INNOVATION July-August 2013

while Richardson is a living archive of civil work and history. Between them, some six and half decades of surveying and engineering experience. It’s a relationship where the exchange of information has kept Richardson involved and given Hall a legacy of knowledge. Richardson remembers when technology such as the Curta came into the profession—a hand-cranked calculator that meant no longhand calculations were necessary (“I used to go home at lunchtime and do the calculation; I knew they would be right,” tells Richardson). The slide-rule was the sixties wonder, followed by the portable electric calculator in the 1970s. Now, Hall tells Richardson, there are laser survey- ing tools that can take the information and relay it electroni- cally back to head office, and a computer program for just about everything. It’s all a far cry from the days Richardson remembers of lugging a transit through bushes and doing manual calculations. Downstairs, neatly folded in a picture box on the wall, is the hood of a graduation gown worn by Richardson 80 years ago, and by Hall 30 years ago. While the profession may have changed in leaps and bounds, just as Hall and Richardson’ lives have evolved over the years, their friendship has remained a constant. And, what began as neighbours continues to this day as friends and fellow engineers.

Change and Constancy, Professional and Personal Richardson isn’t sure he should take credit for Hall’s decision to go into the profession but he’s clearly pleased Hall became a professional engineer. “It’s a very good thing for the profession, I would say,” he says. The lives of both men have changed over the years with Richardson and his wife spending an active retirement of travel and hobbies. His wife has since passed away, but he continues to enjoy a strong network of friends and family, as well as his daily walks. Hall saw his family home next door to Richardson sold in l979, then his father died in 1986, and his mother passed away in 2009. Hall’s professional life also changed. BC’s downturn in construc- tion in the 1990s prompted him to move to the US to find work. He now runs his own private consulting firm specializing in bridge design and construction in the US, but maintains his APEGBC membership and still consults in BC. He continues to return to his old neighbourhood two or three times a year to visit Richardson. While Richardson is a civil engineer and Hall, structural, they still find enough common ground to share discussions on the profession, technology, and new construction. They continue to share experiences such as going off to see a new bridge or SkyTrain construction sites or trekking off to see some other kind of new change. Hall is able to explain bridge technology and structural building techniques to Richardson,

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