Many Avenues Of Assistance Set For Gulf Coast ACEC Members Affected By Katrina Several initiatives have been undertaken to provide ACEC members in the Hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast states—many of whom are temporarily out-of-business—with meaningful assistance, including temporary job assignments and work space. The various avenues of assistance available for Katrina-affected firms through ACEC National were outlined in a message sent this week from ACEC President Dave Raymond to executive directors in the affected Gulf Coast states. To: Judy Adams (Mississippi); Renee Casillas (Alabama); Warren Wilder (Louisiana): "God bless you for what you've been through. I want to commend you on your dedication and resilience over the past two difficult weeks. I'm sure your members appreciate your efforts, as do all ACEC members. Let me also update you on the national office's actions: We will temporarily waive national dues for firms that you tell us you are waiving state dues; We have posted on our website free of charge temporary A/E job opportunities for your member firm employees who are out of work because of Katrina; We have also posted member firms that are offering temporary office space and supplies for displaced firms; We've sent a letter to FEMA (click here) underscoring the importance of using your local firms in the relief and reconstruction efforts; We're encouraging large, prime contractors (recruited by FEMA and the Corps) to use ACEC's searchable membership directory to identify local firms for subcontracting; We've also publicized links to FEMA and the Corps on our website and in Last Word to help smaller firms bring their capabilities directly to the attention of federal and state agencies as well as contractors; We are currently developing a master list of prime contractors and points of contact for your use with your members, which we will get to you as soon as possible. In addition, I would like to discuss with you how we might channel additional charitable donations to engineering firm employees and families hurt by Katrina. Obviously, the relief and reconstruction effort will be a long one, and I want you to count on the ACEC family and national office to stand with you. We remain at your service in any way that you believe we can meaningfully help you."

ACEC Delegates Promote QBS At FIDIC Conference In China ACEC Chairman Ed Mulcahy meets with Liqun Jin, Asian Development Bank vice president of operations, during last week's FIDIC Conference in Beijing. ACEC delegates to the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) Annual Conference, promoted QBS and the elimination of price competition in the international practice of engineering. Engineering associations from throughout the world were represented at the Conference in Beijing, China—including a 20-member U.S. delegation led by ACEC Chairman Ed Mulcahy. The U.S. delegation also included ACEC President Dave Raymond, Chairman-elect Jeff Daggett, Past Chairman Bill Howard, Executive Committee member Rod Hoffman, and International Committee Chairman Gregs Thomopulos (who is also on the FIDIC Executive Committee). Other ACEC members at the Conference were: Stanley Kawaguchi, former ACEC chairman; Jim Hollatz and Richard Stump, Stanley Consultants Inc.; Glen Diagger, CH2M Hill; former ACEC Chairman William Lewis, Forensic Concepts; Joseph Paoluccio, PWNA; Allen Poppino, Poppino, Inc.; John Pulley, Parker Durrant International; Howard Schirmer, Jr., Transnational Associates, Inc.; Jay Simson, ACEC/NY; Ralph Tyler, Ralph Tyler Companies; and Bill Wallace, Wallace Futures Group. Thomopulos chaired a session on quality in procurement that included representatives of the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. At the session, a representative of the Association of Japanese Consulting Engineers (AJCE) indicated that Japan recently enacted a law precluding price selection of engineering services, an initiative that ACEC assisted AJCE in pursuing. "The FIDIC conference gives us a chance to discuss the issues that are critical to our success with key decision makers in the international arena, both formally in the sessions and informally,” said Mulcahy. “We will continue to push the international lending institutions to see the value and sense in implementing a QBS-only policy." Raymond was active in promoting QBS at the FIDIC Directors and Secretaries meeting, and Howard emphasized the importance of QBS during a session on sustainable municipal infrastructure, which he chaired. Three new FIDIC Executive Committee members were elected, all three supported by ACEC for their strong positions on QBS: Geoff French of England, Subhash Mehrotra of India and Xie Shaozhang of China. Jorge Diaz Padilla of Mexico began a two-year term as FIDIC President, and John Boyd of Canada was appointed President-elect. Both have strong ties to ACEC.

South Carolina, Montana Cross 2005 Goal Line For ACEC/PAC ACEC/South Carolina PAC Trustee M.L. Love ACEC/South Carolina and ACEC/Montana are the latest State Member Organizations to reach their ACEC/PAC fundraising targets for 2005. They become the seventh and eighth states to meet their fundraising goals, joining North Dakota, Kentucky, Tennessee, Michigan, Alaska, and Wisconsin. Several states are nearing their goals including Indiana, Nebraska, Washington, and Wyoming. The ACEC/PAC trustee for South Carolina, M.L. Love of Collins Engineers in Charleston, spearheaded a successful fundraising effort that enabled the state to reach its target well ahead of schedule. "With all of the issues under consideration in Congress that affect South Carolina firms, giving to ACEC/PAC has become essential," said Love.

ACEC/Montana PAC Trustee Vaughn Anderson Montana ACEC/PAC Trustee Vaughn Anderson of DJ & A, P.C. in Missoula added: "Making a contribution to ACEC/PAC is a modest investment that helps to protect the future of our industry." The ACEC/PAC trustees have set fundraising targets each year for State Member Organizations based on membership strength. Click here to see the progress to date for each state. For more information about ACEC/PAC, contact Corie Simmons at 202-682-4314 or csimmons@acec.org.

Congressman Sherwood Boehlert Meets With ACEC/New York Officials Congressman Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY) met with several members of ACEC/New York this week at the Utica, NY office of Shumaker Consulting Engineering and Land Surveying, to discuss passage of the new federal transportation bill. Pictured from the left are: Karl Schrantz, of Shumaker Engineering; Keith Giles, of Greenman-Pedersen, Lebanon, NJ; Ammon Bush and Linda Shumaker, of Shumaker Engineering; Congressman Boehlert; Paul Romano of Shumaker Engineering; Dale Griffin, Lochner Engineering, Utica; Brian Clark, C&S Engineers, Inc., Syracuse and Brian Mandryk, Lochner Engineering.

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