Paul's Corner - His History of SUE
#SubsurfaceUtilityEngineering Post-11 After meeting with So-Deep, Jerry Poston, Jim Overton, and I returned to the office. It was all very overwhelming. Jerry Poston said he felt like a small dog in tall grass (a favorite expression of his). Most of what the So-Deep people told us was way over my head. I kind of got […]
#SubsurfaceUtilityEngineering Post-10 While we were sleeping at FHWA during the 1980s, so to speak, at least relative to Subsurface Utility Engineering, lots of things were going on with SUE. I have tried to capture the major things and the people making them happen, but I have missed some and we will go back and look […]
#SubsurfaceUtilityEngineering Post-09 My history of the first years of Subsurface Utility Engineering continues: Last week we looked at events leading up to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) endorsing Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE). Hurricane Hugo had slammed into the Carolinas in September 1989 and the FHWA Office of Engineering’s emergency relief position was vacant. Thus, it […]
#SubsurfaceUtilityEngineering Post-08 The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) began endorsing Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE) in 1991. It all began, however, in 1989 at about the same time as SUE was getting its name. The story begins with a hurricane. Hurricane Hugo slammed into the United States near Sullivan’s Island in South Carolina at about midnight on […]
#SubsurfaceUtilityEngineering Post-07 So-Deep’s senior management team realized that their creation needed a distinctive name. Jim Anspach remembers that: “After much debate, we decided that ‘Subsurface Utility Engineering’ was apt and descriptive. This name was presented to the world in 1989 at the first National Highway/Utility Conference in Cleveland, Ohio.” When the Federal Highway Administration’s promotion […]
#SubsurfaceUtilityEngineering Post-06 Last week we talked about So-Deep adding an in-house professional surveyor (Mike Fisher) for in-house surveying and a professional engineer (Lou Ostendorff) to seal their deliverables to clients. These were both major advancements, but So-Deep was not through. Jim Anspach helped me with the following and this is what he had to say […]
Several important events took place during the early 1980s that became basic components of Subsurface Utility Engineering.
Wow, what a Surprise! The response to my recent posts on the early days of Subsurface UtilityEnginering (SUE) has been phenomanel. Nick Zembillas called me from Greece and said, “Paul, I have been sharing your LinkedIn posts with my global network of SUE friends and hundreds of them have liked it. Some of them have been responding and adding to the story, which is adding to the history.”
Post-03 – Last week you met the Inventor of Subsurface Utility Engineering, Garon Stutzman. This week I want to introduce you to the Father of Subsurface Utility Engineering, James H. Anspach. Jim Anspach was one of the outstanding people Garon Stutzman hired almost immediately after forming his company. Jim bought into Garon’s ideas and developed […]
Post-02. My remembrances of the early days of Subsurface Utility Engineering (SUE) continue:
4Sight Blog Posts
Post-53 – Looking Back (1981-1984) This week’s picture was provided by Jim Anspach and is of SUE work in 1984 on the first State DOT project (see more below). The quality of the picture is not very good, but I wanted to use it anyway because it is probably the only picture in existence of […]
This is our last in the series of looking at TAC-PUMS publications. It may be the last, but it is also the most anticipated. Completed in late 2020, we are anticipating publication any day now by TAC. The goal is to have it as a free download from the TAC website. It is written in […]
Completed in 2020, this report is not yet even published by TAC but it does contain some great information. It was completed by a task force within the TAC PUMS committee – led by Jean-Francois Demers (MTQ), and with help from Pierre Gagnon (MTQ), Barry Poon (Calgary) and Jevito Marchese (Mississauga). The purpose of the […]
Published in 2016, this guideline has been used by several Municipalities and Government agencies to help produce or update their own Utility Coordination Guidelines and that is exactly what it was meant to do!!! The guideline is written from the perspective of a roadway owner completing a Design-Bid-Build project. It is focused on DBB, however […]
This guide is intended to help road authorities establish and administer guidelines for accommodating Utilities with the Freeway Right-of-Way. There guide is applicable for Canada although it is a very good reference to compare with other similar guidelines such as the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) – A Guide for Accommodating […]
This was the first publication from the Transportation Association of Canada’s – Public Utilities Management Subcommittee (PUMS). The major components were a review of current practices across Canada and around the world, and a Survey of Ministries of Transportation and Municipalities to get a sense for how they deal with Utilities. Although the number of […]
One critical aspect of managing Utility Risk on projects is to have a set processes or standards to follow. The best way to start and develop these is to look at existing standards and best practices that have been developed by other users and practitioners from reputable industry focused groups like the Utility Engineering and […]
Review of SUE for Municipalities (Dec 9, 2020) This publication of the ASCE Utility Engineering and Survey Institute is a must read for any municipality, government agency or consultant looking to procure SUE services. The publication was written by two legends in the SUE world, Jim Anspach and Paul Scott. Key items in the publication […]
WHO IS PAUL?
Paul Scott retired from his role at the US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in 2003 after a successful 35 year career. While at FHWA Paul was instrumental in the growth of SUE on highway projects across the country.
Lawrence had the pleasure of working alongside Paul during his Post FHWA years in Consulting. It was during this time that he garnered my immense respect and admiration for him as a professional and a friend.
Paul has been there from the beginning and is a true historian on SUE. Through this blog he will recount in detail the history of SUE through, as seen through his eyes, over the last 40 years. Enjoy!