FOcus - Fuss & O'Neill's Company Newsletter - Summer 2020

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Fuss & O’Neill’s Newsletter SUMMER 2020

WHAT’S INSIDE Message from the President What’s New? Trending Now FOcus on Safety

Message from the President I hope this newsletter finds all of you safe and healthy. Now, more than ever, it is exceedingly important that we stay together and continue to check in on each other. As we take our first steps to reopen some of our office locations, we will continue to act in the best interest of our employees, partners, and clients, including providing the flexibility and understanding to let them make the decisions that are best for them, for their respective families, and for their coworkers. Throughout these last four-plus months,

Business Line FOcus

our team has communicated frequently and openly about virtually all

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together despite our physical distance. Although the majority of our

aspects of our business. That transparency has helped bring us closer workforce has worked remotely over the last few months, I believe we will come through this more connected and stronger than ever before.

With so many of us still adjusting to the new normal of having kids home all the time, working with different schedules, and having to use different modes of communication to accomplish our work, I sincerely appreciate the amount of time and devotion everyone has invested during this pandemic. My belief is that your time is the biggest gift you can give, as it is truly priceless. I am happy to share this time with you and proud to share what’s happening here at Fuss & O’Neill.

- Kevin Grigg, PE CEO

Awards NEWEA Alfred E. Peloquin Award - Virgil Lloyd, PE ACEC Engineering Excellence Award Beehive Bridge ENR Top 500 Design Firms Zweig Group 2020 Best Firm to Work For

What’s New? Promotions Diane Mas, PhD, REHS/RS Diane was promoted to Vice President and is the firm’s first Chief Resilience Officer.

Diane has been with Fuss & O’Neill since 2001 and has been instrumental in the growth and development of the firm’s water resources, resilience, and environmental practice. In her new role, Diane will act in a largely technical capacity to support and encourage resilient thinking across all lines of business by helping employees to better understand the role of resilience in their practices.

Jenna Krzesicki Jenna has been named Director of Finance. Jenna will support the financial growth of the company by seeking continuous improvement of financial strategies, conducting risk assessments for new markets, and analyzing existing operational costs.

Kevin Johnson, PE, PTOE, NETTCP Kevin has been named our first Executive Vice President of Business Development. Kevin

will ensure collaboration and consistency across the firm’s business lines (Buildings and Hazardous Materials, Community Development, Environmental and Facility Services, Transportation and Water/Natural Resources). He will lead strategic planning and will be responsible for company-wide growth initiatives.

John Chambers, PG, LSP John has been named our first Executive Vice President of Operations.

John has been with the company for more than 20 years. In his new role, John will improve coordination and cohesion among regions, create opportunities for internal career advancement, and lead acquisitive growth initiatives.

Timothy St. Germain, PE Tim has been promoted to Business Line Leader of Fuss & O’Neill’s Environmental and Facility Services Business Line. A Senior Vice President and shareholder of the company, Tim will oversee the Compliance, Industrial Plant, Facility, and Remediation Practices, which serve hundreds of industrial, manufacturing, municipal, educational, site development, and architectural clients.

Fuss & O’Neill Named 2020 Best Firm to Work For With offices throughout New England, engineering and environmental consulting firm Fuss & O’Neill has been named a “Best Firm to Work For” by the Zweig Group.

New Employees JANUARY

Maya Cook-Gholston Accounting Technician Joshua Aldrich, PE Project Manager - Transportation Shawn Franjeskos, PE Civil Engineer - Community Development

FEBRUARY

Amy Gregory, PE Senior Electrical Engineer Eileen Gunn Transportation Business Line Manager

MARCH

Elizabeth Isenstein Water Resources Engineer John Passaretti Environmental Technician

MAY

Amy Jagodowski Executive Administrator

JUNE

John Mullen Senior Project Manager, Manufacturing Solutions

JULY

Connor Agro Transportation Engineer Katherine O’Shea Transportation Engineer Ashley Bosse Water Resources Engineer Kenneth Berchielli Geotechnical Engineer Kevin Thimotee Civil Engineer - Community Development

Boston Office Opening We are proud to announce our newest office location!

190 High Street Boston, MA Our downtown Boston office has been in the works for some time now, and we are pleased to be able to provide our Eastern Massachusetts clients with an additional convenient location. We hope to be able to have a proper open house soon!

Poll We asked our employees what they missed most about working in the office. Here are the results. Which would you vote for?

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee Our Gender Equity and Leadership Committee was formed as a proactive approach to make Fuss & O’Neill a best place to work for all employees. One of the goals was to “authentically foster diversity by leveraging our varying backgrounds and experiences as we work together to improve our culture.” With the current national dialogue and Black Lives Matter movement, the Committee felt it was integral to our company culture to actively create an inclusive and equitable environment for all historically

Free Coffee

Having a Daily Routine

Having a Proper Work Space

My Coworkers!

disadvantaged groups. Moving forward, the Gender Equity and Leadership Committee will now be known as the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.

The Results: Free Coffee

3%

Proper Work Space

9%

Daily Routine

15%

My Coworkers

73%!!!!!

Visit Our Careers Page for Current Job Openings! https://www.fando.com/careers/

Trending Now Everything Changes Everything Matthew W. Skelly, PE, PTOE These days, it can be hard to focus on anything other than immediate need. Each day brings staggering data and we, as a community, as a country, and as a world united by crisis, make decisions based on that data in the short-term – until that data inevitably changes the following day. So how do we, as transportation professionals, even begin to think about next week, next month, next year, and the general future of our industry? The best we can do is at least begin the conversation – and that’s what a panel of transportation professionals did on May 4th.

At this year’s CT ITE Annual Meeting, we invited panelists Jeff Paniati (Executive Director and CEO, ITE), Mayuresh Khare (Associate VP, AECOM), Robert Arnold (Director of Field Services – North, FHWA) and moderator Jason DeGray (Boston Office Director, Toole Design) to hypothesize and discuss the future of our industry. Members of our Chapter had the opportunity to ask a series of questions about how our industry is currently affected and the changes that may or may not occur as a result of the pandemic.

We first discussed what transportation professionals should be doing in response to the pandemic. Transportation and infrastructure are secondary concerns right now, and rightfully so. The health and safety of our loved ones comes first. Staying home and staying safe is the priority. This staying home has visually changed our roads and highways. What were once rush hour parking lots are now empty lanes. This change in usage especially applies to mass transit, as social distancing requires appropriate space not typically available on buses and subways.

Parks and multi-use trails are also impacted by social distancing rules, yet they become places of refuge as they offer the appearance

of freedom. And there are emerging and unexpected concerns, including pedestrian signal operation. Four months ago no one would have thought twice about pushing a crosswalk button, but now this button brings with it the chance of infection.

Like everything else, these concerns are ever-evolving, and the “new normal” has yet to be determined. It is likely that, until there is a vaccine, travel will be inherently different than what we are used to. Which means that we cannot make any major decisions about how we design without full knowledge of what that new normal looks like. We need to think about stop gaps, not upending the entire system.

This led nicely into our next topic of discussion: ensuring that economic recovery (i.e., the return to work and opening of businesses, which will put people back on the roads) is addressed in a manner that protects the safety and welfare of those using public transit. Currently, most states are discussing phased implementation of economic return. This phasing will need to be mirrored in regard to public transportation. Our existing transportation systems are typically designed for maximum capacity, but that can no longer be permitted. The number of people using a particular vehicle will have to be determined by the amount of space that vehicle provides. Simply put, to ensure safe transit, the number of people permitted at a time will have to be reduced. This decision will be left to the transit organizations, but will be easier to implement if people returning to work happens in a phased approach. The usage of public transportation will have to change as well. Exiting and entering will have to be staggered (picture the taped floors of grocery stores), operators require proper

PPE, and payment options may need to be modified, or fares eliminated altogether, to reduce human interaction.

The conversation progressed into a dialog on better physical separation of transportation modes and how we, as transportation professionals, would change to meet those needs. Given that every state has its own plan to recovery, it is likely that there is no singular answer to this question. Each state, and each city and town within that state, may have different needs. It is important that those needs be considered and that priorities be developed based on those needs before permanent changes are implemented. We need to help government officials identify and prioritize based on the best available information. In the shortterm, it is likely that telecommuting will be the norm, not the exception. This will mean that volume will not likely return to pre-crisis numbers immediately. However, carpooling will no longer be encouraged and public transit usage may decrease, so we must also consider that the number of singleoccupancy vehicles will likely increase. And though we live in New England where the weather is less-than-predictable, there may be newly improved opportunity to advance complete streets projects and pedestrian/ cyclist-friendly environments. Alternate forms of transportation could show an increased demand. We may need to plan for short-

term capacity, but we will have to monitor trends and behaviors as the “new normal” begins to emerge.

The most difficult question we tackled was predicting what our industry would look like 10 years from now. While we can only guess, we all agree that it will likely be different.

We anticipate that these are not short-term challenges and that they will shape longterm changes. We will have to monitor, analyze, and make decisions accordingly. It is possible that train travel could increase because it is easier to social distance on a train than on an airplane. We are seeing a lot more people biking and walking; it is possible that this reconnection to selfpropelled transportation could reduce the amount of cars on the road or increase the need for more inclusive roadways. We need to recognize that, even though it is our job to have the answers, there are no answers right now as we have barely begun to formulate the questions. We need to be mindful that change is constant and we must be flexible in response. Change is usually so slow that it is almost imperceptible. Perhaps one of the silver linings is that we will be a rare generation that not only gets to witness rapid progression, but also one that gets to influence positive change.

Matthew W. Skelly, PE, PTOE is a Transportation Project Manager in our Quincy, MA office. Matt has a wide range of experience in traffic impact analysis, feasibility and planning studies, transit planning studies, traffic calming, traffic signal design, and roadway design. He is the CT ITE President and this article was written for, and published in, The New England Chronicle, Spring 2020, Volume 60, Issue 2. The New England Chronicle is the official publication for the New England Section of the Institute of Transportation Engineers. We thank them for allowing us to republish this article.

Share your thoughts with us on the future of transportation: marketing@fando.com

Returning to Work Fuss & O’Neill began resuming office operations through a phased approach on Monday, July 6th. We set up internal gateways to guide re-opening that maintained a focus on the health and safety of our employees and the public. Our employees are required to complete a web-based course prior to returning to an office, self-monitor for symptoms of COVID-19, maintain appropriate social distance (at least 6 feet), uphold frequent hand washing or sanitizing (company provided), and are required to wear a face covering in prescribed instances. Prior to July 6th, all Fuss & O’Neill offices were deep cleaned using a qualified third-party vendor using EPA-approved disinfectants. Public areas in the office will have ongoing deep cleaning.

During Phase 1 of our plan, access to conference rooms, print/copy rooms, and common areas will be restricted to no more than one person at a time. Occupancy ratings for all conference rooms and other office common areas (kitchens, copy centers, etc.) have been calculated to take into account social distancing guidelines; these new occupancy ratings will be effective beginning in Phase 2 of this plan. Phases will be implemented based on CDC recommendations and recommendations from the corresponding state’s re-opening guidelines.

FOcus on Safety We are proud to announce our revamped safety program:

Priority is a living and ever-evolving system of best practices, empowerment, teamwork, innovation, improvement, and an organizational objective to maintain an incident-free workplace. We weave safety into our culture and we recognize that our safety performance is a direct indicator of the health and stability of the organization.

Priority is led by our Corporate Health and Safety Officer and is supported by our organizational Safety Committee, with representation from every office and implementation

by Fuss & O’Neill leadership. Because employee engagement and communication are key elements of the Health and Safety Program, we have a reporting system that encourages employees to communicate safety hazards to senior management to reduce risk and the likelihood of an employee accident.

Fuss & O’Neill “At we believe that,

if it can’t be done safely, it shouldn’t be done. Employee health and safety is our priority.

” - Kevin Grigg, PE, CEO Safety Tips

• Go where you’re looking or look where you’re going! Don’t walk and use an electronic device at the same time.

• Ride bicycles on the street with the flow of traffic.

• Walk on sidewalks. If you must walk in the road, always walk against traffic.

• During the summer months it is important to stay hydrated for work and leisure. Water is best for hydration; avoid sugary and caffeinated drinks.

To celebrate a milestone of 450+ days without an OSHA recordable accident, we gave each of our employees a first aid kit for their personal vehicle.

A large portion of our work is performed outside of the office. As our colleagues and clients, you bring unique insight to safety practices. If you see something that we can improve upon, we want to hear about it. If you have safety policies that you practice that you think would help us, we would love for you to share them.

Please send your safety observations and tips to: rlevandoski@fando.com

Business Line FOcus Water and Natural Resource

that we will need to adapt to, and the investment required to manage that change, will be that generation’s greatest engineering challenge.

Q For this issue we remotely chatted with Dean Audet, PE, Senior Vice President and Water and Natural Resources Business Line Leader to learn more about how the recent pandemic has impacted his field of work.

Q A

Q A

ou’re the Business Line Leader for Y “Water and Natural Resources”. For those unfamiliar, can you explain a little about what your business line does and who you serve? he Water and Natural Resources T Business Line is a team of scientists and engineers that solves a range of water and natural resource problems.

This could include restoring a salt marsh, repairing a dam, improving a neighborhood’s resilience to flooding, or designing wastewater treatment facilities. Our clients are typically entities that represent communities that rely on these resources, meaning municipalities, state and federal agencies, as well as non-profits whose mission is often to protect these resources. rior to the COVID-19 pandemic, P what would you have said was society’s biggest challenge as it pertained to our natural world? ur biggest challenge overall is climate O change impacts. The implications of climate change on our communities and environment are enormous, especially when considering future projections.

Over the next 30 years, the change

A

Q A

Has your answer changed given the current global crisis?

I don’t believe so, but the COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns to me whether we will have the political will and financial capability to manage these challenges. If we don’t, nature will manage these challenges for us and will be a significant disruptor to at-risk communities.

C an you share with us a few projects that your Business Line is working on?

In the News Check out what our experts are saying: Coping with COVID-19: Fuss & O’Neill, Inc. – Providence Business News https://pbn.com/coping-with-covid-19-fussoneill-inc/ SUCCESS STORIES – Gina DePasquale ’20 – University of Hartford https://www.hartford.edu/successstories/2020/ss-ceta-gina-depasquale-20.aspx Connecticut CEO Talks Mentorship, Leadership, and Progress in Times of Crisis – MetroHartford Alliance https://www.metrohartford.com/about-us/ newsroom/connecticut-ceo-talks-mentorshipleadership-and-progress-in-times-of-crisis/?fb clid=IwAR3Gs7PffYmsF0mwhUD1wuywm7Tt17 Wec0skrSWSjeTlgqBZ1PmigPMKiVA

nature-based approaches with traditional flood walls and pump stations.

e pride ourselves in developing W innovative solutions. We are working on several very creative designs:

• Herring River Salt Marsh Restoration (Massachusetts) We are designing $15M of new infrastructure, including a 160-foot-long “green” bridge with hydraulic controls to allow the adaptive restoration of 2 mi2 of salt marsh.

• Pocasset River Flood Resilience Project (Rhode Island) As part of this project, we are designing $58M of improvements to make a 26-squaremile, urban watershed resilient to flooding. This project incorporates

• Old Lyme Shoreline Wastewater Infrastructure (Connecticut) We are designing $10M in new wastewater infrastructure in a shoreline community.

Q

W hat new or emerging fields would you like to work in?

A

Climate change is our future focus. We have already accomplished a lot in this field and will continue to invest so that we have the skills that our communities will need.

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Here’s how we’ve been spending our time.

What have you been up to?

SOME OF US WELCOMED NEW FAMILY MEMBERS:

Send us your quarantine pictures: marketing@fando.com

Samantha Godin got a new puppy, BB!

MEP Group Happy Hour

Drew and Ashley Roseman welcomed Ayla Olivia in March!

David and Jackie Cook became the proud parents of Owen Lee in March!

WE KEPT HAVING HAPPY HOURS:

Providence Office Happy Hour

Meet Martha - Diane Mas’s new therapy rabbit !

Springfield Beer Club

WE PUT OUR FAMILIES TO WORK:

Julia Fox helps her mom, Nicole, in their dining room office.

Erin Maloney’s adorable helpers!

Ashley and Jared Smith have their hands full with helpers Greyson, Maddox, and Kinleigh!

Katherine Patch’s curious future traffic engineer!

Juniper, the18-month-old American Mastiff helping her dad, Jeff Craig, CMRP.

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Bill Nagle’s cat providing moral support.

Harl and his coworkers collaborate in the Humphrey House Conference Room!

Allen Pigeon’s cats practice social distancing!

David Callahan’s curious new neighbor!

Brian Pratt’s niece helps out with some design work!

Kristin Connell’s coworkers are climbing the walls!

Ted DeSantos and his helper, Rocket!

EVEN DOGS LOVE ENGINEERING!

Melissa Trombley’s tired co-worker.

Elizabeth Orizaga’s dog, “Mom’s not looking, so...”

Maggie Snape’s co-workers just want a little attention!