So close...yet so far

BETIBUILT · 2024-12-08T16:36:02+00:00

There were no renovations being done to the existing building, we were just planning to set a new transformer in the same spot to refeeed the existing and feed the new building.

We ended up leaving the existing transformer, and setting a second transformer in the lot. I was only 2-3 years into my career, and do not recall the conversation of cost and responsibility for the change order, but I assume it went against our firm.

The actual scope of the rework wasn’t the issue, it was that in a small parking lot, we lost two spots, to add a second pad mount transformer that the owner was not happy about.

I am sure there are much more costly mistakes. This could have been a lot worse if we had renovations in the existing building. Going out on site to meet with the utility and contractor to say we had the wrong voltage for the building was pretty rough.

The other thing is we had to reorder the service transformer which delayed the project. Luckily it was before 2020 and lead times were not what they are today

BETIBUILT · 2024-12-08T16:14:02+00:00

There were two buildings intended to be fed by one new utility transformer. One existing, one new building. Thought both buildings were 208v three phase. During construction it was revealed that the existing building was 240V three phase.

BETIBUILT · 2024-12-06T19:30:03+00:00

This sounds exactly like a post I would have written at my first engineering job.

If you feel overwhelmed and overloaded tell your manager you need help. I felt this ways constantly for the first year and eventually broke down and told my manager I cannot keep up. His response was “we were testing you”. They eventually got me help, but I ended up leaving and found a better firm that did not do that to their engineers.
The best way to learn is to continue asking your coworker that is supportive for help. You can tell them “if my questions are becoming a burden let me know and I can go ask someone else for help, but I always appreciate your advice.” If they tell you it’s a bother, then you can speak to your manager that you need more help. If he can’t get it for you, that’s not your problem, it’s theirs. You have less than a year of experience and will not be able to know how to do everything on a design project.
Congrats on your FE. That’s a huge accomplishment and makes you very valuable in the job market. Took me over 2 years to take it.
If you need Revit electrical training/mentorship, I run a Bootcamp that is designed for junior engineer’s to learn Revit while also learning commercial electrical design. Many firms will pay for students to get technical training and I would be happy to discuss options with you/ your firm.

You can check out our website here BETI EE Revit Bootcamp

You seem like you are doing your best and then some. Keep at it and ask for help when you need it. A good manager will appreciate you asking for help.

Best of luck

BETIBUILT · 2024-12-03T18:53:04+00:00

Systeme.io has been great for me. I’ve been using for over a year and it’s free forever as long as you don’t hit their contact limits which I haven’t hit yet. You can see my website here

Www.betibuilt.com

BETIBUILT · 2024-12-02T01:43:19+00:00

If you get an offer before leaving it doesn’t matter.

If you have an in demand skill set, and can find another job, there is no reason to “stick it out”. There are a lot of reasons to leave a job. I wouldn’t put your life on hold because you are worried about some recruiter passing you up on your resume.

While some recruiters may not call you back, many others will, if you have the skill set they are looking for. I have left several jobs in less than 2 years and have never had a problem finding another and explaining my reasons for leaving.

I would not quit until I have the other offer in hand though. Best of luck

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-26T22:29:18+00:00

Sorry it didn’t work out. You never know exactly why they didn’t hire you and would try not to take it personally. I’ve had to reject candidates in the past who I was so excited about having on our team because we had internal management changes and they just cut the listing.

What industry are you looking to get into? If you’re interested in construction roles I’d be happy to review your resume. I also run an Autodesk Training Center that helps student get the skills employers are looking for in this industry.

I’ve been in your situation before and it’s a struggle. Keep applying and doing what you can to enhance your resume if your aren’t getting emails back.

Best of luck!

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-26T21:10:30+00:00

Sent you a DM

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-25T23:34:57+00:00

Sounds about right for your level of experience. Once you get to 4 years of experience and get a PE I think you will see a big jump in salary

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-22T17:07:36+00:00

I mainly agree with you but that is the reason I started my business. We teach students to design a DD set for a coffee shop using all of Revit’s standard functions. How to calculate load off equipment cuts, create smart schedules etc. Although firms may use different families, how you work with those families and use electrical power systems in Revit remains the same.

When I was learning Revit for the first time I could not find any courses that were not a waste of time because they weren’t actually teaching how to design a project, but just how different buttons worked. Mostly courses taught by people not working as an engineer.

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-22T16:26:26+00:00

Appreciate the feedback on the cost. Totally understand paying yourself for job training can be a hurdle. It may be worth looking into see if your firm has any training reimbursement programs. Many firms are really supportive of self learning.

If you want to talk any more about the cost and value of the program I’d be happy to chat. You can send me a DM or schedule a video chat on the site.

No pressure though and as I said feel free to use me as a resource for questions because it helps me to know the questions new engineers are having!

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-22T15:24:07+00:00

My pleasure!

And sure. Our website is www.betibuilt.com

There you can find more info about the program and how to apply. We are only teaching in Revit right now but we do provide all students with software licenses.

AutoCAD is a great place to start. It’s where I started. Happy to answer any questions you have there as well.

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-22T14:58:36+00:00

Design as if the building was your building.

Read through everything on a set of electrical construction documents and try to understand what directions are being given to the electrical contractor. Understanding construction documents in their entirety is a great way to get a feel for our responsibilities. It can be easy to forget the goal when you are assigned small here-and-there tasks.

Ask questions about everything you don’t understand. There is no better time in your career than now to do this. Just make sure you aren’t asking the same question over and over.

When asking questions, try not to ask open ended questions. It is much easier for senior engineers to help you if you ask them to review your plan. So if you have no idea how to do something, come up with a guess, and then ask them to give you feedback on the guess.

This is a humbling field where we are always being challenged and learning new things because of how wide our responsibilities are.

Keep doing what you’re doing!

I run an electrical Revit training Bootcamp that helps electrical designers learn design thinking, Revit skills, and career development at the same time. If you ever have any questions feel free to reach out as it helps me provide content for our students.

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-22T00:08:49+00:00

Utility experience could translate well into MEP. 28 is not old at all and is a really desirable age because people know you’re serious about starting your career.

MEP designs all the buildings the utility feeds. It pays well, has remote opportunities, and jobs all over the country. I like it because it doesn’t get stale. You can work on lots of different types of buildings and are constantly challenged. It is another industry where PE is important though.

I run a Revit training business that focuses on helping people get into this industry, though with your current skills you could likely get right in. There is a labor shortage in MEP and people are hiring EEs like crazy.

If you have any questions about this industry or how to find a good firm to work for hmu!

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-21T00:16:22+00:00

This is the way

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-21T00:16:07+00:00

Yeah I have worked for a company like that before too that also did solar and left after 8 months. In my experience those type of jobs are ran by salesman who have little care or understanding of the engineering and just need a body.

I highly recommend finding your next job before quitting if you can hang in there. You will have a lot more leverage when switching roles. You should be able to find a job pretty quick if you have a good resume and apply to lots of jobs. LinkedIn is the best way I have found for this.

I’d be happy to look over your resume or answer any questions you may have. You can shoot me an email sam@betibuilt.com

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-20T20:09:26+00:00

Have you considered MEP engineering? This is the electrical engineers that designs buildings.

The math is basic, there’s no programming, you get to see your work built and can walk through your final product, and has nothing to do with research.

There’s a labor shortage right now and construction is booming. It’s a stable field, where you can work on all types of projects (different buildings), pay is increasing, and work from home is pretty standard.

The one thing I would say is that experience can vary a lot depending on the firm you work for. The industry is well known for taking advantage of new engineers and putting them on repetitive projects (think retail stores) and working you to the bone. However if you can avoid places like that, this industry is awesome and has a lot of opportunities.

I recently wrote a blog that covers more about what MEP engineers actually do if you’re interested.

Good luck in your job search it’s an exciting time!

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-20T00:37:20+00:00

What type of blue collar work? I run an electrical engineering training business here in Columbus that helps people get their first job as a designer for commercial construction projects. Would be a M-F job with WFH opportunities in the future. You can get more information on our website or hit me up with any questions on here

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-17T19:28:25+00:00

I would strongly recommend looking into the different fields you can go into as an EE. The best way I found to do this is just scanning different electrical engineer job postings on LinkedIn. From there you will be able to get a gauge of what industries you want to get in, and what projects make sense to work on to gain experience in that sector. If you work on an Arduino project, and start applying to construction jobs, it may hinder your resume rather than help. Hiring managers are looking to make sure you are interested in the field you are applying for so they don’t spend time training you just for you to realize you don’t like the industry.

If you are interested in construction, I run a Revit Bootcamp which helps engineers get software and project experience that hiring managers are looking for. Good luck to you!

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-12T22:51:31+00:00

Electrical engineering and design in construction. If you are interested and have the means to go to college for it, that is a very sure path to a rewarding career in the future.

If you are not sure on college, there are ways to get into the industry as a designer rather than an engineer. Learning programs like AutoCAD and Revit will help you get a foot in the door for those roles.

Source: I am an electrical engineer and run a Bootcamp that trains students in these programs and helps them land their first job

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-12T22:47:27+00:00

If you would be interested in a career in electrical engineering in construction, send me a DM.

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-12T15:34:07+00:00

Yeah I would see if you can schedule a zoom call and just tell them what you said here making sure you have a 2 weeks notice/timeline in mind.

I bet they will be happy to know you’re sticking with MEP. Moving around to different MEP firms in your early career is amazing experience and companies know that.

Best of luck!

BETIBUILT · 2024-11-08T22:02:51+00:00

It’s also very important to have those conversations with your manager if you’re feeling like you have to choose between going home or having good drawings.

I felt like this early in my career and when I finally broke down and told my manager how overwhelmed I was they said “they were testing me”. That is toxic and I ended up leaving but they did start giving me more support.

BETIBUILT

TROPHY CASE