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October 2019
This Issue
Institutes
CI Shield
  EWRI Shield
GEO Shield
  SEI Shield
T&DI Shield


Committees
 
Younger Member Forum
UCF Student Chapter


Embry-Riddle
Student Chapter
October has to be my favorite month of the year! Football is in full swing, pumpkin spiced everything hits the shelves, highs in the 80's instead of the 90's, leaves changing color (not in Florida, but you know, everywhere else) and Halloween! Unfortunately, October always seems to be so jam packed with activities that there is never time to do everything. I hope you can find time to attend at least one of the many activities coming up from the
ASCE Technical Institutes or Younger Member Forum. From technical lunches to bowling to bioluminescent kayaking, there is pretty much something for everyone!
 
My son is in first grade this year and recently covered the module "Community Helpers". According to the module, community helpers include police officers, firemen, nurses, doctors, lawyers, hairstylist and garbage men. I found it a little strange (and disappointing) that Engineer was not on the list of community helpers. I complained loudly about this point to my wife and of course my son overheard. So when he came home the other day he was ecstatic to tell us that the community helper that came and talked to his class was a Structural Engineer! That Engineer made my son's day (and mine) and may have recruited some future Engineers!
 
I think teaching our children what Engineers do and how we are important to our community is one of the most important things that we can do as ASCE Members. The East Central Branch's Education Committee does just that all year long and has the tools and resources in place to help any member with the initiative to promote and educate students about Civil Engineering. The Education Committee has meetings each month and I encourage you to show up to a meeting and learn about the many ways you can help bring Civil Engineering and the other STEM disciplines into the classroom!
 
Have a Happy Halloween!

Sincerely,


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


 

Craig Ballock, P.E., M. ASCE
ACSE East Central Branch President
Get to know your East Central Branch 
Tonya S. Mellen graduated from Georgia Tech in 1990 with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering. Moving to Florida after graduation, she worked as a structure engineer for two years before moving to Tampa to work in transportation design. She has been EOR and project manager for sections of the Polk County Parkway, the Suncoast Parkway, and numerous other projects throughout Florida. Since 2010, Tonya has consulted from home as president/owner of Mellen Consulting. She lives in Winter Park with Scott, her husband of 22 years and their three teenage daughters.

Tonya joined ASCE in college, initially for the free pizza, but has been a member ever since. Being interested in advocating for infrastructure funding, STEM education and all things civil, she first started attending the ASCE Fly-in in 2006 and has missed only one since. She has chaired the Florida Section Government Relations Committee since 2013 and chaired the 2016 Florida Report Card Update.

Tonya and her lovely family
Tonya S. Mellen
ASCE ECB Treasurer
History & Heritage
Davis Armory
by Rocio Rodriguez
History & Heritage Chair
 
Davis Armory building, built in 1937, is located at the corner of W. Bentley St. and N. Parramore Ave. in downtown Orlando area, (649 Bentley Street) (Figure 1). It was originally built to house the National Guard, but it has also served as a recreation center for the military during World War II, and as a gymnasium. The building is currently known as the Downtown Recreation Complex.  
 
Figure 1: Davis Armory building location in Downtown Orlando.
 
Around the year 1935, the city of Orlando held the Orlando and the Orange County Guards, which were housed in the Coliseum. The Coliseum wasn't big enough for both companies so in an effort to keep both National Guards in town, Howard Babcock headed a committee to draft plans for a new $100,000 Armory building. The funding and laborers were provided by the Works Progress Administration (WPA)."

The City of Orlando donated the land and $80,000 to prevent the US Army National Guard from relocating while the new structure was built. The Armory was financed by WPA funds and $12,500 from the City of Orlando. The building was named and dedicated to Lt. Col. Robert C. Davis, the first Orlando soldier to die in WWII.

The Naval Reserve leased the Armory building in the 1950s to use it as their Training Facility. When the military relocated later to a building on Primrose Dr. for use as the Armory, the City of Orlando converted the former armory building to the Orlando Downtown Recreation Complex."

The building has a regular plan and is made from concrete. "It has a flat roof and a three-story central bay flanked by two story wings. It is an early example of poured concrete structure with simple art deco detailing (Figure 2). During the 1920s, armory design took on a new direction across the United States as architects employed the Art Deco and Art Moderne styles in the WPA era armory construction. Previously, Armories were more often designed in a castle like style with heavy stone work and towers reminiscent of Gothic strongholds."[1]

Figure 2: On the right it's the original building structure when finished in 19381; on the left, actual building nowadays.

There has been a few updates and additions to the original structure. For example, some of the recessed windows on the second floor and some door areas have been infilled; in 1950 an area was added to the north of the building, and in 1988 a gable roof was added for the Orlando Magic
(Figure 3).  
 
Figure 3: Plan view of additions to the original Armory building
 
Figure 4: From left to right, clockwise: shows the 1950 addition to the original building; main entrance to the building (east side); basketball court.

The building was considered a landmark by the city of Orlando in 2017.


[1] http://www.cityoforlando.net/city-planning/wp-content/uploads/sites/27/2016/07/ HPB2016-00149-Davis-Armory-Landmark.pdf

Structural Engineering Institute 
SEI Technical Luncheon

CONSTRUCTION DEFECTS for the DESIGN ENGINEER
 
A Construction defect means "a DEFICIENCY in, or a deficiency arising out of, the DESIGN, SPECIFICATIONS, surveying, planning, supervision, observation of construction, or construction, repair, alteration, or remodeling of real property ....". This lunch time presentation will examine important knowledge for the design professional regarding construction defects and walk through some examples.

Presenters
 
Attorney George R. Truitt, Jr. is the Managing Partner of Cole, Scott and Kissane's Construction Group, which is dedicated exclusively to the counseling and litigation of construction-related matters. Mr. Truitt is a Board Certified Specialist in Florida Construction Law. In 2017, Mr. Truitt was ranked by Chambers and Associates as a leading Florida construction attorney. Mr. Truitt is recipient of the 2020 Best Lawyers Award, The Best Lawyers in America®. For the past twenty-six years, he has devoted his practice to construction litigation and risk management counseling, including the representation of design professionals in professional liability claims, developers, contractors, and subcontractors in construction defect, contract, inland marine (builder's risk coverage and litigation) and lien enforcement claims, payment and performance bond sureties in public and private bond and subrogation claims and commercial general liability and professional liability insurers in coverage counseling and litigation.

Donna Friis, PE is a Senior Project Engineer with over 22 years of structural engineering design, design-build, project management, and forensic engineering experience. Her extensive analysis and design experience combined with her educational background enable her to analyze a wide variety of structural problems and failures. In addition, Donna has comprehensive knowledge of technical design standards for the most common used building materials, construction processes, as well as past and current building codes. She is a member of the ASCE 7 Main Committee and ASCE 7 Wind Loads Subcommittee.


Register now
Geo-Institute Chapter 
ASCE-GI October Luncheon
by Mohamad Hussein, P.E. (GRL)
 
Deep Foundations are commonly used to support all types of structures in the varied geotechnical and geologic conditions of Central Florida. They are of three major types: driven piles, auger cast-in-place piles, and drilled shafts. These elements are designed to resist combinations of compression, uplift and lateral loads and to limit settlement.  Constructability is an important consideration during design and the contractor's installation equipment and means and methods have a significant effect on the quality and performance of the foundation. Testing and inspection are integral parts of the design and construction process for verification, quality control, and quality assurance. 
 
This presentation covers frequently used testing methods for the assessments of geotechnical load bearing capacity and structural integrity of deep foundations.  It includes wave equation analysis, dynamic pile testing with the Pile Driving Analyzer (PDA), low-strain pile integrity testing (P.I.T.), Cross-hole Sonic Logging (CSL) and Thermal Integrity Profiling (T.I.P.).  Principles, application, capabilities and limitations of each method will be discussed and illustrated with data from actual cases.
 
Mohamad Hussein, P.E. (Vice President GRL Engineers, Inc.)
 
Mr. Hussein is Vice President at GRL Engineers, Inc., the world's oldest and largest specialty pile testing consulting firm with offices nationwide, and Partner in Pile Dynamics, Inc., the world's largest specialty electronics equipment and computer software for deep foundations testing.  He spearheaded the effort that started this ASCE GI Chapter, and was its Chairman in 1991-1992.  He is also the past Chairman of the national ASCE GI's Deep Foundations Committee.  Through his more than 35 years career, he has consulted on hundreds of projects, mainly in Florida.  Mr. Hussein has published more than 75 technical papers and co-edited 10 major Geotechnical ASCE books.  He is the recipient of several professional and industry awards and recognition.
 
When
Tuesday, October 22, 2019 from 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM EDT
 
Where
 
Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX) 
4974 Orl Tower Rd
Orlando, FL 32807
 
 
Contact
ASCE-GI East Central Branch 
407-719-1729 
[email protected]  
 

Environmental & Water Resources Institute
Orange County's Lake Down Alum Facility Tour - EWRI Special Project
 
Join EWRI as we tour  Orange County's Lake Down Alum Treatment Facility.

Background
Lake Down is the northernmost lake and the headwaters of the Butler Chain of Lakes, which flows south into Cypress Creek and Reedy Creek before discharging to the Kissimmee River system that flows into Lake Okeechobee. Historically known for its excellent water quality, fishing, and recreational use, the Butler Chain of Lakes was the first lake system in Florida to receive designation as an Outstanding Florida Waters.  
 
As development and population increased around the Butler Chain of Lakes, water quality degraded and short-term algal blooms were observed in the chain. In 2005, Lake Butler was placed on the FDEP verified impaired list for its trophic state index. In response to this, Orange County Environmental Protection Division (OCEPD) studied the Butler Chain of Lakes system and found that a subbasin along the northwest portion of Lake Down contributed the largest phosphorus loading from stormwater runoff and baseflow into the Chain of Lakes.

The Lake Down Alum Treatment Facility was designed and constructed as an off-line water quality system to treat primarily baseflow from the contributing subbasin prior to entering Lake Down. The estimated pollutant removal of the system is to reduce loadings of TN and TP by 358kg/yr and 107 kg/yr, respectively.

Tour
This tour will provide an overview of the alum treatment facility, including its design, construction, maintenance, and regulatory considerations. The tour will highlight the benefit of the real-time telemetry and control system that helps OCEPD operate the facility. Additionally, attendees will view a live demonstration of the alum injection system in operation.

Presentation
Following the tour, attendees will meet at the nearby Windermere Recreation Area pavillion for lunch and a presentation by LimnoTech. LimnoTech is an environmental science and engineering firm that is recognized nationally for expertise in water science. LimnoTech's presentation will include a discussion on the causes, monitoring, and control of nuisance and harmful algal blooms, providing perspectives from within Florida and throughout the nation. 

Who Should Attend?
Environmental professionals, engineers, public officials, and others who are interested in state-of-the art public improvements designed to reduce nutrient impairment in surface water systems.

Professional Development Hours
3 PDH Credits are being requested for this event. We will update you once we receive confirmation.
 
When
Friday, October 25, 2019 from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM EDT  

Where
Lake Down Alum Treatment System 
10850 Wonder Lane
Windermere, FL 34786


Contact
Lee Mullon, PE, CFM, D.WRE 
ASCE East Central Branch
[email protected]

Golf Tournament 
Last month over 100 engineers joined the East Central Branch out on the Shingle Creek Golf Course. We had great weather and fantastic time! Thank you to our volunteers from the UCF ASCE Student Chapter and our many Sponsors! Congratulations to our Tournament Champions the Ellipsis Engineering & Consulting Team! Hope to see you all again next year!

UCF Student Chapter Volunteers

Tournament Winners - Ellipsis Engineering & Consulting

Tournament Committee: Sam Bowyer, Gene Williford, Craig Ballock, Thomas Anzelone & Corey Bloxam
Younger Member 
First YMF Office 2019-2020 Meeting

From planning our first event in 2 weeks all the way through the beginning of next year, our passionate YMF officers (joined with the UCF officers) are working hard to plan out another successful event for you!
Stay tuned for more greatness! We are fully packed with activities and events throughout the year!

ASCE YMF Teach in at Annunciation Catholic Academy

Do you have what it takes to build a real bridge?
Well of course, made out of straws... These 3rd graders surely do...
 
Our YMF member shares their interest, life aspiration, and a little background of how bridges were built to the lovely students at the academy.
 
 
   
Join YMF's BIOLUMINESCENCE KAYAK TOUR

In the warm and dark lagoon waters lies a natural phenomenon of glowing blue waters alive with activity. The swirling of your hand, every paddle stroke, and the rolling wake off of your kayak all sparkle throughout the darkness. Many guests encounter the darting blue tracer trails of nearby fish swimming, describing them as an under-water laser light show. And watch out! Those mullet fish might just hop right into your kayak! Not only do fish leave trails, dolphins look like torpedoes, and manatees a slow and graceful submarine. Many guests compare the experience to Pandora of "Avatar..

Join your FELLOW YMF Members for an exciting once in a lifetime KAYAKING TRIP!
90 - minute Guided Kayak Tour(in the water!). Registration is $50 per person.
Feel free to pass on the registration invite to friends, family, co-workers, significant others, dolphins, maybe mermaids/mermans, etc...

When
Saturday, October 26, 2019 from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM EDT

SAVE THE DATE FOR our November FOOD DRIVE Social 11/19

We are collecting nonperishable food items for the Second Harvest Food Bank. Last year we collected almost 200 lbs of items for the food bank! Feel free to set up a box at your office to make it an even bigger success! (all items must be brought to the social)






Stay tune and keep up the spirit!
ASCE ECB YMF

Student Members
Activity Update
 
ASCE UCF held its first general body meeting this past month. With an attendance of over 80 fellow students, we were able to introduce this year's officer board, upcoming events, our Southeast Regional Conference in March, and how they can get involved by becoming ASCE members. We concluded our meeting with an open resume review courtesy of our Younger Members Forum and local professional engineer, Albert Castro of BCC Engineering Inc.
 
This month our student chapter had also volunteered at the annual ASCE ECB Scholarship Golf Tournament! Events like this one fund scholarship opportunities such as the those that four of our student chapter members received at this year's ECB Officer Installation Luncheon.
 

 
And to kick off student involvement in our chapter after the first general meeting, we hosted a workshop showcase where students were able to get to know the club's officer's and competition captain's, as well as enjoy grilled food, welding lessons, and more!


Activity Update

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's ASCE Student Chapter has had a successful semester so far. We started the semester by focusing heavily on recruiting the incoming freshman to our civil engineering program here at ERAU. Out of the 28 incoming freshman, our ASCE chapter was successful in getting 20 of them to join our chapter!  
 
We celebrated by hosting a joint social including our school's Institute of Transportation Engineers Chapter as well as our Engineers Without Borders Chapter. We had a cookout and participated in fun activities such as old concrete canoe smashing and concrete yard games. At our next general meeting, we crafted 2D balsa wood bridges in teams that were randomly selected. This allowed our members to branch out and meet new people within the chapter. Both events were very successful, with a vast majority of our members coming out. In the future we are looking for a few guest speakers to come share insight with our chapter and perhaps go on a site visit to a local bridge in construction. ERAU's chapter is very excited for all of the upcoming events this semester, and all the knowledge to be learned.  



E-Week
   
Education Committee

Academies of Engineering and Information Technology 
Career Awareness Student Expo
 
October 25th, 2019 | 8AM - 1PM
Orange Technical College - Mid Florida Campus
 
Opportunities in engineering and information technology are projected to grow exponentially faster than the average for all occupations from 2019 to 2026. Because of this exponential growth, there is an urgent need to address the skills gap, as not enough college graduates are filling open jobs and traditional education isn't able to keep up with these fast-paced STEM industries. NAF academies in Central Florida high schools seek to address the skills gap and increase the talent pipeline.

We invite you to help us shape your future workforce. We hope you'll consider joining us for our 2nd NAF Academies of Engineering and Information Technology Career Expo to be held October 25th, 2019. This will be a valuable student experience allowing professionals to interact with students in industry-focused academies. We have several ways that you can impact 400 students from Orange and Seminole counties: classroom experience, tradeshow presenter, panelist and sponsor.

For the classroom experience, we are asking that you do a 20-minute presentation or hands-on experience to be repeated at least three times. Two companies will be paired in each classroom to expose students to as many companies as possible.

We ask tradeshow presenters to provide an activity, a device demonstration or a challenge that will engage students.

The panel will consist of 4-6 speakers from higher education and business. Last year this session was a fan favorite.

As a sponsor, you play a major role of ensuring that this event is available for 400 eager, bright-eyed learners. We are in need of 400 lanyards, giveaways, shirts, lunches, 25 posters, 30 signs and 15 buses. Please see the sponsorship form to explore how you can help.

Please email Mike Olka ([email protected]) and let him know how you would like to participate.
Employment Opportunities
Founded in 1995, KPM Franklin's corporate headquarters are located in Kissimmee, Florida, with a second office in Orlando near the International Airport.
 
We specialize in providing high-quality civil engineering and surveying services, throughout the State of Florida. As part of an aggressive growth focus, we have integrated Transportation, Planning, Program Management, Government Relations and Landscape Architecture services.
 
Our client base is diversified, consisting of residential, commercial, hospitality, tourism, entertainment, and institutional owners and developers in the private sector; and in the municipal sector, local-state-federal governments, school boards, regulatory agencies and special districts.
 
Like our client base, we have a diverse staff of over 60 employees that includes engineers, planners, surveyors, technicians, managers, public relations personnel, business specialists and other specialists of various kinds.
 
Our vision is to maintain a broad based professional civil services firm, offering challenging opportunities to create value through innovative design for our clients.
 
We are focused on providing our employees a rewarding and stable work environment, allowing balance between professional and personal life. We believe in a culture that encourages education and the professional growth of our employees. KPM Franklin's bottom-up management approach allows all team members to participate in every step of a project from conception to completion.
 
KPM Franklin is committed to providing career advancement opportunities, and employee ownership opportunities. Hence, we are continuously in pursuit of a culture comprised of highly motivated, self-driven and innovative individuals.
 
What Do We Offer Our Full-Time Employees:
  • Meaningful, challenging work with a focus on learning and career growth
  • Opportunity to grow with us
  • Excellent competitive salary
  • Health benefits (100% paid by the company)
  • Long and short-term disability & Life insurance policy (100% paid by the company)
  • Excellent PTO package with paid holidays
  • SIMPLE IRA with a company match
  • Excellent continuing education benefits 
Please send resume and cover letter to [email protected] Attn. Lisa Precourt
 
KPM Franklin is an equal opportunity employer.
 
Project Engineer
We are seeking a full-time Project Engineer to join our Kissimmee, Florida office. The candidate's initial role is to perform and be responsible for the project cycle including design, development and project completion.
 
Qualifications and Education:
  • Bachelor's in Civil Engineering 
  • Should have minimum 2-5 years of experience in land development, utilities and storm water design and permitting
  • Proficient in AutoCAD Civil 3D
  • Florida professional engineer license a plus
  • Self-motivated
  • Positive attitude
  • Good oral and written communication skills
  • Ability to work under pressure
  • Desire to improve professional skills
Senior Project Manager
We are seeking a full-time Senior Engineer/Project Manager to join one of our Orlando and Kissimmee Florida area offices. The candidate should have technical and management experience dealing with teams on a variety of projects including production coordination, planning, organizing, directing, controlling, and financial management.
 
Qualifications and Education:
  • Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering
  • Florida professional engineer license
  • Minimum of 6+ years of experience (Land Development with site civil and/or Drainage Design experience, Utilities, Transportation)
  • Proficient in AutoCAD Civil 3D and/or MicroStation
  • Management of project team & client relationships including contract administration, production, and project coordination.
  • Hard working, detail oriented, and technically sound with engineering principles & practices.
  • Permitting experience with local, state and federal agencies and governmental entities
  • Proficient in both verbal and written communications
 
Senior Engineering Practice Builder
We are seeking a full-time Senior Engineer/Practice Builder to join our Central Florida practice. The candidate should have technical and management experience dealing with teams on a variety of projects including production coordination, planning, directing, business and staff development, and financial management. This person will actively participate in the growth of our firm in the Central Florida area as well as provide leadership & management to our team of engineers and designers.  We offer a strongly competitive compensation and equity participation package.
 
Qualifications and Education:
  • Bachelor's in Civil Engineering.
  • Florida professional engineer license required.
  • Minimum of 10+ years of experience (General Civil Engineering, Municipal and/or Land Development, Construction Services (CEI)). 
  • Experience in management of project team & client relationships including contract procurement, administration, and production coordination.
  • Florida Permitting experience a plus with local, state and federal agencies and governmental entities
  • Proficient in both verbal and written communications
  • Must assist in mentoring and training staff
 
CAD Technician/Designer
We are seeking a full-time Project Engineer to join our Kissimmee, Florida office.
 
Qualifications and Education:
  • High School or Equivalent
  • Minimum of 3 years of Civil Engineering drafting
  • Design and Drafting Commercial and Residential Plans using AutoCAD CIVIL 3D
  • Work with Project Managers and Project Engineers to understand scope of work and Project Responsibilities.
  • Complete Drawing/Project Responsibilities within scope, budget and schedule; Review Drawings for accuracy.
  • Organize/Maintain all revisions of project drawings, files and related information in a well-organized manner.
  • High Proficiency in AutoCAD Civil 3D 2017 required 

Sincerely,

 

  Khanh Olka, E.I.  

  Communications Chair 

  East Central Branch

  Florida Section

  [email protected]   


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ASCE East Central Branch | [email protected] | Orlando, Florida