Engineers Week 2023 Interview: Colby Rayfield, Engineering Associate
This week at McGill we celebrate Engineers Week, a week dedicated to celebrating the future of engineering. The week was created by the National Society for Professional Engineers (NSPE) an organization that is dedicated to “Creating a world where the public can be confident that engineering decisions affecting their lives are made by qualified and ethically accountable professionals.” The theme this year for Engineers Week is Creating the Future. With this theme in mind, we interviewed six of our employees who are newer to the field of engineering and are paving the way in the engineering field each day. Read our interviews each day to find out what excites them about their current work and the future.
Engineers Week 2023: Today, meet Coby Rayfield, EI, and Engineering Associate in our Hickory office.
Why did you pursue the engineering field?
I chose a career in engineering because I enjoy using math and engineering to solve complicated problems that help build the community and world surrounding us. I remember growing up and always being fascinated by the various construction projects and I wanted to have a part in that.
What excites you about problem solving?
What excites me about problem solving is the anticipation of seeing a finished product and having a sense of accomplishment when the work has been completed.
What are your hopes for the future of engineering? How do you plan to be a part of that / contribute to that?
My hopes for the future of engineering are that engineering continues to develop and evolve exponentially and be introduced to other engineers as quickly as it evolves. I plan to be a part of that growth by learning everything I can from more experienced engineers, and building on what they teach me here at McGill.
Is there a project you’ve recently worked on that you are proud of?
There have been several exciting projects that I have been given the opportunity to help with at McGill. One of the most recent and most memorable has been the Pilot Mountain Wastewater Treatment Plant. The Town of Pilot Mountain received $10,000,000 of funding to make upgrades to their existing wastewater treatment plant. This is an exciting project and the wastewater team at McGill is thrilled to have the opportunity to work on this project.
Is there something new in the field that you’d like to share or that excites you?
I think the development of online satellite imagery and map data is very exciting. The amount of information we can use to help us with engineering related work and the accuracy of this satellite imagery and map data is astonishing. It’s an amazing tool that will likely develop even more in the coming years.
