What is your current position? What are your areas of focus?
I am a Plumbing Designer. I generally design light commercial buildings (offices, schools), multi-family residential, or a combination of the two. We do plumbing and fire protection systems.
What are your career journey highlights?
- I've worked in MEP firms in three states, from the age of 17.
- I was an all-purpose MEP draftsman for many years, before moving and becoming a dedicated plumbing designer about 4 years ago.
- I've worked in suburban, rural, and more metropolitan areas, and have a wide variety of experiences, both within plumbing design and in other disciplines (mechanical and electrical). It took a move out of New England, and forging a new path to end up where I am today, coming into my own as a plumbing designer.
- I've since completed the GPD program, and am looking forward to implementing that knowledge.
What motivated you to get into the plumbing engineering industry?
Opportunity. I'd say about 15 years ago, my employer approached me about specializing in one of the MEP disciplines, and since we didn't have a plumbing specialist, per se, that was the logical route for a more focused career path. I took some courses through NYU's online portal, took my CPD, and I've been advancing ever since.
What are the most exciting or rewarding aspects of your work?
The most exciting aspect is the opportunity to design new types of systems. As a plumbing professional, we have the opportunity to design systems that can change the way our society operates. We can be innovative in ways that might never be seen, but will have a substantial impact.
Along those lines, the most rewarding part for me is the fact that we generally design an invisible system that everyone uses regularly. I take pride in knowing that I can design a system that nobody may ever think about.
What value have you gained from participation in ASPE Connect?
ASPE Connect has been a great resource of information. There is a lot of valuable experience that can be drawn from. A lot of questions that I don't even know that I have are answered regularly. Knowing that there's a community that can be reached at my finger tips is an amazing thing.
What are some of the most interesting plumbing design challenges you have encountered?
I haven't tackled the challenge yet, but as a newly certified Green Plumbing Designer, I have a project on my plate that should allow me to design a rainwater harvesting system. I've been interested in these green building plumbing systems for a while, but they seldom are seen through.
What is your favorite hobby or pastime outside of work?
I love to travel both domestically and internationally. I'd love to visit all 50 states, and see all of the continents. I am also an avid sports fan, specifically baseball. I would love to visit all of the Major League stadiums.
Be sure to connect with @Jared Marble and say hello!