I run this town like Barbaro

For the new year I had to update my biography/resume. I guess I never realized how much I've done in the last few years. Anyway, check out my stats after the jump... 

 Biography:
Troy Bishop is a leading Engineer-In-Training with growing responsibilities to prepare him for professional certification. His experience has given him a great balance of responsibility, field and book knowledge, and practical sense. Mr. Bishop began his career in the construction industry in 2006 while designing, managing, and building pre-engineered steel architectural domes and radius steel projects known throughout South Florida. He soon received his General Contractor’s license in 2007, scoring a 95% on the 2-day exam. Within a year Troy was not only granted his bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering at Florida Atlantic University, but was also certified as a Florida E.I. to continue his path to become a Professional Engineer at Engineering Express. He has broad experience in numerous aspects of physical design and approvals, technology implementation, and design efficiency. His direct familiarity with contractors, architects, manufacturers, and building officials has given him skill not only as a forward-thinking engineer, but as a consultant who can understand and work through the complications of building in South Florida. Troy currently specializes in designs and inspections ranging from entire building envelope systems to various types of specialty pre-engineered structures as well as hundreds of railing, staircase, and sunroom installations throughout Florida. Mr. Bishop has been instrumental in the continuance of Engineering Express: he currently serves as Vice President of Operations, managing an average of 600 projects per year while sustaining his own departments’ long-term goals.

Areas of Expertise:

·         Licensed General Contractor (CGC#1514456)

·         Florida Certified Engineer-In-Training (E.I.)

·         Building envelope and build-out remediation, inspection, and design

·         Field inspection and modifications for masonry and steel structures

·         Calculations, designs, and inspections for build-out and as-built structures

·         Aluminum and glass railing safeguard systems

·         Value- and reverse-engineering applications

·         Window and door installation remediation

·         Manufacturer consulting for rooftop equipment applications

Career Highlights:

·         Designed and installed architectural copper and steel radius features for the following:

• The Meridian at One North Ocean, Boca Raton, FL
• 12th Avenue Bascule Bridge House, Miami, FL

·         Provided complete building envelope systems engineering, inspection, and design to include:

• North Broward Medical Center Elevator Tower, Pompano Beach, FL
• MD Anderson Parking Facility Aluminum Louvered Screen, Houston, TX

·         Full-scale commercial interior/exterior improvements (storefront design and engineering, build-outs, canopies, trellis and shade systems) to include:

• Mystic Pointe Storefront Replacement, Aventura, FL
• Tornino Lamborghini Interior Build-out, Hallandale Beach, FL
• Trulucks Restaurant Exterior Radius Canopies, Miami, FL
• Alhambra Building Rooftop Trellis and Rails, Coral Gables, FL

·         Value-engineering and manufacturer consultation from product inception, through testing and evaluation, to submittal and approval:

• Ingersoll-Rand Corporation,  XB/XR/XL Model Tiedown Kit Certification
• Carrier Corporation, Florida Product Approval Testing for Large Missile Impact, Cyclic and Static Wind Loading of Rooftop Equipment

Voiceover Tutorial First of Its Kind

Well I don't have much to post this week--it's been fairly busy at work (read: the building departments are killing me) and I haven't had much interesting news come across my desk. I did find a fairly interesting article about Engineering Express (although I think we may have written it--shameless self-promotion :) ) through my Google Alerts. The article is called "Engineering Express - Where Engineering Meets Technology."

I also created a Youtube video describing how to use one of my firm's most used tools called a "Wind Pressure Calculator" which (as you may have guessed) calculates wind pressure on an object. The calculator can be found here and the tutorial video is below. Enjoy!

Technology, Widgets, and Engi-tainment

If you thought I spent 5 years in college studying engineering so I could sit in a cubicle all day, you're wrong. Now I get to be on film! I know I'm such an amazing actor and will probably be a superstar in no time, ESPECIALLY since America is so enthralled with structural engineering.

No, seriously folks, I'm now online with EXtv, the newest, hippest, most educational and technothusial form of engi-tainment on the web (by the way, engi-tainment is a mix of engineering and entertainment; you should have known that). Not that we've been all that entertaining so far, but give us a break engineering is a technical subject that takes alot to explain!

We shoot the video at our enormous production facility in South Florida (I like to call it Engineering Express). We have a plethora of producers, actors, extras, and models that I work with every day just to get the show going (the models especially go after my co-host Randald, our producers Keith and Colby, and our cameraman/Exec Producer Frank). We edit the video with top-dollar editing equipment (a.k.a. any software we can get for free online), and upload each episode with expensive servers and digital equipment (gotta love Youtube).

Anyway, the show features engineering, technology, and educational highlights, especially anything related to hurricane protection. Myself and Randald will try to steer the content in a direction that appeals to all types of people, not just engineers. We'll go over how to make your life easier with Widgets, how to navigate the weird and confusing ways of construction in South Florida, what to look out for regarding structural engineering and the next big things, all the while attempting to throw some humor and entertainment into the whole shabang.

You might enjoy the pilot episode, located on the Engineering Express channel at Youtube. Since you're following my blog and I have a big ego that needs to be fed, I'll go ahead and embed the second episode (mostly me sharing my amazing knowledge of everything in the universe) right here. Enjoy and tune in often.

Engineering Salaries Going Up!

Just read an article in Civil Engineering magazine that despite the recession, the salaries of engineers continue to go up year by year. The survey found that between April 2008 to April 2009 the median base salary of professional engineers rose almost 10%, from $85,000 to $92,000 annually. That's great news for me! Even better, my own field of structural engineering actually saw base salaries go up 12%! This is great news and shows that America is starting to finally see professional engineers for what they are--valuable assets to the safety and civility of society. Without engineers, you wouldn't even have a computer to read my blog. Although I still have to wait another 3 years for my own license in 2012 (right when the world ends), I'm glad that reports are finally coming out which make me feel more comfortable about choosing the right major. So now, not only do I love my job, but I'll be quite well off in doing it.....and will build my billion-dollar dream house in just a few short decades.

I also added some more GOOGLEJUICE (as Jeff Jarvis calls it) to my name. I now have a Google profile (which oddly enough doesn't even show up when you search for me, go figure) as well as a claimID account. ClaimID is a cool way to collaborate your digital self and put all the links into one simple site. My new claimID is www.claimid.com/troybishop and my new Google profile is http://www.google.com/profiles/troy.engexp. I even collected my sweet widget page at http://www.engexp.com/exos/widgets.cfm and a couple more profile pages at http://www.engexp.com/employee.cfm?employee_id=51 , http://www.linkedin.com/in/troysbishop. (Sorry about all the links, but I was told this would increase my exposure!)

My claimID

Information courtesy of CE magazine www.pubs.asce.org

How to Get Hired at a World-Class Engineering Firm

I have to get this off my chest; I don't want it to come off mean, but I hope this becomes a resource for engineering students or graduates who need help understanding the "mysteries" behind the doors of an engineering firm.

My engineering and tech firm, Engineering Express, is (in my opinion) one of the best and brightest in the industry. Obviously we didn't become that in a day, but we have worked tirelessly to get it there.

It all boils down to people. People are like the gears and equipment that keep a car moving; if you've got just a tire and a steering wheel you don't have a car that will go anywhere. But if you can get the other pieces and parts and put it all together, you can everything move--the people make it all happen. In regards to our own people at EX, we want and expect certain qualities. We need job skills, work attitudes, and personalities that will help us continue our vision and carry on our legend.

Job Skills

Job applicants to an engineering and design firm like Engineering Express should really analyze their skills and compare them to those required for the job. Do your research on the company interviewing you; look at their website, Facebook, Twitter, or other pages. Take an interest in what they do before you even get to their office. If you feel like you can't find an interest, you're probably at the wrong office. Also, your previous jobs, even if very different, may have given you skills that prove helpful. For example, a person with experience as a contractor may have the ability to be a great value-engineer or an inspector. Make note of these qualifications in your job interview, and relate some ideas on how you would utilize those skills to make your future employers profitable.

Problem-Solving Skills

Being able to solve problems is probably the most important skill an engineer will ever have, period. Don't be intimidated by problems--they're really opportunities. When you begin to formulate your own theories they will take on a life of their own and you can find a passion for finding the best solution. Think of your own experience in terms of how you solved problems. Then, relate those problem-solving skills to the engineering design job that you want.

Communication Skills

Any efficient design, engineering, and technology firm needs effective communications to run smoothly. It's a very simple thought, but one that can present the biggest downfall for engineering firms due to the complexity and real-time changes that occur every day in every active construction project they have on the books. The "Engineer Version 2.0" must streamline the data stream from each project, determine the next plan of action, and continually process and manage project information thereafter. His life literally depends on it. My firm does a great job of tracking projects and continuously synchronizing all the information that goes along with the 50,000+ every year. On the interview side, we can see whether the applicant can communicate effectively in their letter of introduction, cover letter, resume, and of course the interview. Successful applicants use these tools to show how their skills and qualifications will carry over into our firm.

Teamwork

Teamwork is just the ability to get along well with the people you have to work with every day; not just your co-workers, but also your current or prospective clients. You have to be able to put your team's needs above your own at times, and then take direction and criticism if needed. You can only get better if you know you're not good enough, and an employee who is skilled, but too argumentative or too sensitive, can stand in the way of his own and the company's success.

Dedication

Any design and engineering firm needs workers who are willing to put in the extra effort it takes to satisfy a customer, get training if needed, and essentially just be honest and dependable.

Personality and Life Skills

I love having co-workers that know themselves, can express their personality, and are comfortable with change. I also feel that my current colleagues manage their lives well enough that their personal problems don't interfere with our work. It's not that I expect them to have perfect situations – life sucks sometimes with finances or personal challenges – but it's that they handle it before it affects their work performance.

Attitude

I can't say enough about how important it is for me to work with people that have a positive work attitude. We all put extra effort into our jobs and focus on the good in pretty much any situation.

Employability Skills

To sum it all up, I would call the most important skills "employability skills" where you can:

• Adapt to changing demands of a job
  
• Be accurate
  
• Be creative and innovative
  
• Be flexible
  
• Concentrate on several parts of a job at once
  
• Not prevent me from finishing my own tasks
  
• Plan and organize work
  
• Stick with a task and keep busy

My firm generally looks for all of the above, with consideration to the fact we’re all human so it’s not fair to completely preclude someone for anything. We take a look at as many prospective hires as we can, and try to use a benchmark for particular positions to judge how an applicant would handle the work (something that generally includes a typical drawing and some calculations) . Once we agree on a good benchmark for the new prospects we then apply a uniform standard to certain capabilities and make a well-informed decision.

Long story short: my perfect job applicant needs to come to an interview ON TIME with at least a minimal grasp of what we’re doing, perform a job himself even if it takes all day, and ideally I would repeat the process with several applicants. At least in this economy, time is on the employer's side and nobody ever wants to settle. We all work better through personal synergy, and it shouldn't be at risk for just any hire. The market is in an employer's favor anyway, so they will always hold out for the best they can get that will still be here alongside them in the years to come.