All Times are stated in Mountain Time. 

Schedule subject to change.

Wednesday, April 2nd, 2025

1:30p - 5:00p SDES Board Meeting and Committee Work Groups: Spearfish Holiday Inn Convention Center

All current and incoming State and Chapter Board Members and Committee Chairs are required to attend in person. All Chapter Leadership teams and members are also welcome. 

5:30p - ???? Welcome Hospitality Room: Spearfish Holiday Inn Convention Center

Join your fellow conference goers at the Dakota Concrete Pipe Association Hospitality Room

 

Thursday, April 3rd, 2025

All Thursday events will be held at the Spearfish Holiday Inn Convention Center, unless stated otherwise. 

                                                                                                                                                                                               

7:00a – 5:00p     Registration

 

7:00a – 7:45a    Breakfast – Ticket Required

 

8:00a – 8:15a    Welcome

SDES Black Hills Chapter President Erik Walega and the Honorable Mayor John Senden (Invited)

 

8:15a – 9:15a    General Session G1 – 1.0 PDH 

Michael Yost and Aaron Mann, Terracon Consultants, Inc.

      “Hard Conversations”

 

9:15a – 9:45a    General Session G2 – 0.5 PDH 

        Chris Bailey, HDR Engineering

        “Yellowstone National Park Flood Response”

 

9:45a – 10:00a    Break & Exhibits 

 

10:00a – 11:30p   Concurrent Sessions C1 – 1.5 PDH

A    10:00a – 11:30a – 1.5 PDH

        SD Mines Student Presentations and Projects

• ·    Autonomous Aircraft: Navigation, Detection & Payload Delivery
• ·    Surveying Principles applied to Civil Engineering Projects
• ·    Concrete Canoe Design, Construction & Technical Features
• ·    Benefits of Micro-Algae on Water Runoff & Air Pollution
• ·    Innovative, Sustainable Solutions to Real-World Problems
• ·    Professional Response to Infrastructure Disasters

B    10:00a – 10:30a – 0.5 PDH

      Chris Robinson, HDR Engineering

      “Wastewater Treatment System Improvements, Mount Rushmore National Memorial’

 

B    10:30a – 11:30a – 1.0 PDH

      Beth Lambeth, South Dakota School of Mines & Technology

      “Turning Engineering Ideas into Market Realities”

 

11:30 – Noon   Concurrent Sessions C2 – 0.5 PDH

 

A    11:30a – Noon – 0.5 PDH

      Zackery Holloway & Gage Waterhouse, Airborne Dynamic Systems

      “The Future of Drones in Engineering”

 

B    11:30a – Noon – 0.5 PDH

      Jesse Herrera, Black Hills Energy

      “Emotional Intelligence & Leadership”

                  

Noon – 1:30p    Awards Luncheon

              SDES | ACEC Awards Ceremony

              SDES Officer Installation

 

1:30p – 1:45p   Break & Exhibits – Convention Center Lobby Concourse

 

1:45p – 2:15p   Buses Load and Leave for Tour Sites

 

2:15p – 5:00p   Tours

 

Hoist Room Tour and Sanford Homestake Visitor Center T1 - 2.0 PDH

 

T1    2:15p – 3:45p – 1.0 PDH

      Group A: Emily Berry, Sanford Underground Research Facility

      “Hoist Room Tour”

      Group B: Allan Stratman, South Dakota Science and Technology Authority, and Joshua Willhite, Fermi Forward Development Group

      “Projects in Support of Science and Operations at Sanford Lab”

T1    3:45p – 5:00p – 1.0 PDH

      Group A: Allan Stratman and Joshua Willhite

      Group B: Emily Berry

Spearfish Hydro Plant Tour T2 - 2.0 PDH

A       T2  2:15 – 3:15p – 1.0PDH

              Ben Tieszen, City of Spearfish, Hydro Plant Tour

          T2  3:15p – 3:45 Travel to Visitor Center

          T2  3:45 – 5:00p – 1.0PDH

              Join in Allan Stratman and Joshua Willhite Presentation

                                                                       

5:00p – 7:00p   SDES Annual Conference Social  

              Sanford Homestake Visitor Center, Lead, SD

                                                                                                                                                                                             

Friday April 4th, 2025

All Friday events will be held at the Spearfish Holiday Inn Convention Center, unless stated otherwise. 

7:00a – 11:00a   Registration

7:00a – 7:45a   Breakfast – Ticket Required

7:00a – 7:45a    Past Presidents’ Breakfast

8:00a                Welcome

8:00a – 8:30a   General Session G3 – 0.5 PDH

Lorie Vega, Ellsworth Air Force Base

      “Ellsworth’s Innovation Program”

8:30a – 9:00a   General Session G4 – 0.5 PDH

TSgt Joshua D. Collins, USAF

      “Ghost Robotics Quadrupedal Unmanned Ground Vehicle (Q-UGV) Robo-Dog”

9:00a – 10:00a  Concurrent Sessions C3 – 1.0 PDH

A    9:00a – 9:30a – 0.5 PDH

        Matthew Baird, PE, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District

        “B-21 Construction Bed-down at Ellsworth AFB”

B   9:00a – 9:30a – 0.5 PDH

      Kenan Sarrat, Coeur Wharf

      “From Exploration to Mining”

A    9:30a – 10:00a – 0.5 PDH

        Daniel Egan, AE2S

        “Remapping Spearfish’s Regulatory Floodplain Challenges & Successes”

B   9:30a – 10:00a – 0.5 PDH

      Ben Evans, Coeur Wharf

      “Spent Ore and In-situ Nitrate Treatment at Active Mine Sites”

10:00a – 10:15a  Break & Exhibits – Convention Center Lobby Concourse

10:15a – 11:15a Concurrent Sessions C4 – 1.0 PDH 

A    Jason Miller, RESPEC

“Delegation is Professional Development in Action, but Mostly for the Delegator”

B    Donald McNutt, American Concrete Pipe Association

        “Pipe Installation Best Practices”

11:15a – 12:15p General Session G5 – 1.0 PDH – POCC Convention Hall

 James Unruh, HDR Engineering

“Diverging Diamond Interchanges: Just How Good are They -- Really?”

12:15p – 12:20p Closing Remarks

12:20p – 12:50p SDES Annual Membership Meeting and Door Prize Drawings

Thank you to our SDES 2024-25 Platinum, Gold and Silver Partners! 

This conference and other SDES activities are only made possible through the ongoing support of our industry partners.

Platinum

 

Gold

Silver