Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Cardno TBE welcomes Carlo Pilia to its Central Florida branch



Cardno TBE announces that Carlo Pilia has joined the firm’s Central Florida office in Altamonte Springs as the new branch manager. Pilia is responsible for Cardno’s subsurface utility engineering, utility coordination, and survey and mapping services throughout Central Florida. Pilia has extensive experience in overseeing project completions, business development, and overall financial management. His technical experience includes the use of 3D subsurface utility imaging instruments and applications. 

Prior to joining Cardno TBE, Pilia was the director and partner of TST Engineering Ltd.’s branch in Dublin, Ireland. He began his career at TST as a graduate intern in 2004 and held several positions before becoming a partner at the firm.  He was the project manager for many subsurface utility engineering projects in Ireland, including major public transportation upgrades in Dublin, such as Light Railway Transit Systems  (Luas), Metro North and Metro West. He also managed projects for HVDC cables (East-West Connector connecting Ireland and the UK) and major utilities upgrades (Spencer Dock Sewerage Scheme and electrical power stations). With his previous employer, Pilia implemented new procedures and techniques for the location and protection of existing subsurface utilities.

Pilia holds a Bachelors of Structural-Building (Civil) Engineering from the University of Cagliari, Italy and is a licensed engineer in both Ireland and Italy, with 
the title of Chartered Engineer (CEng) in Ireland.

Cardno TBE, (www.cardnotbe.com) a member of the Cardno family of companies, offers a range of consulting, design, engineering, and construction services, including civil, environmental, transportation planning and design, right-of-way acquisition/relocation, subsurface utility engineering, surveying and mapping, and utility coordination. Cardno TBE has more than 40 offices serving clients in the United States, Canada, Australia, and United Kingdom.

New profile posted: Rich McFarland invents the Draft Simulator to test furnace pressure switches and starts a company to market it


Rich McFarland

HVAC technician invents an instrument to test pressure switches in furnaces and goes entrepreneurial with it

Rich McFarland

Rich McFarland has worked in the HVAC Industry for 30 years as an installer, service technician, and manager, and he has owned heating and air conditioning companies. “In my background, I trained mostly from the military -- schematics, electronics,” he reveals. “I’m not an engineer per se, but I am an engineer at heart. I’ve been inventing stuff all my life.”

This eclectic mix of skills has led McFarland, 59, on a parallel path to engineering and set the stage for him to parlay his knack for inventing to becoming an entrepreneur marketing a product he developed. Good Day Tools, a new company in Cincinnati, Ohio, has started production of its Draft Simulator, invented by McFarland and co-owner Gene Warren. Along the way, McFarland has made the business a family affair, as Gene is his son-in-law and son Matt works as an IT person and bookkeeper.

The trio predicts the device will have major implications in the world of furnaces and boilers. There may be a few naysayers, but McFarland reports, “it has been extremely well received. It’s just unbelievable. We’ve gotten a lot of kudos across the United States. It’s grown fast in popularity.”

Just what is a Draft Simulator? The hand-held, battery-operated instrument can calibrate adjustable pressure switches and test switches, procedures that until now involved crude tests such as the breath test and using a syringe to simulate vacuum. The instrument produces a sustainable vacuum pressure from 0 to 100 inches of water column with the twist of a knob. This allows HVAC technicians to simulate the pressures draft inducers produce on induced draft furnaces while determining when pressure switches open and close, all without a furnace running. To use the Draft Simulator, you connect cables and hoses from the instrument to the pressure switch and a digital manometer, which measures pressure. This can be done with the switch mounted on or separate from the furnace.

A furnace pressure switch, which has a diaphragm and microswitch inside, serves a safety function by sensing pressure inside the furnace and only letting electric current flow when the pressure is normal. If the pressure should reach a dangerous level, the switch will shut off the electrical current to prevent damage. As an example of what can happen, if a furnace runs while the flue or heat exchanger is partially blocked, carbon monoxide poisoning or a deadly fire can result. Furnaces may contain several different types of pressure switches in residential, commercial, institutional, and industrial applications.

“I’m a military brat. I grew up everywhere. I was born in El Paso, Texas,” McFarland says in detailing his background. He too went in the military. “I was trained in aviation ordnance, so we built bombs and missiles. Had a great time with that.” After that, he attended San Bernardino Valley College in California for heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration. He didn’t stay the course, though, because he was young and married, and he ventured east and got his first job in heating and air conditioning in Virginia. He went to various other schools and got on-the-job training. He owned two companies, Alpine Heating in Cincinnati and All Seasons in Portsmouth, Ohio, and also worked for other companies.

Design Arises from Frustration
Work on the Draft Simulator started in 2003 when, McFarland recalls, “I became frustrated with the number of pressure switches we had. We had at least 50 pressure switches on our truck, and it took up a lot of space. It never failed; you’d always have the wrong one.” Working with a couple of local HVAC supply warehouses, he determined that there was no way to set a universal pressure switch. “So I thought, ‘there’s got to be a better way.’ I started designing a device to calibrate adjustable pressure switches.”
With co-owner and co-inventor Gene Warren looking on, McFarland demonstrates the Draft Simulator on a furnace.
With co-owner and co-inventor Gene Warren looking on, McFarland demonstrates the Draft Simulator on a furnace.

Gene Warren got involved then, helping McFarland with the design. An auto mechanic who worked a short time at Ford Motor Company, Warren is mechanically inclined and proved instrumental in developing the tool. Work took place in their shop and Gene’s basement.

“We actually started with an aquarium pump and reversed it to create a vacuum.” McFarland says in recalling their design methodology. “We had to regulate that flow, as that is the most important part of the tool.” This allows you to maintain pressure, which is hard to do when you’re drawing a vacuum. “It was trial and error to figure out exactly the right size tubing, connections, orifice, and everything inside to get this to work right. It took quite some time.”

McFarland was working for Potts Heating and Air at the time, and he and Gene approached his boss Bill Potts to demonstrate the tool and see if he wanted in on the action. They needed someone to pay for their venture, and Potts said yes, so they started looking for ways to build and sell the tool. They hired an attorney and started patent procedures.

With the concept proven, designing the Draft Simulator for production became a daunting exercise in juggling all the components, often against cost. This included the pump, enclosure, valve for adjusting airflow, and batteries. They tried units with and without a digital manometer built in, finally settling on a design without it. “It’s funny, every time we feel like it’s going to sell or work out, it fails. At times, we gave up and tried to put it to bed, but this thing has a mind of its own,” McFarland says.

Having accomplished the next level of design, McFarland and Warren set out to sell their concept to a tool manufacturer, approaching several in the process. Some would express interest at first but then back out later for various reasons. One manufacturer required that they buy 1000 units. Bill Potts was tapped out, having invested over $30,000 trying to get this up and running. Then they met another investor. They found a company near Cincinnati to manufacture the units, and McFarland points out that most of the parts are made in the United States, including the molded plastic housing.

Offers Several Advantages
In telling what the Draft Simulator offers, McFarland explains, “You will always have the right pressure switch, even in the middle of the night. You can reduce inventory by stocking just adjustable pressure switches and a few OEMs for the warranty furnaces.” He continues, “Pressure Switches are the most misdiagnosed controls in today's furnaces. In fact, we had one manufacturer of furnaces state that over 90 percent of pressure switches returned under warranty tested fine. You consider that quantity, we’re talking millions of dollars in loss with pressure switches.” HVAC contractors and wholesalers can save time and money in the entire supply chain by reducing callbacks and finding faulty pressure switches that appear to work fine.

While most pressure switches can be adjusted, they are only meant to be factory pre-set to a particular brand of furnace. “You could have dozens upon dozens of OEM pressure switches. It’s a nightmare stocking all these or going to get them,” McFarland says.

A truly adjustable, or universal, type of pressure switch does exist, but it is only meant for emergency use. You can install one in the middle of a cold night for the furnace to run, say, until you can come back and replace it with the right switch. McFarland says this can be dangerous because you don’t know exactly what pressure you set the switch for. With the Draft Simulator, you can set the switch exactly where it’s supposed to be and forget it. You don’t have to come back. “You can now use an adjustable pressure switch like a regular preset switch because you can set it accurately.”

Pressure switches commonly see use on induced draft furnaces. A furnace draft inducer blower is a relatively new component of modern furnaces that became part of heating units after the government mandated efficiency standards. A typical draft inducer blower lies in the gas burner compartment of a furnace and consists of a motor-driven wheel assembly or fan. The flame originates at the burners and is drawn into the heat exchanger by the negative pressure produced by the draft inducer. A pressure switch attached to the draft motor by a small tube senses the negative pressure created by the draft inducer. By improving the quality of air moving through the furnace, the draft inducer blower helps improve efficiency of the system.

McFarland and his partners got a patent on the Draft Simulator three years ago and lined up an investor last year. They’ve attended a host of trade shows to spread the word about it. A handful of supply houses in the United States and Canada carry the Draft Simulator, and they’ve gotten interest from other countries.
In reflecting on the process, McFarland says, “It’s very exciting to see something come to fruition, especially when you look back to nine years ago, on the drawing board, sitting there trying to figure out how to make it work.” With his ex-boss Bill Potts as one of his partners, McFarland now concentrates fulltime on his entrepreneurial endeavor, hoping to reap the rewards and leave a big mark on the HVAC industry.
For more information on Good Day Tools and the Draft Simulator, visitGoodDayTools.com

Jon McDonald joins Atkins as VP, transit and rail practice senior manager


Atkins, the engineering and design consultancy, announces the hiring of Jonathan McDonald, P.E., who has joined the company as vice president and senior practice manager for the company’s transitand rail practice. He is based in Atkins’ San Francisco office.
McDonald has 20 years of experience, specializing in building partnerships with key stakeholders, driving business development, expanding client bases, and growing companies. He has successfully implemented several industry firsts, including IP-based emergency phones, distributed central control, and reliability management. According to Barry Schulz, president of Atkins’ transportation practice, “Jon is a seasoned professional who has developed a successful career in building winning strategic plans while assembling high-performance technical teams for international transportation, manufacturing, and telecommunications organizations.”

McDonald has successfully led systems development for some of the world’s largest and most advanced rail projects, including the California High-Speed Rail project, Hong Kong’s US$10 billion mixed freight/passenger West Rail Line, multiple BART extensions with state-of-the-art ATO (automated train operation), and Seattle’s Central Link light rail system with mixed bus/rail tunnel operations.

McDonald earned his MBA from the University of Chicago after earning a B.S. in electrical engineering
from the University of Illinois.

David DiPonio joins Parsons Brinckerhoff



David DiPonio has been named a senior supervising tunnel engineer in the Detroit office of Parsons Brinckerhoff, a global infrastructure strategic consulting, planning, engineering and program/construction management organization. In his new position, DiPonio will serve in a technical supervisory and management role in the firm’s Geotechnical & Tunneling Technical Excellence Center.  He will lead tunnel and underground projects as well as assist in local and regional business development.
            DiPonio has over 40 years of experience in the tunnel engineering and underground construction industry.  His background includes extensive experience on a wide variety of large-scale projects as project manager, owner's representative, design manager, and construction manager.  Prior to joining Parsons Brinckerhoff, he was a senior project manager and associate with Wade Trim in Detroit. He received a B.S. degree in civil engineering from the University of Detroit.
Parsons Brinckerhoff develops and operates infrastructure around the world, with 14,000 employees serving clients and communities in the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia-Pacific regions. The firm offers services in strategic consulting, planning, engineering, program/construction management, and operations for transportation, power, mining, water/wastewater, and community development projects.  Parsons Brinckerhoff is part of Balfour Beatty, an international infrastructure services business operating in professional services, construction services, support services, and infrastructure investments (www.pbworld.com).

USON announces appointment of Charles Foran, Jr. as president


Houston, TX-based USON, pioneer of automated leak detection equipment for the automotive, industrial, medical device, and packaging industries, announces the appointment of Charles Foran, Jr. (Dave), a veteran of the automated instrumentation industry, as USON president. 

A mechanical engineer, Foran brings more than 35 years of experience leading diverse organizations to guide strategic planning, product development, engineering, sales and marketing, joint venture relationships, and harnessing Internet-based opportunities to spur business growth initiatives.

Foran’s previous career milestones include:

·       Founder and president of Flowdata, Inc., a small flowmeter manufacturing company with specialized and technically advanced flow measurement products and related instrumentation.

·       Author of Flow Measurement Handbook, ISA, 200

·       United States Senate Business Advisory Board 1981

·       Key leadership in merging Flowdata Inc. with Flow Technology Inc., a business unit of Roper Industries

·       Founder and president of MIRRORMARKS  (dba Internet Biz Services), a chief marketing officer outsource for a broad range of companies seeking to achieve a wider scope of business growth initiatives and marketing strategies.

Foran received a BSME from Texas A&M University in 1976.

Monday, July 2, 2012

Robotic jellyfish at Virginia Tech could one day patrol oceans, clean oil spills, and detect pollutants

Virginia Tech College of Engineering researchers are working on a multi-university, nationwide project for the U.S. Navy that one day will put life-like autonomous robot jellyfish in waters around the world. The main focus of the program is to understand the fundamentals of propulsion mechanisms used by nature, says Shashank Priya, associate professor of mechanical engineering and materials science and engineering at Virginia Tech and lead researcher on the project. Future uses of the robot jellyfish could include conducting military surveillance, cleaning oil spills, and monitoring the environment.


This isn’t science fiction. It’s happening now in a lab inside Virginia Tech’s Durham Hall, where a 600-gallon tank is regularly filled with water as small robotic jellyfish are tested for movement and energy self-creation and usage. A synthetic rubbery skin, squishy in one’s hand, mimics the sleek jellyfish skin and is placed over a bowl-shaped device covered in electronics. When moving, they look weirdly alive. The robotic creatures called RoboJelly are being designed to operate on their own energy versus, say, sea crabs, or mollusks.


“Jellyfish are attractive candidates to mimic because of their ability to consume little energy owing to a lower metabolic rate than other marine species, survivability in varying water conditions, and possession of adequate shape for carrying a payload,” Priya says. “They inhabit every major oceanic area of the world and are capable of withstanding a wide range of temperatures in fresh and salt waters. Most species are found in shallow coastal waters, but some have been found in depths 7,000 meters below sea level.”


Several sizes of the RoboJelly are under various phases of development, some the size of a man’s hand, while another is more than five-foot wide. The latter robotic creature is too large for the lab tank and is tested in a swimming pool and is not yet ready for wide public debut, says Priya, director of the Center for Energy Harvesting Materials and Systems.


Priya adds that in addition to a range of sizes, jellyfish display a wide variety of shapes and colors and can move on their own vertically but depend upon ocean currents for horizontal movement. With no central nervous system, jellyfish instead use a diffused nerve net to control movement and can complete complex functions. “So far, our focus has been using the experimental models to understand the fundamental principles of nature,” Priya says of the jellyfish.


The idea for a robotic jellyfish did not originate at Virginia Tech but, rather, at the U.S. Naval Undersea Warfare Center and the Office of Naval Research. Virginia Tech is teaming with four U.S. universities on the multi-year, $5 million project: The University of Texas at Dallas is handling nanotechnology-based actuators and sensors; Providence College in Rhode Island is handling biological studies, the University of California, Los Angeles, is handling electrostatic and optical sensing/controls, and Stanford University is overseeing chemical and pressure sensing. Virginia Tech is building the jellyfish body models, integrating fluid mechanics, and developing control systems. Several other major U.S. universities and industries also are on the project as well as collaborators and advisory board members.


The project has been in the works for nearly four years and has garnered attention from media outlets from The Los Angeles Times to Popular Science to New Scientist and several marine-related trade publications. Several more years of work remain on the project before any models are released for military reconnaissance or object-tracking operations, be it with cameras, sensors, or other devices.


Other entrepreneurial uses abound for the RoboJelly. “The robots could be used to study aquatic life, map ocean floors, monitor ocean currents, monitor water quality, or monitor sharks,” says Alex Villanueva of St-Jacques, New-Brunswick, Canada, a doctoral student in mechanical engineering working under Priya. Other ideas: Detecting ocean pollutants and being used as clean-up filters during oil spills similar to the Deepwater Horizon melee during the summer of 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico. “The interesting part of the jellyfish research is that it is so open. No one had done research on a jellyfish vehicle to the extent we have. This allows for a lot of freedom and creativity in our design as opposed to optimization type of work which can be very boring.”


The smaller models are being developed to be powered by hydrogen, naturally abundant in water, which is a huge step in autonomous craft. The larger models may be operated by electric batteries built into the robotic creature. In both cases, the jellyfish must be able to operate on their own for months or longer at a time as engineers likely won’t be able to capture and repair the robots or replace power sources, Priya says. “Our biologists have studied tens of different species of jellyfish with variety of form factors grouped as ‘prolate’ or ‘oblate’ found all around the world. Most of these species adopt either rowing or jetting form of propulsion. We are investigating both of these propulsion mechanisms.”


Building the robotic jellyfish is a true example of interdisciplinary research, says Priya, listing materials scientists, mechanical engineers, biologists, chemists, physicists, electrical engineers, and ocean engineers as being involved in the ongoing project. “It’s very exciting when everything comes together and we can create experimental models that can surpass millions of years of evolution. Nature has done a great job designing propulsion systems, but it is a slow and tedious process. On the other hand, current technology allows us to create high-performance systems in a matter of a few months.”

New PEX guidance report issued


A report that can be used as a reference guide for the installation of cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) pipe has been issued by the American Water Works Association (AWWA).  Authored by the AWWA C904 Subcommittee of the Standards Committee on Polyolefin Pressure Pipe and Fittings, the report details the methods of manufacturing, material properties, and the capabilities of the flexible pipe known for durability, performance characteristics, and installation efficiency.

"This report puts all pertinent information about PEX pipe in one place with a high level of information for municipalities and installers.  We regard this as another landmark document by the AWWA," states Tony Radoszewski, executive director of the Plastics Pipe Institute (PPI), the major trade association representing all segments of the plastic pipe industry.  "The AWWA committee delineated the attributes of PEX pipe, and this information can now be readily used by any municipal engineer or plumbing system designer for reference or for inclusion in a proposal."

Published in the JOURNAL AWWA, March 2012 issue, the 12-page report also examines PEX pipe’s temperature and pressure capabilities as well as its resistance to freezing, chlorine, corrosion, UV, and chemicals.  "There are many different areas covered by the committee," Radoszewski states, "and it was important that each also had to be verified with empirical research and testing.  For example, the Hydrostatic Stress Board (HSB) of the PPI was instrumental in determining the long-term hydrostatic strength and recommended design stress values for thermoplastic compounds used in PEX pressure piping applications.  The HSB is made up of engineers, chemists, scientists, and others with expertise in thermoplastics and long-term strength testing and is chaired by the PPI technical director.  For the past 53 years, this group has made contributions that have set evaluation and usage guidance that has validated the performance of all thermoplastic pipe for a variety of applications — gas, water, process, waste, and industrial systems."

Primary authors were PPI staff members Camille Rubeiz, P.E., subcommittee chair, and Randy Knapp, plus Sarah Chung of Jana Laboratories; Gary Morgan of Watts, Inc.; Lance MacNevin of REHAU, Inc.; Gary Runyan of Zurn PEX, Inc.; and John Fishburne of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utilities, N.C. and committee chair.

"AWWA C904 is very important also because it certifies that PEX pipe has been tested and certified for compliance with NSF/ANSI Standard 61 for drinking water system components," Radoszewski adds. The report can be found at the AWWA website:
http://apps.awwa.org/WaterLibrary/showabstract.aspx?an=JAW_0075733

The Plastics Pipe Institute Inc. (PPI) is the major trade association representing all segments of the plastic pipe industry and is dedicated to promoting plastics as the material of choice for pipe applications.  PPI is the premier technical, engineering and industry knowledge resource publishing data for use in development and design of plastic pipe systems.  Additionally, PPI collaborates with industry organizations that set standards for manufacturing practices and installation methods.

NSF award creates UTEP and UCSB partnership for materials science and engineering research



The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded $3.3 million for the establishment of a collaborative research and education program between The University of Texas at El Paso and University of California, Santa Barbara. As part of the national Partnerships for Research and Education in Materials (PREM) grant program, this award establishes a long-term partnership between UTEP and UCSB’s Materials Research Laboratory: an NSF Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC).

The UTEP-UCSB PREM program broadens the participation and advanced degree attainment of under-represented minorities, primarily Hispanic students, in materials science and engineering. The program opens doors for UTEP and UCSB students to participate in research internships at the partner university and for faculty at UCSB and UTEP to jointly teach advanced educational courses remotely to students at both campuses, among other benefits.

"The PREM program provides a wonderful opportunity for UTEP scientists to interact closely with their counterparts at UCSB in exciting research and educational projects," says Luis Echegoyen, the Robert A. Welch Chair in Chemistry at UTEP and principal investigator for the award. "UTEP and UCSB students will have unique possibilities to work collaboratively in new materials research areas of direct relevance to solar energy. We anticipate true synergistic outcomes to emerge from this collaborative partnership at the frontier of materials research for photovoltaic applications."

Echegoyen added that the PREM program between UTEP and UCSB is predicated on the philosophy that there will be equal contributions from the two partners. "We are in this on a scientific parity basis," says Echegoyen, who was the Director of the Chemistry Division at the National Science Foundation prior to coming to UTEP.
Craig Hawker, Director of the Materials Research Laboratory at UCSB and co-principal investigator for the award, says the PREM award "is a chance to make a broader impact, and to excite and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers at UCSB and UTEP." “The UTEP-UCSB PREM will pursue research at the cutting-edge of photovoltaic materials research, developing new materials essential for efficient photovoltaics to be formulated," Hawker said.

Another core advantage of this PREM partnership is that it opens up a wealth of global research internship programs available for students at UTEP and UCSB alike. The Materials Research Laboratory at UCSB co-sponsors the Cooperative International Science and Engineering Internships program in which undergraduates participate in extended research stays with international partner institutions, such as the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom or Fudan University in China, leading to a richer educational experience for U.S. students. A cooperative program including UTEP and three universities in Spain adds an additional international component that would benefit the students who participate in the PREM.

Joel Figueroa-Vallines, P.E. joins French & Parrello Associates


Joel Figueroa-Vallines, P.E., formerly of Kissimmee, FL, has joined French & Parrello Associates (FPA) in Wall Township, NJ in the capacity of vice president and will assume the leadership of the firm’s structural engineering department.  He has over 15 years of experience in structural engineering on projects in both domestic and international markets. He has led the structural design of a variety of facilities including schools, museums, entertainment venues, stadiums, data centers, offices, multi-family dwellings, and towers for both public- and private-sector clients.

University of Arizona professor earns civil engineering distinction




Professor Achintya Haldar of the University of Arizona civil engineering and engineering mechanics department has been made a distinguished member of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Distinguished ASCE members are elected by the ASCE board of directors based on their global reputation of outstanding leadership and research in engineering. In the society, the honor is second only to becoming ASCE president. Each year, one in 7,500 ASCE members can be made distinguished members, and just 615 distinguished memberships have been conferred since the society was founded in 1852.

Haldar's citation by ASCE refers to his 44-year career as a researcher and his work as an educator, mentor, and practitioner. 
ASCE noted that Haldar's work had fundamentally changed structural engineering research, education, and practice. His work with industry includes proposing maintenance strategies for a major transit system, developing methods to assess the effects of missile impacts on nuclear power plants, and designing methods to improve the reliability of river navigation systems.

Haldar's research includes earthquake engineering and mathematical methods for determining structural reliability. In particular, he is interested in computer-based simulation and analysis of structures to determine how they react to different loads and stresses. The massive amounts of number crunching required by conventional simulation methods could take years for computers to churn through, so Haldar applies theoretical mathematical methods to minimize computer run times. This enables him to conduct millions of analyses in a matter of days and creates a more statistically accurate picture of how a structure has been damaged, for instance, by an earthquake or by the wear and tear of old age. "Our structures, buildings, they are aging," Haldar says. "And we do not have the money to fix them." Measuring the extent of structural damage is also crucial in determining how badly, and precisely where, earthquakes have damaged new buildings.

ASCE also noted Haldar's outstanding teaching and mentoring. He has received excellence in teaching awards from Georgia Tech and the University of Arizona and recognition from Illinois Institute of Technology. He has advised many doctoral and master's students, some of whom have themselves become highly respected faculty members at academic institutions in the U.S., Canada, Korea, Mexico, Taiwan and Jordan.

Haldar got his doctorate in 1976 and his master's in 1973, both in civil engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He got his bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1968 from Jadavpur University in Calcutta, now Kolkata, India.

In 2007 Haldar received an honor from his native country, where the Nonresident Indian Welfare Society in New Delhi selected him to receive the Hind Rattan Award. Hind Rattan is Hindi for "Jewel of India." This private but influential society makes the award to members of the Indian diaspora for outstanding services, achievements, and contributions.

More information on Haldar's research on the role risk management plays in civil engineering can be found on the UA College of Engineering website.

Bowyer-Singleton announces two new associates




Bowyer-Singleton & Associates announces Senior Project Manager Vu Vu, P.E. as an associate.  Since joining the firm in 2007, Vu has served as project manager on some of the firm’s most notable transportation projects.  His 13 years of experience in the transportation engineering arena includes two years as an interstate project manager with the Florida Department of Transportation District Five.  Vu earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Florida and Master of Business Administration from the University of Central Florida.  He currently serves as president of the American Society of Highway Engineers (ASHE).


The firm also announces Project Manager Ray Lee, P.E. as an associate.  Since joining the firm in 2007, Lee has served as project manager on some of the firm’s most notable transportation projects.  He earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Northeastern University in Boston and has amassed 15 years of experience in the transportation engineering arena.

Established in Orlando, FL in 1972, Bowyer-Singleton provides services in civil engineering, transportation engineering, environmental sciences, and surveying and mapping to transportation agencies, governmental agencies, land developers, engineering firms, and building and property owners throughout Florida.  The firm is headquartered in Orlando with regional offices in DeLand, Ocala, Jacksonville, Bartow, and the Tampa Bay area.