A. Clive Houlsby, a leading authority on cement grouting methods in dams and large structures who maintained a widely consulted internet site called Rockgrout, died on Sept. 24 in Sydney. He was 82.HOULSBYHoulsby suffered from cancer, says a colleague, U.S.-based engineer Jim Warner. A former dam safety chief of the Water Resources Commission in New South Wales, Australia, Houlsby became a global consultant and lecturer in the 1980s.In the 1970s, he advocated for what was then a controversial change in the water-cement ratio for structural grout. While critics deemed his recommendation as a “heresy,” Houlsby's formula is now standard practice,

Joseph Penzien, a University of California-Berkeley engineering professor who developed the world's first modern shake table in 1972 and pioneered groundbreaking earthquake engineering research and academics, died on Sept. 19 in Redwood City, Calif. He was 86.PENZIENPenzien, a 35-year teaching veteran at the school, was a key developer of its programs in structural dynamics and earthquake engineering, "which many considered to be the best in the world," according to a 2004 oral history conducted by Robert Reitherman, executive director of the Consortium of Universities for Research in Earthquake Engineering.An introduction by Berkeley professor Anil Chopra noted that while Penzien taught

Courtesy Volvo CE "We want to have the flexibility to scale according to customer demand," Olney says. Pat Olney, chief executive and president of Volvo Construction Equipment, is currently overseeing a $100-million investment in the heavy-equipment maker's North American operations. This push includes a $30-million expansion of the Sweden-based conglomerate's Shippensburg, Pa., facility, which will serve as the North American business and manufacturing hub. Olney, a Canadian by birth, is based at Volvo CE's offices in Brussels. His Sept. 22 interview with ENR at Volvo CE's Shippensburg facility has been condensed and edited.ENR: What is the time line for the

Courtesy FRA Rae says that 72 of 77 rail projects under ARRA are now in some phase of development. Related Links: DOT Drives To Commit Rail Aid The 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provided $8 billion for high-speed passenger rail and regular appropriations provided about $2 billion more. It’s been up to the Federal Railroad Administration to set up the program, evaluate a flood of applications for the money and award grants. But before design and construction work can get going, FRA must negotiate and sign agreements with states and freight railroads, on whose lines many of the proposed

Ken Portnoy has joined Balfour Beatty Construction, Dallas, as vice president of public-private partnerships. He will coordinate the firm's U.S. activity using alternative financing approaches. Portnoy was president of the public facilities division of Garfield Traub Development LLC, Dallas.WILSONFluor Corp., Irving, Texas, has made a top executive change at Savannah River Nuclear Solutions LLC, the company-led partnership that manages and operates the U.S. Energy Dept.'s Savannah River site complex in Aiken, S.C. Dwayne Wilson has been named president and CEO, replacing Garry W. Flowers, who will be the corporate senior vice president for environment, safety and health, the company said.

Paul Eng-Wong has been named a principal of Watertown, Mass.-based engineer Vanasse Hangen Brustlin Inc. following the firm's Sept. 6 acquisition of Eng-Wong, Taub & Associates, a New York City transportation planner of which he is president and co-founder. Martin Taub, the acquired firm's other co-founder and executive vice president, also joins VHB as a principal. Eng-Wong, Taub & Associates has 40 employees.Johnson, Miraman & Thompson Inc., a Sparks, Md., engineer-architect, has named Sharon J. Bland as vice president. She was president, CEO and founder of Clear Solution Management Group, a Washington, D.C., management consultant, and formerly vice president of

Thousands of Imad Naffa's digital devotees are mourning the Sept. 6 loss of the industry social-networking pioneer whose Twitter posts seemed omnipresent. Naffa, a civil engineer, building-code software developer and entrepreneur, had a fatal heart attack in Fresno, Calif., at age 49, according to a post by Loretta Naffa, his wife and the office manager of his firm, Naffa International.Dubbed the “Twitter King” by BusinessNewsDaily.com, an online publication for startups, Naffa claimed more than 56,000 followers. He was second among construction tweeters, says Wefollow.com, a website that ranks registered Twitter users based on the number of followers and “influence.” Matt

Photo courtesy of MassDOT 'We are looking forward to working with the industry to improve project-delivery approvals,' says Richard Davey, Secretary, Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation Richard Davey is the new Secretary of the Massachusetts Dept. of Transportation. Only 38, he aims to use social media to make the agency more transparent. As general manager of the state Bay Transportation Authority for three years, he rode with T-line riders, hosted customer lunches and became a local celebrity. Davey's recent interview with ENR has been condensed and edited.ENR: What are the state's top-priority projects for the next few years? Davey: We are

In a management shake-up, Leighton Holdings Ltd., the St. Leonard's, Australia-based contractor, has named Harnish Tyrwhitt to be CEO. A 26-year company veteran, he replaces David Stewart, who resigned on Aug. 25 after eight months in the position. He had succeeded Wal King, who served 23 years as CEO. Since 2007, Tyrwhitt had been managing director of Leighton Asia Ltd., based in Hong Kong, and a director of Leighton Contractors (Asia) Ltd. The company claims Leighton Asia “is now considered one of the top-tier contractors” in Hong Kong. Earlier this year, Tyrwhitt also took over management of Leighton's offshore and

Never mind her asthma, Carla Bonacci recalls thinking on Sept. 11, 2001, after her PATH train from New Jersey got diverted from her World Trade Center stop to a station about a mile north.The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey manager, seeing smoke billowing from the 110-story twin towers of the WTC, raced toward the infernos. She was hell-bent on getting to her team, housed on two floors high in the north tower. Just before she made her destination, the south tower collapsed. To her, it sounded like a bomb and brought back vivid memories of the first