Civil & Environmental Engineering

Building on our Legacy: Strategic Directions for the Future

Civil engineering deals with the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of large-scale infrastructure systems that support and sustain society. These systems include buildings, roadways, bridges, dams, levees, pipelines, water treatment systems, and many others. Environmental engineering, a field that focuses on environmental infrastructure and natural systems, deals with the analysis and design of systems to protect and sustainably manage our natural resources.

As an integrated whole, the civil and environmental engineering profession is a driving force in the development of a society that is in harmonious coexistence with the natural environment; our primary task is to ensure that technological progress does not come at the expense of environmental quality or public health.

In the United States, the second half of the 20th century was an unprecedented period of major infrastructure expansion. Civil and environmental engineers are now tackling the complex challenge of managing and building upon

Building on our Legacy

Strategic Directions for the Future

the rapidly aging inventory of infrastructure while protecting the natural environment.

The department of Civil and Environ-mental Engineering at the University of Michigan is a leader in this effort. We’re building on our enduring legacy to tackle some of the most complex challenges facing our society and our planet.

Increasingly, we recognize the intrinsic vulnerabilities that exist at points of connection between the various components, processes, and technologies that comprise civil and environmental engineering infrastructure systems and their interface with natural environmental systems. Because traditional element-by-element approaches are insufficient, our field is moving toward framing problems based on the interconnectivity and interdependence of system components, processes and technologies. As a result, civil and environmental engineers are working across scales and disciplines to design, construct, operate, and manage more robust and resilient infrastructure systems that sustainably coexist with the natural environment.

Our MissionAs a leading educational and research institution, we are driving the development of innovative technologies that:

enhance the performance and sustainability of civil and environmental infrastructure systems;

have a favorable impact on the natural environment; and

manage complex issues at the intersection of built and natural systems.

We are committed to solving major societal problems by providing forward-looking education, enhancing multidisciplinary research, and performing broad-based service.

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Electro-fishing at inlet to San Pedro River, Valdivia Region of Chile, as part of a joint course with University of Michigan and University of Concepcion (Chile) students.

A representation of the Baron Fork at Christie watershed, Oklahoma, in a spatially distributed hydrological model. Triangulated terrain surface (in front)

and spatial coverage of the basin with Next Generation Radar System (in back) are illustrated.

To accomplish our mission, we must:

provide an enriching educational environment, together with extracurricular and service opportunities, that prepare our students to:

• excel as leaders in the under standing, design, construction, operation and maintenance of civil and environmental infrastructural systems

• be ethical stewards of the built and natural environments, and

• adapt to an ever-changing profession through lifelong learning.

recruit, educate, and support students, researchers, staff, and faculty from diverse backgrounds, and provide them with the foundation to become global leaders;

enhance the department’s positive impact nationally and internationally, and make transformative contributions within the State of Michigan;

champion the translation of research findings into professional practice;

provide a technical foundation for shaping policy that addresses the complex issues facing civil and environmental infrastructure systems and the natural environment;

foster a leading-edge collaborative environment that is well-positioned to address high-impact research issues and provide solutions to critical societal challenges; and

foster and support the spirit of entrepreneurship among our students, faculty, and staff.

Our Goalso

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Strategic Directions

The field of civil and environmental engineering is quickly adapting to effectively address many of the growing societal and technological challenges that have emerged in the first decade of the 21st century. Specifically, six major forcing functions with far-reaching societal implications are acting as external pressure points that are transforming the focus, and even the identity, of the civil and environmental engineering profession.

UrbanizationSteady rises in the global population have led to an alarming increase in human density in the inhabited regions of the world. Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in dense urban centers, with the fastest increase in urban growth occurring in the developing world. In particular, the emergence of “megacities” (cities with populations of 10 million or more) results in complex societal centers with a host of substantial engineering challenges that have a profound impact on quality of life and future growth. In developed nations,

megacities increase user demand on aging infrastructure, and are often situated near waterways and in zones vulnerable to natural hazards. In developing nations, the growth of megacities often occurs before complete development of the civil and environmental infrastructure, leading to chaotic and unsustainable growth.

Energy Security

There is growing concern over how depletion of fossil fuels will drive global changes in environmental quality, population growth, economic growth, and geopolitical stability. Although the West constitutes only a small percentage of the world’s population, it is the largest consumer of global energy. In fact, buildings in Western countries consume 40 percent of the world’s energy and 71 percent of electricity generated in the United States. The rate of increase in developing nations’ energy consumption is staggering, and raises concerns over energy security and investments in the development of alternative energy sources. These developments require that energy become a primary variable in the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of civil and environmental infrastructure systems, and in our efforts to protect the natural environment.

Motivating Factors

Resilient Interdependent Systems Engineering

WaterAlong with the increasing demand for energy, the shifting location of water supply--due to climate change, urbanization, and population growth--will require renewed efforts to meet the world’s needs for clean water in the 21st century. Development of new energy sources and continued use of existing technologies will place enormous demands on both water supply and quality. The disappearance of natural water reserves due to climate change will force millions of people to relocate closer to sources of clean water. This will require civil and environmental engineers to develop new water quality and supply management strategies and treatment technologies, and to design, construct, operate, and maintain these technologies and systems to meet the world’s water needs for future generations.

Climate Change

Climate change is fundamentally altering the context in which we interact with the natural environment, and existing approaches for understanding and shaping our environment may no longer be sustainable. For example, basing predictions of extreme events on historical statistics is not reliable in an evolving climate. Such fundamental changes call for new resilient and sustainable strategies to help develop a more harmonious interface between humans and the natural environment.

Resilient Interdependent Systems Engineering

Aging InfrastructureThe last major wave of infrastructure expansion in the U.S. took place in the two decades following World War II. As many of these infrastructure systems approach the end of their intended design lives, deterioration and damage to key components are increasingly common. Recent studies by the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) have cited alarming levels of widespread deterioration within the national infrastructure inventory. For instance, ASCE estimates that $1.6 trillion is needed to restore the nation’s infrastructure to good condition. Simultaneously, the economic resources necessary to ensure the safe and efficient operation of the national infrastructure is declining at an alarming rate. For example, transportation infrastructure in the U.S. is under fiscal distress and threatens transportation repair and upkeep. Creative solutions are needed to effect economic and sustainable rehabilitation and renewal of aging infrastructure.

Natural and Human-Influenced HazardsExtreme events pose significant challenges to humankind and the built and natural environments. Such events may be naturally occurring (e.g. seismic activity, major wind storms, hurricanes) or may be induced through human activity (e.g. fundamental changes in frequency, duration, and intensity of weather events related to climate change or damage to ecosystems from contaminant releases). Major seismic events in the United States (e.g., Loma Prieta in 1989 and Northridge in 1994), massive hurricanes (e.g., Katrina in 2005 and Ike in 2008),

environmental damage from energy resource extraction activities (e.g. the 2010 BP oil spill), sustained droughts, and terrorist attacks (e.g. Oklahoma City and 9/11) have revealed a lack of resiliency in infrastructure systems that are increasingly interdependent. Collaborations involving civil and environmental engineers are needed to understand, forecast, mitigate impacts, and quickly recover from the consequences of extreme events.

Human-InfrastructureInterface

These are complex issues that no one specialty area will be able to solve alone. However, by working together with a broad range of disciplines, the civil and environmental engineering profession is well positioned to make significant, high-impact contributions that will fundamentally address the technological challenges of these identified pressure points. In shaping the strategic direction of the department, we have identified the following grand challenges:

Enhancing Innovation, Performance, and SafetyEmerging technologies offer unprecedented opportunities for the transformation of engineering into a more innovative and productive profession capable of offering advancements characterized by great societal impact. Proactive adoption of new technologies emerging from other disciplines coupled with ongoing

Grand Challenges

innovation within the discipline will enable the civil and environmental engineering profession to maintain its technological and business supremacy in the competitive global economy. For example, in 2008, the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) highlighted the need for more automation in construction as a key requirement to successfully meet the identified national engineering grand challenge of restoring and improving urban infrastructure in the 21st century. Many of the technologies being developed within the profession include sensing, cyber-infrastructure, multifunctional materials, and high-performance computing technologies. Furthermore, entrepreneurial education and strong professional support of new business models are vital to ensure that U.S. and global civil and environmental engineering businesses remain viable within the world marketplace.

Human-InfrastructureInterface

Framing for the exterior masonry work on the Michigan Stadium renovation (photo by Jay Kohler and winning entry of the 2009 CEE Photo Competition).

Exploiting Opportunities at the Bio-Physical Interface

Over the past two decades, the biological sciences have played a significant role in the advancement of environmental engineering technology. A key challenge for the environmental engineering profession is keeping pace with the rapid rate of discovery occurring in the biological sciences. Challenges exist at the bio-physical interface at all spatial scales from modeling microbial communities at the micro-scale to understanding

the performance of ecological systems existing at the macro-scale. Outside environmental engineering, basic biological principles have not been applied to the civil infrastructure domain despite having significant potential to impact it. Improvements in understanding the evolutionary design of natural systems are leading to revolutionary advances in the domain of physical systems through the use of bio-mimetic and bio-inspired design principles. A grand challenge for our profession is how to accelerate the development of next-generation infrastructure systems through bio-inspired design. In tandem with the increasing importance of biology and biologically inspired design in civil and environmental engineering is the challenge of appropriately incorporating principles of biological systems within the broad-based CEE curriculum.

Sustainable and Resilient Water Systems Management

Climate change adaptation and mitigation, urbanization, and the development of alternative energy production technologies will impact the availability of freshwater resources throughout the world. There is a

need to quantify these potential impacts, as well as develop water quality management approaches and multi-stakeholder water allocation strategies that are resistant to these changes. For example, water stress will force dramatic changes in water resource management and advances in water treatment technologies, such as the development of water treatment options that are appropriate for recovering resources (clean water, energy, nutrients) from natural water sources. The management of water resources for maintaining human and ecosystem services will invariably require novel monitoring and modeling approaches for evaluating and predicting the impacts of a changing environment. In addition, the economics of producing or preserving water will play an increasingly prominent role in the development of policy, regulation, and management decisions surrounding water supply. As the number of stakeholders increases, the challenges and opportunities increase. Given our proximity to the largest freshwater supply in the world through the Great Lakes basin, ample opportunities exist for developing and demonstrating new and innovative approaches in one of the most relevant testbeds.

Vegetation on Slopes of N-S Aspect. On left,

north facing slopes and convergent areas.

On right, south facing slopes with drier, less

vegetated slopes.

Sustainable Building and Infrastructure Systems

Sustainability will be a major theme for the civil and environmental profession over the next several decades. Challenges range from the development of green construction materials, to the use of designs that incorporate power generation and natural-air ventilation within buildings. Material selection, construction techniques, and system designs will be decided on the basis of an economic and environmental life-cycle assessment, all with consideration for societal impact, and will motivate the sustainable design, construction, operation, and maintenance of buildings and infrastructure systems.

The U-M Structural Engineering Laboratory is well suited for large-scale testing of structural components and systems under various loading conditions, including earthquake-type loading (photo credit: U-M Photo Services).

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Infrastructure systems will be designed to mitigate risks from extreme events, including earthquakes, floods, and fire, and to minimize the impact on the natural environment while enhancing the human experience with the built environment. Embedded sensors will be used to monitor the response of infrastructure systems to normal and extreme loadings and extreme events, as well as to alert engineers when a structure is compromised.

Educating the Next Generation of Engineers

The engineering profession is rapidly evolving, as technical, societal, economic, and professional factors redefine its role in society. These grand challenges require our education system to adapt. Furthermore, the

NAE has cited an increasing need for engineers to develop strong analytical and critical thinking skills, exercise civic responsibility through ethical decision-making, and act as leaders in an arena that extends beyond the traditional engineering disciplines.

The next generation of engineers need to be

global, using a skill set best developed through international educational and internship experiences;

capable of working effectively in teams, with stakeholders, across disciplines and beyond cultural barriers while maintaining technical depth in their discipline;

able to incorporate sustainability principles in engineering design decisions; and

business-savvy and entrepreneurial.

Curricula will necessarily undergo an evolution that provides opportunities for students to obtain these skills as part of their degree program.

The CEE Capstone Design Course, CEE 402, involves a real, multifaceted design problem and instruction provided by a team of practicing engineers and faculty.

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Michigan has identified five strategic directions that will drive our efforts over the next 10 years:

Resilient Interdependent Systems EngineeringRecent natural hazards have revealed that the traditional component-by-component design approach has left society’s infrastructure systems vulnerable at their points of interconnection. We believe that resilient interdependent systems engineering is a necessary and strategic direction for research and educational activities within the Department. We will build on our historical leadership position in the design of individual infrastructure components to advance the field’s understanding of the interaction

Strategic Directions

between components that comprise infrastructure systems. As part of this strategic direction, we will consider the intrinsic relationship between infrastructure systems and the natural environment to ensure the principles of sustainable design can be successfully implemented. Finally, we seek to incorporate systems-level perspectives throughout our curriculum so that graduates are well equipped to be leaders in the design and analysis of infrastructure and natural systems.

Human-Infrastructure Interface

We will advance the design of more efficient and sustainable habitable spaces, intelligent transportation systems, electric and other energy grids, and water systems by incorporating human behavior into the infrastructure design process.

Water Systems

Microalgae are grown to learn more about their design characteristics to assist with their use as an alternative resource recovery technology for wastewater treatment (photo credit: U-M Photo Services).

As infrastructure components and systems become more automated, monitored, and computerized (i.e., “smart”), humans will interact with and adapt to them in ways not previously imagined. In turn,

the “smart” infrastructure system will adapt its function dynamically in response to the data collected. In this way, infrastructure systems and humans will become increasingly linked in ways that enhance the resiliency of the built and natural environments, and quality of life.

Water SystemsWe will build on existing expertise in the profession to develop a new paradigm for holistically examining water systems, focusing on the complex interfaces that exist between related natural and built infrastructure systems that affect water quality and availability. These include: the human-natural-infrastructure interfaces, the interactions between water and energy production/use,

the interface between water and global environmental health, and water security. We will also focus on the performance and resiliency of infrastructure systems used to deliver potable water (e.g., pipelines, decentralized water systems) and to control the movement of water near urban centers (e.g., levees, canals, dams). We will incorporate this holistic view of natural and built water systems into undergraduate and graduate courses throughout the department.

Informatics We will champion the development and adoption of high-performance simulation tools and peta-scale data handling technologies to allow our profession to more accurately observe, model, forecast, and control the behavior of civil and environmental infrastructure systems and the natural environment. Simulation models, calibrated with data gathered from pervasive sensor networks, will enhance the resilience and adaptability of infrastructure systems to various environmental and human-influenced hazards, and will enhance our understanding of human infrastructure and activities on natural systems. Benefits include more sustainable development and operation of infrastructure systems,

A demonstration of visualization tools through use of outdoor augmented reality to simulate construction operations (image credit: Vineet Kamat).

Computational structural simulation is used to study how a building responds when a critical column is obliterated by a blast (image credit: Sherif El-Tawil).

improved stewardship of the natural environment, and enhanced productivity in an increasingly competitive global marketplace. Students will be exposed to these paradigm-shifting tools to enable their use in research now and in future practice.

Innovative and Global Education We will leverage the pedagogical expertise and enthusiasm within our department, college, and university to educate and support

competent, innovative, well-rounded, creative, and global civil and environmental engineers of tomorrow. We will achieve this through a broad-based and balanced educational approach that includes a scientific foundation and essential engineering fundamentals, strong professional ethics, and the ability to communicate across both disciplinary and international boundaries. Our students will engage in innovative problem-solving to find sustainable solutions for the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of infrastructure and natural systems worldwide.

Informatics

The steel frame of the recently completed North Quadrangle building on Central Campus (photo by Tim Mekaru).

The Narada wireless sensor designed at the University of Michigan for monitoring large civil infrastructure systems (photo by Mike Kane).

In order to make significant progress on each of these Strategic Directions over the next decade, we have defined Specific Actions that will guide our course over the next three years.

Monitoring and Management of Infrastructure and Natural Systems

Foster data-driven discovery through ubiquitous installation of sensors in infrastructure and natural systems, both within and at the interconnection points between systems.

Specific Actions

Adopt bio-inspired design principles in the design of sensors and actuators for monitoring and control of infrastructure systems.

Analysis, Modeling, and Simulation for Evaluation of Risk, Reliability, and Resilience

Adopt risk and reliability-based methods to quantify the vulnerability and resiliency of infrastructure and natural systems exposed to multi-hazard scenarios.

Develop models that capture the interdependencies between human behavior and the built and natural environments.

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Engineered cementitious composite (ECC), also known as bendable concrete, is micromechanically analyzed and designed at the University of Michigan (photo credit: U-M Photo Services).

Improve our capability to predict the behavior of built infrastructure systems and forecast water quantity and quality with the use of high-performance simulation technologies.

Multidisciplinary Interactions

Develop formal interactions with social and behavioral scientists in the design and control of interconnected infrastructure systems.

Engage policymakers regarding the impact of policy decisions on the sustainability of water systems in both the developed and developing worlds.

Sustainable Design and Production

Develop cross-disciplinary teams to lead research and teaching efforts focused on sustainable design, construction, operation, and maintenance of buildings and infrastructure systems that coexist harmoniously with the natural environment.

Design sustainable systems to meet environmental and public health needs.

Develop automation and simulation technologies that enhance the productivity and safety of our profession.

Develop technologies that allow society to adapt to climate and other changes.

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Innovative and Global Education

Students participating in the University of Michigan Graham Scholars project-based course. Students investigated a proposed hydropower development in Patagonian Chile.

Education

Incorporate sustainability and a systems perspective into undergraduate and graduate curricula.

Strengthen undergraduate and graduate curricula to help students develop a strong and balanced combination of theoretical, practical, analytical, and creative problem-solving skills.

Prepare our students to become competent engineers with the skills to become inventors and global leaders through multidisciplinary communication skills and international experiences.

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Water samples taken from various locations in a drinking water treatment and distribution system are filtered to capture microbial biomass, which is used for high throughput DNA sequencing to allow identification of the microorganisms present.

THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

Julia Donovan Darlow, Ann Arbor

Laurence B. Deitch, Bingham Farms

Denise Ilitch, Bingham Farms

Olivia P. Maynard, Goodrich

Andrea Fischer Newman, Ann Arbor

Andrew C. Richner, Grosse Pointe Park

S. Martin Taylor, Grosse Pointe Farms

Katherine E. White, Ann Arbor

Mary Sue Coleman, ex officio

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The University of Michigan, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University of Michigan is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, height, weight, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions. Inquiries or complaints may be addressed to the Senior Director for Institutional Equity, and Title IX/Section 504/ADA Coordinator, Office of Institutional Equity, 2072 Administrative Services Building, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1432, 734-763-0235, TTY 734-647-1388. For other University of Michigan information call 734-764-1817.

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

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Civil & Environmental Engineeringhttp://cee.umich.edu