The Federal Highway Administration and several state highway authorities are stepping up testing of electrochemical fatigue sensors (EFS) for detecting potentially deadly cracks in roads and bridges. Available from companies like California-based Material Technologies, the EFS systems consist of an electrolyte, a sensor array, and potentiostat for applying a polarizing voltage, as well as data collection and analysis software. Tests could lead to mandatory use of the technology by contractors.

Why waste aging concrete when it can be recycled as road base, ready-mix aggregate, and other products? Construction Equipment reveals how recycled concrete aggregate users save fuel costs, conserve landfill space, and reduce air pollution. Engineering tips help avoid materials-related distress and other durability problems for road and pavement projects.

Dassault Systèmes has formed an alliance with Areva NP, a nuclear services vendor, to apply 3D design tools for upgrading older nuclear power plants to meet licensing standards. Since working from original drawings doesn't reflect later upgrades, Areva will scan existing structures. Then CATIA will render that plant geometry data as 3D models. DELMIA digital manufacturing software will also help engineers plan maintenance and upgrades in a 3D environment.

Expect easier and faster modeling of structures with version 9.0 of RAM Advanse, says Bentley Systems. One design module optimizes steel or wood trusses while maintaining the out-to-out dimensions of the truss. A concrete wall design module allows input of out-of-plane loads, along with the option to design a bearing wall, shear wall, or a combination of both. The package also features a new memory-management system that permits bigger models and faster analyses.

If you've ever operated a heavy-duty bulldozer over rough terrain, then you know the importance of steering. Recently, engineers have added hydrostatic drive trains to a line of commercial-grade bulldozers. Hydrostatic systems allow for super maneuverability, especially when it comes to counter-rotating "power" turns, while delivering up to 116,000 lbs. of drawbar pull. These GPS ready hydrostatic drive-powered machines also provide "infinite speed selection from 0 to 6.2 mph in both forward and reverse modes."

That's what you might be asking if you witnessed a demonstration one concrete professional constantly puts on for his building customers. "Anytime we start a new job… we just open up with the water truck hose on the pavement and let it flow." People are amazed when the water immediately seeps into the concrete without the slightest runoff. With pervious concrete, the slopes, gutters, and retention basins normally required to manage storm water drainage can be eliminated.

Temperature extremes on this bridge in Ontario, Canada are moderated with a geothermal bridge deck heating system. A ground source heat pump and internal network of pipes warm the road surface to effect black ice removal in winter and reduce damaging thermal stresses. Fluid temperature and mechanical strains are tracked with an Internet-enabled thermocouple monitoring system.

In the James Bond film Casino Royale, the movie set of a building in Venice used hydraulics to submerge the structure in one of the "canals" in a climactic scene. In life imitating art, there is now a proposed plan to use hydraulic cylinders to lift individual Venetian buildings about a meter in a month to place them on poles, keeping them high and dry above the encroaching tides.

Increasingly, engineers want to pursue more education, but which way to go: an MBA or a Master's in Engineering? In Mechanical Engineering, engineer and career consultant Kevin Kuznia tackles the benefits and expectations of each path. People skills and financial savvy from MBA programs have propelled many engineers into management, notes Kuznia. Engineering master's programs, on the other hand, can build skills in systems design and analysis that are highly prized at many companies.

The Roman Coliseum in 3D

Ever wonder what it took to construct one of ancient engineering's greatest wonders — the Roman Coliseum, known by scholars as the Flavian Amphitheater? Designed to hold 50,000 spectators, the amphitheater made use of several engineering styles, none of which are foreign to contemporary builders 2,000 years later: "Concrete for the foundations… and brick-faced concrete for the upper levels." View this "vast ellipse" of tier-style seating in 3D.

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