My Summer: Interning at Kiewit

It is crazy to think that I am already starting my junior year! This summer went by so quickly; it seemed like just yesterday I was taking my spring finals. As summer comes to an end, I can’t help but look back on how great it was. I was very fortunate to be offered an internship at Kiewit this summer. Kiewit is a globally known Fortune 500 contracting and construction company with projects all over the world. They have a huge variety of projects such as power plants, desalinations plants, highways, and light rails – just to name a few.

For the summer, I was positioned on the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension Phase 2A, an extension of an existing light rail. The project is a design-build: the project is continually designed while it is being built, instead of fully designed before construction. The project ranges from Pasadena to Azusa, where 11.5 miles of track is being added. I specifically was positioned at the M&O Facility, which stands for Maintenance & Operations Facility. The M&O Facility is a 24-acre lot positioned in Monrovia, which is about halfway down the extension. The M&O Facility is where the trains spend all their time when they are not being used on the main line.

Within the M&O Facility, there are numerous components. There is a large yard, which allows 80+ trains to be stored, and also a large main building, which contains offices, training rooms, and shops. The main building also contains large bi-fold doors and rails, which allow the trains to enter into the building so that they can be inspected, serviced, and repaired. There is also a Car Wash building, a Car Cleaning Platform, and a Material Storage building.

This summer, I was given the responsibilities of a salaried paid field engineer. At first I felt overwhelmed since I was new to the position, and doing the work of a seasoned employee. However, everyone was extremely helpful and answered all my questions, and soon enough I was able to significantly contribute to the project and become a valued member of the team. During my last week they even joked, “You aren’t going back to school, right?”

One of my favorite tasks I worked on was submitting RFI’s. An RFI is a request for information, where through writing you ask the designers and structural engineers to provide additional details, clarify information, ask about alternative procedures, or present solutions to problems. I really enjoyed RFIs because they helped me solve the problems I encountered on site, and helped the M&O to stay on schedule by preventing problems from causing delays. I also really enjoyed my daily safety walks: I would go out into the field and observe our daily operations. I enjoyed these because I got to observe all the large machinery in action and get to interact with all of the craft workers.

Overall, I had an amazing experience and couldn’t have asked for a better summer. I really enjoyed the project I was positioned at and formed great relationships with my coworkers and supervisors. I also felt that even as an intern my tasks were important and meaningful, and that I was contributing to the M&O team.

If you would like to learn more about Kiewit or getting an internship as a civil engineer please let me know! Fight on!

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