Engineering Influence from ACEC

We sat down with Autodesk to discuss the evolution of digital project delivery and how the engineering industry is adopting this technology on projects of varying complexity to achieve greater outcomes for their firms and projects.   

We spoke with our Monday session speaker at the 2022 Annual Convention, Adam Steltzner, the Chief Engineer for the NASA 2020 Mars Mission.  During his compelling presentation, Adam talked about the importance of imagination and perseverance to push the limits of what we can do.  We extended the conversation with a podcast after the session ended.  Don't miss this great interview.

Join Engineering Influence, coming to you from the 2022 ACEC Annual Convention and Legislative Summit.  Convention coverage made possible by Autodesk. In this episode, we are joined by Saul Gomez, Director of Business Development with aec360 by HSO.  Learn more about their AEC 360 software suite for engineering firms online here and at the convention at exhibit booth 6.

  Engineering Influence was pleased to be joined by Scott Harrison, founder and CEO of Charity: Water—a non-profit organization that provides drinking water to people in developing nations.  Scott kicked off our Annual Convention on Sunday evening with a fantastic presentation that resonated with our audience of engineers.  The message was simple - in 2022 there is no reason why people still don't have access to clean water.  That sounds like a problem fit for the mind of an engineer - a critical problem to solve for society. Harrison began his journey as a former nightclub promoter in New York City.  Leaving that life behind, he became a volunteer on a hospital ship off the coast of Liberia, West Africa as a photojournalist. Returning to New York City in 2006, he founded Charity:water and focused his full attention on the global water crisis and the world’s 663 million people without clean water to drink. Since its inception, Charity:water has funded more than 91,000 water projects in 29 countries benefiting nearly 15 million people. Scott has been recognized in Fortune magazine’s 40 under 40 list; Forbes magazine Impact 30 list and has also been recognized as a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

Today we spotlight Stambaugh Ness, a Patron Sponsor and exhibitor at the 2022 Annual Convention and Legislative Summit taking place in Washington, DC from May 22-24. 

We were joined by Water Energy & Environment Committee members Lauren Evans of Pinyon Engineering in Colorado and Andrew Bochman with the Idaho National Laboratory to set the stage for a series of podcasts focused on digging into the real issues surrounding sustainable engineering. In this episode, Lauren and Andrew discuss the differences between mitigation and adaptation and begin laying out the issues and challenges that define how policymakers and the public navigate climate change and the built environment.  

During this edition of the MO Spotlight, we are joined by ACEC/MA's Abbie Goodman to discuss her organization's partnerships with Massachusetts Community Colleges on a STEM Starter Academy to attract more people into the engineering profession.   Resources mentioned during the podcast: STEM Starter Academy Resource Page A STEM presentation to classrooms that can be downloaded, modified and used for classroom visits, virtual or in person. Editor's note: During the podcast, the educational path of the MassDOT Highway Administrator was listed incorrectly.  It should be noted that he started at Mount Wachusett Community College in Liberal Arts and Sciences. He then attended Wentworth Institute of Technology in Environmental Engineering and holds a degree in Civil Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.  

The Engineering Influence podcast welcomed Elizabeth Bradford from Michael Baker International and Dr. Luce Bassetti from Jacobs Engineering to discuss the future of resiliency and the need to take a programatic approach to the challenges of climate change.  Both Elizabeth and Luce are authors of a chapter in ACEC's new book: Climate Change and the Built Environment, available now.