Pulse Takes Reins as President |
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Thomas Pulse, PE, has been named president of Ayres Associates, replacing Patrick Quinn, PE, who announced his retirement from the architecture and engineering firm effective at the end of 2010. Mr. Pulse's appointment as president became effective May 10. Mr. Quinn, who had been company president since 2000, will continue as chairman of the board of directors until December 31.
"Tom will do a great job as president," Mr. Quinn said. "He has shown commitment to Ayres Associates, the profession, and the community that goes well beyond what is normally expected. Over his career he has taken on many challenges and has approached and handled each with great success."
Mr. Pulse, a registered professional engineer in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois, graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1984 with a degree in civil and environmental engineering. He joined Ayres Associates in 1993 as part of the Engineering Services group in the Eau Claire office. His area of expertise is municipal engineering, specifically wastewater collection system design.
Mr. Pulse was promoted to Municipal Services group manager in 1999 and to Engineering Services vice president in 2001. He was selected as an executive vice president in January 2008.
Mr. Pulse has been active in personal and professional development throughout his career. He participated in the Eau Claire Chamber of Commerce Leadership Eau Claire program and chaired the Chamber's Public Affairs Committee for three years until joining the board of directors in 2007. He also serves on the Friends of Sacred Heart Hospital board of directors, which oversees the major charitable giving program for the hospital. Mr. Pulse has been active at the state level for the American Council of Engineering Companies, the business voice of the engineering industry. He joined the ACEC board of directors in 2004, has served as secretary/treasurer, and will begin a one-year term as state ACEC president in July.
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Public Clients Rank Ayres Associates High in Poll |
Ayres Associates ranked 38th in the nation among road and highway design firms and 37th in the nation among bridge design firms in Roads & Bridges magazine’s annual Go-To List for Design Firms.
Roads & Bridges sent its 2009 voting ballots to more than 10,000 government officials and asked them which design firm they preferred to work with. Unlike other rankings, the Go-To List reflects project owner preference, not gross earnings. |
Flooding Reduction Effort is Project of the Year |
The Minnesota Society of Professional Engineers recently selected the Grand Forks-East Grand Forks Flood Damage Reduction Project as the Project of the Year, the highest honor among projects chosen for the 2010 Seven Wonders of Engineering Awards.
Ayres Associates’ work on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers St. Paul District's $410 million Grand Forks-East Grand Forks project included designing the English Coulee Pumping Station, interior drainage, and two pedestrian bridges across the Red River, along with investigative work on the flood wall joints.
"The best result of our efforts was the ease with which Grand Forks and East Grand Forks fought the significant flood event last year," said Bonnie Greenleaf, project manager for the St. Paul District. "The system worked exactly as it was designed and protected those two communities with minimal effort during a very high water event."
The project was in response to 1997 flooding that forced the evacuation of 52,000 residents and caused more than $1 billion in damage.
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VP Wins Distinguished Engineer Award |
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The Minnesota Society of Professional Engineers has honored James Bakken, PE, an Ayres Associates vice president and leader of the engineering services division based in our Eau Claire headquarters, with a Distinguished Engineer Award. The award was announced
Feb. 19.
Mr. Bakken was recognized for his service to professional organizations and his contribution to career exploration during Engineers Week presentations. He is assistant regional vice president for the Great Lakes Region of the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) and has been elected into the SAME Academy of Fellows. As a certified instructor for the National Highway Institute, he conducts engineering training sessions nationwide for the Federal Highway Administration.
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Senior Transportation/Flood Control Engineer in Phoenix |
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Dennis Richards, PE, has joined Ayres Associates as a senior project manager, bringing nearly 40 years of experience in planning, analysis, design, and construction of transportation and flood control projects. Mr. Richards is based in our Phoenix area office and works with clients throughout the country.
Mr. Richards has served as project principal and/or project manager for numerous projects involving hydrologic, hydraulic, and sediment transport analyses; floodplain delineation; bridge scour; stream stability; levee and/or bank protection design; and grade-control structure design. He has conducted investigations to evaluate channel stability and impacts to structures due to in-stream sand and gravel mining. Mr. Richards has significant experience in evaluating environmental constraints, impacts, and mitigation measures for transportation and flood control projects.
“With Dennis’ experience and understanding of the Phoenix metropolitan area, we should be able to significantly expand our water resource discipline in that marketplace,” said James Schall, PhD, PE, vice president of Ayres Associates’ water resources group in the western United States. |
Building Wins LEED-EB Certification |
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Flynn Elementary School in Eau Claire recently became the first school in Wisconsin to earn the United States Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – Existing Buildings certification. The LEED-EB rating system allows building owners and operators to measure operations, improvements, and maintenance with the goal of maximizing operational efficiency and minimizing environmental impacts.
To earn LEED certification, Flynn staff implemented environment-friendly and energy-conscious policies, including a green cleaning policy and a maintenance schedule for each piece of building equipment.
The Eau Claire Area School District retained Ayres Associates to design the energy-efficient, 54,000-square-foot, two-section elementary school. The school district was interested in incorporating sustainable features into the school’s design, and Ayres Associates responded with features including high ceilings and extensive natural lighting for visual appeal and improved energy efficiency. By using daylight in instructional areas, the need for artificial lighting was minimized, and the size and expense of the air conditioning equipment was reduced. The orientation of the building allowed the design to take maximum advantage of usable natural light (north and south exposures) while minimizing east and west sun exposures that are harder to control. |
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