For decades, Draper Aden has remained an industry leader in civil planning, engineering and design throughout the Mid-Atlantic, with offices in Virginia and North Carolina. There is no doubt that the talented and dedicated individuals we’ve had the pleasure of welcoming to our team, has helped make Draper Aden what it is today. We are a vision-oriented firm and we strive to carry out our values each day by empowering our team of professionals to go out into the world and make a difference. We recently welcomed Aziz Ahmed to our Utilities Team in our Site Development and Infrastructure Division. We couldn’t be more excited about the knowledge, experience, and passion for the industry that he brings to our firm. We believe he has a vibrant future here at Draper Aden and we want to catch up with him to see what his first couple of months have been like:
Tell us about your new position at Draper Aden.
I am the Team Leader for the Utilities Team in the Richmond office. I am excited about the challenges and opportunities in supporting the company’s overall goal in making the utility business bigger and stronger. The entire team is brimming with enthusiasm to fulfill its potential for greater success.
What inspired you most about joining the Draper Aden team?
DAA is a full-service Civil Engineering company. It has in-house survey, SUE, geotechnical, structural, and environmental resources, in addition to an experienced utility team. DAA is a widely respected Virginia-based consulting firm with locally available resources which provides much bigger opportunity for growth when compared to our competitors. DAA is a company with a proud history and demonstrable potential with a brighter future. I am proud to be a part of DAA’s exciting future.
What has your first couple of months at Draper Aden been like?
It has been a challenging and exciting couple of months! DAA’s Richmond office is big compared to other places I’ve worked in my career. I am navigating through the historical knowledge to know my team of superb engineers and learning the DDA-way of doing things while staying engaged in my day-to-day technical responsibilities. I am also engaged in the operational side of our team’s business.
Talk to our readers a little bit about your industry experience and what you enjoy mostabout being on the Utilities Team.
I have 20+ years of diversified experience in the utilities business. From master planning and system modeling to infrastructure design, I have done it all. I can’t claim expertise on anything, but with my years in the industry, I have done a lot to know what our clients need, how we can strategize to help them, and how we work hard and smart to become one of the most sought-after consultants in Virginia.
I worked for some of the larger water and wastewater consultants in the industry (Arcadis, Brown and Caldwell, CDM, etc.), gained experience in technically challenging and complex utility projects, provided project and program management support to utilities, and developed and delivered training to clients throughout the country. My technical expertise includes water quality and process/treatment, master planning and hydraulic modeling, system review and development of operational strategies, infrastructure planning, and design.
Being a member of the Utilities Team, I’m enjoying the diverse field of work that feeds my desire to stay engaged in technically challenging and exciting projects. I am also enjoying the effort to work with every member of the team to avail our full potential and move towards a bright future.
Is there anything new that Draper Aden has taught you that you didn’t know before?
Every company has its unique culture and practice. I am learning a lot: DAA way of doing things.
What is one of the firm’s core values that resonates most with you and why?
Respect and Support. I believe we are here to serve our clients, but we cannot do it individually. We need a team that may have different individuals with conflicting interests, yet…still…working together to provide excellence in our services. We should always remember that a team cannot exist without respect for each other and cannot prosper if individuals do not support each other.
What has been the most exciting project you’ve been exposed to since being at Draper Aden, given that you can speak on that project?
I get excited when somebody gives me a white paper with a problem description and asks me to find a solution. Being the trusted consultant of so many clients, DAA gets a lot of those. The opportunity to provide technical support and strategic guidance to some of our superbly capable project managers gives me the taste of such excitement.
Aziz Ahmed lives in Glen Allen. He and his beautiful wife Lipi are proud parents of two daughters Lubaba and Levana. He plays cricket and tennis, and loves reading and cooking. We can’t thank Aziz enough for taking time out of his busy schedule to let us catch up with him. To learn more about what he does and what projects and services we offer, visit our Site Development and Infrastructure division.
View the Henrico Citizen announcement of Aziz Ahmed here.
