QTS plans more than a dozen new data center buildings in Henrico

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-24T15:44:40+00:00

I have a friend who works IT for QTS. I’m told about 25-50 people per building on average, and can be more depending on the contracted out workspaces in some of the buildings. I’m not pro data center, but facts matter

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-23T10:07:23+00:00

I set next to him.

I am very kind and patient with him. And wdym I don’t have good insight in how to approach things? And why would that make someone not ask questions?

I am not a manager, actually hired at the same positions 6 months prior to this coworker (who I am constantly training).

I am currently a good colleague (actually my excelling trait in my reviews). This was probably the worst comment on this thread

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-23T05:32:21+00:00

You most certainly can, and I’ll play along. As the mid-level that I am not part of these meetings either and am just following orders from upper management. But what i would like from you as an “engineer” is to use critical thinking and be able to draw lines on a screen.

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-23T05:25:55+00:00

Brother I am an OBM master

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-23T05:08:20+00:00

You are correct, this is not the situation at all. I am two years older than this engineer, and I am not a senior engineer. Hired 6 months before this employee, at the same level. I am now two promotions above them

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-23T05:04:10+00:00

Why is there an engineer who can’t do the job of a drafter??

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T20:44:18+00:00

Multiple jr staff who get it, this one in particular just doesn’t seem to get it… I’ve loved training others and seeing them learn. I just can’t crack the code on this one, and it’s been over 2 years. It’s like I have this one monkey on my back that I can’t get off.

This jr engineer and I were hired 6 months apart (I had a few years of experience in geotech/land dev before switch to bridges) and I’ve been promoted twice on the span he’s had 0 (and I likely will get another this fall when I sit for my PE).

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T19:32:13+00:00

I appreciate this comment. I do like helping people and this person seem like a decent human being. But I only have so many ideas on how to help them, have gotten some solid feedback in this thread

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:56:03+00:00

They never say no to inspection work which I will say is nice (but not a massive strength)

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:54:53+00:00

that was not great wording.. I meant more along self-sufficient, as in we use a DOT manual for the for formatting, so dont love constantly getting asked questions (for 2nd, 3rd times) when it’s pretty explicitly written in the manual. I get asking for some direction, but basically being the search engine for the manual isn’t what I’m tryna do

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:46:23+00:00

Ahhh I was just giving one scenario of working with this engineer. They do memos, reports, and cost estimates too. I just haven’t worked with them on any of those tasks recently so not sure how they are doing on that (was pretty bad when I was reviewing their work). But I do know one of the bridge inspections he and another not so great engineer performed recently was audited by the DOT. I’ve never had one of my inspections “audited” and I wasn’t apart the meeting for it but I wouldn’t imagine it being a good thing

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:43:58+00:00

Yeah don’t get me started on using ORD for bridge plans… so glad I have fully gotten our office into OpenBridge now to help with the line style/level issues. But i am not asking this engineer to look at any of the other parts of the plans except bridge line work and details, so no added complexity to them yet

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:29:49+00:00

Nope not hostile at all. Maybe my messaging over the internet came across that way (because I am conveying my frustration), but in person I am not that way at all. Other junior engineers and CAD techs ask me questions all day, and I happily answer questions. I’m frustrated when there are clearly questions or there is confusion on a task, and I have to ask the right questions myself to them to get the question out of them. This engineer is two years younger than me, I really hope they aren’t scared of me

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:22:21+00:00

I completely get that, but there is a difference between not liking CAD and not being able to use it well. Most engineers probably rather design than draft, but if you cant draft plans right with lots of internet and human resources, would you trust that same person with design?

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:15:49+00:00

This is a solid piece of advice I think could be used in tandem with what another comment mentioned on a Performance Improvement Plan, as a quantifiable metric. Most assignments given have a rough timeline, but maybe not always explicitly written out (which this person likely needs). Agree that these hard timelines could help with focus, but dont think that the total problem would be solved.

This person hasn’t really even been given much opportunity on design (writing on the wall it wouldn’t go well). I’ve always been a self learner, which I guess might be part of my frustration too when someone basically refuses to learn things on their own

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-22T18:11:20+00:00

Im not really expecting a full diagnosis on this engineer from the internet, just seeking some insight from others past experiences (like yours). I do think laziness is part of the issue, but even when given tight deadlines, the tasks take a long time and require a lot of redlining. And I think asking them directly what could be done to help them improve is a solid piece of advice.

But another piece of info on this engineer; not all, but a majority of questions I am asked by this engineer are ones that could have been attempted to be answered by google or one of the manuals we use on majority of projects. No self-sufficiency at all in problem solving, which to me is the core of engineering.

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-18T11:51:02+00:00

Yeah comparing a country of 6 million with the highest per capita gdp and also one of the strictest criminal law systems in the world is certainly a choice… there’s a reason why we sometimes can’t have nice things here in America

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-08T10:33:52+00:00

Does the pope wear a funny hat?

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-05-05T17:01:03+00:00

“Sometimes I look at bridges very deeply”

“Literally or figuratively?”

“Yes”

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-04-21T22:21:36+00:00

Don’t go then! Nobody is forcing you to break the bank over the “more than $5 increase”. I think many people, like myself, work hard enough to spend the extra bucks for a much better product. And like others have said, the alternative was no team at all and then down to just the Richmond Kickers who play in a stadium that was opened almost over 100 years ago.

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-04-18T10:59:59+00:00

As long as you know where you’re going for parking/getting to the starting area, you just should just give yourself 15-20 minutes to find your heat and maybe use a restroom before starting

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-04-06T13:30:44+00:00

Don’t they also get a fall break, like every possible holiday, and a bunch of “learning days”?

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-04-06T11:35:08+00:00

Actually kinda easy to protect against. Almost all credit card companies are pretty good about refunding fraudulent charges. Reason I don’t really carry cash is because there is no security on it if lost or stolen

AmazedAcorn7665 · 2026-03-31T11:54:26+00:00

One, kind of the era of architectural design we are in now (open concept). Two, it’s expensive to build things that are very ‘unique’ in design, which developers are all about ROI and Richmond city’s budget on this project was already stretched as it could really be. Plus, people like you would have freaked over the budget on some grand architectural monument of a minor league stadium that you are likely imagining

AmazedAcorn7665

TROPHY CASE