In+Motion_Fall 2013

2505 N. State HWY 360, Suite 750 | Grand Prairie, Texas 75050

Editor:

Crystal Oczkowski Dallas/Fort Worth | 972.890.9800

Advisors:

Steve Perliss San Francisco | 415.908.6450

Sanjeev Shah Miami | 305.500.9390

David Little Washington, D.C. | 703.968.7883

About Lea+Elliott Lea+Elliott is a transportation consulting firm offer- ing a broad range of planning, engineering, program management, and construction management servic- es for clients worldwide. These services are provided to public transit authorities, airports and private sector owners for new transit systems and the refur- bishment of existing systems. We have expertise in all modes of transit, including high-speed and intercity rail, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, automated guideway transit, personal rapid transit, and conven- tional and advanced technology buses. The firm is especially well known for its creative structuring of procurements for a wide range of delivery options that include DBOM and P3.

Please return address correction information to the above address or fax to 972.890.9801.

Celebrating 40 years of moving people

Meet Paul Trahey

Lea+Elliott Senior Associate Paul Trahey, P.E. started his transit career as a bogie/truck designer and worked his way up to become the manager of engineering for an established rolling stock manufacturer. Along the way, he worked for three railcar manufacturers and one system supplier which gives him exceptional real-life experience and credibility with Lea+Elliott’s clients and suppliers.

Today, as the contract compliance engineer for Lea+Elliott’s work on the Honolulu Rail Transit project, he assures that the system supplier’s design is compliant with all contractual requirements. Paul assigns systems experts within Lea+Elliott as reviewers for each of the project’s 3,000+ submittals. He then reviews every comment to assure pertinence, accuracy and quality before transmitting the documents back to the supplier. “Our reviewers are the best,” Paul says. “We have some of the brightest technical minds in system engineering. The wealth and depth of our collective knowledge amazes me.” One challenge is assuring that reviewers and the supplier focus on the requirements of the specification as written. “Preferences, improvements and suggestions must be considered,” he says, “but at the end of the day, my job is to make sure the clients get everything they’re entitled to, while being fair and reasonable to the supplier.” Paul is a pragmatic problem solver with a can-do, get-it-done attitude—coupled with a good dose of common sense. He quickly diagnoses and resolves complex technical issues. “I pride myself in doing my homework,” he adds. “I hate being wrong.” While Paul can readily address a multitude of details to resolve technical issues, he also has the keen ability to envision the big-picture. “It’s a delicate balance,” he says. “You have to make sure each individual piece is correct, but you can’t lose focus on how they all fit together. Changes to one piece may have detrimental effects on the puzzle as a whole.”

In Motion

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Vol. 21 No 3