What Contractors Think About Prefabricated Piping
Among 190 of the largest users of pipe, 77% now use large-scale prefabricated piping. These users report an average saving, using prefabricated pipe versus conventional pipe, of 23%. Before...
ASCE Met Section Striving to Make Civil Engineering Curricula More Practice-Oriented
Engineering education underwent rapid change in the late 1950's and early 1960's. The availability of large sums for research and the emerging aerospace and related...
European Water Treatment Practices�� Their Experience with Ozone
Today, more than 1100 water treatment plants worldwide use ozone for some purpose. In Europe, it is always regarded as a water-treatment technique and seldom simply as a disinfectant....
European Water Treatment Practices�� The Promise of Biological Activated Carbon
Bacterial growths occur in all granulated activated carbon columns. In fact, it is difficult to prevent such growths. The Germans now deliberately foster aerobic bacterial growth by providing...
Field Control Replaces Design Conservation At World's Largest Underground Powerhouse
The excavation of 16,000,000 yd� of rock at LG-2, part of the La Grande hydropower project in Canada, has been completed. The world's largest underground powerhouse, with...
Peer Review: Old Concept in New Situations
In the past, clients treated their engineering consultants as the fallible human beings they are. No longer is this true. Today there is more pressure, by clients and courts, for error-free...
Epoxies � Miracle Materials Don't Always Give Miracle Results
In civil engineering applications, in the past 15 years epoxies have become widely used and have given excellent performance in floor surfacing, corrosion protection, repair of cracked...
How Can Construction Specifications Be Improved�
Construction costs could be cut perhaps 5% to 10% if specifications were improved, as the ASCE survey of contractors discloses. Spec writers must have had responsible field experience....
Can California Cope With Its Mounting Sludge Volume�
In California, prohibition of ocean disposal of sludge, stringent air quality standards, high energy cost, and scarcity of suitable sanitary landfills make the sludge management problem...
The Coastal Zone: Battleground and Classroom
The coastal zone of the nation is becoming the battleground for opposing energy and environmental interests. The Coastal Zone Management Law of 1972 asked that each state prepare a coastal...
Big Thompson Flood Exposes Need for Better Flood Reaction System to Save Lives
The actions people took in response to warnings of disaster in the Big Thompson flood of 1976 affected their chances for survival. No one who climbed the side of the canyon was killed...
Big Thompson Flood Damage was Severe, but Some Could Have Been Prevented
During the Big Thompson flood of 1976, damages resulted from impact by water and debris and from erosion and scour. Houses were lifted from their foundations and floated away; buildings...
Let's Keep It In The Family
One of the most important challenges owners of private business will eventually encounter is the question of ownership succession. Unless the business owner provides the mechanism for...
Highway Widening Proceeds Behind Concrete Median Barrier
Precast concrete median barrier curb is being used temporarily to protect both workmen and traffic through the 3.1-mile long construction zone of a widening project along the Garden State...
Bypassing Sand at Coastal Inlets
To reduce dredging requirements and to provide calm navigation channels, the U.S. Corps of Engineers often constructs jetties and breakwaters. These structures block sand drifting along...
Foundation Soil Preload Saves $164,000
Soils in the lower Mississippi valley are highly compressible and present a challenge to structural foundation designers. Rather than support power plant structures on piles, one design...
$70 Million for Dam Inspection
In 1972, Congress passed the National Dam Inspection Act, requiring the U.S. Corps of Engineers to inspect and inventory all dams in the United States; but few dams were inspected. Then...
EPA Proposes Far-Reaching Regulations for Reducing Synthetic Organics in Drinking Water
In late January, 1978, EPA proposed far-reaching regulations for reducing synthetic organic chemicals in drinking water, bringing about the most sweeping changes in the water-treatment...
Trench Cave-In: Contractor's Responsibility
The article Can Trench Cave-In Deaths Be Cut� in CIVIL ENGINEERING�ASCE, September 1977, states that the owner's engineer should accept responsibility for the design of temporary...
Full-Depth, Full-Width Design, and Prestressed Concrete Pave the Way for Arizona's Highways
In an attempt to resolve design problems of Arizona's non-reinforced portland cement concrete pavements, a series of test installations are being made involving a comparison...
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