RPA Engineering offers on-site engineering and project management services to assist our clients with their day-to-day needs. On-site project engineers and project managers come from a variety of backgrounds and can handle many different types of projects. Our engineers are there throughout the entire life cycle of a project, from project conception through project completion. Our project engineers can assist clients with concept development, establishing project budgets and schedules, funding requests and purchase requisitions. On-site Project Managers provide contractor oversight and installation supervision along with managing project close-out procedures.
One of our on-site Engineering Project Managers is Zach Torchia. Zach has a background in mechanical engineering, and he joined RPA in July 2019. He has been on-site the duration of his career here. He currently works on-site at a large pharmaceutical manufacturer.
We interviewed Zach to provide more insight and learn more about what our on-site engineers do!
Q. What do you enjoy about your job?
I enjoy being employed by a small family owned firm, while working day to day for a global corporation. You get to meet and network with twice the amount of people.
Q. What is the hardest part of your job?
The hardest part of my job right now are the lead times for materials and equipment. Ongoing supply chain issues and labor shortages are creating production and lead time issues around the globe. This makes planning projects tough when schedules are always up in the air.
Q. What part of your job on-site were you most prepared for?
I was most prepared for being able to communicate and being able to work effectively with people you barely know. Utilizing your communication skills to find common ground for conversation outside of work discussions, creates better relationships / working environments for you and your coworkers.
Q. What parts of being on-site had the biggest learning curve for you?
Navigating the site and learning where everything is. It is easy to get lost or forget how to get places on-site when you are new and not familiar with the various building layouts.
Q. What skills that you have developed on-site make you a better overall engineer?
Developing my leadership skills on-site have made me a better Project Manager and Project Engineer. Coordinating and leading with various department heads on-site and 3rd party contractors to ensure a successful project is a skill that must be developed for any Project Manager / Engineer.
Q. What did you want to be when you grew up and why?
I wanted to be a garbage collector. I thought it was the coolest job because you get to stand and ride on the outside of the truck when it’s moving.
Q. When did you know you wanted to be an engineer?
Originally, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. During my senior year of high school, my parents suggested pursuing engineering after graduating high school, and it worked out.
Q. If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I would love to travel to Europe for a month and visit multiple countries by train. Italy, Switzerland, France, Spain, and Portugal would be on the top of my list.
Enjoy some photos of Zach outside of work!
If you or your company is interested in learning more about RPA Engineering’s On-Site Engineering and Project Management Services, email info@rpaengr.com.