The Georgia Engineer Aug-Sept 2014

Volume 21, Issue 4 auGust | sePteMBer 2014

Natural resources & tHe eNVIroNMeNt

G E O R G I A

ENGINEER®

NEW WATER SUPPLYPROGRAM TO ENSUREATLANTA’S FUTUREDRINKING WATER

2 GEORGIA ENGINEER

http://www.unitedconsulting.com

Publisher: A4 Inc.

1154 Lower Birmingham Road

Canton, Georgia 30115

770-521-8877 | Fax: 770-521-0406

E-mail: [email protected]

Editor-in-Chief: Roland Petersen-Frey

Managing Editor: Daniel Simmons

Art Direction/Design: Pam Petersen-Frey

Georgia Engineering Alliance

233 Peachtree Street

Harris Tower, #700

Atlanta, Georgia 30303

404-521-2324 | Fax: 404-521-0283

Georgia Engineer Editorial board

Thomas C. Leslie, Chair

Michael L. (Sully) Sullivan,

ACEC Georgia, President

Shawna Mercer,

ACEC Georgia, Director of

Communications & Government Affairs

ACEC/Georgia Representatives

B.J. Martin, PE

Lee Philips

ASCE/G Representatives

Daniel Agramonte, PE

Steven C. Seachrist, PE

ASHE Representative

Jenny Jenkins, PE

GSPE Representatives

Tim Glover, PE

ITE Representatives

Daniel Dobry, PE, PTOE

John Edwards, PE

ITS/G Representatives

Bill Wells, PE

Shaun Green, PE

Kay Wolfe, PE

SAME Representative

Pamela Little, PE

SEAOG Representative

Rob Wellacher, PE

WTS Representative

Angela Snyder

The Georgia Engineer is published bi-monthly by A4 Inc. for the Georgia Engineering Al-

liance and sent to members of ACEC, ASCE, ASHE, GEF, GSPE, ITE, SAME, SEAOG, WTS; local,

state, and Federal government officials and agencies; businesses and institutions. Opinions ex-

pressed by the authors are not necessarily those of the Alliance or publisher nor do they ac-

cept responsibility for errors of content or omission and, as a matter of policy, neither do they

endorse products or advertisements appearing herein. Parts of this periodical may be repro-

duced with the written consent from the Alliance and publisher. Correspondence regarding

address changes should be sent to the Alliance at the address above. Correspondence regard-

ing advertising and editorial material should be sent to A4 Inc. at the address listed above.

G E O R G I A

ENGINEER

AUGUST | SEPTEMbER 2014 3

http://www.willmerenginering.com

http://www.prime-eng.com

ADvERTISEMENTS

American Engineering Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

AMEC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Burns & McDonnell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Cardno TBE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

City of Atlanta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Columbia Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

CROM Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

EcoWise Civil Design & Consulting Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Edwards-Pitman Environmental Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Engineered Restorations Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Go Build Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Hayward Baker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Back Cover

Hazen & Sawyer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

HDR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Heath & Lineback Engineers Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

JAT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

MH Miles Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Nova Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Pond Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Prime Engineering Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Reinforced Earth Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

RHD Utility Locating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

ROSSER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

S&ME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Schnabel Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Silt Saver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Stevenson & Palmer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

STV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Terrell Hundley Carroll Right of Way Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

T•H•C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

TTL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

T. Wayne Owens & Associates, PC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

United Consulting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Inside Front Cover

Willmer Engineering Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Wolverton & Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

GEORGIA ENGINEER4

T a b l e o f

CONTENTS GEORGIA ENGINEER AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2014

AUGUST | SEPTEMbER 2014 5

New water supply program to ensure Atlanta’s future drinking water supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7At the source: forecasting low lake levels and planning for the worst. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Dams: the goal is the same. Awareness and path to success are changing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Moscow’s answer to Silicon Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Mitigating environmental impacts through dissolved oxygen injections for the Savannah Harbor Expansion Program . . . . . . . 16Approach an interview like an engineer, sort of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Alpharetta’s Bright Light Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22NPDES permit for stormwater discharge associated with construction activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24125th anniversary of dam failure in Johnstown highlights importance of emergency preparedness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Georgia’s logistics infrastructure: gateway to the world . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Georgia Engineering News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32ACEC Georgia News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33ASCE Georgia News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35ASHE Georgia News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37GEF News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39GSPE Georgia News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40ITE Georgia News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42ITS Georgia News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44SAME Atlanta. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46WTS Atlanta News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

PLANNING FOR THE WORST 9

6 GEORGIA ENGINEER

vISIT US AT

THEGEORGIAENGINEER.COM

http://www.jatconsulting.net

http://www.wolverton-assoc.com

http://www.heath-lineback.com

http://www.mhm-cpa.com

http://www.cromcorp.com

7AUGUST | SEPTEMbER 2014

FEATURE

New watersupplyprogram toensure Atlanta’sfuture drinkingwater supply

For any major city, delivery of clean and reliable drinking water

and fire protection service begins with an adequate water

source for storage and treatment. In 1893, when Atlanta faced

major public health issues with water quality and availability,

investment in raw water conveyance and storage was the

first step in securing a sound future for the city.

More than 120 years after the water system was

developed, Mayor Kasim Reed recognizes the critical need

for reliable delivery of drinking water and redundant water

storage. The Water Supply Program will enhance Atlanta’s

current water conveyance and storage system while providing

the projected 280 million gallons of water per day necessary to

sustain the drinking water system in the future.

The new tunnel will be designed and constructed to convey source water from the Chattahoochee River.

Water from the river will flow to the water treatment plants, then into a former granite quarry repurposed

as a water storage facility. Newly constructed vertical shafts at the water treatment plants will include pump

stations to withdraw water from the tunnel system for treatment and distribution. The new five-mile

conveyance will end at the bellwood Quarry, which will be renamed Westside Park.

Westside Park will connect with the Atlanta beltline, a comprehensive economic and transportation effort

to spur redevelopment in the city. The Atlanta beltline Inc. will develop Westside Park while the Department

of Watershed Management will ensure a safe and secure new water storage facility.

By Cameo Garrett & Jessica Walker | City of Atlanta Department of WatershedManagement | Office of Communications and Community Relations

8 GEORGIA ENGINEER

“We are very excited about the develop-ment of the Westside Park which will notonly create additional greenspace in thecity of Atlanta, but also feature a water re-serve for additional storage capacity,”Mayor Reed said. “Our water resourcesmust be protected, conserved, shared, andsustained for future generations. Whencompleted, this project will give Atlanta areliable supply of drinking water for thenext hundred years.”

Renewing a vital Resource:

The Conveyance System

Ensuring the integrity of the raw waterconveyance system has proven to be a crit-ical undertaking for Watershed Manage-ment. Atlanta’s original raw water pipelinesconvey water from a pump station at theChattahoochee River to the Chatta-hoochee Water Treatment Plant and theHemphill Water Treatment Plant, thelargest of the system’s three water treat-ment facilities. The 30-, 36-, and 48-inchcast iron transmission mains installed in1893, 1908, and 1924 respectively, are wellbeyond their designed 50-year life cycle,significantly reducing the reliability of es-sential drinking water infrastructure. Afourth main—a 72-inch steel pipe built in1975—is limited to operation during warmweather months due to its weak and brittlestate in cold weather.

Age and other structural limitationsnecessitate new water conveyance and stor-age to accommodate projected growth anddevelopment. The reserve also allows foran alternative source in case of possiblecontamination or a serious threat on thewater supply. The Chattahoochee River isAtlanta’s sole source for raw water, andnearly 65 percent of Atlanta’s treateddrinking water is supplied by the Hemphillfacility.

Raw water transmission mains serve asthe foundation that feeds the entire city ofAtlanta drinking water supply. Identifyingand improving imminent service deficien-cies in the distribution system is a top Wa-tershed Management priority.The pipelineshave exhibited deterioration in the form ofbreaks and other system failures. A leak inthe 36-inch main has already resulted in its

failure and discontinuance from service.Current conditions leave the system virtu-ally no opportunity for maintenance or re-pair of additional failures.

To ensure the availability of a contin-uous supply of potable water to the citizensof Atlanta while design commences on thenew tunnel, a two-phase project kicks offwith the renewal of sections of three cast-iron mains located under a railroad yardadjacent to Watershed Management’s sin-gle functioning reservoir. In the scope,cast-in-place liners are to renew a 600-footsection of each of the pipelines where theycrossed under the railroad main-line tracks.An additional 10,200 linear feet of mainsis included, bringing the total renewallength to 12,000 linear feet. Renewal workwill also include demolition and replace-ment of check valves and blow offs and in-stallation of cathodic protection devices.Phase Two focuses on the 72-inch main.Prone to system failures during coldweather months when the steel pipe it atits greatest risk of failure, this line will alsobe renewed as well as valves replaced toeasily isolate future leaks.

Former Quarry Serves New Purpose

The former granite quarry will serve as the

centerpiece of Westside Park and will behome to a 40-acre, 2.4 billion-gallon waterreserve. Once filled, the facility will pro-vide a 30-day backup water supply. Cur-rently, the city has three-to-five days of rawwater storage. Named as Mayor Reed’s toppriority project for Watershed Manage-ment, the Water Supply Program will allowAtlanta to have a water contingency planin place for the first time in its history. Theproject design began in June, and theWestside Park is anticipated to open in2018.

The city of Atlanta acquired the quarryin 2006 for $40 million from FultonCounty and Vulcan Materials, which pro-duces construction aggregates. The quarrysits on over 300 acres.

“The new water supply project pro-vides a system for moving and storingwater for the purpose of sustained publichealth and economic vitality,” WatershedManagement Commissioner Jo Ann Mac-rina said. “It allows Watershed Manage-ment to support businesses like Coca-Colaand the world’s busiest airport by improv-ing system reliability through the conver-sion of the Bellwood Quarry for storagewhile creating a major amenity in the areafor the public.” v

By JOHn CLAyTOn, PHD, PE | HAzEn & SAWyER

he Gwinnett County Department of Water Resources (GCDWR) serves the majority of the geographic

area in Gwinnett County, Georgia, with potable water service and sewer service. In 2012, annual av-

erage potable demand was approximately 72 million gallons per day (MGD), with a peak monthly de-

mand in June 2012 at 82 MGD and a peak daily demand on June 30, 2012 at 113 MGD. By comparison, in

2006, the annual average demand was 87 MGD, with a peak monthly demand in June 2006 at 110 MGD and a

peak daily demand on 6/21/2008 at 130 MGD. The economic downturn, in combination with rate increases in

response to lowering demands, have both led to both lower demand on a per-capita and total basis, even

though the service population has not experienced similar fluctuations.


10 GEORGIA ENGINEER 10

http://www.siltsaver.com


As of now, the only raw water supplysource for Gwinnett County is Lake Syd-ney Lanier (Lake Lanier). Lake Lanier isa United States Army Corps of Engineers(USACE) operated lake created by BufordDam on the Chattahoochee River. Gwin-nett County’s water is supplied throughtwo withdrawal intakes and treatmentplants. These are the Lanier Filter Plant(150 MGD permitted capacity) and theShoal Creek Filter Plant (98 MGD per-mitted capacity). The current monthly av-

erage total permitted withdrawal fromLake Lanier is 150 MGD.

Lake Lanier is an impoundment of theChattahoochee River formed by BufordDam. The Chattahoochee River is part ofa system of three rivers and five major in-stream storage reservoirs known as theApalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint (ACF)River System. Other components of theACF system include West Point Lake (im-pounded by West Point Dam), Lake Wal-ter F. George (impounded by Walter F.

George Dam), Lake George W. Andrews(impounded by the George W. AndrewsDam), Lake Seminole (impounded by theJim Woodruff Dam), and Flint andApalachicola Rivers.

The Chattahoochee River originatesin the North Georgia Mountains and flowsdownstream through each of these fivelakes in succession, nominally coming to anend in Lake Seminole and being renamedthe Apalachicola at the outfall of WoodruffDam. The Flint River parallels much of

Upstream side of the Lake Lanier Dam, 2007

Dry boat ramp at Lake Lanier, 2007Shoal Creek Aerial – Shoal Creek

Filter Plant with Lake Lanier, 2013

12 GEORGIA ENGINEER

the Chattahoochee River, originating nearHartsfield-Jackson International Airport insouthern Atlanta and flowing unimpededto a confluence with the ChattahoocheeRiver within Lake Seminole.

Storage and flow in the ACF is man-aged by the USACE through operation ofthe five dams, each of which was con-structed by the USACE. As of July 2014,the USACE operates the ACF accordingto a Revised Interim Operation Procedure(RIOP). During normal and wet periodswhen all lakes are full and excess basin in-flows are available, the USACE coordi-nates dam releases in an attempt tomaintain:• Seasonal elevation targets in each lake

(Lanier target elevation = 1070-1071ft depending on time of year),

• Sufficient downstream flows forMetro Atlanta supply withdrawals di-rectly from the Chattahoochee River,

• Sufficient flow at the confluence ofPeachtree Creek and the Chatta-hoochee River to provide dilution ofthe city of Atlanta’s treated wastewatereffluent, and

• Sufficient environmental flow in theApalachicola River below Lake Semi-nole.

When system inflows are insufficient to ac-

complish all of the above, the USACEdraws lake levels downward in a fashionthat balances percentage storage deficitswithin defined storage zones in each lake,with an overall goal of maintaining watersupply, wastewater dilution, and environ-mental flow targets throughout the basin.Lake Lanier levels are heavily governed byrelease rates from Buford Dam and inflowsfrom the Upper Chattahoochee and Ches-tatee Rivers, rainfall runoff, and rainfallcapture. Buford Dam release rates are de-termined by the USACE through theRIOP, as mentioned above. The USACE’soperations of the lake have been subject tointense litigation among Georgia, Florida,Alabama, the USACE, and other partiessince 1990 (the ‘Tri-State Water Wars’).As of July 2013, the USACE is in theprocess of redeveloping the ACF Opera-tions Manual; this redevelopment may ormay not significantly change how theUSACE decides upon release rates. Fur-thermore, it is not clear whether this rede-velopment will lead to further tri-stateconflict. It is fair to say that the rules bywhich Lake Lanier and Buford Dam willbe operated in the future remain somewhatuncertain, contributing to uncertainty inthe frequency, severity, and duration of fu-ture 4L events. v

http://www.rhdlocating.com

http://www.reinforcedearth.com

http://www.amec.com


ams are a critical componentto sustaining and improvingour lives and living conditions.The impoundments created bythese structures provide drink-ing water, power production,and recreation, while tempo-

rary storage behind dams reduces down-stream flooding. The basic goal of damdesign and construction remains un-changed … safely store water at an elevatedlevel. Research and technology develop-ment, however, have steadily changed andcontinue to alter the path by which weevaluate, design, and construct dams.

Research continues to:

• enhance our understanding of thephysical and mechanical properties ofmaterials (i.e., concrete, steel,soil/rock),

• create new specialty materials (i.e.,sealants, admixtures),

• enhance the engineering understand-ing of materials performance for abroad range of loadings and exposureconditions,

• reveal how and when forces arise andexpress themselves, and how they acton and within structures, and

• create more efficient, robust, cost-ef-fective, and resilient design approaches.

Technology continues to provide creative

ideas for advancing:

• data acquisition and monitoring,

• non-destructive tools for investigatingand characterizing structures andfoundations,

• hardware and software for performingcomplex structural, hydraulic, and ge-otechnical measurements and analyses,and

• systems and risk analyses to better un-derstand how project elements worktogether and the risks that they pose,both independently and in combina-tion.

Catastrophic floods from dam failures arerepresented throughout the history of theUnited States. The 1889 Johnstown Flood,resulting from the failure of the South ForkDam, killed more than 2,000 people anddestroyed Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Whilethe dam was drawn up and built with littlein the way of modern engineering under-standing, the failure of this dam is attrib-uted mostly to willful ignorance andarrogance. The 1976 Teton Dam failureoccurred during first filling, killing 11 peo-ple, 13,000 head of cattle and causingabout $2 billion in downstream damages.The collapse of the 300-foot high dam,which was designed by a team of dam en-gineering experts, occurred due to the fail-ure to adequately address risks related tofoundation defects. The Kelly Barnes Damin North Georgia was first built in 1899and was raised several times over the next60 years. There were no engineering plansor construction records for the dam. Dur-ing a heavy, but not extreme, rainfall eventin 1977, the dam failed. The flood wavecaused by the collapse of the dam killed 39people and caused extensive property dam-age. Forensic studies were unable to iden-tify a cause of failure.

If we are to ask what, if any of our cur-rent technology, would have altered thehistory of these and other dam failures, weneed to first recognize that technologymerely implies tools available to do a job.We will never be able to make conclusivestatements about the specific impact thattechnology would have made on thesetypes of catastrophic events. However,evaluating, understanding, and successfullyusing advanced tools provide additional

pathways that reduce the potential for cat-astrophic dam failures. There are numer-ous ways in which research and technologyhave altered the path of engineering andconstruction. By expanding our knowledgebase, improving the tools we use to validateassumptions, analysis approaches, andmake decisions, and more rigorously ap-plying quality review processes, we con-tinue to better understand and respect boththe risks and the consequences that damfailures present.

Before discussing technology’s impacton an engineer’s ability to design safe struc-tures, we must quell the notion that tech-nology replaces the education, focus,dedication, and experience of a team of sea-soned professionals. Technology is simplyan aid to supplement understanding of theforces and complex material behaviors thatcontrol our natural world. Incorrect dataentry, errors within computer codes, or is-sues tied directly to technology can havedisastrous effects. Only with careful reviewby qualified individuals can technology beutilized to improve our lives and our under-standing of the forces that play critical roleswithin our world. A pragmatic under-standing of engineering fundamentals isparamount to the prevention of oversightsand errors. The best engineers are inevitablyboth cautious and humble. They recognizethat every one of us has blind spots and baddays, so outside scrutiny by esteemed peersis encouraged and respected.

Dam design has been evolving sincethe beginning of civilization. Prior to the20th century, most design and constructiontechniques were based on trial and error, aslowly evolving art form where what didn’twork was abandoned and what worked waspassed on to future generations and im-proved through additional trial and error.Many consider Erdbaumechanik (Soil Me-chanics) by Karl Terzaghi (1925) as thefounding of modern geotechnical engineer-

Dams: the goal is the same. Awareness and path to success are changing

DBy Joseph Monroe, PE | Principal | Schnabel Engineering Inc.

14 GEORGIA ENGINEER

ing, a discipline that has a major impact ondam performance. It took several additionaldecades for Terzaghi’s ideas to becomebroadly accepted and applied. Dam engi-neering is still a mix of art and science, withmuch of the scientific contributions havingbeen made in the past 50 years.

Relatively recent advances in design

technology include:

• Development of spillways with in-creased efficiency. Safely storing anddischarging water is one of the morecritical components of dam design.The paramount feature to dischargingwater is the spillway. Development ofnew spillway types, modifications toexisting spillway types, and improvedunderstanding of spillway hydraulicshas delivered enormous benefits todam owners, and to those living orworking downstream of dams.Labyrinth weirs as depicted below,which form a zig-zag pattern in plan

view, were first introduced in the1970s. They have evolved significantlyover the past 40 years. Labyrinthshave significantly more discharge ca-pacity than linear spillways having thesame plan width. Increases in safe dis-charge of flood water improves damsafety as the structure is able to safelystore and/or discharge larger, less fre-quent flood events.

• Finite element and difference com-puter programs for evaluating struc-tural, geotechnical, and hydraulicissues. These computer programs arecapable of modeling complex mechan-ics of materials problems for a widerange of fluids and solids in relativelyshort time frames. In the event theplanned grout curtain and pressure re-lief wells are not capable of reducing

pressure heads to an acceptable level,the design engineer can develop otherscenarios to improve the stability ofthe structure.

• Computational Fluid Dynamics(CFD). CFD modeling enables engi-neers to evaluate complex hydrody-namic forces within a specific projectwithout constructing physical models.Using flow velocities, trajectories andturbulence, the need for and locationof erosion protection measures can beevaluated.

• Computer Aided Drafting and Design(CADD). CADD, while more com-mon and less ‘cutting edge,’ may havethe greatest impact on design.Through the use of computerizedgrading and rendering, multiple damsites and multiple dam configurationscan be evaluated in short periods oftime. Through the use of CADD,economic and environmental savingscan be realized by optimizing dam lo-cations and geometries.

While certainly not comprehensive, theabove technologies provide an insight intothe on-going improvements that have beenoccurring in dam design processes. Simi-larly, there have been significant improve-ments in dam construction. Improvementsto equipment capabilities and efficiencyhave been reasonably well documented;however, advances in materials and moni-toring are generally not as well documented.

Roller Compacted Concrete (RCC),which was first used for dam construction inthe early 1980s, is basically a drier form ofconventional concrete that is placed withtraditional earth moving constructionequipment. The material, once placed andcompacted, has strengths similar to conven-tional concrete. RCC, however, is less ex-pensive than conventional concrete whenused in mass construction such as dams. Inaddition, RCC, which has a lower totalamount of cementitious material per unitvolume, has a lower heat of hydration and,therefore, is less likely to crack than conven-tional concrete. As a general rule, cracking

within a dam is considered a negative andneeds to be either avoided or treated to ac-commodate conforming project behavior.RCC has numerous benefits when com-pared to conventional concrete. Shownbelow is an aerial photograph of the recentlycompleted RCC Hickory Log Creek Dam(185-foot high) in Canton, Georgia.

Monitoring of dams is another area inwhich modern technology has positivelyimpacted dam safety. From automatedmonitoring devices such as vibrating wirepiezometers to monitoring systems con-nected to automated e-mail and telephonecall networks, technology has improved thefrequency of data collection and, more im-portantly, the clarity and quality of dataevaluation. Better decisions regardingemergencies, maintenance, or repair can bemade in a more efficient manner when ac-curate information is readily available.Planning for emergencies translates to abetter early understanding of how prob-lematic an issue is and defines predeter-mined actions and activities for response,both to prevent failures and to evacuate im-pact areas to prevent loss of life.

Would the technologies or improve-ments to dam design, construction, ormonitoring have prevented the dam fail-ures mentioned in the opening paragraphsof this article? It is likely but we will neverknow. What we do know is that technol-ogy, when properly applied and imple-mented, can improve dam safety today andtomorrow. In addition, we can be certainthat the technologies of today will be im-proved upon and made obsolete by thetechnologies of tomorrow. Therefore, asengineers, we need to stay current withavailable technologies, maintain a firm un-derstanding of basic engineering principlesbeing applied, and remain cautious in theuse of both.v


oscow is creating one of the

largest technology centers in the

world just a few miles from the

city center. The project was put

on track by Russian Prime Minis-

ter Dmitry Medvedev and is

funded by government billions.

Meanwhile, European and American compa-

nies have jumped on the bandwagon. The aim

is the renewal of the Russian economy.

Skolkovo is the name of this project.

Still, it's relatively quiet here. The 400-peo-

ple-strong community is located in a recre-

ation area, ten miles southwest of the

bustling city center of Moscow. In a few

years, the expectations are that 25,000 peo-

ple will have settled in the area while twice

as many will be commuting to work there.

This is Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s

plan; he wants to give a Russian response to

Silicon Valley.

The site is on a 1,000-acre lot. An im-

posing management school and a seven-

story conference center, with large LED

media facade (‘hypercube’) have already

been built.

The ‘Matryoshka’ office building, with

an eleven-story-high atrium extending up

through the core, is awaiting completion. An

elite university modeled after the Massa-

chusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is also

under construction as are some research and

residential complexes. By 2020, one of the

largest and most advanced technology cen-

ters in the world will be standing here. The

announced total building area: about 27 mil-

lion sft.

Connecting highways and even a rail-

road station is planned. The planners are

aware of how important good infrastructure

is since the current road system requires as

much as three hours of travel time from

Moskow’s city center. In the future, they ex-

pect that to come down to about 20 minutes.

Over 1000 young companies are already

accredited by the responsible Skolkovo

Foundation. The demand for the site is far

greater. In addition to modern architecture

in an elegant environment, tax credits are

also a lure, and counseling programs and re-

search funding in the millions are available

for start-up ventures. Applications are only

open to companies in the fields of IT, nuclear

technology, space, energy, and biotech.

Critics say the experiment is sometimes

called the Russian roulette. Overall, the state

plans to invest about $ 5.4 billion by 2020. In

addition, hundreds of millions of dollars are

expected to be invested by international cor-

porations, establishing their own research fa-

cilities here, including SAP, EADS, IBM,

Microsoft, Siemens, Samsung, Cisco, and

nokia. The goal: to make the Russian econ-

omy less dependent on natural resources by

making the country a leader in innovative

technologies.

Pitfalls on the long journey could be the

widespread corruption in Russia. Skolkovo it-

self made headlines numerous times, be-

cause, supposedly, millions of dollars were

spent on dubious consultancy contracts. In

addition, certain start-ups were financed,

even though they did not meet the strict el-

igibility requirements. Connections to the

management of the Solkovo Project helped.

In the meantime, this type of indiscretion

has been corrected.

The fact that the state digs deep into its

own pockets to push young technology com-

panies is because institutional venture capi-

tal is scarce in this former Tsarist Empire. The

first venture capital company in Russia was

started in 1995, while in Germany this hap-

pened 20 years before and in the U.S. even

50 years before that.

The real momentum started in Russia in

2007 when the Russian Venture Company

(RVC) became actively involved in market.

RVC is government-funded, with under $ 1

billion available. It provides new VC capital

up to 49 percent of available assets. This

offer is gladly accepted and abundant. In the

meantime, over 200 VC firms have been es-

tablished in Russia, 70 of which will have of-

fices in Skolkovo.

Overall, the VC investments in Russia

are impressive. In 2013, about $653 million

was invested in 222 firms. That sounds out-

standing, but it must be noted that the start-

up scene in Russia is spread over several

regions. In addition to the Moscow area,

these areas include: St. Petersburg, nizhny

novgorod, novosibirsk, Samara, Wladiowos-

tok, Kazan, and Tomsk.

The Russian angel capital scene is wak-

ing up. nationally, there are estimated to be

only 1,500 informal risk capital firms. “The

many wealthy Russians gradually realize that

they can earned more money,” explains

Eugeny Taubkin, head of the Skolkovo Club

of Business Angels (SCBA). “For many years

they could easily reap double-digit returns

on the stock market or the real estate mar-

ket, but those times are over. I am convinced

that the number of angel investors will mul-

tiply rapidly as the first success stories are

publicized.”

To get into the stock market has always

been difficult. Eduard Kanalosh, investment

chief of the Skolkovo Foundation, expects

that to change as well. He says, “the Moscow

MICEX Stock Exchange introduced an inde-

pendent platform for IPOs of young, tech-

nology-intensive companies modeled after

the U.S. nasdaq.”

Still, the Skolkovo project is unique. But

when the bill comes up to pay the Russian

government, we will need to see whether

the artificial eco-system from 2020 is able to

sustain itself, then other cities will be going

to the drawing board to work up their own

opportunities. There is plenty of space, and

money is available in Russia. (translated by

permission from VDI) v

Moscow’s answer to Silicon ValleyBy Stefan Asche | VDI

M

16 GEORGIA ENGINEER

resident Obama signed theWater Resources Reform andDevelopment Act of 2014 intolaw on June 10. This legisla-tion was the final step to au-thorizing the SavannahHarbor Expansion Project

(SHEP) to begin construction. All that re-mains at the time this article was written isfor the funding mechanisms to be put inplace including the Public PartnershipAgreement between the state of Georgiaand the federal government.

The harbor expansion is a long-antic-ipated project to deepen the SavannahHarbor from the 42 feet to 47 feet to moreefficiently accommodate larger ships, in-cluding the Post-Panamax ships which areexpected to call on the U.S. East Coastmore frequently following the PanamaCanal expansion. Currently, these largeships are constrained in the Savannah Har-bor to either deliver lighter loads or onlynavigate the harbor during higher tides.The harbor expansion project is expected tohave exceptional positive regional and na-tional benefits for commerce but studiesshowed that it could also have negative ef-fects on the Savannah ecosystem.

To mitigate the effects the deepeningis expected to have on the natural environ-ment, the following measures have been in-cluded in the overall project scope:construction of a new fish bypass aroundNew Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam inAugusta; acquisition and preservation of2,245 acres of wetlands; installation of anoxygen injection system to compensate forpotentially lower levels of dissolved oxygenin the water; construction of a raw waterstorage impoundment for the city of Sa-vannah’s industrial and domestic watertreatment facilities; recovery, documenta-

tion, and curating of the Civil War ironcladCSS Georgia; as well as environmentalmonitoring beginning prior to constructionand ending ten years past project comple-tion to determine the extent of effects fromthe project.

One of the innovative technologies tobe used as part of the mitigation is the in-jection of dissolved oxygen (DO) into theharbor and river. One of the most-fre-quently used indicators of water qualityfor any body of water is the concentrationof DO present. This indicator is especiallyrelevant to the SHEP since the SavannahRiver has been previously listed on the

305(b)/303(d) List of Waters as NotMeeting the Designated Use for Fishingdue to low DO content Low DO ad-versely affects both the fishing industryand marine wildlife. The harbor expan-sion is expected to further reduce theamount of DO in the water. The oxygeninjection system is meant to maintain ex-isting DO levels in the water and to mit-igate for the anticipated drop in dissolvedoxygen as a result of the dredging.

The USEPA Total Maximum DailyLoad (TMDL) for Dissolved Oxygen inSavannah Harbor, Savannah River BasinReport prepared in 2006 established thatall discharges from Augusta to the Harborwould have to meet an oxygen demandingload of zero to allow the Savannah Harborto maintain its DO water quality standard.The recommended standard of a daily av-erage DO concentration of 5.0 mg/L andno less than 4.0 mg/L is not always met inthe current conditions.

Mitigating environmental impacts throughdissolved oxygen injections for the SavannahHarbor Expansion Program

PBy Pamela Little, PE

The harbor expansion is a long-anticipated project to deepen the Savannah

Harbor from the 42 feet to 47 feet to more efficiently accommodate larger

ships, including the Post-Panamax ships which are expected to call on the U.S.

East Coast more frequently following the Panama Canal expansion.

Oxygen is naturally introduced intothe harbor and river either through thewater surface (which is enhanced by wavesand water turbulence) or through the pho-tosynthesis reactions of rooted aquaticplants and algae. Shipping channels typi-cally exhibit low levels of DO. The Savan-nah Harbor is no exception. Deepeningthe river to the 47-foot depth will furtherreduce dissolved oxygen levels. The amountof oxygen introduced from atmosphericsources, plants, and algae will remain es-sentially the same but the volume of theharbor will have increased. Simply stated,this increased volume with the same

amount of oxygen added will result in alower DO concentration, especially atdepth. The challenge was to find a solutionwhere the reduction in DO concentrationcould be mitigated by injecting oxygen intothe river system at appropriate places with-out harming aquatic life in the river.

A number of models and studies werecompleted as part of the feasibility stage ofSHEP to determine the baseline levels ofDO in the water and the most efficientand effective methods to introduce addi-tional DO to counteract the incrementalnegative effects of deepening the harbor.Billy Birdwell, a spokesman for the Sa-vannah District of the US Army Corps ofEngineers (the District), said, “We evalu-ated 25 methods of improved dissolvedoxygen levels in river and identified oxy-gen injection as being the most cost effec-tive for this situation. The Georgia PortsAuthority field tested Speece cones in theSavannah harbor. Based on our evaluation


and the results of the GPA tests, alongwith the proven history of success ofSpeece cones in other applications, we de-termined them to be the best-value way toadd oxygen in the harbor. Speece coneshave been and are still being used in manyindustrial locations around the world. Thebasic technology is relatively simple. Itlends itself to adaptation should the needarise to make adjustments based on oper-ational results.” The Speece Cone wasoriginally developed by Dr. RichardSpeece at Vanderbilt University to providean efficient way to increase oxygen levelsin water using molecular oxygen. Ademonstration was performed in 2007 inthe Savannah Harbor and showed that thetechnology could improve DO concentra-tion in the harbor at the injection site.

The approved mitigation plan calls foreight Speece cones to be installed upriverand four Speece cones to be installed down-river to inject 40,000 pounds of oxygen perday into the river. A Speece cone is an in-verted enclosed funnel where the injectionof oxygen is performed entirely within theunit. The cone works according to the prin-ciples of Henry’s Law in which the pressureof a gas is directly related to the amount ofgas that can be dissolved in a liquid. Wateris introduced at the top of the cone close tothe source of the oxygen gas. Water con-tinually flows down from the top of thecone containing the dissolved oxygen, al-lowing the water within the pressurizedcone to become supersaturated with oxy-gen. Birdwell indicated the installationpoints were chosen carefully. “Based on theengineering designs of the expansion, wecalculated the most likely areas where dis-solved oxygen content would be most im-pacted by the deepening. We then choseaccessible locations where we could con-struct a facility that would increase dis-solved oxygen levels where the mostimpacts would occur. We chose to locatethe cones upstream and downstream of theGarden City terminal in order to providethe maximum protection to the water at themost reasonable cost.”

The Speece cones will operate withpure oxygen gas rather than air to maxi-mize efficiency. On-site oxygen generation

is proposed to reduce the costs, labor, andmaintenance associated with liquid oxygendelivery. Three intake pumps will be ateach location (upriver and downriver) toprovide a constant supply of water to theSpeece cones. The pumps will be fittedwith traveling water screens for fish pro-tection. The superoxygenated water will bereleased into the river through three dif-fusers (one upriver and two downriver).

As the Savannah Harbor ExpansionProject progresses, the installation of theDO injection systems will be initiated.The systems are designed to work duringthe warmer months when DO levels aretypically low. The amount of oxygen addedto the river at both locations will be mon-itored to confirm that the project objective

of 40,000 lbs of oxygen per day is met. Birdwell emphasized the District’s

commitment to the success of the installedsystems. “The District has agreed todemonstrate that the dissolved oxygen sys-tem works as intended before we deepenthe inner harbor. We will begin that eval-uation as soon as construction of the lowerdissolved oxygen system is complete.

We also built ‘adaptive management’into our environmental mitigation plan.This will allow us to make adjustments, ifneeded, to modify the dissolved oxygensystems if they are not performing as ex-pected. We will monitor dissolved oxygenlevels following construction and comparethem to levels we expect the system to pro-duce. We will adjust the system based onthose tests.” v

http://www.usanova.com

18 GEORGIA ENGINEER

http://www.er-inc.net

http://www.hazenandsawyer.com/

http://www.edwards-pitman.com


ake the fear and dread out ofan interview by approaching itas you would a project, build aplan. If the reporter doesn’t tellyou the topic of the interview,ask! Then start with concept

development—concisely state what theproject is and why it is needed in two sim-ple sentences or less.

Sharing information so that it is un-derstandable is crucial. On average, Geor-gia’s adult population reads at a sixth gradelevel—use short sentences with simple vo-cabulary.

Todd Long, Deputy Commissioner ofGeorgia DOT, describes his strategy,“Leave industry jargon and acronyms at theoffice. Think of explaining the project toyour Grandmother. Don’t talk down to herbut simplify your words to share the infor-mation in a way that she understands. In-stead of saying the urban arterial needsgeometric corrections, say, the road needs

to be straightened out and flattened. Bygetting rid of the hills, valleys, and curveswe make the road safer for motorists.”

Know the goals of the project andmake those into four or five ‘key messages.’These key messages will become your over-

all theme for the interview and become theoutline for your interview. Know your storyand stick to it by using your ‘key messages’to answer the questions about the projector interview topic, especially when ques-tions are inflammatory or biased.

Who is building the project?Who will be impacted by the project?

What is the project? Use yoursimple two sentence description.

Where is the project?

Why does this need to be done?

When will this project start?When does each phase of work start?When will the work be finished? Whenwill this phase of work be finished?

How will you proceed? Willthere be a detour or road closure? How willit be built?

How much willeach phase of work cost? How much willthe overall project cost? How is projectfunded?

Approach an interview like an engineer, sort of

TBy Teri N. Pope | Georgia DOT | District Communications Officer

http://www.columbia-engineering.com

20 GEORGIA ENGINEER

These questions are also the basis of everyjournalist article or story. You can be pre-pared if you’ve developed short, simple, andconcise answers before the interview.Speaking knowledgably without hesitationalso gives readers or viewers a sense thatyou are credible and trustworthy. Therefore,your work, your firm, or department andyour project are credible too.

Here are some examples of typical

reporter questions matched with

Georgia DOT key message answers:

~ Did someone from Atlanta that hasnever been here come up with this?

GDOT key message answer based on

importance of public input-

This project was begun based on data aboutthe roadway and input from your local lead-ers but we need your opinion too. No oneknows this community like the people wholive and work here. Your input will help usdevelop a project that improves safety (orreduces congestions, use the purpose of theproject) and works in this community.

~ is area needs a signal not a round-about. What will a roundabout do?

GDOT key message answer based on con-

gestion reduction-

A traffic signal stops at least two directionsof traffic all the time. A roundabout allowsfor a continuous movement of trafficthrough the area and minimizes crashes be-

cause all traffic is going in the same direc-tion. It will improve travel time through thearea as it improves safety.

~ Why are you wasting all this money?


improving safety-

This project will reduce the severity ofcrashes on this section of road by separat-ing directions of traffic with a median. Itwill also give left turners a place to wait outof the way of through traffic until it is safefor them to turn.

~ Although you are showing options, everyone knows input from this meeting won’t matter.

GDOT key message answer based on key

message community input helps build

the best project-

GDOT needs the input of people whoknow this community best and use the roadevery day. We will narrow down the op-tions by combining community input withfederal environmental laws and engineer-ing standards, then bring the plan back toyou in a public hearing as the best build-able option.

~ You don’t even have a date for construction to start, why are you bringingthis up now?


http://www.pondco.com

http://www.thcinc.net

http://www.schnabel-eng.com


importance of public input-

Road projects take years to develop, and weneed the input from the communitythroughout the process. We develop someoptions as a starting point, like the optionsyou see here tonight at the open housemeeting. We will use the comments we gettonight, federal environmental laws, andengineering standards as strainers to getdown to one option. Then we will comeback to the community to share that op-tion at a public hearing.

~ is bypass will put people out ofbusiness. How can you take people out ofDowntown?

GDOT answer based on congestion relief

and supports economic development-

Right now, traffic gets backed up headedthrough Downtown and people are avoid-ing the area. A bypass will get through traf-fic out of Downtown, allowing peoplegoing Downtown to get there easier andmore quickly, thereby improving access toDowntown businesses.

– How much tax money willbe wasted on this?

GDOT answer based on funding crisis-

This project is built with funds from thestate and federal gas tax. When you buy gasyou pay for roadway improvements but ve-hicles are going farther on less gas todaythan 25 years ago. So the needs increasewhile funds decrease. We need to find al-ternate funding sources to support trans-portation infrastructure.

By answering their biased questionswith your own key messages, you don’t getcaught up in fault finding and stay positivewhile sharing your story.

The construction part of your interviewis continuing to build upon your foundationof key messages by sharing supporting in-formation. Giving the reporter a handoutthat has correct information helps ensure thedetails come out accurately in the story. Dataor statistics that make your point, like crashdata or level of service, are helpful. Projectfact sheets, maps or renderings are also help-ful tools.

Most media outlets are focusing onmultimedia Web content not just onestory. Giving reporters links to informa-tion on your Web site or a strategic part-ner’s Web site helps get your story acrossin another way. Even newspaper reportersare asking for video recordings to use ontheir Web site.

Then conclude with maintaining thatrelationship with the reporter by offeringto answer follow up questions they have orsending them additional information. Be-come a resource to the reporter providingthem with helpful information. If youmake a reporter’s job easier, you will be-come their subject matter expert and theirfirst call on that topic. This gives your in-formation more validity and weight in theirwork. Sharing information isn’t really aboutthe reporter, it is about getting your storyout to their listeners, readers, or viewers—your customers.

Remember that the best offense is agood defense. Be prepared by prepping foran interview based on project phases. Pre-construction—know why the project wasdeveloped and the goal or purpose of thework. Start building your foundation of theinterview using key messages focusing onyour priorities, your story. Build up withsupporting data and handouts the reportercan refer to and share on their Web site. Fi-nally, maintain a positive relationship withthe reporter by sharing follow-up informa-tion. Take the time to look and sound likea subject matter expert simply explainingthe topic.v

• Be prepared - Know more about thesubject than the reporter

• Focus on key messages so reporterknows what is important to youabout the subject or project

• Have handouts on complicated ma-terial like project fact sheet or map

• Maintain eye contact with reporterespecially when interview is recorded

• Talk in complete sentences

• Don’t chew gum

• Turn your phone off so it doesn’tmake noise or vibrate and distractyou

• Be calm and pleasant regardless ofthe reporters attitude

• Focus on sharing information

• Not being prepared – makes younervous and too fast or too slow torespond

• Don’t talk in paragraphs, going onand on

• Answering with only one word

• Getting defensive or mad

• Using jargon and acronyms

• Not dressed in uniform (if one is re-quired) or dressing unprofessionally

http://www.smeinc.com

22 GEORGIA ENGINEER

right Light Systems Inc. (BLS)specializes in producing lumi-naire systems targeted at en-vironments where there hasbeen little deviation from thelegacy lighting technologiesfor nearly half a century.

Bright Light Systems’ underlying technicalapproach to innovation for these marketsutilizes a combination of hardware andsoftware, coupling advanced light sourcetechnology with sophisticated control,scheduling, and monitoring to further re-duce energy consumption.

The core of BLS’ hardware technologyis the utilization of electrodeless plasmalight sources in our luminaires. Historicaldischarge lamp technologies experiencethermal, mechanical, and/or chemicaldegradation of the metallic componentsthat pierce the lamp envelope. By con-trast, electrodeless plasma lamp sourceshave eliminated these metallic compo-nents and the attendant failure modes.The hermetic, chemically inert plasmasource bulb exhibits excellent stability inchallenging operating theaters where en-vironmental factors might otherwise pro-mote degradation of light emitters and/orsupporting optical systems. Plasma lampsare well suited to the rigors of industrialoperation on extended time scales. Be-yond the durability and longevity im-provements, plasma light sources exhibitadvantages in the construction of lumi-naires. For example, because of the highlumen output of each plasma source,practical field luminaires utilize one or twolight sources. This stands in contrast toLED luminaires with comparable lumenoutput, which typically use dozens of dis-crete LEDs, and the attendant electronicdriver complement, to develop their lightoutput. Similarly, optical designs for the

plasma luminaires need not be configuredto accommodate high numbers ofsources. This yields advantages in designsimplicity and fixture footprint.

The first electrode-less plasma lampswere invented by Nikola Tesla is the1890s, but subsequent iterations ofplasma lighting encountered a variety ofchallenges and limitations, such as limitedlamp life, high heat, and high power re-quirements.

A new system used in the LEP prod-ucts discussed in this brief was first de-veloped in 2000. The LEP lamp itself is asmall quartz electrodeless capsule, thesize of a large pill. The key to the system isthe ceramic resonator in which the lamp

capsule is embedded. This ceramic res-onator concentrates a radio frequency(RF) field, energizing the capsule withoutelectrodes. The concentrated radio fre-quency creates a plasma state inside thecapsule, which emits a high-intensitywhite light.

Figure 1, below, shows a diagram ofthis process. The diagram was developedby Luxim, the manufacturer of the LEPmodules used by Bright Light Systems Inc.

The process shown in Figure 1 is

as follows:

An RF circuit is established by connectingan RF power amplifier to a ceramic res-

Alpharetta’s Bright Light Systemspioneering light-emitting plasma (LEP) luminaires in high mast applications

BBy By Brad Lurie | CEO | Bright Light Systems Inc.


onator known as the ‘puck.’ In the centerof the puck is a sealed quartz lamp thatcontains metal halide materials and othergases.

The puck, driven by the power amplifier,creates a standing wave confined withinits walls. The electric field is strongest atthe center of the lamp, which causes ion-ization of the gases, creating a glow.

The ionized gas in turn heats up and evap-orates the metal halide materials formingan intense plasma column within thelamp. This plasma column is centeredwithin the quartz envelope and radiateslight very efficiently.

Because of its small size and high lightoutput, LEP is superior to Light EmittingDiodes (LED) for high intensity scenariosthat require precise optical control, or aconcentrated beam, which cannot be de-livered as successfully by large arrays ofLED chips. The high intensity white lightthat LEP produces makes it competitivewith High Intensity Discharge (HID)sources, such as High Pressure Sodium(HPS) and Metal Halide, in a variety of ap-plications, such as exterior roadway andparking lot, industrial high bay, and highmast applications.

BLS’ plasma luminaires utilize solidstate technology to couple energy into theplasma lamps. This solid state technologyallows for precise control of plasma sta-bility within the lamp. It also facilitateslamp dimming behavior, which can thenbe integrated within the luminaire controlframework. The underlying solid-stateLDMOS technology has been extensivelyused in mission-critical communicationapplications since the 1990s. Bright LightSystems is the beneficiary of the ongoingimprovements of LDMOS that are drivenby other industries, insuring the plasmadriver durability and efficiency continue toadvance.

By utilizing compact, efficient lightsources driven with the flexibility ofproven solid state technology, Bright Light

Systems has created a luminaire platformto realize further energy savings throughuse of monitoring, control, and schedul-ing. Luminaire communication is facili-tated through use of 802.15.4 meshnetwork technology with AES128 encryp-tion. The mesh network is accessedthrough a responsive HTML5 Web-basedinterface powered by an API running ondistributed cloud infrastructure. Events ef-fecting the lighting scheduling may betriggered via mesh network nodes, theweb interface, or API.

Control and monitoring of luminairesoperating on designed schedules enablesfurther energy savings realized by insur-ing every lumen of lighting output is con-tributing to the safety, security, andoperation of the lit facility. Real worlddata indicate that additional software en-abled control can drive up to a further 30percent energy savings for industrial in-stallations.

Leveraging its NASA experience,Bright Light Systems embarked on devel-oping an energy efficient luminaire forhigh mast lighting that requires sufficientlighting at ground level from 80 – 120 feetmounting heights for a retrofit projectwith a container port operator. The re-quirement was simple. Use the existinginfrastructure: wires, power, mounting,etc.; no increase in weight since themounting arms are designed for thelegacy product, maintain or improve thewind shear load rating, and maintain theOSHA lighting requirements of five-footcandles average. With these require-ments, it was clear only LEP provided the

efficacy in an envelope that would allowBLS to design and manufacturer a com-pact luminaire to meet all the require-ments. Today, the BLP1000 from BrightLight Systems is becoming an industrystandard for high mast lighting applica-tions, reducing energy by more than 50percent compared to legacy fixtures andyielding five to seven times the life ratingwhile increasing safety through lightquality and uniformity. BLS products canbe found in ports, airports, rail yards, pris-ons, military facilities, and roadways. Formore information: www.brightlightsys-tems.com v

Figure 1. Diagram of How Light-emitting plasma works (imagesource: LUXIM)

http://www.ecowise-inc.com

http://www.hdrinc.com

24 GEORGIA ENGINEER

n the state of Georgia, per

O.C.G.A 12-7-17(3), “minor

land-disturbing activities are

exempt from the Georgia Ero-

sion and Sediment Act: such

minor land-disturbing activi-

ties as home gardens and in-

dividual landscaping, repairs, maintenance

work, fences, and other related activities

which result in minor soil erosion.” Activi-

ties which do not meet the definition of

minor land-disturbing activities may re-

quire a National Pollutant Discharge Elim-

ination System (NPDES) Permit.

The state of Georgia has NPDESGeneral Permits No. GAR100001 (StandAlone Construction Projects), No.GAR100002 (Infrastructure ConstructionProjects), and GAR100003 (ConstructionActivity for Common Developments) forstormwater discharge associated with con-struction activities. The NPDES permitswere reissued on September 24, 2013 and

will expire at midnight on July 31, 2018.Coverage under the State General Permitsfor Stormwater Discharge associated withconstruction activities is not required forprojects less than one acre in size and notpart of a common development.

This article will focus on the regula-tory changes to these NPDES permits.For NPDES No. GAR 100001, the defi-nition of ‘stand-alone construction’ or‘stand-alone construction project’ meansconstruction activities that are not part of acommon development where the primarypermittee chooses not to use secondarypermittees.

For NPDES No. GAR100002, thedefinition of ‘infrastructure construction’or ‘infrastructure construction project’means construction activities that are notpart of a common development that in-clude the construction, installation, andmaintenance of roadway and railway proj-ects and conduits, pipes, pipelines, substa-tions, cables, wires, trenches, vaults,manholes, and similar or related structuresfor the conveyance of natural gas (or othertype of gas), liquid petroleum products,electricity, telecommunications (telephone,data, television, etc.), water, stormwater orsewage.

Based upon the definition of ‘infra-structure construction’ or ‘infrastructureconstruction project,’ park and ride lots,landscape only projects, buildings, etc. haveto be permitted under the Stand AlonePermit (GAR100001).

‘Roadway project(s)’ was added in thedefinition section of NPDES No.GAR100002. Roadway project(s) meantraveled ways including but not limited toroads, sidewalks, multi-use paths and trails,and airport runways and taxiways. Thisterm includes the accessory components to

the roadway project that are necessary forstructural integrity of the roadway and theapplicable safety requirements. These ac-cessory components include but are notlimited to slopes, shoulders, stormwaterdrainage ditches and structures, guardrails,lighting, signage, cameras, and fences andexclude subsequent landscaping and beau-tification projects.

A significant regulatory change to theNPDES No. GAR100002 is located inSection C.1. It states that coverage is re-quired for “all discharges of stormwa-ter…that will result in contiguous landdisturbances equal to or greater than one(1) acre…Contiguous means areas of landdisturbance that are in actual contact tocreate a connected, uninterrupted area ofland disturbance. However, for purposes ofthis permit, contiguous areas of land dis-turbances solely separated by drilling andboring activities, waters of the state and ad-jacent state-mandated buffers, roadwaysand/or railways. In addition, contiguousareas of land disturbances include all areasof land disturbances at a sole roadway in-tersection and/or junction.”

Scenario 1, a project is constructingthree separate segments of sidewalk to con-nect to an existing sidewalk system. How-ever, the three segments are not contiguousand are each less than one acre of distur-bance. In this situation, a NPDES permitwould not be required.

Scenario 2, this is the same as Scenario1 except one of the three sidewalk seg-ments exceeds the one acre threshold forsoil disturbance. In this case, a NPDES No.GAR 100002 would be applicable for thesegment of sidewalk that exceeded the soildisturbance threshold. The other two seg-ments would still not require an NPDESpermit.

I

NPDES permit for stormwater discharge associatedwith construction activities: When do you apply and whatregulatory changes have occurred?By Heidi Schneider | HnTB Corporation

http://www.aei.cc

http://www.rosser.com

There are other changes to the reis-sued NPDES permits including, but lim-ited to: 1) removal of size requirement forroutine maintenance projects [no NPDESpermit required]; 2) best managementpractices (BMPs) for Biotic Impaired

Stream segments were revised [the permitoverrules Appendix 1]; 3) control BMPsmust be in place prior to start of construc-tion; 4) infrastructure project buffer ex-emptions have been revised withdisturbance thresholds; and 5) project canbe phased into four (4) Notice of Termina-tions (NOT).


For more information on the permits, visithttp://epd.georgia.gov/npdes-construc-tion-storm-water-general-permit-re-issuance. For the latest Notice of Intent(NOI) and NOT forms, you can visithttp://epd.georgia.gov/storm-water-forms. v

http://www.speng.com

http://www.kimley-horn.com

http://www.thc-rwsi.com

http://www.stvinc.com

http://www.burnsmcd.com/atlanta

http://www.twocpa.com

26 GEORGIA ENGINEER

exington, Kentucky: After 24

hours of rain, totaling as

much as ten inches in some

areas, the South Fork Dam

failed on the afternoon of

May 31, 1889, releasing 20

million tons of water toward

Johnstown, Pennsylvania. by the time the

water subsided, more than 2,200 people

were dead—one of the highest civilian

death tolls on U.S. soil. To this day, the

South Fork Dam failure remains the most

devastating dam failure in U.S. history.

Each year on May 31, the dam safety com-

munity commemorates this failure during

National Dam Safety Awareness Day.

“As we mark the 125th anniversary ofthe South Fork Dam failure, it’s importantto remember that we all have a role to playin creating a future where all dams are safe,”said Lori Spragens, executive director ofthe Association of State Dam Safety Offi-cials (ASDSO). “Unfortunately, the poten-tial for another tragic dam failure still existsand people who live downstream fromdams need to take steps to ensure theirsafety before an emergency occurs.”

History

The village of Johnstown was founded in1800 by the Swiss immigrant Joseph Johns(anglicized from ‘Schantz’) at the conflu-ence of the Stony Creek and Little Cone-maugh rivers, forming the ConemaughRiver. It began to prosper with the buildingof the Pennsylvania Main Line Canal in1836, and the construction in the 1850s ofthe Pennsylvania Railroad and the Cam-bria Iron Works. By 1889, Johnstown's in-dustries had attracted numerous Welsh andGerman immigrants. With a population of30,000, it was a growing industrial com-munity known for the quality of its steel.

The high, steep hills of the narrowConemaugh Valley and the AlleghenyMountains to the east kept developmentclose to the riverfront areas. The valley had

large amounts of runoff from rain andsnowfall. The area surrounding Johnstownis prone to flooding due to its location onthe rivers, whose upstream watersheds in-clude an extensive drainage basin of the Al-legheny plateau. Adding to these factors,slag from the iron furnaces of the steel millswas dumped along the river to create moreland for building. Developers' artificial nar-rowing of the riverbed to maximize earlyindustries left the city even more flood-prone.

South Fork Dam and Lake Conemaugh

High above the city, the Commonwealthof Pennsylvania built the South Fork Dambetween 1838 and 1853, as part of a cross-state canal system, the Main Line of Pub-lic Works. Johnstown was the easternterminus of the Western Division Canal,supplied with water by Lake Conemaugh,the reservoir behind the dam. As railroadssuperseded canal barge transport, theCommonwealth abandoned the canal andsold to the Pennsylvania Railroad. The damand lake were part of the purchase, and

PRR sold them to private interests.Henry Clay Frick led a group of spec-

ulators, including Benjamin Ruff, fromPittsburgh to purchase the abandonedreservoir, modify it, and convert it into aprivate resort lake for their wealthy associ-ates. Many were connected through busi-ness and social links to Carnegie Steel.Development included lowering the damto make its top wide enough to hold a road,and putting a fish screen in the spillway(the screen also trapped debris). These al-terations are thought to have increased thevulnerability of the dam. The membersbuilt cottages and a clubhouse to create theSouth Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, anexclusive and private mountain retreat.Membership grew to include more than 50wealthy Pittsburgh steel, coal, and railroadindustrialists.

Lake Conemaugh at the club's sitewas 450 feet (140 m) in elevation aboveJohnstown. The lake was about two miles(3.2 km) long, approximately one mile (1.6km) wide, and 60 feet (18 m) deep near thedam. The lake had a perimeter of seven

L

125th anniversary of dam failure in Johnstown highlights importance of emergency preparedness


miles (11 km) to hold 20 million tons ofwater.

The dam was 72 feet (22 m) high and931 feet (284 m) long. Between 1881 whenthe club was opened, and 1889, the damfrequently sprang leaks. It was patched,mostly with mud and straw. Additionally, aprevious owner had removed and sold forscrap the three cast iron discharge pipesthat previously allowed a controlled releaseof water. There had been some speculationas to the dam's integrity, and concerns hadbeen raised by the head of the CambriaIron Works downstream in Johnstown.

On May 28, 1889, a storm formedover Nebraska and Kansas, moving east.When the storm struck the Johnstown-South Fork area two days later, it was theworst downpour that had ever beenrecorded in that part of the country. TheU.S. Army Signal Corps estimated that 6to 10 inches (150 to 250 mm) of rain fell in24 hours over the entire region. During thenight, small creeks became roaring torrents,ripping out trees and debris. Telegraphlines were downed and rail lines werewashed away. Before daybreak, the Cone-maugh River that ran through Johnstownwas about to overwhelm its banks.

On the morning of May 31, 1889, in afarmhouse on a hill just above the SouthFork Dam, Elias Unger, then president of

the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club,awoke to the sight of Lake Conemaughswollen after a night-long heavy rainfall.Unger ran outside in the still-pouring rainto assess the situation and saw that thewater was nearly cresting the dam. Hequickly assembled a group of men to savethe face of the dam by trying to unclog thespillway; it was blocked by the broken fishtrap and debris caused by the swollen wa-terline. Other men tried digging anotherspillway at the other end of the dam to re-

lieve the pressure, without success. Most re-mained on top of the dam, some plowingearth to raise it, while others tried to pilemud and rock on the face to save the erod-ing wall.

John Parke, an engineer for the SouthFork Club, briefly considered cuttingthrough the dam’s end, where the pressurewould be less, but decided against it. Twice,under orders from Unger, Parke rode onhorseback to the nearby town of SouthFork to the telegraph office to send warn-ings to Johnstown explaining the criticalnature of the eroding dam. But the warn-ings were not passed to the authorities intown, as there had been many false alarmsin the past of the South Fork Dam notholding against flooding. Unger, Parke,and the rest of the men continued workinguntil exhausted to save the face of the dam;they abandoned their efforts at around 1:30p.m., fearing that their efforts were futileand the dam was at risk of imminent col-lapse. Unger ordered all of his men to fallback to high ground on both sides of thedam where they could do nothing but wait.During the day in Johnstown, the situationworsened as water rose to as high as 10 feet(3.0 m) in the streets, trapping some peoplein their houses.

At around 3:10 p.m., the South ForkDam collapsed, freeing the 20 million tonsof Lake Conemaugh to cascade down the

Main Street after flood

http://www.cardno.com

28 GEORGIA ENGINEER

Little Conemaugh River. It took about 40minutes for the entire lake to drain of thewater. The first town to be hit by the floodwas South Fork. The town was on highground, and most of the people escaped byrunning up the nearby hills when they sawthe dam spill over. Despite 20 to 30 housesbeing destroyed or washed away, only fourpeople were killed.

On its way downstream toward John-stown, 14 miles away, the crest picked updebris, such as trees, houses, and animals.At the Conemaugh Viaduct, a 78-foot (24m) high railroad bridge, the flood tem-porarily was stopped when debris jammedagainst the stone bridge’s arch. But withinseven minutes, the viaduct collapsed, al-lowing the flood to resume its course. Be-cause of this, the surging river gainedrenewed hydraulic head, resulting in astronger wave hitting Johnstown than oth-erwise would have been expected. Thesmall town of Mineral Point, one mile (1.6km) below the Conemaugh Viaduct, washit with this renewed force. About 30 fam-ilies lived on the village’s single street. Afterthe flood, only bare rock remained. About16 people were killed.

In 2009, researchers reported the re-sults of studies showing that the volume ofthe flood through the narrow valley tem-porarily equaled the flow of the Missis-sippi River.

“The deluge released by the dam’s col-lapse carried more than 12,000 cubic me-ters of debris-filled water each second.Flow rates in the Mississippi River typi-cally vary between 7,000 and 20,000 cubicmeters per second.”

The village of East Conemaugh wasnext to be hit by the flood. One witness onhigh ground near the town described thewater as almost obscured by debris, resem-bling “a huge hill rolling over and over.”From his locomotive, engineer John Hessheard the rumbling of the approachingflood and, fearing what it meant, tried towarn people downriver: he tied down thetrain whistle and raced backward towardEast Conemaugh. His warning saved manypeople who reached high ground, but atleast 50 people died, including about 25passengers stranded on trains in the town.

Hess survived despite the flood picking uphis locomotive and tossing it aside.

Before hitting the main part of John-stown, the flood surge hit the Cambria IronWorks at the town of Woodvale, sweepingup railroad cars and barbed wire in its moil.Of Woodvale's 1,100 residents, 314 died inthe flood. Boilers exploded when the floodhit the Gautier Wire Works, causing blacksmoke seen by the Johnstown residents.Miles of its barbed wire became entangledin the debris in the flood waters.

Some 57 minutes after the South ForkDam collapsed, the flood hit Johnstown.The residents were caught by surprise asthe wall of water and debris bore down,traveling at 40 miles per hour (64 km/h)and reaching a height of 60 feet (18 m) inplaces. Some, realizing the danger, tried toescape by running towards high ground but

most people were hit by the surging flood-water. Many people were crushed by piecesof debris, and others became caught inbarbed wire from the wire factory up-stream. Those who reached attics, or man-aged to stay afloat on pieces of floatingdebris, waited hours for help to arrive.

At Johnstown, the Stone Bridge, whichwas a substantial arched structure, carriedthe Pennsylvania Railroad across the Cone-maugh River. The debris carried by the floodformed a temporary dam at the bridge, re-sulting in the flood surge rolling upstreamalong the Stoney Creek River. Eventually,gravity caused the surge to return to thedam, causing a second wave to hit the city,but from a different direction.

Some people who had been washeddownstream became trapped in an infernoas the debris piled up against the Stone

view of lower Johnstown three days after the flood

A contemporary rendition of the scene at the Stone bridge (1890)


Bridge caught fire; at least 80 people diedthere. The fire at the Stone Bridge burnedfor three days. After floodwaters receded,the pile of debris at the bridge was seen tocover 30 acres (12 ha), and reached 70 feet(21 m) in height. It took workers threemonths to remove the mass of debris,largely because it was bound by the steelwire from the ironworks. Dynamite waseventually used to clear it.

Still standing and in use as a railroadbridge, the Stone Bridge is a landmark as-sociated with survival and recovery fromthe flood. In 2008, it was restored in a proj-ect including new lighting as part of com-memorative activities related to the flood.

Skewered by a huge tree uprooted bythe flood, the house floated down fromUnion Street to the end of Main. Six peo-ple, including Schultz, were inside thehouse when the flood hit. All survived.

The total death toll was 2,209, mak-ing the disaster the largest loss of civilianlife in the United States at the time.Ninety-nine entire families died in theflood, including 396 children. One hun-dred twenty-four women and 198 menwere widowed, 98 children were orphaned.One-third of the dead, 777 people, werenever identified; their remains were buriedin the ‘Plot of the Unknown’ in Grandview

Cemetery in Westmont.It was the worst flood to hit the U.S. in

the 19th century. Sixteen hundred homeswere destroyed, $17 million in propertydamage was done, and four square miles(10 km2) of downtown Johnstown werecompletely destroyed. Clean-up operationscontinued for years. Although CambriaIron and Steel’s facilities were heavily dam-aged, they returned to full productionwithin a year and a half.

One of the first outsiders to arrive wasClara Barton, nurse, founder and presidentof the American Red Cross. Barton arrivedon June 5, 1889, to lead the group’s firstmajor disaster relief effort; she did not leavefor more than five months. She and manyother volunteers worked tirelessly. Dona-tions for the relief effort came from all overthe United States and overseas.$3,742,818.78 was collected for the John-stown relief effort from within the U.S. and18 foreign countries, including Russia,Turkey, France, Great Britain, Australia,and Germany.

Frank Shomo, the last known survivorof the 1889 flood, died March 20, 1997, atthe age of 108.v

is article incorporates text from a publicationnow in the public domain (see Wikipedia.org):Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia

Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge UniversityPress.

Coleman, N.M., C. Davis Todd, et al. 2009."Johnstown flood of 1889 – destruction and re-birth" (Presentation 76-9). Geological Societyof America meeting. Oct. 18-21. Portland,Ore.

Davis T., C., et al. 2009. "A determinationof peak discharge rate and water volume fromthe 1889 Johnstown flood" (Presentation 76-10). Geological Society of America meeting.Oct. 18-21. Portland, Ore.

Johnson, Willis Fletcher. History of the John-stown Flood (1889). [2]

McCullough, David. e Johnstown Flood(1968); ISBN 0-671-20714-8

O'Connor, R. Johnstown - e Day eDam Broke (1957).

http://www.ttlusa.com

30 GEORGIA ENGINEER

hen it comes to logistics and

supply chain infrastructure,

Georgia is what some might

say ‘uniquely complete’ in all

aspects, from rail and road to

sea and air.

Home to the world’s busiest passengerairport with Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta In-ternational Airport, the nation’s fastestgrowing port with the Port of Savannah,the best rail infrastructure in the South-east, and a nationally-ranked highway in-frastructure, it’s no wonder that Georgiahas become a strong hub for manufactur-ers and distribution centers. This level oflogistics infrastructure is part of the storythat has resulted in Georgia being namedAmerica’s best state for business byCNBC and the number one most compet-itive state in the nation by Site SelectionMagazine.“Georgia has been ranked the best statefor doing business, and a lot of that has todo with its supply chain and logistics in-frastructure,” said Page Siplon, executivedirector of the Georgia Center of Innova-tion for Logistics.

Probably the most visible of its logis-tics infrastructure, Georgia’s ports man-aged by the Georgia Ports Authority,include major sea operations in both Sa-vannah and Brunswick. Georgia’s port lo-cations reduce landside travel to majorU.S. markets by being the western mostports on the east coast. Two moderndeep water terminals, the Garden CityTerminal and the Ocean Terminal, collec-tively make up the Port of Savannah. At1,200 acres, the Garden City terminal isthe nation’s largest container facility anddue to the terminal being owner-oper-ated, the port’s operations are stream-lined to serve shippers and carriers. ThePort of Savannah is also serviced by twoClass I rail lines. Likewise, the three ter-minals making up the Port of Brunswick

have made it number one in the nation forauto imports and one of the fastest-grow-ing heavy machinery ports in NorthAmerica. More than 20 major auto man-ufacturers use the Colonel’s Island Termi-nal, which is also home to the Southeast’sfastest-growing bulk export/import oper-ation. Many of the state’s agriculturalproducts also flow through this port onthe way to their destination.

When it comes to rail infrastructure,Georgia has a longstanding history as amajor railway hub and even the city of At-lanta was formed from a rail line’s termi-nus. That tradition continues today withthe most extensive rail system in theSoutheast. Of all the East Coast ports,the state’s two Class I railroads providethe fastest rail connections from the Portof Savannah to Alabama, Tennessee,Louisiana, and Texas as well as overnightservice to major markets like Atlanta,Charlotte, Jacksonville, and Charleston.These Class-I railroads, CSX and NorfolkSouthern, are supported by 29 short linesthat easily provide cross-state access.

With more than 5,000 miles of rail andthe largest intermodal hub in the South-east, Georgia’s rail infrastructure rivalsany other national leader.

The compliment of Georgia’s high-way infrastructure to the rail network trulygives the state an advantage. Georgia’s in-terstate system connects to 80 percent ofthe U.S. population within a two-day truckdrive. More than 40 percent of U.S. man-ufacturing operations are within a 500mile radius of Atlanta. More than 1,200miles of interstate highway and 20,000miles of federal and state highway movean average of 5.9 million tons of freightacross the state weekly.

As the tenth largest air cargo hub inNorth America, Hartsfield-Jackson At-lanta International Airport is a criticalcomponent of Georgia’s infrastructurenetwork for transporting goods. The air-port is home to 14 cargo-only carriers andtwo million square feet of cargo ware-house space. From the airport, people andproducts can reach 80 percent of the U.S.market within a two-hour flight and 75 in-

Georgia’s logistics infrastructure: gateway to the world

W


ternational destinations in 50 countries. But it’s not all about the infrastruc-

ture. Georgia is home to nearly 12,300providers of logistics services and ranksas the fifth largest overall logistics em-ployer in the nation. Companies like DeltaAir Lines, UPS, SAIA, and Manhattan As-sociates have headquartered here alongwith major players in logistics such as TheHome Depot, The Coca-Cola Company,and Gulfstream Aerospace. Georgia isalso home to a growing market for logis-tics and supply chain management tech-nology with 70 percent of the top 20supply chain management softwareproviders located here.

“We truly have an advantage inGeorgia with our logistics infrastructureand that is why we’ve seen so muchgrowth in other logistics-enabled com-panies choosing our state to call home,”Siplon continued. “Georgia is able tobring together the people, process, andtechnology that make logistics happenlike no other state in the nation throughits laser focus on the industry.”

As an example of the state’s commit-ment to the logistics industry, the Centerof Innovation hosts an annual Georgia Lo-gistics Summit in Atlanta each spring. TheSummit provides a tremendous network-ing opportunity and connects all aspectsof the industry from road, rail, air, andocean to manufacturers and retailers tounderstand the challenges and opportu-nities each face. This event also promotesdialogue with the public sector and keepsGeorgia moving forward. The Summit fea-tures a rapid fire update panel from the

state’s transportation experts. The panelis comprised of the heads of the GeorgiaRailroad Association, the Georgia MotorTrucking Association, Georgia Depart-ment of Transportation, Georgia Ports Au-thority, and Hartsfield-Jackson AtlantaInternational Airport. Focusing on thetrends and issues within each sector, thepanel highlights the interconnectednessof the state’s logistics ‘ecosystem’ thatmust flow seamlessly from end to end tokeep business thriving and growing.

From its cornerstone location on theU.S. East Coast to its seamless connectionof infrastructure—both physical and pro-fessional, Georgia offers businesses a sig-nificant competitive advantage. FromGeorgia you have a gateway to the world -you can ship any product to any customer,any mode to any market.

The Centers of Innovation are a lead-ing resource for fueling logistics growthand global competitiveness and a divisionof the Georgia Department of EconomicDevelopment. v

http://www.atlantawatershed.org/vendor

32 GEORGIA ENGINEER

Army Chief of Engineers Looks to P3S for

Nation’s Water Infrastructure Needs

By Editor of NCPPPe Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) islooking at new ways to finance the essentialcivil works infrastructure on U.S. waterways,including public-private partnerships ac-cording to Lt. Gen. omas Bostick, theagency’s commanding general.

“We can only do so much throughprocess efficiencies. We’re going to have towork together in public-private partnershipsto find some alternative financing means thatcome from outside the federal government,”Bostick told reporters last week.

Some Corps projects have an identifi-able revenue stream. The Corps currentlycollects fees on shipping companies thatuse deep-sea ports and inland waterways.However, projects such as levees do nothave an obvious revenue stream, accordingto Bostick.

“We have to find a way to monetize thethings we want the private sector to investin,” Bostick said. “At the end of the day, theyneed to make a profit, and we have to findways to set up long-term contracts that willallow them to accrue benefits based on theinvestments they make.”

Bostick’s comments come as the Corpsfaces a backlog of $60 billion in recapitaliza-tion projects, according to a 2013 review.at same year, the American Society ofCivil Engineers issued a grade of a D- to thenetwork of 15,000 miles of levees and infra-structure along the thousands of miles of in-land waterways in the United States.Hydro-power dams earned a modestly highergrade of D.

“e infrastructure is slipping in its abil-ity to deliver consistent and reliable services,”Bostick told Federal News Radio. “Since2000, we’ve had a 50 percent increase in thedowntime of our hydroelectric equipment.Since 2009, delays and interruptions havemore than doubled on our inland waterway

locks and dams. And 16 percent of our damsare categorized as ‘extremely’ or ‘very high’risk, which increases the urgency for damsafety work.”

Congress funds the Corps’ recapitaliza-tion projects at around $2 billion per year.But even as the Corps continues to focus onthe nation’s highest priorities, the projects itis working on this year will require an addi-tional $23 billion to complete.

“at gives you some idea of how longour current projects will take at the pacewe’re getting appropriations,” he said. v

GS&P Adds Senior Water Resources

Engineer Chris Hammer

Results-Driven Leader to Enhance ProjectManagement, Client Service in SoutheastGresham, Smith and Partners, a leadingmulti-disciplinary design and consultingfirm for the built environment, announcesChris Hammer, P.E., has joined GS&P asa senior water resources engineer in thefirm’s Nashville office. He has deliveredmore than $2 billion of infrastructure proj-ects during his 22-year career, managingwater, wastewater and natural gas projectsin both the public and private sectors. AtGS&P, Hammer will focus on projectmanagement, staff mentoring and clientservice throughout the Southeast.

“Chris brings a results-driven ap-

proach to infrastructure design, asset man-agement and total project management,”said Joe Whitson, P.E., executive vice pres-ident at Gresham, Smith and Partners. “Heis known for his responsiveness, depend-ability and tremendous work ethic, whichis how he has successfully served so manyclients in Tennessee and Kentucky. I knowGS&P’s clients will value Chris’s knowl-edge and leadership, and he’ll be an excel-lent resource for our internal staff as well.We’re proud to welcome him to the team.”

“I’m a small-town Kentucky nativewho has built a career out of serving clientsin the Southeast and understanding the re-gion’s infrastructure needs. My time as acity engineer in Clarksville, Tennessee, oneof the nation’s fastest-growing cities, al-lowed me to experience projects from theclient’s side. I know the level of service theyexpect and I’m committed to going aboveand beyond that. The satisfaction I get frommy job is knowing I helped to achievesomething great for my client and theircommunity,” added Hammer.

Prior to joining GS&P, Hammer wasa senior project manager and client servicemanager at URS Corporation in Franklin,Tenn. Most recently he served as lead en-gineer for a 19-million-gallon storage tankproject, one of the region’s largest tanks, insupport of the Clean Water NashvilleOverflow Abatement Program. AsClarksville’s City Engineer, Hammer wasdepartment head and project manager forplanning, engineering, construction andmaintenance of numerous natural gas,water, sewer infrastructure and regulatorycompliance projects. He earned a Bachelorof Science degree in Civil Engineeringfrom the University of Kentucky and com-pleted graduate work in EnvironmentalEngineering. He is an active member of theAmerican Water Works Association(AWWA), Water Environment Federation(WEF). v

ENGINEERING NEWSArmy Chief of Engineers Looks to P3S for Nation’s Water Infrastructure Needs

GEORGIA

Chris Hammer


Georgia’s Number One!These are exciting times! While I wouldnot wish the past few years’ economy on my

worst enemy, I would not trade the experi-ence gained for anything either. Many ofus are paying attention to the details of ourbusinesses far better than we did before thecrash. At least I can tell you, I certainly am!I have learned much about myself and thebusiness of engineering during tough eco-nomic times. Workload seems to be im-proving; business is getting better. We arestarting to climb out of the big ol’ hole thathas been created for us.

In November of last year, Georgia wasnamed the number one place in the UnitedStates to do business, according to Site Se-lection Magazine. This is great news forour state! Of course, you realize that meanseveryone will be gunning for us this year,

so we have to stay on our toes. Businesseslook closely at a number of factors beforemaking the decision of where to be located.Two of the top five “Site Selectors’ MostImportant Location Criteria” are Trans-portation Infrastructure and Utility Infra-structure. As you know, high qualityinfrastructure is the backbone of healthybusiness. This confirms that we have tokeep our infrastructure in good order to re-main competitive; we have to invest in ourfuture. We have to pay to play.

I have traveled to Washington, DC,several times over the last ten years for theACEC National Convention, and we al-ways ‘Storm the Hill.’ And every year, oneof the topics of discussion with legislators is

ACEC Georgia

Political Advocacy• Advocating at all levels of government to advance policies that impactthe business of engineering in Georgia.

• Monitoring the regulatory issues and government agency actions thataffect engineers.

• Working for a more pro-business climate and defending against unfairbusiness practices.

• Fighting to protect the professional engineering practice.

Business Development• Providing networking opportunities, meetings, and programs that putyou in contact with potential clients, industry peers, and the leaders ofthe engineering profession.

• Hosting the Georgia Engineers Summer Conference, TransportationSummit, P3 Summit, and other programs that expand your professionalknowledge and network.

• Offering informative and relevant seminars, programs, and webinarswith presentations from leaders who affect our industry andcommunity.

Firm Operations• Providing a forum for the exchange of business and professionalexperiences.

• Offering programs and resources on best business practices formember firms.

• Sponsoring the Future Leaders Program to build the next generation ofleaders within member firms and the engineering profession.

• We provide executive development training for emerging leaders andfirm management.

The Value of ACEC GeorgiaServing your firm’s business

interests through:

News

Darrell

Rochester, PEChairACEC Georgia

http://www.acecga.org

34 GEORGIA ENGINEER

infrastructure funding of some type. Well,this year was no exception. With the Fed-eral Highway Trust Fund on the verge ofinsolvency, we asked that lawmakers pass along-term funding measure for transporta-tion. And the reply we received this yearsounded very similar to many of the otheryears: “We need a long-term solution butgetting it passed does not look realistic. So,we are working on a short-term solution tothe problem.” I guess the good news is theU.S. House passed a short-term fundingmeasure in July that would provide $10.9billion to the Highway Trust Fund, whichshould extend the Trust Fund at currentspending levels of federal highway andmass transit accounts through May 2015.Assuming the Senate passes it, we justkicked the can down the road once again.The problem is the federal government’sfiscal year ends on September 30 andGDOT gets 55 percent of its funding fromthe Federal Highway Administration. Sowhat are we supposed to do for the fourmonths that are unfunded?

You have to ask yourself, how can ourstate continue to remain number one whenbusinesses tell you infrastructure is criticalto determining where they will locate andour state does not know if it will have funds

available to meet its infrastructure needs? Iam pretty well convinced at this point in mylife that times are changing and always willbe. In my humble opinion, with uncertaintyfor the foreseeable future in Washington,we are coming to a point where we need torely less on the federal government andmore on our state and alternative sources tofund infrastructure improvements. Fundingcloser to home gives greater control and farfewer strings will be attached.

I can promise you other states aremaking the tough decisions needed to be-come more competitive. For example, the2014 North Carolina Regional andStatewide Strategies for ComprehensiveCommunity and Economic DevelopmentReport released by The North CarolinaAssociation of Regional Councils states: “To remain competitive in a growing globaleconomy, North Carolina makes the revi-talization and improvement of state andlocal infrastructure a priority for funding.”

We are not only competing with otherstates but we also have to compete withother countries around the globe. It will bedifficult to continue to draw business to ourstate if we are not serious about fundingour infrastructure needs.

Great things are happening at ACEC

Georgia. Thanks to the vision of pastChairmen like Jim Hamilton, EddieWilliams, and Jay Wolverton, tough deci-sions have been made to move the organi-zation forward. Our future is bright! Wehave a strong vision and very talented staffunder the leadership of Michael L. ‘Sully’Sullivan that is fully engaged and pressingforward with our mission of Political Ad-vocacy, Firm Operations, and Business De-velopment.

Because Sully recognizes the impor-tance of infrastructure funding, he hasagreed to serve as Chairman of the GeorgiaTransportation Alliance whose mission is“To build upon Georgia’s strong history oftransportation excellence by supporting ef-forts to improve transportation funding andimprove our state’s transportation infra-structure.” It is good to know ACEC willbe ‘right in the thick of things’ solving ourstate’s infrastructure funding challenges.

If you or your firm is not a member ofACEC, we would like to talk with youabout the benefits of membership. And, ifyou are a member and you have ideas ofhow ACEC can better serve your firm orthe engineering community, please let usknow. v

ACEC GEORGIA MEMBER FIRMS

Board of DirectorsDarrell K. Rochester, Chairman / Roseana Richards, Chairman-elect / Jay C. Wolverton, Past Chair / Charles Ezelle, Treas-urer / John Heath, Secretary / Dave L. Wright, National Director / Jim Case, Vice Chair / Don Harris, Vice Chair / RobertLewis, Vice Chair / Anita Atkinson, Director / Daveitta Jenkins, Director / Emily Meador, Director / Kevin McOmber, Direc-

tor / Al Pramuk, Director / Charles ‘Corky’ Welch, Director / Brent Wright, Director / Taylor Wright, Director

StaffMichael ‘Sully’ Sullivan, President & CEOJennifer Head,

Director of Membership & Programs

Brittney Love,Director of Finance & Operations

Shawna Mercer,Director of Communica-tions and Government Affairs

CommitteesKevin McOmber, Government Affairs/PACDavid Wright, ACEC PAC ChampionRob Lewis, Business DevelopmentJim Case & Don Harris, Firm OperationsJohn Heath, CoalitionsDoug Robinson, CommunicationsBrannen Butts & David McFarlin, Leadership DevelopmentCharles Ezelle, MembershipJay Wolverton, NominatingJay Wolverton, Past Presidents/ChairmenScott Gero, Transportation Forum

ForumsBill Griffin, Building SystemsCorky Welch, EnvironmentalChris Marsengill, TransportationBrannen Butts, Leadership

dkrochester@rochester-

assoc.com

(678) 450-5161


Hello members and friends! We’ve hadquite a busy year, and I’m surprised it’spassed so quickly. In my last article here asyour President, I wanted to recap some ofour highlights and successes. • In September 2013 we held our An-

nual awards banquet. This event washeld at the Atlanta Zoo in 2013 (andwill be at the 755 club at the BravesGame this upcoming September – seedetails below!).

• In October 2013, Michael L. ‘Sully’Sullivan, President & CEO of ACECGeorgia, provided us with a Legisla-tive Outlook and Update for Engi-neers. Legislative activities were a keyfocus for our Section in 2013-2014, sothis gave us a great overview of thecurrent legislative climate in the state.

• In November 2013, our Section meet-ing was an overview of the SweetwaterCreek Stream and Wetland Restora-tion Project, which was the winner ofour 2013 Civil Engineering Environ-mental Project of the Year. KevinMiddlebrooks, PE, from CH2M Hillwas one of the project designers andour meeting speaker.

• In December 2013, our Section meet-ing focused on sustainability at the At-lanta Beltline with speaker: Lisa Y.Gordon, CPA, Chief Operating Offi-cer of Atlanta Beltline Inc.

• In January, Matt Harper, the WaterSupply Senior Program Manager fromGeorgia Environmental Finance Au-thority (GEFA), presented informa-tion on the Governor’s Water SupplyProgram and the Aquifer Storage andRecovery Demonstration Project insouthwest Georgia. Also in January,we released the Georgia Infrastructurereport card at the state capitol:http://www.ascega.org/georgia-re-port-card/

• In February, we received an overviewof Envision, a Sustainable Infrastruc-

Katherine Gurd,

P.E., President

American Society

of Civil

Engineers,

Georgia Section

www.ascega.org

News

[email protected]

President: Katherine McLeod Gurd, P.E.AECOM | [email protected]

President-Elect: Rebecca Shelton, P.E.Gwinnett County [email protected]

Vice President : Richard Morales, M.Sc., P.E.LB Foster Piling | [email protected]

Treasurer : Dan Agramonte, P.E.O’BRIEN & GERE | [email protected]

External Director : Shaukat Syed Georgia EPD, Watershed | Protection Branch

[email protected]

Internal Director : Christina Vulova, P.E. ARCADIS U.S. Inc. | [email protected]

Secretary : Julie Secrist, P.E.T.Y. Lin International Group | [email protected]

Technical Director : Luis E. Babler, P.E. Geo-Hydro Engineers Inc. | [email protected]

Younger Member Director: Benjamin L. Moss O’BRIEN & [email protected]

Savannah Branch Director : Laurel M. WebbO’BRIEN & GERE | [email protected]

NE Georgia Branch Director : J. Matthew Tanner, PEBreedlove Land Planning [email protected]

South Metro Branch Director: Bob NickelsonPortland Cement Association [email protected]

Past-President: Lisa S. Woods, P.E.JACOBS | [email protected]

ASCE/GEORGIA SECTION 2013 - 2014 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

ASCE Georgia

36 GEORGIA ENGINEER

ture Ranking Tool, provided bySpeaker ‘Buddy’ Humphries, PE,LTEC. Also in February, we hadsome GA ASCE members take thereport card to their state and local leg-islators, and we hosted a legislative ap-preciation reception with the GeorgiaSection of ITE and ITS Georgia. Wealso hosted the Toothpick Bridgeevent at Fernbank on February 22nd.At this event, we had 56 middle schoolparticipants who had bridges testedand broken.

• March was a busy month. Our Sec-tion meeting was a joint meeting withSAME. We had Charles Hayes, EPARegion Four Small Business ProgramManager speak with us about DoingBusiness with the EPA. Also inMarch, we held the Founding FathersConference in Augusta. This confer-ence was a joint venture with theSouth Carolina Section of ASCE and

was the first conference the GeorgiaSection has hosted which gave us op-portunities to meet members from ourneighboring state. To close out March,we hosted our 4th annual Middleschool competition – “What Do CivilEngineers Do?” which allows kids toshow their creativity while learningabout the engineering profession.

• In April, our Section meeting speakerwas Charles R. Bailey, PE, Traffic En-gineering & Planning Div. Directorand Tom Sever, PE, Chief Engineer -Traffic Signal and ITS Section withthe Gwinnett County Department ofTransportation. The focus of themeeting was the Gwinnett CountyTraffic Control Center.

• In May we had Georgia State Legisla-tive Representatives: Senator BrandonBeach and Representative Ed Setzlertalk to us about their perspectives on

transportation and infrastructure inour state.

• Finally, to close out our Section meet-ings in June, we had US CongressmanRob Woodall give us the national per-spective on transportation and infra-structure.

• In July, although our Section meetingshad taken a summer hiatus, our volun-teers remained engaged and supportedthe Smyrna Library and their SummerSTEM reading program. ASCEhosted two hands-on activities for kidsages four to 12 to help them apply en-gineering principals. Volunteershelped the kids create domes made ofgumdrops for one activity and sky-scrapers made of straws for the other.

Kids outreach activities at the

Smyrna Library in July.

To celebrate this successful year, the ASCEGeorgia Section will host our AnnualMeeting and Awards Banquet at the 755Club, followed by a Braves game at TurnerField on September 20th, 2014. PastASCE National President, Mr. William P.Grogan, Ph.D., P.E., M.ASCE, will also bejoining us for the festivities. I hope you’llmake plans to join us as we recognize our2014 Outstanding Civil EngineeringAchievement projects, recognize outstand-ing engineers, and induct our 2014-2015Section Officers. We’ll also have food, fun,and social time as we take in the last homeBraves game of the season. Register at:https://www.eventbrite.com/org/2622882550?s=18356657

In closing, I’d like to thank our mem-bers for letting me serve you. It’s been anhonor to serve as your President this lastyear. I’d like to personally thank each one ofour board members that have helped us havesuch a successful year. I’d also like to thankour sponsors whose contributions have al-lowed us to host all these great activities:AECOM, ATG, Belgard Hardscapes, CES,CH2MHill, Haywood Baker, John GroupInternational, and LBFoster. v

Kids outreach activities at the Smyrna Library in July.


I’m on my second term as President of oneof the best engineering organizations inGeorgia. We have openings for some of ourchair and co-chair positions, so please be-come a member and get more involved! Iwant to thank all of the Board membersand Committee Chairs for a great year, andI look forward to more exciting events inthe future.

Great Success at the National Conference

Attendees of the 2014 ASHE NationalConvention heard quite a bit about theASHE Georgia section this year! Held inJune in Bismarck, North Dakota, theASHE National Conference was an excel-lent opportunity for ASHE Georgia mem-bers to network with other professionals inthe highway design industry. The Georgiasection attendees were recognized at theannual banquet for their friendliness, andother sections across the country are look-ing at ASHE Georgia as a model of an ex-tremely successful chapter.

Attendees participated in a variety oftechnical programs and social activities.Some of the session topics included the re-location of the Hoover Dam road andbridge, mobile barriers, diverging diamondinterchanges, asset management, and ac-celerated bridge construction. Georgiasection members had the opportunity toplay golf at Hawktree Golf Club and visithistoric Buckstop Junction.

Two members of ASHE Georgiawere recognized for their continued dedi-cation to ASHE. Nikki Reutlinger wasawarded the ASHE National President’sAward. Nikki has served in many positionson Section Committees and on the SectionBoard, including Georgia Section Presi-dent, the Southeast Region Board, the Na-tional Board as a National Director, and onnumerous national committees over theyears. She currently manages the nationalASHE LinkedIn site. She has been amember of the National Regional Over-sight Committee, the National Public Re-lations Committee, and is the Chair of theNational Conference Committee.

Tim Matthews received the 2014ASHE National Member of the YearAward. Tim has held numerous positionsof leadership in the Georgia Section, in-cluding Section President, as RegionalRepresentative, currently as the SoutheastRegion Immediate Past President, andnow as the National New Sections Com-mittee Co-Chair. Tim has also made agreat effort to recruit and maintain GDOTmembership in the local section.

Congratulations to Nikki and Tim fortheir hard work and dedication to ASHENational and ASHE Georgia!

President ~ Michael Bywaletz, GreshamSmith and Partners

First vice President ~ Brian O’Connor,T.Y. Lin International

Second vice President ~ Rob Dell-Ross,City of Roswell

Secretary ~ Mindy Sanders, LoweEngineers

Treasurer ~ Richard Meehan, LoweEngineers

Co-Treasurer Rick Strickland, MichaelBaker Corporation

Past President ~ Ron Osterloh, Pond &Company

National Director ~ Nikki Reutlinger,Atkins

Director ~ Shawn Fleet, Heath andLineback

Director ~ Karyn Matthews, GDOT

Chairs

Nominating Committee Chair ~ TimMatthews, GDOT

Program Chair ~ John Karnowski,Foresite Group

Membership Chair ~ Scott Jordan, CobbCounty

Scholarship Chair ~ Sarah Worachek,Gresham Smith and Partners

ASHE Student Chapter Liason ~ JenniferStephan, T.Y. Lin International

Technical Chairs ~ Dan Bodycomb,AECOM; Chris Rudd, GDOT

Communications Chair ~ Jenny Jenkins,McGee Partners

Social Chair ~ Holly Bauman, ARCADIS

Golf Tournament Chair ~ Ashley Chan,HNTB

Web site Chair ~ Pervez Iqbal, Parsons

ASHE Georgia

Michael Bywaletz

President

American Society

of Highway

Engineers /

Georgia Section

News

38 GEORGIA ENGINEER

In addition to Tim and Nikki, severalmembers of ASHE Georgia are involvedin ASHE on a regional and national level.Scott Jordan is the current Southeast Re-gion President, Ron Osterloh is the South-east Region Representative, Jenny Jenkinsis on the National Partnerships Commit-tee, Tom Ziegler is on the National Con-ference Committee, and Mindy Sanders isthe Chair of the newly created NationalTechnology Committee.

Upcoming Events

This fall, ASHE Georgia will be offeringLevel II NPDES Certification and Recer-tification classes. Please contact MichaelBywaletz ([email protected])for more information. We will also behosting our annual bowling tournament inAugust, along with a tent party at theKaiser Permanente Run/Walk in Septem-ber. Come join us! v

2014 ASHE Golf TournamentSponsors

Eagle Sponsors:AECOMARCADISEcological SolutionsEdwards-Pitman Environmental Inc.McGee Partners Inc.Southeastern Engineering Inc.

Birdie Sponsors:United ConsultingGresham, Smith and PartnersHeath & Lineback Engineers Inc.Thompson EngineeringFoley Products Company

Par/Hole Sponsors:American EngineersAtkinsBakerCardno TBECH2M HillClark Patterson LeeCollins Engineers Inc.ECSHNTBKeck & Wood Inc.Kimley Horn & AssociatesLandair SurveyingLong EngineeringMulkey Engineers & ConsultantsParsonsSTVTerrell, Hundley & CarrollTHCT.Y. LinTransystemsWolverton & Associates

Door Prizes/Goodies:CH2M HillPond & CompanyUnited Consulting GroupURS Corporation

ASHE Georgia members at historic buckstop Junction (l to r – brian O’Connor, Tim

Matthews, Karyn Matthews, bruno barros, Nikki Reutlinger,

Michael bywaletz, Shawn Fleet)

Golf at Hawktree Golf Club

(l to r – Kristen Rowe, vP of Chesapeake

Section; brian O’Connor; Shawn Fleet;

Kathryn Power, President of

Pittsburg Section)


While GEF’s primary mission is to‘Manage Scholarship Programs for theEngineering Community,’ GEF supportsGeorgia’s engineering profession in manyother ways. Planning for the 2014 GEFScholarship Banquet and AwardsCeremony at the Dunwoody County Clubon November 13, 2014 is well underway.Over the 40 years that GEF has managedthe scholarship program more than 850scholarships have been awarded. Todayour endowments and managedscholarships exceed $800,000. GEF willlikely award more than $65,000 inscholarships this year.

Other GEF activities supporting theengineering profession in Georgia thisyear, which are also representative of pastyears include: Sponsorship andparticipation in the Exploring EngineeringAcademy’s week long resident program atGeorgia Tech this past June. This was our14th year of sponsorship for EEA. GEFmembers and member organizationsprovided committee members and mentorsresponsible for planning this event andstaffing the event. Once again it was a greatsuccess as 26 Georgia High Schoolstudents from Georgia attended.

GEF once again provided educationalgrants to Rockdale Magnet School andMays Academy. Grants are used by thescience teachers to enhance their programs

which are keyed to students with a strongemphasis in science and math.

GEF provided judges again this yearfor events such as the Future Citycompetition, the State Science Fair, andMath Counts. GEF also provided fundingfor awards for the State Science Fair. Theseevents raise the interest level of High Schoolstudents and encourage them to pursuecollege degree programs in Engineering,Science, Environmental and Math.

GEF members also attended thisyear’s FIRST Robotics Regionalcompetition as GEF takes a look at this

exciting event to determine how we mightbe able to provide support in the future.GA Robotics Alliance supports FIRSTRobotics which has the goal to inspirestudents K-12. Nationally, 3800 teamsparticipated last year and $18,000,000 inscholarships was awarded. They are lookingfor volunteers to mentor teams and work atevents. The increasing numbers of teamswanting to compete means there is a needmore engineering mentors. During the six-week build schedule, mentors and advisorsare needed for as much time as volunteerswant to give. v

GEF News

James R.

Crowder, PE

President

Georgia

Engineering

Foundation

2013 Scholarship Winners, ‘Our Future

Engineer Leaders

FIRST Robotic team members working on their robot prior to the Regional Competi-

tion held at the Georgia World Congress Center.

40 GEORGIA ENGINEER

Mr. Weaver grew up in Atlanta and obtained a Bachelor’sin Nuclear Engineering from Georgia Tech. He has sinceworked on many nuclear plants and then started workingon other facilities. He is a licensed Mechanical Engineerand certified Project Manager. Mr. Weaver currently re-sides in Atlanta.

Mr. Wingate earned an Associate’s Degree in Chemistryand Physics from Andrew College in South Georgia. Hethen attended North Carolina State University majoring incivil engineering. After graduating with a Bachelor of Sci-ence Degree in civil engineering, Trey began his profes-sional career with W.K. Dickson and Company inCharlotte, North Carolina. His first engineering positionhas turned into a 25 year career with the same company.

Over this time span, Mr. Wingate has been challenged with helping the firm develop re-gional offices in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. In the process of help-ing the W.K. Dickson and Company team achieve its goals, he has been able to developas a professional and assist municipal clients throughout the three-state region. Treycurrently resides in Augusta, Georgia with his wife, Manon, and their son.

Mr. Berry studied Environmental Engineering at MercerUniversity and received a Bachelor’s degree in 2007 and aMaster’s degree in 2012. He is currently employed byHodges, Harbin, Newberry & Tribble in Macon. Mr.Berry has served in leadership positions for the MiddleGeorgia Chapter of GSPE and has served on the GSPEBoard of Directors for the past three years. Kevin and hiswife, Whitney, reside in Forsyth, Georgia.

Mr. MacPherson is Vice President of Prime Engineering, afull service consulting engineering, architectural, and sur-veying company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Robhas been in the consulting business for almost 30 years. Hisspecific duties include overseeing the surveying, municipal,and infrastructure departments of Prime Engineering. Mr.MacPherson graduated from Georgia Institute of Tech-nology with a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering in

1984. He is married to Charlene Clark MacPherson, an electrical engineer from Geor-gia Tech. They reside in Marietta, Georgia, and have two children, David, a senior atGeorgia Tech (ME) and Lexi, a sophomore at Marietta High School.

GSPE Is For All Professional Engineers

On October 5, 1943, Colonel Michael J.Blew, P.E., called a general meeting of allregistered professional engineers living inGeorgia to discuss the possibility of form-ing an organization of registered engineers.This meeting was held at the AnsleyHouse in Atlanta. By April 26, 1944, theGeorgia Society of Professional Engineerswas incorporated in the state of Georgia.

Today, GSPE is one of the leadingstate organizations that promote the engi-neering profession to protect public health,safety, and welfare. The society is made upof engineering professionals from all disci-plines and promotes the ethical and com-petent practice of engineering, advocateslicensure, and enhances the image andwell-being of its members.

Are you a member of GSPE? If youare an engineer, you should be. Visit theGSPE Web site, www.gspe.org.v

GSPE Georgia

Rob MacPherson,

P.E., President

Georgia Society

of Professional

Engineers

News

2014-2015 Georgia Society of Professional Engineers

Executive Committee

Rob MacPherson, P.E. | PRESIDENT

Kevin G. berry, P.E. | PRESIDENT-ELECT

William ‘Trey’ Wingate, III, P.E. | PAST - PRESIDENT

Douglas b. Weaver, P.E. | SECRETARY


Mr. Cooper isthe currentBranch Man-ager of theC o l u m b u sand La-G r a n g e ,Georgia of-fices of Geot-

echnical & Environmental ConsultantsInc. Jason completed his BSE, environ-mental engineering degree at Mercer Uni-versity. He is also a member of the ASCE,SAME, and WEF. Mr. Cooper was namedthe GSPE 2008 Professional Engineer ofthe Year in Private Practice and is a regis-tered Professional Engineer in Georgia, Al-abama, and Mississippi. Jason and his wife,Janet, of 20 years currently reside inColumbus, Georgia.

Luther is theowner ofLOC Engi-neering, aforensic engi-neering con-s u l t i n gc o m p a n y .

Mr. Cox provides over 39 years of experi-ence in his specialty of accident recon-struction and causation. Luther received aBS Degree in mechanical engineeringfrom Texas A&M in 1957 and his MS inindustrial management from Georgia Techin 1972. Besides being a Life Member ofthe National Society of Professional Engi-neers (NSPE), Past-President of GSPE,and GSPE's State Delegate for NSPE,Luther is the treasurer of the AtlantaMetro Chapter, a member of SAE, ASCE,ASTM, and the link between GSPE andthe Order of the Engineer. He is also PastPresident of Conyers Rotary Club, andPast Chairman of the Board of Adjust-ments for Rockdale County.

A SouthFlorida na-tive, Steveearned aBSEE fromthe Univer-sity of Miamiin electrical

and computer engineering and minored inmath and philosophy. He is the Chief Op-erating Officer for Televes USA, atelecommunication equipment design andmanufacturing company. Mr. Strong hasserved in leadership roles with IEEE, theGeorgia Engineering Foundation, Ama-teur Radio Emergency Service, the US AirForce Auxiliary, and the Atlanta MetroChapter of GSPE. Steve resides in Dun-woody, Georgia with his wife,Christine.

Gale wasborn in Fre-mont, Ne-braska, andspent hisearly years inSan Antonio,Texas. His

family relocated to Atlanta where he at-tended Druid Hills High School. Mr.Sights is a registered chemical engineer,holding a Bachelor of Engineering andMaster of Science Industrial Managementdegrees from Georgia Tech, and a JurisDoctorate from Atlanta Law School. Hiswork career spanned forty years from timewith Georgia Kaolin in Macon, Georgiaand The Southern Company in Atlanta.Gale served on active duty with the U.S.Army as a helicopter pilot in Europe andViet Nam receiving numerous aerial com-bat awards. He just celebrated his 50thwedding anniversary with his wife Janet.They have two children and two grand-children.

Mr. Adamsreceived hisBSE fromMercer Uni-versity in2003 and iscurrently aSenior Struc-

tural Engineer with Pi-Tech Inc. inMacon, Georgia. Dennis is a licensed pro-fessional engineer in Georgia and ten otherstates, and currently serves as President ofthe Middle Georgia Chapter of GSPE.He and his wife, Sarah, have two daugh-ters, and are active members of First Pres-byterian Church in Macon.

Dennis Adams, P.E. |TREASURERDouglas benner, P.E., FNSPE |

vICE PRESIDENT REGION I (Cobb, North-

east, Northwest, and West Georgia)

Mr. Benner iscurrently thePresident ofDEB Con-sulting whichp e r f o r m selectrical en-gineering and

project management services. He is a li-censed engineer in New Jersey and Geor-gia. Doug holds an Associate Degree inelectrical technology from Spring GardenInstitute, a Bachelor of Science in indus-trial engineering degree from Lehigh Uni-versity and an MBA from Seton HallUniversity. Mr. Benner served as Presidentof the New Jersey Society as well as theNational Director. He has also served onmany state committees and has chairedstate and national task force committeesfor the Society of Professional Engineers.

Mr. Benner resides in Marietta,Georgia with his wife, Fabiola. He hasfour daughters and three grandchildren.

Gale Sights, P.E., FNSPE | vICE PRESI-

DENT REGION II (Atlanta Metro)

Jason Cooper, P.E. | vICE PRESIDENT

REGION III (Augusta, Columbus, Middle

Georgia, Savannah, South Georgia)

Steve Strong, P.E.

vICE PRESIDENT REGION-AT-LARGE

Luther Cox Jr., P.E. | STATE DELEGATE

FOR NSPE | HOUSE OF DELEGATES

Chapter Representatives: Joe D’Alessandro, P.E.; Henry Lee Everson, P.E.; Ed Fiegle,P.E.; Ryan Peter, P.E.; David Simoneau, P.E.; Farley Wolford, P.E.

GSPE Web site

www.gspe.org

42 GEORGIA ENGINEER

Greetings once again from Georgia ITEheadquarters to all Georgia Engineering

Magazine readers! Believe it or not, we arehalf-way through the 2014 calendar year, agood time to reflect on what our organiza-tion has accomplished this year and lookahead to what is still in store for the lasthalf of the year. As a reminder, the fourbasic goals for this year were to grow ourmembership, provide excellent educationaland numerous engagement opportunities,and be notable as an organization. ThoughI myself am not a huge soccer…ah, futbolfan, given the recent frenzy, we’ll reviewthese goals World Cup style.

What we’ve learned so far:

Like the bandwagon of recent soccer con-verts, our membership is up this year. Our

crack membership team and board repre-sentatives have been working hard to purgeold databases, track-down members whohave not showed up in a while and encour-aged others to join through outreach andgreat meeting opportunities and it has paidoff ! The number of great meetings and en-gagement opportunities has created a syn-ergy for growth. Many newcomers areyoung(er) in age, and we hope that theywill be a part of our great organization fora long time to come.

We’ve had five monthly meetings sofar this year (way more meetings than goalsscored in an average World Cup game…inabout the same amount of time). Most ofour meetings have had over 100 engineers,planners or other transportation enthusi-asts in attendance, to hear such relevanttopics (at least to us transportation engi-neers) as:• Increasing installations of flashing yel-

low arrows at traffic signals

• The state of roundabouts in Georgiaincluding the planned roundabout in-terchange at I-285 and RiversideDrive (satisfying those European soc-cer-types who love roundabouts)

• Cool, next-generation infrastructuremanagement data collection tech-niques that our brethren at GeorgiaTech have been developing (I think

they have a soccer team too)

• Some history and insight into thepending funding dilemma facingGeorgia, and

• The current state and future plans forMARTA

Throw in several team trivia outings, abrewery tour, and a volunteer day at the At-lanta Community Food Bank, and I’d saywe’ve covered the goals of educational andengagement opportunities for our mem-bers. And all of this was accomplishedwithout one single biting incident!

Georgia was host to the annual South-ern District ITE meeting this fall at theRitz Carlton at Reynolds Plantation. Theevent was hosted by two of our great lead-ers and past presidents, Todd Long andKeith Strickland, and was another greatevent for learning and engagement with in-dustry leaders from across the Southeast,including our very own GDOT Commis-sioner Keith Golden. At the meeting, wefound out that the Georgia Section wonthe Best Large Section Award for 2013,and one of our fine young members, SeanColeman, won the Joe M. Thomas Out-standing Young Member Award for hisgreat achievements and boundless enthu-siasm (plus I hear he was a pretty meanmidfielder in college too….)

Jonathan Reid, PE

Georgia Section,

Institute of

Transportation

Engineers

NewsITE Georgia


What’s still yet to come:

At the time of writing this article, we arejust weeks away from our premiere techni-cal conference event at St. Simons Island!The anticipation is building as much as aBrazil-Argentina match in the WC finals(we’ll see how well my predictive powersare with that one….)! We expect a crowdof over 150 members and 300-plus whenyou include families. Details of the con-ference will be forthcoming in the next up-date letter.

We are also kicking off our sectionmentoring program, in which several of ourmembers will be paired with a “seasoned”section member and go through a six-month program featuring group and one-on-one meetings together. The mentorshipprogram is one of our best engagements tohelp sustain our organization and train uptomorrow’s leaders, as many of our pastpresidents have greatly benefitted from thisprogram.

Lastly, there are still several monthlymeetings to attend, a Technical ExchangeDay this fall (where we will be partneringwith our ITE brethren from Alabama), aswell as other engagement opportunities forall to come and be a part of in the last halfof 2014. If you have no organization to callhome and be a part of, please come checkus out. A schedule of events and opportu-nities can be found at our Web site athttp://www.gaite.org.

The Institute of Transportation Engi-neers is an international educational and sci-entif ic association of transportationprofessionals who are responsible for meeting

mobility and safety needs. ITE facilitates theapplication of technology and scientific princi-ples to research, planning, functional design,implementation, operation, policy develop-ment, and management for any mode ofground transportation. Through its productsand services, ITE promotes professional de-velopment of its members, supports and en-courages education, stimulates research,develops public awareness programs, andserves as a conduit for the exchange of profes-sional information.

Georgia ITE and Student Chaptermembers gear up to sort some food at theAtlanta Community Food Bank v

Board Position Member E-mail Phone

President Jonathan Reid [email protected] (404) 364-5225

Vice President Andrew Antweiler [email protected] (678) 639-7540

Secretary/Treasurer Sean Coleman [email protected] (404) 419-8700

Past President Dwayne Tedder [email protected] (404) 406-8791

District Representative David Low [email protected] (770) 594-6422

District Representative Vern Wilburn [email protected] (678) 423-0050

District Representative Marion Waters [email protected] (770) 754-0755

Affiliate Director Meg Pirkle [email protected] (404) 631-1025

Committee Activities Chair(s) E-mail Phone

Activities Kate D’Ambrosio [email protected] (404) 635-2842

Annual Report David Low [email protected] (770) 594-6422

Audio/Visual Mark Boivin [email protected] (404) 374-1283

Awards/Nominations Dwayne Tedder [email protected] (404) 406-8791

Career Guidance Amy Diaz [email protected] (678) 333-0283

Clerk Elizabeth Scales [email protected] (404) 574-1985

Comptroller Jim Pohlman [email protected] (404) 790-3569

Engineers Week Amy Diaz [email protected] (678) 333-0283

Finance Charles Bopp [email protected] (678) 380-9053

Georgia Engineer magazine Dan Dobry [email protected] (770) 971-5407

Georgia Tech Liaison Chris Rome [email protected] (770) 368-1399

Historian Charles Bopp [email protected] (678) 380-9053

Host Meredith Emory [email protected] (404) 201-6133

Legislative Affairs Bill Ruhsam [email protected] (404) 931-6478

Life Membership Don Gaines [email protected] (404) 355-4010

Marketing/Social Media Patrick McAtee [email protected] (404) 574-1985

Membership Sunita Nadella [email protected] (678) 969-2304

Monthly Meetings Andrew Antweiler [email protected] (678) 639-7540

Newsletter Vern Wilburn [email protected] (678) 423-0050

Past Presidents Todd Long [email protected] (404) 631-1021

Public Officials Education Scott Mohler [email protected] (678) 808-8811

Scholarship Betsy Williams [email protected] (770) 246-6247

Southern Poly Liaison Bryan Sartin [email protected] (678) 518-3884

Summer Seminar Marco Friend [email protected] (678) 333-0408

Technical France Campbell [email protected] (404) 965-9738

Web site Vamshi Mudumba [email protected] (770) 423-0807

Winter Workshop Jonathan Wallace [email protected] (770) 431-8666

44 GEORGIA ENGINEER

The concept of ‘Complete Streets’ is justwhat the name implies, a philosophy of de-signing and building urban and suburbansurface transportation that supports allmodes of transportation and promotessafety. Complete Streets is an example ofan intelligent transportation system.

Here in Georgia, this concept is statepolicy as the Georgia Department of Trans-portation has formally incorporated theComplete Streets model into its practice.

The goal of the program is spelled outin its Design Policy Manual: “The conceptof Complete Streets emphasizes safety,mobility, and accessibility for all modes oftravel (including pedestrians, bicyclists,

transit riders, and motorists) and individu-als of all ages and abilities. The design oftransportation projects for multiple modesof travel requires the balancing of the needsof each mode. This ‘balance’ must be ac-complished in a context sensitive mannerappropriate to the type of roadway andconditions within the project and sur-rounding areas.”

To promote the concept, ITS Amer-ica and ITS Georgia will be sponsoring aComplete Streets Symposium October 27—28 in Atlanta. Topics planned for theevent include:• Urban Freight

News

ITS GEORGIA CHAPTER LEADERSHIP

President

Tom Sever, Gwinnett DOT

vice President

Grant Waldrop, GDOT

Secretary

Jennifer Johnson, Kimley-Horn

Treasurer

Ashlyn Morgan, Atkins

Immediate Past President

Scott Mohler, URS

Directors

Mark Demidovich, GDOTEric Graves, City of Alpharetta

Winter Horbal, Temple Inc.Keary Lord, Serco

David Smith, DeKalb County TransportationPrasoon Sinha, ARCADIS

Mike Holt, Parsons Brinkerhoff, Yancy Bachmann, World Fiber,

Kenn Fink, Kimley-Horn, Kristin Turner, Wolverton Associates

State Chapters Representative

Shahram Malek, Arcadis

Ex Officio

Greg Morris, Federal Highway Administra-tion

Andres Ramirez, FTA

ITS Georgia MissionWe believe that ITS is a valuable tool forimproved management of any trans-portation system, regardless of the in-herent complexity of the system. ITS canhelp operate, manage, and maintain thesystem once it has been constructed.

We believe that ITS should be sys-tematically incorporated into the earli-est stages of project development,especially into the planning and designof transportation projects.

We believe the best way to achievethis systematic incorporation into theprocess is through a coordinated, com-prehensive program to ‘get out the word’on ITS to constituencies that might nototherwise consider the relevance of ITSto their transportation system.

ITS Georgia

Tom Sever, P.E.

ITS President

Track 1 Technology and Innovation

Session 1 new ITS Technology and Deployments

Session 2 Automotive V2V and V2I Initiatives

Session 3 TMC and Ops of the Future

Session 4 Telematics

Track 2 Operations and Traveler

Information/Dissemination

Session 5 Social Media and ITS

Session 6 Making Sense of Data Collection and

Dissemination

Session 7 Multimodal Ops and Travel Information

Session 8 TMCs and 511 Operations

Track 3 Safety and Mobility

Session 9 ITS Safety Studies and Results

Session 10 First Responders/TIM

Session 11 Mobility and Data across Modal Platforms

Session 12 Integrated Corridor Management and Cross

Platform Studies

Track 4 Planning, Funding, and Measuring

Session 13 Funding ITS

Session 14 Freeway/Toll Performance Measures

Session 15 ITS Planning

Session 16 Arterial ITS/ATMS Performance Measures


• Impact of Re-Development• Streetcar/Beltline• Transit• Safety for a Complete Street

This Symposium will draw from across thenation and is an excellent opportunity toshowcase local projects and learn lessonsand improvements. Check our Web site formore information, www.itsga.org.

This year, as you probably alreadyknow, ITS Georgia, ITS Florida, and GulfRegion ITS are holding a joint annualmeeting in Mobile, September 14-17. Atthe time of the annual meeting, ITS Geor-gia announces award winners and newlyelected officers and directors. Becauseeveryone will be focused on regional issuesat the joint ITS 3C Summit(www.its3csummit.com), ITS Georgia isholding a gathering the evening of No-vember 6 to announce award and electionwinners. The gala will begin at 6 p.m. andwill be held at the Crowne Plaza AtlantaPerimeter at Ravinia. Check www.itsga.organd your e-mail for more details.

A big part of the November 6 gather-ing will be recognizing outstanding ITSpeople, projects, and programs from aroundthe state. Award submissions are accepteduntil September 1, 2014. The categoriesthis year are:

Larry R. Dreihaup Award - Recognizes anindividual or an organization who has pro-vided leadership, professionalism, and ded-ication in promoting ITS in the state ofGeorgia. The award is named in honor of

Larry R. Dreihaup, Division Administra-tor for the Georgia Division of FederalHighway Administration for six years andITS champion in Georgia. Last year’s win-ner: R.J. Surgi, URS Corporation.

Outstanding Public Member Agency

Award – Recognizes leadership in promot-ing ITS and/or ITS Georgia goals. Lastyear’s winner: Gwinnett County.

Outstanding volunteer Award - Open toall membership, including board membersand committee chairs, who have goneabove and beyond to support ITS Georgia.Last year’s winner: Mike Holt, P.E., Par-sons Brinkerhoff.

Outstanding Private Member Award -Recognizes leadership in promoting ITSand/or ITS Georgia goals.

Innovation: Outside the box Award - Cre-ative and unique approach or solution byan individual or group to an ITS challenge,or to an issue using ITS as a solution. Lastyear’s winner: Douglas County.

Douglas County Department of Trans-portation (DCDOT) successfully imple-mented a powerfully capable retrofit miniTraffic Control Center for less than$18,000 and had the system fully opera-tional, managing an initial 20 signal system,within a three month time frame. Duringthis process, DCDOT was capable of edu-cating its elected officials and upper man-agement of the benefits of ITS

technologies and now has support of futureITS investments from decision makerswho previously misunderstood and lackedknowledge of how ITS tools allow thecounty to do more with less.

Project of Significance Award - A project,study, or program with an impact that isquantifiable and directly related to a spe-cific activity/action that reduces congestion,improves safety and security, and enhancesmobility in Georgia. Last year’s winner:City of Atlanta, Central Atlanta Progressand Atlanta Downtown Improvement Dis-trict.

The scope of this project included in-stallation of a wireless mesh communica-tion network to support thecommunication of the 110 traffic signalsin the Atlanta downtown area to the city’sTraffic Control Center (TCC). Once theproject got underway it was noticed by ourteam and other city staff that there wereconcurrent projects that were trying to es-tablish similar types of communication in-frastructure between security camera assetsand the city’s Video Integration Center(VIC). Our team initiated the dialogueand brought the various players to thetable to determine an overarching set ofrequirements that met the needs of bothprojects. The design was completed in lessthan 30 days and implemented in less thanthree months for APD to meet its go livedate of March 31, 2013 prior to the 2013NCAA Final Four. v

Control Technologies

Utilicom

Temple

Arcadis

Atkins

World Fiber Technologies

Kimley-Horn & Associates

Southern Lighting & Traffic Systems

Delcan

Gresham Smith & Partners

Grice Consulting

Jacobs

Parsons Brinkerhoff

Quality Traffic Systems

URS

Transcore

OUR 2013/2014 SPONSORS

Our chapter meetings are the fourth Thursday of each month January—August. Join us for networking and informative topics.Thursday, June 26, 2014 Kari Watkins/John bartholdi OnebusAway/Georiga Tech Wavetronix/Mike Kline

Thursday, July 30, 2014 Muhammad Rauf City of Roswell TCC Temple Inc.

Thursday, August 28, 2014 Shahram Malek Technologies Reviving Legacy Infrastructure Temple Inc.

46 GEORGIA ENGINEER

SAME Atlanta Post swore in the 2014-15Board of Directors on June 10, 2014 at theDunwoody Country Club. Our new Boardis as follows:

We are delighted to have former activePost members continuing to serve in theroles of James Lucas Emeritus Chairs.James Lucas Emeritus Chairs are able toparticipate as voting board members andthese individuals include: Sy Liebmann,Jim Gilland, Jack Newhard, Roger Austin,Jack Seibert, Richard Scharf, Steve Premo,Bill Bersson (also serving as the RVP),Scotti Bozeman, and Ben Glover.

SAME Atlanta Post is proud to pro-vide two $5,000 scholarships to deservingstudents this year. The scholarships aregranted in honor of Sy Liebmann and AlRowe, two long-term Post members.With heavy hearts we mourn the recentpassing of Al Rowe, but are glad that hiswife Donna Rowe is able to continue tojoin us in honoring his memory at thescholarship presentations. The scholar-ships are awarded to encourage and assistqualified students who wish to pursue acollege education in engineering, architec-ture, science, math, and related degrees sothat they, in turn, might further the goalsand exemplify the ideals of SAME. Ourhigh school senior winner for 2014 is DavisHubbard. Davis graduated from White-water High School in Fayetteville, Geor-gia, with a weighted GPA of 4.164 andplans to attend Georgia Tech in the fall.

Our current undergraduate/graduate stu-dent scholarship winner for 2014 is PhilMcHugh, CP, CMS, GISP. Phil has beenvery active with the SAME Atlanta Post asthe Chair of the Young Members Com-mittee and is currently on the Board of Di-rectors. Phil is pursuing his Master of

Science degree in Geosciences at GeorgiaState University.

We look forward to our upcoming golftournament at St. Marlo Country Club onAugust 25 and our Shrimp Boil at MondayNight Brewery on September 23, 2014. v

President

Pamela Little, PE, LEED

AP

vice President

Beth Harris, CPSM

Past President

Ray Ramos, PE, RRC

Secretary

Sherri Smith, CPSM

Assistant Secretary

Beth Roby, RID, LEED AP

ID+C

Treasurer

Brian Dance, PE, SE

Assistant Treasurer

Ronnie Davis

Regional vP

Bill Bersson, PE, F.SAME

2013-2015 Directors

Howard Ayers

Phil McHugh, CP, CMS,

GISP

Steve Poole, PE

Kellie Sak, PE

2014-2016 Directors

Bob Marbury, PG

Candice Scale

Kaysie Glazer, PE

Ray Willcocks, PE,

F.SAME

Pamela

Little, P.E.

President,

SAME Atlanta

Post

SAME Atlanta News

WTS Atlanta has been very active in 2014!In April, we co-hosted a tennis tournamentwith ASHE at St. Ives Country Clubwhich was a lot of fun. The weather reportthreatened rain, but fortunately held off theentire time we were playing. Door prizeswere awarded and a delicious dinner wasserved. This joint social event has quicklybecome a hit for both WTS and ASHEmembers. It is something that our mem-bership looks forward to in the spring timeevery year, and our hopes are for it to con-tinue to grow and draw more people to net-work, socialize, and play a little tennis too.

In May, nearly twenty Atlanta chaptermembers attended the WTS InternationalConference in Portland, Oregon. We werevery proud to once again have an interna-tional scholarship winner that had been awinner at the local level and recommendedby our chapter: Janille Smith-Colin, P.E.,second year PhD student in TransportationSystems Engineering at Georgia Tech.She was first awarded the LeadershipLegacy Scholarship for Graduates in Oc-tober 2013 at the WTS Atlanta Annual

Scholarship Luncheon. This scholarshipadvanced her into the running at the inter-national level with many other local chap-ter winners. Because of heraccomplishments and very impressive re-sume, she was selected for the $10,000scholarship given by CH2M HILL. Laterin May, Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Tran-sit Authority (MARTA) hosted the chap-ter for a lunch and learn about theexpansion of the I-20 Corridor. The eventwas very well attended and the presenta-tion was very informative.

In June, WTS Atlanta hosted a break-fast to honor the four female Georgia De-partment of Transportation (GDOT)board members and the eighteen womenin leadership roles within GDOT. This isan exclusive event held annually at theHotel Melia, adjacent to the GDOT head-quarters, for WTS Atlanta members andcorporate partners only. This year, thechapter felt that a new format was needed,so we put together a fun, interactive gameshow with Marsha Anderson-Bomar as thegame show host. The four female boardmembers were the contestants: Stacey Keyand Ann Purcell as Team 1; Emily Dunnand Dana Lemon as Team 2. Thesewomen were competitive, keeping it lightand funny, yet maintained a professional-ism that everyone in the room could ad-mire. Commissioner Golden gave a briefupdate on the transportation fundingdilemma that we are currently facing.There were even two commercial breaksprovided for a few individuals to share a lit-tle bit about their companies: The ForesiteGroup, EcoWise Civil Design and Con-sulting, and United Consulting.

At the end of June, WTS Atlanta senttwo pairs of mentor protégés within theTransportation YOU program to the DCYouth Summit, a once-in-a-lifetime con-ference consisting of tours, meetings withWhite House administrators, challenges,and breakout sessions culminating in a re-ception on the last night of the program.The two groups in attendance from the At-lanta chapter were: Heidi Schneider withCasey Manders and Marsha Anderson-Bomar with Talia Lockridge. Be on thelookout for an article highlighting theirtrip in the next issue of the Georgia Engi-neer Magazine.

WTS will be heading to the StateRoad and Tollway Authority (SRTA) in Julyfor a lunch and learn to discuss the excitingprojects that are coming up now that theGA 400 toll has ended. Just in the last year,approximately twenty-five employees ofSRTA have joined WTS Atlanta, a recordhigh from one organization! As if that was-n’t exciting enough, we were fortunateenough to have Christopher Tomlinson, Ex-ecutive Director and Board Secretary forSRTA, accept an honorary membership intoWTS International. We are very excitedabout this new opportunity to build a rela-tionship between WTS and SRTA.

Upcoming events for the rest of theyear include a social at the Atlanta Dreambasketball game, a lunch and learn atHartsfield-Jackson Atlanta InternationalAirport (HJAIA) to discuss the new air-port master plan, the annual scholarshipluncheon to be held at the Georgia Aquar-ium on October 30th, a new member re-ception in November, and the annualholiday social in December. WTS is aunique organization in that it seeks to pro-mote women in all modes of transportationcovering all professions within the indus-try. Our events this year provide learningand networking opportunities in the modesof transit (MARTA), roads (GDOT), tolls(SRTA), and aviation (HJAIA). We en-courage ALL professionals in the trans-portation industry to join WTS and getinvolved to build networks and gain agreater understanding of the industry andthe impact that it has on society. v


Angela

Snyder, P.E.

President, WTS

Atlanta

WTS ATLANTA 2014 BOARD OF DIRECTORSAngela Snyder President [email protected] Saxon Vice President – Programs [email protected] Martin Vice President - Membership [email protected] Berry Secretary [email protected] Stephan Treasurer [email protected] Ann Schwartz Director-at-Large [email protected] McSwain Director-at-Large [email protected] Hammond Director-at-Large [email protected] Lamar Director-at-Large [email protected] King Immediate Past President [email protected]

WTS Atlanta News

http://www.haywardbaker.com

Date post:	02-Apr-2016
Category:	Documents
Upload:	luke-clark
View:	228 times
Download:	5 times

The Georgia Engineer Aug-Sept 2014

Documents