Gladys Porter Zoo Water & Wastewater Improvements Project: Design, Construction, and Infrastructure Renewal within an Active Zoological Facility
This presentation provides an overview of the design and construction of the Gladys Porter Zoo Water and Wastewater Improvement Project in Brownsville, Texas. The aging condition of the existing utility infrastructure, coupled with projected growth identified in the Zoo Master Plan, highlighted the need for comprehensive water and wastewater system upgrades to support future expansion […]
Big Data to Guide Geotechnical Engineering Design in Challenging Environments
Geotechnical engineering practice seeks to mitigate uncertainty and reduce risks associated with subsurface conditions, particularly in geologically sensitive environments such as karst terrain. Recent advances in data analytics have enabled broader use of large geospatial and geotechnical datasets (“big data”) to support risk informed design. Big data may include historical aerial imagery, topographic and soil […]
From GIS to Ground Truth: Rethinking Wastewater Infrastructure Resilience Under Extreme Weather
Extreme weather events are exposing a critical vulnerability in U.S. wastewater systems-not only limitations in hydraulic capacity, but also the growing disconnect between documented asset data and actual field conditions. Municipalities often rely on GIS records, legacy datasets, and asset management information that may not fully reflect current infrastructure conditions, potentially leading to ineffective rehabilitation […]
Revitalizing Water Infrastructure Resiliency: Balancing Capital Decision Stability and Operational Prediction Accuracy: A Case Study on the Hydraulic Impact Factor (HIF) Framework in Sugar Land, Texas
Municipal utilities worldwide share a critical responsibility: managing aging infrastructure and strengthening the stewardship of the built environment under tight budget constraints. Traditionally, capital planning relies on static parameters like pipe age, while operations crews use hydraulic modeling to analyze system performance. Operating these two domains in isolation creates an industry-wide conflict between reactive, short-term […]
Toward Rational Design of Void Forms for Expansive Texas Clay Soils: Why do you Still Specify and use Non-Engineered Void Forms for Texas Data Centers?
Engineers have not established a rational design method for void forms, while each manufacturer has developed its own void form products based solely on its proprietary empirical approach. However, none of those empirical approaches have ever been verified with systematic testing or comprehensive analysis by a third party. Simply put, all void form products currently […]
Low Impact Development for More Sustainable Solutions: Pervious Concrete
Low impact development (LID) embraces land development practices that mimic pre-existing hydrologic processes. A brief introduction to some LID techniques will be provided followed by details of successful installations of pervious concrete for various applications.
Central Texas Flood & Lessons Learned: San Antonio District
Analysis of the July 4th, 2025, flood event in Central Texas.
A Fancy Pile of Rocks: A Framework for Holistic Thinking about Pavement for Non-Technical Owners and New Engineers
Pavement structural strength is a sum of its various parts, not all of which are easily understood. As with all civil engineering, the structure is only as good as the weakest component, not least of which is the ground it stands on. Because ‘natural ground’ upon which structures are founded is described in geotechnical reports […]
From Demolition Waste to FAA-Compliant Base Course: Materials Management at DFW Airport
Large airport capital programs generate substantial volumes of demolition debris and surplus excavation material, creating ongoing challenges related to disposal costs, material procurement, hauling logistics, and schedule risk. At Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), the scale and pace of concurrent airfield and landside construction required a more coordinated, program-level approach to managing construction materials. […]
Building Resilience in Water Production: A Case Study in Improving Water Supply Reliability, Operational Efficiency, and Infrastructure Resilience
This presentation explores a case study on improving infrastructure resilience at the Newport Municipal Utility District (MUD) surface water treatment plant (SWTP). Located in northeast Harris County, Newport MUD faces the dual challenges of meeting projected water demands for a growing service area and adhering to groundwater use reductions mandated by the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District. […]