June 22, 2021

In the last five years or so, you’ve probably come across a new and exciting technology known as “3D printing.” It might surprise you to learn that 3D printing has existed in some form for around 30 years. Beginning in 2002, some of the earliest 3D printing patents began to expire. With the expiration of these patents and advances in the production of low-cost, easily programmed microcontrollers, 3D printing has exploded in popularity. Hopefully, this article will give you a glimpse of how this exciting technology can add a new “dimension” to our civil engineering designs and provide additional value to our clients and communities.

Many of you reading this article experienced the shaking from the Magna Earthquake on March 18, 2020. You may have also wondered how it compared to what we would experience in the “Big One.” During the Magna earthquake, the shaking was felt from Utah County to Cache County and beyond. If you experienced the earthquake, how would you describe the shaking that occurred where you were? Was it weak, light, moderate, strong, severe, violent, or extreme? How long did the shaking last? Each reader’s answer to these questions will likely be different depending on where they were during the earthquake.

The Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) is a worldwide organization with over 15,000 members. The Leadership ITE program brings together transportation professionals to network, learn and grow. I was accepted into the 2020 Leadership ITE program and found it to be an incredibly rewarding experience.

On the morning of March 18, 2020, life was already a bit surreal. Due to the rapidly developing COVID-19 pandemic, local schools had abruptly closed to in-person learning, keeping our two elementary school-aged children home. We voluntarily sat out day care for our youngest child, and my husband’s office closed completely the day after the infamous Rudy Gobert incident that triggered the shutdown of the NBA. At Reaveley Engineers, we had a partial exodus of staff under a voluntary policy. I opted for a hybrid. With deadlines on a large hospital project looming, I intended to split my time between the office and my dining room table — not wanting to put the entire burden of taking care of three children on my spouse.