Orange County Branch Newsletter County Branch Newsletter ... Meire Weishaupt 949.215.7783 ... were...

Orange County BranchNewsletter

Published Monthly By the ASCE, Orange County Branch July 2007

by

Yazdan Emrani, PE

CONTACT ASCE:OC Branch

www.asceoc.org714-258-8390

•Los Angeles Sectionwww.ascelasection.org

714-258-8306•

ASCE Nationalwww.asce.org

1-800-548-ASCE

“Winner of the 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 Regions 8 & 9 Awards for Outstanding Branch and Newsletter”

In ThisIssue

President’s Message . . . 1,2,17Board of DirectorsCommittee Chairs . . . . . . . . . . . 2Secretary’s Column . . . . . . . 3,7Calendar of Events . . . . . . . . . . 4Press Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Branch News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Legislative News . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Spotlight on Infrastructure . . . . . 8University News . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Advertisement . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Luncheon Meeting . . . . . . . . . .11Thank You . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12PE Review Course . . . . . . . . .12Letters to Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . 12EmploymentOpportunities . . . . . . . . . . . 13-16Student Assistance Fund Donors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-19Membership Info . . . . . . . . . . . 20

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Thursday, July 19th, 2007. TOPIC: Status Report on Implementation of the 2006 Infrastruc-ture Bonds SPEAKER: Chris McKenzie, Director, League of California Cities LOCATION: The Costa Mesa Hilton, Costa Mesa, CA TIME: 11:30 am – Social 12:00 pm – Lunch 1:00pm – Program See fl yer included on page 11 of this newsletter for more details.

JULYNOTICE

“MASTERING CIVIL ENGINEERING”

Unlike doctors and lawyers that have to go to Medical School, and Law School, respectively, after they earn their four

year degree, engineers don’t. That much is a fact. Whether or not engineers, specifi cally, civil engineers, need to go to graduate school and earn their master’s degree before they start work is subject of a hot debate among engineers and engineering faculty members that has been raging now for quite a while. Just like everyone else, I have my opinion or more of a preference on this issue, but this is one topic that in my view, there is no right or wrong answer, and regardless of where we stand, changes in technology, increased specialization, and market demands will chart the course for future of this topic. Be that as it may, we need to be involved in this dialog and discussion and make our voices heard. ASCE has been in the forefront of leading the discussion on whether the master’s degree should be the fi rst professional degree for civil engineers. In 1999, ASCE held a landmark workshop that assembled civil engineers from across the country to examine issues having the greatest impact on the civil engineering community. The issue of “Master’s

Degree” as the fi rst professional degree ranked in the top three issues affecting civil engineers. The workshop made the following conclusion on this topic: “Increased globalization, advances in information technology, the accelerated introduction of new technologies, and increased diversity in our society have created a market requiring civil engineers to both have greater breadth of capability and specialized technical competence than required of previous generations. Increasingly civil engineers must take on different primary

roles from that of designer to that of team leader. Because of these increased demands to perform at a professional level, it may be time for governmental units, employers of civil engineers, and other organizations to consider a master’s degree as the

fi rst professional degree for the practice of civil engineering at the professional level”. It further concluded that “Such a change, however, raises a host of concerns and questions: Is academic preparation more important than experience? Will requiring a master’s degree deter young people from entering the fi eld? Will it have an adverse effect on academic institutions without graduate programs?” These are all good questions.

“The result of the educative process is capacity for further education.” John Dewey

Continued on page 2

2 ASCE OC-Newsletter • July 2007

OC BranchAmerican Society of Civil Engineers

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSONS

Yazdan Emrani, PE 714.982.5040x221President 714.982.5044 FAX

[email protected] Adrian, PE 714.939.1030Vice President 714.938.9488 FAX

[email protected] Rosenfield, PE 949.707.2655Treasurer 949.707.2633 FAX

[email protected] Shinkai, PE 714.327.1600Secretary 714.327.1601 FAX

[email protected] Hogan, PE 714.665.4500Past President 714.665.4501 FAX

[email protected]

Mike Hoolihan, PE 949.453.5553ASCE Website Co-Chair 949.453.0228 FAX

[email protected] Weishaupt 949.215.7783ASCE Website Co-Chair

[email protected] Heiertz, PE 949.453.5560Awards/Nominations 949.453.0228 FAX

[email protected] Ali, PE 714.751.7373Continuing Education 714.545.8883 FAX

[email protected] Meier, PE 714.550.7551History & Heritage 714.550.7551 FAX

[email protected] Emrani, PE 714.982.5040x221Infrastructure Report Card714.982.5044 FAX

[email protected] A. Lee 714.327.1600K-12 Outreach Co-Chair 714.327.1601 FAX

[email protected] Park, PE 714.327.1600K-12 Outreach Co-Chair 714.327.1601 FAX

[email protected] Mazboudi, PE 949.234.4413Legislative Chair

[email protected] McConville, PE 949.673.4475Life Member Forum

[email protected] Awad-Fromhertz 949.768.9112Marketing

[email protected] Ly, PE 714.720.4868Membership Co-Chair 714.938.0782 FAX

[email protected] Nabbout 714.871.9083Membership Co-Chair 714.871.3652 FAX

[email protected]. Bathala, PE 949.724.2994OCEC Liaison 949.724.2995 FAX

[email protected] Dybel, PE 949 499-7874Professional Practice

[email protected] Nelson, PE 626.333.0336Programs 626.336.7076 FAX

[email protected] Volz, PE 714.834.2037Publicity 714.834.5106 FAX

[email protected] Lomeli, Jr 714.327.1600Student Activities 714.327.1601 FAX

[email protected] Gilbert, PE 714.245.2920Younger Member Forum714.245.2950 FAX

[email protected]

TECHNICAL GROUP CHAIRPERSONS

Khashayar Hadipour, PhD, PE 818.226.6900Transportation

[email protected]

Roger Chung, PE 949.474.1401x271Hydrology & Hydraulics 949.261.8482 FAX

[email protected]

Now, let’s examine another dimension. Engineers have typically gravitated towards engineering so they can do technical work and not deal with administrative or god forbid political issues! Not to stereotype our profession, but the joke on us has been that accountants are more outgoing than civil engineers, because when they are having a conversation with someone they look at the other person’s shoes instead of their own! All kidding aside though, there is a grain of truth to that. You’ll fi nd doctors, lawyers, pharmacists, professors, business executives, and economists among the ranks of our leaders in the US Congress today, but there isn’t a single member of the House of Representatives or Senate that is a civil engineer. Even worse, civil engineers are a diminishing force in the top leadership posts of the state and federal agencies making critical decisions about our state and country’s infrastructure. Perhaps this is because the skill set now required to guide major agencies has become increasingly complex, requiring political, fundraising, and business management expertise to do an effective job. Yet these agencies are responsible for important decisions that require analytical skills and the ability to understand highly technical issues. In addition, a diverse public works agency is still grounded in the technical arena and its employees need a technically based leader they can respect and follow. Having civil engineers in top leadership posts helps to ensure sound technical decisions are made - decisions that render good policy, not just effective politics. So how do we regain the leadership roles in areas impacting our profession? ASCE has been advocating

and we at the Orange County Branch have been encouraging the initiative for regaining leadership roles in infrastructure agencies. Regaining leadership posts at the top can go a long way in helping to raise the visibility of our profession and important engineering, environmental, and technical issues. While we recognize that not all civil engineers have the broad perspective, experience, or even interest required to fi ll these top spots, we should, in my opinion, actively seek out, encourage, and support those civil engineers who do. C. Judson King, director of the Center for Studies in Higher Education at the University of California at Berkeley, and a professor emeritus of chemical engineering, wants to see a change in the way undergraduate engineers are educated. He sees engineering as a discipline in renaissance, as engineers increasingly enter the public policy, business and law sectors, or at least work more closely with professionals in those fi elds. In his own words, King “would like to see people with an engineering education go into government”. But King argues that the narrow, rigorous program required for an undergraduate engineering degree limits the amount of education engineering students get in other disciplines. King hopes to see the master’s degree, rather than the bachelor’s, become the true entry level degree for professional engineers.In King’s view, the undergraduate engineering program, “pre-engineering,” as he calls it, like pre-med or pre-law - should have a lighter engineering load so that students can get a broader liberal arts education. “The abilities of engineers to move into other areas is limited by the

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGEContinued from page 1

Continued on page 17

ASCE OC-Newsletter • July 2007 3

Young engineers starting their careers are smart, outgoing, energetic, and eager to learn new things. They are hip, listen to

iPods at their desk, and use their blackberry or cell phones to text their friends. They typically work hard, but have a clear cut work-style in which they don’t want work to be their life, and instead have their life be fun, exciting, and well balanced. These young engineers will take vacations at every opportunity and take every prospect to advance their career into consideration. Say hello to Generation Y, and the fi rst wave of them is just embarking in our multigenerational workplace. If you are a supervisor, manager or work with people that are Generation Y, you need to be ready for this generation who is very different from any generation that has come before. Generation Y, also known as “millennials” were born between 1977 to 2002, although some narrower defi nitions put them at people between the ages of 16 to 27 born from 1978 to 1989. Regardless, they have a completely new attitude from the Generation X’ers, which were born from 1965 to 1976. I am a late Generation X and we are currently seeing a shift in leadership from the Baby Boomers (Pre 1965) to Generation X as Baby Boomers are retiring. Both Baby Boomers and Generation X’ers in leadership positions now or in the future need to understand where Generation Y’s are coming from. Workplace tensions can easily arise if different generations don’t understand each other. If you thought Generation X was the only Generation you will see bringing new career ethics, think again. Generation Y is the fi rst defi nite generation that does not see themselves working for the same company for years and years. Is it lack of loyalty? Or perhaps a changing economy that supports this trend? With this competitive workplace, it’s important that supervisors, managers, and people working with them know what Generation Y’s are thinking. The following are characteristics of Generation Y’s: They balance work. Unlike Baby Boomers and Generations X’ers who tend to put career as a high priority, Generation Y’s are more interested in balancing work and fun. They work hard, but they also want fl exibility in their work schedule so they can keep family and social life at the top of their priority list. Considering that our civil engineering industry is in high demand, working long hours seems to be the norm at most companies. However, most Generation Y’s will work overtime hours if it is necessary, but will not see it as a requirement unless an employer tells them so. We are no longer in a time when people are expected to work long hours to advance in their career. As supervisors or managers, we shouldn’t think that just because an engineer only works their normal hours of 8 am to 5 pm that they are not dedicated to the company. Generation Y’s feel that social life is very important and will not put that in jeopardy for any job. We need to understand that or be prepared to lose some

good people because they do not fi t our mold of what a “good” employee is. They like change. Unlike Baby Boomers, they don’t want to stay at the same company for years or have the same assignment for a long time period of time. Generation X’ers will make changes to their jobs, but Generations Y’s will more likely make entire career changes or embark to build a parallel career. They feel that they are very valuable and will not be shy to say so, because they have high expectations for themselves, their company/employer, and their boss. Considering this, Generation Y is the

fi rst generation to really question how an employer benefi ts them, and this benefi t is not solely dependent on what number appears on their paycheck, although of course it is a consideration. Situations in which a supervisor hands out orders to their “workhorses” is slowly disappearing with this generation. With so many job opportunities in the market, employers cannot take a chance for employees to come to them and say that they are unhappy with what they are doing. They need to keep the Generation Y’s excited about work, and assign tasks that are challenging to them. It’s no longer acceptable to keep an engineer at the same position or the “expert” of a specifi c task. Generation Y’s don’t want to be pigeon-holed doing the same thing day in and day out. Once they have learned the specifi c task, they want to move on and learn new things or at the very least be included in understanding the overall picture of a project. “Why?” You may ask? Because Generation Y’s needs answers to questions, and broad “do your work at the expense of all else” attitudes are not cutting it anymore. They are very comfortable with technology. Unlike Baby Boomers who don’t know how to use or are still learning the computers and software programs, Generation Y’s grew up with technology right beside them. Baby Boomers are reluctant to learn new technology and the Generation X’ers have learned on the job or in college, but many times wait for the opportunity for someone to teach them these skills. The difference is that generation Y’s grew up with this technology readily available and the comfort level far exceeds that of any other generation. Generation Y’s want to learn new computer advancements, jump at the chance to do so, and are excited to fi gure out a much more effi cient way of doing a task. Another trend difference is that Baby Boomers tend to do in-person meetings, Generation X’ers do business by phone or email, and Generation Y’s want to do business mostly by e-mail. If computer technology can suffi ce, Generation Y’s would rather use this system instead. For example, our company is starting to use instant messaging and web-cams within all our offi ces. The Baby Boomers learned this technology at one of our meetings, but have not used it as much, whereas the late Generation X’ers and Y’s are using it on a daily basis.

SECRETARY’S COLUMN

ByKathereen Shinkai, PE

THE NEXT GENERATION: GENERATION Y

Continued on page 7


Pile Dynamics celebrates 35 years

Pile Dynamics, Inc.(PDI), the leading manufacturer of quality assurance instruments for deep foundations, is celebrating 35 years of existence in 2007. The company was founded

in May of 1972 and has grown to a 30+ employee operation with worldwide sales. At the time of its incorporation PDI manufactured only one instrument, the Pile Driving Analyzer® (PDA), along with its associated software CAPWAP®. By providing a “Dynamic Testing” alternative to often costly and diffi cult to perform Static Load Tests, PDA and CAPWAP represented a major breakthrough in the approach to determine foundation bearing capacity. PDI has since expanded its product line to encompass quality assurance solutions for all types of deep foundations. Among current products are a Cross-Hole Analyzer to tests drilled shafts by the crosshole sonic logging (CSL) method and an Automated Monitoring Equipment for auger cast-in-place (CFA) piles, known as PIR-A. The original PDA has undergone signifi cant improvements since 1972, most recently with the introduction of a model – PAX - that allows engineers to perform Dynamic Foundation Testing via the Internet. For more information on company history, line of products and dynamic foundation testing methodology visit www.pile.com.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERSOrange County Branch of the LA Section

DATE& DAY EVENT TIME LOCATIONJuly-07 14 OC YMF Baseball Night Angles vs. Texas 4:00 PM Anaheim, CA17 OC YMF Board Meeting 6:00 PM Santa Ana, CA19 OC Branch Regular Lunch Meeting 11:30 AM Hilton Hotel, Costa Mesa, CA31 OC Branch Board Meeting 7:00 AM 1405 Warner Avenue, Tustin, CA August-07 2 OC YMF PE Review Class 6:30 PM Santa Ana, CA16-19 YMF Retreat Yosemite All Day Yosemite, CA16 OC Branch Regular Lunch Meeting 11:30 AM Hilton Hotel, Costa Mesa, CA21 OC YMF Board Meeting 6:00 PM Santa Ana, CA28 OC Branch Board Meeting 7:00 AM 1405 Warner Avenue, Tustin, CASeptember-07 18 OC YMF Board Meeting 6:00 PM Santa Ana, CA20 OC Branch Regular Lunch Meeting 11:30 AM Hilton Hotel, Costa Mesa, CA25 OC Branch Board Meeting 7:00 AM 1405 Warner Avenue, Tustin, CA

PRESS RELEASE


BRANCH NEWS

JOINT APWA LUNCHEON MEETINGOn June 29th, ASCE had a joint meeting with APWA. There were over 170 ASCE/APWA members who attended this

very successful event. Caltrans District 7,8, and 12 Directors discussed what projects are in store for the engineering

community based on Proposition 1B Bond. Proposition 1B Bond will raise $19.9 billion to reduce congestion, enhance

goods movement in the state, boost public transportation, and improve safety and security.

Raja Mitwasi, Chief Deputy District Director for Caltrans District 7: Los Angeles and Ventura Counties

Michael Perovich, District Director for Caltrans District 8: San Bernardino & Riverside Counties

(From left) Yazdan Emrani, President of ASCE Orange County Branch, Michael Perovich, District Director for Caltrans District 8, Cindy Quon, District Director for Caltrans District 12, Raja Mitwasi, Chief Deputy District Director for Caltrans District 7, Ismile Noorbaksh, President of APWA Southern California Chapter, and Shahnawaz Ahmad, Delegate of APWA Southern California Chapter.

Cindy Quon, District Director for Caltrans District 12: Orange County


LEADERSHIP

THE “BIG 5” CHALLENGES IN LIFEBy Dr. John C. Maxwell

Successful people do not have less challenging lives than those who do not succeed. In fact, they may go through even greater challenges. What causes

the separation? Successful people respond to diffi culties differently.

It’s easy to have a great attitude when things are going our way. Attitude doesn’t become the difference maker until challenges arise. In this edition of Leadership Wired, we’ll look at “The Big 5,” a list of the top challenges experienced by leaders, and we’ll discuss steps to develop an appropriate attitude toward each challenge.

1. DiscouragementOver the course of my life, I’ve discovered that every leader gets discouraged. Plans fail, dreams drift out of range, or goals suffer setbacks. However, not every leader responds to discouragement the same way. Attitude dictates whether a discouraged leader will give up or get up.

Dealing Effectively With Discouragement(1) Get the Right Perspective.(2) See the Right People.(3) Say the Right Words.

2. ProblemsJust as every leader gets discouraged, so every leader runs into problems. When facing problems, adjusting your attitude can be a precursor to adjusting your situation. Remember: change on the outside always follows the change on the inside.

Principles for Handling Problems(1) Defi ne What A Problem Is(2) Anticipate Problems(3) Embrace Each Problem as a Potential Opportunity.

3. ChangeChange is an unavoidable and often unwelcome part of life. Change pushes us away from comfort by refusing to let us settle. By constantly forcing us to adapt, change sparks growth in our lives.

Coming to Terms with Change(1) Determine that Change Will Be an Ongoing Part of Life.(2) Make a Commitment to Pay the Price for Change.(3) Decide What You Are Not Willing to Change.

Leaders have a general openness to change, but they

refuse to be swayed in their convictions such as faith, values, and family.

4. FearFear has the ability to exaggerate itself and spread throughout our life. When fear grips us, we are frozen and incapable of action. Worrisome thoughts fi ll our mind with distractions, and we are powerless to be productive.

How to “Fix” Your Fears(1) Discover the Foundation of Fear.(2) Accept Fear as the Price of Progress.(3) Feed the Right Emotion, Starve the Wrong One.

Many times we cannot hope to avoid the emotion of fear. Despite our best efforts to have courage, fear settles into the pit of our stomach like a rock. We may never eliminate fear, but we can refuse to let it dominate. If we act according to hope and optimism, eventually our action will transform our emotions.

5. Failure

I have seen many leaders with self-sabotaging traits stemming from an unhealthy perspective toward failure. Some leaders live with a nagging sense of impending failure. They don’t believe they are good enough to succeed, and sooner or later they fulfi ll their self-expectations of failure. Other leaders refuse to take risks. By sticking to safe paths, they assure themselves of failing to have signifi cant impact. Still other leaders allow failures to derail them. They see failure as a personal indictment rather than a step in the ongoing process of their growth as a leader.

How to Profi t From Failure(1) Change Your Vocabulary.(2) Keep a Sense of Humor.(3) Make Failure a Learning Experience

We should never walk away from failure empty-handed. Each failure comes with lessons attached, and we can learn invaluable principles from them. Attitude, the difference maker, is the one thing that enables a leader to rise above these challenges.

“This article is used by permission from Dr. John C. Maxwell’s free monthly e-newsletter ‘Leadership Wired’ available at www.maximumimpact.com”


They want constant feedback. Unlike Baby Boomers who were completely satisfi ed with annual reviews, Generation Y’s want feedback and recognition from their bosses. They want to know how they are doing, and want ongoing goals that can be reached sooner rather than later. They want to make sure that they are being mentored and want to learn something new constantly or become bored. Generation X’ers expect feedback from bosses occasionally, but they don’t want to be micromanaged and to some extent want autonomy. Generation Y’s expect their bosses to be easily available to answer their needs, and if they don’t receive constant feedback, they are not satisfi ed and may start looking for other opportunities elsewhere. They want perks. Unlike baby boomers who expected perks when they have seniority in a company, Generation Y’s will seek perks such as time-off and a fl exible working schedule. They will negotiate perks and make sure they are maximizing what they can get even before they start working for that company. If you take a look at the salaries of college graduates that are just starting their careers, it is substantially higher than when some of the late Generation X’s were getting out of school. It is to the point that a person who has ten years of experience may not differ too much in salary compared to a person who just graduated. This might be another interesting topic to explore in another article. Regardless, the Generation Y’s defi nitely know how to get what they are worth. With the above items said, Baby Boomers and perhaps some Generation X’ers often times have misconceptions of the Generation Y’s. Here are a couple of myths that employers think of Generation Y’s. They are disloyal. Generation Y strongly disagrees. We are in an era in which nothing is a sure thing. I think we can all attest to this as companies downsize or circumstances change. People don’t stay and work at a company for 20-plus years anymore. However, this doesn’t mean that Generation Y’s don’t want to stay or are exhibiting a lack of commitment. They just want companies to be fair and provide them the same opportunities even if they are younger. They are looking for more personal relations and want to make sure that the companies are looking out for their well being. They don’t want to pay their dues or are not attentive. Baby boomers and, to some extent, some Generation X’ers feel that the Generation Y’s need to work as hard as they did in order climb the ladder. They expect Generation Y’s to work long hours, and if they don’t, it’s assumed that they are not dedicated to their work. The fact is, Generation Y’s have adapted to the technologies and can get things done a lot faster and much more effi ciently. Also, priorities have shifted. Many Generation Y’s have parents and grandparents (Baby Boomers) who were workaholics. With the opportunities for self-advancement in today’s world and the availability of being a well-rounded individual, many Generation Y’s are asking themselves if working 60-hour weeks is worth it. Nowadays, employers are less likely to award status or authority based on seniority. More and more

awards are based on short term measurable goals. Project managers and supervisors need to make sure that they don’t compare themselves when they were at the same age or position/status level and think that Generation Y’s need to work as much as they did to get to where they are. It’s no longer those times, and this generation is different. If we don’t make a commitment to understand this and change our viewpoint, we may not only miss out but also incur a costly lesson by being forced to constantly train new employees. They need constant praise. Without a doubt, Generation Y’s would like to be rewarded for every effort regardless of whether it is small. However, this does not mean they need to be rewarded each time. It just means that proper praise needs to be given for a good job done. In this civil engineering industry, we shouldn’t take things for granted in any case. It’s diffi cult to fi nd “good” engineers as it is. We need to make sure these engineers get proper recognition. Overall, as supervisors or as managers, we need to be well aware of the different generations we have in the industry. People all work differently, but the Generation Y’s and the generations after that will be a tough crowd to please. We need to take into consideration all these characteristics, and always take a step back and evaluate the situation. We can’t compare them to what we had to deal with years ago or how much time we spent to climb the ladder. Although, there is work that needs to be done by all, the next generation is expecting a lot more from the companies and we need to be ready to respond to them. Also, perhaps we can learn a little about balancing and prioritizing in our own lives. We all have different priorities and just because someone else’s priorities may be different, this does not make that person less valuable or less focused, it simply means their priorities are different.

LEGISLATIVE NEWS

SECRETARY’S COLUMN

Continued from page 3

OC Legislative Committee Meeting

Wednesday July 11, 2007From Noon-1:00 p.m.

At Hall and Foreman offi ces

420 Exchange, Suite 100

Irvine, CA 92602

The Committee meets regularly

every 2nd Wednesday of the month.

For more information,

please contact Ziad Mazboudi at:

949-234-4413, or

e-mail at

[email protected]


SPOTLIGHT ON INFRASTRUCTURE

PARK EXPANSION/RENOVATION IN FOUNTAIN VALLEY

By Mark Lewis, Director of Public Works/City Engineer for the City of Fountain Valley

The City of Fountain Valley recently awarded a $17 mil-lion construction contract to Valley Crest and a $1.5 million construction management/inspection contract

to Willdan for expansion/renovation of the Fountain Valley Recreation Center in Mile Square Park. Within the one mile square County regional park known as Mile Square Park, the City of Fountain Valley has controlled and operated a 55 acre recreation and sports park off of Brookhurst Street for over 40 years. There have been multiple expansions to this park throughout the years. Each expansion was created simply as an add-on to existing park facilities without much in the way of master planning. Several years ago, when the County of Orange acquired the “triangle” portion within Mile Square Park from the Navy to construct a third golf course and expand the County park, the City of Fountain Valley se-cured an additional 23 acres to once again expand its por-tion of the park. The most recent land acquisition gave the City the op-portunity to not only expand facilities to meet the growing needs for sports and recreational uses in the community but to also look at the entire, now 78 acre, park from a master plan standpoint. Recognizing that 23 acres of land in north central Orange County doesn’t come along often, the City viewed this as perhaps the last, best chance to add-on to and re-shape the existing park to provide a well planned, smooth fl owing sports and recreational complex that could endure another 40-50 years. With community, youth sport group, and other stakeholder interests, the blueprint for expansion began to unveil. After several years of grueling design and re-design efforts to work a project within the City’s budget, while chasing the rocket of rising construction costs, the City and community of Fountain Valley is excited about the start of construction on June 25, 2007. The existing 55 acre park has a number of baseball, softball, and soccer fi eld overlays, outdoor basketball courts, tennis courts, a recreation building including a gymnasium, indoor racquetball, and recreation rooms. It also has a less than

desirable parking and circulation scheme. Because the park had been expanded in pieces, the main circulation route through the park is the drive aisle of several parking areas. The expansion/renovation project will provide for 9 youth baseball fi elds, 6 softball fi elds, 3 dedicated soccer fi elds, 2 soccer overlays; the tennis courts, basketball courts, and recreation building all remain in their existing confi guration. The 23 acre expansion area will be the home to the softball fi elds and include two new restroom/concession buildings with one including a staff offi ce for events. The softball area is designed to allow the City to consider many options for operations/maintenance of this area. In addition to the many sports facilities included in the new park are several passive recreational components such as a great lawn area adja-cent to a stage area where the City hosts concerts in the park and other events, a perimeter walking/jogging trail that circumnavigates the perimeter of the park and provides a connection to the County regional park, and a diverse pallet of trees, shrubs, and groundcover. A large centralized play structure area is also included in the new plans. The parking and circulation are greatly improved in the new design. An additional access point off Brookhurst Street is being created. This will provide circulation to the softball fi eld areas in the expanded 23 acres. No longer will the main fl ow of traffi c be required to drive through parking aisles. A central park road with a landscaped median will provide cir-culation throughout the park with parking branching off this central spine road organized in parking “pods” adjacent to the various uses. Approximately 500 new parking places will be added to bring the total to over 1,300. The new parking design will provide better access to the various elements of the park. Other amenities include new and upgraded infrastructure, additional ball fi eld lighting to provide lighted fi elds for all sports fi elds, and a new maintenance facility on-site. Con-struction is anticipated to last one year with a hopeful grand opening in summer 2008.


UNIVERSITY NEWS

UCI IS BUILDING BRIDGES TO THE NATIONAL LEVEL

By UCI Students: Jackie Young, Joe Molinaro, and Nestor Godinez

On May 25th, 43 schools from around the nation gathered in Northridge to compete in the annual National Student Steel Bridge Competition, NSSBC.

Co-sponsored by ASCE and AISC, the event is a popular competition which exposes civil engineering college students to real life design considerations through a hypothetical project. Given the year’s problem statement and bridge design criteria, aspects such as defl ection, weight, construction time, safety, and aesthetics are proportionally weighed in the scoring to formulate a total project cost. This year, the event saw a not so familiar competitor—the University of California, Irvine. Following a two year absence at the regional level of the competition, this year’s Irvine team faced many obstacles. With limited resources and a fresh faced team, the dedicated group of 6 members exceeded all odds and expectations by excelling in the regional competition to qualify for Nationals. The Irvine team began with hours of research despite each student having a full schedule of classes. Test runs and analysis in SAP2000 also helped confi rm that a truss design would yield a lighter and stiffer bridge. However, with more bridge members required in the truss design, construction would be complicated. In true engineering spirit, a simple yet effective connection was devised to relieve this dilemma. By using slip and lock connections, pieces could be effortlessly assembled during competition and valuable construction time minimized. Other obstacles that this year’s team encountered were a lack of fabrication facilities on campus and fi nancial sources. No doubt, a solid design would not go far with a near-empty pocketbook. Fortunately, Pendarvis Manufacturing of Anaheim saw the potential of the Irvine team and answered the call. Using generous donations of steel from Industrial Metal Supply of Irvine, the fabrication company provided countless hours of work to make the team’s dreams come true. Both companies showed great support and interest for UCI’s program with owner, Brian Pendarvis, himself keeping in close contact with the group from design stage to competition day. With fabrication completed on schedule and the

Pacifi c Southwest Regional Conference, PSWRC, near, the team focused on its next task. Since time equals money, construction speed played a major part in competition scoring. Thus, the squad set forth to slim its bridge assembly time. The team, consisting of only 5 builders and a superintendent to minimize costs, began weekly construction practices to prepare for the regional level competition. Anticipating competition to be fi erce, perfection in the routine was the goal. On the national level, schools may lose based on a single bolt drop, making some wonder why such a trivial act can be emphasized so much. However, the competition’s emphasis on safety teaches that in the real world, no accident is small, and any piece dropping from 300 feet above has the potential to kill—leading to severe real-life penalties and costs. Thus, 36 pages of rules governing all aspects of the bridge design

and assembly are strictly enforced. At PSWRC, competing with 18 other universities from Hawaii to Arizona, UCI placed 1st in construction speed with a time of 12:13, 1st in lightness, and 2nd in economy—resulting in 2nd place overall. The top three schools from the regional level competition were invited to NSSBC hosted by the California State University, Northridge and was held on May 25, 2007. To improve their score further for

Nationals, additional time was spent refi ning the bridge design and construction routine. In all, the changes proved valuable at NSSBC. Despite the addition of bracing to strengthen the design, the 52-piece bridge was constructed in 6:43, almost 50% faster than their regional time. The bridge also sustained a loading of 2,500 pounds with 1.04 inches of aggregate vertical defl ection measured from three points, a 25% improvement from before. As a result, UCI went home 27th at NSSBC, placing higher than all other fi nalists within its region, and in the top 15% nationwide. As the news of UCI’s achievement spread, there is now a newfound interest in the bridge competition among the school’s civil engineers. For the coming years, the team intends to maintain its level of performance for the Student Steel Bridge Competition, and with the expectancy of an increase in members in the future, this will defi nitely be a team to look out for!


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American Society of Civil Engineers

ORANGE COUNTY BRANCH

Thursday, July 19, 2007

JULY LUNCHEON MEETING

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Yazdan Emrani, PE, President Darren Adrian, PE, Vice President Ken Rosenfield, PE, Treasurer Kathereen Shinkai, PE, Secretary John Hogan, PE, Past President

TOPIC: Status Report on Implementation of the 2006 Infrastructure Bonds

SPEAKER: Chris McKenzie – Director, League of California Cities Chris McKenzie was appointed in 1999 as only the sixth executive director of the over 100-year old League of California Cities. He served previously as executive director and lobbyist with the League of Kansas Municipalities and various positions in local and state government. He holds advanced degrees in both urban planning and law from the University of Kansas. During his time with the California League cities across the state voted overwhelmingly to create a new grassroots lobbying program, placing fifteen regional representatives across the state to work with city officials to advance key legislative priorities for cities. The League also worked with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, counties and special districts to successfully pass a state ballot measure (Proposition 1A) to secure protection of local revenues from future legislative raids. He currently chairs the California Infrastructure Coalition that worked with the Governor and legislature to approve five infrastructure measures for the November 2006 ballot. He also currently chairs the “No on Prop. 90” campaign, to defeat the initiative on the November 2006, which the campaign refers to as “The Taxpayer Trap”. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

!! NOW ACCEPTING CREDIT CARDS ONLINE – www.asceoc.org !! MEETING PLACE: The Costa Mesa Hilton, 3050 Bristol Street, Costa Mesa, CA 92626

TIME: 11:30 a.m. – Social 12:00 p.m. – Lunch 12:30 – 1:10 p.m. -- Program

COST: Members $38 prepaid; $40 at the door (with reservations); Non-members and walk-ups $45; Students $20

PARKING: Validated parking for adjoining structure included in luncheon cost.

RESERVATIONS: RSVP by July 13, 2007, at 12 noon Include the names of all persons attending. Your advance reservations, made and honored, are essential to fulfilling our catering commitment. No shows will be billed. You can now pay with credit card via the branch website. See below.

By Internet: www.asceoc.org By Email: [email protected] By Fax: 714-258-8391 By Phone 714-258-8390 Brooke Hixson By Mail: Mailed reservations and advance payments must be received by July 13, 2007 at

noon to: ASCE Orange County Branch, c/o Gayle Stewart Associates

1405 Warner Avenue Tustin, CA 92780

Display Booth Space is available for this event at cost of $100. For space bookings please call Gayle Stewart at 714-258-8390 or Email: [email protected]


THANK YOU

PE REVIEW COURSE

OC YMF PE REVIEW COURSECURRICULUM & MEMBER COSTS

Complete P.E. Review Series: $600Friday Exam only (8-hr exam) Review Series: $500

Special Seismic Exam Review Seminar: $160Special Surveying Exam Review Seminar: $160

Costs include class handouts and notes. Text books are not included.Late registration fee of $50 due after July 20, 2007.

DATECourse Introduction, Thursday 8/2/07

Classes are on Tuesday and Thursday evenings8/7/07 thru 9/27/07

(All students must attend the introduction)

TIME6:30 ~ 9:30 pm

LOCATIONCH2M HILL

3 Hutton Centre Drive, Suite 200Santa Ana, CA 92707

Location and Schedule subject to change.For more information, please contact:

Robert HendersonE-mail: [email protected]

Phone: (714) 435-6143

LETTERS TO EDITOR

Any thoughts or comments

about the newsletter? Please email,

phone or fax to:Kathereen Shinkai,

PE Secretary ASCE OC Branch

[email protected] 714-327-1600

Fax: 714-327-1601

RE: President’s Message June 2007

Yaz,Your recent President’s Message on “Mentoring” was excellent!!! Thank you for your dedication and contributions to our profession.Keep up the good work. Trent Pulliam

THANK YOU CITY OF IRVINE For an excellent Storm Water Program Seminar

The City of Irvine hosted the Storm Water Program Seminar on June 22, 2007 at the Conference Training Center.

Sam Ali, Chairperson for the Continued Education Committee for the ASCE Orange County Chapter, organized the

Seminar attended by 58 members. $5,800 was raised from the registration fee to pay for engineering scholarships

and the ASCE Student Chapters. The seminar was presented by three specialists in their fi eld:

Mike Loving, Water Quality Administrator, City of IrvineKen Susilo, P.E., D. WRE, CPSWQ, Geosystec Consultants

Lisa Austin, P.E., Geosyntec

The expertly discussed subjects were numerous and varied such as: Regulatory Challenges Faced by Municipalities;

Fourth Term MS4 Permits for North-Central and South Orange County; Proposed State General Permit for Construction and

Land Disturbance Activities; Total Maximum Daily Loands (TMDLs); Local permits Associated with TMDLs; Treatment and

Construction BMPs; Integrated Water Resources Management and Lessons Learned.

The seminar was well received by the attendees who provided positive feedback. Stay tuned for the upcoming

seminar on Sustainable Design in September.


EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

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For consideration:

email: [email protected]

call: 951-296-0532 ext 107 or 120

41715 Enterprise Circle N, Suite 103

Temecula, CA 92590

Immediate openings for all levels of geotechnical

and environmental consulting professionals

in Southern California and Phoenix

EOE M/F/D/V

make the most of it at Leighton

Your Career

Irvine | Los Angeles | Temecula | Rancho Cucamonga | Palm Desert | Santa Clarita | Ventura | Bakersfield | San Diego | Scottsdale



PARSONS has immediate openings in Southern California.

Senior Bridge Engineers

Seeking Senior Structural/Bridge Engineers with 8 to 10 years experience to be based in our Irvine, CA offi ce. California registered P.E. and CA experience

preferred. PARSONS is a leader in Engineering and Construction Transportation projects worldwide. The company is employee-owned and offers a competitive

salary and benefi ts package.

Please forward resumes to Corporate Recruiter Kevin Ramsey:[email protected]

PARSONS is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity in the workplace. For a complete list of opportunities visit our website:

www.parsons.com



TRC is seeking project managers, engineers, designers, and interns for the transportation, land development, and water resources departments in its Irvine offi ce.

Incorporated in 1970, TRC is a full-service environmental and engineering services fi rm employing over 2,700 professionals in more than 80 offi ces nationwide. TRC provides innovative services to a broad range of public and private sector clients in the infrastructure, transportation, environmental assessment/ remediation and permitting, energy, and land development markets.

Ideal candidates will possess strong communication skills, as well as successful prior experience relevant to desired position.

Please send letters of interest and resumes to Ross Lew via fax at (949) 753-5164 or via email to [email protected].

It’s great to be at TRC

At Stantec, we view each project as an opportunity to contribute to the success of our clients and the growth of our employees, while enhancing the world in which we live. Stantec offers exciting career opportunities for talented and motivated individuals who are interested in joining one of the fastest growing, innovative global design fi rms in North America.

To pursue an opportunity to work for some of the best clients on some of the most exciting Land Development and Infrastructure projects, please visit stantec.com/careers to apply online. For additional information, feel free to contact Jennifer Hall at (714) 673-9861.

Offi ces throughout North America and the Caribbean

AD-RA-M

RC-2007MAR1

6-P1V1

One Team. Infi nite Opportunities.

Committed to the principles of Employment Equity, we thank all candidates; however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

Tory R. Walker Enginereering, Inc., a small,

dynamic, water resources fi rm, is hiring. The

successful candidate will be motivated and

will have signifi cant growth opportunities in

an enviable work environment. A Bachelor

of Science degree is required. At least two

years experience in hydrologic and hydraulic

modeling, storm water quality and CAD is

preferable. Send resumes to:

[email protected]


IF YOUR BUSINESS CARD IS NOT SHOWING, IT’S TIME TO RENEW.

Please send your renewal, along with $250, to:Ken Rosenfield, Treasurer

ASCE OC Branch1405 Warner Avenue

Tustin, CA 92780

2007-2008 STUDENT ASSISTANCE FUND DONORS

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Continued from page 2

narrowness and inward-looking nature of their education,” according to King. Some proponents of this issue have offered that a fi ve-year combined Bachelor’s/Master’s Degree in engineering is the way to go. However, critics cite students’ past resistance to fi ve-year Bachelor’s/Master’s programs, and say that graduate study is often unnecessary for engineers, and would turn many students away from engineering altogether. Don P. Giddens, dean of the Georgia Institute of Technology’s College of Engineering, has said that he’s “asked a number of people in industry if they’re unhappy with the bachelor’s degree students, and the answer is ‘no.’ Giddens adds he has certainly not seen anything in his conversations that would indicate that industry sees the master’s as being the entry level degree. Because of that, he adds, engineering shouldn’t be compared with medicine, a discipline in which there once was a call for greater training. Giddens also notes that members of Congress, business leaders and faculty members have been discussing whether America has enough engineers. “Everybody agrees that we don’t have enough U.S. students,” Giddens says. He adds that he thinks it would be a counterproductive recruiting strategy to tell high school students “how great engineering is, but by the way you’ve got to go the extra year before you can do engineering.” As we can see there are compelling arguments

on both sides of this issue. Earlier I mentioned that I have my preference on this subject. Having studied an extra two years to get my master’s in civil engineering has defi nitely helped me gain a more in depth understanding of my fi eld. Furthermore, if I had a choice between hiring an entry level engineer with a Bachelor’s degree versus an entry level engineer with a master’s degree, I would hire the one with a master’s degree. Having said that, would I be in favor of making the master’s degree the fi rst professional degree? With the current and foreseeable future shortage of civil engineers, as well as the continuous rise in tuitions costs, I would have to say no. We need to get the upper hand in encouraging high school students to become civil engineers and stay away from any proposition that might discourage this prospect. Don’t get me wrong. If someone asked my advice on whether or not to go to graduate school, I would defi nitely encourage them to do so. I just don’t think it should be mandatory. Finally, when it comes to technical expertise, even a master’s degree is of no use when you are 5 - 7 years past it. In my view, it is more important to make sure that civil engineers develop a commitment to lifelong learning and updating their skills. Perhaps adding a requirement for Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for renewing our professional license here in California is the way to ensure that our skills stay on the leading edge.


Tel: (949) 209-8822Fax: (949) 315-3001


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ADVERTISING RATES (Approximate number of mailings: 1500 per month)

Orange County BranchAMERICAN SOCIETYOF CIVIL ENGINEERS

1405 Warner AvenueTustin, CA 92780

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

1) BUSINESS CARD $250/year due in February2) OTHER ADVERTISEMENTS:

FULL PAGE $250/issue; 1/2 PAGE $200/issueminimum 1/4 PAGE $150.00/issue

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4) FULL SHEET COMMERCIALADVERTISEMENT00.054$)sedis owt ro enO(

MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION

Please contact Anh Ly, O.C. Branch Membership Chairman at 714-720-4868 or FAX: 714-938-0782 for application forms, change of address and additional information. Or for address

changes on-line go to www.asce.org/myprofile. E-Mail for member questions is [email protected]

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NONPROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

Please send all advertisements (Except Business Card Ads) to theSecretary before the 10th of each month. (You will be billed later.)

Kathereen Shinkai, Secretary ASCE OC Branchc/o Carter & Burgess, Inc., 4 Hutton Centre Dr., Ste. 800, Santa Ana, CA 92707

714-327-1600 • Fax:[email protected]

Send Business Card Ads (with $250.00) to:Kenneth H. Rosenfield, Treasurer ASCE, OC Branch

1405 Warner Avenue, Tustin, CA 92780

Type of Membership and Annual Dues (National)Student: FreeAssociate Member: $50 year of baccalaureate degree and first after, then incremental increases to $205 over five yearsMember: $205 annually Affiliate: $205 annuallySection (Branch) Dues $45/year (1) National ASCE Student Membership is now FEE! Those who have chapters or clubs still must be a member of them before joining National. To join as a student, log onto www.asce.org/join. To renew as a student go to www.asce.org/renew. Students may also call 1-800-548-ASCE or email [email protected]. (2) Online membership renewal available, go to www.asce.org/renewal. You just need your member number, all e-payments must be made with a major credit card. An e-receipt is transmitted to the member upon completion of the transaction. (3) For non-members, dues for O.C.Branch Newsletter only $45/year.

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