Managing Work
Managers often ask engineers to do more work without providing more resources to support the requests. In response, engineers typically counter that they need more resources (time, money,...
Making Teamwork Work
From consulting firms to steel workers, most work groups would benefit enormously from developing better teamwork, but making it happen isn't easy. Excerpts from
Ownership Transition: Planning for Pitfalls
The transition of a company's ownership can be a crisis caused by the retirement or sudden death of a company's owners, or an event planned for well in advance....
Going Where No Man Can Go
After the 1979 accident at Three Mile Island Unit 2 in Harrisburg, Pa., some areas of the reactor plant were too contaminated for workers to survey, much less clean. The article describes...
Engineering Women Into the Workplace
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, by the year 2000, only 15% of the work force will be white men; 64% will be women of mixed ethnic backgrounds. Clearly, statistics show that...
Marina Cabo San Lucas?A Case Study
Designing and constructing a high quality, state-of-the-art marina is a difficult task in major metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles or San Francisco. But when the marina development...
ASCE Salary Survey 1991
The 21st biennial ASCE salary survey of the engineering profession conducted by the ASCE Committee on Employment Conditions during the first half of 1991 is presented. It consists of an...
Successful Siting Incentives
Citizen opposition to the siting of facilities that store, produce or use hazardous materials is both widespread and problematic. There are siting incentives that have worked to allay...
Franchising for the Future
Franchising is no longer reserved for hamburger stands or quick print photo processors. Now engineers may decide to join lawyers and dentists in future franchise operations. In today's...
ASCE Salary Survey 1989
The 20th biennial ASCE salary survey of the engineering profession conducted by the ASCE Committee on Employment Conditions during the fourth quarter of 1989 is presented. It consists...
The Benefits of Benefits
The article describes the effects of high turnover on a firm's performance and the potential for helping control it through the benefits offered employees. Historically, benefits...
Shopping for Better Project Management
The benefits of project management software are undisputed. Even a super manager needs help with scheduling, no matter how small or large a job. But, when it comes to selecting the right...
Microcomputers: Investing in the Future
There is more to a successful computer system than simply going to the nearest supplier and buying the most up-to-date equipment. Engineering firms, while not being reluctant about installing...
The Use of SIPS as a Productivity Improvement Tool
SIPS, an acronym for short interval production schedule, applies many of the earlier scheduling techniques to individual operations that are key or pacesetter operations on a project....
Consulting Engineering
A Guide for the Engagement of Engineering Services
ASCE Manual No. 45, Consulting Engineering?A Guide for the Engagement of Engineering Services, outlines the functions of the consulting engineer in serving a client, the types of services...
Construction's Critical Condition
The United States construction industry is experiencing a decline due mainly to the drop in productivity. Even though tools have improved and labor costs have remained in relative parity,...
Guide to Employment Conditions for Civil Engineers
ASCE Manual 55, ASCE Guide to Employment Conditions for Civil Engineers, provides a guide to a mutually satisfying relationship between the employer and the professional employee, and...
Educating 21st Century Highway Engineers Industry Perspective of Highway Engineer Needs
Civil engineering firms are being confronted daily with the twin issues of recruiting and retaining qualified staff. On highway engineering three factors have converged in the last year...
Plugging the Public Sector Brain Drain
For years, many agencies have been able to hire and retain highly-educated, highly-skilled work forces, even though their wages, incentives and working conditions have not been fully competitive...
Public Aid to Help Assess Nesting Sea Turtle Populations in Florida
In 1979, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) initiated a public statewide assessment project by establishing a network of survey volunteers. This network consists of state and federal...
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