Interviewing and writing since 2015 about people and projects in architecture, engineering and construction
Since 2021, my interviews, writing and storytelling have twice helped companies win ENR Best of the Best project awards. I have helped companies capture earned media across the country and win regional awards from the Associated General Contractors Association (AGC), American Society of Healthcare Engineers, Illuminating Engineering Society; AIA, IIDA, ASCE; multiple 40 Under 40 programs such as for Consulting & Specifying Engineer, multiple leadership and diversity awards and the prestigious, competitive ENR Top Young Professionals Award, which I helped two executives from the same company win in the same year — through authentic, accurate storytelling.
I help executives write about complex design and construction ideas for publication and distinguish themselves through accessible narratives. I re-write web copy to bring the project stories forward. In addition to ENR, my work has appeared in Building Design + Construction, whose awards programs I have also helped clients win.
Since 2021, my interviews, writing and storytelling have twice helped companies win ENR Best of the Best project awards. I have helped companies capture earned media across the country and win regional awards from the Associated General Contractors Association (AGC), American Society of Healthcare Engineers, Illuminating Engineering Society; AIA, IIDA, ASCE; multiple 40 Under 40 programs such as for Consulting & Specifying Engineer, multiple leadership and diversity awards and the prestigious, competitive ENR Top Young Professionals Award, which I helped two executives from the same company win in the same year — through authentic, accurate storytelling.
I help executives write about complex design and construction ideas for publication and distinguish themselves through accessible narratives. I re-write web copy to bring the project stories forward. In addition to ENR, my work has appeared in Building Design + Construction, whose awards programs I have also helped clients win.
A client photo featured in the Snapshots section of ENR West
My experience ranges from federal and private healthcare to boutique hospitality, aviation, historic renovations, industrial megaprojects, bridges, ports, rail transit, freight railroads, energy, water, wastewater and more.
Selected excerpts from a variety of AEC writing assignments
This project is one of the most mission-critical renovations in the modern history of the U.S. Navy and one of DoD’s largest investments in naval infrastructure since World War II. Total scope included overhaul of electrical systems, significant concrete repair inside the dry dock’s 67-feet-deep basin, steel structural upgrades across the facility and overhaul of two 85-ton bridge cranes. The greatest challenge stemmed from accomplishing all scopes during an immovable 15-month outage.
Just four inches shy of seven feet tall, he usually towers over everyone. He played power forward for the University of Nebraska Omaha, where he studied architectural engineering. The year he graduated, he averaged 12.5 points per game, led the team in rebounds and
maintained a GPA above 3.5 on a four-point scale. He maintained that GPA every year, in fact, even while honing his basketball performance so that he was named all-conference three times and Nebraska Division 2 player of the year. ESPN selected him for the 2006 Academic All-District Team. “It was hard to do that and be an engineer at the same time,” he said recently. “We would travel for games during the week, and I would miss lectures. When we got home and the rest of the team would rest or socialize, I would go study."
maintained a GPA above 3.5 on a four-point scale. He maintained that GPA every year, in fact, even while honing his basketball performance so that he was named all-conference three times and Nebraska Division 2 player of the year. ESPN selected him for the 2006 Academic All-District Team. “It was hard to do that and be an engineer at the same time,” he said recently. “We would travel for games during the week, and I would miss lectures. When we got home and the rest of the team would rest or socialize, I would go study."
In effect, these investments are establishing a new supply chain in North America amid a host of fluctuating factors such as labor and equipment shortages, a lack of advanced manufacturing experience, and movement toward fast-track delivery to expedite time-to-market. Historically, expertise in battery production is centered in Asia, which adds language barriers and reconciliation of foreign and domestic standards to the list of challenges. A convergence of these and other factors opens opportunities for construction managers and general contractors to add value and facilitate on-time delivery.
With 13 autopsy stations, among them two for decomposed remains, the 58,325 square-foot facility also includes storage coolers and freezers for 130 decedents. Air cleanliness is paramount in this laboratory, whose mechanical system supplies high-volume air changes. The autopsy suite uses splayed natural-daylight wells and a sloped ceiling to throw light into autopsy areas. Skylights are carefully configured to obscure visibility from outside.
Not surprisingly, his humble personality and strong work ethic meant that he left two
weeks later with new friends, despite language barriers. Earl does not speak Kinyarwanda nor did the community speak English, but “we still found ways to communicate with each other," he wrote on social media. "This experience reinforced the importance of developing relationships with those we work with.”
weeks later with new friends, despite language barriers. Earl does not speak Kinyarwanda nor did the community speak English, but “we still found ways to communicate with each other," he wrote on social media. "This experience reinforced the importance of developing relationships with those we work with.”
The facility blends filtered water 2:1 with tertiary effluent and stores the blended water in a 100,000-gallon tank. An onsite pump station conveys the blended water through a mile of underground pipe installed by this project to an offsite booster pump station, which conveys it the the rest of the way to an existing reservoir and distribution system accessed by avocado farmers.
Ben enjoys experimenting with new ways to prepare dishes. He recently mastered the spatchcock method of poultry preparation, in which a chicken or turkey is split open and grilled. Family and friends are often invited over for dinner parties so that new recipes can be shared and enjoyed, such as one featuring spaghetti and elk-balls (made with ground elk provided by a sportsman cousin) and grilled branzino with goose-fat frites.
Slowly, a renewed culture of pride emerged, and Tony’s leadership won many eager followers as evidenced by the testimonial letter that accompanies this nomination.
Safety performance also improved, with the company’s Experience Modification Rating decreasing from 1.18 in 2019 to its current rating of 0.51 — well below the industry average of 1.0. The lower EMR is a critical component when bidding for new contracts and helped restore the brand's legacy in St. Louis. The company had 40 employees in 2019 and grew to now employing more than 100, many of whom were drawn to its culture of safety.
The project reduced pressure on the outfall by 4.2 million gallons per day and addressed two more problems.
We modeled and analyzed to understand the envelope’s impact on systems such as lighting and HVAC, many aspects of which were already designed and specified. Our investigation went above and beyond what was necessary to incorporate the change. We analyzed the envelope performance through energy modeling, daylighting study, post-occupancy measurements and occupant surveys. Our goal was to capture maximum value from the innovative envelope while taking an active role in understanding the value of this type of envelope technology for future projects and clients. It led to 15 percent reduced energy use. And it created a comfortable environment. Metrics are discussed in more detail below.
The finished expansion adds 160,000 square feet of state-of-the-art research laboratories. Among them are 7,900 square feet built to the rigorous mechanical demands of Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) and 7,800 square feet of Biologic Therapy Core Facility (BTCF), where researchers develop cellular therapies to treat cancer. Air changes inside the BTCF between 50 and 70 times per hour. A 43,000 square-foot mechanical penthouse occupies the new 12th floor. It pushes air through ducts that wind through both buildings, between bundles of 4-inch pneumatic tubing that carry research samples in small containers between laboratories.
Between 2006 and 2009, we performed multiple scopes, including foundations and underground utilities, and assembly and installation of mechanical instrumentation. We also led construction of the plant’s 35-module, air-cooled condenser, and its electrical support building, including structural steel, tube bundles, fans, motors, gear boxes, skids, tanks, siding, piping and electrical interconnects. We installed remaining portions of combined-cycle and water-treatment piping after another contractor fell behind schedule. The high-pressure, high-temperature pipes with specific metallurgy required qualified riggers and welders.
Between 2013 and February 2021, bridging documents were prepared twice for site relocations. The final site elevation for the MFRO facility necessitated an offsite booster pump station and one mile of pipeline, which increased the cost by nearly $15 million from the previous site. Progressive Design-Build eased understanding and eliminated sticker shock because owners participated in weekly design and value-engineering meetings. Final design was approved, establishing a budget of $65.5 million that was fiercely protected by the project team.
Excerpt from my 2021 American Marketing Awards submission, which won Bronze:
"The senior project manager I mentioned earlier, who was first interviewed in 2018 – I went back to
him recently to ask for his perspective on the results of our PR campaign, and this is what he said:
'Marketing and publication efforts shed a bright light on the successes of this project, paving the way for the
second [P3] project. “The [VA] client has exhibited a lot of pride in their project, and it has now established a comfort level to further
expand this delivery method for future projects. Ultimately, this may lead to many projects being developed when
they otherwise would have had no chance.'"
"The senior project manager I mentioned earlier, who was first interviewed in 2018 – I went back to
him recently to ask for his perspective on the results of our PR campaign, and this is what he said:
'Marketing and publication efforts shed a bright light on the successes of this project, paving the way for the
second [P3] project. “The [VA] client has exhibited a lot of pride in their project, and it has now established a comfort level to further
expand this delivery method for future projects. Ultimately, this may lead to many projects being developed when
they otherwise would have had no chance.'"
You will see in the enclosed materials that she stays active with a variety of community organizations, but one with special meaning is Cornhusker Girls State. Her involvement has been steadfast since 1979. The organization teaches young women how to be civic leaders and policy makers, and how to work together. She told me recently that her grandma introduced her to it at a young age, bringing Kristi (and a plate of cookies) to shut ins and Memorial Day services at cemeteries. It may well be the genesis of the service-oriented leadership Kristi displays in all that she does today.
During the ensuing years, his work took him to both American coasts and Japan. He adapted to new building codes, materials, load conditions and labor skills, effectively expanding his own capacity for problem-solving.