The information contained in this article is derived from an internal committee at Degenkolb Engineers. The author wishes to acknowledge the work of that committee and thank them for their efforts summarized here. …
Most typical nonstructural partitions are specified and constructed in accordance with the industry or manufacturers’ design tables and would not require additional, formal engineering input on a project-by-project basis. The manufacturers’ design tables are based on engineering principles and tests. However, there are projects where the requirements are outside the limits of the manufacturers’ design tables. …
Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) have historically been used more for residential construction than for non-residential construction. However, SIPs are gaining popularity in the commercial arena, especially for school construction. There are several schools throughout the country that have incorporated SIPs. One such school is Silvis Middle School in Silvis (East Moline), IL. …
Real boundary living is a refusal of tokenism and absorption, and therefore it is genuinely dangerous.
—Mary Daly
In my first year of engineering work, my boss asked me to write for the company-wide newsletter, addressing this question: How does a woman succeed in a male-dominated field? My response was immediate: The same way as a man! This fiery piece insisted that one can choose to be affected by external pressures or can overcome them, and that women could certainly excel in the field. …
Recent changes were made to ASTM C90 related to the minimum web requirements for loadbearing concrete masonry units (CMU). What, if any, impact do these changes have on the design of concrete masonry assemblies? …
As Joseph Dunne has noted (“The Rationality of Practice,” September 2012), a practice as defined by Aladair MacIntyre (“Rethinking Engineering Ethics,” November 2010) is “something that can succeed or fail in being true to its own proper purpose.” Both MacIntyre and Dunne had internal goods in mind, but there is an alternative sense in which a practice may have a “proper purpose.” In a 1984 paper (“Virtues and Practices,” Analyse und Kritik, Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 49-60), British political theorist David Miller identified two different kinds of practices: …
UFC 4-010-01, DoD Minimum Antiterrorism Standards for Buildings, dated February 2012, outlines 21 standards that govern site planning and the design of structural, architectural, electrical and mechanical systems for Low and Very Low Levels of Protection. The current document was developed as an update to a previous version originally issued in October 2003 and modified by Change 1, in January 2007. Though some of the revisions were incremental and provided additional clarification to existing standards, others were significant and represent a major change in approach. Implementation of the updated criteria is likely to result in levels of hardening or analysis that vary from those required by earlier editions. …
Modjeski, (ne. Rudolphe Modrzejewska) was born in Cracow, Poland on January 27, 1861. His mother was an internationally known actress who encouraged him to become a concert pianist. But, at an early age, he determined he would become a civil engineer. His family came to the United States to attend the Centennial Celebration in Philadelphia and start an orange farm near Anaheim, California. His mother continued her acting career and Modjeski attended schools in the San Francisco area for a short time. In 1878, Ralph went to France to prepare for study at the École des Ponts et Chaussés, one of the leading schools of Civil Engineering in Europe. After failing admission on his first attempt, he was accepted and graduated in 1885 at the top of his class. Shortly after, he returned to the United States. …
The winter of 2010-2011 was particularly snowy in the Northeast. Heavy snows resulted in nearly 500 problem roofs in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island, of which 382 were full or partial collapses. This large number of roof problems led to questions raised by engineers and state building officials as to the adequacy of current building codes in relation to roof snow loads. Specifically, were the 2010-2011 winter roof problems due mainly to roof components not as strong as envisioned by current codes, or were the 2010-2011 roof snow loads larger than those envisioned by building codes? …
The entire engineering profession is buzzing about two important changes that are on the horizon. The discussion fuels feelings of excitement and anticipation in some, while in others, it stirs feelings of fear and dread. The topics are structural engineering (SE) licensure and the Bachelor’s+30 (BS+30) initiative. …