It’s National Engineers Week in the U.S., and we’re celebrating the extraordinary work of our engineers as they help to build inspiring projects around the world each and every day.
This year’s theme from DiscoverE, our partner of over three decades, is “Creating the Future,” which celebrates the role engineers have to play in innovating solutions to global challenges that will impact future generations.
For 125 years, Bechtel engineers have been making history by engineering a stronger, more resilient world. Now, as we look to the next 125 years, we spoke with a few of our engineers to see what they think is the future of engineering and what impacts engineers can make.
Shivendra Rai Handa, a project engineer in the Bechtel India – New Delhi office, is particularly excited to see how new technologies are transforming engineering field and how future engineers will increasingly implement “green” solutions to make a more sustainable world.
About Shivendra Rai Handa
I’m a 2013 mechanical engineering graduate, I started my career as a piping engineer with Technip India Pvt. Ltd. and joined Bechtel in 2016. During the course of my 10 years of professional experience in the industry, I have performed multi-disciplinary work, which includes plant design and piping activities, marketing and business development (proposals) work, and working in the engineering management discipline. Currently, I am a project engineer based out of the Bechtel India, New Delhi office. On a personal front, I love traveling, cooking, and enjoy watching movies.
Why should today’s students consider an engineering career?
For me, engineering is not just a career choice, but it is an extended arm to the scientific research and development fraternity. As a child, I was always fascinated by the megastructures that had been built around the world (I do not hesitate to give credit to the National Geographic channel, which, at the time, featured a TV program called “Megastructures”) and wondered how complex projects like those were ever built. In addition to this, my father, who is a civil engineer, was my inspiration to choose engineering as a career. As engineers, we can solve any challenging and complex problem that makes the earth a better planet. For student and young graduates, if being a part of the change excites you, then engineering is the right choice.
What is your favorite part of your job or a favorite project you have worked on? Why?
The best part about my work at Bechtel is that we do not build “just” projects, but we partner with our customers to accomplish their goals and deliver excellence. We serve the communities where we work to improve their quality of life. As an engineering management professional, my job never gets boring. There are new things to learn and solve almost every day. Since each project I worked on was unique in its own way and had its own set of challenges, I wouldn’t say that I have a favorite project. However, my current project is really exciting as it is a first of its kind in its space, the jobsite terrain and conditions are tough, and the social compliance deadlines are tight.
What's an engineering accomplishment you are proud of? Why?
Since the majority of my professional experience has been at the home office as a design engineer, it has always excited me to see the way my design translates into reality. During my short stint to a project jobsite, I was amazed to see the sheer magnitude of the plant (which earlier I had only seen as a 3D model), and it made me proud to be standing there and be a part of the project execution.
What excites you about the future of engineering?
With the increase in demand for emerging technologies, as well as the scientific and technological advancements being made every day, we as engineers will be required to do much more in the future. The field is slowly being transformed with data-centric execution, automation, and artificial intelligence. Additionally, as engineers who deal with the physical world every day, there is a constant concern about the impact we are having on the planet. Because of the need for sustainability and environmental protection, I envisage that we will see “green” solutions implemented in almost all areas of engineering, and I would definitely like to be a part of this change