and member retention rates in the future. 6. Cliques are bad If you see someone new at a meeting, go out of your way to talk to them. Make people feel accepted and comfortable. Just remembering someone’s name can be the difference between whether or not they join.
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Younger Members’ Corner
Brian Ridley PE Younger Member Chair
By: Priya Lad, San Antonio Younger Members President The San Antonio Branch Younger Members (YM) group held their 13th Annual Golf Tournament at Olympia Hills Golf and Event Center on Friday, May 9, 2014. Over 70 golfers from the engineering community and related businesses gathered for the golf tournament to showcase their skills – before we got rained out! When the rain made an appearance, the attendees made the best of it by congregating in the clubhouse. Food San Antonio ASCE YM was served and prizes given out. At the end of sessions at no cost to the attendees to gain knowledge on the event, no one went home empty handed – each parvarious engineering topics while networking and gaining ticipant received a voucher for a round of golf redeemPDH credits. able at a later time. We raised over $4,000 to support our group and programs, including a scholarship program for the University of Texas San Antonio Student Chapter, Discover-E (formerly E-Week), and technical sessions for group members. The Younger Members group offers technical
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The 2015 Younger Members Golf Tournament has yet to be scheduled, but we hope to surpass the amount raised previously. If you are interested in golfing or supporting the San Antonio Branch YM, please contact our YM President, Priya Lad (plad@ariasinc.com), for more information.
Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
News Texas A&M Civil Engineering Chair Named Distinguished Member of American Society of Civil Engineers
Jean-Louis Briaud, PhD, PE, D.GE., Dist.M.ASCE was recently named a Distinguished Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The society’s highest accolade, to date only 649 of ASCE’s worldwide members have been elected to receive this honor since the Society’s founding in 1852.
ASCE Texas Section congr atulates Carol Reese, ASCE Information Professional/Records Manager at ASCE, on her retirement!
LJA is Proud to Announce Shayna L. Helvey PE, has joined the firm as a Project Manager in the firm’s Houston Land Division
Briaud will be recognized for his varied and pioneering contributions in the field of geotechnical engineering and for his eminent leadership and international service to the geotechnical engineering profession. He received the award at the ASCE Global Engineering Conference Shayna has over 14 years in Panama City, Panama, Oct. 7-11, 2014. of experience in civil engineering including founThroughout his career, he has explored and solved en- dation design for natural gineering problems that have had a significant econom- gas facilities, residential ic impact and filled voids in past research. Among his and commercial site devaluable contributions, Briaud’s work on foundation en- sign, wastewater treatment gineering, on bridge scour and soil erosion, and more and sanitary sewer rehab recently on vehicle crash protection truly stands out. It design projects, roadway has led to the publication of two books on “the pres- improvements design, and suremeter” in 1992 and on “geotechnical engineering: infrastructure modification. unsaturated and saturated soils” in 2013. Since joining LJA, Shayna has worked on several secCurrently, Briaud is the Spencer J. Buchanan Chair Pro- tions of the Aliana, Legacy fessor in the Texas A&M Zachry Department of Civil at Stafford and Laurel Park North projects. Engineering, a position he has held since 2002. As a professor over the last 40 years, Briaud has contributed In her new role as a project manager, Shayna will suto the education of over 2000 undergraduate students, pervise technical staff for the design and construction of 90 master students and 51 doctoral students. major land development projects. In addition to his professional accomplishments, Briaud is a dedicated member of ASCE and other professional organizations. He has served in several leadership roles, including president of the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering. Briaud holds a doctorate in geotechnical engineering from the University of Ottawa and a master’s degree from the University of New Brunswick.
Shayna is a licensed Professional Engineer in the States of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, West Virginia, Virginia and Pennsylvania. She graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, and has a Master of Business Administration from Sam Houston State University.
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Sir Sandford Fleming Sandford Fleming, a civil/railroad engineer and surveyor, was the person who proposed a universal standard of time to the Royal Canadian Institute in 1879. In turn, the Royal Canadian Institute proposed the time standard to the world, which became adopted throughout the world in 1884. Even though the universal standard of time impacts everyone in the world, Sandford Fleming is not a household name.
Sir Sanford Flemming by Barbie Jollota 2007 (CC, Wikimedia Commons)
Sandford Fleming was born on January 7, 1827 in Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland to Andrew and Elizabeth Fleming. His father was a furniture maker. Fleming started an apprenticeship with a surveyor at the age of 14. His family decided to immigrate to Canada and Fleming, with his older brother David, moved to Ontario in 1845. He started writing a journal in the same year and later published his entries in the book Sir Sandford Fleming: His Early Diaries, 1845-1853. His first job in Canada was the Simcoe and Huron Railway, which later became the Northern Railway of Canada, where he eventually became the engineer-in-chief in 1855. While working for the railroad, he designed Canada’s first postage stamp issued in 1851. This three penny stamp portrayed a beaver that represented Canada. Fleming was considered a gifted draftsman. He would be an advocate for the construction of iron bridges on the railroad instead of timber. In 1849, Fleming, along with Kivas Tully (an architect at the Royal Canadian Institute), was established to help the advancement of science. The Institute created a series of lectures twice a year in the fall and winter, published a journal of proceedings, established a museum and awarded citations to Canadians who made contributions to the public understanding of science. In 1855, Fleming married Ann Jane Hall with whom he had nine children. In 1863 he became Chief Government Surveyor of Nova Scotia. He asked for contractors to bid for the rail line. Fleming believed the bids were too high; he bid on the work himself and completed the line by 1867. The Book Ocean to Ocean (1873) by George Monro Grant chronicled the work Fleming did to survey the route of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1871 through the Canadian Rockies. Fleming chose Yellowhead Pass as the area to
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Melinda Luna PE History and Heritage Committee Chair
route the track due to the modest elevations. By 1880, the government had completed the rail line, sought to have a private company own the project and Fleming was essentially let go. This was a difficult time in his professional career. While in Ireland in 1876, Fleming missed a train because the schedule listed PM instead of AM; he proposed a single 24-hour clock for the world. An Italian mathematician, Quirico Filopanti published his idea in the book Miranda in 1858. He proposed the system of standard time at the International Meriden Conference in 1884. The conference was held in Washington, D.C. at the request of then President Chester A. Arthur. At the same time the American Meteorological Society had produced a Report on Standard Time by Cleveland Abbe. Standard time in time zones was not established by U.S. law until the Standard Time Act of March 19, 1918- sometimes called the Calder Act. By 1929 most of the world had adopted standard time; Fleming went on to start the Nova Scotia Cotton Manufacturing Company and to become active in the Ottawa Horticultural society, as well as an advocate for the construction of a submarine telegraph cable that would connect all of the British Empire. By the end of his career, Sandford Fleming had been Knighted by the Queen, founded an Institute, surveyed most of Canada from Ottawa to the pacific, built thousands of miles of track, designed stamps, and done many other things that included the Time Zone system. Sir Sandford Fleming is a good example of an engineer making a great impact on the world. ďƒł
Texas Civil Engineer | Volume 84, No. 4 - Fall 2014
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