Letter from the Editor

In this non-stop digital world of uncertainty and seemingly endless bad news, we at BSCESNews hope the stories of progress and innovation in this month’s issue serve as a positive reminder that it isn’t all bad. The very purpose of the civil engineering industry is to engineer for the public good, and the stories in this issue about the industry’s response to COVID-19 highlight the opportunities that each problem presents.

Civil engineers tackled the widespread lack of individual COVID-19 testing kits head-on with innovative wastewater testing programs. These programs aim to help communities identify outbreaks quicker than traditional testing methods at lower costs. David VanHoven details Stantec’s partnership with Northeastern to test wastewater throughout the city of Somerville, while Pablo Calabuig takes us across the pond with GoAigua’s program in Valencia, Spain.

Social-distancing takes a new form as civil engineers find ways to employ drones for surveying work. Alex Tetreault highlights Collins Engineers’ efforts to “do less with more” and utilize drones and artificial intelligence to improve asset management in his article. David Langlais gives us a birds-eye view of the future of traffic analysis with a case study of the Dracut school complex. In addition to drones and COVID-19 testing programs, tackling big data has been another hot topic in civil engineering innovations. Mark Ferrero from Earthsoft highlights tools for digesting data in this month’s featured article.

BSCES continues to be busy as we enter the new calendar year. For BSCES section updates, check out BSCES President Bruce Jacobs’s President’s Report. Engineering Management Group (EMG) Chair Lee Koska gives us an update of EMG’s past activities and what to look forward to in 2021 in his group report. Joseph Barra breaks down the recent Massachusetts Supreme Court decision on the Massachusetts Prompt Pay Statute in his article. For more information, consider attending the upcoming BSCES webinar on January 28, 2021: Link to Register. And finally, BSCES Secretary Todd Clark officially kicks off awards season with a call for nominations for the 2021 BSCES Individual and Section Awards. Don’t pass up this opportunity to recognize a worthy colleague, company, or project!

If these group updates and stories about innovation and drones aren’t enough to cheer your spirits, then perhaps puppies are in order. Scout, the unofficial BSCESNews mascot, loves the remote-work lifestyle and lunchtime walks along the beach. She suspects that there are many fur-coworkers out there who are also benefitting from increased attention and lunchtime walks.

 BSCESNews unofficial mascot Scout enjoying the perks of remote work

Before I let you dive into the rest of this issue, I can’t pass up the opportunity to put out a call for articles and/or volunteers. A new year equals new resolutions (or goals, whichever terminology you prefer), so why not add BSCES to that list? We’re always looking for new volunteers to join our committees, and it’s easier than ever to join a committee meeting now via video conferencing. Call in from wherever you are (the beach, perhaps? But please use discretion….) and don’t bother changing out of your slippers. Or, if you’re not ready to commit to joining a committee, consider submitting an article to an upcoming issue of BSCESNews (themes and submission deadlines shown below). We’d love to read about what you’ve been up to. 

 Upcoming BSCESNews Themes and Article Submission Deadlines

While it seems like we’ll be in this virtual world for a bit longer, that doesn’t mean we have to be disconnected. Send us an email at Newsletter.Board@BSCES.org, or engage with BSCES on our social media pages (LinkedIn: BSCES LinkedIn Group or Twitter: @BSCESNews or @BSCES).

Happy reading!