ASCE Newsletter - 2015 Year in Review

March 9, 2016

President: Jay Chamberlain

Vice President: Justin Siegrist

Treasurer: Sam Bell

Secretary: David Hayson

We Have a New Website!

Information on the Cincinnati Section, details on upcoming and past events, Section Officers, Section Awards, the Annual Newsletter (current and past), and additional resources can all be found at http://sections.asce.org/cincinnati/

Contact Jay Chamberlain at JChamberlain@thpltd.com or Justin Siegrist at justin.siegrist@gmail.com with comments or suggestions.

President's Message

Dear Members,

As we keep powering through the 2015-2016 calendar year I would like to take a moment to thank my fellow board members for working so hard to improve our chapter. They have put a significant amount of effort into finding new ways to increase meeting attendance and help current students feel more comfortable at meetings so that the transition from student to professional member can be stress free.

Justin Siegrist, the Section Vice President, has been hard at work this year getting our new section website ready for launch. Thanks to our new website we are able to update content much more easily. This means that you will once again be able to register for meetings directly from the site and check in on what the chapter has been up too throughout the year. If you have not yet visited the site, I encourage you to do so ( http://sections.asce.org/cincinnati/).

The chapter has had seven successful meetings this year and we are looking to finish it off with a bang. If you have not been to a meeting this year, I strongly encourage you to attend one of our final three meetings of the program year. The April meeting will be our Annual Awards Banquet. At the banquet, we honor our sections new ASCE Life Members, the President's Lifetime Achievement Award Winner, and hand out thousands of dollars in scholarships to local students. This is always a great night and we would love to see an increase in turnout this year.

I hope to see you all soon,

Jay Chamberlain

Have a topic you want us to cover?

Contact Justin Siegrist at justin.siegrist@gmail.com .

2015-2016 ASCE Cincinnati Section Officers

President - Jay Chamberlain, E.I.

Jay is a Project Engineer with THP Limited, Inc. He joined THP full time in 2012 where he is primarily involved in the design and construction administration of post-tensioned reinforced concrete structures. Jay attended the University of Cincinnati where he received his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (2010) and Masters of Science in Structural Engineering (2012).

Jay has been an active member of ASCE since he first joined as a student in 2005. While attending UC, Jay was also involved in Engineer's Without Boarders and led the structural design of a new school in Burere, Africa.

Vice President - Justin Siegrist, P.E.

Justin is a Water Resources Engineer with Wade Trim. He joined Wade Trim in 2011, where he performs technical engineering analysis, planning and design for many public sector clients on large water resources projects around the country. His specialization is hydrologic and hydraulic modeling and analysis. His project experience includes model development and calibration, computational fluid dynamics modeling, tunnel surge analysis, floodplain modeling, water quality modeling, combined and sanitary sewer overflow treatment facilities sizing, and groundwater modeling. Justin is a 2011 graduate of the University of Dayton where he received a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering.

Secretary - Sam Bell, E.I.

Sam is a Civil Engineer in Burgess & Niple's (B&N) Water/Wastewater Section. He joined B&N in 2015 where he is primarily working on engineering studies, modeling, and design and construction services related to collection and distribution systems, pump stations, and treatment plants.

Sam holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Michigan State University (2011) and a Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Ohio University (2015). Sam was an officer of Chi Epsilon and an active member of the ASCE Michigan State Student Chapter while attending MSU. Prior to his current position he worked for XCG Consultants, Norfolk Southern, and Michigan Department of Transportation

Secretary - David Hayson, P.E., S.I.

David Hayson is a project engineer with Stantec, a national, multi-disciplinary engineering firm. He currently is working with the water resources group. David has worked with Stantec for the past year. Prior to arriving at Stantec, he was employed at XCG Consultants for his first 6 years after graduating from the University of Dayton in 2009 with a Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering - Go Flyers!

He is registered as a Professional Engineer in the states of Ohio and Kentucky and also as a Surveyor Intern after obtaining his Land Surveying Certificate from Cincinnati State in 2012. David has experience in hydrologic and hydraulic assessment, planning, and modeling of sanitary, stormwater, and combined sewer projects. He's been involved in the local Lick Run Sewer Project. He also has experience in floodplain mapping and site/civil design.

Interested in Becoming a Section Officer?

If you are interested in getting more involved with the ASCE Cincinnati Section, and want to become a Section Officer, please contact Jay Chamberlain at jchamberlain@thpltd.com. The Section currently has an opening at the Secretary position for the 2016-2017 Program Year.

Looking Back - Fall/Winter 2015/2016 Monthly Meetings

ASCE Cincinnati just wrapped up another successful program year. Thank you to everyone who was involved in making the year a success. We have already started out the 2016 year on a high note and hope to continue this momentum throughout the year.

February 2015 - Nippert Stadium Expansion - Join Meeting with SEAoO

A joint meeting between the ASCE Cincinnati Section and the Structural Engineers of Ohio (SEAoO) was held in February. Attendees were treated to a tour of the University of Cincinnati's Nippert Stadium Expansion, along with a technical presentation of the design and construction of the expansion from Steve Swisher of Turner Construction, and Brad Saalfeld and Walt Heckel of THP.

March 2015 - Ohio River Bridges - Joint Meeting with Geotechnical Group

A joint meeting between the ASCE Cincinnati Section and the Geotechnical Group was held in March. The meeting featured a presentation from Mike Minton of Hayward Baker on the new cable stayed bridge that will carry northbound traffic on I-65 across the Ohio River from Louisville, KY to Jeffersonville, IN. Associated with the new main river bridge is a major redesign and realignment of the ramps and interchange junctures where I-65, I-71 and I-64 converge along with the Kentucky approaches to the downtown Ohio River bridges.

The presentation discussed the results of the geotechnical investigations; predicted behavior and observations; project criteria; test embankment section, instrumentation and results; selection of production elements; and installation of production ground improvement elements.

April 2015 - Annual Student Awards Banquet

Every year, the ASCE Cincinnati Section honors a group of outstanding civil engineering students and lifelong ASCE members. The following is a recap from the ceremony in April.

Shayne Manning accepting his 2015 Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award

ASCE Student Leadership Award

Abigail Ping (UC)
Jacob Elmore (UC)
Gregory Kelly (Cincinnati State)

ASCE Cincinnati Section Scholarships

UC Dr. Frank E. Weisgerber Memorial Scholarship

Emilie Albert

C State Buford L. Payne Scholarship

Joseph Bryson
Gregory Kelly

College Awards and Scholarships

Chi Epsilon Award

Zach Hunn

The Louis M. Laushey Outstanding Junior Award

Michael Minoughan

The Louis M. Laushey Outstanding Pre-Junior Award

Hakan Gungor

The CE Chairperson's A ward

Robert L opina

The Robert T. and Hele n C. Howe Civil Engineering Award

Hsein Jim Lee

William D. Lockwood Scholarship

Michael Minoughan

Larry P. Rayburn Scholarship Deep Foundations Institute

Kendall Knoke
Joseph Czechanski
Michael Flanagan
Jason Fischer
Julie Paprocki

Joe Dave Civil Engineering Scholarship

Elisabeth Martin

Don Hoeffel Prize

Emilie Albert

David and Karen Yost Scholarship

Travis Warner

Ralph W. Christie Jr. Scholarship

Malory Rymer

Mel Hensey Leadership Scholarship

Eleanor Peacock

Raymond J. Wilke Scholarship

Laura Dent

Ray Jitten Manilal Shah Scholarship (Undergraduate Award)

Christopher Douglas

ADSC Ohio Valley Scholarship

Oliver Bluestone
Aaron Beetz

Dr. Andrew Bodocsi Scholarship, Sponsored by Terracon

Rebecca Pinney

ASCE Life Member Recipients

Martime Eger
Anthony DiPuccio
Fredrick Slack
Jerome Kenkel
Keith Hanley
Edwin Gauggel
Timothy Gilday
William Martin

Order of the Engineer

The Cincinnati Section of ASCE hosted our ninth Order of the Engineer ceremony during our 2015 April Meeting. When an eligible engineer accepts the Obligation of an Engineer during the Engineer's Ring Ceremony, they are formally accepting the engineer's responsibilities to the public and the profession. We will be hosting our tenth ceremony this coming April. Keep an eye out for our April meeting flier for additional information. 2015's inductees were:

Kendall Knoke
Matthew Lehmenkuler
Roberto Nevarez
Kelsey Pace
Abigail Ping
Rebecca Pinney
Victoria Werth

ASCE Cincinnati Section Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award

The 2015 Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award winner was Shayne Manning PE, SE of THP Limited. Below is summary of just some of his great accomplishments. Congratulations, Shayne!

The skyline of Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky has been significantly shaped by the engineering genius of this year's ASCE Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award winner - Shayne Manning. He has worked for THP Limited, a local engineering firm, for his entire career of nearly 40 years. His worthiness of this prestigious award is demonstrated by his numerous greater Cincinnati projects, clients, awards, community involvement and testimonials.

From Dayton, OH to Northern Kentucky, he has provided efficient and innovative structural engineering for more than 140 new buildings including nearly every type of structure imaginable - healthcare, higher education, secondary education, military, federal, recreation, commercial, residential, high-rise, entertainment, sports, stadium, convention, transportation, parking, museum, sculpture, industrial, retail, religious correctional, library, hotel, manufacturing, municipal, nursing home, restaurant, condominium, performing arts, visual arts, utility and corporate. Some of his local projects of acclaimed icons include: Great American Ballpark, Miami University Goggin Ice Center, Newport Aquarium, NKU BB&T Arena, Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art, The Ascent at Roebling's Bridge, University of Cincinnati Fifth Third Arena, University of Cincinnati Lindner Athletic Center, the recent Nippert Stadium expansion, many structures at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, and many many more.

Nationally, he is a registered engineer in over 15 states and has been the structural engineer for projects from Alaska to Puerto Rico. Globally his expertise in seismic design has lead him to designing buildings in Japan, China, Taiwan, and India for seismic resistance and retrofitting existing buildings with hydraulic dampers.

It is hard to find a local architectural firm, contractor, or owner that has not been impacted by Shayne's talent. He is respected by clients for his expertise, solutions to complex buildings, communication, appreciation of architecture, and enthusiasm. He has an exemplary reputation of being fair, easy to work with and a vital team partner. He has worked with the area's significant owners and companies who have helped develop the greater Cincinnati's architectural stature including but not limited to the City of Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Miami University, NKU, State of Ohio, UC VA, Wright Patterson Air Force Base. Local architectural clients include BHDP, Champlin Architecture, CR Architecture, DNK, FRCH, GBBN, Glaserworks, John Poe, KZF, Levin Porter, Michael Schuster, PDT, REZTARK, Roth, SFA, and SHP. He has also worked with many signature architects including Bernard Tschumi, Danial Libeskind, Morphosis, RTKL, and Zaha Hadid.

Many of Shayne's projects have been recognized as some of the most challenging and sophisticated in the area. The following are some of the awards he has achieved:

The Ascent at Roebling's Bridge - ACEC Ohio, Grand Award, Engineering Excellence
University of Cincinnati Student Recreation Center - ACEC Ohio, Outstanding Achievement, Engineering Excellence
University of Cincinnati Varsity Village - ACEC Ohio, Outstanding Achievement, Engineering Excellence
Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art - CRSI, Design and Construction Excellence Award
525 Vine - American Institute of Steel, Excellence in Steel

He has also extended his passion for engineering, the arts and architecture to assist students and to benefit the local community. His involvement includes membership of the Cincinnati Art Museum, Zoo, Contemporary Arts Center, Newport Aquarium, and Taft Museum; board member of the Cincinnati Art Academy; OTR Park Design Consultant; UC Architecture Thesis Committees; UC College of Engineering Master Thesis Committees; former UC Civil Engineering Advisory Board Member; and former UC ASCE student chapter practitioner advisor; current Ohio Board of Building Standards structural engineer representative.

Shayne's passion for our profession is truly evident with every project he is part of. Shayne has an appreciation for art and beauty as well as function and economy. He loves working on the most complicated projects and finding the most efficient solutions. He is a team player and a remarkable engineer. His influence is not only on the built environment, but he has also been a major influence in the career and lives of many engineers. He is just as passionate about helping young engineers grow and develop as he is about growing and developing an architect's vision. Shayne Manning is most deservedly the 2015 recipient of the ASCE Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award.

May 2015 - Lick Run Project

The May program meeting featured a technical presentation from Mike Ellerbrock of Strand Associates, and David Hayson of Stantec, on the Lick Run project. The Lick Run Project is comprised of 12 separate stormwater management projects within a watershed that covers approximately 2,900 acres of Cincinnati's West Side. These 12 projects will work together to collect approximately 500 million gallons of stormwater per year from the Lick Run watershed and convey it to the Mill Creek. Keeping this stormwater out of the combined sewer system will result in a significant reduction of combined sewer overflow (CSO) from the Lick Run watershed, which is part of the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati's overall plan to reduce CSO from their sewer system.

The presentation focused on the overall watershed modeling, as well as the design and planned construction of the Valley Conveyance System (VCS); the central element of the Lick Run Project. The VCS includes a mile-long urban waterway through the heart of South Fairmount. The other 11 projects are designed to collect and convey stormwater to the VCS, which discharges into the Mill Creek. The project will improve water quality, create new jobs, and provide opportunities for neighborhood revitalization.

September 2015 - Engineers without Borders - Greater Cincinnati Chapter

The September program meeting featured a presentation from Jim Moyer, Ed Kohinke, and Chuck Dragga of the Greater Cincinnati Chapter of Engineers without Borders (EWB). The presentation provided an overview of the EWB organization, and a detailed discussion of their work with the village of Busessa, Uganda to develop energy and water programs.

EWB and the village of Busessa worked together to install a biogas digester for cooking, and a hand operated well. EWB and the village are currently looking into implementing a spring box system in another part of the community. All these efforts are tied to helping the community over a 5 year period.

October 2015 - Structural Concrete Research at the University of Cincinnati - Joint Meeting with ACI

A joint meeting between the ASCE Cincinnati Section and members of the American Concrete Institute was held in October. The presentation discussed Dr. Shahrooz and his colleagues' recent research related to structural concrete, which featured two projects.

The first project described an innovative system that replaces conventional transverse reinforcement by a closed, continuous transverse reinforcement (CTR). CTR can be used as stirrups, column ties, or torsion transverse reinforcement. The use of CTR decreases the time required to build reinforcing cages, and simplifies the design process. The results from testing of full-scale members and subassemblies was presented, followed by a discussion of design recommendations for CTR.

The second project was related to prestressed girders, in particular those used in bridges. The current AASHTO LRFD Specifications have stringent requirements for the percentage and configuration of prestressing strands that could be debonded (or shielded as called by some engineers). Through full-scale testing of various types of bridge girders and analytical studies, this research has developed new guidelines. The results from this ongoing project were presented.

November 2015 - Oakley Station Design Build Storm Sewer Separation Project

The November program meeting featured a technical presentation from Sara Cramer of the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati (MSD), and Eric Meister of Ulliman-Schutte Construction, on the design and construction of the Oakley Station Design Build Storm Sewer Separation Project.

Using Design-Build, MSD supported urban renewal while also addressing federal Consent Decree requirements for reducing combined sewer overflows. The Oakley Station storm sewer separation project is part of the Phase 1 Consent Decree program, and the cost savings achieved on the project contribute to the overall Phase 1 program successfully remaining within budget. MSD demonstrated success of the Design-Build approach with a storm sewer separation project for the Oakley Station urban renewal effort. Oakley Station is a 74-acre mixed-use development projected to be home to 2,000 local jobs as well as Class A office space, retail/restaurant, and residential.

The presentation focused on the successful implementation of Design-Build, and some of the challenges involved with the tunneling and construction of the storm sewer outfall that was part of the development.

December 2015 - Annual Holiday Social

The ASCE Cincinnati Section Annual Holiday Social was held at the Montgomery Inn Boathouse in December. Attendees enjoyed a buffet of delicious food, featuring the Montgomery Inn's famous ribs, and free drinks. In addition to enjoying an evening socializing with ASCE members and their guests, the Social also served a good cause by donating canned goods, provided by attendees, to a local food bank.

January 2016 - Green Stormwater Infrastructure Mapping and Modeling

The January presentation featured a state of the art review of Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) mapping and modeling tools that can be used for proper planning and design of sustainable GSI facilities. The speaker for this presentation was Dr. Sam Shamsi, the Northeast Wet Weather Practice Leader at Jacobs Engineering Group in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is also a modeling consultant at the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati (MSDGC).

GSI, such as rain gardens, green roofs, and porous pavement is likely to play an important role in stormwater management for controlling combined sewer overflow (CSO) and sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) discharges to receiving waters. Many US cities, such as Cincinnati, are spending, or planning to spend, billions of dollars on implementing such wet weather plans mandated by US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The presentation explored the planning and design tools for sustainable wet weather solutions, reviewed new methods to quantify runoff and sewer overflow reductions using green solutions, and covered the latest discoveries for green infrastructure mapping and modeling programs.

February 2016 - 3D Scanning - Cincinnati Museum Center et al.

This year's February section event featured a joint meeting between the ASCE Cincinnati Section and the Structural Engineers of Ohio (SEAoO) . David Cox, the Director of Reality Capture at Truescan 3D gave a structural engineering presentation on 3D Scanning. The presentation was on the use of 3D Scanning to survey and produce a working model for assessing and developing plans on renovation projects including how a point cloud can be efficiently converted and used in structural modeling. Examples from several local projects were discussed, including an update on the Cincinnati Museum Center. While the section meeting was occurring, Truescan 3D staff surveyed a scaled version of the Roebling Bridge using 3D technology and were able to show the final results during the event.

Interested in Presenting at a Meeting?

If you have a topic you would like to present on at one of the upcoming ASCE Cincinnati Section program meetings, please contact Justin Siegrist at 513-598-6400, or email him at Justin.siegrist@gmail.com.

Looking Ahead - Spring 2016 Monthly Meetings

March 2016 - Kentucky Corvette Museum Sink Holes

A joint meeting will be held on March 16th with the Geotechnical group to discuss the corrective work that was performed to address the sink holes that formed in the Corvette Museum in Kentucky. To register for the event, please visit this link: March 2016 Event.

April 2016 - Annual Student Awards Banquet

The Annual Student Awards Banquet is currently scheduled to be held on Wednesday, April 13th, 2016, at the University of Cincinnati's Faculty Club.

May 2016 - To Be Determined

Volunteer Opportunity!!!

This year the Queen City Regional FIRST Robotics Competition will be held again at the Cintas Center, March 30 - April 2, 2016. 2,000 high school students, forty-seven teams from eight states, Canada and Japan are coming in for this event, including eleven teams from the Cincinnati/Dayton area.

FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is requesting funding support for any amount, volunteers, or help in directing them to groups, companies, or organizations that could support the event. If interested in any capacity, please contact Dave Campbell at QueenCityFirst@gmail.com or Jonathan Potter at jwp3371@gmail.com.

Central Ohio Section Annual Spring Seminar

The Central Ohio Section of ASCE is holding their annual Spring Seminar on April 20, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio at the Fawcett Center. This year's theme is Water Quality. Earn up to 6 PDHs while hearing various speakers from the City of Columbus, OEPA, City of Delaware and local consultants. Breakfast, Lunch, and Refreshments will be provided.

To get more information and register online, please visit their website at:

http://centralohioasce.com/seminar

Committee Updates

The Cincinnati Section of ASCE has three committees: Educational Outreach, Membership, and Programming. The time commitment is minimal and the personal rewards are limitless. Not only do you qualify for 2 continuing professional development (CPD) hours for one year of service as an active committee member in the State of Ohio, but you will also receive the personal satisfaction of contributing to your profession and the betterment of your community. Please see below for a brief description of the three committees and learn how you can become involved.

Educational Outreach:

The year 2015 was another busy and successful year for the Educational Outreach Committee thanks to all of our members' support! In the spring, many committee members volunteered as judges at the 2015 Ohio Valley Student Conference (OVSC). The conference was co-hosted by the University of Cincinnati and Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, with attendees from many colleges around the Midwest. The events included Concrete Canoe, Steel Bridge, Balsa Wood Bridge, Surveying, and many more competitions. It was a great event for the students to practice their creative design skills, collaborate with each other and make connections with practicing professionals, as well as meeting and becoming friends with future engineers from across the country. Both Universities will be hosting the OVSC again this spring, so if you are interested in volunteering, let us know!

Our most involved member for the year award goes to Justin Siegrist! Not only was he a judge for OVSC, but he also was a mentor to Makenzie Jones of Walnut Hills High School from June through July 2015 as part of MSDGC's Student Intern Academy Program (see photo, below). He taught Makenzie about the Civil Engineering profession as it relates to the field of Water Resources Management, and provided professional development and guidance for planning her future. When asked what she learned over the summer, she replied with: "The most valuable thing I have learned during this internship is the importance of infrastructure. Infrastructure is the backbone of our nation, and unfortunately, there is a national lack in funding infrastructure. Not many of us realize the significance of infrastructure, but it is truly needed for our communities to thrive."

Justin's involvement did not stop there. In August, Justin had the opportunity to work with Cincinnati's local PBS Station for a Career Connections video about Civil Engineering. The video was funded by Ohio's Broadcast Educational Media Commission in partnership with the Ohio Department of Education to provide students with a career resource to learn about Ohio's in-demand jobs. The video can be viewed here.

Members also spoke to local high school students and civil engineering students from the University of Cincinnati and the University of Dayton about our career paths and the civil engineering profession. We also continued working with and supporting the University of Cincinnati on several proposals to the National Science Foundation. Thank you to all of our members who volunteered and helped with the UC Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program and the UC Research Experience for Teachers (RET).

We have big ideas for future projects and we encourage you to become involved. Your involvement can be as little as a one-time speaking event, or as lengthy as a reoccurring volunteer. If you are interested in joining the committee, please contact Julie Cromwell at jcromwell@thpltd.com.

Justin Siegrist and Makenzie Jones - MSDGC Student Intern Academy Program

Membership :

The Membership Committee consists of members who have volunteered to be ASCE Points of Contact. Each Point of Contact is responsible for hanging the monthly flyer in the common area at their office. The goal was to reach potential members who might not know about the meetings otherwise. So far, we have had several new members due to the efforts of the Points of Contact. ASCE would like to thank all of our members who have contributed to spreading the word and increasing membership involvement. If you are interested in joining the committee or becoming a Point of Contact, please contact Sam Bell at sam.bell@burgessniple.com.

Programming:

The Program Committee has worked hard to try and create a diverse program year. ASCE is here to serve you, our members, and in doing so, we would like to have programs that highlight interesting topics within your discipline. If you have suggested future meeting topics or would like to become involved in the committee, please contact Justin Siegrist at justin.siegrist@gmail.com.

Student Chapter Updates

The ASCE student chapter at Cincinnati State is proud to announce that we had quite the busy year last year. From visiting elementary schools and teaching them about what engineering is, to co-hosting last year's OVSC competition. We were also proud of the speakers we brought in along with the tours we were able to go on. Most importantly though were the experiences and the knowledge we gained, along with all the new friends.

We started off the year in February by going to Bright Elementary School in Indiana and giving a presentation to 1st-4th grade students. We gave them a fun project to do in the gym that involved building towers out of cups, learning how to make a stronger structure, and how to plan and budget a project well.

After that, we had to buckle down in order to get everything together for the OVSC competition we were co-hosting with UC. It was great working with UC to make sure everything was prepared and pulled together in time. At the end of a very successful competition, we were able to hear the concerns of our fellow students and faculty advisors. Fortunately, we are going to be co-hosting again with UC this year and we are looking forward to making improvements based on last year's feedback.

Once all of our students finished their co-ops for the summer, we were able to come back in August strong. The President of our ASCE section brought in a representative of Jorgensen to speak on what working in heavy highway construction was like and the job opportunities available today. The following month our Treasurer was able to contact the contractors of a local apartment project and we were able to get a tour of them while under construction which was fantastic. Then, in November we were invited back to Terracon, a Cincinnati based geotechnical engineering firm. They showed us all the different kinds of work they do and gave us a presentation of their upcoming projects and that they were open to new co-ops for the spring.

Overall, it was a very uplifting and positive experience for the group and we hope to roll all of this into the next year and continue learning and building upon ourselves as students and eventually as engineers.

The University of Cincinnati's ASCE Student Group had a number of major accomplishments during 2015. The group hosted many informational and exciting meetings with professional speakers throughout the year. Some of the notable speakers included Mr. Stephan Spinosa from ODOT presenting on the numerous improvements taking place within Hamilton County's I-75 Corridor, Mr. Ron Ebelhar of Terracon presenting on the unique geotechnical challenges that his team faced during the planning and construction of the Kentucky Lakes Bridge project, and Ms. Jessica Fitzwilson of Turner Construction presenting on tips and tricks for succeeding at a career fair. Some of the other unique meetings ASCE hosted was a tour of the newly expanded Nippert Stadium on UC's campus and an energetic ethics discussion with Dr. Richard Miller of UC's faculty.

In addition to hosting bi-weekly meetings on UC's campus, the ASCE group partnered with Cincinnati State Technical Community College to co-host the 2015 Ohio Valley Student Conference (OVSC). The conference was very successful for the UC ASCE group who brought home nine awards. Some of the awards included winning First Place Overall for the Technical Paper, First Place in the Women's Sprint for the Concrete Canoe event, and four awards within the Steel Bridge event.

Hosting the OVSC event in itself was a major undertaking for both schools, but the event was an overall success. The event was hosted at the Lawrenceburg Convention Center in Lawrenceburg, IN and will be hosted at the same location in 2016. Both ASCE Student Chapters hope to learn from the conference last year and make the 2016 OVSC just as successful. UC's ASCE Student Group would like to thank all of its sponsors and volunteers that made the event such a great experience for the students.

The ASCE student chapter appreciates the support of the Cincinnati ASCE section and its members as sponsors, presenters, and mentors.

Update on the Ohio Council

The Ohio Council of ASCE Sections was organized in 1969 to focus statewide attention on issues of interest and concern to civil engineers. There are six local ASCE sections in Ohio, each having representation on the Ohio Council in proportion to its membership. The Council meets twice annually, in spring and fall. The April meeting is normally held in Columbus, and the October meeting locations rotate among the sections. All ASCE members are welcome to attend Ohio Council meetings.

Ohio Council addresses several areas of interest to members of ASCE in the State of Ohio. In the most general sense, the Council fosters communication among the six sections. At the semi-annual meetings, each section gives a report on the section's activities during the 6 months since the previous meeting, and there is an opportunity for questions and discussion of new activities by the sections. The Council also reviews policies and actions under consideration by the ASCE National board, and may vote to make a recommendation to the Board. The Council may also initiate actions with respect to the National Board on topics of interest.

The Ohio Council was also responsible for developing the Ohio Infrastructure Report Card, which is a component of the ASCE Report Card for America's Infrastructure. The Council also maintains and updates the Ohio Infrastructure Report Card to coincide with updates to the national report card.

The Council has also conducted a legislative program for many years, initially as an independent effort, and currently in cooperation with OSPE. The program includes cooperative monitoring of legislation with OSPE, partial support of a lobbyist, and conducting a State Legislative Day each year.

Another long running Ohio Council activity is the annual Robert O'Shea younger member award for a paper on engineering ethics, which carries a $500 prize split evenly between the author and the Section Younger Member group, or Student Chapter. More information regarding the competition will be distributed to the section when available.

ASCE Cincinnati Section Sustainability Committee

With sustainability growing in importance to civil engineering, ASCE has made it one of three strategic priorities for the Society, helping professionals to incorporate sustainability principles into their daily practice. As the stewards of society's physical infrastructure, civil engineers must lead the next shift in sustainable planning, design and construction. Here's how ASCE defines sustainability:

A set of environmental, economic and social conditions in which all of society has the capacity and opportunity to maintain and improve its quality of life indefinitely without degrading the quantity, quality or availability of natural, economic, and social resources.

Are you passionate about sustainability? Do you want to make an impact in your local community? Do you want to share ideas, educate others, and learn more about sustainability? Get involved!

In 2014 the ASCE Cincinnati Section Board of Directors approved a Sustainability Committee to be added to the Cincinnati Section. If you are interested in joining the Sustainability Committee please contact Michael Kady at mkady@cecinc.com.

Engineering Week

ASCE Cincinnati Section visited Pattison Elementary School in Milford in honor of Engineering Week to help promote civil engineering with children. Members of the Section joined three kindergarten classes to talk about civil engineering, discussing the types of engineers and the different kinds of work that they do. The students circled up and had a question and answer session about civil engineering with members of ASCE. Students were then told the story of the Three Billy Goats Gruff and the troll who lived under the bridge. They were told that the troll would no longer be angry if he had a house to live in as opposed to living under a bridge.

The kids broke off into groups of three and had the opportunity to collaborate, design, and build a structure using tape and index cards. The design criteria was that the house needed windows to see the goats crossing the bridge and a door large enough for the troll figure to fit through. After construction was complete, a wind load was introduced (utilizing the classroom fan). Students were able to see the impact of the weather load on their homes.

The children's houses before and after applying the "wind load"

The ASCE Cincinnati Section anticipates on holding bigger and better future events in honor of Engineering Week in order to help promote civil engineering with young children.

Join the Order of the Engineer!

The Cincinnati Section of ASCE will be hosting our tenth Order of the Engineer ceremony during our April Section Meeting and Student Awards Banquet. If you are interested in joining (the only lifetime cost is $10 for the ring) please send an email to Julie Cromwell at jcromwell@thpltd.com before April 4, 2015.

The Annual Student Awards Banquet is currently scheduled to be held on Wednesday, April 13th, 2016, at the University of Cincinnati's Faculty Club.

Employment Opportunities

ASCE Cincinnati Section will begin posting employment opportunities in our newsletter and on our section webpage. If your company has an opening they need filled please send us an email with the position information and we will post it on our site as soon as possible.

Current Openings:

Civil Engineer I or II