W Allen Marr, founder of geotechnical specialist the Geocomp Corp (see separate article), and also its president and CEO, has been elected to the US National Academy of Engineering. He was selected for his ‘innovative applications of numerical methods, risk analysis, advanced laboratory techniques, and field instrumentation to geotechnical engineering and construction’.
The National Academy of Engineering (NAE), together with the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council, make up the National Academies who advise the US on issue in science, engineering and medicine. The mission of the NAE is to promote the technological welfare of the country by marshalling the knowledge and insights of eminent members of the engineering profession.
Marr is presently working on the reconstruction of the World Trade Center in New York City, and the construction of the new twin tunnels to carry commuters between Queens and the Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan (the Eastside Access project). Most of his current work focuses on helping clients determine what factors threaten a project’s cost and schedule, and how to manage those factors to deliver projects on time and within budget.
