Human beings have come a long way from living in caves to building high rise buildings. This achievement would not have been possible without civil engineers. We have selected five outstanding civil engineers who are not only influential but have inspired millions through their achievements, inventions and dedicated work.
John Smeaton (1724-1792)
The first self-proclaimed civil engineer to be widely regarded as the father of the civil engineer.
Born in England, John Smeaton was the first self – proclaimed civil engineer. He founded the Smedonian Society of Civil Engineers in 1771 with leaders of various professions. He was responsible for the construction of many famous bridges, harbors, and lighthouses in England. He was a talented mechanical engineer, mathematician and physicist.
He rediscovered modern concrete. He was a pioneer in using the proper chemical compound to obtain the best hydraulic lime to make high strength lime concrete. His contribution led to the invention of Portland cement and modern concrete.
He designed the famous Edison lighthouse, now known as the Smitten’s Tower. The specialty of the tower is the use of modern hydraulic cement and other upgraded technologies, which include dovetailed blocks of concrete in superstructure.
His works on water and wind power increased the efficiency of the Turning mills and directly contributed to the industrial revolution. His works and data became the basis of Smeaton’s equation used by Wright Brothers.
Fazlur Rahman Khan (1929-1982)
The Father of tubular design whose building was the world’s tallest building for several decades.
Fazlur Khan was an American Bangladeshi who became famous in structural engineering due to his innovative use of structural systems. He designed the famous Willis tower which was the tallest building in the world for nearly 25 years.
He came up with a system that uses bundles or large cubes of steel to create the whole structure. With this system, buildings can be made much taller and stronger and spacious.
For a long time, tall buildings were made according to his method of construction. Now we follow hybrid systems of construction like the construction system used in in Burj Khalifa. But for a long time, the methods of Fazlur khan were used for all the tall buildings of the world.
Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya (1860-1962)
An engineer of great integrity, character and broad national outlook. His birthday is celebrated as National Civil Engineers day in India.
Born in India, Sir M. Visvesvaraya is one of the most famous civil engineers in South Asia. He was involved in irrigation structures, flood protection structures and more.
He supervised the construction of Krishna Raja Sagar dam across the River Cauvery in south India, which was the largest reservoir in Asia when it was built.
He implemented the irrigation system in the Deccan area and designed a system to increase storage in the reservoir without damaging existing dams. He creating a flood protection system for the state of Hyderabad, India. He died at the age of 102 he still inspires millions of people around the world.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel(1806-1859)
“one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in the history of engineering”, “one of the greatest figures of the Industrial Revolution”
Brunel was an engineering genius who changed the face of the UK with his unique designs and inventions. He has built many important bridges, tunnels and docks, and is a pioneer in implementing many new designs. He did not succeed in everything, but he always learned from his mistakes and mistakes led to the knowledge of the success of his own works and others. His designs on public transport caused a revolution in transport engineering.
He is best remembered for his work on the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol. The bridge is 214 m (702 ft) and 76 m (249 ft) above the Avon River. It is an engineering marvel when it is built with many new innovative designs and techniques.
Stephen Bechtel Sr. (1900 – 1989)
“We’ll build anything for anybody, no matter what the location, type or size.”
One of the most important names in the field of construction management is Stephen Bechtel, who was a construction project manager par excellenceHe always wanted to take plans that everyone said were impossible. He wanted to make the impossible better and more lasting.
He was the project manager for the world-famous Hoover Dam, built in the United States in 1930. He dug 3.7 million cubic yards of rock and poured 4.4 million cubic yards of concrete to build this majestic structure in the most remote area.
His company built pipelines, power plants, structures in the Arabian desert and South American forests in the Canadian Rockies. He built the entire city of Jubail in Saudi Arabia. Overall Bechtel is involved in construction in 140 countries and 6 continents. So, he was a construction manager, he could implement practically anything everywhere.
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