In this economy, it really pays to be a jack-of-all-trades.

Certainly the broad scope of work Keystone Consulting Engineers performs qualifies them as such.Members of the Palmerton Area Chamber of Commerce recently heard from representatives of the Kresgeville firm, which serves as consultants to the Palmerton Borough and Palmerton Municipal Authority, among others.Eric Snyder, a civil engineer, said the firm reviews land development plans, lot line adjustments, water mains.Rudy Wolfe, a registered land surveyor, said the field has "come a long way.""It really has undergone a tremendous change," Wolfe said. "It's very precise."Snyder said the first step is to meet with a municipality in an effort to fix the problem. From there, survey work is conducted, followed by a rough sketch, final design, bid specifications, permits, and bid review.From there, Snyder said the firm makes a recommendation, does a construction oversight, and conducts a final walk-through/inspection."There's so many new regulations out," he said. "The logistics have been kind of muddled."Peter Kern, president of the chamber, said an engineer has to wear many hats."There's certainly more to surveying and civil engineering than meets the eye," Kern said.In other business, Kern announced that the chamber's Jan. 10 meeting would likely be a joint gathering with the Greater Northern Lehigh Chamber of Commerce.Kern said the GNLCC is expected to have state Sen. David Argall (R-29), as its guest speaker.The meeting will be hosted by the GNLCC somewhere in the Slatington community, Kern said.