April 2001 For
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ngineering Excellence Awards 2001 DEGENKOLB, KPFF CONSULTING ENGINEERS TAKE TOP HONORS IN UNPRECEDENTED TIE CECO’s annual awards competition had a huge turnout with a total of 23 project entries this year, which translated into two “Project of the Year” awards, along with six Grand Awards and 15 Honor Awards. photos by Julie Keefe NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS PROJECT OF THE YEAR: Degenkolb Engineers for Portland International Airport Steel Canopy Erection. Pictured at right is David Roggenkamp, Degenkolb Engineers, who served as project manager. (Continued on page 3, see “Project of The Year.”) PROJECT OF THE YEAR: Kpff Consulting Engi- CONSULTING neers for Latter-Day Saints Conference ENGINEERS Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Pictured, COUNCIL OF from left: Nathan Charlton, Jami Murrain OREGON and Tom Baughman of Kpff Consulting Engi- neers. (Continued on page 3, see “Project of April 2001 The Year.”) Alison Davis Executive Director Merideth Webber Executive Assistant www.ceco.org “Legislative Updates, Shakes & Quakes” [email protected] served up for Membership Dinner on April 18th at The Westin Portland hotel Member of the See page 11 for more information and American Consulting Engineers Council registration form. FROM THE PRESIDENT ngineering Excellence Awards 2001-Washington, D.C. hat great times Wto be a DAVID EVANS WINS NATIONAL AWARD consulting engineer! CECO Past President Now I know more Jack Beemer (left) and than a few of you Jon Dasler of David reading this think that Evans and Associates, I’ve gone off the deep Inc. accept their firm’s end. But I really mean Honor Award in it. I acknowledge the Washington, D.C. during fact that the economy Mike Schmid ACEC’s 2001 Engineer- is a bit shaky right ing Excellence Awards now, both at the local and national levels. gala held March 13 at My guess is that you are not rushing the Renaissance home to read your 401K and stock Mayflower Hotel. The statements these days. I know I’m not. award winners were Consulting engineers that I talk to locally selected from a field of seem to be busy, but I think many of us are 156 finalists. paying careful attention to our backlog trends. NATIONAL HONOR AWARD: SURVEYING & MAPPING TECHNOLOGY So why am I so upbeat about being a David Evans and Associates, Inc. for San Juan Submarine Cable Corridor Study. consulting engineer? Here are a couple of What would the best undersea route be for a new power cable serving the electrical reasons. Each year, when we conduct the needs of the San Juan Islands in Puget Sound? That question was answered at a high Engineering Excellence awards competition level of detail-- enough to minimize cable-laying hazards, boosting reliability and and then hold the awards banquet, I’m minimizing cable wear. (See related story, “Consulting Congress Day,” page 8.) reminded how important our work is to society and how creative we can be. When I walk around the exhibit hall and Congratulations to DEA! view all of the entries, I always reflect on the amount of ingenuity and expertise available in our respective firms as How many times have you said or heard in the money to deal with it. And if the logjam evidenced by the projects being displayed. the last couple of years how difficult it is breaks free, I don’t believe there are I was unable to attend the national to find qualified engineers? My guess is enough engineers currently in the North- Engineering Excellence awards banquet that it is probably more than a few. west to accomplish the potential work. this year in Washington D.C. However, I Think about the increasing need for None of this is meant to suggest that did read the article highlighting the award our services. Infrastructure in the United we can just sit back and let the projects winners in the ACE Magazine. The States is decaying and we continue to come to us. There are many forces at work national award winners just go to further expand in population. On the international that could present significant challenges. validate the importance of our work to level, it’s equally exciting. New towns, Where are we going to get the needed mankind. I enjoy being in the presence of cities and the corresponding infrastructure resources to meet the project demands? non-engineers at the banquet. They are are being developed on a continual basis. We always have to guard against legisla- usually quite impressed, and it truly makes In the Northwest, I can’t help but tion that hinders our ability to effectively me proud to be an engineer. believe there is a huge logjam of potential compete for the work or for that matter do I remember several years ago listening work building for the consulting engineer- the work. We also have to continuously to David Snyder, a futurist, talk about the ing community. I’m not saying that we learn how to perform our work more state of the consulting engineering won’t experience some peaks and valleys, effectively and embrace new technologies profession. In summary, what I took away but over the long haul I believe our future in order to remain competitive. We need to from his presentation was that the consult- is very bright. My belief is that the use our creativity and ingenuity and ing engineering business had the potential Northwest will continue to grow and stretch when it comes to embracing and/or of being very good for the foreseeable expand economically and in population. developing new project delivery and future. In part, he based his prediction on Couple that with the same aging or teaming strategies. the fact that the supply of engineers insufficient infrastructure issues men- The bottom line from my perspective coming out of the higher education system tioned previously, and the logjam expands is that we can look forward to a sustained would continue to dwindle while the rapidly. I will admit that I have no idea period of prosperity. It is up to us as demand for our services would continue to where the money will come from to pay for consulting engineers and businessmen to increase. Now, several years later I see all the needs. However, if the pain becomes take advantage of the opportunities Snyder’s prediction being right on track. significant, we will figure out where to get presented to us. 2 ngineering Excellence Awards 2001 PROJECT OF THE YEAR AWARDS (continued from page 1) DEGENKOLB ENGINEERS KPFF CONSULTING ENGINEERS Portland International Airport Canopy Steel Erection Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) The construction of the Portland Airport Structural Conference Center Steel/Glass Canopy over the existing enplaning roadway The 1.2-million-square-foot Church of Jesus Christ of needed to be erected by staging all the construction on the Latter-Day Saints Conference Center in Salt Lake City, roadway above the unsuspecting public walking to and from Utah encompasses an entire 10-acre city block and posed the airport. Loads exceeding 175,000 pounds had to be many design challenges, including design of a uniquely supported on the elevated roadway designed to support a shaped theater/conference space with unobstructed views, standard highway truck. Furthermore, the loads from all and a long-span roof supporting the extremely heavy loads other construction equipment were accounted for in the load of a rooftop garden. analysis, meaning the construction sequencing plan needed The assembly building is the principle structure of the to be engineered and strictly adhered to throughout con- complex and accommodates conferences, worship services, struction. presentations, cultural and civic events. Designers balanced Degenkolb Engineers was selected by REFA Erection, the capacity needs of a large audience with the desire to Inc. to provide this service, as well as to engineer the crane create the ambience of an intimate gathering place. In order picks, the steel stability during erection and the two shoring to accomplish this, the seating area was terraced with towers. Degenkolb was also responsible for the load several seating levels, including a 110-foot cantilevered capacity of the roadway. The erection of the structural steel balcony. canopy was completed ahead of schedule without mishap to The design team, KPFF Consulting Engineers, Zimmer the workers. REFA Erection, Inc. and Degenkolb Engineers Gunsul Frasca Partnership, was charged with designing a safely erected 1,010 tons of structural steel above the structure that would honor the physical, historical and unsuspecting public. The finished steel and glass canopy spiritual significance of the Temple, and the Tabernacle. allows airport visitors to walk to and from their cars to the The solution was to design a building with a large portion terminal without feeling a single drop of rain. submerged below grade and to landscape the roof, creating a series of terraces that conform to the sloping site and SIX FIRMS ACHIEVE “GRAND reflect the surrounding landscape. The client, design team, and general contractors accomplished this on an extremely AWARD” FROM 23 ENTRIES short schedule while creating a building that will be of pride AMEC EARTH & ENVIRONMENTAL, INC. to many future generations. KPDX FOX 49 Transmission Tower Remedial Stabilization Superbowl Sunday 2000 offered more excitement for Fox 49 television than just airing the game. That day, a freak windstorm with gusts of 50 miles an hour rocked the station’s West Hills broadcast tower. Fox engineers noticed the tower’s supporting guy wires violently oscillating and slapping in the storm winds. Normally, these anchored two-inch-thick cables have very little movement. On that day, random and potentially damaging cable motion, with amplitudes on the order of 40 feet, were observed.