The American Society of Civil Engineers SW Michigan Branch hosted their yearly roundtable event at Western Michigan University. AR Engineering joined other companies from the area to speak to the civil and construction engineering students one-on-one about what we do and answer any questions they had. Thank you to all the students who dropped by, we hope to hear from you soon!
SW MiSTEM Growlers Education Day
AR Engineering had the opportunity to volunteer at the Southwest MiSTEM June event, held in collaboration with the Kalamazoo Growlers. This event provides students in Grades K-12 with a hands-on opportunity to explore STEM related fields. Several staff from AR Engineering worked with students, as they built sandcastles to demonstrate mechanically stabilized earth (MSE). Students enjoyed building their own non-MSE sandcastle and were then able to compare theirs to the strength of sandcastle’s built using MSE. Students were fascinated with how just a few sheets of flimsy material can make such a huge difference in strength and stability of the structure. This was a great opportunity for AR Engineering to give back to the community, while creating a fun STEM related learning environment for students. The students and exhibitors were invited to attend the Growler’s game immediately following the event.
AR Volunteers at Re:Cycle - Sustainable Transportation Exhibition
AR Engineering had the opportunity to join ModeShift at their event held in Bronson Park, in downtown Kalamazoo to support transportation alternatives. A team from AR Engineering used the building of sand castles to demonstrate mechanically stabilized earth. Mechanically stabilized earth is a practice, commonly used in construction, to help build infrastructure necessary to support transportation alternatives such as biking and walking in areas of unsuitable soils.
Annual Goals Meeting and AR Team Curling
Earlier this year AR Engineering held its annual meeting, where we come together as a team to evaluate the achievements from the previous year and discuss personal and professional goals for the upcoming year. AR Engineering had an excellent 2021 and look forward to an even better 2022, as we have some exciting announcements coming soon! We were able to celebrate our achievements by hitting the curling sheets at Wings Event Center. A big thank you goes out to our friends at the Kalamazoo Curling Club and our very own Andrew Woloszyk for coordinating the ice time. The team at AR Engineering spent the afternoon learning the basics, playing a few ends, and sustaining only minor bruising of pride when we fell. It was a well-deserved time away from the office! AR Engineering will spend some time again in the next few weeks reviewing our goals and ensuring we are on track to make 2022 our best year yet!
AR Engineering Hires Professional Surveyor
AR Engineering is thrilled to welcome Dustin Thornton, P.S. as Survey Manager. We are grateful Dustin applied this spring so we could open our own surveying department at AR. With Dustin’s extensive survey knowledge, dedication to quality, and outstanding work ethic, he is a great fit with the culture at AR Engineering. Dustin brings fourteen years of experience in all aspects of surveying. He is experienced in Boundary and Topo Surveys, Construction Staking, ALTA/NSPS Land Title and Flood Plain Surveys, and Project Management. A 2008 graduate of Ferris State University, Dustin has worked throughout Michigan and also spent four years in North Dakota. Dustin grew up in Bellevue, Michigan and enjoys being on the lake, camping, exploring the trails on his four wheeler, and spending time with his friends and family. Please help us in welcoming Dustin to the AR Engineering team and certainly reach out for any of your survey needs!
