Mi Engineering Newsletter logo

Issue: 2 

March 2015   
Members Urged to Vote on May 5, 2015
Vote YES on May 5!
The Safe Roads YES! coalition is in full swing promoting a YES vote for Proposal 1 on May 5, 2015.  The coalition has expanded to over 100 groups and continues to grow. Several TV and radio ads have begun running and will continue until May 5. Many respected public figures have come out in support of Proposal 1 including U.S. Senator Carl Levin and former Michigan House Speaker Jase Bolger.

It is important that everyone gets to the polls on May 5. Please make sure your employees, friends and family who support the ballot initiative are reminded to vote.

For the latest information, please visit www.saferoadsyes.com.
Michigan Infrastructure Conference - June 4, 2015
The Inn at St. Johns, Plymouth, MI
ACEC, ASCE, and ULI are teaming up once again to offer the MI Infrastructure Conference on June 4. Mark Hackel, Macomb County Executive, and Kirk Steudle, MDOT Director are slated as the keynote speakers. Six (6) different educational sessions will be offered and will provide continuing education credits for licensed PE's. 


A panel of experts will be assembled in the afternoon to discuss Michigan's aging infrastructure and possible solutions to make improvements. A reception will end the day, and a scholarship Golf Outing will be held on Friday, June 5.  
MSPE 2015 Annual Conference
Registration is Open

MSPE will be returning to the Garland Lodge and Resort for the 2015 Annual Conference. The event will be held May 28 - 30, 2015 and will once again feature continuing education opportunities for many engineering disciplines as well as a golf outing, vendor night and networking events. The Annual Conference Committee welcomes your input in planning the conference. Please contact Doug Thompson (thompdj@hotmail.com) or the MSPE office (mspe@michiganspe.org) with ideas or suggestions. Volunteers for the committee are also being sought.  

ACEC Engineering & Surveying Excellence Awards Gala Honors Top Projects & Individuals

On February 28, 2015, the American Council of Engineering Companies of Michigan (ACEC/M) honored firms for engineering and surveying excellence during the Council's 50th Anniversary of the event held at The Henry Ford in Dearborn. Outstanding Michigan engineering and surveying projects from the past year, as well as engineering professionals who have significantly contributed to the profession, were honored. 

 

The ACEC/M Awards Program recognizes outstanding efforts of professional design firms to solve clients' needs through exceptional projects, and offers the opportunity to showcase the year's best engineering and surveying achievements to an audience of peers, clients and decision makers at all levels. 

NTH Consultants - Eminent Conceptor Winner
This year's engineering Eminent Conceptor Award winner was NTH Consultants, Ltd, Detroit, for the structural analysis for Cobo Arena Demolition and Reconstruction. During the redevelopment of Cobo Arena, a $279 million project, NTH Consultants, Ltd. utilized the shell-like geometry of the original structure, performed detailed analyses for each stage of demolition and reconstruction, and worked with the contractors to safely sequence the work, thereby eliminating the need for an estimated $1 million in internal temporary bracing.

 

Four firms were honored with the Engineering Honorable Conceptor Award: Bergmann Associates for The Rapid/Amtrak Passenger Station Relocation (Grand Rapids); Fishbeck, Thompson, Carr & Huber, Inc. for the Grand Rapids Downtown Market and for Michigan State University West Circle Drive, Phase 3; OHM Advisors for the Farmington Hills Elevated Storage Tank and Parsons Corporation for the I-96/M-50 Bridge Slide Design.

Engineering Merit Awards were presented to HNTB Michigan, Inc. for the I-94 Truck Parking Information and Management System; Hubbell, Roth & Clark, Inc. for the Orion Road Bridge Replacement (Oakland County); NTH Consultants, Ltd. for the Oakland Macomb Interceptor Drain; Parsons Corporation for the US-131/3 Mile Road Bridge Slide; Prein&Newhof for Lake Street Improvements (City of Whitehall); RS Engineering, LLC for the I-96 Interchange at Latson Road; and ROWE Professional Services Company for the Uptown Bay City project.

Surveying Honorable Conceptor Awards were presented to Fleis & VandenBrink for the Osceola Inn Demolition Project (Reed City) and Spicer Group, Inc. for the South County Water Authority Asset Collection Project.

The Judges' Choice Award for Board Design was given to Hubbell, Roth & Clark, Inc., for the project board designed to 'tell the story' of how the "Accelerated Orion Road Abridgement Replacement Saves Cider Season."

 

For photos and further details about the 2015 projects, please visit the ACEC/M website.

 

Paul C. Wade, PE

 This year's ACEC/M Vernon B. Spalding  Leadership Award was presented to Paul  C. Wade, PE, former Senior Vice  President  of Spalding DeDecker  Associates, Inc., to  honor his leadership  roles in ACEC and  many community  organizations. 

 

 Mr. Wade has been very active in the  American Council of Engineering  Companies serving as President and a  Director on the ACEC Board of Directors  for 7 years. Paul also served as Chair of  committees including Transportation,  Scholarship and Annual Meeting for  ACEC/Michigan. Paul was an ambassador  for a strong partnership with MDOT and  participated on several MDOT-ACEC joint  partnering committees. 

 

 Click here for Paul's complete bio.

   

 

Gerald M. (Jerry) Belian, PE, FESD

 The ACEC/M Felix A. Anderson Image  Award was presented to Gerald M.  Belian, PE, FESD, of SME for his actions  and contributions to enhance the image  of the profession. Jerry has been active  in many professional and technical  organizations, and has encouraged other  SME team members to be active as well.

 

 Mr. Belian retired in April of 2014 after  more than 20 years with SME, and with  over 50 total years' experience in  engineering consulting, management,  business development and client  relations. 
 

  

ASCE Scholarship Application & Awards Nomination forms available

The Michigan Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers will again be awarding 2 academic scholarships for the 2015-2016 academic year.
 
The Mackinac Scholarship in the amount of $10,000 is awarded to a Civil Engineering student entering their junior year ($5,000 for 2 years). The Zuidema Scholarship in the amount of $1,500 is awarded to a junior or senior student member of ASCE.
 
Deadline for application is Memorial Day, May 25.  Click the link below to download the scholarship application.

 

ASCE MI Section also presents project and individual awards.  Project awards to be presented include Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement, and Quality of LIfe.  Individual awards consist of Franklin D. Meyers Civil Engineer of the Year and Young Civil Engineer of the Year.  All award submittals are due by April 17, 2015 and the awards will be presented during the Michigan Infrastructure Conference on June 4th at the Inn at St. Johns in Plymouth.

 

Click here for Scholarship application

 

ACEC Announces 2015 Large & Small Firms of the Year at ESE Awards Gala
HNTB Michigan, Inc. and Byce & Associates, Inc. Receive Honors 
Large Firm of the Year - HNTB Michigan, Inc.
HNTB Michigan, Inc. stands out as being a company that is actively involved in the success and growth of ACEC/Michigan, advancing the consulting design profession and giving back to the community. Employees are actively involved in partnering with local schools providing mentorship and learning opportunities to young people through Engineering Discovery Day, Construction Science Expo, Engineers Week and ITS World Congress. HNTB employees give back to the community through park clean-up, tree planting, Habitat for Humanity, and sending troop care packages, along with several other charitable activities.

HNTB also engages in a variety of activities to positively impact the engineering profession and ACEC. Through leadership involvement with multiple chapters of the American Public Works Association (APWA) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), HNTB has been instrumental in raising funds for student scholarships and creating programming for professional development. HNTB Vice President Len Becker serves as an ACEC/Michigan Director and is the chair of ACEC/M's membership committee.

HNTB Corporation is an employee-owned infrastructure solutions firm. Celebrating a century of service, HNTB understands the life cycle of infrastructure and addresses clients' most complex technical, financial and operational challenges. Professionals nationwide deliver a full range of infrastructure-related services, including award-winning planning, design, program management and construction management.
Small Firm of the Year - Byce & Associates, Inc.
Providing innovative, practical solutions to its clients' needs for more than 55 years, Byce & Associates, Inc. (Byce) brings a passion to serving the needs of their clients, employees and neighbors: the community. Byce has been an industry leader in the engineering profession, serving its clients, staff, and supporting industry partners as well as fostering the enhancement and viability of the engineering profession at both a State and National level.

Community involvement is paramount to Byce, both for the company as a whole and for its employees. James Escamilla, PE, President/CEO, as well as many other employees, sit on many local boards, committees and associations. In addition, Byce actively participates in philanthropic projects aimed to benefit the local community and prides itself on its relationship with local non-profits, providing architectural and engineering services with a substantial portion of the fee waived as a donation.

Byce principals and employees are actively involved in contributing to the success of ACEC/Michigan and the engineering industry as a whole. Mr. Escamilla has served ACEC/M in the capacity of President and National Director. Brenda Longman, Vice President, serves on the Business Practices Committee, and Matthew Norko, Marketing Coordinator, serves on the Engineering & Surveying Excellence Awards Committee. Bryan Webster, PE, Vice President, is actively involved in mentoring senior engineering students through the "Capstone" process.

AESLC Legislative "Lobby" Day a Success
Over 115 licensed engineers, architects and surveyors traveled to Lansing on March 18 to visit with their legislators in both the House and Senate. More than 100 appointments were made for the professionals, which allowed the group to visit with nearly 75% of the elected officials.

A luncheon was held in the Capitol at which 50+ legislators visited with constituents and learned about the important issues for the group. A special thanks to Melissa Yutzey of Kelley Cawthorne for making the annual event a huge success!
MDOT-ACEC Partnering Workshop tops 500

 

Andrew S. Doctoroff - General Session Speaker
MDOT Director Kirk Steudle, PE - Opening Speaker

 

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

On February 5, 2015, a record-setting 500+ attendees participated in the MDOT/ACEC Partnering Workshop! Kirk T. Steudle, P.E., State Transportation Director, spoke during the opening session on transportation revenue and the ballot proposal. Andrew S. Doctoroff, Senior Adviser to the Governor's Office, spoke about the New International Trade Crossing (NITC) during the general session. The general session also included a presentation on the successful "Fix on 96" reconstruction project. Mark your calendars for next year's event scheduled for February 4, 2016 at the Lansing Center.

 

For more program details, including sponsors and presentation information, visit the ACEC/M website! 

MDOT/ACEC Partnership Charter Award

During the Partnering Workship, the 2nd Annual MDOT/ACEC Partnership Charter Award was presented for the partnering efforts on the Traffic and Environmental Feasibility Study for the Ford Road (M-153) and I-275 project. The award was presented by MDOT's Chief Operations Officer Greg Johnson to ACEC member firm CDM Smith Michigan, Inc. and to the MDOT Metro Region/Taylor TSC.  


 

This award recognizes project teams for their commitment to excellence and promoting an enhanced business partnership based on the ideals set forth in the MDOT/ACEC Partnership Charter Agreement. These ideals include mutual trust, effective communication, continuous improvement, embracing innovation, and timely issues resolution.  

ACEC Awards $12,000 in Scholarships
Not pictured - Logan Praay
Scholarship recipients were honored during the Engineering & Surveying Excellence Awards Gala on February 28.  ACEC of Michigan's Scholarship Program was created to promote the profession and to provide financial support to those individuals pursuing careers in engineering and surveying. On an annual basis, the Council awards scholarships to deserving college students who have completed their freshman year and are enrolled in an ABET accredited engineering or surveying program. Recipients of the awards will be evaluated in the following areas: Work experience, extra-curricular and community activities, references, grade point average, and a written essay. Applicants must have worked for a private engineering, architectural or surveying firm in the past 24 months. Congratulations to the 2015 ACEC scholarship winners!


  
  
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In This Issue
Legislative Update
MI Infrastructure Conf
MSPE 2015 Annual Conference
Engineering Excellence
ASCE Scholarships & Awards
ACEC Announces Large & Small Firms of the Year
AESLC Lobby Day a Success
MDOT ACEC Partnering Workshop Recap
MDOT ACEC Partnership Charter Award Winners
ACEC Scholarship Awards
Engineering Center

 


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 Engineering Center
Questions about engineering?
Please contact:

 

Ron Brenke, PE 

Executive Director

ACEC & ASCE

 517-332-2066

Nancy McClain, PE
Executive Director  
MSPE
517-487-9388