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December 27, 2012

News for and about the civil engineering community

Top Story

N.Y. names HNTB as owner's engineer for Tappan Zee project
HNTB will be the owner's engineer for the $3.14 billion Tappan Zee Bridge project, according to the New York State Thruway Authority. The design will require 964 piles and about 275,000 cubic yards of concrete. A challenge for the project will be the soil composition in the Hudson River. Engineering News-Record (12/26)

Infrastructure Watch

Wash. DOT: Pontoons will last 75 years despite design flaws
An analysis of several concrete pontoons built for Seattle's new State Route 520 bridge shows that they still meet structural requirements, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation. "[W]e have been very thorough in our investigation and study of this question about the omitted hook bars in three of the first six pontoons built in the Aberdeen casting basin," said SR 520 Program Director Julie Meredith. "We now have confirmation that the structural integrity of the pontoons is sound."

$1B new tunnel is planned for Va.'s Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Virginia wants to construct two additional tunnels parallel to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel as part of a proactive long-term plan. The first tunnel would cost nearly $1 billion and would take less than 10 years to construct, according to bridge-tunnel officials. The Daily Times (Salisbury, Md.) (tiered subscription model) (12/24)

8 best practices for making suburbs more compact
A report from the Urban Land Institute highlights eight best practices that can help planners refocus suburban growth so that it is more compact and "more people-oriented than car-dependent," with options for public transit. The report evaluates eight infrastructure projects across the U.S. and offers lessons from them. American City Business Journals/Sacramento, Calif. (12/26)

Trends & Technology

Architecture billings growth indicates construction recovery in 2013
The Architecture Billings Index was up from 52.8 in October to 53.2 last month, indicating some growth in construction projects for 2013, according to the American Institute of Architects. "These are the strongest business conditions we have seen since the end of 2007 before the construction market collapse," said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker. Bloomberg (12/19), American City Business Journals/Louisville, Ky. (12/19)

Sustainable Development

Calif. "net-zero" building to be America's biggest, developer says
The 13-floor La Jolla Commons II office tower in San Diego will be the biggest "net-zero" energy building in the U.S. when it's completed in 2014, according to real estate firm Hines, which is developing the project along with J.P. Morgan Asset Management. Bloom Energy cells will be used and will convert methane from wastewater plants and landfills into electricity. "Our next step is to adapt what we have learned and apply it" in a less temperate environment, said Gary Holtzer, Hines' global sustainability officer. San Diego Union-Tribune (12/26)

Advancing the Profession

Embrace technology and employees to build a better 2013
Businesses should embrace technology, restart their innovation efforts and invest in their employees, Paul Segre writes. Using the cloud and better analyzing data will be top technology trends for businesses next year, and companies can begin investing in themselves again as the economy recovers. Better training and coaching of employees can also improve business. "Motivated and engaged agents ultimately translate into superior experiences for the customer and by reducing attrition, dramatically lower training and recruiting expenses," Segre writes. BusinessNewsDaily.com (12/20)

News from ASCE

Remember to make your year-end gift to the ASCE Foundation

As 2012 comes to an end, please keep the ASCE Foundation as one of your philanthropic priorities during this season of giving. Your tax-deductible gift is crucial to the foundation's success and has a direct impact on ASCE's programs. Your gift will demonstrate your commitment to civil engineering, your leadership within the industry and your investment in the profession. Give securely online by credit card at www.asce.org/foundation/give. Please call the ASCE Foundation directly with any questions at (703) 295-6342. Thank you in advance for your contribution!

Civil Engineering online exclusive: Park Above Highway Reconnects Parts of Dallas

A multiuse park has been constructed atop a highway that was long ago sunk into a trench, reconnecting downtown Dallas with its up-and-coming arts district. Read how they did it, then discover more fascinating articles at www.asce.org/cemagazine.

Learn more
about ASCE

Position Title	Company Name	Location
Associate Civil Engineer - Subdivision	City of Orange, a municipality in Orange County, CA	US - CA - Orange
Senior Bridge Engineer	Buckland & Taylor	US - NY
Senior Bridge Engineer	Buckland & Taylor	New York, NY
Assistant/Associate Professor	Wayne State University	Detroit, MI
Tunnel Design Engineer	Jacobs Associates	New York, NY
Engineer or Geomorphologist	Inter-Fluve, Inc.	Madison, WI
Civil Engineer	Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority	Washington, DC
Professor of Structural Engineering and Structural Concrete	Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich	Zurich, Switzerland

SmartQuote

People who lean on logic and philosophy and rational exposition end by starving the best part of the mind."

--William Butler Yeats,
Irish poet and playwright

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