Happy National Engineers Week 2023!

Arora Engineers (Arora) is proud to celebrate National Engineers Week! Founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) in 1951, National Engineers Week is dedicated to ensuring a diverse and well-educated future engineering workforce by increasing understanding of and interest in engineering and technology careers.

Dedicated to raising public awareness of engineers’ positive contributions to quality of life, this year’s theme is bringing engineering to life for kids, educators and parents. This promotes recognition of the importance of a technical education and a high level of math, science, and technology literacy, and motivates youth, to pursue engineering careers in order to provide a diverse and vigorous engineering workforce.

Arora is proud to participate in programs such as Future Cities Competition and are proud to celebrate our engineer and EIT group for the positive contributions they are making, not only in the work here at Arora, but to the quality of life in our world.

Learn more about some of our incredible team members here at Arora for National Engineers Week:

Alex Alqaq, PE, ICC, LEED AP, Sr. Project Engineer: “One piece of advice I would give to my younger self is to listen and learn from everyone and every trade and not only focus on your discipline/trade. That was a mistake I made where I focused only on Mechanical and Plumbing design without paying deserved attention to Electrical, Fire Protection, Fire Alarm, etc.”

Donna Guzewski, PE, LEED Green Associate, Plumbing Discipline Lead: “The thing I am most excited about in the future of our industry is getting younger kids interested in STEM. There are so many cool opportunities and occupations. My daughter’s boyfriend is working for a company called ZOOX, and they are developing a self-driving car. And are doing testing in the San Francisco area. How cool it that? There is no boundary to the future of engineering—but you got get kids interested in the possibilities early!”

Anastacia Michigan, PE, LEED Green Associate, Sr. Mechanical Designer: “Professionally, I am very proud of passing my PE exam. I studied diligently for a few months, and I was able to pass on the first try. It was the most difficult exam I’ve ever taken. I am currently preparing a presentation for the younger designers in our company or designers who haven’t taken the FE or PE yet to describe the application process and to give some study and test day tips and tricks. In regard to the future of our industry, I am looking forward to designing greener and more carbon neutral buildings. The changes we as an industry make today to push green design will positively affect our future and the future of our children.”

Arthur Simpson, SET, Lead Fire/Life Safety Designer: “I enjoy the work I do and the different challenges out there. Working at Arora has and will continue to be rewarding to not only keeping my work limited to a local area, but to have the opportunity to broaden my scope in working in other parts of the country (for now) and being involved in the numerous projects Arora is involved. There are challenges to not only provide what is required locally, but to also provide what is required at the locations where the project will be constructed. Fortunately, with today’s technology, this research can be done from the office with possible follow-up communications to local officials at the sites. This allows me to manage my time with the design aspect rather than to devoting additional time to traveling to the site. Please keep in mind, there are times that travel to the site(s) is necessary and required. This travel opportunity is also rewarding as part of the job. Doing these places more than just a voice at the end of the “call” or “email” and provides a more understanding of who I am working with/for on the project. This concept, for me, places a personal touch on the work.”

Milan Sutaria, RCDD, Special Systems Discipline Lead: “I am part of Special Systems group. I am passionate about my specialty, as I have been in the industry for almost 40 years, and this is what I love doing and I do it best. I enjoy solving client challenges which makes me satisfied at the end of the day. I also enjoy working with variety of solutions and projects and interacting with various clients. I am proud to overcome design understanding and knowledge about various Airport Systems at Arora as I did not have as in-depth understanding about them from my past experiences. I am also proud to solve our client challenges on couple of key projects at Arora. Advice I have for others is to listen. Listen to your client. Don’t necessarily talk all the time. If you pay attention to your client describing their issues, you will be in much better position to provide a sound and exciting solution to their challenges.”

Jeffrey Popen, ACE, Sr. Airfield Electrical Designer: “I am extremely passionate about Airfield Electrical Design. This niche utilizes my skill sets from the past 32 years of experience that I carry. I enjoy the interaction with clients, and the design challenges that I face.Throughout my time at Arora, I have experienced many challenging deadlines, and have been grateful knowing that I can receive support from others if needed. The way I am treated everyday as an individual and the transparency within our group is why I love working here.”

Mike Barbes, PE, LC, Sr. Electrical Engineer: “Advice I would give to my younger self would be to get more involved in the computer design development, both in CAD and Revit. The other item would be to buy more real estate and stocks!”

Jim Pazuchanics, Sr. Fire/Life Safety Designer: “Regarding the future of our industry, Life Safety Code is always years behind the technology. The pace of these new technologies is requiring the industry to find new ways to keep people and property safe. I am excited to be part of that change!”