Recent ICT/UIUC Alumni Spotlight: Matthew Beyer, M.S. 2008

Recent UIUC alumni Matthew Beyer will always associate ATREL with problem solving. He remembers, "Whenever I was in Rantoul, it seemed like I was always learning something new or accomplishing an unexpected task. Examples include soil identification and classification, surveying the future site of test slabs in the ATLAS area, and constructing and programming thermocouple systems and a weather station."

Now, Matt is a civil engineer for Bowman, Barrett & Associates, Inc., out of Chicago where he works on the O'Hare Modernization Program (OMP) as part of the OMP's Master Civil Engineers. His previous work at ATREL and on ICT projects paved the way for his success in the professional world.

Matt says, "I quickly found that the coordination required to successfully plan, execute, and complete a research project like those at ATREL and the ability to multitask several competing projects transferred directly to my job at O'Hare. Also, because I came to UIUC from Minnesota, I was unfamiliar with IDOT's structure, design standards, etc. so my work on an IDOT research project has been a great help now that I work on improvements to state roadways and use IDOT design procedures and standards (especially the Bureau of Design and Environment Manual)."

Matt's company is part of a joint venture (BPC Airport Partners) that has been contracted by the city to coordinate the engineering work on the airfield and provide conceptual and preliminary engineering for the final designers of the various OMP projects.

Specifically, Matt has been working on the relocation of Irving Park Road (Illinois 19) to make room for future runway 10R-28L and the integration of the future Elgin-O'Hare Extension/O'Hare Western Bypass with the planned airfield improvements, in addition to helping coordinate the commissioning of new taxiways this fall and maintaining a record of installed and planned utilities on the airfield.

Matt enjoys the complexity of a project like the O'Hare Modernization Program. He says, "It seems like I've got a taste for a number of civil design projects (state roads, local roads, taxiways, runways, utilities, drainage) and firsthand experience on the importance of scheduling and project sequencing."

For his thesis at UIUC, Matt developed an Excel-based design program for continuously reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP) in Illinois as part of ICT-R57 (Mechanistic-Empirical Design Concepts for CRCP in Illinois). He also examined early age concrete surface microcracking, salt scaling resistance of concrete driveways, and assisted with Dr. Jeff Roesler's work on ultra-thin whitetopping.

Now Matt lives in Chicago near Wrigley Field and Lake Michigan. "I'm a big fan of living in big cities and Chicago has a lot to offer a recent college grad. I've quickly grown to love the running trails along Lake Michigan and through Lincoln Park."

Although Matt enjoys his new location and work, he does miss working in the close knit group he was a part of with Dr. Roesler and the rest of his students. "Our group ended up spending a lot of time together, whether in the same classes at Newmark, working on research projects at Newmark and ATREL, or after hours at BBQs or for a drink at Murphy's. It also helped that everyone was always eager to assist each other with their research projects when needed, and it helped to have an additional set of eyes or someone to bounce ideas off of."

As for advice he'd give to current students, Matt says, "I'd just encourage them to take advantage of the chances to travel to conferences and workshops. The traveling I did in grad school (Denver, D.C., Puerto Rico, London/Paris, San Francisco) were some of the best experiences I had at Illinois. The Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at UIUC does a great job of making these opportunities available to students."

Photo: Matthew sightseeing in San Juan, Puerto Rico at the end of his trip to the American Concrete Institute's Fall 2007 conference.