We can see examples of civil engineering throughout history, even though the term ‘civil engineering’ wasn’t used until the 18th century. For millennia, people have designed structures, buildings and infrastructure to serve the general public. In history, we see this starting between 4000 and 2000 BC in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley. Many of these examples of early civil engineering achievements still exist in Egypt, China, Rome and many other places.
Read moreWhat are Smart Cities?
Infrastructure, often intimately connected with civil engineering, provides the backbone and structure that serves various spaces, such as cities or countries. It provides roads and sidewalks for transportation, a water supply for people to drink, sewers to deal with waste, and much more. In the past, infrastructure design and construction has been reactive. It was a response to an event, like a natural disaster, or a local issue such as flooding or fires. Now we are looking for infrastructure to be proactive and work to solve multiple problems with dynamic solutions, like Smart Cities.
Read moreThe Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act - Part 2
This article is the second in a series we’ll be posting, exploring the various areas and sectors the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) bill aims to address through investment and funding. The topics addressed in this article focus on parts of the bill meant to help people reconnect with their communities or digitally connect through high-speed internet access. It also discusses some funding dedicated to improving the environment, and the public health benefits those changes could have.
Read moreThe Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act - Part 1
Politics and civil engineering aren’t usually brought up in the same sentence, but it’s happening more often with the new, roughly $1.2 trillion dollar bill that advanced in the US Senate last Wednesday, July 28th, 2021. The bi-partisan bill, formally known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), includes significant funding for various types of infrastructure nationwide. If it passes, it will be the largest addition of federal money into the public works system in over 10 years. This would impact cities and states across the country, as well as the people living in those communities, and a variety of businesses and industries, like civil engineering.
Read moreA Brief History of Civil Engineering Through the Ages
We can see examples of civil engineering throughout history, even though the term ‘civil engineering’ wasn’t used until the 18th century. For millennia, people have designed structures, buildings and infrastructure to serve the general public. In history, we see this starting between 4000 and 2000 BC in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley. Many of these examples of early civil engineering achievements still exist in Egypt, China, Rome and many other places.
Read moreWhat is a 100-Year Flood?
The recent Hurricane Florence dumped massive amounts of water in parts of North Carolina, in what many news sources are saying could be categorized as a 500-year or 1000-year flood event. But what does a 1000-year, 100-year, 50-year, etc. flood actually mean?
Read moreBlueprint Columbus: Near South - Morrill / Ann Area
The City of Columbus has a complex sewer system made up of three types of sewers:
Combined Sewers - these carry both sewage and rain water to treatment plants, where both are treated then released into a river
Separate Sewers - these are separated sanitary (for sewage) and storm sewers
Storm Sewers - located on curbs or in drainage ditches, these sewers empty rain water (and anything carried with it) directly back into rivers.
Many cities, including Columbus, are experiencing issues with their combined and separated sanitary sewer systems, because they are often overloaded during heavy rain events. This causes combined sewers to overflow into rivers (see image below), which causes public health and ecological problems.
Read moreTransportation Infrastructure
Infrastructure has certainly been a buzzword recently, but what does it actually mean? How does it affect our everyday lives? Why is it always in the news?
The term infrastructure describes the various physical and organizational systems and facilities we need to operate as a society, such as the energy grid, our system of interconnecting roads, public transportation and much more. Good infrastructure is critical for a city, organization, country, etc. to function properly and be competitive in the global marketplace.
Read moreDrivers Beware: It's Pothole Season
Spring is in the air! You can see brilliant flowers and blossoming trees and... potholes?! As winter comes to an end (hopefully?) you might have noticed this increase in potholes on the roads. But why is spring the season for potholes?
Read moreCombined Sewer Systems and Green Infrastructure
Do you ever wonder where all the rainwater you see in streets goes? Or what’s under a manhole when you open it up? The short answer is pipes. But these aren’t just pipes. They act as an intricate system that collects rainwater runoff, domestic sewage and industrial wastewater, designed to direct each to an appropriate place.
Read more