Briefly tell us about yourself and your role at ArchTam.

I have been with ArchTam for six years as a virtual design construction engineer or Building Information Modeling (BIM) engineer.

I support projects in Dallas, Texas, over the entire construction process, from pursuit to construction to the project close-out phase. In my work, I manage and create digital representations of the physical characteristics of buildings. We build in 3D first and then we optimize the build, which means we get to know all the issues before we go to ground.

Essentially, we test new ways of building. This allows us to be a step ahead when we get to the site. Using virtual design helps flag areas that need to be addressed in advance or where we’ll have potential issues that waste time and resources.

By modeling the level of detail from design and fabrication to installation, we can create an accurate and data rich as-built model. We rely on the model and start building with certainty knowing the design has been tested. We basically build a project twice ― once in a virtual world and once on-site ― resulting in time and cost savings.

What is your legacy? How do you make an impact?

I hope to leave a legacy of “never stop learning.” This is what keeps me going, keeps my zest and zeal up and always motivates me to learn and adopt new tools and technologies.

The BIM industry is evolving every day with new trends emerging every moment. I feel proud when my work positively alters a project’s outcome and we deliver a lean project to the owner and the community. With the use of technology, sometimes the cost savings are huge and it is satisfying knowing I helped to do that.

What’s next in infrastructure for you? How do you see that trend shaping the work you do today?

There are a lot of new trends that are helping us with what we do every day when it comes to coordination through BIM technologies. To name a few, I seek to learn and grow more by using:

• 3D Printing: This helps us understand the dynamics, functioning and efficiency by analyzing a structure through its look and feel, which is not possible in 3D models.
• Prefabrication: This is something I see picking up speed in the near future where modular and prefabricated construction can reduce the time of the coordination project and increase its efficiency.
• Internet of Things (IoT): IoT has the potential to transform the entire BIM modeling and project installation process. IoT can simplify the process of data release to pre-fabrication workshops, general contractors and modelers. It can also help us a great deal in capturing real-time data that can be used to augment the design on the construction sites.

What advice would you give to someone pursing a STEM education or a career in the AEC sector?

Enhance your skill set: The AEC sector is dependent on specific technology tools. These tools are continuously being upgraded and new tools are being introduced into the market. My advice to the people wanting to build a career in this sector would be to keep up with the newest advancements and learn new tools and see how effectively these tools can be used on the projects they are going to work on.

Learn and apply: Applying lessons learned is another great advice which should be practiced as you are gaining experience from project to project. It would greatly affect the progression and completion of the project on-time and with good quality.

The post Building Legacies with Puja Sapru appeared first on Blog.

We asked our leaders to describe the importance that inclusivity plays in conjunction with diversity and how they’re helping to drive gender parity.

Helen Carnevale – Communications and Content Specialist, Environment
Inclusivity not only involves inviting a diverse community to the table, but also creating comfortable pathways for all to be heard. As editor of the Environment global newsletter, I’m thrilled to share accounts and images of our women employees across the world in all stages of their careers. Consistently featuring their accomplishments, awards and stories in a global publication advances parity and provides vision to young women employees.

Are you listening thoughtfully to women? Observe who you are and aren’t including in your professional conversations. Work to embrace diverse colleagues; your next great idea may come from someone who originally didn’t have a voice at the table.

Marissa Farrar – Vice President, People Strategy and Operations, DCSA + CM

Innovative companies are inclusive, and inclusive companies are more likely to meet or exceed financial targets because they bring together people with different backgrounds who have varied ways of seeing things. This diversity of thought yields a wellspring of creativity and prevents groupthink, thereby reducing risk.

I’m a spouse, mother of three, Woman of Color, on the cusp of Gen X and Gen Y and prefer pronouns of she/her/hers. I have both the privilege and passion for helping to shape inclusive people processes and cultivating a culture where those people feel valued, respected and safe to speak their minds. I accomplish this by mentoring others, bringing awareness to unconscious bias through learning programs and sharing my own story about the intersection of gender, gender roles, race, generational nuances and parenthood in the workplace. It’s important to take the time to engage with others who view diversity (including gender diversity) and job qualification as being at odds with each other. I love to facilitate these conversations and I aim to create more opportunity for them. When we seek to understand the life experiences that shape our attitudes and keep an open mind to hear and absorb those of others, we elevate the level of wokeness and move the topic of inclusion from words to action.

Wendy Lopez – Texas Executive

As both a female and an out lesbian leader in the historically male-dominated engineering industry, I have the unique opportunity to prove to our employees that it is OK to be yourself and that you are not going to be discriminated against at ArchTam. I also make sure to show up and represent ArchTam in the LGBTQ community.

In fact, one of my favorite recruiting events is ArchTam’s sponsorship of the nonprofit professional association oSTEM (Out in Science, Technology? Engineering and Mathematics), which offers one of the more diverse talent pipelines. This event is important for someone who is just starting their first job and concerned about whether they will see people like them in leadership roles. By having representation of the LQBTQ community at industry events, we’re providing young professionals reassurance that it is not only safe, but also encouraged to be who you are at ArchTam.

The post What’s Diversity Without Inclusion? appeared first on Blog.

The day the U.S.-Australian Exchange spent in Dallas kicked off with a presentation that covered the history of Dallas and its entrepreneurial spirit, which has been the cornerstone of the city’s development. As a planning professional who has worked in the Dallas community for more than 20 years, I have seen how business and civic leaders collaborate with local government to facilitate change. For example, the great flood of 1908 spawned the development of the Trinity Floodway System that exists today. Through the business community purchasing and developing the newly protected land, one of the most productive and influential industrial and market areas in the United States was created — with redevelopment along the Trinity River continuing to this day.

The exchange offered me a unique opportunity to not only showcase the work ArchTam has completed within the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) metropolitan area, but how that work, subsequent development, and the Dallas philanthropic community continue to elevate the quality of life for all residents.

Dallas is the largest urban center of the DFW metropolitan area. The city’s economy, which has diversified over the last thirty years, significantly drives the region’s productivity. DFW is the sixth largest metropolitan economy in the United States, and Dallas is home to the third-largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies, the recently constructed world-class arts district, and the largest light rail system in the country.

Dallas’ multifaceted environment made the city a fitting location for discussions about the exchange’s focus on multi-party partnerships and how philanthropic contributions and cultural precincts can help stimulate, renew and revitalize a city.

The first stop on the tour took us to the offices of Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART). DART operates more than 90 miles of light rail across the region. Additionally, they provide bus, streetcar, commuter rail and paratransit services. DART is known for its innovative approach to leveraging local dollars to maximize federal funding for its capital expansion projects. DART’s conservative, long-term approach constantly balances its operating costs and liabilities with growth plans, which has resulted in DART being recognized as a successful, fiscally sound model transit agency. ArchTam has played an integral role in the development and optimization of DART’s system for more than 20 years.

In 1996, DART opened Mockingbird Station, a world-renowned, urban transit-oriented development that provides a unique concentration of retail, residential and commercial development. Developers and transit professionals from around the world continue to visit Dallas to learn from the success of DART and potentially implement similar projects within their home communities.

Our tour also included a visit to the City of Plano, a suburb of Dallas, to highlight successful redevelopment efforts directly tied to existing light rail service. Through city-based incentives and innovative development strategies, the Downtown Plano Station serves as the foundation on which city planners, investors and developers have built to create livable communities. These types of efforts have resulted in the City of Plano importing more jobs than it exports.

Our final destination highlighted the Dallas Arts District, a multi-venue center for music, opera, theater and dance. ArchTam served as the engineer-of-record on the award winning project and collaborated with four Pritzker architects to create the AT&T Performing Arts Center. The Center serves as the heart of the district and was conceived, designed and constructed through the efforts of philanthropic leaders. More than 40 families gave gifts of at least US$1 million to the project.

Klyde Warren Park, a five-acre deck park over a depressed highway, connects the revitalized uptown area to downtown. The green space, which serves as a gateway to the Dallas Arts District, also was conceived and designed by the business community. Funding for this project included philanthropic donations, the City of Dallas, the Texas Department of Transportation and federal stimulus funding. These recent and significant investments in the City’s cultural assets have induced development and created a highly desired location to live, work and play.

The Australian contingent was impressed with the amount of influence the business and civic community have on growth and development, and the speed at which change can occur. They recognize that public-private partnerships in infrastructure investment can significantly impact all aspects of the community from transportation to arts and culture. Dallas was the third leg of their four-city tour, and it is clear that their enthusiasm will affect positive change in their communities.

Jerry Smiley (jerry.smiley@archtam.com) is transit and environmental services business unit leader – Dallas/Fort Worth in ArchTam’s Dallas office.

The post Dallas DARTs ahead: AUS-US exchange appeared first on Blog.

This return trip, however, is really special. As ArchTam’s lead for the 2015 US-Australia City Exchange on Local Finance Mechanisms, I’m accompanying 20 city leaders from New South Wales, Australia, to examine innovative funding and financing mechanisms used by city counterparts in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Dallas, Chicago and New York.

The 10-day peer-to-peer exchange is presented by the Future Cities Collaborative, an initiative of the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, Australia, with the support of NSW Trade and Investment and ArchTam.

Having kicked off in Los Angeles, California, yesterday, my US counterparts and I are looking forward to hosting exchange delegates (including mayors, councillors and business leaders) in each city and providing introductions to local civic leaders and case study projects that demonstrate “best practice” funding and financing methods for infrastructure and urban renewal projects.

As a firm advocate for government reform and innovation in procurement practices for critically needed infrastructure, I’m really excited at the potential for knowledge sharing during the exchange, and for positive action in and around our cities after it.

When I introduced this year’s exchange delegates to US funding and financing mechanisms in April and May during the Mayors’ Forum – a central component of the Future Cities Program held during the lead up to the exchange – I could sense a real enthusiasm among Australian government leaders to be bold in meeting the country’s infrastructure backlog. We all recognise the need to leave a legacy, not a liability, for the future. Well planned and appropriately funded infrastructure will be an important part of that legacy.

The cornerstone of the Future Cities Collaborative – the Future Cities Program – is to support both regional and metropolitan city leaders from New South Wales and provide them with the knowledge, skills, and resources to build sustainable and liveable communities.

With what we’ve got planned over the coming 10 days or so, I think we’re in great shape and, following the City Exchange’s conclusion on 3 July in New York City, we look forward to the release of a 2015 City Exchange report featuring case studies and “lessons learned” to share with NSW state and local government partners, US host city sponsors, and other supporters.

Follow our journey as we make our way across the US. Daily posts and images will be uploaded to the Future Cities blog, while ArchTam’s respective city leads will be sharing their own thoughts throughout the week, right here on Connected Cities.

Joe Langley is a technical director, Infrastructure Advisory, for ArchTam, based in Sydney. His Value Capture Roadmap is being released by Consult Australia in July.

The post Financing urban infrastructure in the US and Australia appeared first on Blog.