Blog/Events
Congratulations Pennsylvania Regional Director, Matthew Kawczenski, PE, SE, FSEI for being named one of ENR’s 2020 MidAtlantic Top Young Professionals. Touted as “a team-builder in-and-out of the office”, Matt has been making an impact throughout the AEC industry and in his community.
As head of QA/QC, inter-office coordination, marketing strategies and regional development for McLaren’s Pennsylvania operations, “Kawczenski knows that just as sound structural designs are fundamental to successful building projects, solid teams are essential to successful engineering businesses,” says ENR.
BUILDING HIS SUCCESS
Through hard work, attention to detail and delivery of code-compliant economical design, Matt has progressed from Entry-Level Engineer, to Project Engineer, to Project Manager and now to McLaren Engineering Group’s Pennsylvania Regional Director.
A licensed Professional Engineer with over 15 years of expertise in structural design and construction, Matt has managed projects from conception to construction with an affinity for steel structures. His technical skills and experience have helped build some of the Northeast’s most iconic structures of every size shape and scope.
A few of Matt’s standout projects include the luxury 53 West 53rd Museum of Modern Art Tower, two towers at Hudson Yards and Mount Airy Resort and Casino. He pushes himself to continually grow personally and professionally, in both the workplace and in the community.
INDUSTRY LEADER
Matt continually strives to mentor, educate and inspire engineers both in and out of the office.
While working on challenging and complex projects, he dedicates his time to training junior staff and actively shares structural engineering’s latest developments with his peers. Matt has participated in multiple local and national committees and organizations, often sharing his experiences in dealing with the intricacies of building codes through presentations by speaking at industry events.
At the NASCC conference series, Matt presented both “The Good, The Bad, The Ugly of Drawing Notes” and “Structural Design of Staircases…Don’t Get Tripped Up” in 2017 and “Drawing Details: The Good, the bad, and the Ugly” in 2019. Both presentations were a direct reflection of his real-world experiences and were presented to help engineers understand some of the building codes intricacies and how not to fall into the same mistakes.
COMMUNITY MINDED
Matt is also committed to building inspired, enthusiastic teams dedicated to strengthening communities. An adjunct professor at Lehigh University, Matt helps first-semester seniors prepare for the workforce by teaching a class focused on the professional development of engineers. Teaching them elements of professionalism; professional ethics; engineering registration; continuing education; responsibilities of an engineer in industry, government, private practice; and the role of professional and technical societies.
The local Lehigh Valley community also has benefited from his hard work and multiple charitable endeavors. For the past two years, Matt and his teams have also donated over 13,000 cans to the local food bank through the CANstructuion competition. Combining art, design, fun and local community support, Matt has had a hand in the design planning, fundraising, and exhibit “CANstructuion” for the neat sculptures (i.e. Mack Truck and Comic Can) the competition builds.
In April, you can meet Matt at the:
- NASCC: The Steel Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, where he is presenting “Shear Connection Beam Reinforcement.” The PDH lecture will review how to properly design web doublers, size welds, and detail doublers and alternate details — such as haunch plates with single or double shear tabs.
- SEI’s Structures Congress in St. Louis, Missouri, where he is on a panel for “Classroom to the Boardroom: Transitioning to an Entry-level Engineer.” This interactive panel discussion will provide information specific to standing out at the beginning of an engineering career. The ability to effectively transition to a new position is crucial to long term success and you can expect to walk away from this session with new tools for building your dream career. Your future is in your hands: learn how to seize this exciting opportunity.
How do you inspire the engineers of tomorrow? Be an active role model.
For EWeek 2020, some of McLaren’s engineers joined NYC Parks Waterfront Structures Project Manager, Gabrielle Czernik, P.E. and the ASCE New Jersey in bringing engineering principles to life with awe-inspiring, hands-on activities for elementary school kids at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, NJ. Coastal Engineering & Resiliency Senior Associate, Bethany McClanahan P.E., ENV SP, CFM, WEDG (and her daughter) dug into a soil reinforcement exhibit, Marine Engineer, William Gilroy was a force to be reckoned with during his toothpick bridge load test, and Marine Lead Technical Specialist, Matthew McCarty, S.E., P.E. shook the crowd with an earthquake engineering shake table.
Matt also joined Recruiter, Veronica Grace to mentor college students on the importance of “Soft Skills” in the engineering field through COPRI’s EWeek 2020 event at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ. Mock interviews and resume critiques gave these students tips on how to transition into their professional engineering careers.
Happy Engineers Week to all the current and future engineers! #EWeek2020
Are you a Bridge Engineer looking to join a growing team in NYC? McLaren has an opening for a Senior Associate Bridge Engineer who will be involved in all phases of structural bridge project development including planning, scheduling, inspection, analysis and design. The right candidate is a detail-oriented leader with a desire to mentor, coach and develop professionals. Our ideal applicant has 10+ years of experience in railroad, highway and pedestrian bridge design, and load rating. Come build your future with us! Apply here.
Engineer. Educate. Mentor. Senior Associate, Jesse Chrismer, PE, SE is using his diverse structural engineering portfolio, technical expertise and leadership skills to give back to the AEC industry.
“I am passionate about being an educator. I seek opportunities to empower others with knowledge that can naturally progress projects with informed decisions and enable their success”.
An adjunct professor at Pratt Institute School of Architecture, Jesse brings his enthusiasm for teaching to our NYC office where he mentors junior staff. He has also been heavily involved in ACE Mentor Program of Greater NY over the years, having won multiple awards and currently serving as the ACENY Mentor Committee Professional Development Chair.
On February 24th Jesse will be moderating the ACENY mentor-the-mentor event “How to Enable Success on a Mega-Project- A Case Study of Manhattan’s New Far West Side”. His work on mega-projects like Manhattan West and for Hudson Yards will help propel the discussion with panelists from Brookfield Properties, Schlaich Bergermann Partner’s and Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates.
More about the discussion. While each of our industry’s projects aim to improve a property, Mega-Projects aim to transform entire neighborhoods. Recently these have sprouted up in many neighborhoods throughout NYC. None have been more influential on the city than the development of Manhattan’s New Far West Side. Starting at Penn Station and moving west to the Hudson River, new construction, enabled by the 2005 rezoning, would dwarf the entire downtown areas of most global cities. The development is the largest in NYC since Rockefeller Center. Major projects include (but are by no means limited to): Manhattan West, Hudson Yards, The Moynihan Train Hall, The 7 Line Extension, The Javits Center Expansion, and The Spiral. ACE’s diverse set of speakers have been integral to the development of this area and will offer their insights into how this massive undertaking has been so successful.
Congratulations to our newly certified Florida PE, Bryan Nortz! Bryan is an engineer in our Structures Division, who just received his professional engineering license in Florida. Way to go!
“Getting my PE license has been my goal from day one; it’s truly the culmination of my college and work experience over the years. This is a big step in my engineering career path and I’m excited to see what opportunities follow.”
The votes are in! Congratulations to all our award winning engineers and staff recognized at last week’s all-company meeting. Your contributions and hard work are what help make McLaren a success.
Service Awards
25 Years of Service: Donna Brangaccio / Jay Issa
20 Years of Service: JoAnne Giordano / William Gorlin, PE, SE, SECB
15 Years of Service: Andrew Habel, PE / Brian Moody, PE
10 Years of Service: Stephen Zaskey, PE
5 Years of Service: Jennifer Anderson, PE / Jonathan Bashan, PE / Troy Brandt / Carline Cadichon-McKoy / William Evans / Christopher Gerding, PE / Eric Helt, PE / Artur Kukulka, PE / Masiel Melo, PE / Robert Peiffer / Ranya Rozeik / Matthew Saide, PE / Ian Sanderson, PE
Merit Awards
President’s Award: Peter Koklanos, PE, SE, LEED® AP BD+C
Rookie of the Year: Denisa Moss-Heitlager / Shaun Cox
Team Player Award: Caitlin Carbone
Spirit of McLaren Award: Ashley Laurentino
Award for Innovation: Alexis Rosner
Multidisciplinary Excellence: Albert Johnson, PE
Client Hero Award: Brendan Kelly, PE
Business Development Award: Peter Koklanos, PE, SE, LEED® AP BD+C
“Applied Ingenuity” Award: Dennis O’Heney / Cranes Team
Project Management Award: Diego Eras, PE / Dominic DeSantis, PE
Project of The Year: Empire State Trailway – Maybrook Trailway Section
Group Award: Support Staff / Construction Engineering Team
McLaren is working to keep NYC’s history alive! At The New York Landmarks Conservancy Lucy G. Moses Preservation Awards in April, the following three projects McLaren helped restore will receive the highest honors for outstanding preservation work.
- TWA Hotel – Originally designed in 1956, the restored JFK airport terminal in Queens, NY now serves as the largest hotel grand lobby in the world.
- Empire Stores – The adaptive reuse project transformed a pre-civil war era brick coffee warehouse, along DUMBO Brooklyn’s waterfront, into a trendy urban marketplace with a food hall and rooftop beer garden that provides beautiful views of the city.
- Belvedere Castle – Designed in 1865, this iconic Central Park structure provides stunning views as a backdrop as well as atop its rocky outcropping.
For these historic preservation projects, McLaren provided an array of civil, geotechnical, structural and construction engineering services including site development, geothermal, building envelope, connection design and miscellaneous metals. Congratulations to everyone involved and kudos on keeping these landmarks a viable part of our history!
We are McLaren! At this week’s all-company meeting we celebrated our innovation, technical excellence, professionalism and most importantly our people. All hands were on deck, from across all regions and divisions, as we got excited for the future of technical excellence with a 2020 Look Ahead from our President, Jeremy Billig, PE and a talk about the Engineer of 2050 by Rutgers Professor, Franklin Moon, PhD. We learned McLaren’s history, growth and development from our Founder and CEO, Malcolm McLaren, PE, SECB and each of our teams were able to showcase their greatness at our “McLaren Expo”. Collaborative brainstorming activities, inspiring breakout sessions and time together helped us connect and grow stronger. #JoinMcLaren
Asbury Ocean Club is merging urban sophistication with beach casual. The Surfside Resort and Residences is one of the newest additions to the evolving seaside community in Asbury Park, New Jersey. McLaren engineered hidden fasteners that connect various types of aluminum extrusions to the building’s concrete structure, creating beautiful textures on the first through the fourth floors that lead up to the luxurious condo tower. In addition, McLaren provided structural design for the composite aluminum panels on the podium structure that help create the exquisite facade.
The once-abandoned concrete foundation, now offers effortless living at its best. 1101 Ocean Avenue has a collection of apartments, a beach club, a 54-room boutique hotel, an expansive fourth floor with a pool deck that overlooks the ocean and an unprecedented suite of amenities. This award-winning 17-story hotel-condo won the 2019 AIA New Jersey Merit Award for Built – Commercial, Institutional, Multi-Family and the NJ American Concrete Institute Merit Award for Mid Rise.
McLaren’s surveying team has been performing hydrographic surveys around New York with the Teledyne Marine zboat. This new technology can handle shallow water and safely access difficult marine environments where conventional methods utilizing our manned boats are not feasible.
Our surveyors collected single-beam sonar data using this remote-control Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) on recent projects like the bulkhead / shoreline stabilization for private upland development and NYC outfall inspections. Our USV’s can be outfitted with a variety of hydrographic and oceanographic sensors.
Our team knows how to work hard, have fun and make a difference.