Contact: Robbie Ward
Representatives from the Mississippi Department of Transportation, an engineering consulting firm, the state's largest asphalt company, and a metal facility manufacturer will discuss on Wednesday [Sept. 15] infrastructure needs for north Mississippi during the next five years.
This 7 p.m. panel discussion will take place at the Leo Seal "M" Club on the Mississippi State University campus as part of a joint meeting between the American Society of Civil Engineers' North Mississippi branch and the MSU student chapter.
While this event is a closed event to the public, members of the media are invited to attend.
Panel members will include Randy Battey, assistant chief engineer at the Mississippi Department of Transportation; Dwayne Boyd, president of APAC, Mississippi; Stanley Spradling, vice president of Calvert-Spradling Engineers; and Joe Wood, structural engineer at Gulf States Manufacturing.
The panel discussion will involve beginning statements from the participants and include questions from the audience.
Isaac Howard, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering with MSU's Bagley College of Engineering, will moderate the discussion. He said topics likely discussed may involve roads, bridges, buildings, water systems, among many other infrastructure needs in the northern part of the state.
With national economic struggles continuing, funding infrastructure needs remain a critical safety issue throughout the nation and in Mississippi, Howard said.
"This is one of the most relevant topics in civil engineering," Howard said. "No one thinks about infrastructure until a bridge collapses or a landfill leaks."
For more information, contact Dr. Howard at 662-325-7193 or ilhoward@cee.msstate.edu.