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April 11, 2012

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News for and about the civil engineering community

Top Story

Chicago to extend Lake Shore Drive for $4B mixed-use project
Chicago will extend Lake Shore Drive by two miles to link to the 600-acre Chicago Lakeside Development being built in several phases. The $4 billion project will feature residential units for 50,000 persons, a high school, retail/commercial space covering 17.5 million square feet and a 1,500-slip marina. The master plan was created by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. The project will use energy-efficient systems such as wind turbines, solar, natural gas and biomass energy. Commercial Property Executive (4/10)

Infrastructure Watch

Indonesia hit by 2 earthquakes; tsunami alerts issued

A magnitude 8.6 earthquake rocked Indonesia today, followed shortly after by a magnitude 8.2 aftershock and smaller ones. The U.S. Geological Survey says the quakes hit about 270 miles north of Banda Aceh, the provincial capital of Aceh where thousands died from a tsunami in December 2004. A tsunami alert had been issued for all nations on the Indian Ocean but was later lifted from some areas. MSNBC (4/11), The Wall Street Journal (4/11), DNA (India) (4/11), The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (4/11), NDTV (India) (4/11)

S.F. to begin $1.1B Doyle Drive replacement project

Crews will begin to demolish the eastern section of Doyle Drive in San Francisco. The work is part of a $1.1 billion reconstruction project to make way for the 1.6-mile Presidio Parkway, a replacement approach to the Golden Gate Bridge. The new parkway will include two tunnels. San Francisco Chronicle (4/10), The Sacramento Bee (Calif.)/The Associated Press (free registration) (4/10)

Work advances on $486M light-rail extension in Calif.
Construction will begin on the $486 million, 11.5-mile extension of the Metro Gold Line from Pasadena to Azusa in California. The project, a joint venture between Kiewit and Parsons, is part of the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension worth $1.4 billion. Construction is slated for completion in 2015. International Construction online (4/10)

Photo gallery: Calif.'s Bay Area top 7 hospitals under construction
Healthcare facility construction in San Francisco is booming, and this article features the Bay Area's top seven hospital projects complete with details such as cost estimates, a brief description of the new facilities and project end dates. Leading the list is Kaiser Permanente's $1 billion Oakland Medical Center and the $1 billion Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. American City Business Journals/San Francisco/ Bay Area BizTalk blog (4/9)

Trends & Technology

Simulation tech: Key for the design, construction of Calif.'s Bay Bridge
Simulation technology was used to help design and build the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in California -- and to communicate to the public about the work and closures. The technology shows how a bridge or other structure "will perform based on how it is used, the conditions around it, its design, materials and even variables such as the position of a joint" before anything is built. "Caltrans was the first to use animation in this manner and I think you're going to see this technology used by other transportation departments in the world to build the infrastructure we need," said bridge project spokesman Bart Ney. GreenBiz.com (4/10)

N.C. laboratory tests the limits of building materials, designs
Researchers at the Constructed Facilities Laboratory at North Carolina State University test building materials to understand their limits. Materials are subjected to extreme conditions such as earthquake simulation to see how much abuse they can take before failure. The work is done to better enhance the safety of public infrastructure. Technician (North Carolina State University) (4/9)

Sustainable Development

Envision: Sustainability rating system for civil infrastructure projects
Envision, an infrastructure sustainability rating system, was developed to "evaluate, grade, and give recognition to infrastructure projects that provide progress and contributions for a sustainable future," said Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure Executive Director Bill Bertera. "Its purpose is to foster a necessary and dramatic improvement in the performance and resiliency of physical infrastructure," Bertera said. CENews.com (4/10)

Dallas fixes about 200 deficiencies in Trinity River levees
All 198 maintenance problems that the Army Corps of Engineers identified in Dallas' Trinity River levees have been corrected, city officials said. The city also awarded a contract to build underground "cutoff walls" along the levees to prevent water seepage into the soil. That project is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year. The Dallas Morning News (free content)/City Hall Blog (4/9)

Advancing the Profession

Inspiring others with your leadership philosophy
Good leaders should be able to articulate their philosophy of leading others and distill it down to a few maxims -- and know how to communicate that to others, says Mike Figliuolo, founder and managing director of ThoughtLeaders. "[S]it down with the members of your team, your boss, your colleagues or even your family members and share what the maxims are but then share the stories behind them," Figliuolo says. Then, he adds, "it is incumbent upon you to live those maxims on a regular basis." ThoughtLeaders blog (4/9)

Why women bosses are good for the bottom line
Studies show that companies with gender-diverse leadership structures and boards outperform their less equitable rivals, writes Dana Theus. That's a sign companies can no longer afford to ignore the problems preventing women from rising through their ranks. "There’s simply too much at stake now not to change," Theus writes. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Leadership (4/9)

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6 Must-Have Tools for Managing Virtual Employees Rae Hoffman-Dolan

News from ASCE

Civil Engineering online exclusive: Tunnels and Tall Buildings Research Examines Earthquake Performance

Now at asce.org/cemagazine: A three-year research project will investigate the interaction between tall buildings and underground tunnels during an earthquake and develop tools and guidelines to minimize the effects. Get the details today at the online Civil Engineering website with your member login.

Free eLearning webinar: ASCE's State Government Relations tools
Over the past year, ASCE has been working to enhance our state and local advocacy efforts, in part to make them more beneficial and useful to you, our members. An upcoming free eLearning webinar will focus on one of our new tools -- ASCE's new state bill tracking system, which allows members to access information about legislative and regulatory proposals in their states. Members will be able to see legislative proposals pending in their states that affect the engineering profession, and you'll learn how to take action on these issues. ASCE's Director of State and Local Government Relations, Aaron Castelo, will host the webinar Wednesday, April 18, at 2 p.m. ET. Register at the signup page.