Civil Engineering is one of the oldest Engineering discipline that deals with the construction, design and maintenance of the natural and physical built environment which includes works like canals, bridges, buildings, dams and roads etc. Civil Engineering is further broken down into several subsets, including geotechnical engineering, Structural engineering, Water resources engineering, Transportation engineering, Urban planning engineering, Environmental engineering, Surveying engineering and Construction engineering. Civil engineering is one of the most exciting profession as at the end of the day, the results of the work done can be seen, like a bridge, hydroelectric dam, high-rise building, a station etc.
Structural Engineering
Structural engineering deals with the structural design and structural analysis of tanks, dams, bridges, buildings, tunnels, retaining walls and power plants, etc. Structural engineering materials include wood, steel, masonry (brick), and reinforced concrete. Structural engineers work with contractors and architects. In the structural engineering, the loads have to be identified which act upon any structure, and due to those loads what are the stresses and forces that arise, and then the structure is designed which can resist and support all this load.
Water Resources Engineering
Water resources engineering deals with the management and collection of water. It not only includes the synthesis and analysis of water problems through hydraulic and hydrologic engineering, but also includes the design aspects. The large-scale projects of the water engineering include reservoirs, dams, flood control, aqueducts and hydroelectric projects. For example, California aqueduct in the central valley. Smaller scale projects include water wells, pumping systems, water treatment, pipeline and valve design.
Transportation Engineering
Transportation engineering deals with the efficient and safe movement of both goods and the people. This engineering includes designing, constructing, specifying and maintaining infrastructures involving transportation like highways, roads, airports, ports, rail systems, canals, streets, harbors, railroads and traffic engineering i.e. light timing and controlling traffic flow. .
Urban Planning Engineering
Most of the urban planning engineers do not have a civil engineering backgrounds. Some of the civil engineering projects are part of the urban planning engineering like the construction of roads, bridges, buildings, etc. Urban planning projects mainly include planning of traffic flow in urban areas, green space/parks planning in urban areas and planning of housing density in any particular area.
Environmental Engineering
The Engineering that deals with the treatment and purification of air and water, treatment of chemical, thermal or biological wastes, and air quality control is called environmental engineering. It is responsible for preventing, controlling and eliminating water, air and land pollution.
Surveying Engineering
The measuring of certain dimension on or near the surface of the earth comes under surveying engineering. This engineering is mainly responsible for mapping out construction sites, locating existing landmarks and establishment of boundary lines between properties. A project of the surveying engineering may include staking and topographic maps construction.
Construction Engineering
Engineering that deals with the planning and execution of construction of projects is called construction engineering. The engineer involved has to estimate the construction costs, need to determine what all equipments and man force will be needed, and has to supervise the construction as well. The construction project may include architects, civil engineers, contractors, electrical engineers or mechanical engineers.
Geotechnical Engineering
This is also known as soils engineering and studies soil and rock that supports civil engineering systems. The knowledge obtained from the study of soil is applied to the foundation design, retaining walls, landslide abatement, etc. These engineers have to coordinate with the structural engineers for construction of large buildings.
Thus, civil engineering, which is further divided into various subsets is indeed one of the most exciting professions as we can see the result of the work done in the form of various buildings and constructions.
Works Cited
Hicks, Tyler and S. David Hicks. Handbook of Civil Engineering Calculations, Second Edition. New York: McGraw Hill Professional, 2007.
Kutz, Myer. Handbook of Transportation Engineering Volume I, 2e. New York: McGRaw-Hill Companies, 2004.
Mays and Larry W. Water Resources Engineering. Arizona: John Wiley & Sons, 2005.
