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Volume XXIII,
Number 35
October 11, 2002
1015 15th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005
202-347-7474
Fax
202-898-0068
www.acec.org
E-mail acec@acec.org
Ellen
Mullally, Editor
Francis George, Production Manager
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Business
Register Today For ACEC’s Fall Conference In Puerto Rico
ACEC’s Fall Conference Oct. 23-26 at the beautiful Westin Rio Mar Beach Resort in Puerto Rico has already attracted nearly 700 registrants.Featured speakers include former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Rodney Slater, former Presidential Press Secretaries Joe Lockhart (Clinton administration) and Marlin Fitzwater (Reagan and Bush administrations), Puerto Rico Secretary of Transportation and Public Works Jose Izquierdo, and Dwight Beranek, chair of The Infrastructure Security Partnership (TISP).
There will also be many opportunities for pleasurable pursuits such as participating in a salsa contest, shopping duty-free and tax-free in the quaint shops of Old San Juan, and enjoying the limbo show and live music at Local Color Night’s “Caribbean Beach Party.”
To register online, click here.
Rooms are still available at the Westin Rio Mar Beach Resort. Contact the hotel directly at 800-474-6627and reference “ACEC” to make a reservation.
Discounted airfares are still available on preferred carriers American and Delta. Contact American at 1-800-433-1790 (referencing file # 26H2AR) and Delta at 1-800-241-6760 (referencing file # 189433A) immediately to receive these special fares. These discounts are also available through World Wide Travel Service by going to ACEC’s website, www.acec.org, and clicking on the link, “Make Your Travel Reservations Now!”
ACEC/PAC Raffle Drawing Features Exciting Prizes
ACEC’s Fall Convention in Puerto Rico will feature a new raffle drawing to raise funds for ACEC/PAC. Participants will provide needed support to ACEC/PAC and could win one of these exciting prizes:- A week-long vacation at a luxury vacation condominium in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
- His and Hers Omega Constellation 18k/steel watches
- A Toshiba Satellite 1995-S801 laptop computer.
Click HERE for raffle tickets and payment information. Again, this raffle will be limited to 1,000 tickets only. Please respond today!
ACEC’s CEO Retreat: Solutions For Handling Change
Accelerating changes in the workforce and economy are having a significant impact on the leadership of consulting engineering firms. ACEC’s CEO Retreat, which is being held Nov. 14-15 at the scenic Sedona Hilton Resort in Sedona, Ariz., will offer insights on how to handle these changes. Sessions include “Gauging the Pulse of the Industry,” “Financial Aspects of Ownership Transition,” and “Leading the Next Generation of Engineering Leaders” from speakers James Thomas Jr., Lowell Getz, and Jim Krug.This is a valuable opportunity for firms of all sizes to chart their future course. Click here to register today or contact Sandrine Mailli (smailli@acec.org or 202-682-4338).
“Transform” Your Company: Register For SEI VIII
Boost your firm’s success, enrich your business relationships, and build business acumen and self-awareness by registering for ACEC’s Senior Executives Institute (SEI) VIII, which begins April 26, 2003.ACEC’s premiere leadership training and networking program is limited to 26 executives who participate in five information-packed sessions over a two-year period. Topics covered include, “Your Vision and the World,” “Strategic and Systems Thinking,” “Personal Leadership Skills,” “Organizational Leadership Issues,” and “Putting it All Together.”
“I was presented with methods and learning models that will transform our company from a typical profit-minded business to a high-powered learning organization,” said Keith Kuzio, president of Williamsport, Pa.-based Larson Design Group and a recent SEI graduate.
To register for SEI VIII or for more information, contact Roger Doucette (202-682-4330 or rdoucette@acec.org).
ACEC Calls For Quick Passage Of ExPDITE Act To Streamline Lengthy Environmental Review ProcessIn testimony Tuesday before the House Highways and Transit Subcommittee, ACEC advocated swift passage of H.R. 5455, the Expediting Project Delivery to Improve Transportation and the Environment Act (ExPDITE), which would streamline the environmental review process for highway and transit projects.Parsons Brinckerhoff Vice President of Highway Programs Hal Kassoff, who represented ACEC at the hearing, told the subcommittee that the ExPDITE Act provides a solution to a longstanding problem—needless delays to transportation projects caused by environmental processing. “This issue is not about weakening environmental protection,” he said. “It’s about implementing an improved process that expedites project delivery without sacrificing environmental protection.” Kassoff noted that ExPDITE contains ACEC’s key recommendations for expediting the project review process: conducting concurrent, rather than sequential, environmental reviews; naming the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) as the lead agency for the review process; streamlining planning and environmental regulations; ensuring proper delegation of authority to appropriate state agencies; and holding agencies accountable for results. Kassoff urged the subcommittee to quickly pass H.R. 5455 “to ensure that this vital issue does not become embroiled in the midst of, or jeopardized as a result of, the intense, last-minute deliberations likely to revolve around basic funding issues…We believe that the objective articulated by the environmental community to ‘expedite project delivery without sacrificing environmental protection’ is both laudable and achievable—but it will require a legislative approach that clarifies expectations, transforms processes, and holds agencies accountable to achieve success.” House Supporter Gets Boost From ACEC/PAC
ACEC/PAC hosted a fundraiser last week to support the re-election campaign of Rep. Heather Wilson (R-N.M.), a driving force behind the passage of legislation to reauthorize the federal Price Anderson Act, which provides liability protection for contractors engaged in clean-up activities at nuclear sites around the country. Rep. Wilson, a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, has also been a steady supporter of ACEC’s outsourcing efforts. “The support that ACEC and its member firms give me is important,” Wilson noted. “I value the great relationship that I have developed with the engineering community, and look forward to continuing our work together to address the infrastructure needs of New Mexico and the nation as a whole.” Beranek Says ACEC Members Are “Critical” Part Of Corps’ Design Team
More than 150 participants heard Dwight Beranek, chief of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Engineering and Construction Division, discuss new business opportunities at the agency during ACEC’s October Market Forecast Series event yesterday afternoon. Beranek said that A/E firms perform more than 50 percent of the Corps’ design work, and called ACEC members a “critical” part of the Corps’ team. Many of the attendees participated via teleconference and the Internet, allowing a larger number of members to have access to this valuable information.
GSA’s Eakin Scheduled For NovemberNext month’s Market Forecast Series event, scheduled for Nov. 14, features David Eakin, chief engineer for the General Services Administration (GSA). Join us at ACEC headquarters or participate “virtually” via teleconference and the Internet as Eakin discusses the agency’s building program and other new initiatives impacting ACEC members who work with GSA - or want to.For details and to register, click here. ACEC, DBIA Discuss Collaboration
Design Build Institute of America (DBIA) President Jeffrey Beard and Vice Chairman Robert Daniels visited with ACEC President Dave Raymond at the Council’s offices Wednesday to discuss collaboration between the two organizations. Design-build is one of several delivery systems included in ACEC’s “value based delivery systems” approach. ACEC’s publication Multiple Project Delivery Systems: The Design Professional’s Handbook on Design/Build Project Delivery (W-371) is available at www.acec.org/publications.
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