Digital Commons Network^™

Understanding The Fhwa Cost And Schedule Risk, Daniel Corbin, Toby Randolph

Purdue Road School

Major projects (over $500 million) are often more complex and riskier than other projects, and careful attention must be provided when preparing cost estimates. Traditional estimating methods may not be appropriate in all cases. Using the Revive I-70 and I-69 ORX projects as examples, project team members from INDOT and their consultant will describe how the CSRA process works and how to complete a CSRA level risk assessment.

Right Of Way (Row) Autonomous Mowing Project, Michael A. Mardikes, Nathan C. Sprague, Timothy J. Wiegman, John T. Evans

Purdue Road School

Digital Twin Roadside Vegetation Management and Real-World Verification: Roadside mowing operations are high risk for all crew members working alongside moving traffic and challenging terrain. Autonomous mowers could remove the need for a human presence along the right-of-way. To study the feasibility of this technology, a digital-twin robotic simulator was developed for testing and evaluating real-world Indiana test segments. Real-world verification was then performed on unmanned mowing platforms to validate the simulated results. Join us to learn more.

Enhancing Road Performance With Void Reducing Asphalt Membrane, Tim Zahrn, Todd Thomas, Randy Miller

Purdue Road School

This presentation will discuss how using the technology of a Void Reducing Asphalt membrane can improve performance of our Asphalt Pavements by creating a more durable asphalt surface that resists cracking and reduces permeability. Void Reducing Asphalt Membrane (VRAM) Specifications: VRAM reduces voids in longitudinal joints, which improves the longevity of a quality road surface. INDOT has already required VRAM on certain road designs. We will review the current specifications for VRAM and outline specifications that may update with the technology. We will also discuss the Impact of Rumble Strips on Longitudinal Joint Performance. The session will also highlight how …

Tell Your Story, Demonstrate Your Value With Kpis, Amanda Carlson

Purdue Road School

Purdue University Administrative Operations Integrated Analytics (AOIA) is an analytics leader in the Big Ten that fields requests from other universities about data and reporting. Learn how AOIA was established, how key data and reports were created, and ways AOIA helps demonstrate the value of Administrative Operations. Reports and KPIs covering capital projects, space, staffing, and more will be shared.

The Epic Quest For Utility Easement Knowledge, Steven Knies, Sandra Jones, Bill Read

Purdue Road School

This presentation will overview the importance of researching utility easements and the impact it can have on a project, delay-wise and cost-wise, when utility easement research is not thoroughly conducted to determine if a utility is reimbursable on a project.

Help! We Need Accurate Utility Information, Dan Osborn, Andrew Schouten, Natalie Parks

Purdue Road School

The construction industry urges project owners to provide accurate utility information in contract documents. Accurate utility facility information is critical to minimizing risks during bidding and construction. Presenters will provide project examples, challenges, and solutions to convince attendees of the importance of accurate utility information.

Comparing Safety Data On A Constructed Hard Shoulder Running (Hsr) Project, Brian Toombs

Purdue Road School

HSR uses road shoulders to improve congestion, butreducing the lateral width to obstructions when the shoulder is a travel lane creates the perception of compromised safety. Few HSR projects have existed long enough to compare safety data to determine if this is a legitimate concern. This presentation will compare the crash trends before and after the implementation of Ohio’s first HSR project and discuss gaps in the current practice.

Charging Indiana’S Crossroads, Kerri Garvin, George Mccue, Jack Sinton

Purdue Road School

Join us for an insightful update on INDOT’s Charging the Crossroads Program. Speakers will highlight the latest program activities, key milestones and challenges with Round 1 and Round 2 projects, and offer a glimpse into activities beyond the stations themselves. Learn how Indiana is paving the way for a sustainable, accessible, and equitable deployment of DC fast charging infrastructure.

Presentation Speakers/Participants

• George McCue, INDOT, [email protected]
• Jack Sinton, HNTB Corporation, [email protected]
• Kerri Garvin, HNTB Corporation, [email protected]

It’S Them, Not You: Navigating Difficult Work Relationships, Jennifer Sharkey, Karen Wood

Purdue Road School

Are there people at work that you dread talking to or working with? You are not alone. Although we can’t control another person’s behavior, we can control our behavior and mindset to cultivate a more productive working relationship. This presentation will provide attendees with examples of challenging situations and tools to navigate these situations with emotional intelligence and self- and social-awareness.

National Wildlife Crossings Program: Enhancing Roadway Safety, Lisa Vale, Tony Miller, Kevin Connor

Purdue Road School

Wildlife crossings are an emerging creative infrastructure solution that enhance road safety by providing safe passage for wildlife across busy highways, which significantly lowers the risk of severe wildlife-vehicle collisions. Join us as Lochner’s Roadway Ecologists share their nationwide experience with wildlife crossing projects and the funding sources available to bring these solutions to Indiana. By learning from successful models across the country, we can protect ecosystems while improving roadway safety.

Major Bridge Inspection Program Changes, Jonathan Olson, Jacob Gould

Purdue Road School

The FHWA’s release of the new National Bridge Inspection Standards was the biggest program change since 2004. Find out how these major changes are being implemented in Indiana and how they will affect bridge inspectors and bridge owners.

Data Visualization To Empower Great Transportation Decision Making, Dan Malsom, Meg Hunter

Purdue Road School

This session demonstrates tools and dashboards developed using Microsoft Power BI and ArcGIS Experience Builder and will outline how they are used by planners, engineers, and the public to make well-informed transportation decisions related to safety, traffic operations, transportation planning, and project programming. The session will also highlight best practices for practitioners who want to start using these tools and identify data sources worth analyzing more closely.

Balancing Act: Creating Safe, Legal, And Complete Streets, Aaron Bubb

Purdue Road School

When it comes to urban reconstruction projects, creating a single vision from multiple stakeholder perspectives can be challenging. This presentation shares the real-world example of a local municipality’s hesitancy to incorporate bicycle accommodations and pedestrian safety enhancements within an urban corridor to explore how to build a consensus around a project while still adhering to surface transportation laws.

Navigating The World Of Urban Curb Ramps: Changes, Challenges, And Innovative Solutions On Sr 32 In Hamilton And Delware Counties, Jamie Stetzel, Marcie Henry

Purdue Road School

Industry experts will share an insightful presentation on curb ramp design along SR 32 in the Greenfield District. Topics include the critical changes, challenges, and innovative solutions in enhancing accessibility for pedestrians. Attendees will gain a comprehensive understanding of the complexities involved in curb ramp design, explore real-world implementation examples, and learn about different approaches for addressing challenges in an urban environment.

Nexus Between Nepa And Utilities, Natalie Parks, Kate Williams

Purdue Road School

Integrating utility coordination within the NEPA framework is crucial for ensuring environmental compliance while also meeting project timelines. This presentation will explore the intersection of these processes, identify key challenges, and outline best practices to streamline coordination. Case studies from recent projects will illustrate effective collaboration and procedural efficiency and offer insights into achieving regulatory compliance and project goals.

Public Speaking 101: Overcoming The Fear Factor, Richard Gilyeat, Alex Schwinghamer, Mindy Peterson

Purdue Road School

Strong communications matters and can help you in daily tasks and in growing your career, but does the thought of public speaking make you break out into a cold sweat? You’re not alone. This interactive session is all about finding your confidence and your comfort level. We’ll focus on practical tips, tricks, and guidelines to help you conquer your public speaking fears or grow the experience you already have.

Navigating Urban Forestry Requirements For Road Projects, Zachary Root, Amy Noel

Purdue Road School

Not sure how to navigate the complexities of managing urban forests for your road design projects? Beautify your road project by incorporating tree planting and management from the start. Learn how urban forestry management can be incorporated early in the design process, whether to meet specific permit requirements or to meet community-based urban forest guidance.

The Power Of Presence, Eric Bass, Doug Burgess, Jordan Beaver

Purdue Road School

In the high-paced environment of today’s business world, it can be difficult for leaders to maintain a steady, calming presence. Remote work, mobile-oriented software, leaner processes, and often a leaner staff can make authentic connections almost impossible to maintain. This presentation will examine principles of leadership and illustrate how these principles foster the perception and the reality of leadership presence. Together, we will imagine a preferred future where employees find not only purpose and support in their workplace environment, but also hope and solace.

Pogues Run Greenway: Indiana's First Glow-In-The-Dark Asphalt Greenway, Charlie Starling, Bill Kincius

Purdue Road School

Nestled in an unlit section of Spades Park in Indianapolis, the Pogues Run Greenway illuminates each night with thousands of photoluminescent stones. This presentation covers the inspiration behind the idea, glow-stone data, installation processes, and the finished product’s results and challenges.

Csgp/Rule 5 Erosion Control Tips And Tricks, Gretchen Meyer

Purdue Road School

This presentation will walk through the revised erosion control rule, highlight commonly overlooked items, and provide tips for working through this permit.

Innovative Intersection Public Involvement: Strategies That Work, Nathaniel Shellhamer, David Reamer

Purdue Road School

This presentation will share best practices for effectively engaging the public and local stakeholders during the development of innovative treatments. We will cover why innovative treatments work; their selection process; case studies from finished projects; and tips and tricks for effective, positive engagement and collaboration. This presentation will benefit project managers, public involvement professionals, and engineers involved in developing innovative treatments.

Iykyk: Better Understanding The Indot Pcsm Program, Sandra Bowman, Jessica Eichhorst

Purdue Road School

INDOT began requiring the implementation of Post-Construction Stormwater (PCSM) BMPs on qualifying projects in THE fall of 2022. This presentation will provide an update on the PCSM program. Following an explanation of the design requirements and resources, construction specifications, submittal guidance, frequently asked questions, and lessons learned, attendees will walk away with a better understanding of the INDOT PCSM program.

How To Conduct A Successful Utility Joint Bore & Why You Should Do It, Aaron Day, Adam Lamb

Purdue Road School

This presentation offers in-depth guidelines to develop a plan for a joint utility bore from the design phase of a project through construction. We will also explore cost savings, reduction in utility relocation timeline, damage prevention benefits, and benefits to overall project success.

Primary Source Analysis: Using Digitized Time-Motion Study Films In The Undergraduate Business Classroom To Build Primary Source Literacy, Annette Bochenek, Renusree Varma Mudduluru

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

This paper details a study conducted in the context of a large Midwestern university’s undergraduate business class, employing the ACRL RBMS-SAA Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy in a guided in-class activity using digitized primary sources. Students participated in an introductory lesson pertaining to primary sources and their connection to business, followed by viewing and analyzing digitized clips from Frank and Lillian Gilbreth’s time-motion studies. In addition, they completed a reflective discussion board post, illuminating their connections to the ACRL RBMS-SAA Guidelines for Primary Source Literacy core ideas of the analytical, ethical, theoretical, and practical. Potential affective experiences were also examined …

The Ravine Of Memory: Babyn Yar Between The Holocaust And The Great Patriotic War, Shay A. Pilnik

Purdue University Press Books

The Nazis and their collaborators buried over 100,000 victims at Babyn Yar, a ravine in modern-day Ukraine. Most of the individuals were Jewish, making this area one of the most infamous mass murder sites in history. The Ravine of Memory starts when the travesty ends, telling the story of the ravine’s memory and forgetting in Soviet literature and culture—in Russian as well as in Yiddish. This book challenges the prevailing binary conceptions of Babyn Yar as exclusively a Holocaust or a “Great Patriotic War” story. It is neither the exclusive product of Soviet censorship nor individual dissidents. Babyn Yar is …

The Spice (Sustainable, Physics-Inspired Culinary Education) Lab – A Digestible Few-Nexus Educational Platform, Carla Ramsdell

National Collaborative for Research on Food, Energy, and Water Education (NC-FEW)

The SPICE (Sustainable, Physics-Inspired Culinary Education) Lab is a unique educational platform that enables participants from a wide disciplinary background to engage and become literate in the unique connections between food, energy and water. This small but mighty space allows for outreach education in many formats, including formal college courses, university-centered hands-on activities and public outreach.

The work performed in this space fills a unique need in the FEW-Nexus education opportunities because it is adaptable to many learners and learning opportunities and its focus on kitchen science makes these concepts approachable which can later be expanded to understand other critical …

Collaborative Knowlage In Water Wef Nexus In And Conservation: A Spatial Colaborative Aproach In Wathersheds, Cesar Rojas, Magnolia Longo

National Collaborative for Research on Food, Energy, and Water Education (NC-FEW)

Rural water supply systems provide ES, which is essential for community well-being, supported by the WEF nexus. Local communities play a crucial role in the provision and protection of water resources. However, water management plans often do not adequately integrate the WEF nexus and ecosystem conservation relationships. This study emphasizes the necessity for inclusive approaches that promote local community participation in decision-making processes, environmental conservation efforts, and informal learning mechanisms. Strategic resource management centered on the water nexus necessitates an informed and engaged population, which is critical to ensure appropriate environmental management scenarios for the territory.

Designing Field Courses To Teach Few Concepts Effectively, Eunice L. Blavascunas

National Collaborative for Research on Food, Energy, and Water Education (NC-FEW)

How do students learn complex systems FEW concepts in field courses? An overview of field-course practices in the Yakima Valley of Washington State.

An Integrated Framework For Food-Energy-Water-Nexus Education And Educational Research, Hannah Scherer, Doug Lombardi

National Collaborative for Research on Food, Energy, and Water Education (NC-FEW)

Our study centers the perspective of practitioners to define and describe FEW-Nexus-based education, identify and describe challenges with FEW-Nexus-based education, and ideate how education research can generate new knowledge to address these challenges. Using artifacts from FEW-Nexus education workshops and existing literature, we developed an integrated framework that can inform both educational practice and educational research. The framework includes ontological (thoughts about the socio-ecological systems aspects of the FEW-Nexus) and epistemological (thoughts about education and educational research of the FEW-Nexus) dimensions. We will next use this framework to probe more deeply into participants’ responses using thematic content analysis.

Empowering Young Innovators Through School-Based Agricultural Education: Insights From A Nigerian Secondary School Teacher, Mary O. Olumide-Oyaniyi

National Collaborative for Research on Food, Energy, and Water Education (NC-FEW)

Nigeria faces challenges like food insecurity and economic instability, worsened by a growing youth population. School-Based Agricultural Education (SBAE) engages youth in agricultural innovations. This study implemented SBAE principles in a Nigerian school, combining poultry farming and aquaculture. Students managed a poultry farm, using chicken droppings to breed maggots as feed for catfish in rainwater-filled tanks. The project enhanced students' skills, improved local food production, and engaged the community. Despite funding and management challenges, the initiative demonstrated SBAE's potential to empower youth and advance agricultural practices, offering a model for similar projects in other regions.