New Construction Engineering bachelor’s degree prepares students for a career in high-demand

Since 2022, our bachelor’s degree in Construction Engineering has been the only ABET-accredited program in Utah. Designed meet industry trends, our program encompasses environmental sustainability and software adoption to prepare the next generation of construction engineers, who currently in very high demand on today’s job market.

While most colleges include Construction Engineering under the Civil and Environmental umbrella, our autonomous Construction BS puts a more focused effort in training these essential engineers in the rapidly growing and increasingly technologically complex field.

Construction Engineering at the University of Utah prepares students to enter this exciting field. Students take courses in both civil engineering fundamentals—such as construction technology, scheduling, estimating, structural principles, site analysis, computer-assisted design, green building, and materials—and instruction in construction engineering courses, such as those related to contracting, project management, project scheduling, cost estimating, and laws and regulations.

Some courses provided include:

Green Building (Façade I)

One of the most important upcoming challenges for construction is the design and construction of sustainable buildings.

Cost Estimating and Proposal Writing

Concentrates on pricing the different elements of a structure based on the use of resources.

Principals of Construction Engineering

Learn about the preconstruction and execution of various construction projects.

Horizontal and Vertical Construction

Provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the principles, methods, and practices involved in planning and constructing buildings, bridges, roads, etc.

As we continue to commit resources into this unique degree, we look forward to equipping graduates with the knowledge, skills, and practical experience needed to enter the workforce as competent and innovative construction engineers, ready to build our future.

Meet the professor:

Dr. Christian Brockmann

Dr. Brockmann joined the U in 2022 in part to spearhead the Construction Engineering degree, and there couldn’t have been a better fit. With an extensive background in both academia and industry, Dr. Brockmann has left an indelible mark on the field of Construction Engineering and will, in the years to come, be an integral part of the program’s success.

Read more→

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Mina Golazad, Construction Engineering PhD student, has been awarded second place in the ASCE Utah Younger Member Forum Scholarship program for her vision of engineering in the future state. Mina’s response to the prompt, “Be Future Ready,” garnered recognition from the ASCE Utah Younger Member Forum. This year’s prompt challenged participants to envision the challenges […]

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Construction Engineering Professor Spotlight

From its inception all the way to its recent ABET-accreditation, creating an entirely separate degree for students pursuing Construction Engineering was no small order. To build a bachelor’s degree that would create top-notch employees and leaders for the rapidly-growing industry (8%) would need expertise of a certain caliber.

Dr. Brockmann joined the U in 2022 in part to spearhead the Construction Engineering degree, and there couldn’t have been a better fit. With an extensive background in both academia and industry, Dr. Brockmann has left an indelible mark on the field of Construction Engineering and will, in the years to come, be an integral part of the program’s success.

Leadership Experience in Construction Engineering

Dr. Brockmann has been at the helm of staggeringly large-scale construction projects for decades. From 1995 – 1998, he served as the project director for the Bang Na Expressway  in Thailand (pictured above). Though this was much more complicated than any other raised highway, and its $4 billion budget made it not your everyday construction project.

The project challenged him to direct the design and construction of the longest bridge in the world at the time. Upon its completion, the 34 miles long and six-lane elevated highway took the title of the longest bridge in world and held it until 2008. (It remains the 7th longest bridge in the world today.) It took 1,800,000 cubic meters of concrete to build the bridge.

In 2015, his leadership extended to the $2 billion USD Port Said Tunnels project, connecting Sinai, East of the Suez Canal, and Delta. This transformative project involved meticulous planning, tunnel boring machine adjustments, and overcoming challenges in unstable mud soils. Dr. Brockmann planned for the successful completion of this complex endeavor. The total length of the tunnel is 3930m and reached to 4830m by adding the entries and exits; it includes 2 lanes with 3.60m and the maximum depth is 57m under the Suez Canal.

Just a few other of his responsibilities have included Structural Engineer for Berlin’s Hall of Congress and the Dame Point bridge in Jacksonville, FL, Site Engineer for Denmark’s Great Belt Tunnel, and participation in the project management for Qatar’s $40 billion Metro system.

Structural Engineer

Dame Point Bridge, Jacksonville, FL.

Structural Engineer

Hall of Congress, Berlin

Project Management

Port Said Canals, Sinai

Breadth of Knowledge

Dr. Brockmann’s academic journey is as impressive as his professional achievements. Graduating with BSc and MSc in Civil Engineering from Germany in 1981, he continued to expand his expertise with an Engineering Degree in Civil Engineering from France in 1982.

Over the course of his career, Brockmann realized that to effectively oversee construction projects of a certain scale, one requires more than the engineering expertise.

Driven by a pursuit of knowledge as well as a passion for taking on larger and more complex jobs, he earned a BA and MA in Business Administration, an MA in Economics, a PhD in Construction Management in 2007 (Switzerland), and his latest achievement, a 2022 PhD in Economics (Germany).

All of Dr. Brockmann’s attributes, as well as the expertise of our other Construction Engineering professors, provide our students with an outstanding education. We look forward to seeing the success of our graduates supporting economic growth and construction development in such a critical part of Utah’s workforce.

More on Construction Engineering at the U

Since 2022, our bachelor’s degree in Construction Engineering has been the only ABET-accredited program in Utah. Designed meet industry trends, our program encompasses environmental sustainability and software adoption to prepare the next generation of construction engineers, who currently in very high demand on today’s job market.

Read more→

More news from our department:

PhD Student Proposes Vision for the Future of Engineering in Utah

Posted: April 30, 2024

Mina Golazad, Construction Engineering PhD student, has been awarded second place in the ASCE Utah Younger Member Forum Scholarship program for her vision of engineering in the future state. Mina’s response to the prompt, “Be Future Ready,” garnered recognition from the ASCE Utah Younger Member Forum. This year’s prompt challenged participants to envision the challenges […]

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Posted: April 22, 2024

Dr. Peter Zhu’s team Plays Key Role in Securing $1M DOE Grant for Advanced Nuclear Energy Research We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Peter Zhu, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and his lab have been collaborating with a team at the University of Illinois on a proposal that has just been awarded […]

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Posted: November 6, 2023

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Join us in Welcoming our New Department Chair – Dr. Tong Qiu

Dear colleagues and friends of the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Utah,

I’m pleased to share that after an extensive national search, Dr. Tong Qiu has accepted our offer to lead as our department chair, beginning July 1. Dr. Qiu is currently a professor of Civil Engineering at Penn State University where he has risen through the ranks since 2010. Professor Qiu boasts an impressive array of professional achievements, both in academia and industry. An ASCE Fellow, he possesses the precise blend of skills, personality, and vision needed to elevate our department’s atmosphere and foster excellence in both education and research. We are excited to welcome and support him as he steps into this important leadership role.

Dr. Qiu’s doctoral studies in Civil Engineering were completed at the University of California – Los Angeles. He is a very active researcher who incorporates leading technology which results in real engineering products. His research spans a broad spectrum, from theoretical explorations to hands-on experimentation, encompassing soil dynamics, fluid mechanics in porous materials, and the modeling of geological systems. Dr. Qiu also harnesses the power of artificial intelligence to address various geotechnical engineering challenges. His work receives support from a diverse range of funding sources, including federal agencies like NSF, FHWA, DOS, FRA, and SERDP, state entities such as PennDOT and the State Police, as well as private sector partners like Google, Tensar International Corporation, Alpine Equipment LLC, and Mission Critical Solutions, in addition to backing from DOT University Transportation Centers. The University of Utah is the perfect fit for his continued career growth.

It’s been my honor to serve as Department Chair for the past 11 years. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support over that time. Just a few of my privileges have included recruiting a number of excellent faculty members and seeing the growth of our department, both in the quality of education we provide our students as well as the caliber and capability of our excellent faculty and staff. I look forward to continuing as a professor in the department striving to contribute to our collective success, including offering support to Dr. Qiu as he steers our department forward.

Please join me in extending a warm welcome to Dr. Qiu and in providing him with our unwavering support as he assumes leadership.

Warm regards,

Dr. Michael Barber

More News From Our Department

PhD Student Proposes Vision for the Future of Engineering in Utah

Posted: April 30, 2024

Mina Golazad, Construction Engineering PhD student, has been awarded second place in the ASCE Utah Younger Member Forum Scholarship program for her vision of engineering in the future state. Mina’s response to the prompt, “Be Future Ready,” garnered recognition from the ASCE Utah Younger Member Forum. This year’s prompt challenged participants to envision the challenges […]

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Posted: April 22, 2024

Dr. Peter Zhu’s team Plays Key Role in Securing $1M DOE Grant for Advanced Nuclear Energy Research We are thrilled to announce that Dr. Peter Zhu, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and his lab have been collaborating with a team at the University of Illinois on a proposal that has just been awarded […]

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Posted: November 6, 2023

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