Name: Rachel B.
Company: Eagle Bridge Co.
Title/Position: Project Manager
Years working in construction: 17
What was your path to a career in construction? Construction and engineering are engrained in my blood. My family has been doing heavy highway construction since 1902. I am the 5th generation in my family to benefit from the heavy-highway construction industry. I grew up visiting jobsites on the weekends with my dad and even some sick days from school. I learned to drive while taking my dad to visit new projects to bid. After engineering school, I knew I wanted to be a part of an industry that built the infrastructure of the future.
What do you like most about working in construction? I love working in an industry that builds something to make the community better. The industry is always evolving and progressing and we are constantly trying to make our infrastructure better with both innovative ways and methods that have been around for decades. Every person on the projects is important. I love that we can take old infrastructure and revive it while utilizing pieces from the past and adding to it. On the flip side, it is also amazing to watch a bridge come out of the ground from nothing. In months, you can watch something come alive from the ground up. It is beautiful to watch the process from start to finish.
This year’s theme is “Keys to the Future.” What is the key to the future of construction in Ohio? People. This business is so dependent on people. We need good people to design and build. People feeling valued, engaged and challenged. We have an aging workforce and less and less people coming in behind them. Technology can only help so much, it is the people that help us move forward.
If you were to give young women (high schoolers) advice about beginning a career in construction? Do not let anyone tell you cannot do it. Whether you are interested in engineering, management, design, trades, etc., you are more than capable. If you have questions, ask! There is nothing wrong with asking questions and understanding everything as much as possible. Women are slowly increasing in quantities across the construction field. Do not be intimidated by the lack of representation you might encounter on one project or in one meeting. We are there and we are growing in numbers!
