SAE Newsletter – July 2015, Volume 5, Issue 3, Saratan 1394

A QUARTERLY UPDATE FROM THE SOCIETY OF AFGHAN ENGINEERS

Dear Colleagues:

On behalf of the Editorial Board of the SAE eNewsletter I wish you and your respected families a Happy Ramadan and Upcoming Eid Fitr.

This issue of the SAE eNewsletter (newsletter) features President Atiq Panjshiri’s travel report to Afghanistan and his meetings with H.E. Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, H.E. Dr. Abdullah Abdullah Chief Executive, and a few cabinet members.

There is a construction management training report for the employees of the Ministry of Energy and Water by Mr. A. Manan Khalid.

The newsletter also includes an article about the development of Afghan standard specifications for testing and Materials.

We are looking forward to the receipt of your technical news, articles, comments, suggestions, questions, and opinions about SAE and this publication.

Very Truly Yours,
G. Mujtaba, MS- CE, P.E., CPM;
Editor- In- Chief, SAE eNewsletter

“This issue of the SAE eNewsletter (newsletter) features news about President Atiq Panjshiri’s travel and meetings with H.E. Dr. Ashraf Ghani, H.E. Dr. Abdullah Abdullah and a few cabinet members.”

Inside This Issue

• Greetings from SAE President
• Responses to the Comments and Suggestion of the SAE eNewsletter Readers
• The SAE President’s Travel Report to Afghanistan
• Ministry of Energy and Water is Preparing the List of Professional Experts
• A Short Report on the five-day training on Construction Projects Management, Monitoring, and Evaluation Held at the Ministry of Energy and Water
• Development of Afghan Standard Specifications for Testing and Materials
• Membership News
• Membership Renewal 2015
• The Society of Afghan Engineers Organization

Greetings from the SAE President

Dear SAE Colleagues Salaam:

Last month, I travelled to Afghanistan and met with several Afghan Government Ministers, our sister organization colleagues at the Afghanistan Engineering Association (AEA) as well as Their Excellencies, Dr. Ashraf Ghani, President of Afghanistan and Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, the Chief Executive of Afghanistan.

In summary, my meetings were overwhelmingly positive and the officials were extremely friendly and cooperative. In showcasing the expertise and credibility of the new Executive Committee and the new Board of Directors as well as the SAE members, I was able to secure the trust of the government of Afghanistan that SAE has the competence and skills to play a major role in the development of Afghanistan.

The government of Afghanistan has given SAE an open invitation to fully participate and contribute in Afghanistan’s development and construction efforts. This is our opportunity to prove that SAE is indeed a professional, experienced, and effective organization. The scale of our contributions, whether short or long-term, is entirely up to us to decide. It is now time for us to develop a plan of action, but we cannot do this without the active participation of our members.

On behalf of the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors, I am inviting you to participate in this tremendous opportunity to help rebuild Afghanistan by applying your specific expertise in any principle of engineering. If you chose to participate and the Government of Afghanistan seeks your assistance through contract employment, you will be compensated appropriately.

In order to assess our resources and capabilities for coordinating with the relevant ministries in Afghanistan, we need updated contact information from each one of you. We hope you will join in this extraordinary endeavor by first confirming the following information:

• Full Name:
• Email Address:
• Education level:
• Years and areas of expertise:

I sincerely thank you for your willingness to participate in the development of our beloved Afghanistan.

Sincerely,
Atiq Panjshiri
President, the Society of Afghan Engineers (SAE)

Responses to the Comments and Suggestions of the SAE eNewsletter Readers

The editor has received the following comments and suggestions from his former colleague; Mr. Abdul J. Chahim, PE, SE; former professor of the Faculty of Engineering of Kabul University. He is currently working as a Professional Civil/Structural Engineer with Seena Structural Engineers LLC in the State of Washington.

Comments from Mr. Abdul Jalil Chahim by email on April 3, 2015:

Salam Ustad,

It was very nice that you sent the last issue of the SAE eNewsletter. The SAE eNewsletter keeps us informed about our country and friends. I enjoyed reading the Kabul City article. During our family visit home, I was reminded of all the issues you noted in the Article. I really hope the new government work towards implanting some of the recommendations.

I sent a copy to my son, Dean M. who is working on his Ph.D. in Stanford and is thinking of possible topics about Afghanistan. He was really interested in getting early exposures about Afghanistan.

I have applied to join SAE.

Abdul J. Chahim, PE, SE
Seena Structural Engineers LLC

Response to Mr. Chahim’s Comments by email on April 4, 2015:

Dear Ustad Chahim Salam:

It is a great pleasure to read your email, especially, mentioning that your son Dean M. Jan is working on his PhD in Stanford. We congratulate Dean M. Jan on his accomplishments. We are proud of him.

I am pleased that he is planning to work on his PhD dissertation on a topic about Afghanistan.

Thanks for mentioning that you have enjoyed reading the article about Kabul City in the last issue of the SAE eNewsletter. You have also mentioned that you have sent your application for SAE membership. I have copied Executive Committee in this email for their information. It will be a privilege that you will join the SAE team.

Please contribute to the SAE eNewsletter activities by sending us your technical articles for publication.

Best regards,
Editor-In-Chief SAE eNewsletter

The SAE President’s Travel Report to Afghanistan

May 6-25, 2015

In May 2015, SAE President Atiq Panjshiri traveled to Afghanistan and met with Their Excellencies, Dr. Ashraf Ghani, President of Afghanistan and Chief Executive, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, as well as a few Afghan Ministers.

The report below highlights the major takeaways from each meeting. As noted by H.E. President Ashraf Ghani, SAE has a major role to play in Afghanistan’s development. This report indicates that the first step has been taken in reaching this goal by providing a framework to identify areas where SAE can make meaningful contributions to the development and reconstruction activities of Afghanistan.

1. Ministry of Urban (City) Development

H.E. Mr. Sadat Mansoor Naderi, Minister for Urban Development was, both, energetic and enthusiastic about his responsibilities as a Minister. He expressed great interest in collaborating with SAE in relevant areas. The Minister mentioned that so far he has secured approximately $500 million in international funding for urban development projects and he needs help from SAE to efficiently use this fund.

Areas seeking SAE collaboration:
* Master plan development
* Affordable housing
* Building standards
* Creation of water and sewer system
* Training and capacity building
* Certification of engineering credentials
* Creation of a think-tank body within the Ministry
* Creation of engineering and architectural ethical environment and standardized process

2. Ministry of Public Works

H.E. Mr. Mahmoud Baligh, Minister of Public Works, similarly, expressed great interest in collaborating with SAE. His top priorities are:

Areas seeking SAE collaboration:
* Capacity building
* Creation of an advisory board
* Expertise in Contracting laws
* Design consultation
* Development of road construction design standards and manuals

3. Ministry of Telecommunications

H.E. Mr. Abdul Razaq Vahidi, Minister of Communication and Information Technology expressed his interest in collaborating with SAE. His top priorities are:

Areas seeking SAE collaboration:
* Enforcement of the rule of law
* Implementation of standards and guidelines
* Promotion of open market practices

4. Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock (MAIL)

H.E. Mr. Assadullh Zamir, Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock expressed great interest in collaborating with SAE. And mentioned his ministry manages 31 local projects and 18 international projects. His top priorities are:

Areas seeking SAE collaboration:
* Project Planning
* Capacity building
* Irrigation (survey and design, monitoring and inspection)
* Creation of small dams
* Creation of refrigeration centers with minimum energy usage
* Creation of processing centers with value changes
* Design and building of Agricultural parks and processing center for Promotion of agribusiness

5. H.E. President Ashraf Ghani

H.E. President Ashraf Ghani expressed enthusiastic support for SAE as a professional organization of Afghans to play a major role in the reconstruction of Afghanistan. He wants SAE to be actively involved. As such, H.E. President Ashraf Ghani welcomed the submission of project proposals in as many areas as the Society can support, whether they be short or long-term projects.

The SAE President, Atiq Panjshiri also met briefly with H.E. Dr. Abdullah. He concurred with H.E. President Ashraf Ghani’s plan and stated he would do anything possible to help.

H.E. President Ghani identified the following priority areas as ripe for collaboration with SAE:

Water & Electricity
* Construction of small size dams for power generation, irrigation use and flood control
* Assessment of Kabul River
* Assessment of Helmand and Hariroad Rivers
* Expansion of Naghlo dam

Roads & Transportation
* Quality assurance and cost controls for road construction
* Building of roads (ring road between Kabul and Jabul Seraj)
* Development of sustainable long-term solution for road and traffic problems in Kabul
* Revitalization of public bus system
* Development of transportation plan for Pul- e- Charkhi, airport area, and Deh- Afghanan

Building & Construction
* Prequalification and development of standards for private sector partners in construction
* Design and development for schools (20-40 new schools each years)
* Relocation and creation of government buildings
* Creation of affordable housing for government employees
* Preservation of historic buildings
* Implementation of 10 projects in Paghman
* Survey of Darul-Aman for creation of new government complex
* Assessment and Recommendation for better use of Asmayee & Shir Darwaza Mountains
* Proposal of 10 independent city planning projects
* Creation of country-wide plan to reduce construction material imports to 30 percent.

Education
* Implementation of distance learning programs in universities
* Promotion of project management as an independent discipline of engineering
* Creation of a certification system for engineers and architects
* Development of vocational education system to produce certified skilled workers

(Photo: The meeting of the SAE President, Atiq Panjshiri, with H.E. Dr. Ashraf Ghani, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan on May 19, 2015)

Ministry of Energy and Water is Preparing the List of Professional Experts

The Society of Afghan Engineers received a request from Ministry of Energy and Water of Afghanistan that the Ministry is preparing the list of professional Afghan experts who have experience working on the projects outside Afghanistan. In order to convey this message, an email was sent in May 2015 by Ghulam Mujtaba to the SAE Members and other Afghan professionals that were on his contact list. The following are the details of the email and information:

Dear Colleagues: Salam and Greetings

Mr. Sayed Sharif Shobair, National Project Coordinator and Chief Engineer of the Ministry of Energy and Water (MEW) of Afghanistan is preparing the list of experienced professionals for the MEW. The list will include the names of the engineering experts with excellent scholastic background and those who have experience in the design, construction, and maintenance of projects outside Afghanistan. He has asked the SAE to send him the names of engineering experts that have specialization in one or more of the following fields:

1. Hydraulic Structures
2. Drainage
3. Hydrogeology
4. Water Resources
5. Hydraulic Engineering
6. Hydrology and Water Management
7. Agricultural Irrigation
8. Engineering Irrigation
9. River Engineering
10. Hydro-Electric Power Engineering
11. Ground Water Engineering
12. Computational Hydraulics
13. Hydrology/Hydraulic Modeling
14. Hydraulic Scale Modeling
15. Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM)
16. Water Economics, Planning & Finance
17. Water Law and Diplomacy & International Relations
18. Environmental Engineering
19. Water Chemistry & Water Quality
20. Water Supply & Waste Water Engineering
21. Storm water
22. Water Education
23. Hydrometry & Hydrography
24. Meteorology
25. Geotechnical Experts for Hydraulic Structures (Various types of Earth Dams and earth retaining structures)
26. Structural Engineers for Hydraulic Structures (Various types of Concrete Dams etc.)
27. Mechanical Engineers for Hydraulic Structures (Gates, Valves, Turbines, Pumps etc.)
28. Electric Engineers for Hydraulic Structures (Generators, Motors, Switch boards, PLC etc.)
29. Quality Control and Quality Assurance testing and Inspections
30. Capacity building in the areas of design, construction, and materials testing

Those Afghan professionals who have expertise in any of the aforementioned fields should inform Mr. Shobair so that their names would be included on the list of MEW Engineering Experts.

Please send the following information by email to Mr. Shobair at: sayed.sharif@eirp-afg.org
In the email to Mr. Shobair, please copy Ghulam Mujtaba at email: mujtabaghulam@bellsouth.net

(1) Name
(2) Current working position, title, and agency
(3) Email address
(4) Physical address and phone number(s)
(5) Engineering related Field of Expertise (include one or more fields from the list)
(6) The SAE Membership status (SAE Member or Nonmember)

The professionals may be SAE or non-SAE members. The SAE Chapter Coordinators and other members may disseminate the email to all Afghans experts who are interested to be included in the list of the MEW engineering experts.

Best regards,

Ghulam Mujtaba, M.S, CE, P.E, CPM
Editor-In-Chief SAE eNewsletter
Phone: (352) 377-5497
E-Mail: mujtabaghulam@bellsouth.net

A Short Report on the five-day training on Construction Projects Management, Monitoring, and Evaluation Held at the Ministry of Energy and Water

By: A. Manan Khalid, P.E., LEED AP (BD+C)
(March 14- 18, 2015)

Introduction

Since 2004, the Ministry of Energy and Water (MEW) has been implementing a World Bank funded Emergency Irrigation Rehabilitation Project (EIRP). The project supports activities that are designed to improve livelihood opportunities in the rural areas through a rehabilitated irrigation system and improved management of national water resources. One of the components of this project is Institutional Development and Capacity Building. As part of its Capacity Building efforts MEW has been arranging various short term within the country training courses. This time around, I was requested to conduct five-day training on Projects Monitoring and Evaluation (M & E) for personnel involved in such activities at the Ministry and throughout the country. A couple of days prior to the trip, I was informed that they have invited directors and engineers from different river basins, and requested that I change the topic of the course to Construction Project Management, which I did.

There are forty-one watersheds delineated within five river basins in Afghanistan. There are five non-drainage areas within these forty-one watersheds. The training attendees were from different watershed regions and from all over Afghanistan. They were mostly involved in the design and construction of water resources projects. Due to that, it became more prudent to present topics that were of interest to engineers. During the five days, a wide range of topics on Construction Project Management were covered. The personnel of M & E unit of the Ministry and at least one from the provinces were in attendance. For that, most of the last day’s training was devoted to M & E. The goal was to improve the knowledge and understanding of the attendees in managing, monitoring and evaluating construction projects.

(Map: Source – Kamal 2004 showing river basins in Afghanistan)

The Training program

After the inauguration, a short presentation was made on the importance of Water Resources Management. During the first four days, we covered a wide range of topics on construction projects management. A good amount of time was spent on the cornerstones of construction management, which are the scope, cost, time, and quality management.

Part of time management, project scheduling techniques was covered in detail. Critical Path Method known as CPM, its history and application, CPM network, CPM analysis, and CPM examples were covered in detail. However, Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) is not common and seldom used for small projects, but for the knowledge of the attendees, its application, network, and analysis were also covered.

A lot of emphasis was placed on Quality Control (QC) and Quality Assurance (QA), which are major issues in Afghanistan. Part of Quality Control, the importance of project submittals and submittal review process were covered. It was understood that mockups were not practiced in Afghanistan. It is a good mean of Quality Control and it should be practiced. We covered the preparation of Quality Control Plan and its importance. The importance of QA/QC plan and inclusion of criteria for each component of a project were covered in full.

On the request of the attendees, part of a day was devoted to a short presentation on leadership and management. Truly, this is an important topic and the presented material was well received by the attendees. The basic ingredients of leadership, which are leading, influencing, commanding, and guiding people were discussed. It was clarified that it is not about oneself, but it is about the team. The success of a leader depends on the success of a team. Therefore, the importance of creating teams, motivating them, and making them to accomplish the overall goal were covered.

Part of the monitoring and evaluation, highlights of monitoring and evaluation, monitoring indicators, monitoring risk and uncertainties, monitoring quality, organization for monitoring quality, method and performance specifications and their use in monitoring quality were covered. A lot of emphasis was made on result monitoring. Log frame, its preparation and analysis, using practical examples, were covered in detail.

(Photo: The project management training class and attendees)

Conclusions

Construction Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation are vital topics in today’s Afghanistan. With the booming construction industry, these vital topics need to be properly understood and put to use. Time and cost overruns are rampant in the projects and the rapid deterioration of finished projects is an indicator of poor quality of work. Scheduling and cost control techniques which were taught in the class, if used effectively, will alleviate the time and cost overruns. To effectively control quality, a quality control plan is needed for every project. There was enough emphasis made regarding this topic.

Monitoring, which is a continuous review and surveillance of the projects, at every level of their implementation is a vital necessity. During the process of monitoring, shortfalls, deviations, problems and causes are identified in order to take appropriate remedial/corrective action before it is too late. Management for Results has become an emerging practice within the last 15 years, and now rooted in a broader agenda of the development community (Paris Declaration). The emphasis on Management for Results grows out of a need to improve development effectiveness. It will help the Funding Community and their development partners to tell their results story in a more convincing way.

Lastly, the assessment of the End Results or the Impact of a project with reference to the objectives set in the project is very important. Knowing why a project succeeds or fails is more important than knowing what it has done, and this fact requires evaluating completed projects. Evaluation provides answers to crucial questions and helps us to identify the strengths and weaknesses, merits and demerits. A good and comprehensive evaluation will bring out what is good/ bad about the project, what are the direct and indirect benefits and what are the intended and un-intended outcomes. Evaluation helps to refine the planning tools and thereby better plan future projects.

Recommendations

1. Since most of the attendees cannot comprehend English properly, all future training should be delivered either in Dari or Pashto. This will need hiring Afghans to conduct the trainings. There is enough qualified capacity within and abroad.
2. From discussions with the attendees, it was understood that preparation of QA/QC plan has not been a practice. It is recommended that such plans become a practice.
3. It was also understood that the currently used project specifications are deficient. It requires establishing detailed standard specifications using Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) format and then, tailoring it to fit specific projects. A specific team of qualified individuals should be assigned the task of updating and developing specifications and standard details.
4. A comprehensive quality control and quality assurance training should be organized as a follow-up to this training.
5. Future training should have field visits and on- the- job training part of the training.
6. A training on change management procedures, including proper identification of change order work and change order paperwork is recommended.
7. Procurement and use of construction management/contract management software is recommended.
8. Work mockups should become a standard practice on projects.
9. Necessary standards such as American Society for Testing and Material (ASTM), Construction Cost Data Handbook known as RS Means, International Building Code (IBC) and American Concrete Institute Codes (ACI Codes) should be procured and kept as reference in the library.
10. Training on Leadership and Management should happen on periodic basis.
11. Training on design techniques is recommended. A number of designers expressed concern on the level of their knowledge and lack of proper guidelines.
12. Seminars, symposiums, and workshops on the topics related to the scope of the department are encouraged.
13. Future trainings should be on the topics that are needed, and should be based on the feedback of the people who are involved in the utilization of these activities.
14. The Construction Projects Management, Monitoring, and Evaluation course should be included on the list of MEW’s required on-the-job training courses.

Development of Afghan Standard Specifications for Testing and Materials

By: Ghulam Mujtaba, PE, MSCE, CPM

Abstract

It is essential that Afghans possess their own established standards or adopt other international standards in native languages so that a unified document will be available throughout the country. This will assist the architects, engineers, technicians, inspectors, testing laboratories, producers, manufacturers and suppliers that are working in the planning, designing, testing, inspection, and construction activities of projects in Afghanistan. The standards may include; codes, design, construction, maintenance, and safety manuals; specifications; and test methods. Currently, in Afghanistan different standards are used and most of them are not available in native languages. It is time to prepare Afghan standards in native languages or adopt international standards and translate them into native Afghan languages.

This paper includes recommended suggestions regarding the development process of Afghan standard specifications for test methods and materials. It describes roles and responsibilities of the entities that will be involved in this process.

Introduction

It is the responsibility of Afghan professionals to initiate the preparation and implementation of standard documents. The governmental agencies in Afghanistan should plan for the accomplishment of these important tasks by forming committees in each area. The SAE and similar Afghan organizations within or outside of Afghanistan should participate as members of these committees. It is for certain that the standard specifications upon their development and completion will be investments to the country and will have lasting values to the consumers, regulators, industry and other agencies using the documents. For professionals who want to serve their country, these specification development activities will give them opportunities to serve their country by participating in the standard development committees.

The selection and use of materials for construction of Afghan infrastructure should be based on the established Afghan standards. They should have the required physical, chemical, and durability properties. This requires the preparation of a strategic plan to prioritize the needs for the establishment of standard specifications for test methods and materials. The public and private sector need to work together to accomplish these activities.

Afghans should form committees to work on the development of their own standards by following the methods that other countries have used in this process. The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), International Organization for Standardization (ISO) are the examples of standardization institutes.

ASTM was organized in 1989 as a nonprofit organization to develop engineering standards for materials, products, systems, and services. Currently the work of ASTM is performed by more than 30,000 members worldwide. ASTM is publishing more than 10,000 standards each year. The standards are developed in accordance with the principles of ASTM and meet its established procedures and regulations. Prior to becoming standard, it undergoes the review of the committee members and intense round robin testing to ensure that it serves its scope and includes accurate and up-to-date information. The majority of technical works are performed by technical committees. There are more than 130 technical committees working on the development or maintaining of the standard specifications in different areas. The committees are subdivided into subcommittees and further into task groups. The development of a standard begins when a need is recognized and given to a task group to prepare a draft and then it works its way through the approval process. The process of forming a task group to approval of standard may take two years. The activities of ASTM technical committees are governed by ASTM Board of Directors, which are elected by entire membership.

AASHTO represents all 50 states of the United States of America, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico and sets technical standards for all phases of highway system development. AASHTO issues standards for design, construction of highways and bridges, materials, and many other technical areas. It works to educate the public and serves as a liaison between state departments of transportation and the Federal government.

ISO is recognized internationally as a quality improvement organization which is focusing on the quality improvement of manufacturing and service industries. ISO is a Greek word and it means equal. ISO is a Swiss-based international organization for standardization. Within European Union, most of the customers require the companies to be ISO 9000 quality standard. More than 100,000 companies, worldwide, have been registered to the ISO 9000 series standards. The ISO 9000 series activities include the application of quality planning, controlling, documentation and verification of quality.

Standard Specifications Development Process in Afghanistan

The following are the recommended development process of the proposed specification:
1. The Afghanistan National Standardization Authority (ANSA) proposes the regulations, policies, and procedures related to the development and maintaining of the established standards for test methods and materials.
2. Based on the approved procedure ANSA forms Board of Directors.
3. The Board of Directors forms the Executive Committee.
4. Based on the recognized needs, the Executive Committee proposes technical committees and obtains the approval of the Board of Directors.
5. The established Technical Committees propose the required specifications for test methods and materials in their specific areas.
6. Upon approval of specification by technical committees, the form and style of the document will be reviewed by Executive Committee prior to its publication and dissemination.

Executive Committee

The Executive Committee supports all other committees and proposes the formation of the necessary technical committees and submits the proposed technical committee organizations for review and approval of Board of Directors.

The Executive Committee supports the work of the technical committees and processes the approval and publishing of the proposed standards. Upon approval, Executive Committee disseminates the documents to the relevant government, industry, private sector, educational institutes, and general public.

The Executive Committee will serve as a liaison between ANSA and other Afghan and international societies. The Committee will discuss the specification development needs with industry, other Society Committees, Subcommittees, or individuals regarding their actions. The Committee will familiarize the technical committees regarding the ANSA policy and requirements.

Technical Committees

The technical committees are formed based on the needs of Afghanistan in the related areas. The committee members will utilize their knowledge, talent, expertise, and experience in the advancement of the activities related to the standardization of the test methods and materials specifications in Afghanistan; collect and disseminate ongoing knowledge, statistics, ideas, and information related to the utilization of Afghan-produced products.

The technical committees will work in close contact with the relevant governmental institutes and private companies regarding the translation and implementation process of international standards or development of new Afghan standards.

Each committee will be responsible for improving the awareness of the relevant entities regarding the utilization of Afghan standards. This will be done through seminars and conferences.

Summary

The Afghan specifications for test methods and materials are the essential need of producers, users, and industry in Afghanistan. Especially, the availability of standards in Dari and Pashto and other native languages will help the Afghan users of the documents. The international standards may be adopted and translated in native languages or the Afghan standards should be developed.

It is the responsibility of professionals to develop this process. The intent of the specifications should be to utilize the local materials in the rebuilding of Afghan infrastructure.

In order to improve the process, the established standards and documents should be reviewed continuously every five years and be updated.

It is necessary to establish testing laboratories in the provinces and a central testing laboratory in Kabul. The Kabul central testing laboratory should perform the needed research and verification testing. The establishment of the materials testing laboratories should be given high priority.

The development of specification is needed for improvement of environmental conditions in Afghanistan. This will include development of regulations related to air pollution control, landfills, canalization, waste water disposal, garbage disposal, and water treatment facilities.

Bibliography

• American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) (2010), Part 1 Specifications, Washington, D.C
• American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) (2010), Part 2 Tests, Washington, D.C
• American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International, West Conshohocken, PA
• ISO/IEC 17020 International Standard, General Criteria for the operation of various types of bodies performing inspection, First edition 1998-11-15. Case Postale 56. CH 1211Geneve 20, Switzerland

About the author: Mr. Ghulam Mujtaba received his BS degree in Civil Engineering from Kabul University and his Masters degree in civil engineering from the University of Cincinnati. He graduated from the Florida State University as a Certified Public Manager. He is a certified trainer and examiner of both, ACI (American Concrete Institute) and PCI (Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute).

Mr. Ghulam Mujtaba has been working for more than 26 years as professional engineer with Florida Department of Transportation. He has also worked with an engineering consulting company, Wingerter Engineering Testing Laboratory, as Geotechnical and Materials Engineer. He started his work in USA as Environmental Specialist, in charge of the District groundwater permitting, with Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

In Afghanistan, he worked as professor of the Civil Engineering Department and Chairman of the Center for Engineering Consultant Services and Applied Research (CECSAR) of Kabul University. During his sabbatical leave from Kabul University, he worked as Geotechnical Engineer with Water and Power Engineering Company of Afghanistan (WAPECA). Also, he worked with SAUTI (Italian Company) as Geotechnical and Materials Engineer during the survey of Lashkargah- Deshu roadway and bridge project.

He is a member of ASTM C-1 Cement, C-9 aggregate and concrete, and C-13 Concrete Pipe and drainage structures. He is also serving as a Professional member of the PCI (Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute).

Membership News

In this section, the news about new membership, awards, promotions, retirement and loss of the Society members will be provided.

Welcome New Members

The Society of Afghan Engineers welcomes the following respected professionals who have recently joined the Society:

1. Mr. Fahim Panjshiri
2. Mr. Abdul J. Chahim
3. Mr. Sayed Aziz Azimi
4. Mr. Aziz Ghafoory

Achievements and Awards

The newsletter will inform their readers of winners of awards or any other successes of Afghan professionals and students, especially, their Society members. You can help the SAE eNewsletter editors by providing the news of the achievements, award winners, promotions, retirement, and any other success stories.

“Advise us of success stories or achievements of the Society members and any Afghan professionals and students.”

Membership Renewal 2015

The SAE Membership Renewal Fee and Donations (As of 6/28/15)

Date	First Name	Last Name	Fee Paid	Donation	Total Payment
7/14/2014	William H.	Haight III	60	40	100
1/1/2015	Ahmad Farid	Haidari	60	0	60
1/1/2015	Homayon M.	Ibrahim	60	0	60
1/1/2015	Rafaat	Ludin	60	140	200
1/1/2015	Ashraf	Roshan	60	60	120
1/1/2015	Atiq	Panjshiri	60	0	60
1/12/2015	Hafizullah	Wardak	60	0	60
1/12/2015	Ghulam	Mujtaba	60	40	100
1/12/2015	Yacob	Munir	60	0	60
1/12/2015	Fahim	Panjshiri	60	0	60
1/12/2015	Steve	Rossi	60	60	120
11/22/2014	Gul Afghan	Saleh	60	0	60
1/24/2015	Abdul Nazeer	Babacarkhial	240	0	240¹
2/6/2015	Abdul Wahed	Hassani	60	0	60
2/12/2015	Abdul Manan	Khalid	60	0	60
3/6/2015	Mohammad S.	Keshawarz	120	0	120²
3/6/2015	Abdul Saboor	Rahim	60	0	60
3/6/2015	Najim M.	Azadzoi	60	0	60
3/6/2015	Sayed F.	Abass	120	0	120
3/6/2015	Sohaila S.	Shekib	60	0	60
3/6/2015	Aziz	Ghani	60	0	60
3/6/2015	Mahjan	Saleh	60	0	60
3/27/2015	Sayed Aziz	Azimi	60	190	250
3/27/2015	Zarjan	Baha	60	40	100
4/1/2015	Mahmoud	Samizay	60	0	60
4/2/2015	Abdul	Chahim	60	0	60
4/11/2015	Aziz	Ghafoory	60	0	60
4/10/2015	Reza M.	Afshar	60	0	60
4/25/2015	Painda M.	Fakoor	60	0	60
4/25/2015	Sadeq A.	Ezzat	60	0	60
5/27/2015	Yar M.	Ebadi	120	0	120²

1- Mr. Babacarkhial has sent his membership fee for period of four years -Payment for 2014-2017
2- Dr. Keshawarz and Dr. Yar M. Ebadi have sent their membership fees for 2 years

The Society of Afghan Engineers Organization

SAE E-Executive Committee Members:
President: Atiq Panjshiri, Vice President: Farid Abass, Treasurer: Ashraf Roshan, Secretary: Farid Haidari, Manager: Gul Afghan Saleh

SAE Board of Directors-Officers:
Chairperson: Sohaila Sanie Shekib, Vice-Chairman: Najim Azadzoi, and Executive Director: Nazeer Babacarkhial

Members SAE Board of Directors:
Najim Azadzoi, Nazeer Babacarkhial, Wahid Enayat, Mohammad Saleh Keshawarz, Rafaat Ludin, Amanullah Mommandi, Saber Sarwary, Sohaila Sanie Shekib, and Hafizullah Wardak

SAE Past Presidents:
Ghulam Mujtaba, Abdul Hadi Rakin, M. Qasem Kadir, Mohammed Hashim Rayek, Ahmad Wali Shairzay, Sohaila Sanie Shekib, and Malik Mortaza

SAE Chairpersons of Committees/Subcommittees:
TBD

SAE Local Chapter Coordinators:
Najim Azadzoi – Massachusetts, M. Qasem Kadir – Southern California; A. Manan Khalid – New York and New Jersey, Mohammad Mirwais – Kabul, Amanullah Mommandi – Colorado Chapter Coordinator; M. Qaseem Naimi – Toronto, Canada; Atiq Panjshiri – Virginia and Washington DC

SAE eNewsletter Editorial Board:
Editor–In–Chief: Ghulam Mujtaba, M.S, CE, P.E., CPM E-Mail: mujtabaghulam@bellsouth.net;
Editorial Board Members: A. Wahed Hassani, Ph.D., P.E. Email: awhassani@gmail.com; A. Manan Khalid, M.S., P.E., LEED AP E-Mail: manank10@gmail.com;

Disclaimer: The author, reporter, or agency of each publication, project, news, and products is included in this newsletter. Additional contact information of the authors and their agencies are available with the Editorial Board of the newsletter and may be provided upon request. The Editorial Board of the Society of Afghan Engineers, Executive Committee, Board of Directors, or any of its members is not liable for the accuracy or contents of the information. The reports and information are included as provided by the authors and agencies without any changes in the substance of the documents. The information about the agency products or services is not the SAE endorsement.