NKB

This month, Jim celebrates his 10th anniversary with NKB! An Engineer In Training, Project Manager, and overall logistics maverick, Jim is a quintessential NKB employee. Innovative. Knowledgeable. And operating with our guiding principles of quality, integrity, and professionalism every day. Whether he is using our drone or laser scanner to perform a condition assessment or flying via helicopter to Maine’s remote wilderness to oversee a project, Jim is hands-on and dedicated in all that he does.

In addition to the technical skill, his kind spirit and aptitude for fun make him a joy to work with. He certainly carries the ‘Resig legacy’ well! Getting to know Jim through some Q&A was a pleasure – and we know you’ll think so too! Check out 10 questions to celebrate Jim’s 10 years at NKB!

How long have you been employed at NKB?

A full decade!

What is your favorite part of your job?

I think it’s two-fold. I love the unpredictable nature of the projects I get to work on, making every day a little different, and I also get to work with our latest technology – all of our cool toys!

What have you gained from working at NKB?

The single most valuable thing I’ve learned is that it’s okay to ask for help. It is valuable to recognize and be comfortable asking for help when you need it, rather than struggling through something and feeling as if you’re drowning alone. NKB has proven to be a very safe environment that encourages asking for assistance from others and utilizing everyone’s talents. You don’t have to go it alone!

On a more personal note, I never expected to have as many friends from a single place of employment as I have at NKB. I’ve been lucky that way.

What is your biggest motivation?

Everything I do, I do because of my family. I truly enjoy what I do at NKB, and I do it because I know it provides me with the opportunity to help support my family. And that’s what it’s all about. A great lesson that I learned from my Dad is that it matters where you work as much as what you’re doing.  It sends a message to your kids about what you value. I’m proud to work at NKB and greatly respect what we do.

Describe NKB in three words or less.

Familial. Educational. Challenging.

Any advice for prospective NKB employees?

Be yourself. Don’t think you need to be what someone else wants you to be. We want to forge real relationships, and transparency is key for that! Like good sports teams – they work best when they understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and if you don’t develop that understanding and trust, it’s much harder to complete tasks successfully. Without that honesty, the team falters, and we appreciate open, honest communication at NKB.

Most rewarding or most challenging project?

Two projects immediately come to mind. Both were highly complicated projects, and both had highly successful outcomes, but the road to get there for each was quite different.

The first project is the Tower Assessments and Helipad Design for 16 towers in Northern Maine. This involved an enormous amount of preparation – coordinating travel and subconsultants to get to very remote areas of the state. There’s no safety net in the backwoods area of Maine, so each detail was important. The immense planning paid off, and everything went flawlessly. Everything that we had worked for leading into the fieldwork really paid off. It was very satisfying to have the project go smoothly, and the client was thrilled.

My other challenging project was a whole building pressure test at the Addabbo Federal Building to determine the locations and significance of any air and water infiltration throughout the building’s envelope. This, too, involved an enormous amount of preparation and coordination of multiple subconsultants to handle tasks such as the operation of the pressurization fans, project-specific electrical considerations, additional building security, and securing the elevator shafts throughout the 12-story building. Then on the day before the study, there was an uncontrollable hiccup. The fans necessary to perform the test were not going to arrive due to a shipping issue. But, within 24 hours, NKB and our subconsultant Morrison Herschfield banded together to problem-solve, hunt down finds, and find a way to ensure the test happened properly and on time. It took every bit of time we had available in the building, but we got the test done properly, and again we completed the project with a delighted client!

If you could have one superpower, what would it be?

Invincibility!

What is one thing you’ve yet to cross off your bucket list?

Thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail.

What is your “happy place”?

Absolutely the Adirondacks! Anything from Roaring Brook Falls to Lake Tear of the Clouds to the High Peaks. Being in the Adirondacks is full of great memories for me.