| 2025 Raleigh Seminar Abstracts |
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As predicted precipitation intensity continues to change from historical data on which stormwater runoff management designs are based, stormwater control measures are becoming more of a focal point for public infrastructure design. North Carolina is a unique location to feature SCMs in public projects due to the variety of topography, natural resources, and increased development for a growing population. This presents NC professional engineers with exciting opportunities to work with landscape architects and communities to create "third places" that support sustainable and resilient development.
For decades, engineers have gone about the business of quietly designing and building. In a world where misinformation is rampant, the engineering community can bridge the gap between the known and the unknown, lending a critical voice to the policy dialogue for stronger, more resilient systems.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, suburban business parks and office-anchored developments have faced challenging headwinds: the emergence of hybrid work, a difficult office market, and increased demand for amenitized work environments. This session will look at how the nation’s largest research park is taking a new approach to land use governance and zoning, couple with an ambitious multimodal transportation vision, so that suburban corporate campuses can be transformed into transit-oriented, live-work-play communities for a rapidly growing region.
In 2022, Research Triangle Park (RTP), began an ambitious long-range planning effort to reimagine future development. The resulting vision, “RTP 3.0,” is a flexible development framework that introduces three new development types to the Park: Enhanced Corporate Campus, Residential Neighborhood Development, and Mixed-Use Node. The session will provide insight into the private and public regulatory reform required to enable new land uses in the Park, the community engagement conducted, and the development typologies that support RTP’s innovation-oriented mission while aligning with critical multimodal and transit-oriented development principles. After participating in the presentation, attendees will be able to: - Assess the potential of leveraging innovative suburban retrofit strategies in older research parks, office parks, and similar developments to meet a variety of regional growth and economic development needs. - Understand land use and transportation policy reforms to advance inclusive mixed-use development, walkable communities, and transit-oriented development. - Implement emerging strategies for community engagement, including developing and leveraging new community partnerships to guide the planning process, reconcile conflicting stakeholder interests, and develop a unified vision for future development. Presentation about the types of wastewater permitting that is done at the State level at NC DEQ Division of Water Resources. Attendees will understand what different types of engineers are needed at the State and how their skillsets are utilized throughout the permitting process. Attendees will learn about Authorizations to Construct at Wastewater Facilities, Sewer Extension Permitting, NPDES Permits, Pretreatment, and Modeling. Intended audience: environmental, chemical, civil engineers.
Engineering leaders are often expected to “do it all” - maintain technical excellence, meet deadlines, juggle competing priorities, and keep teams aligned. But the most effective leaders know that project success isn’t just about technical capacity; it also hinges on emotional connection, clarity, and communication.
This interactive session explores how early-to-mid-career engineering leaders can “bridge the gap” between technical know-how and people-centered leadership. We’ll examine the real-world challenges of delegation, managing team workload, and communicating clearly across levels - whether you're mentoring a new field tech, navigating peer dynamics, or managing upward. Using scenarios, audience polling, and structured reflection exercises, participants will identify practical strategies for aligning task execution with team development. We'll share lessons learned from both corporate and field environments, rooted in lived experience and inspired by the PENC Leadership Institute. This session is designed to energize and empower technical professionals who want to elevate their leadership by combining logic and empathy, detail and direction, and expectations with encouragement. Learning Outcomes After attending this session, participants will be able to: Identify common delegation pitfalls and how to avoid them Apply a simple framework for balancing task ownership with team development Improve communication clarity when assigning or receiving work Reflect on personal leadership habits and identify growth areas Create action steps to strengthen connection and accountability within their teams Intended Audience Early-career engineers Mid-career engineers Supervisors / Team Leads Project Managers Has this content been previously presented or published? No. Additional Information This session may also fulfill the presenter’s capstone requirement for the 2024–2025 PENC Leadership Institute. What happens when technical people are faced with a situation with infinite variables that can, and likely will, change constantly? How do you solve a “problem” with undefined limits or intentionally/unintentionally obscured variables?
A lot of people who find themselves in leadership positions (either willingly or not) tend to arrive there by being good at the technical aspects of their jobs. How do these technically proficient people go about solving the ultimate puzzle: people? Where do I start? What do I say? How long does this take? Why is this so hard? When is the right time? When is this going to get easier?! If you are in a leadership position, you have likely asked yourself most, if not all, of these questions. If you are not in a leadership position but have intentions to be in one in the future… you will soon be asking yourself these same questions. Leadership and management are not easy, not quick, and there is never a perfect time to start something… and that is normal. This presentation will explore the journey of two technical people on their path of leadership, one founding a leadership and teaching consultancy, and the other leading a municipal utility. Specific examples including the following will be explored: •Starting the journey to growing staff (and ourselves) •Listening to “hints” that are given •Challenging the status quo •Getting out of your own way •Keeping momentum •Defining the formula SPOILER ALERT: There is no formula! No, but it will be presented at the annual NC OneWater conference Anyone in leadership CPMS (Construction Performance Modeling and Simulation) is an interactive, Augmented Reality (AR)-driven digital environment designed to facilitate construction planning and management. It facilitates progress monitoring and provides visual comparison against plans through reality capture and analytics using construction data (schedule, onsite issues, inspection records, requirements). This cloud-based digital platform for data-driven simulation-enabled highly effective construction performance management and improves efficiency by facilitating real-time coordination among various stakeholders through collaborative tools.
The presentation will aim to provide a high level overview of the efforts NCDOT has undertaken to advance digital delivery in the state. Attendees will hear about current efforts in Preconstruction, Construction and Asset Management as well as vision for the future. There will be a formal presentation of information as well as time for questions. Attendees should expect to hear how developments in technology are shaping the future of transportation in NC.
On September 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene impacted much of Western North Carolina with damaging winds and record flooding. A 5-mile section of I-40 beginning at the Tennessee Line in the Pigeon River Gorge, was severely damaged by flooding, which resulted in the closure of the road to all traffic for 5 months. Portions of the east bound lanes were completely lost during the storm, requiring temporary repairs and shoring to be completed before two-way traffic could be restored on the west bound lanes.
Since the reopening of I-40, focus has been on permanent repairs under a CMGC contract, including the construction of a 5-mile causeway to facilitate geotechnical investigations as well as additional temporary stabilization. Design will be completed by the end of 2025, with most of the construction beginning in 2026 and wrapping up in 2028. Design of the permanent repairs include the use of roller compacted concrete (RCC) and interlocking pipe pile walls. For NCDOT, these wall types are new approaches for this type of repair but are resilient structures that are designed for this magnitude of storm in the future. With the contractor and design team working together on the design, the NCDOT will minimize construction time and reduce the amount of time to deliver the project. This session will cover current and future opportunities to advance renewable energy production and food production through the recovery of organic wastes and healthy soil. An overview of existing on-farm renewable energy projects will be provided as well as an outlook for future projects which involve large scale collaboration between the agriculture and renewable energy sectors. The connection between renewable energy and healthy soil will be made by showing the current and future opportunities to return organic matter and nutrients back to farmland through anaerobic digestion. The impact proper nutrient management has on ecosystem health, human health, and the agricultural economy will be addressed to show the potential impact of recovering nutrients through renewable energy production. Lastly, the benefits of healthy soil will be shared to show the impact healthy soil is having on farms across North Carolina and opportunities to improve using organic waste recovery. After attending the session, attendees will understand how waste-to-energy projects are implemented, future advancements in the recovery of organic materials for beneficial reuse, how energy production is tied to agriculture and soil health, the impact healthy soil has on nutrient and watershed management, and how farms are restoring healthy soil across North Carolina. The intended audience is professionals in the renewable energy, agriculture, and waste management sectors. This presentation is relevant for other engineering disciplines and will be of interest to a broad audience due to the connection to farms and food. This content has not been previously presented or published.
“I always have something I could be doing.” Up until recently, this was my standard response to my wife asking me if I’m busy. In this world of constantly being “on” and always being busy, when was the last time you stopped to think? To iterate? To ideate? To strategize? To create a vision for the future of your firm, your team, or you? We can’t do these things when our brain is overflowing with stress about deadlines, to do lists, and constant notifications from our phones. So…How do you make time to think? How do you create the space and time that your brain so desperately needs? And how do you ensure that you continue to have brain space and time to think?
Learning Outcomes: - Why everyone, but especially leaders, need space in their brain and time to think. - What are 3 things you can do to make time to think? - What are tools and strategies you can use to protect your time to think? Intended Audience: Everyone, but especially leaders or anyone responsible for vision, strategy, & creativity. Previous Presentations? I presented a shorter version (Ted Talk) to a small group of our employees who are currently in our Leadership Academy this summer. Other Considerations? I have presented on leadership and Low Impact Design topics at past PENC, NSPE, and PSMJ Thrive conferences, as well as Half Moon Workshops. NC's Electric Cooperatives have cooperated with the National Renewable Energy Laboratories to build a cooperative Control Hardware in the Loop (CHIL). This innovative project provides a test bed for the Eagle Chase Microgrid and for future NCEC microgrids. The presentation will review the capabilities of the existing Eagle Chase microgrid and its origin story, review the CHIL topology and its capabilities, and will conclude with a review of findings from the original microgrid testing and the CHIL microgrid testing. All of this will provide attendees with an in depth understanding of microgrids and the importance of CHIL systems.
After this session attendees will understand: - the stacked value of microgrids - the importance of fault current in a microgrid - the design methodology applied to microgrids - the importance of continuous testing and improvement in microgrids From saving endangered sea turtles to optimizing school transportation, AI is no longer just theoretical—it's in action. In this presentation, we’ll explore a broad range of real-world applications where artificial intelligence is driving meaningful impact. While we won’t dive deeply into each case, you’ll get a glimpse of how AI technologies are applied in wildlife conservation, public sector planning, aerospace, industrial safety, and more.
The metal roof portion of the previous RDU Terminal 2 was very unique design, from conception thru final engineering. Then came the fun.... turning the design into a functioning metal roof. At the time of construction, it was the largest stainless-steel roof in the US. The longest continuous panel run was over 450 LF. There were opposing slopes throughout the project, making their intersections very complicated. Chuck Howard, PE, then President of Metal Roof Consultants, Inc. of Cary, NC, was the primary roof engineer responsible for design and construction management of the roof. His story for this roofing project will address design as well as construction coordination measures necessary for this successful project.
This presentation will be going over the design, development and construction of 9 bridge replacements in NCDOT's Division 13's Buncombe and McDowell County. The presentation will also go into details of the engineering challenges, environmental considerations, and community impacts of these bridge replacement sites.
As engineers much of our job function and performance is directly related to the public safety and daily quality of life. This presentation will illustrate the principles that we as engineers should embrace in order to uphold the highest standard of professional ethics. This topic applies to any profession, any job as well as daily life.
This presentation examines the National Society of Professional Engineer’s; Engineer’s Creed, Fundamental Canons, Rules of Practice and Profession Obligations. We will also examine the topics of Engineer’s responsibility regarding; Liability, Standard of Care, Negligence and Duty. This presentation works some real world examples of each of the above responsibilities and allows the audience to decide which actions are right or wrong The presentation is divided into 4 sections. Section 1: What does Ethics mean? To you as an individual, to the collective public. Section 2: History of Ethics, Current standards and practices Section 3: Ethics in Practice – Business/Life Section 4: Case Studies A light-hearted but impactful overview of the emergence of Artificial Intelligence in the world, focusing on case studies in construction and engineering projects. Topics to be explored include the use and ethical ramifications of AI tools in engineering design, bidding, and education.
In response to the collapse of I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis on August 1, 2009, states are required to evaluate the structural capacity of steel truss gusset plates in their load rating efforts. This presentation would describe the implementation of a project conducted by the University of Washington and WSDOT to rapidly evaluate steel bridge gusset plates; the “Triage Evaluation Process.”
The triage evaluation process is a relatively quick evaluation process designed to rapidly identify which gusset plates are of most concern, and which ones are of no consequence to the load rating of a bridge. It requires accurate structural modeling of the bridge to determine truss member end forces, and then a rather quick and effective analysis process using tools developed by the University of Washington. Artificially low rating factors are given to the gussets. And when those low rating factors control the rating, a more accurate and time consuming rating method is considered only for those portions identified as inadequate in the triage evaluation. This saves engineering time and effort, saving tax payer money in engineering costs, while quickly ensuring the bridges they drive on are safe, or to which degree WSDOT needs to be concerned. This presentation will take a look back on a significant challenge facing bridge engineers in our recent past, and how it assured our traveling public’s safety was maintained at a difficult era of bridge engineering. What do CAD, GIS, SCADA, CMMS, hydraulic models, BIM, IoT, and digital twins have in common for a professional engineer? They’re all part of a growing volume of data from disparate sources that require a comprehensive management framework to effectively use. This information-era challenge demands that modern engineers develop skills beyond traditional math and mechanics, embracing an emerging role as a data architect. This session will draw on UNC Charlotte's efforts to develop a comprehensive asset management program to explore how to effectively integrate these data streams into a cohesive, valuable resource. The presentation will emphasize why a deep understanding of data structures is essential for accurately modeling physical assets and how to foster the collaboration needed to ensure these models serve long-term strategic goals. After the session, attendees will be able to:
+ explain the critical role of data management in engineering + describe a common data structure of industry-standard tools + apply a data-centric approach to improve asset management and planning The session is presented from the perspective of facilities management and utilities engineering, but the concepts should be applicable to any engineer working with data structures. Located near Delta, Utah, the multi-billion-dollar IPP Renewed project will replace an existing coal fueled power plant with a next generation gas plant capable of utilizing clean hydrogen. Hydrogen will be created using electric energy from wind and solar farms and stored in underground salt caverns, enabling long-term dispatchable renewable energy storage.
Designed by Siemens Energy’s Raleigh, North Carolina office, a critical project addition includes a new Synchronous Condenser substation, which stabilizes variability of the renewable wind and solar sources. That substation, now under construction, will be the world’s largest. The purpose of this Flagship project is to increase reliability to the grid as more renewable energy sources are added. The synchronous condenser facility provides up to 430 MVAr reactive power for the purpose of stabilizing renewable resources. The project includes three 2000P synchronous condensers housed in a 45,000-sf pre-engineered metal building with overhead crane and fed by a 7-acre 375KVa switchyard. The entire project is being modeled using 3D software. Weekly interference detection meetings were held during design and were continued through construction, thus minimizing errors in the field. Due to the harsh winter weather conditions in Utah, the project's civil siteworks were expedited in 2023. The acceleration of civil engineering efforts enabled construction to commence in mid-2023. This significant adjustment to the schedule will help ensure the substation's completion and turnover late 2025. The project is currently on time and well positioned to meet all its commissioning targets. Value Engineering (VE), the analysis of function, quality, and cost, has traditionally been applied as an in-person workshop with the design team providing a project in-brief and the independent VE team secluded for several days to analyze the project and identify opportunities to improve a project’s value. The advent of the global health crisis curtailed the ability of VE teams to meet in-person for a workshop that necessitated a migration to on-line virtual workshops as the primary delivery vehicle and the corresponding unexpected opportunity to experiment with different delivery approaches.
The ease of running a virtual meeting and the convenience for the participants to attend results in much greater participation than is typical in a traditional in-person workshop. The virtual format brings the ability to collaborate with large groups to the workshop. Now we can have a large group of Stakeholders (Project Managers, SMEs, Users), the Design Team, and the VE Team all participate fully – we call this the Integrated VE Team. It is typical to have 15 to 30 participants in a virtual workshop providing a valuable exercise for the Design Team to hear the questions, positive comments, and concerns that flow from these discussions. Additional Information: I am a licensed PE and full member of NSPE/PENC. I am a certified crane operator and rigger and know the subject matter of crane use and crane safety which will be within my presentation.
This session is an honest exploration of the question many high-achieving professionals silently carry: “Am I really enough?” I share my journey from an entry-level healthcare role to Chief Clinical Officer of a multi-location practice while wrestling with gaslighting, perfectionism, and the inner narrative that my success was never enough.
Drawing from both my leadership experience and my upcoming memoir Not Enough…Until I Was, this keynote invites attendees to reflect on how the “not enough” story shows up in their own leadership and life. Together, we’ll uncover how to dismantle that narrative, embrace emotional intelligence and vulnerability, and step into authentic influence. Attendees will gain practical strategies, relatable stories, and encouragement to stop striving to “earn” their worth, and instead lead with clarity, confidence, and wholeness. The last systemic study of the engineering undergraduate curriculum in the US was the 1955 Grinter Report. The NSF-funded American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Mindset Project has engaging hundreds of engineering faculty, organization, and industry representatives across the nation to re-envision engineering education for the 21st century. The result are two reports - the ASEE Mindset Report and the ASEE Blueprint for Change Report - that talk about what students should be learning and how it should be taught to prepare them for today's workplace.
Learning Outcomes: After attending this session, attendees will be able to: 1) identify the six key thematic areas for modernizing undergraduate engineering education. 2) learn about key recommendations and plans for realizing these goals. 3) Identify was that engineering industries and companies can help universities implement these recommendations. The ASEE Mindset Report and Blueprint for Change report are available online at: https://mindset.asee.org I am a lead author on both of these reports, and a number of our faculty at Campbell University have served on working groups for these reports. I served as President of the American Society for Engineering Education during the rollout of the ASEE Mindset Project and a number of the recommendations I made related to modernizing engineering education, along the lines of the program we have developed at Campbell University, are included in the reports. Successful engineering projects rarely fit neatly into one discipline. Structural stability, electrical reliability, and mechanical systems often overlap — and when those boundaries blur, failures or delays can occur unless engineers are prepared to collaborate across specialties. Drawing on case studies from North Carolina projects, this session highlights lessons learned in bridging disciplines, including structural assessments of retaining walls and foundations, HVAC and fire alarm system design, and electrical/telecom system integration. Participants will explore how cross-disciplinary awareness can prevent errors, improve client communication, and streamline regulatory approvals. The session emphasizes practical takeaways engineers can apply immediately: checklists for identifying when another discipline should be consulted, strategies for working with general contractors and AHJs, and leadership skills for managing multidisciplinary teams.
Learning Outcomes: By the end of the session, participants will be able to: 1) Identify common situations where structural, electrical, and mechanical systems overlap. 2) Apply practical strategies to improve collaboration across engineering disciplines. 3) Develop checklists to recognize when additional expertise is needed. 4) Strengthen leadership and communication skills for coordinating with contractors, architects, and AHJs. |
12/8/2025 » 12/10/2025
PENC Raleigh Seminar
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