What’s happening in the worlds of architecture and engineering?

By Prairie Business

As with the times, trends change. Prairie Business reached out to a few architecture and engineering companies to get their take on what is happening with them these days and what they are noticing in the industry. We appreciate all of those who answered questions.

AE2S

Name one industry trend you notice today and how it has or is impacting AE2S.

During the recent pandemic AE2S had to search for innovative ways to continue advancing important projects and help our clients meet public bid opening requirements.

In the last couple years, our projects have gone from nearly 100% paper bids that include in-person bid openings, to an estimated 25% in 2022 that will be submitted online through a platform such as QuestCDN and will include a virtual option to attend the bid opening utilizing platforms such as Teams, Zoom, etc.

With clients throughout the United States, online bidding creates a platform of convenience and efficiency, ultimately resulting in reduced cost for the client. Although I don’t see all projects bidding virtually anytime soon, the trend towards online platforms will steadily increase over time.

Jasper Klein, PE Bismarck Operations Manager

What are the most important skills an engineer can have these days?

Understanding the technical aspect of your chosen career is no doubt important but some of the most important skills an engineer can have are the “soft skills” that they don’t teach in school.

Of all the soft skills that exist, effective communication (both written and verbal) is number one on the list.

Whether it is being done internally with coworkers or externally with clients or the public, great communication skills will elevate you in the engineering industry. The best thing about most (if not all) soft skills is that if you are willing to put in the work, you can improve and develop them over time.

Ryan Grubb, PE Fargo Operations Manager

As an engineer, what is your favorite software to use and why?

Bim360 Insight, by Autodesk, is easily my favorite software to use. Its integration with Revit allows for easy model sharing and linking, and its 3D model generation allows for intuitive controls to review facility layout and to check for conflicts within interdisciplinary facility projects. I have also found it to be very useful during design review meetings with clients.

Most clients don’t spend their days looking at 2D drawings. The ability to look at, rotate, cut through, and even walk around in a virtual environment allows everyone the ability to quickly grasp otherwise difficult to understand areas or projects.

Jordan Grasser, PE Grand Forks Operations Manager

What is a project the company recently completed, or is working on, that you are most excited about?

AE2S is nearing completion of a new raw water intake pump station and ultrafiltration membrane water treatment plant for the City of Pierre, South Dakota. Construction of the new water treatment plant, which also includes a submerged intake screen and raw water pump station, began late summer of 2020.

The City of Pierre abuts the Missouri River. Although the Missouri River has been used in the Pierre region for recreation, fishing, and power generation, the City of Pierre has always relied on ground water wells to supply drinking water to its residents. Pierre’s existing groundwater contains extremely elevated concentrations of manganese and iron, which creates discolored water that can stain anything it touches.

Conclusions from a preliminary engineering report by AE2S indicated that construction of a new surface water treatment plant utilizing the Missouri River along with ultrafiltration membranes for the main treatment process would be the most feasible alternative for the city. The city solicited input from residents during public meetings to gauge public support.

Ultimately, the community’s support for better quality water was evident with approximately 73% of the residents voting in favor of the new project.

AE2S and the City of Pierre determined that due to the complexity of the project it would be best to contract the project using the CMAR approach – Construction Management at Risk. The CMAR process is fairly new within South Dakota and allowed the city to review the qualifications of various contractors and select the contractor most qualified to complete their new project.