Do-Nothing Cleanups
Restoring polluted soil and ground water to pristine condition is, in some cases, neither cost-effective nor feasible. So what's the best way to close these sites with minimal...
Engineering Ethics
Recent revelations about the 1978 emergency retrofit of the Citicorp Center in New York City sparked an assessment of ethical dilemmas by the structural engineering community. In May 1995,...
Bare Bones Buildings
A new approach to fire engineering opens possibilities of designing buildings in which the structural skeleton is part of the architectural statement. Fire and corrosion requirements used...
Seeking Structural Solutions
A photo essay on the unique work of Santiago Calatrava, a Spanish-born engineer and architect whose bridges and buildings have attracted international attention for their unusual esthetics....
Pyramid Power
The pyramids of Giza in Egypt were built with limestone from nearby quarries, not concrete as some have theorized. The three main pyramids of Giza mark a highpoint of pyramid building...
The Taller the Deeper (Available only in the Geo/Environmental Special Issue)
While debate rages on about which structure holds the title of the world's tallest building, there is no dispute over which building has the deepest foundation. At 130 m below...
Action Plan
An Enhanced Building Technology Evaluation Process
Prepared by the Partnership for Building Innovation of CERF. Sponsored by CERF; National Institute of Standards and Technology; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; U.S. Department...
Detecting Leaks Electronically (Available only in Geo/Environmental Engineering Special Issue)
An innovative monitoring system originally developed to detect cyanide leaks at gold mines can now monitor the integrity of geosynthetic liners at municipal- and hazardous-waste landfills...
High Over Shanghai
In response to difficult design conditions, Shanghai's Jin Mao Tower's structural system harmoniously mixes building materials and strategically places them to...
Guidelines for Evaluating the Performance of Highway Sound Barriers
Prepared by the Highway Innovative Technology Evaluation Center, a CERF Service Center. This report presents the HITEC evaluation plan for U.S. Gypsum's...
Developing and Implementation of a Structured Sales Program
A structured sales program applies both to your existing clients and to your new business prospects. It consists of three parts: (1) the setting up of an existing client and prospect list;...
Project Planning
Good project management is based on good project planning. A project work plan, structured from a good process, is a statement of what is to be done, who is responsible for each task,...
Starting a Project
Project start-up marks the end of the planning activities and the beginning of the project. The PM must take the steps necessary to set up job numbers, job data sheets, assemble data needed...
Management
Project team is a broad term. In general, it encompasses all the people and organizations working on the project�architect, engineer, consultants, client, client's consultants,...
Engineers and ADA
When it comes to the Americans with Disabilities Act, design professionals have special liability concerns. Engineers not only have to ensure that clients meet the act's stringent...
Making the Trains Run On Time
The Skokie, Ill. rail shops were constructed in 1928 and all cars in the Chicago Rapid Transit system are repaired and maintained at this yard. But as the cars have become more sophisticated...
Hospital Over a Highway
New York Hospital is undergoing a $1 billion expansion that includes construction of a new building over the FDR Drive in Manhattan using air rights. The starting point for this building...
Down-to-Earth Terminal Design
From New England to the Pacific Northwest, airport terminals in the 1990s are being designed and built to meet foreseeable demand--with very little uncommitted space. The speculative nature...
Selecting Tower Cranes
Looming over the skyline like steel dinosaurs, tower cranes can look deceptively similar. But these beasts of burden are not a homogenous species, and selecting and positioning the right...
Grouting Through a River
A regional sewer district in Ohio is implementing a master plan to separate storm and sanitary flows, decommission some old treatment plants and upgrade others. Part of the plan, the West...
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