Overseas News on Civil Engineering IT
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This section focuses on a unique overseas website concerned with civil engineering IT. The website of this issue is that of American Institute of Steel Construction, Inc. (AISC), headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Promoting Structural Steel for 80 Years
According to the AISC website, AISC is a not-for-profit technical institute and trade association established in 1921 to serve the structural steel design community and construction industry in the United States. Its emphasis is put on increasing the structural steel industry's share of the construction market, unifying the industry with a common purpose, and supporting and improving the ability of the structural steel industry to be both innovative and competitive in a worldwide construction market. In concrete, AISC describes its mission as "to promote the use of structural steel by leading structural-steel-related technical and marketing activities in research, market development, education, specification and code development, technical assistance, quality certification, and standardization".
AISC reflects the total experience, judgment, and strength of the entire domestic steel-related industry. For over 80 years, AISC has conducted its numerous activities with a scrupulous sense of public responsibility, working closely with experts in various fields. These activities have helped realizing construction of better, safer, and more economical buildings, bridges, and other structures framed in structural steel.
Providing Wide Range of Structural-steel-related Information and Services
Based on the above history, the AISC website provides online source for the latest news, technical resources, and conceptual solutions in steel.
For example, Steel Solutions Center has gathered information on technical assistance, innovative solutions, or electronic tools developed to make steel design easier. Specifically designed for steel fabricators, structural engineers, architects, owners, developers, and other professionals, the Center serves as their source of information for structural steel. For this reason, My Project is so made as to offer the best information for the needs and interests of different users. Technical Resources cover information including technical documents, FAQs, and AISC publications and tools, which are available for free browsing. To make searching easier, Technical Library categorizes technical documents by topics and issue date.
Next, Book Store provides online services, covering categories such as manuals, guides, publications/electronic tools for specifications and codes, and technical news. It also carries recommended books as well as FAQs on Bookstore. AISC members can receive off-price service.
EPubs is a collection of AISC technical publications and content in electronic format. AISC members and ePubs subscribers are granted direct, free unlimited access to select AISC publications and download specific data.
AISC provides Learning Opportunities for training and education about structural steel. In addition to just learning, it offers engineers, architects and fabricators the opportunity to connect with new ideas, procedures, and people in the seminar and workshop programs. Moreover, AISC supports educators in enhancing the quality of steel design courses with workshops and teaching aids. Free publications as well as scholarship and fellow opportunities are offered to students. Those services are explained in detail.
AISC Certification has now established a standard for the steel industry. Many of design companies, general contractors, and fabricators have obtained and utilized it. The Web pages are structured so that users can browse and get diverse information about AISC Certification by purpose, including certified companies and the criteria, checklists, and procedure of audit. In addition, AISC issues "MODERN STEEL CONSTRUCTION," a magazine for structural steel design and construction, and "Engineering Journal," a technical journal for the design of steel structures. Each of them is the only magazine or journal in the United States devoted exclusively to the given field, according to the website, and part of their articles can be browsed at the website. Careful reading of terms and notices is needed before using the site, as some of its services are for members only or payable. |
  Top page (c)AISC(Reprinted by courtesy of AISC) |
This article is written based on the website contents of American Institute of Steel Construction, Inc. (AISC) |
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