Celebrating Engineers Week
Take Three: a Q&A with Mark Nolen, PE

1. What is one fundamental engineering principle that has remained constant despite the massive shifts throughout the years? Based on my four decades of experience, I’ve found that successful geotechnical engineering always comes back to the same core ideas: using sound judgement, taking the time to truly understand the site through careful investigation, and paying attention to what the ground is actually telling you. No amount of innovation can replace a solid understanding of the fundamentals of the subsurface conditions at a project site and how they’ll behave under different loads, varying moisture conditions, and over time.

2. What are some of the most interesting changes you’ve seen in your time as an engineer?Over the course of my career, the most fascinating and useful changes have been driven by advances in technology. When I think back to the early days, it was not uncommon to generate reports using a typewriter, hand draw logs and profiles, and do basic calculations by hand. We now have cell phones, computers, laptops, powerful modeling tools, and more computing power in our pockets than entire offices used to have. These innovations have absolutely improved efficiency and expanded our analytical capabilities, but what has been most interesting is that these tools haven’t replaced engineering judgement … they’ve sharpened it. No matter how much technology evolves, you still have to understand the soil and rock you’re working with.