Employees

National Engineers Week Spotlight: Eric Chini, PE By working together, engineers develop new technologies, products, and opportunities that change how we live. DCCM is proud to say we employ some of the best engineers in the nation, and we’re honoring them by celebrating #WhatEngineersDo with DiscoverE! This Eweek, we hope that you’ll take a moment to recognize and celebrate the work of our DCCM Family of Companies engineers! Today’s spotlight: Eric Chini, PE (Rochester & Associates) 1. How has Rochester helped you to develop and expand your professional career as an engineer? Rochester has given me the opportunity to work on a wide variety of projects, which has provided me with amazing opportunities to design and learn about all facets of civil engineering. The team at Rochester also provides great collaboration between all departments that allows for sharing knowledge and experiences for everyone to develop and expand their career. 2. What has been one of your favorite Rochester projects to have been a part of? One of my favorite projects was the Lanier Technical College campus in Gainesville, Georgia. I was the lead engineer on a 94-acre development that created a state-of-the-art technical institution that trains the future workforce for northeast Georgia. This was the first-ever development of an entire campus at one time for the Technical College System in Georgia. This project featured six new buildings, including a conference center, totaling more than 330,000 square feet. It was very rewarding to be involved with a project like that from start to finish. 3. What qualities and skills does it take to be successful in engineering? In today’s environment, you need to utilize all your various experiences and knowledge to problem-solve projects. Every project is unique with its own challenges that often require you to think “outside the box” to come up with reasonable, cost-effective solutions. You also need to be able to collaborate with numerous design professionals from different fields to design and construct projects successfully. 4. What would be the first thing you did if you won the mega jackpot lottery? Buy a house on the beach in southwest Florida. 😊

National Engineers Week Spotlight: Inas Aweidah, PE By working together, engineers develop new technologies, products, and opportunities that change how we live. DCCM is proud to say we employ some of the best engineers in the nation, and we’re honoring them by celebrating #WhatEngineersDo with DiscoverE! This Eweek, we hope that you’ll take a moment to recognize and celebrate the work of our DCCM Family of Companies engineers! Today’s spotlight: Inas Aweidah, MBA, PE, PMP (DCCM) 1. How has the industry changed since the start of your career? Two things have changed. First, technology had a lot to do with the evolution of our work since the beginning of my career in the 1980s when we relied heavily on our skilled draftsman and draftswomen. We had limited computers, depended on the mail and faxes to communicate, and used typewriters to document meetings and prepare important documents (business was primarily conducted in person). Comparing then to now, we are heavily immersed in technology and are completely dependent on our computers, tablets, and mobile phones; we use virtual and 3D technology to communicate and connect; and we reach out more and more to communities by using social platforms. Second, the number of women engineers has increased. That is a positive sign, but relative to the number of women in the workforce, the percentage of women engineers is still relatively low. We need to encourage middle and high school girls to get interested in STEM programs! 2. What do you get out of engineering that you couldn’t get from any other kind of work? Our work is very rewarding! We build communities and provide services that are used and felt by everyone, our work is focused on improving quality of life, and our products are tangible—you can see, feel, use, and enjoy it. 3. What project have you been involved with that had the most significant impact on your career? One of the most recent projects, “The REAL Plan,” where I served as Project Manager. The REAL Plan is a visionary project that TxDOT Houston District envisioned for the future of our region. It is meant to revolutionize the way we think about the use of our roadway network and how to connect various modes of transportation using regional express access lanes. It also allows the use of multi-modes to get from point A to point B. The project incorporates new and emerging technologies to build a comprehensive connected system in multi-modal hubs to serve the people and freight needs in the area. 4. What is your favorite thing to do to take your mind off of work and remove yourself from the “hustle and bustle?” It is hard to disconnect from our work these days with us being so connected to everything via our cell phones. And since many of us are working remotely at times, we are converting part of our homes to offices, so it’s becoming more challenging to separate work from our everyday activity. In my case, boating and traveling have been a big part of my family’s lives. Those activities allow us to spend quality time together and get a break from our everyday routine, explore new places, experience new cultures, decompress, and get re-energized. In addition, like many during the pandemic, we adopted two beautiful cats that became part of our family—they have been a great source of happiness to everyone.

National Engineers Week Spotlight: David Calabuig, PE By working together, engineers develop new technologies, products, and opportunities that change how we live. DCCM is proud to say we employ some of the best engineers in the nation, and we’re honoring them by celebrating #WhatEngineersDo with DiscoverE! This Eweek, we hope that you’ll take a moment to recognize and celebrate the work of our DCCM Family of Companies engineers! Today’s spotlight: David Calabuig, PE (Binkley & Barfield) 1. How has Binkley & Barfield helped you to develop and expand your professional career as an engineer? Binkley & Barfield has allowed me to progress in my career and to take some risks to win new projects. It’s always exciting to win projects against very large and mega engineering firms. 2. What initially sparked your interest in engineering? I used to sketch bridges in my German classes when I was bored back in junior high, and it sparked my interest to become a civil engineer. You can see the only signature bridge I was involved with at newfrederickdouglassbridge.com. I didn’t design it, but I was the procurement engineer on the project. 3. What is your favorite type of work to do in the engineering field? I love helping my clients solve their problems early on by doing conceptual and schematic designs because there is a lot of interaction with the public and different stakeholders to come to an agreeable solution for all parties. 4. If you could have one superpower, what would it be? Fly as fast as superman!

National Engineers Week Spotlight: Heidi Utterback, PE By working together, engineers develop new technologies, products, and opportunities that change how we live. DCCM is proud to say we employ some of the best engineers in the nation, and we’re honoring them by celebrating #WhatEngineersDo with DiscoverE! This Eweek, we hope that you’ll take a moment to recognize and celebrate the work of our DCCM Family of Companies engineers! Today’s spotlight: Heidi Utterback, PE (Coastland Civil Engineering) 1. There are many different routes to take in engineering. Why did you choose civil engineering? I had always loved math growing up and knew I wanted to pursue something that involved math. Following high school, I went to the Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) and took a variety of classes, including calculus. After doing really well on my first calculus exam, my older brother encouraged me to pursue engineering. I got involved with the engineering club at SRJC and learned more about the different types of engineering. I was intrigued with the many aspects of civil engineering, including transportation, structural, environmental, geotechnical, and utility infrastructure (water, sewer, and storm drain), and decided to pursue a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. 2. What advice would you give girls who want to be an engineer when they grow up? Engineering is for anyone, male or female. Engineering is a career in which you can use your knowledge and collaborate with others to come up with designs and solutions that have a lasting impact, as well as something you can take pride in. No two projects are the same, and there is always an opportunity to learn new techniques or ways to improve future projects. 3. What has been one of your favorite Coastland Civil Engineering projects to have been a part of? My favorite and most memorable project was the “Mitchell Shiloh Conde Assessment District,” which included almost every aspect of an infrastructure project: roadway improvements, sewer, water, reclaimed water, storm drain, creek culvert crossings, railroad crossings, traffic signals, landscaping, street lighting, right-of-way acquisition, assessment district engineering, and environmental permitting. In addition, this project provided the necessary roadway widening, frontage improvements, and utility upgrades for future adjacent developments. I was involved in this project from the beginning concepts to the final construction completion, a 10-year-long process. To this day, every time I drive through this project, I feel proud to have been one of the design engineers on such an important project for the town. 4. You find a genie in a lamp and have been granted one wish. What would your wish be? I’d wish that my mom was still around to see and enjoy the success and happiness of all of her kids and grandkids.

National Engineers Week Spotlight: Michael Bloom, PE By working together, engineers develop new technologies, products, and opportunities that change how we live. DCCM is proud to say we employ some of the best engineers in the nation, and we’re honoring them by celebrating #WhatEngineersDo with DiscoverE! This Eweek, we hope that you’ll take a moment to recognize and celebrate the work of our DCCM Family of Companies engineers! Today’s spotlight: Michael Bloom, PE, ENV SP, CFM, BCEE (R.G. Miller Engineers) 1. What would you consider to be your greatest success in using your skills to solve an engineering problem? I started helping to advocate for the use of the Envision Sustainable Infrastructure Framework in the Harris County/Houston area back in 2013. Now I’m helping Harris County pursue formal verification under Envision for two projects—a roadway corridor project and a wetlands mitigation bank. Envision is a rating system similar to the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership In Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). LEED is used by architects to make buildings more sustainable. Envision is used by planners and engineers to make horizontal public infrastructure more sustainable. 2. What is your favorite part of your job? Clients that appreciate and encourage creative and out-of-the-box thinking. Clients who strive to increase a project’s social, economic, and environmental outcomes, not just achieve a single objective. 3. What personal characteristics do you feel are necessary to be a successful engineer? The most successful engineers have a good balance of analytical thinking and emotional intelligence. Engineers that can rigorously use math and logic to define and solve problems are vital. Engineers that can mentor and inspire people are also great. Engineers that can do both operate at a higher level of success. Oh, and excellent writing skills. An engineer that can clearly explain their work and its conclusions in writing will be more successful than an engineer who struggles with this. 4. If you had to leave your house forever but could take one thing with you, what would it be? (Family and pets are coming with you.) My Go board and stones. “Go” is an ancient board game that originated in the far east about 2,500 years ago. It has been played by cultures that entire time, unlike other ancient games, which have fallen out of favor. My board is bamboo and my stones are “yunzi”—sintered glass.