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BSC Engineering Tech students attend state convention

Published: Feb 20 2019
BSC Engineering Tech students attend state convention - Photo
Five Bismarck State College Engineering Technology students were recently chosen to attend the Frontier Precision North Dakota User Group Forum and the North Dakota Society of Professional Land Surveyors (NDSPLS) 40th Annual Convention in Grand Forks, N.D., on Feb. 5-8, 2019. The second-year BSC students were Joseph Berger (Mandan, N.D.), Madison Knudson (Baldwin, N.D.), Reid Hastings (Mandan, N.D.), Seth Hazer (Woodworth, N.D.) and Paige Johnson (Hazen, N.D.) along with two BSC instructors, civil engineering lecturer Aaron Hummert and engineering technology lecturer Bob Kohler.

At the convention banquet Berger was recognized as an NDSPLS Education Assistance Program (EAP) scholarship recipient and Hummert was awarded the Excellence in Surveying Award, the NDSPLS’s highest honor. Also recognized were newly registered land surveyors and land survey interns, winners of the plat submittals and other EAP scholarship recipients.

“The 40th Annual NDSPLS Convention was a great experience. We were able to meet potential future employers and listen to a wide variety of speakers,” said Hazer.

Throughout the conference students had opportunities to attend presentations demonstrating how the North Dakota Highway Patrol uses surveying methods in traffic crash reconstructions and how the U.S. Border Patrol uses drones to track and detain unauthorized entry into the country. They also learned how surveying and drone technology are utilized to create spatially recognized imagery and accurate volumetric surveys and presenter Dr. Joseph Paiva, CEO of GeoLearn, LLC, discussed how to check and adjust various equipment types and the legal ramifications of improperly adjusted survey equipment.

Frontier Precision, sponsor of the BSC Surveying Lab, hosted a one-day open discussion between industry professionals and everyday users who rely on GPS receivers, Robotic Total Stations and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) to complete surveying and engineering-related projects.

During the convention BSC students assisted with an EAP live auction to raise funds for future scholarships. EAP committee chair Matt Weeks secured the winning bid on the newly revised “Manual of Practice for Land Surveying in North Dakota,” which he donated to the BSC Engineering department library.

Photo: North Dakota Society of Professional Land Surveyors EAP award winners