Wiley|Wilson employee-owners observed Engineers Week February 23 – 27 and participated in different activities aimed at celebrating the many contributions engineers have made to society. A DiscoverE program, Engineers Week is an annual, week-long event that aims to praise how engineers make a difference in our world, increase awareness about the need for engineers, and inspire the next generation of emerging engineers.

Employee-owners Scott Parr, PE, CEM, Project Engineer, Mechanical Department and Jane Baikadanova, EIT, LEED Green Associate, Engineer-in-Training 3, Electrical Department are active in the National Capital chapter of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). This year ASHRAE volunteers participated in the Discovery Engineering Family Day (DEFD) at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC. More than 8,000 children attended the event, which featured on-site experiments to help kids understand different scientific concepts.

“Engineers Week is an event our industry anticipates each year and I was excited to have the opportunity with ASHRAE to assist at DEFD this year,” Jane said. “We had three different experiments set up and the kids were enthusiastic to participate. It was inspiring to see their excitement and realize that you’re helping instill a love for this field at an early age.”

“DEFD is a wonderful experience for children, families, and community groups to learn more about engineering opportunities and its different disciplines,” Scott added. “More students are being encouraged to pursue a career in a STEM field, and this event — and the entire Engineers Week program — help support those efforts.”

The Lynchburg area holds an Engineers Week banquet each year, drawing engineers and specialists from the area’s many technical and design firms as well as STEM students from local colleges and high schools. Members from local engineering societies and groups organize the event, which features a keynote speaker who addresses an engineering-related topic.

“This year we were excited to welcome Dr. Hartmann of Delta Star as our featured speaker,” said Matt Pillow, EIT, Wiley|Wilson Engineer-in-Training, Civil/Water Resources Department. This year Matt served as chair of the Engineers Week planning committee and represented the local American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) chapter. “Dr. Hartmann spoke on a topic that appealed to a broad audience: the possibility of extended power outages and new technology that is being developed to help mitigate the damage if such events were to occur.”