When someone asks you what you do for a living, it’s probably difficult to sum it all up with just a couple of words.

It’s the same for most of us here at ADOT, where there are a lot of employees with a lot of responsibilities and so many different job titles! In an effort to better explain what ADOT does, we thought it would be informative (and fun) to take a closer look at some of the duties behind those titles.

To kick things off, we’re going to start with the State Engineer.

The qualifications necessary to be appointed Arizona’s state engineer are actually outlined by statute.

According to the law, a state engineer must be a civil engineer registered to practice in this state. He or she must also be familiar with the theory of and experienced in the practice of highway construction, maintenance, design or engineering.

The law also states that ADOT’s state engineer must have a thorough knowledge of modern business methods and at least 10 years experience

So, those are the qualifications … but what does a state engineer do?

Well, the state engineer’s office is accountable for the administration of ADOT’s Intermodal Transportation Division (ITD).

The state engineer is the director of ITD and oversees three deputy state engineers (we’ll get to their job descriptions in another post!) who incorporate three major program areas: highway construction, maintenance, and development and administration.

This huge division is made up of about 2,000 employees – all charged with the development, construction, maintenance, and operation of all the interstate and state highways in Arizona.

As the director of ITD, it’s the state engineer’s job to provide leadership and support to all of ITD in order to improve the safety, efficiency and quality of Arizona’s highway infrastructure.

Now that you know what’s behind the job title, tomorrow we’ll introduce you to Arizona’s current state engineer … stay tuned!

Fun fact: Arizona’s first state engineer was Lamar Cobb. He was appointed shortly after Arizona became a state on Feb. 14, 1912. One of his first acts was to get a federal official to review Arizona roads. The official filed a glowing report about the construction quality of roads in the new state.

The Real World Design Challenge is coming to Arizona!

This annual competition gives high school students the opportunity to tackle actual engineering challenges. The contest is just for students, but we’re all going to benefit from the skills these future innovators are learning!

Gov. Jan Brewer announced her partnership with the Real World Design Challenge on Sept. 8 when she launched the state’s new Arizona Ready education initiative.

The governor explained students will not only gain valuable experience, but through the Real World Design Challenge, they also get “access to millions of dollars of state-of-the-art engineering software.”

Here’s how the competition works:

Teachers who participate get access to $1 million in professional engineering software ... they also get training, curriculum materials and the assistance of mentors.

Teams of high school students utilize these resources to work on a real-life engineering problem. The team with the best solution from each state gets to compete in the national finals, held in Washington DC.

Real World Design Challenge Project Director Ralph Coppola was on hand for the governor’s announcement and described the challenge as a way to support and help develop the engineers and innovators of the future.

With fewer and fewer students entering into the engineering and aerospace fields, Coppola said supporting science, technology, engineering and mathematics in the classroom is crucial.

So, where does ADOT fit in to all of this?

Well, transportation projects depend on integrated teams trained to create solutions to challenges and the Arizona Department of Transportation looks forward to supporting students and educators through this program.

We also realize that the state’s future depends on the problem-solvers of tomorrow...

Since transportation attracts jobs to Arizona and supports economic development, ADOT is going to need plenty of these future engineers and scientists on our team.

We are proud to be partnering with the Governor's Office of Education Innovation and the Arizona Department of Education to bring the Real World Design Challenge to Arizona and wish the best of luck to all the students who participate!

Now that you know a little about the ADOT permitting process involved with moving oversize loads, take a look at the latest heavy haul to cross Arizona’s highways.

The video above shows just a portion of the journey this 285-ton load took beginning the first week of August.

The giant anode, which is used in the electrical process for refining copper, traveled 380 miles from its start in Salt Lake City all the way to the mining town of Miami, east of Phoenix. At 225-feet long, 20-feet wide and about 19-feet high, this oversize load was the largest to cross the new Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge ... so far!

The video shows the anode as it cautiously makes its way along SR 188 across the Theodore Roosevelt Lake Bridge. Just a few hours later and after a lot of coordination, careful planning and 14 days of slow travel (the top speed uphill was just 15 mph), the heavy load made it to its destination on schedule to the Freeport-McMohan mine in Miami!

When it comes to describing some hauls, the term “oversize load” is a major understatement.

We’re talking about the enormous “super-loads” driven through the state each day. Maybe you’ve seen them on the freeways … they’re the trucks lugging gigantic transformers, generators, turbines, and even houseboats.

Moving these mammoth objects requires acts almost as big the loads themselves. Coordinating these moves takes massive amounts of work and cooperation, and because they travel on state roads, highways and freeways, ADOT is involved from the very start of the trek.

Before they can hit the road, the hauler for each oversize/overweight load has to apply for a permit to drive on Arizona highways. These “super-loads” often fall into the Class C category, defined by loads that are either in excess of 250,000 pounds, measure more than 120 feet in length, 16 feet in height or 14 feet in width.

The permit applications ask the hauler to specify travel routes along with the more technical stuff – like how many trailer axles will be used to spread the weight.

All this is thoroughly reviewed by ADOT’s Merlinda Chavez and Chris Pippin. All Class C permit applications in Arizona go through them. (They’ve got quite a workload – in June alone, they issued 538 Class C permits!) They analyze all the specs and make sure a load can safely make it along its route. They also communicate with various ADOT district engineers to make sure current road conditions and construction projects are accounted for in the final route.

“There is a lot that goes into oversize loads,” Pippin said. “But, the No. 1 thing this department is all about is safety.”

If the proposed route involves moving structures like traffic signals or power lines, those details must be worked out before a permit is issued. If the route involves a bridge, ADOT’s bridge engineers make sure the bridge can handle the load and that the infrastructure won’t be damaged.

Once a permit is issued it comes with a Class C Approval, which is basically an instruction sheet that includes guidelines the hauler must adhere to. These instructions list things like hours the load can travel (the majority of Class C loads must travel during daylight hours) and whether or not law enforcement escorts will be necessary.

The approval also lists the other municipalities that the load will be traveling through. It is the hauler’s responsibility to coordinate with these cities, towns and counties. ADOT only issues permits for the state’s highway system.

Many Arizonans are getting the chance to see the end result of this permitting process. Right now a giant 285-ton anode (it’s used in the electrical process for refining copper) is making its way from Nevada all the way to Miami, Ariz. It’s a notable move because this is the largest oversized load to cross the new Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge .

Pippin and Chavez both agree that coordination between their office, the hauler, district engineers, traffic engineers, maintenance engineers, the Arizona Department of Public Safety and ADOT’s Enforcement and Compliance Department is what makes these oversize moves possible.

“You can move just about anything on the state highways, as long as you’ve got a permit,” Pippin said.