Case Study: Bohler Engineering

Higher-Quality, Approval-Ready Models and Drawings in Half the Work
Bohler Engineering is able to create a better submittal product to reviewing agencies, in 1/2 of the time used previously

Background Information

As one of the oldest American states, earning statehood in 1787, New Jersey tightly protects its natural environment and history. It’s also one of the most populated states, requiring conscientious development and often lengthy state approvals.

Bohler Engineering, a civil and consulting engineering company, works closely with retail and industrial clients to build in a way that best balances clients’ development plans with natural environments. Based in New Jersey, the firm has 12 offices throughout the East Coast, providing environmental consulting, planning, permitting services, project management, surveying and landscape architecture.

Up until 2007, the firm cut river cross-sections and entered input data by hand into HEC-RAS and HEC-2. The manual method was inefficient and was not as accurate as it could be. Any design changes required engineers to go back to AutoCAD for revisions and manually re-enter data into HEC-RAS and HEC-2.

Automating HEC-RAS and HEC-2

Seeing a demonstration of RiverNET software by BOSS International, the firm clearly recognized the benefits of automating HEC-RAS and HEC-2 within AutoCAD. The river modeling software completely automates the HEC-RAS modeling process directly within the AutoCAD environment, greatly speeding up the engineering process of producing a HEC-RAS model.

At the outset, Bohler engineers trained with one of BOSS’ engineers for two days using RiverNET on one of their engineering projects, and found the software intuitive to grasp.

“If you have had some previous experience with HEC-RAS and HEC-2, RiverNET is relatively simple to learn,” said John Limin Zhang, P.E.

Bohler engineers frequently use RiverNET to define developable areas on major commercial projects. For a recent large retail complex, Bohler needed to determine the 100-year floodplain and flood elevations, accounting for streams running north and south. With RiverNET, they easily generated the necessary HEC-RAS model and floodplain mapping. From RiverNET, the corresponding HEC-RAS model was then exported to submit to various federal and state reviewing agencies for approval.

In another engineering study, Bohler had to design the access road for a training center of a professional sports team, under a short deadline, so the facility could open for the upcoming season. Another engineering firm had previously performed a HEC-RAS 100-year flood elevation study for the same watercourse and watershed.

Using RiverNET, Bohler quickly updated the existing HEC-RAS study, creating one of significantly higher quality. Though both studies used HEC-RAS, RiverNET helped Bohler engineers create more attractive presentation mapping, more easily.

“With RiverNET, the presentation is much better – neater and more pleasing,” Zhang said. “You can really see the difference in the quality of the drawings, and review comments from the NJ DEP were minimized.”

Better quality submittals therefore reduce the amount of time that governmental agencies spend on review, and expedite the approval process.

Trimming HEC-RAS Modeling Time in Half

Automating HEC-RAS within AutoCAD reduces engineering time on every project. When engineers need to make changes to drawings, it’s just a few clicks right in RiverNET, without having to export and re-import to HEC-RAS.

“We complete our HEC-RAS modeling work in probably half the time with RiverNET when compared with traditional methods,” Zhang said. “If the project can be easily approved without revisions or comments, it saves our clients time and money.”