Construction Equipment and Methods: Planning, Innovation, Safety fosters information literate engineers able to approach complex engineering and managerial problems with confidence and skill. Students of this text will fully appreciate the practical aspects of being a construction engineer and manager, and the dual nature—both technical and managerial—of the responsibilities.  The text helps build skills through a cohesive view of construction technology; it’s safe use to maximize productivity and how the principles of science are being applied; linking the material in this course to previous courses (such as statics or geotechnical engineering); and utilizing a pedagogy designed to promote knowledge, and skill acquisition, such as case studies and open-ended problems. 

Students will be engaged by relevant subject matter, informed by the author’s hands-on research in advanced technologies, mechatronics, robotics, ergonomics and safety.

The wide variety of pedagogical tools in the text will appeal to many different learning styles, and provide teachers with more opportunities and resources to get students to reflect about what they are learning; to connect the new to their past experiences; and to understand the relevance of this knowledge to their future.

Leonhard Bernold is an Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at North Carolina State University. He is the founder and director of the Construction Automation & Robotics Laboratory (CARL) at NC State in 1991, and The Center for Construction Technology & Integration (CTI). He teaches courses in Construction Engineering and Management and conducts NSF sponsored research related to engineering education. He has published over 70 papers, and in 2006 was honored as a Fulbright Senior Specialist on Education in Engineering.