Registration Board Hears from Engineers on Qualification Based Selection
At the May 11 SC State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Surveyors scheduled meeting three engineers and Joe Jones made presentations to the board on qualification based selection for engineers and surveyors.

Mr. Robert Horner, HEG Engineering of Charleston asked Ms. Jan Simpson, Registration Board Director, to put QBS on the board’s agenda. Mr. Mike Horton, Davis & Floyd, Charleston, Mr. Jim Justus, FEA PC, Greenville, and Mr. Joe Jones, ACEC-SC, SCSPE, SCSPLS and Mr. Horner made statements.

Mr. Horner said bidding for engineering services “has become more and more prevalent lately.” As budgets have gotten tighter request for costs have increased.

He told the board the net effect of bidding has an impact on the value. Engineering firms are torn between providing clients what they ask for and what they need. When bidding is done firms have to see how to get the work out. However, the engineer may have creative ideas of what should be done for the health, safety and welfare for the public, but when work is bid; the engineer has to give exactly what the customer asked for.

Mr. Horton was there as ACEC-SC past president and an ASCE representative. He said bidding is eroding the profession. Choice based upon price stifles innovation and quality of service and may jeopardize the health, safety and welfare of the public.

Mr. Justus told the registration board his organization’s Board of Directors had voted to support the House bill introduced in March. From his personal business, he said his company has refused to bid on work and has turned down opportunities for work in the public and private sectors when the selection was based upon price.

Mr. Jones told the board QBS has been federal law for 38 years, and this procurement method was adopted by law in South Carolina in 1976, 34 years ago. Furthermore, QBS is the method of selecting design professionals in 44 states.

He told the board all engineering and surveying organizations endorse QBS as does the American Public Works Association and that a partnership of the engineering and surveying organizations and APWA should make a strong bond to require all political subdivisions to adopt QBS. Now numerous political subdivisions consistently as for bids from design professionals.

Mr. Jones said ACEC-the business side of engineering and APWA- a public side of engineering sponsored a comprehensive QBS study conducted by the University of Colorado and Georgia Tech.

The researchers looked at 200 public and private construction projects in 23 states. The sample included transportation, water, commercial and industrial projects ranging in size from relatively small projects to those costing millions of dollars.

Results show using QBS to produce the design component of a construction project consistently meant lower overall construction costs, reduced change orders, better project results and more highly satisfied owners than in other procurement methods.

Mr. Jones told the registration board it was important to the engineering and surveyors communities for it endorse QBS and to help move procurement method forward.

Mr. Gene Dinkins, Registration Board Chair, said he was aware of a number of political subdivisions where projects are selected “purely on price.”

He and other board members said they were for QBS and the Registration Board had endorsed at a previous meeting the House legislation strengthening QBS by a vote of 6 to 1.

Here's a Senate Update and Call To Action:

1) House Bill 3489, our tort reform bill, will be on the Senate Judiciary Committee agenda on Tuesday, May 18th.

2) Senator Larry Martin, our Senate sponsor and Tort Reform Subcommittee Chairman,  said yesterday that "there's time" to pass H. 3489 and that H. 3489 will receive a Special Order slot on the Senate calendar, maybe as early as Thursday.

Senator Tom Davis, a co-sponsor of our Senate bill, also indicated that we can still pass a tort reform bill this legislative session. The Senate intends to stay until June 3rd and come back for conference reports, etc. on June 15th.

3) CALL TO ACTION
Please contact Senate Judiciary Committee Members asking them to support tort reform on Tuesday by voting H. 3489 out of committee. Click here to download the contact imformation for the Committee<<

Sponsor or Exhibit at the 2010 SC Engineering Conference & Tradeshow
Is your company growing?  Want to bring attention to your company?  Is there a company that provides you a service that you think could help others in the engineering community? 

If you said yes to any of these questions we have the perfect opportunity for you and your company to get the exposure you need.  The SC Engineering Conference is being held at the Marriot in Charleston, SC, June 10-13, 2010.  The best way to put your companies name in the forefront of the engineering community is by being a sponsor or exhibiting at he tradeshow.

With many different sponsorship levels there is surely one that fits every budget.  From being the biggest name at the conference with a gold sponsor, to being a mid-morning break sponsor, get your companies name and logo out for everyone to see.  If you are planning on coming to the conference any way look at the Gold, Silver, & Bronze sponsorships that include conference registrations as well!

In the event that you cannot find a sponsorship that suits you, pick up the phone and give someone a call who may want to sponsor or exhibit at the tradeshow.  Your influence as a member will go far with any company that you use regularly.  That same organization could help other engineering companies.  If a possible exhibitor provides a certain good or service that you use, they may want the opportunity to offer the same service to other engineering companies, and in this economy who does not want more business? Give your providers the opportunity to showcase to more than 100 engineers at the conference.

Click here for sponsorship and tradeshow information.  Sponsorships get your companies name out before, during, and after the conference.  Want your company to turn heads in the engineering community?  If so the Gold Sponsorship has your name all over it.

2010 SC Engineering Conference is Near
You are going to receive a colorful brochure next week that gives you all the details on the 2010 SC Engineering Conference.

The conference has numerous programs from which to choose. Moreover, if you are looking for professional development hours, you can pick up the entire year’s worth at this conference.

In addition to a packed PDH agenda there are plenty of activities to make a full weekend.

Popular at previous engineering meetings is a harbor cruise with dinner. The Conference has a harbor cruise and dinner scheduled for Thursday evening. Transportation to and from the dock is provided.

Golf is Saturday afternoon at Patriots Point with the awards banquet following that evening. A hospitality suite will be open on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Also, Thursday afternoon and Friday, the conference has the largest trade show so far. Exhibitors will be there to showcase their goods and services. The conference hosts a reception for all registered participants in the trade show Thursday afternoon before leaving for the evening harbor cruise.

Registration is easy; you can do it on line by going to either www.acecsc.org or www.scspe.org. You can register for the conference and the hotel at these websites. Or if you wish to reserve you hotel by phone call 843-723-3000 and tell them you want the SC Engineering Conference rate.

Here is the conference agenda today; some additions may be forthcoming.

Register today. The 2010 SC Engineering Conference promises to be the best engineering conference yet.

Legislative Report
Whether it is relief or anxiety, the SC General Assembly has less than 12 days left unless the session is extended which is not likely. In fact, there is some talk of cutting the session short.

Some have always said it is a good thing the General Assembly is not in session because the citizens don’t have to watch their pocketbooks. There is some truth to that, but when there is important legislation that you want to see passed, the looming sine die can also produce anxiety.

For the engineering community, two of the three primary bills that were important to engineers and surveyors have already met their fate. They did not pass.

However, tort reform remains on the table, and there is anxiety over this bill which passed the House of Representatives by an overwhelming margin has been stuck in Senate Committee.

Hopefully tort reform will move with acceptable language before the session ends.

As your lobbyist, I wish to thank the many of you who contacted members of the Judiciary Committee this week. Some of you sent me your responses, some of which were benign but the responses showed me that those very important senators knew engineers were interested and wanted the legislation passed.

Those of you who contacted senators was not in vain although the Judiciary Committee did not meet Tuesday as expected. The senate did not adjourn; so, the committee meeting was cancelled. Right now, the committee is planning to meet Tuesday, June 18. So, if you don’t mind, please contact the Senate Judiciary Committee members again. Click here to contact the Senate Judiciary Committee members.

The bill establishing a pilot program where the SC State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Surveyors and other registration boards would be removed from the SC Department of Labor Licensing and Regulation and set up as stand alone agencies was recalled to committee after strong opposition was raised on the House floor during the critical second reading.

Also, legislation that would have strengthened the qualification based selection method of securing engineering and surveying services did not make it out of committee.  QBS is an extremely important procurement method for public work. The engineering community is going to strive to help government at all levels understand the QBS advantages and endorse the procedure to help facilitate passage of this legislation.

A QBS panel discussion is set for an hour at the 2010 SC Engineering Conference in Charleston Saturday morning, June 12 at the Charleston Marriott.

SCSPE Volunteer Engineer Corps May be Called Upon – Volunteer Now
This week SCSPE member received a special email from Pat Jenkins, Chair of the SCSPE Volunteer Engineers Corps describing a potential breakthrough to move the VEC forward at the state level, and perhaps beyond.

As Mr. Jenkins said in his letter, this new direction warrants “a lot of discussions,” but if SCSPE VEC and the SC Emergency Management Division can get together on the particulars a number of those large sticking points like workers’ compensation and professional liability insurance for the volunteers may be go away with volunteers being covered through the State Adjutant General’s Office.

As a show of interest and good faith in working out a solution, Mr. Jenkins said there are a number of disaster relief efforts underway in the Southeast where FEMA might request “relief assets” in the near future. The SCEMD director asked if Engineers would be willing to volunteer for a relief rotation as part of the state’s contingent.

Mr. Jenkins said his chapter’s VEC believes an engineer volunteering to participate in a FEMA call to action “is a good opportunity to reinforce SCSPE’s position in pending negotiations.

Any one wishing to volunteer, no matter where you live in the state is welcome. Some SCSPE chapters have already expressed interest in forming VEC groups. Volunteering for this possible relief effort is an excellent opportunity for potential chapter leaders to explore possible situations and needs that might occur in a South Carolina disaster.

If you are interested in pursuing this immediate opportunity, or if you are interested in helping move VEC forward through SCEMD and the Adjutant General’s Office, contact Mr. Jenkins at jenkinsrus@bellsouth.net  

SC Council of Engineering and Surveying Societies Hosts Dinner for Registration Board
The SC Council of Engineering and Surveying Societies held a dinner for the SC State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Surveyors and the deans of the Colleges of Engineering May 11 at the Palmetto Club in Columbia.

SCCESS President Carl Bostick, PLS, presided over the dinner where more than 30 engineers, surveyors, spouses, deans and registration board members attended.

Interim USC College of Engineering and Computing, Dr. Harry Ploehn and The Citadel Engineering Dean, Dr. Dennis Fallon attended the dinner along with Registration Board Chair Mr. Gene Dinkins, PE, PLS, Vice Chair Mr. Andy Kinghorn, PE, Secretary Ms. Theresa Hodge, PE, Mr. ML Love, PE, Past Chair, Mr. Thurl Amick, PLS, Ms. Nancy Cottingham, public member, and board administrator Ms. Jan Simpson. Dr. Fallon’s wife, Mrs. Hodge’s husband and Mrs. Cottingham’s husband accompanied their spouses at the dinner.

ACEC-SC and SCSPE are among the council’s members. From ACEC-SC, Mr. Haze Elliott, PE, and Mr. Mike Horton, PE, attended. SCSPE representatives were Mr. Jim Justus, PE, Mr. Marty Mobley, PE, and Mr. Michael Sheu. Mr. and Mrs. Joe Jones attended representing ACEC-SC and SCSPE.

The SCCESS is a 30+ year old organization composed of representatives from engineering and surveying societies. The organization originally was established by state law, and its function was to make recommendations to the Governor for individuals to sit on the SC State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Surveyors.  This responsibility was taken away for a number of years, but reestablished in 2005.

The annual dinner is an opportunity for deans of the colleges of engineering, the registration board and the leaders of the SCCESS member organizations to meet and informally discuss engineering and surveying issues in the state.