Sunday, July 8, 2012

Stone & Webster Provided Solid Start

by Guy Algar
Motorheads Performance

I was recalling my start as a Mechanical Engineer the other day in conversation with an old friend. It was amazing to think back to my early days working full time at Stone & Webster Engineering in Boston, Massachusetts. To this day, Stone & Webster remains a prominent corporation in the engineering field. In the heyday of the late 1970's and 1980's, it was one of the very top in the field of nuclear design engineering, and I am honored to have got my start there.

Back in the days of pencil and paper!  Yes, when I was first recruited, I began as a drafter. I sat at a drafting table with large sheets of paper, pencil and all the tools of my trade. When computers first emerged, Stone & Webster quickly converted to computerization, and we learned AutoCAD. Looking back now, I am grateful to have worked in such a progressive, top-notch company, and to have had the numerous opportunities to grow and expand my experience and expertise within the field of mechanical engineering. To have learned the very specialized field of nuclear design was an incredible experience.

So much has changed since the early days of AutoCAD. The program has evolved into a complex and exact tool that engineers worldwide use as the Gold Standard in designs of all types. The mentors I had at Stone & Webster taught me a lot, and now that I have moved on to consulting work and my own performance shop for classic cars, I see that what I learned in the early years served as a very solid knowledge base I draw on every day.