Three of the awardees have also been named to ENR’s National Top 20 Under 40 list for 2026. Congratulations to Michelle Hoysick, greater west transportation business development director, AECOM; Dhruv Patel, chief operating officer, renewable energy, McCarthy Building Cos.; and Amber Smith, marketing director, Kiewit.

Companies or individuals may nominate more than one person, and self-nominations are allowed. Some of our Top Young Pros may have changed roles or firms after they were initially selected as winners. Key selection criteria include achievement of or progress toward industry certifications, significant success in creating more efficient systems, designing new processes or managing landmark projects and contributing not only to the industry but also making a difference in their communities.

This year’s judging team was comprised of five former ENR Top Young Pros: Lindsay Bruckal, project executive, Clayco; Daniel Jensen, regional technical manager/BIM for bridges, Michael Baker International; Jennyfer LaBuff, director of data engineering and application development, Sundt; Yanling Leng, chief bridge engineer and associate principal, IMEG Corp.; and Ethan Walton, project director, McCarthy Building Cos. We could not hold this annual competition without them and are grateful for their work.

To nominate a young professional, visit enr.com/top-young-professionals. The 2027 contest opens in April, with applications due in July.

The following pages provide a snapshot of each of the leaders in this year’s class. Read on to discover how their careers have evolved and to learn of their achievements to date. We can’t wait to see what they do next!

Logan Brandenburg
Transportation professional leads, trains and mentors other engineers
36, Vice President, Traffic & Transportation
Bohannan Huston (BHI)
Albuquerque

A lead engineer in Bohannan Huston’s traffic and transportation group, Brandenburg provides operations management for a team of 18 engineers and designers, along with technical training and mentoring. He is part of BHI’s project management office, which serves as the steering committee for project manager training. With a focus on public safety, Brandenburg has managed and designed a wide variety of transportation projects across New Mexico’s roadway systems, including the recently completed and award-winning Sunport Boulevard Extension for Bernalillo County. He is a past president for the local American Society for Civil Engineers New Mexico Section, dedicating his time to help engineers and students develop their careers. He also serves on the conference planning committee for the statewide Transportation Construction Conference hosted by NMSU and the New Mexico DOT, and he has presented at the NMDOT Transportation and Construction Conference. He is also a student mentor for a UNM senior capstone course.

 

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Kayla Briones
Safety professional improves efficiency, accessibility and morale
34, Director, Safety Compliance/Training
Ward Electric Co.
Longmont, Colo.

Briones is focused on high-risk operations and workforce development. Throughout her seven years at Ward, she has streamlined safety processes by digitizing the safety department and managing compliance portals. She is also credited with improving the efficiency, accessibility and morale of employees through the development of a new online onboarding and training program. Her management of the company’s leadership training program has been instrumental in upholding the firm’s high standards for compliance with OSHA, DOT and other regulatory requirements. Briones is also developing an additional course to show the “why” behind human behavior and how it affects safety culture. Her work has led to recognition for Ward Electric’s safety efforts, including the National Electrical Contractor’s Achievement in Safety Excellence honor four times in the last five years. She serves on the safety committee for human external cargo helicopter operations with Utility Patrol and Construction, helping improve aerial safety protocols, and she trains the next generation of lineworkers through the Mountain States Line Constructors Apprenticeship program.

 

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Carlie Cook
Arizona leader managed 300-person crew building six data centers
30, Director of Semiconductor Operations
Rosendin
Tempe, Ariz.

Cook has made a name for herself in the electrical and mission-critical world in a short amount of time. She applies the knowledge she gained from the MBA program at the University of Louisville to her six years of experience with data center projects, rapidly advancing through several promotions. Prior to her role at Rosendin, she led major semiconductor facility projects and managed large-scale tool installations and automated material handling systems. In her most recent role as a site manager, Cook oversaw more than 300 personnel building six data center buildings that will deliver 120 megawatts of capacity. The project has become a training ground for Rosendin, with company leaders routinely sending employees to learn Cook’s team-building methods. She is credited with developing innovative staffing plans, safety programs and quality assurance processes and helped develop and implement productivity-tracking systems that are now used companywide. Every employee she hired during the project’s first year was promoted, a testament to her commitment to developing talent and building sustainable teams. Cook also participates in Rosendin’s emerging leaders and advanced leader programs and has completed the contractor’s surge program for assistant project managers as well as the women in leadership program through the Arizona Builders Alliance. She was named a 2025 Electrical Construction and Maintenance Magazine Under 30 All Star. Cook volunteers with Arizona Small Dog Rescue and has fostered nearly 100 dogs since 2020.

 

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Justin Cooper
Led more than $100 million in infrastructure improvements at DIA
36, Aviation Leader
Garver
Englewood, Colo.

Cooper’s career began in civil construction, working on highways, bridges and rail facilities. His first project was the $141-million San Vicente Dam Raise in San Diego, the highest dam raise completed in the U.S. at that time. He transitioned to aviation in 2016 while managing projects at Denver International Airport for Flatiron Construction. Since joining Garver, Cooper and his team have supported more than $100 million in infrastructure improvements at DIA, including Taxiway EE, the Federal Aviation Administration’s largest safety project in the nation at the time of its completion in 2023. Cooper is a leader in Garver’s Top Gun Academy and presents to his peers on topics ranging from quality control to design techniques. He serves on DIA’s board of development team for the Business Development Training Academy’s Concourse 300 program, an initiative that offers information and skills for small businesses to assist them with submitting proposals and winning contracts, whether in construction, professional services, concessions or other airport-related opportunities. Cooper is an Associate DBIA and is a Safety Trained Supervisor. He was also named to the Denver Business Journal 40 Under 40 list in 2025.

 

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Eric Gunderson
Entrepreneur grew firm’s Colorado presence with large clients
38, Vice President
Kimley-Horn
Colorado Springs

Recognized by his peers for technical excellence, entrepreneurial leadership and community support, Gunderson has played a central role in growing Kimley-Horn’s presence across Colorado. He joined the Denver office in 2011 when it had fewer than a dozen employees. His efforts to build the office’s backlog in multifamily and single-family residential, solar, commercial, roadway and municipal projects led to an opportunity in 2018 to lead the opening of Kimley-Horn’s Colorado Springs office. He has helped grow that office from three employees to more than 40, contributing approximately $16 million in annual revenue to the firm with clients including Denver International Airport, Trammell Crow Residential and ARCO-Murray. He served for more than a decade as an office production coordinator and later as office practice leader, roles reserved for Kimley-Horn’s most effective leaders. To help address gaps in mentorship for mid-level staff, Gunderson led the creation of Team 45, a program that provides structured career development support that was adopted across Kimley-Horn’s 140 offices nationwide. Gunderson serves on the Colorado Springs Citizens Transportation Advisory Board, and his community-focused work includes the Tejon Street Revitalization, Platte Avenue Corridor Study and Colorado Springs’ first bicycle-activated traffic signal.

 

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Kyle Haas
Mechanical engineer shines on large utility and EPC projects
38, Managing Director
1898 & Co.
Englewood, Colo.

Haas leads the Denver office for 1898 & Co., part of Burns & McDonnell. When he accepted the role in 2022, the Mountain region team consisted of just three people; today the team includes nearly 20 professionals and provides more than $10 million in annual revenue to the firm. Haas holds dual degrees in mechanical engineering and finance, which help him manage utility investment planning and renewable energy initiatives. He previously worked at Xcel Energy, where he played a key role in launching a monitoring and diagnostic center that improved reliability across the company’s generation fleet. He later moved into a leadership role at Panamint Capital, managing operations for two combined-cycle facilities totaling more than 350 MW. His experience spans more than 20 gigawatts of generation development, $10 billion in utility acquisitions and more than $550 million in EPC projects. Recently named to the Burns & McDonnell Principal Group, Haas now leads a team that provides merger and acquisition advisory, transmission strategy and utility investment planning. Haas gives back to the community through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Colorado and Meals on Wheels, and he participates in mentorship programs.

 

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Ryan Hankins
Leads complex and high-profile projects while mentoring others
36, Project Executive
Clayco
Phoenix

Hankins led large-scale commercial and industrial developments at Holder Construction for eight years, consistently earning promotions as he advanced from field operations to preconstruction and business development. In his current role as project executive at Clayco, he’s built a reputation for his ability to align stakeholders, mitigate risk and meet aggressive schedules. He champions early alignment between design and construction, analyzing cost modeling and constructibility to the design intent. Hankins has led several highly complex manufacturing, hyperscale and co-location data center campus developments as well as high-profile projects such as the $2-billion terminal redevelopment at Salt Lake City International Airport, a 360,000-sq-ft expansion at the USAA campus in Phoenix and the 240,000-sq-ft Hayden Library modernization at Arizona State University. In 2024, he was appointed group leader of the Urban Land Institute’s Partnership Forum, where he mentors early-career professionals and helps develop programming. For the last two years he has been mentoring student teams at ASU for the ASC Design-Build Reno competition, providing real-world instruction on estimating, scheduling, logistics and effective meetings and management.

 

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Chad Harris
Helps advance opportunities for small and minority-owned firms
39, Partner/Co-Founder
FH Construction Group
Denver

As co-founder and managing partner, Harris has grown FH Construction Group as a trusted builder in the Mountain States region in a short amount of time, with annual revenue reaching $25 million within its first 18 months. He brings experience from more than $2 billion in project value to the firm’s leadership and is known for a combination of strategic leadership and hands-on understanding of the full project life cycle from design-phase management and field operations to executive oversight. Harris’ project experience spans a diverse range of sectors, including more than $1.63 billion in health care, $176 million in commercial, $89 million in education and $25 million in public works. He worked on the $120-million St. Francis InterQuest Hospital in Colorado Springs, which was named an ENR Mountain States Best Project in the health care category in 2023. Harris earned an associate DBIA certification and actively participates in several industry organizations, including the Hispanic Contractors of Colorado, where he helps advance opportunities for small and minority-owned construction businesses. He serves as board chair of the Advent-Health Porter Foundation. In honor of Harris’ father, FH Construction also funds scholarships for students from underserved communities pursuing careers in construction and design.

 

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Adam Hester
Sustainability expert helped shape city’s climate action planning
35, Senior Director of Engineering
Primoris Services Corp. | Primoris Renewable Energy
Aurora, Colo.

Hester leads the company’s national major utility-scale solar and battery energy storage market. An earlier career focus on wastewater and power generation evolved into a sustainability one after he earned a Vail Global Energy Forum Scholarship while pursuing a master’s degree in energy and the environment from the University of Colorado. A graduate certificate from the Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute, a joint program between CU Boulder and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (recently renamed National Laboratory of the Rockies) added to his knowledge base. Hester served as an engineering subject matter expert for the city of Denver, helping shape the city’s 80x50 Climate Action Plan before joining Primoris. There, he’s been recognized for his deep technical expertise, policy insight and hands-on leadership. Hester leads business development efforts for the firm, and he also helped establish standardized survey engineering procedures to improve quality control. He received the Steve Larsen Award, an internal Primoris award that recognizes process improvement efforts, and he is actively involved with mentorship, education and community engagement. Within the industry, he is helping lead an initiative to elevate voltage limits in compliance with the National Electrical Code. This effort has the potential to significantly reduce costs for utility-scale solar projects nationwide, accelerating the adoption of solar across the industry.

 

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Michelle Hoysick
ENR National 20 Under 40 winner advised on nation’s first progressive design-build transportation project
37, Greater West Transportation Business Development Director
AECOM
Denver

Before joining AECOM in 2024, Hoysick was the alternative delivery capture manager at Michael Baker International, where she led strategy and risk evaluations for pursuits across the U.S. She played a key role on the US-89 project in Utah, the nation’s first progressive design-build transportation project, and advised best practices for its delivery and risk management. She also served as a program manager oversight consultant for several major Denver-area transit projects while at Jacobs, including the $6.5-billion Eagle P3 FasTracks program, Denver Union Station and the West and I-225 rail lines. Hoysick is president of the Colorado chapter of the Women’s Transportation Seminar and is vice president of programming for the Denver chapter of the Airport Minority Advisory Council, which supports minorities and women in the aviation and aerospace sectors. Hoysick has received honors from industry organizations, including the APTA Early Career Program, the ACEC Colorado’s New Faces of Engineering and from WTS Colorado, where she was named Emerging Leader in 2015 and Member of the Year in 2020.

 

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Tara Jones
HR professional builds inclusive culture, earning firm’s Hero award
38, Talent Acquisition Manager
JE Dunn Construction
Denver

Jones got her start in construction and human resources nearly 20 years ago. Her colleagues cite her contributions to JE Dunn’s employee engagement, early career and campus recruiting initiatives and her role in developing various training programs that have positively impacted the company’s HR programs. Her efforts are credited with fostering an inclusive culture and helping triple the number of Black professionals working for the company. She holds a Society for Human Resource Management–Talent Acquisition certification and an HR Professional Management certification. She offers her networking and career development skills to the broader community through various organizations. She is active with Blacks United in Learning and Development and served as its employee resource group chair. She advises small business owners in HR matters as part of her involvement with JE Dunn’s Minority Contractor Partnership program. She is also a member of the National Association of Women in Construction and participates in Urban Leagues throughout the region, working to mentor and show construction career opportunities to underrepresented communities. In 2023, Jones received the JE Dunn HR Hero award. A licensed electrician’s apprentice, she has been gaining field experience by volunteering on national and local disaster recovery construction projects.

 

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Jane Lin
Young leader excels at integration of design and construction
35, Senior Project Manager
Redmond Construction
Denver

Lin has more than a decade of experience delivering complex projects across health care and technology markets. She earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s in civil engineering from Stanford University and is focused on design-construction integration. After getting her career start in California, Lin accepted an opportunity to help grow Redmond Construction’s Mountain States presence. On a confidential tech headquarters project in Cupertino, Lin oversaw $80 million worth of scope, including coordinating international subcontractors to ensure that ultra-tight installation tolerances were met. At El Camino Hospital, she led more than 75 MEPF shutdowns within active care environments and maintained uninterrupted patient services under compressed timelines. At Washington Hospital, Lin acted as primary client liaison for critical infrastructure work, including a patient bridge installation and a full replacement of the hospital’s uninterruptible power supply without disrupting services. Most recently, she led a complex make-ready project for Stanford Health Care and set the stage for more than 100 utility shutdowns within an active hospital without impacting operations or patient care.

 

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Will McCord
Electrical engineer excels at leading successful power projects
36, Electrical Department Manager
Burns & McDonnell
Phoenix

McCord is the department manager for Burns & McDonnell’s Southwest region power group, where he leads a team of 12. He got his start working in the field in the Four Corners region, supporting a major project for Arizona Public Service, and he credits that field experience with providing him with a deep understanding of what it takes to deliver successful power projects. He built upon his expertise with challenging power projects for clients such as Public Service New Mexico, Tucson Electric Power and ENGIE. An electrical engineer, his technical background spans projects from traditional power plants to solar field installations. Both of his parents are educators, and McCord brings his career experiences to his parents’ classrooms, volunteering to help their students explore STEM-related careers such as engineering and construction. He also brings a coaching mindset to his project teams and played a key role in the development of a structured training program to support career development for engineers that has since been adopted by other departments and groups within Burns & McDonnell across the country. He recently served as the Southwest region captain for the corporate citizenship committee, a leadership role that guides all local corporate giving efforts. Under his leadership, the team raised more than $15,000 for a foster youth nonprofit in Phoenix. McCord is also involved with Autism Speaks, supporting its mission to promote awareness and inclusion.

 

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Austin Mouw
Collaborative delivery advocate shines on K-12 and higher education projects
35, Senior Preconstruction Manager
Adolfson & Peterson Construction
Johnstown, Colo.

Mouw’s 17 years of industry experience include delivering high-impact education projects across Colorado and Wyoming. He joined AP soon after graduating from South Dakota State University, getting his start on a $148-million historic renovation and addition to the Natrona County High School in Casper, Wyo. Since then, Mouw has played a key role in more than a dozen school projects, including 10 ground-up builds as well as numerous renovations and additions. His K-12 portfolio spans multiple districts and includes higher education experience at the University of Wyoming, University of Colorado/Boulder, Colorado State University and many others projects across Colorado and Wyoming. He helped lead preconstruction efforts for the University of Northern Colorado’s Campus Commons project, a student services and performing arts facility. Mouw’s experience on the $127-million Greeley West High School project, one of the region’s first progressive design-build K–12 efforts, helped solidify his position as an advocate for collaborative delivery. The project’s success resulted in Mouw presenting it as a case study at the Design Build Institute of America’s Rocky Mountain Conference. For the past six years, he has co-chaired AP’s operational excellence group, leading efforts to streamline workflows, integrate technology and improve preconstruction processes companywide. Mouw is also committed to his own professional development and participates in the AGC Executive Leadership Academy.

 

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Sunny Natekar
Young water engineer has helped design 20 infrastructure projects across the Southwest
31, Water & Wastewater Treatment Technologist
Garver
Tempe, Ariz.

After earning a degree in biotechnology in his native India, Natekar moved to the U.S. to study civil and environmental engineering at Arizona State University, where he was named a block grant awardee for three consecutive years. Upon receiving a doctorate from ASU, Natekar transitioned to consulting and soon found himself working on a $450-million design-build project for the city of Gilbert, Ariz. Since then, he has worked on more than 20 infrastructure projects across the Southwest, ranging from water infrastructure and water treatment to pilot scale studies. Among his résumé highlights is his project management role on the Payson Lime Solids Study, where he and his team developed an approach to optimizing the treatment process that helped reduce chemical demand at the plant by 40%. He’s been tapped to participate in four industry pilot studies, ranging on topics that include desalination, reverse osmosis and direct potable reuse. Natekar is heavily involved with Arizona Water, serving on five of its subcommittees. He’s a mentor to engineering students, often participating in ASU’s Open Door Nights. He also volunteers through GarverGives, Garver’s corporate giving program, and serves as a wellness ambassador. In his free time, he enjoys playing cricket in a Division A team in the Arizona Cricket Association.

 

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Matthew Nguyen
Project manager leads $1.5 billion in active solar construction projects
35, Senior Director of Operations, Solar EPC
Primoris Services Corp. | Primoris Renewable Energy
Aurora, Colo.

The first project manager hired at Primoris’ newly launched renewables group in 2017, Nguyen currently leads $1.5 billion in active solar construction projects for the firm. His preconstruction team has grown from five to 30 as a result of the $2 billion in new work Nguyen helped land in 2024. Nguyen got his start in the industry at SunEdison, where he worked on solar module development before transitioning to engineering, procurement and construction roles. During his career, Nguyen has led the delivery of more than 1 GW of solar power valued at more than $500 million in revenue. In 2021, he was tapped to lead the renewables’ estimating and preconstruction group at Primoris, where he quickly stepped into a high-stakes solar project that was significantly delayed due to owner-side challenges. Believing the schedule was salvageable, Nguyen reassessed the timeline, worked closely with field teams and built a recovery strategy from the ground up, avoiding millions in potential losses while regaining control of the schedule. His colleagues say he is grounded and leads with integrity and without ego. His portfolio includes landmark utility-scale solar projects such as the Tustin Unified School District Solar Carports in California and the Roadrunner, Quantum, Rockhound and Outpost solar projects in Texas. Nguyen stays active in his local community by participating in project outreach efforts and through his role as a certified soccer referee for local youth leagues.

 

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Dhruv Patel
ENR National 20 Under 40 winner grows renewable energy and storage group to $2 billion in business
39, President, Renewable Energy & Energy Storage
McCarthy Building Cos.
Phoenix

Patel is an ENR National 20 Under 40 winner. A recognized leader in the power and energy sector, he has nearly two decades of experience in utility operations, renewable development and large-scale construction. Patel holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and an MBA from Arizona State University, which he credits with helping him bridge technical expertise and business leadership. Patel’s career began at Arizona Public Service, where he spent eight years in key roles across distribution and transmission operations, power procurement and resource program management. He led the utility-owned solar program, delivering 200 MW of solar assets. Since joining McCarthy in 2013, Patel has helped grow the renewable energy and storage group from a $15-million to $20-million operation to a $2-billion annual business. His team has grown from three employees to more than 700 professionals and approximately 1,500 craftworkers, delivering over 18 GW of solar capacity and 10 GWh of energy storage across 17 states. Patel serves on McCarthy’s national leadership team, and he actively mentors emerging leaders and supports apprenticeship and craft training programs. Within the industry, he has served on the national advisory council of the Energy Storage Association and is active with SEIA and other industry organizations. Patel’s project résumé includes the 800-MW Double Black Diamond Solar project in Illinois, the 250-MW Gateway Energy Storage project in California and the $2-billion Sun Streams Energy Complex in Arizona.

 

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Amber Smith
ENR National 20 Under 40 winner breaks down complex delivery methods into short lessons for clients and staff
39, Marketing Director, Infrastructure Engineering Division
Kiewit
Lone Tree, Colo.

An ENR National 20 Under 40 awardee, Smith gained an international perspective while pursuing an MBA from the University of Melbourne and she strives to bring this to her daily work. A Denver native, she got her start at Kiewit working on proposals and spent four years supporting complex alternative delivery pursuits. As her role evolved, she became instrumental in creating Kiewit’s dedicated infrastructure marketing group. Today, that team operates as a shared-service model supporting more than 1,000 requests annually across 45 districts and groups throughout North America. Her team supported more than $50 billion in pursuit opportunities and achieved a 71% win rate on 60 award submissions in 2024. Smith is also recognized for her ability to align storytelling, strategy and collaboration with Kiewit’s broader business goals. She developed and launched kiewitlearning.com, a platform that helps break down complex delivery methods into short lessons that are used by the contractor’s clients and staff. She is also involved with Kiewit’s partnership with the Colorado Avalanche hockey team, where her efforts earned 71 million social impressions, reached 4.4 million TV viewers and generated an estimated $8.6 million in brand value in a season. Smith has created a Kiewit badge for Girl Scouts, spearheading a custom-designed program that introduces girls to engineering and construction through hands-on learning opportunities.

 

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Zac Taylor
Utah engineer reaches new heights on technical bridge designs
39, Bridge Engineer
Kimley-Horn
Salt Lake City

Taylor is credited with helping to expand Kimley-Horn’s presence in Utah by more than 700% over seven years, growing staff to 130 employees from 15. His technical bridge design expertise led to his selection as one of two representatives from Kimley-Horn’s 700-person Mountain Pacific region to serve on an advisory committee to the firm’s CEO. Taylor also contributes his expertise on technical issues such as accelerated bridge construction, finite element analysis and seismic design to Kimley-Horn offices nationwide. He has managed the design of 12 structures over the past three years, overseeing more than $3.5 million in design work. His notable projects include structural design of the $190-million I-215 corridor reconstruction and the award-winning West Davis Corridor. Taylor also serves as a project reviewer for the Utah DOT and as a project manager for the five-year UDOT Bridge Formula Program. This project includes the replacement of 90 bridges, most of which benefit small local municipalities that don’t have the funding to perform the projects on their own. In addition to the public sector, Taylor has delivered more than 50 different bridges to private sector clients in the past five years. He’s been honored with a Kimley-Horn Outstanding Promoter of Quality award and is involved with the firm’s mentoring program.

 

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Sandy Thoms
Traffic engineer completed $400 million in projects across the region
36, Vice President Traffic Engineering
WSP USA
Tempe, Ariz.

Thoms leads the traffic engineering group for WSP’s Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah offices, where she serves as staff manager, technical leader and project manager. She also serves as a part-time project manager to the Arizona DOT, helping to deliver their five-year construction program of more than $11 billion in investments. She is often assigned to some of the firm’s most challenging work and has completed 25 projects with a cumulative construction value of more than $400 million. In addition to her professional engineering license, Thoms is also a Professional Traffic Operations Engineer and Road Safety Professional 1. She participates in several professional organizations and serves on multiple committees at the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS), giving back to the organization that provided her with the mentorship that she says was crucial to her developing career. In 2017, Thoms was nominated for the ACEC Leadership in Engineering Administration Program. Her award-winning projects include the I-10 Broadway Curve project in Maricopa County, which involved reconstructing one of the Arizona’s busiest corridors to add capacity and improve safety, and the Gilbert Road Light Rail Extension in Mesa. Thoms unplugs from her work with hobbies that range from fly-fishing and backpacking to working on cars and competitive shooting.

 

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Stephanie Tjan
PFAS expert leads investigations at high-level facilities across the country
30, Project Manager, Environmental Engineer III
AECOM
Albuquerque

Tjan has built a reputation for leading complex environmental investigations and remediation projects. The focus of her work is on the containment of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), an issue of national and global concern. She leads high-profile PFAS investigations, including CERCLA investigations at Dept. of Defense facilities across the country, executing a program with a contract value of $101 million across nearly 200 locations. She works on pilot studies to treat PFAS contamination in groundwater and stormwater at Dept. of Defense sites, using colloidal activated carbon in both pump-and-treat systems and in situ permeable adsorptive barriers to address PFAS contamination. Tjan also authors standards and documents to enable time-critical PFAS removal actions. She serves as the process coordinator for a large defense PFAS program, which involves a strategically assembled team of two joint venture partners, more than 60 subcontractors, 18 task managers and hundreds of support staff. Tjan brings her technical expertise to the community by participating in drinking water sampling programs and facilitating public engagement through town halls and restoration advisory boards. A former exchange student, she now serves as a host family, helping high school graduates experience life in different regions of the U.S.

 

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Gayatri Umashankar
Phoenix architect/construction manager translates design intent into constructibility
34, Northwest & Southwest Region Based Manager
Digital Building Components
Phoenix

Umashankar’s career in the prefabrication and construction industry started at DPR and has since evolved into her current role at Digital Building Components, a DPR subsidiary. At DBC, she leads the strategy and implementation of prefabricated systems for health care and mission-critical facility projects. Originally from India and trained as an architect, Umashankar relocated to Phoenix to earn a master’s degree in construction management and technologies from Arizona State University. She credits her background in both architecture and construction with her ability to translate design intent to constructibility. She plays a key role in identifying the right projects for prefabrication and in developing customized strategies to execute complex panel systems. On one health care project, her efforts were credited with a 21% improvement to the program’s revenue by aligning prefabrication with cost control and delivery certainty. She was recognized as an Individual Contributor Rising Star of the Year at the Advancing Prefabrication Summit in 2024. She gives back to the industry and to her community by serving as a guest lecturer and speaker at events that include ENR’s Groundbreaking Women in Construction and the Association of the Wall and Ceiling Industry. She also served as a committee member for the Product Catalog Report, helping to set standards and share best practices for exterior wall systems.