Are abubakar
38, director and CEO
Walter P Moore
Atlanta
Go to work for Norfolk Southern Co. At the height of the great recession after seeing layoffs in the structural engineering companies where he had interned, it may not be an optimum start of the career.
“The interns sitting next to me was released for the summer period,” recalls Abubakar. “I was responsible for many things.”
Supervating design, project management, supervision, audit and interface with Norfolk Southern contractors and consultants, “ did everything needed to maintain the centenary railway infrastructure, including programming, budget, maintenance, capital repair projects and design in its territory.
Abubakar took advantage of this experience – and a momentum to improve all the processes even without promotion in sight or without appetite – a new role as a consultant at Engineering Systems Inc.
“I knew the consultation was something that would be good,” he says. “It was listening to others and finding out the problem.”
At the same time, he moved to the forensic space: extracted to the deployment of graphic elements to be successfully related to the jurors exactly how the structures failed, while managing the Corporate headquarters of Atlanta.
As he enjoyed this work, Abubakar began to lose the appearance of pure engineering design, which took him to Walter P Moore in the city, where he says that his team of seven members has grown from the base.
As chair of a technical committee that oversees the good practices of instruction and maintenance of the American Association of Rail Engineering and Maintenance of the Association, it leads the advances and establishes the standards of the industry, including work in a manual of repair of tailor-made infrastructure both as field designers.
Abubakar attributes his success to being an active listener. “I really believe that others can contribute to valuable, valuable opinions, if not more valuable, on any task in their hand,” he says.
“We have our structural design, we have our water resource group and, when all the disciplines are put under an umbrella, be able to work between teams and gather everything in a final, beautiful and elegant report,” he says. “These are fun projects to work.”
Abubakar’s family, including children of 3 and 7 years old, keeps her motivated and inspired, helps her to avoid burns and strengthen her resilience. She says having children forced her to “be hyper-effective with every minute of the day.”
The greatest challenges of the industry that Abubakar Voice voice are to foster a disciplined workforce and dedicated to a career that is not always easy and easy solutions, especially since the work is more automated.
“Having the wisdom to know what is important with experience,” he says. “Therefore, it is to ensure that the experience is happening.”
When Abubakar talks to students about the persecution of their engineering careers, he works to relate it to the things they are interested in and to provide a large photo application, showing how it translates into virtually everything.
When it comes to women specifically, Abubakar emphasizes that they can excel in the field and be leaders, pointing to successful features such as empathy, understanding and conflict resolution.
“Different perspectives add value to any organization, any industry.” She says.
