Engineering Management Institute

Civil Engineering

Tecnologías de Ensayos No Destructivos para Pavimentos

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Durante y después de la construcción de carreteras, los ingenieros y técnicos confían en las tecnologías de métodos de prueba para evaluar las características, la calidad y el rendimiento de los materiales utilizados en la construcción de las diferentes capas del sistema de pavimento. Algunos de estos métodos de prueba necesitan recolectar testigos o realizar muestreos de materiales de forma destructiva, lo que significa que los materiales o capas ensayadas se alteran y, en consecuencia, es necesaria una corrección del posible daño causado para mantener la integridad del diseño del pavimento. Esta corrección puede traducirse potencialmente en un aumento de costos y tiempo al momento de evaluar los materiales y capas de pavimento.

Las metodologías de ensayos no destructivos (NDT por sus siglas en inglés) se han desarrollado con la ayuda de los avances tecnológicos de las últimas décadas. Esto permite el uso de sensores para recopilar información sobre las propiedades de los materiales o capas de pavimento sin causar daños. Una de estas tecnologías para la estructura del pavimento que se utiliza para proyectos y aplicaciones de investigación es el Road Doctor Survey Van (RDSV). El RDSV es una tecnología avanzada de inspección de carreteras no destructiva que actualmente está siendo evaluada por la Oficina de Investigación de Materiales y Carreteras (OMRR por sus siglas en inglés) del Departamento de Transporte de Minnesota (MnDOT). Este avanzado sistema de inspección de carreteras no destructivo recopila mediciones continuas de la superficie y el subsuelo mediante la integración de equipos de última generación y programas avanzado para procesar, sincronizar y visualizar la gran cantidad y complejidad de los datos que recopila.

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Professional Engineering Societies Must Do a Better Job Communicating the Benefits They Offer

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This is a guest post by Dr. Rae Taylor

I was reminded the other day to investigate my professional memberships — what I wanted to renew and what I wanted to let lapse. You may think I was reminded by an email or letter from one of the many professional societies., but sadly it wasn’t anything that normal. I was actually reminded while writing my daughter’s name on a toy ID badge. There was enough room for her name and fake academic credentials, but none left for professional affiliations. It left me wondering what I would write myself, as it’s been so long since I wrote them down, and they’re hard to remember since I move around a lot between institutions.

For now…

I guess I should state now that my professional affiliation has lapsed. I was a member of a civil engineering specific society, but after I left my full-time job and became a part-time independent scientist/homeschooler/full-time daycare teacher/older neighbor welfare checker, the $245 membership fee seemed too high. Now, to be fair, this organization does provide one year of free membership should you find yourself no longer gainfully employed, which is brilliant. I applied for it and heard nothing back. I assume they were inundated with applications as many people were losing their jobs at that time.

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3 Tips for Adapting to Uncertainty

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This is a guests blog by Jese H. Vance, P.E.

“If there’s one thing that’s certain in business, it’s uncertainty.”
~ Stephen Covey 

The last two years have been full of uncertainty, and it does not look like that is going to improve any time soon. Times of uncertainty often require us to adapt to a variety of changes and obstacles. I have listed three tips below to help you adapt during these uncertain times.  

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Your Checklist To Being A Better Engineering Leader

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This is a guest blog by Steven Armstrong

This is a checklist of seven simple shifts that can lead to exponential gains and make you a better engineering leader. To gain the most benefit: Print it, post it, and do at least one action each day.

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3 Quick Tricks to Trigger the Precious Flow State

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This is a guest post by Jacob Valentien, PE 

We all have moments or days where no matter how many cups of coffee are consumed, we just can’t get into a productive state. Sometimes the to-do list just continues to get longer, and you just can’t decide what needs to be done next. You have that one task that has been lingering for too long and you are in search of the required motivation to start and dedication to finish. As I sit down to write this article, I am going through this exact situation.

It is important to understand that motivation comes and goes like the tide. Discipline is the trait that carries you through the moments of fleeting motivation. As you press through those tough moments, sometimes you trigger the flow state where getting that work done becomes much easier. There are many sources of great insights on what this flow state is and how to unlock it.

I have stumbled upon a few tricks that can help facilitate entering into that flow state — where the work becomes easier, the creativity becomes unlocked, and the tasks on the to-do list become easier and easier to check off. Here are three unique ways to possibly trigger that precious flow state:

Momentum Snowball

Take a look at that ever-expanding to-do list and review it to see which tasks you can knock out quickly and with very little effort. Complete those tasks and continue to gain momentum by tackling tasks in increasing complexity and effort required. As you pick up momentum, the work will become easier and easier. This can ultimately lead you to the task you have been dreading but by that time, you are engaged and ready to tackle it.

Reference: https://startthesnowball.com/what-is-the-snowball/

Binaural Beats

Binaural beats use selective sound wave therapy that can help with increasing cognitive flexibility, focus, and attention to detail. According to research articles, there are five different brainwave states that have different effects: Delta, Theta, Alpha, Beta, and Gamma. While Delta and Theta are best for calming and meditation effects, Alpha, Beta, and Gamma can be utilized for focused attention, cognitive thinking, and peak awareness. Spotify has some playlists that make for great background noise as you start your work and try to build momentum and enter into that precious flow state. The playlists start utilizing Alpha frequencies and slowly increase frequencies through the Beta phase and into the higher frequency Gamma phase. In my experience, this background noise allows you to sink into a productivity mode and zero in on the task at hand.

Reference: https://www.healthline.com/health-news/your-brain-on-binaural-beats Design by Ruth Basagoitia

Pomodoro Technique

This technique is more of a time management system that encourages both moments of work and moments of rest. Set a timer on your phone for a short period of time — I like to use 25 minutes, where I only focus on one task and turn off all notifications from email, text, social media, etc. When that timer goes off, I take a break and take a quick walk around the office or check my email for five minutes. Once that five-minute break is up, get right back to work. Doing this just a couple of times usually unlocks longer periods of focus, reaching the point where I don’t want to take that next five-minute break but rather continue through until I finish the task at hand.

Reference: https://sketchplanations.com/the-pomodoro-technique

Summary

Next time you find yourself in a lull and need to trigger a productive state, give one of these methods a try or better yet, combine all three into a flow-triggering productive stack! Hopefully this helps you dwindle down that ever-growing to-do list.

About the Author Jacob W. Valentien, PE 

Flow StateJacob is a Senior Project Manager with Pacheco Koch Consulting Engineers, Inc. and has over 9 years of engineering experience in municipal infrastructure with a focus on water & wastewater treatment design and construction. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas and is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Texas. He has designed projects and managed teams on local and state public & private sector projects. Jacob is responsible for project management and delivery, business development in the public works sector in Central Texas, and client success. He previously completed the 2019-2020 Emerging Leaders program through ACEC Houston, has presented on topics such as pre-chlorinated pipe bursting to the Association of Water Board Directors, and has co-authored a technical article on Wastewater Treatment Plant Design. He also has developed curriculum, organized programming, and led project management and professional development training courses for his teams.  

I hope you enjoyed this week’s post by guest author Jacob W. Valentien, PE.  If you’re interested in your firm possibly joining the Civil Engineering Collective, please contact us here or call us at 800-920-4007.

I hope you’ll join us.

Anthony Fasano, P.E.
Engineering Management Institute
Author of Engineer Your Own Success

Diseño de Pavimentos y las Instalaciones de Investigación de Pruebas Aceleradas de Pavimentos

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Tradicionalmente, los ingenieros de pavimentos de todo el mundo, y principalmente en los Estados Unidos, diseñan pavimentos flexibles y rígidos basados en el método de la Asociación Americana de Oficiales Estatales de Carreteras y Transporte (AASHTO, por sus siglas en inglés). Esta metodología fue desarrollada a fines de la década de 1950 en Ottawa, Illinois, bajo lo que entonces se llamó las Pruebas de Carretera de AASHO. Muchos ingenieros viales consideran que las pruebas viales de AASHO son una de las primeras referencias de datos experimentales que toman en cuenta la interacción entre el vehículo y la carretera en el diseño del pavimento y ayudan a determinar cómo el tráfico influye en el deterioro de las carreteras. Por esta razón, las pruebas de carretera de AASHO pueden considerarse como una de las primeras instalaciones de pruebas aceleradas de pavimento (APT, por sus siglas en inglés) que ha sido construida.

Con la ayuda de las pruebas de carreteras de AASHO de la década de 1950, se observó el desempeño de las estructuras de pavimento de espesor conocido bajo cargas en movimiento de magnitud y frecuencia también conocidas, y los resultados obtenidos fueron la fuente para desarrollar las guías de diseño de pavimentos que los ingenieros de pavimentos utilizan hoy en día para diseñar estructuras de pavimento flexibles y rígidas. La primera versión de lo que hoy se conoce como la guía de Diseño de Pavimentos AASHTO se publicó en 1961, con actualizaciones importantes emitidas en 1972 y 1993. En 1998, se publicó un suplemento a la guía de 1993 y su uso continúa hoy en día en los Estados Unidos y alrededor del mundo.

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Pavement Design and Accelerated Pavement Testing Research Facilities

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This is a guest blog by Emil G. Bautista

Traditionally, pavement engineers around the world, and mainly in the United States, design flexible and rigid pavements based on the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) method. This methodology was developed in the late 1950s in Ottawa, Illinois, under what was called then the AASHO Road Tests. The AASHO Road tests are considered by many road engineers to be one of the first references of experimental data that takes into consideration the interaction between the vehicle and the road in the design of the pavement, and aid in determining how traffic influences the deterioration of roadways. For this reason, the AASHO Road Tests can be considered as one of the very first accelerated pavement testing (APT) facilities.

With the help of the AASHO Road tests from the 1950s, the performance of the pavement structures of known thickness under moving loads of known magnitude and frequency was observed, and the results obtained were the source to develop the pavement design guides that pavement engineers use to design flexible and rigid pavement structures.  The first version of what is known today as the AASHTO Pavement Design guide was published in 1961, with major updates issued in 1972 and 1993. In 1998, a supplement to the 1993 guide was published and its use continues nowadays in the United States and around the world.

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The Benefits and Downsides of Wage Transparency

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This is a guest post by Dr. Rae Taylor

I have little issue with telling people what I get paid unless they ask. I think this juxtaposition comes from the age-old question of nature vs. nurture as I was raised to never talk about money, not even to family members. That’s the nurture. But when I was applying for my first “grown-up” job, I experienced firsthand how difficult it is to negotiate compensation without knowing how much peer employees are paid. That’s … well, that’s more nurture, I guess. Anyway, while I was interviewing for positions, I collected all the information I could find on average salaries for recent engineering graduates. Unfortunately, there was such a huge variation in the reported values that they were useless. So, I decided to break the ultimate wage transparency taboo. I walked up to a person in my graduating year, job offers in hand, and asked if we could chat about salaries.

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Relationship Capital: What Is It and Why Is It Important?

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This is a guests blog by Jese H. Vance, P.E.

When most people think about capital for their business, they think about investors, loans, equity, etc., that is used to pay for day-to-day operations or future growth. Even though every business needs capital to thrive, I would argue that building “relationship capital” is equally as important. Relationship capital is an intangible asset that is built up over time between people. Below I share some important points to consider about building this asset in your business.

Relationships Lay the Foundation for Your Engineering Business

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Thinking Like an Owner in Your Civil Engineering Projects

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This is a guest blog by Nick Heim, P.E.

Our civil engineering careers revolve around project work. We or our firms tend to be solicited by a client, and perform professional services based on some end goal that the owner establishes. We run calculations, create models and drawings, and package everything up that eventually makes its way back to the owner to fulfill their initial vision. 

This process may involve interaction with other parties, but our work tends to be relatively self-contained and often viewed from our own internal lens — that of the engineer. Today, I would like to share one tip with three examples that can help you think more like an owner — and increase the effectiveness of your civil engineering project work. 

Understand What the Owner Cares About 

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