Cross-Training for Versatility
Spotlight on Nate Huebner, PE, Transportation & Public Works Project Engineer
Opportunities. Sometimes they find us, often times they are ours to create. It takes the right person and the right climate.
Nate Huebner began his professional career with E&A almost seven years ago, right out of college. Stationed in our Lincoln office, Nate spent must of his time working on projects for the state of Nebraska. NDOT work was a focus for that office, so Nate worked exclusively in MicroStation.
With time, Nate’s needs started to change, as did E&A’s. A group had developed in the Omaha office focused on engineering for transportation and public works projects. Nate’s personal life had him driving back and forth between Lincoln and Omaha, so he was happy to have an excuse to work in the Omaha office from time-to-time.
The challenge? While some of these Omaha-based projects were for public entities, many involved private sector clients, so his MicroStation expertise didn’t always apply, as these projects were designed using AutoCAD.
Hear Nate’s story in his own words…
Nate took this opportunity to broaden his skills and begin the process of learning AutoCAD. E&A embraced his transition, pairing him with in-house AutoCAD manager Danny Lee Kaven, Jr. Danny conducted one-on-one training with Nate, going over the program’s tools and answering his questions. He watched training videos that Danny created and Autodesk forums for additional support.
“I’ve used AutoCAD for three projects so far which has probably been the most helpful in picking up the program. Taking all of the training I’ve had and putting it towards an actual design project ties everything together and enforces how all of the tools interact. Just getting more practice and repetition has been very important in learning,” said Nate. “Everyone at E&A has been very eager to help with problems I’ve had and there have been multiple people who have stopped by my desk and said to let me know if they could help.”
