Forty-Seven years ago, with a fresh degree in Electrical Engineering, I got my first job at the Austin Company in Roselle Park, NJ right off of exit 137 on the Garden State Parkway.On day one, I learned quickly how little I knew about my field when I had to ask what a conduit was.
The business of engineering seemed to have its own language, most of which I knew nothing about. My boss, Joe Schomacher, was about to retire in a few months and I was like a sponge, sucking know-how from him at every opportunity. This brings me forward to 1976, 8 years before starting Khachaturian Engineering Associates (KEA). I was the head of the Control Instrumentation and Electrical Engineering departments for CF Braun & Company. Our main business at the time was the design and construction of chemical facilities throughout the world. Again, I was a sponge, absorbing invaluable experience in the design of refineries and fine chemical plants. Why am I so nostalgic? In August of this year, KEA was awarded the MEP & FP design of a chemical facility right off exit 137 on the Garden State Parkway. With this new project, I find myself back to my roots in two ways; it’s déjà vu all over again! In the coming months, KEA will design a new 30,000 square foot petro-chemical testing laboratory for Spectrum International in Roselle, NJ. Spectrum International is a full-service facility for the testing of all commercially available fuels in the US. KEA has experience in the hazardous materials arena, designing aircraft hangers and sewer facilities, where hazardous area design is utilized. We look forward to the work with Spectrum International. I’m personally excited about continuing in the design of hazardous area applications and humbled by how, in many ways, I have come full circle. Challenge of our intellect is what keeps us interested in our work and I certainly remain interested in mine.