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Viewpoints - Featured Headline

?Tides of Fate Swamp An Engineer's First Bid
03/13/12 By Samuel C. Florman
In a story adapted from his new book, Samuel C. Florman recalls how his first bid estimate in his first week on the job looked like a big loser for his company.

Courtesy Thomas Dunne Books

Take Infrastructure Back from Politicians
02/27/12 By William G. Reinhardt
The best hope is for public and private planners, designers, builders and operators of these facilities to convince a skeptical public that it is getting the services it pays for at a fair price and without political favoritism.

Michael Beitzel

More Viewpoints

05/07/12	Help a Teacher: Be a Mentor! By David B. Rosenbaum High school math-engineering teacher seeks industry support to mentor low-performers in critical STEM skills.
04/30/12	VIEWPOINT: In Tampa Bay Water v. HDR, Fiscal Prudence Falls Through the Cracks By James G. McConnell The history of this case reveals that reversal of the jury’s verdict on appeal is about as likely as a man flying to the moon by flapping his arms.
04/23/12	The Teaching Moment Arrives in Tampa Bay Water v. HDR The lesson of Tampa Bay Water v. HDR is to never gamble millions on a trial since all you may do is pend funds that boost the gross domestic legal product.
04/16/12	Make Storm Drainage System Inspection Standard By Viewpoint by Ali Abolmaali Post-installation inspection likewise ensures that a suppliers’ product was installed properly, reducing the potential for liability due to unanticipated maintenance or failure.
04/09/12	Why We Need the Keystone XL Pipeline Project By Ralph Christie Jr. One of the key objectives to securing the nation’s long-term economic security is the need to expand our access to safe, secure and sustainable sources of energy.
03/26/12	Bidding Edge? It's Cheating, But There's a Right Way to Compete By Don L. Short II An estimator explains how substitutions without the knowledge of the rest of the project team really amounts to ‘strategic’ cheating, and why the bid period is the proper time to seek an edge on the competition.
02/20/12	Display of the Retired Space Shuttle: An Opportunity Los Angeles Should Not Miss By Theodore H. Nathanson The right type of display, in docking mode with the Space Station or in launching mode, or both, could draw a huge number of visitors each year.
02/13/12	Project Delivery: The Choice Isn't All or Nothing With Design-Build By Ted Lynch An argument for using design-build for some major subcontracts on a project that is otherwise delivery the customary way.
02/13/12	Why Peer Reviews Need Statutory Protection By Bill Quatman Designers need statutory privacy protection for peer reviews, the same privilege enjoyed by physicians, to be sure reviews won’t be used as court evidence.
01/23/12	Float May Be Sinking the Project By Murray B. Woolf By eliminating float as a way to determine delay, we could return Critical Path Method schedules to being a model for Project Execution Strategy and a tool to coordinate and direct work.
01/09/12	ENR Showcases Great Shots of 2011 By Tom Sawyer ENR’s annual photo contest brings attention to inspiring construction photographs and the workers and projects they depict.
01/09/12	Judging the ENR Photo Contest: Hows and Whys By Tom Sawyer Selected by ENR from hundreds of photographs submitted every year, “Images of the Year in Construction” features photographs that best capture the mood and flavor of construction.
12/19/11	VIEWPOINT: Engineering-Construction Needs a New Model By Robert Prieto Is our business model broken? The need for innovation should cause us to reconsider how we conduct our research and rethink how products and applications are developed.
12/07/11	Opinion: Assuring You Have Skin in the Safety Game By Peter Lupo A contractor’s safety director finds that the U.S. Navy is more-than-serious about safety on its construction sites.
12/05/11	VIEWPOINT Project Risk Sharing: Owner Clauses-Bad Practice? By Mike Herlihy Viewpoint on project risk management trend
11/28/11	Viewpoint: Contemplating Competence By Jon A. Schmidt Engineer says competence ss exercise of skill, not just awareness of facts.
11/07/11	Insurance Notices of Termination: Will You Find Out Coverage Ends? By Michael Campo A recent change to a common risk management activity poses new risks to the bottom line.
10/31/11	Editorial: Prosecution of Ex-Berger Group CEO Wolff May Push Non-Compliance To Criminal Level By the editors of ENR In our opinion, a multiyear audit and payment process on a cost-plus contract is a moral sand trap for a federal agency and a contractor.
10/10/11	Multihazard Design: How to Prepare for Dual Disasters By Viewpoint by Mohammed Ettouney and Anurag Jain If we want new structures to stand for the next 50-100 years and age with grace, then we must manage structure and infrastructure health comprehensively, making assessments throughout the life cycle.
09/26/11	Allow Utilities To Place Lines Along Freeways By Paul Scott Speed up the process of change at AASHTO to allow the needed energy revolution to take place
09/14/11	Structural Engineers Need Separate Licensing By Jon A. Schmidt An engineer's primary obligation is to the safety, health and welfare of the public, and this is what motivates advocates of separate licensure for structural engineers.
08/29/11	Safety-Related Jury Verdict in Nevada Lacked Common Sense By Paul Gogulski An expert witness worries that a jury's decision badly undermines justice for a third party injured on a jobsite.
08/15/11	Saga of the World Trade Center in ENR Continues By Janice L. Tuchman In its historic coverage of the 16-acre World Trade Center site in lower Manhattan, ENR has published more than 100 articles, beginning with a project summary overview in 1958.
07/25/11	With the Carmageddon Fresh in Our Minds, Why We Must Finish Another Vital L.A. Artery By James E. Moore II and Nat B. Read Despite clear need and pervasive public support, a small but highly organized, vocal group has delayed the I-71- link by learning exactly where to insert monkey wrenches into the gears of public process.
07/18/11	Viewpoint: Why Uncertainty Is a Critical Factor in Designing for Disaster By Ed Link Over time, formally factoring in risk can bring enormous monetary savings and avoid major interruptions to society and the economy.
06/29/11	Don't Wait Until Winter To Manage the Risks Related to Heavy Snow By Lionel Béjean Winter test roofs and most are sound, but you don’t have to be wrong to end up the target of a lawsuit
06/21/11	Before You Upgrade CAD: Questions to Ask By Steve Ross Thinking about finally adding computer-aided design software to your workflow? In part 1 of this 2 part article, CAD expert Steve Ross explains important questions you need to ask yourself and your vendors before you buy.
06/13/11	The Case for Practice Restrictions in Licensure By Jon A. Schmidt Licensure is already discipline-specific–entirely discipline-specific–when it comes to the PE exams. The logical next step is to make licensure discipline-specific when it comes to actual practice.
05/23/11	Casual Insults Sap Prestige, Power By Rakesh Tripathi Engineers should not lead organizations. Engineers are rigid, politically unsophisticated, unimaginative, uncommunicative and oblivious to the big picture. They lack the needed qualities for leadership and are best suited for lower-level supporting roles. You hear these comments all the time. Had these comments been made about
04/13/11	Studies Show That Unions Work By William P. Hite While reliable studies of craft labor productivity in the U.S. are in short supply, a few recent reports that specifically address changing trends in construction over the last decade indicate declines in productive output of skilled trades and rising project costs can be traced to gaps in education and training among non-union workers.

05/18/11 Casual Insults Sap Prestige, Power
05/11/11 Run a Train That’s Fast Enough
05/11/11 True High Speeds Vital for U.S.
04/06/11 Cut Review Time To Save Money
03/23/11 Blog Posts From Tokyo and Sendai After the Great Quake and Tsunami
03/02/11 My Verdict On Merger Mania
02/23/11 Getting Outside The Comfort Zone
02/09/11 Recycling Asphalt Rescues Roads
02/02/11 Filling a Gap in College Studies
01/19/11 How To Close A License Loophole
12/15/10 Steel Inscribed With Love’s Signature
12/01/10 When Language Obstructs Safety
11/10/10 Streamlining the Healing Process
10/27/10 Tea Party Is Silent On Infrastructure
10/20/10 Builders Need A Defined Role
09/22/10 Why I Love Pay-to-Play Rules During Election Campaigns
10/13/10 Code Proposals Are Self-Serving
10/06/10 Contract Unfair? Just Say No
09/22/10 A Non-Traditional Project Newsroom
09/01/10 The Legal Worries Raised by IPD
08/25/10 A Classic Case Of Good Intentions
07/28/10 Why Owners Make The Difference
07/21/10 What I Want From Washington, D.C.
07/14/10 Don’t Blame Engineering
06/30/10 Electric Vehicles: Are We Being Sold A Bill of Goods?
06/23/10 Is Faith Misplaced In Mediation?
06/16/10 Push Back FEMA’s Levee Deadline
05/26/10 Ending the Politics Of Infrastructure
05/19/10 Digital Files May Kill Credibility
05/12/10 Build Roads That Anticipate Errors
04/28/10 Doing Business In South Africa
04/21/10 Downsizing Can Lead to Success
03/17/10 How to Pay an Insurance Broker to Protect Your Blind Side
03/03/10 China Gateway? Not Hong Kong
01/27/10 How To Keep Mentoring Alive
12/09/09 Projects in China Need Vigilance
11/18/09 Don't Leave Safety Out of Sustainability
10/28/09 Why Wash Dirty Laundry in Public? Studying Failure Is Crucial
09/16/09 When Bidders Choose to 'Bomb'
08/12/09 Proposal For Portable Safety Records Is Generating Dialogue and Controversy
07/29/09 N.J. Privatizes Remediation
07/22/09 Rail Race: Maglev or HSR, What is the Future? Join the Rail Debate and Help Shape History
07/15/09 New Innovations In Crash Barriers
07/08/09 Taming Construction Disputes Through Rapid Resolution
07/02/09 Is Another Boom and Bust Cycle Coming To Engineering Staffing?
06/25/09 Controlling Work-Related Disability Costs
06/18/09 Complacency is the Enemy
06/17/09 New Fuel Rules Challenge Trucks
06/10/09 Taxpayers Benefit By Outsourcing
06/03/09 LEED 2009 - A Good First Step
05/29/09 Could Your Firm Pass a Stress Test?
05/20/09 Firms Should Think About Expanding
05/20/09 Sustainability Can Drive Investment
05/13/09 Contractor Laws Equalize Bidders
05/06/09 Gaining a Slice of Stimulus Pie
04/27/09 High Speed Rail is a Game-changer
04/22/09 Productivity Is Key To Profitability
04/15/09 Aging Ports Need Revitalization
04/08/09 P3 Bonds Need Transparency
04/01/09 We Need Personal Safety Records
03/25/09 Crisis Control in A YouTube World
03/18/09 Supercharging Industry PDAs
03/11/09 Prospering in Cyclical Markets
03/04/09 Energy Savings: California’s Big Step
02/26/09 Energy Tax Deductions — Build Green, Save Green
02/25/09 Finally, Maglev Leadership
02/18/09 Guidelines For Stimulus Package Projects
02/11/09 A Stimulus for Good Design
02/04/09 Engineering Talent Is the Best Stimulus
02/02/09 An Open Letter to the Profession: Civil Engineering Education at a Crossroads
01/21/09 Making Projects Regulatory Ready
01/16/09 Emergency Responder Legislation Protects Engineering Firms
01/09/09 Going Green Through Parking

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