Academy of Coastal, Port, Ocean, and Navigation Engineers (ACOPNE)

Body of Knowledge for Port Engineering

 

The ACOPNE Port Engineering Body of Knowledge (PEBOK) is to be used by ACOPNE evaluation panels to determine if candidates for Diplomate certification qualify for certification.

The intent of the PEBOK is not to establish a checklist of requirements, but to provide a template by which the Academy can more uniformly evaluate a candidate’s education and experience, reducing but not eliminating subjectivity.

The American Society of Civil Engineers BOK lists the outcomes necessary for Professional Licensing in 24 Categories. Port Engineering Certification requires the same levels as the ASCE BOK plus mastery of at least one advanced technical outcome in navigation engineering under ASCE BOK Outcomes 5 through 24.

We define “Mastery” of an outcome to mean that the engineer has reached the level of expertise such that more challenging, complex, and difficult problems may be solved than can be addressed by an ordinarily competent licensed engineer.

Mastery of a topic can be demonstrated by planning, designing, constructing, operating, managing, regulating, or researching port projects of geographic or type diversity at the expert level with increasing levels of responsibility and difficulty, teaching advanced courses on these topics, authoring or coauthoring papers and contributing to books, and contributing to the profession, such as through society committees, on these topics. Mastery may be manifested as exceptional expertise in a single area or as recognized expertise in multiple topic areas.

The PEBOK consists of:

 

• Fulfillment, at the level required for licensure, of all 24 outcomes in the ASCE  BOK.
• Fulfillment, at the expert level of at least one outcome from the ASCE BOK Outcomes 5 through 24 as related to one or more Port Engineering categories from Table 1 so as to demonstrate mastery of the discipline.

 

The following table will be used by the ACOPNE Board of Trustees or a Board-designated examination panel to evaluate applicants for certification.

Table 1. Port Engineering Topics Scoring Guide

 

CATEGORY	TOPIC (as related to Port Engineering)
General	Life cycle planning and asset management - replace, refurbish, rehabilitate Public Works Construction Management Intermodal connections – highway, rail, pipeline Shipping terminal design Contracting – plans, specifications and inspecting Safety & security of Port facilities Project planning and management Surveying and horizontal/vertical datum controls Environmental law with respect to Port projects Sustainability
Design	For Port facilities
	Wharf, dock, and piers Bulkheads, slope protection and retaining structures Cranes, ship loaders, conveyors, and gangways Mooring systems (including passing vessel affects) Terminal improvements, gates, utilities, drainage Channel design, depth, shapes, sizes
Construction	Of port facilities
	Dredging, rock dikes and landfill Dredged material beneficial uses for beach, wetlands Sheet and pile driving, tie back systems & backfill Excavations and earthwork, retaining walls, groundwater Pavements (asphaltic and concrete) Electrical power distribution and lighting Dock and pier installations
Environmental	All waterfront and landside sites
	Permits and regulatory Contaminated dredge sediments Hazardous materials handling Storm water controls Habitat protection and restoration Mitigation of construction and facilities impacts Environmental impact assessments Seismic Analysis
Operation & Maintenance	Shallow draft or deep draft  harbors
	Underwater inspection, engineer diver Hydrographic surveying Wharf, pier, and waterfront structures inspections Heavy duty pavement inspections and repairs Geographic information and mapping

 

* Approved by the ACOPNE Board of Trustees November 14, 2010

RESOURCES

Civil Engineering Body of Knowledge for the 21st Century: Preparing the Civil Engineer for the Future, Second Edition, American Society of Civil Engineers 1801 Alexander Bell Drive, Reston, Virginia. 2008. (http://www.asce.org/Content.aspx?id=2147486178)

Sustainability and ASCE's New Action Plan

http://www.asce.org/Content.aspx?id=7232

http://www.asce.org/uploadedFiles/Sustainability_-_New/SustainabilityActionPlan.pdf

ASCE Code of Ethics

http://www.asce.org/Content.aspx?id=723