From ASCE News

ASCE has honored Angela M. Mayer, EIT, A.M. ASCE with the 2016 Edmund Friedman Young Engineer Award for Professional Achievement. She is recognized for professional achievement in service to the advancement of the profession, evidence of technical competence, high character and integrity, and contributions to public service outside their careers.

Mayer was the 2015 Pittsburgh Section Young Engineer of the Year and was nominated for the 2016 ASCE Eastern Regional YMC Outstanding Young Engineer in the Private Sector Award.

She serves as the director of the Pittsburgh Section, supporting numerous committees including the Diversity and Inclusion Committee and the Survey Committee. Furthermore, Mayer served as the point of contact and national judge for the National Concrete Canoe Contest at the University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown in 2014.

Mayer is a graduate of the Leadership Development Initiative and an active member of Toastmasters International. Mayer also volunteered to be a civil engineer role model as part of Wow! That’s Engineering! For Girls and Parents, an outreach event for middle school girls held by the Society of Women Engineers.

The Edmund Friedman Young Engineer Award for Professional Achievement is made to younger members of ASCE (35 or younger) who are judged to have attained significant professional achievements by the degree to which they have served to advance the profession; exhibited technical competence, high character, and integrity; developed improved member attitudes toward the profession; and contributed to public service outside their professional careers.

By ASCE Awards Committee

Congratulations to Timothy O’Loughlin, P.E., ASCE-Pittsburgh’s 2015 Young Government Engineer of the Year.  Timothy has demonstrated the depth of experience and knowledge required to successfully complete a variety of significant government-based civil engineering projects in the Pittsburgh region.  Timothy began his career with the Pittsburgh District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as an intern in 2008 following his graduation from Penn State University. He quickly moved into positions of leadership and was soon assigned Senior Design Engineer for the Monongahela River Charleroi Lock chambers. This project consisted of constructing a new gated dam on the Monongahela River at Braddock, PA, and constructing two new locks at Charleroi, demolishing the old Locks and Dam No. 3 at Elizabeth, PA.  For the project, Timothy also had to manage utility relocations, dredging of the riverbed and subsequently raising the Braddock pool five feet, and lowering the pool below Charleroi three feet to maintain navigation.

Timothy obtained his P.E. license in 2013, and was the Project Engineer for the completion of the River Chamber.  As Project Engineer, he coordinated the development of plans and specifications for the new 84’x720’ river chamber and over twenty monoliths for the dam, among other key features. The overall design package consisted of 700 drawings, 3,000 pages of specifications, and 5,500 pages for the design report.  Timothy coordinated with the eight separate Corps of Engineer Districts that were involved in this monumental design effort with much of the design coming from the Pittsburgh District. Timothy’s work with Project Management, Construction, Environmental, Real Estate, Contracting, and the Office of Council was essential to the successful award of the Base Contract and Awardable Options totaling $241 million.

In addition to performing his role a Project Engineer, Timothy served as the Senior Structural Engineer responsible for the design of drilled shaft foundations, monolith wall reinforcement, high mast light anchorages, and quality control for several design features.

By ASCE Awards Committee

Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Water & Sewer Authority (PWSA), recipient of the 2015 ASCE-Pittsburgh Merit Award.

PWSA’s Department of Sustainability works to foster an authority-wide culture of sustainability with respect to environmental enhancement, economic development and civic engagement. The PWSA strives to be a world-class utility and set the benchmark for sustainability in the industry.

As a water and wastewater utility, PWSA employees are dedicated stewards of one of the most valuable resources on the planet. PWSA’s Green Infrastructure (GI) Program is a regional leader in efforts to improve the water quality of our rivers, streams and tributaries. Green infrastructure can be used to meet water quality standards and save ratepayers money while providing social, economic and environmental benefits. Through the GI Program, the PWSA is committed to making green infrastructure part of their solution to improve water quality affected by stormwater runoff. The GI team focuses on planning and implementing stormwater management projects in the places where they can provide the most benefits.

The PWSA Green Infrastructure Grant Program provides grants of $5,000 - $50,000 to non-profit organizations, community and civic groups, and property owners for projects in the City that advance the objective of attaining Clean Water Act compliance for water quality. The grants support local, grassroots efforts that employ green infrastructure practices to improve water quality, enhance conservation, restore habitat, stimulate economic growth, and educate people about stormwater issues and associated stewardship actions. Find out more information about PWSA’s grant program. 

By ASCE Blog Editor and ASCE Awards Committee

John W. Schombert is 2015 ASCE-Pittsburgh recipient of the Service to the People Award.  John is the executive director of the 3 Rivers Wet Weather (3RWW), a non-profit organization, created in 1998 to help municipalities in the Pittsburgh region to address their aging and deteriorating sewer infrastructure. Funded by federal, state and local governments and private foundations, 3 Rivers Wet Weather helps communities by benchmarking wet weather technology and creating regional solutions to sewage and stormwater overflow issues.

“John was instrumental in establishing this organization which assists local municipalities address their aging sewer infrastructure needs,” says colleague, Ralph Gilbert. “He initiated the 3RWW Conference, an annual event that brings representatives of government, industry and the consulting community together to exchange ideas and highlight successful projects from across the country.”

“He is an outstanding leader with years of experience who has toiled tirelessly on the wet weather issue that is critical to the vitality and sustainability of our region,” adds colleague, Jonathan Shimko.  “I truly believe that the regional wet weather progress has been so significant, in great part, because John is at the helm.”

Prior to joining 3 Rivers Wet Weather, John worked for nearly three decades in the Allegheny County Health Department’s (ACHD) water pollution, public drinking water and waste management programs where served as Program Chief in his last 12 years with ACHD. John is chairman of the Coraopolis Water and Sewer Authority, chairman of the Riverview Sanitary Authority and a member of The Pennsylvania State Board for the Certification of Sewage Treatment Plant and Waterworks Operators.

“He has been a champion in our region for reducing Combined Sewer Overflows and Sanitary Sewer Overflows, promoting the clean rivers campaign,” Mr. Gilbert says.

John is a graduate of Theil College with a B.S. in physics.  He also serves on the Board of the Local Government Academy in Pittsburgh.

“John exudes enthusiasm in all he does, from meeting with civil engineers and regularly serving as guest speaker in local university environmental classes to providing input to elected officials,” says Mr. Shimko.  “He inspires everyone around him.”

By ASCE Award Committee

DiGioia, Gray & Associates, LLC (DiGioia Gray), is the recipient of ASCE-Pittsburgh’s 2015 Employer Recognition Award.  DiGioia Gray is led by internationally respected engineers and geologists. The firm provides comprehensive consulting services by using an interdisciplinary approach to provide full-service expertise from planning and design through construction, operation, maintenance and rehabilitation. Their commitment is to provide practical, economical, reliable and, when appropriate, innovative project life cycle solutions that exceed their clients’ expectations.

In addition, as part of the firm’s commitment to their employees’ professional development, DiGioia Gray proudly sponsors ASCE memberships, attendance to conferences, one-day seminars, technical dinners and special events such as Engineer’s Week and the ASCE Pittsburgh Section Kick-Off dinner. DiGioia Gray’s founding fathers, two ASCE Distinguished Members, Anthony DiGioia and Richard Gray, were the organizers for the 2008 ASCE National Conference, past Section leaders, and have contributed to several one-day interactive seminars and technical dinners.

DiGioia Gray actively promotes publications in several technical journals and newsletters, and through the years has sponsored senior technical staff s’ leadership in ASCE at the local and national level.

“It has been through DiGioia Gray’s encouragement and support that several of my colleagues and I have been so active within ASCE at various levels,” states past Pittsburgh Section president N. Catherine Bazán-Arias. “Our founders advocate and foster our participation.  Moreover, they lead through example; I can only hope to someday achieve their ASCE level of involvement.”

By ASCE-Pittsburgh Awards Committee

The Eden Hall Campus is situated on 388 acres in Gibsonia, Pennsylvania. Originally a farm and retreat for working women of Pittsburgh, Eden Hall was gifted to Chatham University in 2009 by the Eden Hall Foundation. The 20- to 25-year development plan for the residential campus calls for it to be self-sustaining in every way; housing 1,500 students, achieving zero carbon emissions, producing more energy than it consumes, and managing all stormwater and wastewater on site.

University president Esther Barazzone proclaimed that “… Eden Hall [would] be the first community in the world built from ‘below the ground up’ for the study of sustainable living, learning, and development.”

Critical to realizing this endeavor has been the management of that which falls on the ground from above.  Unique to the project was the implementation of a decentralized “treat it where it falls” approach to stormwater, preventing any singular large concentration of runoff.  The stormwater management system is comprised of a series of separate rain gardens strategically placed around the site to manage small individual drainage areas. Each rain garden discharges excess water over a concrete level spreader to further mitigate concentrated runoff. Captured roof runoff is connected to a 50,000-gallon underground retention tank and later reused for landscape irrigation. Stormwater is also infiltrated into the north parking lot by using a permeable surface and underground stone infiltration beds.

Stormwater is not the only source for reuse applications. A biological wastewater treatment system is utilized for sanitary sewer waste produced by the campus. This system includes a series of primary treatment tanks at each building and secondary treatment consisting of a trickling filter, subsurface wetlands, a sand filter for polishing, and UV filter disinfection.

The primary tanks dose effluent to a trickling filter for nitrification. This effluent is then directed into two subsurface constructed wetland cells. Treated water is stored for reuse as flushing water in campus buildings. Any excess water is safely disposed of via an underground drip irrigation system. The treated water is also connected to a campus greenhouse for use in limited applications.

The overall system allows for extended contact times for the effluent at each stage of treatment. This increases the effectiveness of treatment and overall water quality. The system is designed to be expandable by simply adding additional wetland cells as needed.

The incorporation of these best-management-practice approaches has enabled Eden Hall to meet its project goal of having no point discharges from the developed site.  The Eden Hall Campus masterplan allows for flexibility in design and engineering solutions so that future technologies can be integrated into the existing infrastructure. The campus acts as a living laboratory for sustainable design and operations.

Find out more about the Eden Hall Campus or to take a tour of the site.

By the ASCE Blog Editor and ASCE Awards Committee

Mr. Gregory Rumbaugh, M.Sc., P.E., M. ASCE, is the ASCE-PGH 2015 Government Engineer of the Year. “The award is really a testament to the endless opportunities to be involved with the organization, whether it is at the section-level, technical institutes, Student Award Foundation, or Younger Member Forum,” says Greg.  “It is also reflection on the caliber of the mentors that I’ve been fortunate enough have throughout my career, working in both the federal government and in private industry.”

“Greg is truly deserving of this award,” says colleague Angela Mayer. “I am confident that he will continue to serve as a role model for other young Civil Engineers in the greater Pittsburgh area.”

Greg has been active with ASCE and the Geo-Institute since his graduation from the University of Pittsburgh with his B.S. in Civil Engineering in 2006. He subsequently earned his M.S. in Engineering Management from Robert Morris University in 2012.  Greg is currently a Civil Engineer with the Department of Labor in the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) in Pittsburgh.

“I’ve been fortunate in my career with the agency to have the opportunity to work with both surface and underground mine operators extracting various products such as coal, ores, and aggregates,” he explains.  “The most enjoyable part of the job is working with our technical or enforcement personnel, in conjunction with mining engineers in the industry, to solve difficult ground control issues.” 

Greg has demonstrated noteworthy performance and meritorious achievement as demonstrated by his selection in 2013, and again in 2014, for the “Certificate of Excellence for Historic Achievement” presented by the U.S. Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health. He was also recognized as the 2013 Outstanding Young Engineer in the Public Sector by ASCE’s Eastern Region Council.

“Greg is a very matter-of-fact person with a sense of humor,” say Ms. Mayer.  “When working with Greg, he creates an open environment where he injects humor with work.”

While in college, Greg was the University of Pittsburgh ASCE Student Chapter President and remained involved with ASCE following graduation through the YMF, GI, and ASCE Section. He was chair of the YMF Technical Committee for five years where he organized numerous presentations on such topics as networking, financial management, and leadership for younger engineers.

He also organized the YMFs first Mock Interview Workshop Session in 2012. This Workshop, held at the University of Pittsburgh, provided Junior and Senior engineering students the opportunity to practice their interviewing skills with several practicing engineers. “I don’t think I realized the impact that these workshops would have with students at the time we were organizing them,” he says.  It was later recognized by ASCE National as one of the best practices by an ASCE organization. “Only after [the event], and through the feedback from the students, did we get a sense for how beneficial these types of events were for the students involved,” says Greg.  “I think the students that attended the event were able to leave with more confidence in their ability to interview with prospective employers.”

Greg is currently serving as Vice Chair of the Geo-Institute. Greg has attended numerous ASCE sponsored conferences including the National Convention and the Eastern Regional Younger Members Council (ERYMC) as a Pittsburgh Section Representative.  He also works with the Student Award Foundation (SAF) as a past Trustee and Treasurer.  “The Student Award Foundation is one of the most worthwhile causes I have had the opportunity to be involved with in our industry.  Each year, the group manages to recognize students that either reside or attend colleges within the Pittsburgh Section’s area,” explains Greg.  “The most enjoyable part of working with the SAF is participating in the selection of each year’s awards.  I am amazed at the achievements and ambition of the civil engineering students in the Pittsburgh area.”

By the ASCE Blog Editor and ASCE Award Committee

Congratulations Daniel Moore, the 2015 recipient of ASCE-Pittsburgh’s Journalism Award.  “As a journalist, it's an honor to receive recognition from an organization of experts,” says Daniel. “The award to me is recognition that I was not only able to appeal to a broad readership but also successful in reaching the people who are immersed in the topic on a daily basis.”

Daniel grew up in the hills of southern Ohio and graduated with a journalism degree from Kent State University in 2014. He has previously interned at the Spokane Spokesman-Review in Washington State, the Student Press Law Center in Washington, D.C., and the Lexington Herald-Leader in Kentucky.

Currently, Daniel covers energy, transportation and labor for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.   He’s written a wide range of stories about infrastructure, including how the power grid will evolve to meet environmental regulations, how different cities approach sewer overflows, and how railroad track inspections can improve.

“I'm most proud of my story on how railroad track is inspected and how inspectors are sometimes pushed to do quicker inspections when rail traffic is heavy,” Daniel explains. “As we've seen across the country, a missed rail defect is a matter of life-and-death when it comes to derailments of crude oil trains. I analyzed federal accident data and found track defects were the most common cause of derailments. I then spent weeks gathering track inspector sources– on- and off-the-record –who could verify some of the on-the-ground issues, such as arguing with dispatchers about the need to inspect a section of rail.”

Many journalists would consider such research a tedious task.  However, Daniel is willing to put in the effort to breakdown the complexities of everyday infrastructure challenges.

“Infrastructure is so ubiquitous that it's largely overlooked. Some people even think it's boring,” he says. “But that is precisely why I think it's important to bring to the public consciousness. For example, people may see trains carrying crude oil when they go to work every day, but what are the track inspectors doing to ensure safe transport? And what are the business models driving how many oil trains are put on the tracks? These things are critically important to being an informed citizen because it affects everyone.”

Of course, learning about the details of an engineering complication is never easy, and to break it down into article for the public is even harder.  Says Daniel, “The biggest challenge for me is, quite frankly, learning the science behind the stories enough to write it in a broadly appealing way. Of course, that's also what makes my job fun. I always try to have someone walk me through a piece of infrastructure or technology in person so that I can pull visual details and get an idea of scale. That way I can describe it in terms readers can understand.”

The Pittsburgh Section of ASCE will also be nominating Daniel for the National ASCE Excellence in Journalism Award in September. Since 1994, this award is presented annually at the Outstanding Projects and Leaders (OPAL) Award Gala in Washington, D.C. in March.  The award honors newspaper journalists for outstanding articles that enhance public understanding of the role and impact of civil engineering in designing solutions for clean water, transportation, the environment, and other public works projects.  In 2006, the award was expanded to include journalists and producers from English-language, general-interest regional and national newspapers, radio and television stations, magazines, and electronic and Web-based news outlets.

The news media wield tremendous impact on public opinion about civil engineers and civil-engineering-related issues.  For example, news coverage can influence vital infrastructure legislation, licensing laws and building codes.  Coverage also can affect talented young people's decisions to pursue careers in civil engineering.

Through this annual national award, ASCE hopes to encourage continued coverage of civil engineering and related issues as a means of engaging the public in civil engineering initiatives impacting their community. 

The Pittsburgh Section is proud that Jon Schmitz from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette won the ASCE Excellence in Journalism Award in 2012, and is proud to nominate Daniel Moore for the prestigious award this year.

 

By Nick Cvetic, Pitt ASCE Vice President

The University of Pittsburgh American Society of Civil Engineers Student Chapter has had another successful year competing at the Ohio Valley Student Conference.  This year, 47 students and 3 faculty advisors from the Swanson School of Engineering Civil & Environmental Engineering Department attended the student conference hosted by Cincinnati State Technical and Community College.  This year’s conference was held across the Ohio border in the charming town of Lawrenceburg, Indiana during the first weekend of April.  Students from 14 schools located throughout Ohio, Kentucky, and Western Pennsylvania participated at this year’s conference.  Many aspects of this conference allowed us to take technical knowledge from the classroom and apply it to real-world situations - and we had a great time building camaraderie while doing that!

Without a doubt, the Pitt Concrete Canoe team made the most progress since last year.  After passing a swamp test, this year’s patriotic-themed canoe (nicknamed Ol’ Glory) floated to some exciting finishes.  Even after some injuries, Pitt was able to come in first place during our heats for the women’s sprint and co-ed sprint races.  Finding other unconventional uses for building materials, we also participated in the Concrete Baseball Bat and Concrete Bowling Ball competitions.

After a trip to the Steel Bridge National Competition in 2015, the Pitt Steel Bridge team faced a significant amount of adversity prior to this year’s regional conference.  Due to unforeseen conditions at our fabrication facility, it was unclear whether we would even be able to successfully compete at this year’s conference.  However, our dedicated students were ultimately able to safely and effectively design, fabricate, and construct our bridge at this year’s regional competition.

Most awarded of all of our competition teams, the Environmental Team earned a 1st Place Overall Award.  Additionally, the superb water filtration treatment system designed by Pitt students was given the 1st Place Award for Most Sustainable Apparatus, the 3rd Place Award for Most Creative Apparatus, the 3rd Place Award for Best Technical Review Paper, and the 3rd Place Award for Best Poster Display.

Furthermore, with the support of our unique professor Dr. Budny, the Surveying Team measured up for the 1st Place Surveying Award.  An innovative housing plan design and a quality change order completion yielded a 3rd Place Civil Site Design Competition Award.  Due to all of these successes and also due in part to our participation in the Balsa Wood Bridge Competition, the Geotechnical Competition, and the Technical Paper Presentation, Pitt ASCE took home the 3rd Place Overall Conference Award.  This accomplishment made the long bus ride back to Pittsburgh seem much more enjoyable!

I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved with each of the competition teams for their months of hard work and perseverance.  Best wishes to everyone competing next year and carrying on traditions of excellence at the 2017 Ohio Valley Student Conference.

By the ASCE Blog Editor and the ASCE Awards Committee

Congratulations Lauren Terpak, A.M. ASCE, the 2015 recipient of ASCE-Pittsburgh’s Michael A. Gross Meritorious Service Award.  “Lauren embodies meritorious service,” says colleague, Angela Mayer.  “She has devoted copious volunteer hours to the Pittsburgh Section for over 12 years."

Lauren obtained a B.E. in Civil Engineering with a focus in Environmental Engineering from Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio in 2002.  Upon graduation, Lauren was hired by Metcalf Eddy, Inc. in Pittsburgh, which later became AECOM. Lauren works in the Water division, and specializes in wet weather planning, consent-order-driven collection system asset management, and condition assessment programs. Lauren has been with the company since 2003.

Aside from her career, Lauren has been actively involved with the Pittsburgh Section of ASCE since she first moved to Pittsburgh. She started off as Chair of the Younger Member Forum (YMF) Employment Committee in 2003. She then advanced to become Technical Committee Chair, Secretary, Vice President, President, and Past-President of the YMF. Subsequent to her YMF Past-Presidency she was elected to the Section Board of Directors (BOD) as a Director and completed her 3-year term in 2014. During her term as Director Lauren served as Section BOD Outreach Committee Co-Chair, Nominations Committee member and Membership Committee member. “The Pittsburgh Section would not be where it is today without Lauren Terpak’s meritorious service, “ Ms. Mayer adds.

A few of Lauren’s notable ASCE accomplishments include:

• Implementation of the Section-wide electronic survey which encompassed nearly 3 years of planning.
  
• Compilation and contribution to various award nomination packages resulting in several award wins, including: The Younger Member Forum first ever Peer Group Award, and the National Committee of Younger Members Employer Recognition Award for AECOM.
  
• Creation of the Section Diversity and Inclusion Committee which resulted in the National awarded Section and Branch Honorable Mention Diversity Award.
  
• Secured partnership with Leadership Pittsburgh Inc., which has since led to two graduating ASCE members and $2,000 in scholarships.
  

Pittsburgh wasn’t Lauren’s first introduction to ASCE, as she served as Secretary of her student chapter and was named Outstanding Senior of the Year from ASCE’s Cleveland Section. Lauren’s current role is Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee where she promotes diversity and inclusion awareness amongst the civil engineering community and asks that you engage her in a “Diversity Minute.”

But above all, it is Lauren’s positive attitude that stands out.  “Lauren is a very devoted person to all tasks she takes on, but above all Lauren just likes to have fun! “ says Ms. Mayer.  “When working with Lauren she creates an uplifting environment of progress and lightheartedness.”