NSPE/PEPP recommends continuation of Consulting Engineering: A Guide for the Engagement of Engineering Services, (Manual 45) as it has become a standard of the industry. A detailed review suggests the consistent use of the title project representative in lieu of inspector and, in general, suggests more coordination with the recommendations of the Engineer's Joint Contract Docr uments Committee. Recommendations are made for inclusion of information on the American Bar Association's model procurement code; use of the federal 254 and 255 forms; listing of additional special services; a discussion on the determination of “fee” in a cost‐plus‐a‐fixed‐fee contract; defining a “limitation‐of‐cost” type contract; and comments on the use of percentage cost of construction curves.

The Scope of Services of engineering contracts can have important liability and quality control implications. Attempts to avoid liability frequently affect quality control adversely; and sometimes they actually increase liability exposure. Engineers have attempted to limit their responsibility during shop drawing review by wording of the review stamp, but most court cases have shown this approach to be ineffectual and to cause a false sense of security. Similarly, attempts have been made to avoid engaging other professionals as subcontractors and have them directly engaged by the client to limit the prime engineer's responsibility for their work. This entails the risk that lesser quality services may be obtained than if the prime engineer were responsible for the engagement of the subcontract professional. The Scope of Services must be carefully written so that the engineer is not found liable for items not normally within his responsibility. Finally, the engineering fee must be adequate for the engineer to devote the time and attention to careful design and checking.

Engineers pride themselves on the quality of their work, but often fail to understand that quality is subjective. Attention is called to possible conflicts between quality and safety. The definitions of quality are reviewed and the perception of quality from the viewpoints of the various stakeholders in a project is examined. The need for cooperative effort between all members of the project team is developed. The user of a project is considered as an active participant. The report of the 1985 ASCE workshop, “Quality in the Construction Project,” is reviewed. Recommendations for revision to ASCE Manual 45, “A Guide for the Engagement of Engineering Services,” are made.

Concerned by the recent decline in civil engineering enrollments, ASCE has declared that one of its goals for 1987 is to increase its efforts to attract students to engineering schools. To accomplish this goal, this article suggests that ASCE should first examine the demographic changes that have occurred in the profession in the past decade. Rising numbers of women and men with working spouses have entered the civil engineering work force in the past decade. Although working parents are becoming more numerous in civil engineering, employee benefit packages have not changed significantly since the 1950's, when they were designed primarily for the male breadwinner with a homemaker wife. The need for changes in benefit packages is explored, and a discussion of whether these changes will help the profession to attract qualified new engineers is presented.

The construction industry in Nigeria witnessed its greatest growth in the last decade, a time during which it was also perceived to be the most abused. Because of this perceived abuse, the various governments (federal and state) had to set up judicial review commissions to investigate the contracts awarded by the defunct civilian regime. This paper focuses on the question of contract awards, and the accompanying fraud. Measures to minimize the fraud are suggested.

Many developing countries spend large sums of money annually to train engineers and applied scientists in developed countries. Upon returning to their countries, many are employed in universities, polytechnic institutes, research centers and research units of industrial establishments. This paper examines research situations in the developing countries and concludes that more can be gained from these professionals than is presently being realized. Changes in government policies, promotion criteria in academic establishments, and the utilization of research results are necessary if these countries are going to get better value for the money spent on the training and employment of their engineers.

Expatriate consultants and contractors are often employed by developing countries for the design and construction of their major industrial and social development projects. Indigenous liaison engineers are usually employed on such projects to: (1) Ensure that the interest of the client is well protected by all the parties on the site; and (2) to gain practical experience that can be useful for the design and construction of such projects in the future. This paper examines the performance of the engineers on some projects and recommends ways in which their effectiveness can be improved.

Engineering judgment is an essential quality of a complete engineer. The effect of advancements in computer use on the civil engineering profession, specifically on the younger generation, is discussed. The need for a well‐rounded educational curriculum which emphasizes civil engineering fundamentals is identified. Better understanding of the analytical and practical aspects of the civil engineering tasks is a prerequisite to the effective use of computers. Computers should be used to assist in performing laborious engineering computations after the logical decisions that cannot be left to computers are made by the engineer.

Observations are made about the differences between engineering in western countries and in developing countries, and an attempt is made to answer the questions of how well engineers from the West have performed in developing countries, and whether such engineers are still needed. Criticisms of the performance of western engineers are quoted and discussed; these criticisms center mainly on the failure of engineers to come to terms with local culture and conditions, and to adapt their engineering methodology and solutions to suit such conditions. Examples of inappropriate engineering are given, and an examination is made of the performance of engineers working under various organizational arrangements and seeking to meet varying objectives. Comment is made on the criteria used by various agencies for the selection of engineers for work in developing countries.

Engineers in the federal government are provided with one of two types of immunity (absolute or qualified) from liability litigation, if certain conditions are met. These conditions were not derived from statutes but developed in the courts over the years. To receive absolute immunity an official must act within the scope of his or her duties and perform a discretionary function. Qualified immunity is provided in cases involving violations of constitutional rights, and if officials can demonstrate the following: (1). They acted in good faith; (2) their conduct was valid; and (3) they acted in the framework of their duties. To show how the courts developed, interpreted, and applied these requirements, such as discretionary functions, several court cases are reviewed. Many of the cases involve public works and construction operations on military installations for the benefit of military engineers, public works officials, and construction administrators. However, the same requirements and immunities apply to all government officials with few exceptions, i.e., judges.

For years, engineers have had the reputation of social myopia, of being competent with technical problems but relatively blind to social concerns. Using literary and historical references, the writers argue for greater participation by civil engineers in the social issues of our time. A case is made against any further pursuit of the Strategic Defense Initiative by the United States, and civil engineers are urged to use their technical background to help the public interpret this issue. Peaceful alternatives to nuclear‐weapons‐supported engineering work are discussed. The ASCE Code of Ethics is presented as a set of professional guidelines that should be followed in practice.

This paper supports the position that civil engineers serving the public through the political system can indeed “make the difference.” Notewor76thy examples of civil engineers who were elected to government positions are cited. Some of the ways in which a civil engineer can become involved in politics are discussed. The civil engineer's image in society and as portrayed by the media needs improvement. This may be accomplished through expanding the educational curricula in engineering and journalism, and by increasing the civil engineer's exposure to the general population. The civii engineer's technical expertise and analytical background in solving complex problems uniquely qualifies him or her for passage into today's political arena.

A method of teaching which attempts to make a course in communication skills more attractive to engineering students through the use of computerized procedures is described. The method capitalizes on the use of available software to carry out such tasks as checking spelling and punctuation, editing for grammatical errors, and improving style. This enables the students to concentrate on reader adaptability, brevity, clearness, conciseness, and effective communication.

The role of government civil engineers is demanding. Civil Engineers are directly involved in the planning, design, and construction of major projects which provide the lifeline for the development of our cities. In metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona, engineers are fortunate to have so many multimillion‐dollar projects being constructed concurrently. The role of civil engineers here, in one of the fastest growing cities in the country, will provide valuable information to civil engineers throughout the country. A brief review of the development of Maricopa County, information on the importance of possessing a strong public service ethic, the need for political sensitivity, and a probe into the challenges that lie ahead will be of value and interest. The government civil engineer makes a major contribution to providing and maintaining the facilities and services that comprise the foundation of American society.