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COMPANY NEWS
MARCH 2008
WHA Design Wins Engineering Excellence Award
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DIXON, IL – March 6, 2008 – Thirty-six
Illinois firms were recognized for excellence in engineering before an
audience of over 300 engineers, clients and government officials at an
Awards Luncheon held February 8, 2008 at the Crowne Plaza, Springfield,
Illinois. The firms were recognized for award-winning engineering projects
in the American Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois’
Thirty-Seventh Annual Engineering Excellence Awards Competition. The
competition recognizes outstanding projects designed by private practice
engineering firms from the State of Illinois.
Local
engineering firm Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc. won a
Special Achievement Award for their project, “The Captain Swift Timber
Covered Bridge,” which was designed for Princeton Township, Bureau County
and the City of Princeton, Illinois. Special Achievement Awards are given
for projects worthy of special recognition of the engineer for achieving
engineering excellence.
Covered bridges of the past were designed for limited use of
horse-and-buggy traffic and are unpractical today. What makes the Captain
Swift Timber Covered Bridge unique is that unlike a typical covered bridge,
this one has two lanes and is built to modern highway standards - semi
trucks and even farm combines can safely travel the bridge. Made entirely
out of wood, it is the only two lane covered bridge in Illinois.
The key to the bridge is its unique combination of 19th
century design with 21st century materials. The strength of the
bridge comes from its burr arch design, an idea patented by Theodore Burr of
New York in 1804. Willett, Hofmann & Associates engineers used the
traditional design but replaced cut lumber with “glulam” lumber, a wood
product manufactured by gluing laminated lumber together to increase the
strength and length of the wood. While Burr and his fellow 19th
century bridge builders were limited by the height of available trees,
glulam lumber allowed WHA engineers to use lumber that is longer and
stronger than any tree, making the two-lane bridge possible.
Also
unlike vintage covered bridges, the Captain Swift Bridge has a 21st
century electrical system. For fire protection, the bridge has a heat
detection system that is wired into both the fire department and the police
station. It also has a webcam that currently feeds into the fire department
and police station, but will soon also be on the internet for viewing by the
public anytime. The bridge has lights both inside and outside the
structure, intended to aesthetically illuminate the structure and also
increase security.
The bridge is expected to be a tourist draw, and has already attracted
sight-seers to visit the unique bridge in its rural setting. In addition to
bringing tourist dollars to the area, the Captain Swift Bridge is designed
to save taxpayers money. Wood bridges are immune to the effects of salt
that deteriorate steel structures during Illinois’ harsh winters, and the
roof of the bridge itself will keep the structure dry and prevent wood rot.
The outer skin of the structure is Douglas Fir, which will age to a lovely
chocolate brown and the attractive natural color will make painting
unnecessary, further reducing maintenance costs. With proper maintenance a
timber covered bridge can last 150 years or more, which amounts to a savings
for many generations of tax payers.
The lead engineer on the project was Brian Converse. Converse is both a
licensed professional engineer and a licensed professional structural
engineer, and has almost 20 years of experience in structural engineering
and bridge design. Converse works out of the Dixon WHA office, and lives in
Geneseo.
Judges for the 2008 Engineering Excellence Awards Competition were: Dr.
Robert H. Dodds, Jr., Head of the Dept. of Civil & Environmental
Engineering, University of Illinois; Roger Driskell, P.E., Engineer of
Construction, Illinois Department of Transportation - Division of Highways;
Joseph Lorenzini, P.E., Chief Engineering Officer, METRA; Chuck Spitzack,
P.E., Chief of Project Management, United States Army Corps of Engineers,
Rock Island; Nicholas Venuso, Assistant Chief Engineer, Metropolitan Water
Reclamation District of Greater Chicago; Senator Dale Risinger, P.E.,
Illinois Senate
Willett, Hoffmann and Associates, Inc. provides land surveying, civil and
structural engineering, architectural services, and grant and loan funding
application preparation from offices in Dixon, Freeport, Rockford, Joliet
and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
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OCTOBER 2007
WHA Engineers Attend Bridge Seminar
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DIXON, IL – October 3, 2007 – As part of Willett, Hofmann &
Associates, Inc.’s continuing professional education program, Brian
Converse, P.E., S.E., Megan Small, E.I., and Dustin Damhoff, E.I. attended
“Load Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) for Highway Bridge Superstructures –
Steel,” September 6 & 7, sponsored by the Structural Engineers Association
of Illinois.
The course was a combination of instructor-led discussions and workshop
exercises intended to assist bridge engineers in successful implementation
of load and resistance factor design. All engineers in the state of
Illinois are required to participate in 30 hours of continuing technical
education programs every two years in order to keep their license valid.
The intense two-day program provided 15 hours of continuing education
credit.
Brian Converse is both a licensed professional engineer and a licensed
professional structural engineer, and has almost 20 years of experience in
structural engineering and bridge design. Converse works out of the Dixon
WHA office, and lives in Geneseo.
Megan Small became a registered engineering intern in 2005 and Dustin
Damhoff in 2006. After four years of supervised engineering experience,
Small and Damhoff will be eligible to take the exam to become an Illinois
licensed professional engineer (PE). Both work out of the Dixon office of
Willett, Hofmann & Associates. Small lives in Utica and Damhoff lives in
Morrison.
Willett, Hoffmann and Associates, Inc. provides land surveying, civil and
structural engineering, architectural services, and grant and loan funding
application preparation from offices in Dixon, Freeport, Rockford, Joliet
and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
# # # |

Brian Converse, P.E., S.E..

Megan Small, E.I.

Dustin Damhoff, E.I. |
AUGUST 2007
Ronald J. Steenken of WHA Receives ISPE Award
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DIXON, IL - August 10, 2007 - Willett, Hofmann & Associates is
proud to announce that president and general manager Ronald J. Steenken,
P.E., S.E., was recently awarded the Professional Engineering Management
Award from the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers (ISPE) at their
annual convention held July 13th and 14th, 2007.

Each of ISPE’s 21 chapters has the opportunity to nominate just one
professional engineer from the chapter, and Steenken was nominated by the
Rock River Chapter to represent Northwest Illinois. Each chapter submits a
lengthy application that includes their candidate’s educational and civic
background, professional and personal history, and current employment.
Candidates are judged on their achievement of technical goals, how well they
encourage and inspire technical and professional growth among their staff,
and their demonstration of professional ethics.
Steenken is currently the President and General Manager of Willett,
Hofmann & Associates. He has over twenty-five years of experience in
structural design. Steenken started with hands-on construction work as a
Seabee while enlisted in the Navy. After his enlistment he graduated from the
University of Cincinnati with a Civil Engineering degree in 1982 and a
Master of Science in Structural Engineering in 1983.
Steenken joined Willett, Hofmann & Associates in 1986.
Over a twenty-one year career with WHA Steenken has worked as a project
engineer in the structural department, became the head of the structural
department, and was elected to the company’s board of directors. He
attained his current position of president and general manager of WHA in
2003.
Steenken has served in a number of professional
organizations, holding memberships and leadership positions in the
Illinois Society of Professional Engineers, the American Society of Civil
Engineers, the Structural Engineers Associates of Illinois, and the American
Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois.
He has also volunteered his time to a number of local community
organizations. Steenken has served in varying capacities with the Meridian
Community Unit School District #223 as an elected member of the Board of
Education, serving as the board vice president for eight years and as
president for the last two years. Steenken is also proud of his current and
past memberships in the Monroe Center Community Church and the Kishwaukee
Presbyterian Church, and has been a volunteer coach in the Meridian Youth
Soccer League.
Steenken lives in Stillman Valley with his wife Debra and daughters
Katie, 19, and Libbey, 15. An older son, Collin, 29, lives in Palatine,
Illinois.
Willett, Hoffmann and Associates, Inc. provides land surveying, civil and
structural engineering, architectural services, and grant and loan funding
application preparation from offices in Dixon, Freeport, Rockford, Joliet
and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
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MAY 2007
WHA Surveyors Learn 1830s Surveying Methods
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DIXON, IL – May 15, 2007 – Willett, Hofmann & Associates strives to
keep their licensed surveyors and surveying technicians well-trained in the
latest technology and software, but WHA surveyors took a step back in time
when they learned about surveying in the 1830s.
The state of Illinois was first surveyed in the 1830s, and with complex
parcels a surveyor of today may have to trace a property back to an original
175-year-old record. As a result, today’s clients are better served if
their surveyor knows how to read a survey from the 1830s, and fully
understands the methods an earlier surveyor used to map a parcel.
To teach modern surveyors the old ways, “Ol’ Josh,” portrayed by
professional land surveyor Charles L. Bevington, appeared in 1830s period
clothing to teach surveyors about the drafting and field equipment of the
time period in a State of Illinois Division of Professional Regulation
approved class titled “Read ‘Em, ‘Rite ‘Em & ‘Rithmetic.”
Class participants wrote with a quill pen, used a replica surveying scale,
and learned about the day-to-day hardships of an 1830s surveyor in the wilds
of Illinois. The class was created after researching diaries and notes of
deputy surveyors along with the written instructions of the Surveyor
General’s office, and comparing them to standards used today. The writings,
surveying and mapping of Lewis & Clark were studied, including the story of
a mapper who stumbled upon two grizzly bears in 1805, the earliest known
recorded sighting of a grizzly bear by an American, and fortunately a danger
that WHA’s surveyors have never faced.
Participants also learned how the English language has changed and studied a
surveyor’s manual from 1768 to compare the terms of the 1700s, still used in
the 1830s, with modern surveying terms of today.
Representing the Dixon office of Willett, Hofmann & Associates was John
Huseman, PLS, of Dixon; Curt Bender, PLS, of Morrison; and Chris Higgins of
Sterling. Gary Holt, PLS, of Pecatonica attended from the Rockford office
of WHA, and Craig Geiser, PLS, and Jeff Rohde, both of Freeport, attended
from the Freeport office.
Willett, Hoffmann and Associates, Inc. provides land surveying, civil and
structural engineering, architectural services, and grant and loan funding
application preparation from offices in Dixon, Freeport, Rockford, Joliet
and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
# # # |

Curt Bender, P.L.S.

Craig Geiser, P.L.S.

Chris Higgins |
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Gary
Holt, P.L.S. |

John Huseman, P.L.S. |

Jeff
Rohde |
APRIL 2007
WHA Engineers Attend Drainage Seminar
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DIXON, IL – April 27, 2007 – As part of Willett, Hofmann &
Associates, Inc.’s continuing professional education program, engineers
Michael R. Leslie, P.E., S.E. and Dale K. Hamilton, P.E. attended “Effective
Drainage for Site Development Projects,” a two-day seminar hosted by the
University of Wisconsin - Madison’s College of Engineering and Department of
Engineering Professional Development.
The course covered runoff patterns, drainage design options, impacts of site
development, calculating runoff quantities, and drainage engineering
concepts and methods. Discussions included real life applications and
examples.
Leslie has over 15 years of experience in engineering and design. He is
licensed as both a civil and structural engineer, and is the manager of
engineering for the Freeport, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin of Willett,
Hofmann & Associates. Leslie and his family live in Dixon, Illinois.
Hamilton is a licensed civil engineer with 12 years of experience. He works
in the Rockford office of Willett, Hofmann & Associates and lives with his
family in Winnebago, Illinois.
Willett, Hoffmann and Associates, Inc. provides land surveying, civil and
structural engineering, agricultural engineering, architectural services,
and grant and loan funding application preparation from offices in Dixon,
Freeport, Rockford, Joliet and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
# # # |

Mike Leslie, P.E., S.E.

Dale
Hamilton, P.E. |
FEBRUARY 2007
Curt Bender of WHA obtains PLS
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DIXON, IL – February 15, 2007 – Willett, Hofmann & Associates,
Inc. is proud to announce that employee Curt Bender has passed his state
examination to become an Illinois Professional Land Surveyor (PLS). As part
of their employee growth program, WHA encourages all employees to further
their education and attain professional licensing.

To become a PLS, candidates must complete four years as a
surveyor-in-training (SIT) under the guidance of a PLS and pass a written
examination. The examination covers legal aspects of surveying in Illinois,
such as subdivision regulations and condominium plat laws, as well as
general surveying analysis and how to retrace surveys and determine property
boundary locations.
Bender has been employed at WHA for 23 years, starting as a survey crew rod
man and working his way up to his current position as a licensed
professional land surveyor in the Dixon office of Willett, Hofmann &
Associates. Along the way he has attended various Illinois Department of
Transportation Survey classes and Professional Development classes. He is
also a member of the Winnebago Chapter of the Illinois Professional Land
Surveyors Association and was recently elected by his peers to serve as the
Chapter’s secretary/treasurer.
Bender lives in Morrison with his wife, Corinne, and their two daughters.
Willett, Hoffmann and Associates, Inc. provides land surveying, civil and
structural engineering, agricultural engineering, architectural services,
and grant and loan funding application preparation from offices in Dixon,
Freeport, Rockford, Joliet and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
# # # |
SEPTEMBER
2006 WHA Engineers
Attend Professional Training
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FREEPORT, IL – September 25, 2006 – As part of Willett,
Hofmann & Associates, Inc.’s continuing education program, engineers Mike
Leslie of the Freeport office and Brian Frickenstein of the Sterling office
attended the American Council of Engineering Companies’ “Illinois Department
of Transportation Bridge Seminar - 2006.”
Engineer Brian Converse and engineering interns Megan Small
and Dustin Damhoff of the Dixon office of Willett, Hofmann & Associates,
Inc. will attend the same seminar in Springfield later this week.
Topics of the two-day seminar include the IDOT bridge program
and an explanation of how highway funding works, common bridge construction
issues, ground reinforcements, updates to the 2007 IDOT specifications, and
case studies of existing Illinois bridges.
All engineers in the state of Illinois are required to
participate in 30 hours of continuing technical education programs every two
years in order to keep their license valid.
Willett, Hoffman and Associates, Inc. provides land
surveying, civil and structural engineering, architectural services, and
grant and loan funding application preparation from offices in Dixon,
Freeport, Rockford, Joliet and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
# # # |

Mike Leslie, P.E., S.E.

Brian Converse, P.E., S.E. |
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Brian Frickenstein, P.E., S.E. |

Megan Small, E.I. |

Dustin Damhoff, E.I. |
MARCH 2006 WHA Engineer Wins Award for
Community Service
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DIXON, IL – March 16, 2006 – Mike Leslie of
Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc. was recently awarded the “Behind the
Scenes” award at Dixon Main Street’s Mardi Gras Dinner and Annual Awards
Ceremony.
The award was received in return for the many hours of
volunteer service he performs as chairman of the Design Committee and as a
member of several other Main Street committees.
Mike Leslie is the Manager of Engineering for the Freeport
and Monroe offices of Willett, Hofmann & Associates. With 15 years of
engineering and design experience, Mike has been an Illinois licensed
Professional Engineer for almost ten years and has been an Illinois licensed
Structural Engineer since 2000.
Willett, Hoffman and Associates, Inc. provides land
surveying, civil and structural engineering, architectural services, and
grant and loan funding application preparation from offices in Dixon,
Freeport, Rockford, Joliet and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
# # # |
NOVEMBER 2005
WHA receives an Honor Award from ACEC
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DIXON, IL – November 28, 2005 - Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc. is
proud to announce the receipt of an Honor Award from the American Council of
Engineering Companies (ACEC) of Illinois for their design of the
Tinker Swiss
Cottage Museum Pedestrian Suspension Bridge in Rockford, Illinois.

The
Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum, a
Rockford Park District Facility listed on the National Register of Historic
Places, was originally built by Robert Tinker in 1865. In 1870, Mr. Tinker
built his swinging bridge across Kent Creek which was swept away along with all
of Rockford’s bridges in 1890. Mr. Tinker rebuilt his swinging bridge in 1891
and it stood as a Rockford Landmark until 1976 when deteriorated to the point
where it had to be removed.
In
2001 Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc. was hired to design a new bridge
replicating Mr. Tinker’s 1891 bridge. Based on the study of artifacts and
historic photographs, engineers at Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc.
successfully designed a new bridge meeting current design requirements that
aesthetically replicated Mr. Tinker’s historic bridge. Construction of the
bridge was completed in June of 2005.
The
ACEC 35th Annual Engineering Excellence Awards are judged on the basis of total
engineering excellence in each of nine categories. Willett, Hofmann &
Associates’ Tinker Swiss Bridge nomination was one of 37 from Illinois and one
of six that were awarded the Honor Award making it eligible for the Eminent
Conceptor Award, the highest honor, the winner of which will be announced in
February. The nomination will also receive ACEC National Award consideration as
well.
Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc. provides land surveying, civil engineering,
structural engineering and architectural design services from offices located in
Dixon, Freeport, Rockford, Joliet and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin.
# #
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OCTOBER 2005 WHA Merges with Gastel & Associates, P.C.
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DIXON, IL – October 6, 2005 –
Two long established firms combined with the announcement that
Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc., the oldest land surveying and
engineering firm in Northwest Illinois, has
combined with
Gastel &
Associates, P.C., Freeport’s oldest land surveying and engineering firm,
on October 6, 2005. The merger creates a
combined force of unmatched expertise for the region.
All current offices and staff
remain in operation, and the joint venture has offices in Dixon, Rockford,
Freeport, Joliet and Sterling, Illinois and Monroe, Wisconsin. The new
entity results in a staff of over fifty with a total of 12 licensed
Professional Engineers, 4 licensed Structural Engineers, 5 licensed
Professional Land Surveyors, and 1 licensed Architect. Willett, Hofmann &
Associates, Inc. has been retained as the firm name.
Gastel & Associates, P.C. was founded in 1970 and has been
providing professional civil engineering, agriculture engineering and land
surveying in the Freeport area for the past 35 years.
Willett, Hofmann & Associates, Inc. was founded October 1,
1966 as the product of the merger between two Dixon firms: C.K. Willett,
Consulting Engineers, established in 1935, and Robert Hofmann and
Associates, established in 1953. For 70 years Willett, Hoffman and
Associates has been providing land surveying, civil and structural
engineering, architectural services, and grant and loan funding application
preparation from offices in Dixon, Rockford, Joliet and Sterling, Illinois.
Ronald J. Steenken, P.E., S.E. serves as the president and
general manager, with Craig L. Geiser, P.L.S. and Mike Leslie, P.E, S.E.
serving as co-managers of the Freeport and Monroe offices.
# # # |
Last Updated:
03/13/2008
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