NEWSLETTER: January 2021

iENGINEERING has successfully delivered the 2021 Annual Release for the LTBP InfoBridge™ web portal. This annual release includes many major enhancements to the web portal including major design enhancements and feature updates for the full-width graphical user interface. Moreover, the data filters have been updated to allow the users to perform advanced data search for historical data submittals and special research projects. An interesting new feature, “Performance Forecast” has been implemented for this release. This feature graphically demonstrates the preliminary results of ongoing Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) research on condition forecast for a group (network) of bridges selected by the user. The Charts feature under Analytics tab has been also updated to include data attributes for the NBE data to include attributes for the various bridge elements and their respective condition states. For this annual release, InfoBridge also provides additional data for various research projects including project data for Unpainted Weathering Steel (UWS) and Geosynthetic Reinforced Soil – Integrated Bridge System (GRS-IBS) projects.

The InfoBridge web portal is an intuitive and user-friendly online platform to access, visualize, and analyze bridge performance data and information. InfoBridge was developed by the Long-Term Bridge Performance (LTBP) Program, which is a long-term research effort by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to help better understand bridge performance.

iENGINEERING recently completed all the data updates and enhancements for the InfoMaterials 2021. The new release can now be accessed on the LTPP InfoPave™ web-portal. InfoMaterials 2021 has eight datasets in total, as compared to three datasets in the previous version. The newly added data includes the datasets for Traffic Speed Deflection Device (TSDD), Asphalt Binder Tester (ABT), Continuous Friction Measurement (CFM), Double-Edge-Notched Tension Test (DENT), and Wide-Base Tires (WBT).

Several new features have been added into the InfoMaterials 2021 portal that will enable end-users to navigate through data more conveniently. As an example, users will now be able to narrow down their search using nested filtering ability; they can now apply global filters on website level to identify the dataset type, and then apply data filters within the individual datasets to get to the specific data records that they require. The new portal also enables users to view filtered data in the form of multiple graphs and GIS Maps. Users can now pick and choose multiple data tables and files in a dataset, and submit data extraction requests to receive the filtered and compiled data in a single packaged file.

iENGINEERING has designed, developed, and deployed the new High Value Research (HVR) website for National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP). The new website is equipped with powerful reporting tools and dashboards that provide valuable insights about the current and past HVR projects across the US. Moreover, the website will simplify the process of information upload and project submission, by making the new interface more user-friendly and efficient compared with the old HVR website.

The HVR website provides a collection of “high-value” research highlights from across the nation, compiled each year for the Research Advisory Committee (RAC) Annual Meeting. The purpose of the website is to allow State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) to submit selected research projects for consideration in the annual Sweet Sixteen contest, which is a federal-level contest organized by AASHTO Special Committee on Research and Innovation (R&I) and its Research Advisory Committee (RAC).

iENGINEERING has successfully implemented a Knowledge Management (KM) Platform for United Nations Office for Projects Services (UNOPS), Somalia Office. This KM platform will help UNOPS in managing their Somalia Security and Justice Program (SSJP), which is a long-term program to improve the security and justice situation in Somalia. The program involves several international stakeholders (including donors, consultants, implementing partners, etc.) directly involved in the process. However, most of these stakeholders were based in locations outside Somalia, and had a lack of visibility, coordination, and knowledge sharing throughout the process. iENGINEERING team conducted online surveys and detailed meeting sessions with the UNOPS, and several other stakeholders to identify their key problems and their needs regarding knowledge management. Based on this analysis, a detailed Learning and Knowledge Exchange Strategy (LKES) was developed and proposed to the UNOPS. After approval, we have successfully implemented an Online Knowledge Management Platform for them using a Cloud Based Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) system. iENGINEERING has recently completed the onboarding of the stakeholders on this new platform.

Mr. Vuotto has recently joined iENGINEERING as an Infrastructure Business Analyst. His current responsibilities include capturing and digesting client requirements, designing pertinent solutions, managing development work, quality control and quality assurance of the developed solutions, and communication of support activities for the FHWA InfoMaterials, LTPP InfoPave and LTBP InfoBridge web portals. In addition, he conducts data analyses to extract meaningful insights towards business process improvement and carries out other client management tasks.

Mr. Vuotto has five years of experience in the civil engineering field, primarily serving as a pavement engineering consultant on a large-scale concrete pavement research project for the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). His role expanded over time to include project management duties. Mr. Vuotto served as the primary consultant, overseeing the planning, design, and monitoring of the project. He gained extensive experience in instrumentation design and analysis, computer networking, data acquisition, data analysis, software development, database development, materials sampling and testing, experimental design, and documentation.