Electrical Engineering Electrical Engineering WIRED Melissa Morin, FOR SUCCESS Consulting Engineer, Bechtel ELECTRICAL ENGINEERS ENJOY A RANGE OF CAREER OPPORTUNITIES WHEN KELLY SEILER VOCKE WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL, SHE WANTED TO BE AN ARCHITECT. BUT THEN SHE NOTICED SOMETHING: “E LECTRICAL ENGINEERING WAS EVERYWHERE … EVERYTHING HAS ELECTRICAL IN IT.” T ODAY, S EILER VOCKE IS AN AVIONICS ENGINEER WORKING ON UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES, AND HER STATEMENT APTLY CHARACTERIZES THE BREADTH AND DEPTH OF THE ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING FIELD. F ROM MAINTAINING THE ENGINES AT A NUCLEAR PLANT TO DESIGNING LIGHTING SYSTEMS, ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING OFFERS A LIMITLESS RANGE OF JOB POSSIBILITIES. CONSULTING ENGINEER SEES PROJECTS FROM START TO FINISH elissa Morin’s work helps get people from point A to point B. A consulting engineer for M Bechtel, Morin is working on the Dulles Metrorail Extension in Washington, DC. One of the largest construction projects in the country, this 23-mile extension will bring rail service to fast- growing areas of Northern Virginia and provide transportation from Dulles International Airport to downtown Washington, D.C. Morin is responsible for station distribution power, or “anything you need to turn on in the station.” From working with the power company to the power receptacles in the wall, individual panels to large equipment, cables to lighting, it all falls under Morin’s purview. With the company about 18 months, Morin brings a wealth of transportation experience to the project, including work on East Side Access, which connects the Long Island Rail Road to the Grand Central terminal; the World Trade Center tempo- rary PATH; and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) sys- tem, which the Dulles extension will connect to. While at Drexel University, it was a co-op program that introduced Morin to the Photo: RichSilva,Bechtel transportation sector; in her time with a consulting firm, she worked on an airport. “I really enjoyed being a consulting engineer, seeing a project from start to finish,” says Morin. “You start on paper, then you walk off with an actual airport behind you.” In her next co-op, she worked on a rail project in New York City. BY AMANDA N. WEGNER 16 • WINTER 2012/2013 17 • WINTER 2012/2013 Electrical Engineering As it was a defining experience for her career, project, she decided she wanted to work with buildings Morin highly recommends co-op assignments. “Having that were more technical in nature. that opportunity to try out a profession and see how it “Over the years, I have been mentored in the felt was key to where I am today.” sci/tech field … I now lead the design side of projects, Once a student knows what they want and where mentor younger engineers and oversee day-to-day con- they want to go, she adds, “go for that. Once I knew what cerns of projects in different stages of construction.” I enjoyed doing, having time in the field and going to Bookwalter’s projects primarily include laboratory client meetings, I went after those sorts of projects.” facilities, academic centers and student union buildings. She notes that women shouldn’t shy away from Her work begins with electrical the transportation and construction sectors; Bechtel, design, from its point of entry in particular, offers many opportunities to women in into the building to the end-user engineering. equipment. Additionally, she de - “You don’t have to be worried or nervous about signs fire alarm systems, coordi- that,” says Morin. “A number of my managers are nating with the other engineer- women. If you decide this is what you want to do, ing disciplines to ensure occu- there are jobs out there.” pants’ safety. An international company, Bechtel has robust With a master’s degree college recruitment programs around the world. from Penn State with an Diane Bookwalter, emphasis in lighting design, Interns are assigned peer mentors, and college Engineer Associate, Bookwalter is often asked to hires are assigned mentors outside their departments Stantec work on projects where lighting to help acclimate to the company. Bechtel also offers is a bit more complicated. an employee group, NextGen, for early career hires. The company also works on STEM (Science, “Lighting design provides Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) programs me the ability to ‘think outside of the box’ and make in elementary schools to get young students involved each project unique.” and interested in these fields. While she interned at Stantec in college, Morin encourages young engineers to take their FE Bookwalter has been working with the company for (Fundamentals of Engineering) and PE (Professional more than six years. Stantec, she says, is a great place to Engineering) exams as soon as possible. The FE exam work as “the company remembers that there is life can be taken during a college student’s senior year. After beyond work and has really accommodated me as a full- five years of work experience, graduates can take the PE time working mother.” exam to obtain their license. Bookwalter works on a variety of projects simulta- “The sooner you take it out of college, the better off neously. For instance, she’s been working with Corning, you are,” says Morin. “Colleges don’t bring it up a lot, but Inc. for the last four years on a new facility and upgrad- it’s something important for this field.” ing existing facilities to promote new research. This is an extremely technical project with many engineers work- MAKING EACH PROJECT UNIQUE AT STANTEC ing together. And she recently completed a four-story classroom building at University of Massachusetts. iane Bookwalter, PE, studied architectural engineer but is “While this project did not nearly have the amount D now specializes in electrical engineering, designing power distribution, lighting and fire-alarm systems for science, tech- of engineers working on it as Corning nor was it nearly nology and higher education buildings. as technical in regards to specific equipment, it offered a new challenge in coordinating the engineering with the An associate engineer with Stantec, Bookwalter architecture for a flawless appearance.” started her career as a design engineer. After an oppor- With all the coordination, “keeping everything tunity to provide design support on a large laboratory organized is definitely a must,” says Bookwalter. “You 18 • WINTER 2012/2013 Electrical Engineering Electrical Engineering may have hundreds of correspondence – email, meet- out,” she says. “And you always have to be looking for emerging issues. She is also beginning to take on addi- “But there are many new and young engineers coming ings, phone – with multiple entities on a project. To something new. The simplest designs are the best, but tional duties as a breaker engineer. in and bridging the generations and communicating keep all this information straight, I’ve learned that the hardest to make. Complex is easy, but how can it Jones joined the company in September 2003. and working together is necessary.” documenting everything and organizing it where I still work if the user can only input three things to Initially, she was one of just two female engineers; now Jones recommends that young engineers seek out can find it later is a must. It’s simply impossible to make it better?” there are 10. “This industry is really a man’s world, but a range of experiences and build a breadth of knowl- remember everything at every stage of the project.” She adds: “There is more troubleshooting than more women are coming into it,” says Jones. edge; in her own experience, she largely focused on Another must in this field is sustainability. design in this job.” A strong engineering background and practical small wire, like telecom and logic circuits, in college, “Owners are becoming more aware of the envi- As electrical engineers have an array of fields experience are equally important. For instance, Jones which made the switch to big wire (power plants) a ronment and are more willing to invest in a sustainable available to them, Seiler Vocke recommends trying has taken several motor courses in the industry and “big jump.” design,” says Bookwalter. “While we’ve always tried to “out as much as you can, with internships, clubs at has worked directly with mechanics, as “knowing the A male-dominated field, she encourages young create energy-efficient buildings as a practice of good school, design competitions and more. Figure out theory and how the motors actually work are not nec- female engineers to make their voices heard. “Don’t design, we are now seeing owners who want to go a some way to try it out and see if you like it.” essarily the same thing.” get uptight if you’re only woman in the group. Make step further and are willing to invest in a green design.” Her love of robotics, plenty of hands-on experi- In addition, working in the nuclear field comes yourself known and you’ll find success.” ence and a number of internships helped Seiler Vocke with special requirements, such as safely moving in With advances in nuclear technology, Jones is ENSURING SAFE FLIGHTS land a job a Northrop Grumman right out of college. and out of radiation areas, dressing properly and hopeful for its future. AT NORTHROP GRUMMAN “Real-world experience counts for a lot.” more. Employees, says Jones, must also be prepared to “We just need to find a way to deal with the hile Kelly Seiler Vocke is only responsible for five piece While UAVs are now used for research and the deal with the public. waste,” says Jones. “In my lifetime, more reactors will W of hardware, they are five very important pieces. They military, Seiler Vocke sees their use expanding in the “It’s not uncommon to have a staff with many be built, and I look forward to learning the nuances of are crucial for navigating the skies.