This issue of the CADDZOOM, we continue our “Be the engineer of your career” series by taking an in-depth look into civil engineering.
Engineering is one of the oldest professions in the world. Around 2550 BC, Imhotep, the first documented engineer, built the famous stepped pyramid of King Zoser, located at Saqqarah. Ancient monuments like the pyramids still hold their sway over modern Civil Engineering.
Today too, engineers continue to revolutionize the world. It is for this reason that engineers must be encouraged to stay true to their passions. A deeper insight into the different streams of engineering helps aspiring engineers remain inspired.
Civil Engineering – creating the world!
“You can’t have civilization without civil engineering.”
Civilization relies on teams of inventive people to design, build and maintain sophisticated infrastructure that surround us. It is this group of inventive people who are known as civil engineers. One cannot think of a society whose foundations haven’t been laid by civil engineers. The influence of civil engineering in our life is tremendous: from our water delivery system at our homes to the road networks that we use for transportation, civil engineering can positively impact the quality of our life. Civil engineering is the oldest of the engineering disciplines. The first engineering school, the National School of Bridges and Highways, was opened in 1747 in France.
What do civil engineers do?
Civil engineers are responsible for designing, building and maintaining all types of structures. The wide range of civil structures includes water-supply and sewer systems, railroads and highways, and planned cities. Civil engineering, therefore, comprises of various subfields such as environmental engineering, geotechnical engineering, geophysics, geodesy, control engineering, structural engineering, biomechanics, nanotechnology, transportation engineering, earth science, atmospheric sciences, forensic engineering, municipal or urban engineering, water resources engineering, materials engineering, coastal engineering, surveying, and construction engineering.
Reference: www.whatiscivilengineering.csce.ca