Graduate Program in Civil Engineering

The Graduate Program in Civil Engineering (PPGEC) of Campus Curitiba of the Federal Technological University of Paraná (UTFPR) was recommended by Capes in 2008 and started its activities in 2009. It was born in the context of the first Technological University created in Brazil. UTFPR is a Federal Institution of Higher Education, originated from the transformation of the Federal Center of Technological Education of Paraná, in 2005, which inherited a long and expressive trajectory in professional education and technological research. It is characterized by its specialized knowledge and focus on technology. In addition, it seeks competence in transforming knowledge into technology, giving society the opportunity to realize the usefulness of knowledge and consequently the importance of the institution.

 UTFPR's PPGEC began in 2009 with the meeting of faculty members from the Academic Department of Civil Construction (DACOC) and the Academic Department of Chemistry and Biology (DAQUIB). The Academic Department of Civil Construction - DACOC has contributed researchers with extensive experience and related knowledge, mainly in the areas of geotechnics, structures, materials, sanitation and construction management. The Academic Department of Chemistry and Biology - DAQUIB has brought a wealth of knowledge and experience in the areas of limnology, ecotoxicology, water and effluent treatment. This particularity determined the focus of the program activities in two areas of concentration: construction and environment.
 
 PPGEC's first offering was the Academic Master's Degree in Civil Engineering. In this offer (2009) there were 15 candidates registered and 8 selected. In 2010, 56 were enrolled and 20 selected. In 2017, for the master's degree, 98 were enrolled and 30 selected. Also, in the same year, there were 28 applications for the doctorate and 10 selected candidates, totaling 126 candidates and 40 selected, a competition of 3.2 candidates per vacancy in the Master and 2.8 candidates per vacancy in the Doctorate.
 
 In 2009 and 2010 the Graduate Program in Civil Engineering worked at the headquarters of the Curitiba Campus of UTFPR. This was a period characterized by the initial structuring of the program and the search for material and human resources. The initial structuring focused on the definition of administrative routines, regulations, line structuring and research projects. The search for human resources, on the one hand, focused on the intense dissemination of the program aiming at an increase in demand for the Masters course and, on the other hand, on the consolidation of the “hard core” of permanent professors. These actions aimed at establishing a solid base to support the growth of the Program.
 
 2011 was marked by the move from the old Headquarters to the new Ecoville Headquarters. This change had a positive impact on teaching and research activities as a result of the provision of new areas of work, study, research and teaching. PPGEC was installed in an area of 975 m2 on the 3rd floor of Block IJ. In the new space it was possible to deploy 3 classrooms for up to 44 students, 1 room for 22 students, 8 rooms for program professors, students room with individual and collective areas for study. All professors have their own physical space. The environments can be individual or for two professors.
 
 The interdisciplinary practice received strong incentive motivated by the availability of new expanded physical facilities and the park of new equipment available, since the definition of the architecture of the areas as well as the specification of the equipment was the result of discussion and analysis by the faculty of each Area of Knowledge and the prioritization of the implantation of the arguments between the groups.
 
 In 2013, five years after the opening of the Master's Degree, the benefits of a greater dynamic regarding the deepening of interdisciplinary practice, qualitative improvement of scientific production and greater national insertion of the Program have already been felt. PPGEC obtained grade 4 of CAPES's three-year assessment. This enabled the development of the proposal to open the Doctorate in Civil Engineering (whose proposal was submitted and approved by CAPES in 2014) as of 2015, with even greater and faster advances in the areas of production, application and dissemination of knowledge. through teaching, research and extension. The performance integrated to departmental activities contributes and enables strong integration with the undergraduate degree.
 
 In 2015, PPGEC, aware of the Capes evaluation report, promoted a structural modification of its faculty, restricting the size of the permanent faculty through the evaluation of indicators.
 
 In 2016 there was the defense of the first PhD dissertation defense at PPGEC. The dissertation was defended by doctoral student Kiril Alekseev. The title of the dissertation was “Using Red Mud, Steel Slag and Foundry Sand to Produce Environmentally Friendly Ceramic Materials” under the guidance of Professor Vsevolod Mymrine.
 
 The Masters Course currently has 120 dissertations defended in its eight years of activity. PPGEC currently has 103 regular students (77 masters and 26 doctoral students) and 25 special masters students, totaling 128 students. In the last selection process, at the end of 2017, it obtained 98 Masters candidates and 22 PhD candidates.
 
 In 2017, the result of the four-year evaluation (2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016) was released and the Program was assigned the concept 4 due to its good indicators.

Goals

General objectives

The Graduate Program in Civil Engineering (PPGEC) of Campus Curitiba of UTFPR has the following general objectives:
1. Train professionals for research and sustainable technological development activities aimed at solving problems or proposing technological innovations to meet the demands of society and the labor market;
2. Define, propose, coordinate and execute research and technological development projects in its lines of action, aiming to meet specific demands for global, national, regional and/or local development.

Specific objectives

In the alternative, the specific objectives of PPGEC are:
1. Generate critical mass, mentality and environment conducive to the improvement of UTFPR's faculty and other related institutions in the program's area of influence, and contribute to the improvement of the knowledge applied by UTFPR in its courses and projects;
2. Qualify human resources in the area of civil construction and environment, preventing students from the region, seeking qualification, to go to other centers to pursue graduate studies, or, even worse, abandoning their vocation for a scientific career;
3. Encourage the establishment of faculty in the institution, because some professors, with high potential for research, move away from this institution when there are opportunities to work in research in established schools;
4. Continuing the research activities of teachers, initiated during the completion of their doctoral courses or in the postdoctoral internship, so that the potential for research is not reduced, besides allowing the socialization of knowledge with the local academic community;
5. Generate technical knowledge necessary to solve problems in the construction sector, avoiding the use of technologies developed in other regions, distant and with realities completely different from the mesoregion considered;
6. Increase and maintain the scientific production of professors and students involved in PPGEC activities;
7. Develop research and innovative technologies with potential for technology transfer;
8. Establish and maintain agreements with national and international institutions to strengthen PPGEC research lines;
9. Interact with society and the productive sector through the various organs of UTFPR;
10. Strengthen the link between UTFPR, Society and the Civil Construction Sector.  

Area of ​​Concentration

To achieve its objectives, the Graduate Program in Civil Engineering is based on two areas of concentration: Civil Construction and Environment. For these two areas to achieve all the proposed objectives, there are three lines of research composing the PPGEC.

Construction Industry

This focus area aims to contribute to integrated development and innovation in the construction sector, ranging from the production, development and characterization of materials and structural elements as building components, to the application of support tools for design, planning, monitoring and optimization of production systems, having in all studies the application of concepts focused on productivity, safety and sustainability.

Research lines
Materials, Structures and Geotechnics
Construction Management and Sustainability

Environment

The approach of this area is related to the use and quality of water, with the impacts produced by the construction chain. Studies on the effects of pollution on water bodies and wastewater after urban or industrial consumption, as well as the development of new processes, are the focus of interest related to water quality, conservation and use.

Research lines
Sanitation and Water Resources
Materials, Structures and Geotechnics