Articles

April 2026 Technical Sessions

ENVIRONMENTAL & WATER RESOURCES INSTITUTE (EWRI)

1. THE HEC-RAS EVOLUTION: MASTERING THE SHIFT TO CONCEPTUAL MESHING

Oscar Cetina, PE, CFM
Water Resources Service Lead
Westwood

Oscar Cetina, PE, CFM, is a Water Resources Service Lead at Westwood, where he serves as a Project Manager and Engineer for municipal and private sector clients from the Dallas office. A graduate of Southern Methodist University with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, Oscar brings over 11 years of experience in private consulting to his leadership role. He is a Registered Professional Engineer and Certified Floodplain Manager specializing in urban stormwater management, capital improvement design, and flood control. His technical expertise includes hydrodynamic analysis, drainage master planning, floodplain management and reclamation, and regulatory permitting.

Soo Bum Bae, PhD, CFM, ENV SP
Water Resources Engineer
Westwood

Soo Bum Bae, Ph.D., CFM, ENV SP is a Water Resources Engineer at Westwood Professional Services with a Doctorate in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University. He has over 7 years of experience in coastal resilience, geospatial analysis, and multiphase project planning, along with 2 years of expertise in stormwater management and drainage studies. Mr. Bae has a strong background in Floodplain Analysis, Regulatory Permitting, Remote-Sensing Geo-Spatial Analysis, and Urban Storm-water Management.

2. TIMING IS EVERYTHING: RETHINKING FLOOD HAZARD METRICS IN A WORLD OF 2D MODELS

Jeremy Dixon, PE, CFM
Associate
Freese & Nichols, Inc.

Jeremy Dixon, PE, CFM is an Associate at Freese and Nichols and a career-long Hydrology and Hydraulics modeler with experience in 1D and 2D, riverine, and urban flood modeling. He works with clients to develop and refine storm-water and floodplain models, support software selection and training, and improve how complex model results are applied in practice. Jeremy is proficient in HEC-RAS, HEC-HMS, InfoWorks ICM, XP-SWMM, EPA-SWMM, and GIS applications, and he regularly teaches HEC-RAS 2D courses across the country. He holds both a B.S. and M.S. in Civil Engineering from Texas Tech University.

3. THIRSTY AI - THE WATER CHALLENGE OF AI DATA CENTERS

Rifat Alam, PE, PMP, CFM
Director of Public Works
City of Lancaster

Mr. Alam has a proven track record of successful Program & Project Management, leading small & large-scale infrastructure projects, multidisciplinary teams, and high-value programs (ranging upto ~$470M). Prior to joining City of Lancaster, Rifat held multiple progressive leadership roles at reputed Engineering firms including Fortune 500 companies, most recently as the AVP and Texas Water Resources Group Manager at a Global Engineering Firm. As a results-driven executive, He led & managed operations of large business lines, with multiple direct reports/teams across multiple region & office locations, including training and mentoring staff. 

Currently serving as the Director of Public Works for City of Lancaster, Mr. Alam is responsible for overseeing and managing 6 Divisions with 40+ staff including Engineering, Water/Wastewater, Transportation (Streets & Traffic), Stormwater, Floodplain Management & Major Capital Improvement, with a combined $130M CIP portfolio. He is a customer-focused, adaptive servant leader with a track record of building high-performing teams, fostering stakeholder relationships, and delivering cost-effective, innovative solutions.  

Mr. Alam is an expert in civil infrastructure, water/wastewater design & construction, floodplain management, 1D & 2D H&H modeling, drainage design, watershed planning, roadway construction, and dam/levee analysis. He has extensive experience working with federal, state & local agencies.  
Outside of work, Rifat is a nationally recognized expert in Water Resource, especially 2D H&H Modeling. He is involved with ASCE, Texas Floodplain Management Association (TFMA), American Public Works Association (APWA).

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING INSTITUTE (SEI)

1. SEEING THROUGH UNCERTAINTY: USING LIDAR TO TRANSFORM STRUCTURAL CONDITION ASSESSMENT IN CONFINED SPACES

Maziar Mahdavi, PhD, PE
Structural Engineer
Freese & Nichols, Inc.

Dr. Maziar Mahdavi, P.E., is a Structural Engineer at Freese and Nichols with over 15 years of combined academic and industry experience. He specializes in the design of buildings, bridges, and hydraulic structures, as well seismic design, and structures and infrastructures condition evaluation. Dr. Mahdavi earned his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Texas at Arlington, where he also led research on fiber-reinforced concrete and structural health monitoring. His recent work includes integrating LiDAR Technologies for Structural Assessments. He has managed projects for Texas Department of Transportation and multiple Cities, and contributes to national standards as an active member of ACI Technical Committees.

2. "IN THE END, IT WAS ALL A BIG LET DOWN" - BRIDGES BUILT HIGHER AND LOWERED IN PLACE

Karthik Ramanathan, PE
Texas Bridge Lead
Michael Baker International

Mr. Ramanathan is the Texas Bridge Lead for Design Services at Michael Baker International. He has over 27 years of bridge design/management experience, with a variety of structure types including complex concrete and steel superstructure and substructures. He has worked on several projects using collaboration with contractors to benefit the project, viz. Design Build/P3, CMGC, Design-Bid-Build with Value Engineering. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Civil Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras and a Master of Science from Arizona State University.

Saurav Neupane, PE, SE
Project Engineer
Consor

Saurav has 10 years of experience in bridge design and currently serves as a project engineer at Consor Engineers, specializing in complex Bridge Design and Analysis.