Engineering Inc - July/August 2017 - 16

2017-2018 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Sophisticated technologies
also generate terabytes, even
petabytes, of data the firms
are challenged to store and
share with clients. Vice
Chair Joel Goodmonson,
executive vice president of
Architectural Engineers,
Boston, began using laser
scanners more than two
years ago. Over time, he
watched file sizes outgrow
email attachment limits
and then file-sharing apps.
Joel Goodmonson
"Today, the files are so large
that we download the files on 500-gigabyte external hard drives
to be messengered to clients," he says.
Roberts noted that "our ability to access, analyze and use big
data will allow us to solve complex problems. This will be a
much different workforce, and we may move away from saying
we provide 'engineering solutions.' We are in the technology
solutions business."
No doubt, technology is expensive, and many clients
continue to pay on an hour basis versus a value or performance
basis, which challenges how firms institute greater efficiency
and employ new technologies.
"We have to get away from that because it doesn't drive
innovation. We have to have something that allows us to
charge lump sum," says Pecori. "What we need to do is educate
our clients into working
on lump sum." Lump sum,
where firms charge by
milestones, would allow
them to come up with the
most efficient and innovative
ways to spend project dollars,
according to Pecori.
Technology's overall
impact on the engineering
industry has many unknowns,
says Vice Chair Michael
McMeekin, president
of Lamp, Rynearson &
Michael McMeekin
Associates, Omaha, Nebraska.
"Continual software
advancements automate
lots of design process that were previously done by hand
or with less sophisticated software. This will impact jobs in
the industry," McMeekin says. "Then there are technology
conglomerates such as Amazon, Microsoft and Google that
are at the forefront of advances in technology, including
infrastructure-related ventures such as autonomous vehicles
and smart-cities," he says. "In the long-term, the overriding
question is where will our industry come out as technology
advances? Will engineering have a leadership role in the
development of new technology, or will technological advances
continue to come from outside of our industry?"
16

ENGINEERING INC.

JULY / AUGUST 2017

STATE BY STATE

Many states have their own unique
technology challenges. Dave Bender,
executive director of ACEC/Illinois and
NAECE President, says innovation and
technology are stifled or held back in many
states due to strict procurement laws, which
prevent consultants from having a meaningful
dialogue with their government clients.
This short-changes clients and the taxpayers
from receiving the best infrastructure and
technology as a final project.
In 2009, Illinois enacted new procurement
Dave Bender
laws that limit communication with state
employees by those who are in the process of
filing for, or obtaining, a state contract.
"Many times our government clients are the last people that are
aware of what's out there as far as technology or practices," Bender
says. "If you were submitting for a project, you could not discuss
anything with them because it would be seen as trying to gain
influence or special favor." ACEC/Illinois is trying to reach state
agencies through noncontract-related industry meetings, liaison
committee meetings and educational opportunities that help them
understand today's technology options.
ECONOMIC CHALLENGES

Undercapitalization or lack of funds for
infrastructure is a huge problem around the
nation and for our industry, says Vice Chairman Mary Erchul, project manager at Ghirardelli Associates in Irvine, California.
"When people don't have money they
get nervous, and if they don't feel there's a
funding path for infrastructure, they stop
planning for it-which is terrible," Erchul
says. "That's the worst thing you can do. It's
true of firms, too. If you want to grow your
firm and you stop planning for that because
you don't have the cash flow, that's when you Mary Erchul
get hit-you're contracting when you should be
expanding. Firms and the public need to be more open to investing
in the future."
Firms are also juggling a business boom with the economics of
hiring, says Vice Chair Thomas
Mosure, president and board
chairman at MS Consultants,
Columbus, Ohio. "As you grow,
so does your need for capital and
resources. Every new employee
costs $8,000 to $10,000 just to
fit them with hardware, software
and the things they need to do
business. So developing talent
becomes an economic item on
your balance sheet, along with
Thomas Mosure
finding a workspace for them," he

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