Michael Goodman / ENR Concrete cores in the "humid room" at STS/AECOM

It's a dark, dirty world below the surface of the soil, but geotechnical engineers live there every day, taking responsibility for below-ground infrastructure and keeping heavy structures from sinking into the earth. It's a high-pressure job that will only become more important as the world's building stock ages, structures get taller and heavier and the global population becomes more crowded.

Almost all construction starts in the soil. Ironically, underground work was one of the last civil-engineering fields to evolve from an art into a mechanistic science. Engineers used to rely on anecdotal experience, antiquated theories and intuition to found structures. Many mistakes were made.

Karl Terzaghi, the father of soil mechanics, observed that foundations are "a necessary evil" because buildings are rarely sited on an outcropping of sound rock. Foundations have long been treated like stepchildren, Terzaghi wrote in 1951, "and their acts of revenge for the lack of attention can be very embarrassing."

Related Links: Clyde N. Baker Jr.

Not much has changed except that the engineering of natural geology has become far more of a science than an art. This year's Award of Excellence winner has, through a series of small steps, taken impressive leaps in bringing deep foundation engineering out of the fog. He has gradually pushed for more efficient foundations, test procedures and quality controls. He also stands out as a construction industry leader because, above all else, Clyde N. Baker Jr. is a natural collaborator.

As engineers continue to work below grade, the geotechnical field is digging into a new era with deeper problems to solve. Construction is moving faster, designs are calling for taller, heavier structures, and cities are packing in more people. How they build down will be just as important as how they build up.

Existing buildings and public works are aging, so another critical role of the geotechnical engineer is cataloguing infrastructure hidden below the surface and making sure it is maintained as well as the structures that people can see. Earthwork remains underappreciated. Yet as underground engineering grows more complex, more down-to-earth collaborators like Baker will be needed.