TZL 1428 (web)

TRANSACTIONS AG&E EXPANDS RANGE OF SERVICES THROUGH ACQUISITION OF VIRGINIA- BASED BLUE RIDGE DESIGN, INC. AG&E Associates, PLLC, a structural engineering firm headquartered in Texas, has acquired Blue Ridge Design, Inc., a preeminent specialty precast engineering firm based in Winchester, Virginia. BRD delivers structural engineering services with special expertise in the precast, prestressed concrete industry. The founding member of BRD, Ned M. Cleland, PhD, PE, joins the leadership team of AG&E as an Executive Principal and Director of Specialty Precast Engineering. BRD, established in Winchester, Virginia in 1986, is recognized in the precast industry as a leader in the design of complicated structural precast concrete systems. Its services include advanced engineering consulting to owners and developers using precast, prestressed concrete as a primary structural system in a wide range of buildings. BRD also provides engineering services to precast concrete manufacturers for the detailed design and drawings of their products. Under the leadership of Dr. Cleland, PE, BRD’s expertise and vast experience complement AG&E’s existing practices.

“I am pleased to welcome Dr. Cleland and the entire BRD staff to the AG&E family. They are highly regarded by their clients and peers in the industry,” said Sanjay Agrawal, PE, SE, president and CEO of AG&E. “The acquisition of BRD represents the boots-on-the-ground that AG&E had been seeking and our clients had been clamoring for in the bustling Virginia construction market.” “Blue Ridge Design is excited to become a part of AG&E,” said Ned M. Cleland, PhD, PE, founder of BRD. “We bring our knowledge and experience in the specialty of precast, prestressed concrete design to a wider clientele. Combined with the strength and resources of AG&E, we look forward to providing a range of services to address future challenges, especially in mission critical projects.” Founded in 2004, AG&E has become one of largest structural engineering consulting firms in Texas. With six offices across the state, AG&E works with architects, general contractors, and owners across the nation on a myriad of projects. Market sectors include mission critical, aviation, healthcare, corporate, industrial, education, federal, municipal, living spaces, parking

garages, and transportation. AG&E also offers structural sub-specialties such as parking planning, vibration consulting, and blast engineering to provide fully integrated structural services to clients. “The acquisition of Blue Ridge Design continues the practice of adding premier structural engineers to our team. It increases AG&E’s breadth of services as we now can offer our clients specialty precast, prestressed engineering,” said Al Baysek, PE, SE, CSO and executive principal of AG&E. “BRD also adds a strategic locale, Northern Virginia, to our bases of operation.” The acquisition of BRD, a team of committed and energetic professionals, expands AG&E’s portfolio of services and positions itself to better serve clients nationwide. AG&E is uniquely qualified to provide structural engineering services, vibration testing and analysis, and LiDAR + BIM. Utilizing the latest design techniques, computer applications, and proven engineering concepts, AG&E derives structural solutions based on efficiency, economic feasibility, and support of a project’s architectural intent and expression.

need to build flexibility into our processes. Management should provide boundaries and the expected results, and let staff manage the in-between. Back to our example above. When it became apparent that our forced process was no longer employed, we changed our tactics. The management team defined the end goal, provided clear expectations, and let staff develop the specifics that would lead to, in this case, improved communications across our project teams and with clients. Project managers were given the freedom to work the process in a way that fit their management style and clients’ preferences. This led to individual ownership of the process and, more importantly, to the desired outcome. As an industry, we have done marvelously well in adapting to our newwork environment, now it’s time to apply that same flexibility to our processes – if you want to deliver consistent outcomes. Brittney Odom is southeast region environmental services leader at SCS Engineers. Contact her at bodom@scsengineers. com . Eduardo Smith, P.E. is senior vice president of business development at SCS Engineers. Contact him at esmith@ scsengineers.com.

BRITTNEY ODOM & EDUARDO SMITH, from page 9

from those individuals to continually improve and adapt the process to increase efficiency or adapt to changing conditions. When we were faced with a series of preventable and atypical mistakes by a few of our project managers, our management team quickly developed a process to enhance communication across our project teams and with clients. We were pleased to see immediate results from our new process, but not surprisingly, the process was essentially abandoned after a few months. In today’s environment, pushing down processes will typically only get obligatory compliance, which is often short-lived. 3. Allow flexibility. From where staff work, to how they get their jobs done, flexibility is expected these days. So we “As an industry, we have done marvelously well in adapting to our newwork environment, now it’s time to apply that same flexibility to our processes – if you want to deliver consistent outcomes.”

THE ZWEIG LETTER FEBRUARY 14, 2022, ISSUE 1428

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