North Carolina DOT Uses Drones for Bridge Inspection

13,500 bridges are inspected every year in North Carolina alone, and now that task will be cheaper and faster. The FAA recently granted to North Carolina DOT the first approval in the nation to use drones when inspecting bridges. North Carolina is a launch site for this project likely because it is home to the […]

Cruising in 3D Style

It seems someone has “3D Printed” just about everything there is to make. According to a Redshift article, an Italian company, Moi Composites, is using 3D printing to build a rather spectacular looking boat. The article has some fascinating details of the design and build process and a short video showing how it all came together with […]

The Hudson Yards’ Creative Structural Platform

Recently, my alma mater, North Carolina State University, hosted the annual Paul Zia lecture, a distinguished structural engineering annual lecture series to highlight exceptional projects and their designers. Thornton Thomasetti presented on the Hudson Yards project in New York City. The premise of this project is fascinating because it involves development of the actual air […]

Pay-As-You-Go and Start for Only $50

With our Pay-As-You-Go option, you can now try out our courses for only $50, before you buy the remaining course modules. We’re so sure you’ll like what you see that there’s no obligation beyond your initial purchase. Just buy the next course module when you’re ready for it – a nice way to spread out […]

Busy as a Bee, Beaver, Bird…

A delightful new ASME video, Nature’s Best Engineering Animals, highlights some of the world’s “animal” engineers. In the opening scene shows a typical beaver dam, beavers being one of the most determined of the animal kingdom’s engineers.  Here at the farm, I must be ever vigilant to foil beavers from damming up the spillway that keeps […]

Lumber Shortage Drives Up Prices

According to a Fortune Article, COVID-19 shutdowns have reduced the supply of lumber, just as folks stuck at home have increased there home improvement project. As a result, the price of lumber has gone up 134% and adding $14,000 to the cost of new home. I’ve experienced the lumber shortage first-hand at local Lowes and […]