PennDOT shares digital delivery initiative in Penn College classrooms

Scott McMasters, a digital delivery-highway design manager for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, recently made a return visit to Penn College’s construction management and civil engineering technology classrooms, where he shared PennDOT’s move to use digital 3D modeling as its base documentation throughout its construction projects – from bid to completion.
 

Scott McMasters, a Penn College graduate and digital delivery-highway design manager for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, talks with students in a construction management class about PennDOT's initiative to move to 3D modeling for all of its construction documents. The department also provided access to a "sandbox" project for students to practice the technology.

More than 30 students attended the sessions, during which McMasters, who holds a degree in architectural technology from Penn College (1998), walked students through PennDOT’s vision to deliver documents for all new construction projects through 3D modeling in 2030.

PennDOT is already a leader in the field of digital delivery: It’s been providing 3D models as supplemental documents since 2013. It executed its first “level 4” digitally delivered project – providing all contractual documents through 3D models – last year, joining Utah as one of the first two states to do so.

McMasters illustrated the need for the move to digital delivery by pointing out the difference between his K-12 education and his children’s: a shift from hard-copy textbook learning to digital textbooks and tablet computers.

“I have to prepare for the next generation and how they’re using technology,” he told students.

Additionally, 3D modeling provides a more complete picture of a project than a 2D drawing and can be updated throughout the planning and construction process, providing stakeholders with access to the most current information at all times, he said.

To help facilitate the shift, PennDOT, in partnership with Dering Consulting Group Inc. and HDR, provided a “sandbox” project to the college, allowing students to work through the digital delivery of a construction project, with access to project models and related details and data. Aaron Caulfield, strategy consultant/project manager for Dering Consulting Group, accompanied McMasters for the presentations.

Penn College is one of 17 Pennsylvania colleges and universities partnering with PennDOT to educate students in digital delivery. PennDOT’s vision is to have digital 3D workflows integrated into curriculum across the state.