The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) California region held it's annual Conference this week in Sacramento, combining the Conference, Engineering Excellence Awards Banquet and Legislative Visit Day into one issues-packed week.
The Conference, with the theme Back in Black: Paving the Road to Economic Recovery kicked off on Monday morning with the General Session breakfast and an inspiring keynote speech by U. S. Senate Candidate Carly Fiorina. At lunch we were given an overview of the California Forward's principles and plans for pursuing nonpartisan government reform by Jim Mayer, the Executive Director of California Forward.
The roundtable discussion, breakout sessions and panel topics included GIS, Water, Transportation, Healthcare, Labor Law and Marketing.
The hallmark of the Conference is always the outstanding networking opportunities, timely topics and interesting speakers. The staff of ACEC, led by Jenny Devine, routinely does an exceptional job organizing and putting on these events.
Converse Consultants is an active member of ACEC CA and several of our senior staff and principals are members of various committees.
A nationwide coalition is undertaking the task of repairing, restoring and, in some cases, saving the Great Waters of our nation.
The America's Great Waters Coalition is an alliance of more than 30 national, regional, state, and local organizations working to protect, preserve, and restore America's Great Waters, which include, but are not limited to, the Chesapeake Bay, Coastal Louisiana, the Everglades, Great Lakes, Gulf of Maine, Long Island Sound, Mississippi River, Puget Sound, San Francisco/Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
The goals of the America's Great Waters Coalition are to:
- Make the restoration of our country's great waters a national priority
- Secure sustainable dedicated funding for restoration
- Enact and ensure sound implementation of restoration projects
According to Jennifer S. Vey, fellow, Brookings Institution in this article in Waterworld, "Research has found that cleaning up the Great Lakes and its waterways -- by improving water and sewer infrastructure, restoring and preserving wetlands and coastal habitats, and cleaning up toxic areas -- would create jobs and inject billions of dollars into the regional economy....This indicates that directing public investments toward improving the health of all of the nation's Great Waters -- from the Chesapeake to the San Francisco Bay -- simply makes good economic sense."
A complete list of coalition members can be found here.
See the full size map here.
This effort can result in a widespread investment in our national infrastructure which, in turn, can give a boost to the A/E/C industry. The water/wastewater treatment plants, surface and groundwater resource management and transportation systems in our country can be upgraded to be more efficient and ecologically sound.
Converse Consultants is ready to assist in this effort to improve our Great Waters and our infrastructure.
20-year anniversaries are not that common in our industry, so it is especially gratifying to congratulate John Watkins on his 20 year anniversary with Converse!
John has been working in the Las Vegas environmental department since 1989. He received his BS degree in geology from UNLV and has the following certifications:
- Nevada Certified Asbestos Consultant IPM 0199
- AHERA Asbestos Refresher:
- Building Inspector, Project Designer, Contractor/Supervisor
Mr. Watkins is Converse's principal asbestos inspector, and has participated in numerous asbestos abatement projects. He is also actively involved in monitoring well installation, site assessments of hydrocarbon contaminations and responsible for health and safety on various sites.
His Managing Officer, Kurt Goebel says "John is one of those people who gives everything he has to make his clients happy and they are all very glad to have him taking care them. As a manager, I am very lucky to have John working for me. Thank you John for being such a great employee!"
SOCIETY FOR MARKETING OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
44 Canal Center Plaza, Suite 444
Alexandria, VA 22314
http://www.smps.org/
Contact: Christine Chirichella, Marketing Manager
800.292.7677, x227, or christine@smps.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 24, 2009
BETH GEORGE ACHIEVES CERTIFED PROFESSIONAL SERVICES MARKETER DESIGNATION
Redlands, CA-Beth George, Director of Business Development for Converse Consultants, earned the designation of Certified Professional Services Marketer in November, 2009. She is among a growing number of professionals to be certified by the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS), which advocates for, educates, and connects leaders in the design and building industry.
Certified Professional Services Marketers (CPSMs) are recognized as having the experience and knowledge to generate profitable business in the architectural, engineering, and construction marketplace. To achieve this designation, certification candidates must meet educational and experience requirements, pass a rigorous written examination, and pledge to abide by the CPSM Code of Ethics. The process validates the individual's mastery of and ability to apply critical business development knowledge in an industry that values certification.
SMPS Chief Executive Officer Ronald D. Worth, CAE, FSMPS, CPSM, observed, "Pursuing certification demonstrates a professional's commitment to life-long learning and to building the firm's business. Certification is truly an investment in one's career, the profession, and the industry."
To learn more about SMPS and the certification program, contact Marketing Manager Christine Chirichella at 800.292.7677, x227, or christine@smps.org, or Certification Manager Kevin Doyle, x232, kevin@smps.org. Information also is available at http://www.smps.org/.
The Society for Marketing Professional Services (www.smps.org) was created in 1973 by a small group of firm leaders who recognized the need to sharpen skills, pool resources, and work together to create business opportunities. Today the association supports 7,000+ members as they tackle the day-to-day complexities of marketing and developing business for architectural, engineering, construction, and related specialty services firms in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
Converse Consultants is an industry leader in the fields of geotechnical engineering, environmental engineering, groundwater sciences, GIS, and materials testing and inspection services. With 11 offices in 5 states, Converse provides expertise nationally for complicated transportation, water resources, water storage and conveyance, educational and governmental projects, as well as commercial, retail and industrial developments. For more information please contact Beth George at bgeorge@converseconsultants.com or 909-796-0544.
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Rich Pugliese, Converse's GIS Manager spent a day at Western High School in Las Vegas, Nevada, speaking to over 180 students and faculty to help promote GIS awareness.
Demonstrations on how GIS (geographic information systems) is used to help solve daily problems for water resources, geotechnical and environmental engineering were part of the program. A series of maps was also provided for display at the Clark County Government Center.
GIS Day is a grassroots educational event that enables users and vendors to open their doors to schools, businesses, and the general public to showcase real-world applications of GIS. The event is held on the Wednesday of Geography Awareness Week, which is the third week of November. Click here for more information on the event.
Organizations all over the world that use or are interested in GIS participate by holding or sponsoring an event of their own. The first GIS Day occurred in 1998.
The events principle sponsors are the National Geographic Society, Association of American Geographers (AAG), University Consortium for Geographic Information Science (UCGIS), United States Geological Survey (USGS), Library of Congress and ESRI.
California legislators passed a package of water policy bills and an $11 billion bond that some see as the state's biggest water move in half a century.
The package authorizes an $11.1-billion water bond to pay for new storage, ecosystem restoration, water supply improvements and watershed protections. This is scheduled to go on the November 2010 ballot for voter approval.
It also establishes a statewide groundwater monitoring program, sets a statewide conservation target of a 20% reduction in urban per capita water use by 2020 and beefs up the State Water Resources Control Board enforcement staff with 25 additional officers.
Perhaps the most far reaching, and controversial, item in the package is a new oversight council for the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, and directs that the Delta be managed for the twin goals of water supply reliability and ecosystem protection.
We are looking forward to working with our clients in the water industry to take advantage of this opportunity to improve the reliability and stability of our water resources and infrastructure. Our experience with groundwater resources and aquifer delineation can play an important part in the monitoring program.
Converse Consultants is prepared to provide our expertise in the conveyance, storage and treatment of water and recycled water. We have decades of experience addressing geotechnical, geologic , environmental issues associated with pipelines, reservoirs, treatment plants, groundwater storage basins, groundwater recharge and desalination plants.
Welcome to the inaugural posting of Converse Consultants' new blog, 'Quick Conversations'! As a play on the name of our quarterly newsletter, Conversations, this blog is also a supplement to the newsletter.
This is where you'll get all of the latest company and design and construction industry info right away. It's interactive so we can all join in on, well, Quick Conversations on any variety of topics relevant to the industry.
You'll also be regularly treated to guest bloggers sharing their experience and ideas from different regional and professional perspectives.
Our services include geotechnical and geologic engineering, environmental and groundwater sciences, and materials testing and inspection during construction. With such a wide range of expertise there's ALWAYS something to talk about!
Feel free to stop by and share your ideas and suggestions for future posts. No topic is too hot!
We look forward to many Quick Conversations with you!
Converse Consultants was founded by Fred Converse in 1946 to provide sensible solutions to geotechnical and geologic problems. We've carried on his legacy by giving our clients what they need. No cutting corners, no 'over-designing'. Just quality service in a timely and cost effective manner.