Educators, government and media are growing more concerned about the erosion of the long-standing U.S. edge in science and engineering. Undergraduate university engineering education, in particular, is in trouble, threatening our nation’s wealth and prosperity. NIKIAS In 1985, more than 76,000 engineering degrees were awarded in the U.S. Since then, the number of graduating engineers in America has declined by 20%. China, Japan, India, Russia and Europe now graduate substantially more engineers than we do. China and India produce almost 320,000 engineers annually. This year, U.S. universities will graduate less than 60,000. Losing Product Many observers propose relaxing visa
LAIBSON There is a pervasive and malignant myth in the construction industry that companies should not hire older employees simply because they are older. Life in the 21st Century has changed and firms cost themselves money and valuable resources by dismissing out-of-hand a pool of smart and dedicated older workers. Resumes that show that a job applicant has 30 years of experience obviously indicate that the candidate is at least 50 years old, maybe 55, maybe even 60. Some companies make assumptions about such people that are stereotypical and usually wrong: the candidate is over the hill and lacks energy
Recently, while visiting the ENR Website, I was intrigued by a request to take part in an instant poll addressing jobsite theft. The poll listed specific tangible items such as tools, materials, equipment and the like. As a staff archi- tect for an architectural firm, these items are not in our realm of everyday objects that we encounter in the storage cabinet or workplace. Sure, many of our colleagues make off with pencils, whiteout, paper clips and such, though their disappearance hardly affects the profitability of the firm. But one area of jobsite theft that unfortunately often is tolerated and
TRIPATHI In an election year, Republicans and Democrats can agree on at least one thing—that highway spending is essential to win re-election. They also know that in order to maintain our national economic health, we must fix our aging and distressed transportation system. Yet after prolonged squabbling between Congress and the White House, the Senate only recently passed a $318-billion transportation bill with a seemingly veto-proof margin of 76-21. The President’s proposal, in comparison, is a modest $256 billion. Some in the House last year proposed a Cadillac version worth $375 billion, but lawmakers there now are considering a $275-billion
For years, the standard practice within the U.S. steel construction market, excluding the West Coast, has been for fabricators to design member connections. This gives the fabricator better control of the process by designing connections that best fit their particular machinery and shop standards. But the practice is ineffective and risky for all parties involved in today’s litigious and claims-oriented environment. As structural engineer of record (SER) on some very large and complex steel buildings, we have found that it is best for the SER to design the connections and present them in the construction documents. The larger and more
HOARE There’s a certain stereotype associated with engineers. We’ve all heard about the pocket-protector-sporting, calculator-wielding, introverted and boring type–lacking that certain joie de vivre commonly associated with more "creative" professionals, such as writers, graphic designers and marketers. Heeding that stereotype, most would conclude that we Cyborg-like engineers wouldn’t dream of taking a lesser-paying job just because it seemed like a great opportunity and personal fit. A robot doesn’t have feelings, right? What is the top priority for an engineer searching for a new job? Well, according to one of our recent surveys, it’s what the job entails. Of 736 respondents,
JOACHIM The U.S. is the only major developed nation in the world that does not have a single coordinated family of construction codes and standards. While efforts were initiated in the 1990s to rectify that situation, the breakup earlier this decade of negotiations between the International Code Council (ICC) and National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is negatively impacting the cost of construction in our nation. The ongoing acrimonious competition between these two organizations to gain the adoption of their respective building codes by state and local governments comes at a cost to our nation, the construction community and state and
STENQVIST Forget about fast track. Construction schedules today have accelerated so quickly that the old distinction between traditional and fast-track scheduling has all but disappeared. Today, fast track is the norm, and what is some- times called "hypertrack" is growing. And our industry is suffering. Without speed limits, the road grows perilous. Having worked on some hypertrack jobs, we can see the perils pretty clearly. We can suggest some ways of fending off danger but some of these solutions carry drawbacks of their own. JENNEY Usually there is a compelling reason for putting a job on hypertrack: A business is
FLYVBJERG Recently, as I was concluding a study on megaprojects, I thought of Nobel Prize winner F.A. Hayek’s controversial article about the selection of political leaders, Why the Worst Get on Top. Like Hayek’s political leaders, we found that it is not necessarily the best megaprojects that succeed. Our survey looked at several hundred projects in more than 20 countries and we discovered that there seemed to be a formula at work in deciding which projects get built: Project approval equals underestimated cost, plus overestimated revenue, plus undervalued environmental impact, plus overvalued economic development effect. But during project implementation, when
GORMLEY With over 60 health-care projects under way nationwide, we are always working to finish on time and on budget with good quality design and construction. However, we continue to face challenges ensuring that our new buildings and renovations actually operate effectively and efficiently. Recently, our in-house engineers were checking a new boiler. While it produced hot water, the controls were improperly set so it cycled on to full heat and then quickly shut down as the temperature met the set point. This is something like driving your car by pressing the gas pedal to the floor when the light
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