2017 Engineer of the Year Joseph Taylor.

• Position: Architecture & Engineering

Joseph Taylor, PE, is the 2017 Engineer of the Year, nominated by the Alaska Society of Professional Engineers Anchorage Chapter. Taylor has more than thirteen years of engineering experience, including projects that range from rural roadways to congested city highways. Recently Taylor transitioned from working for CH2M to his new position as an associate at Lounsbury & Associates. He values his experience working at CH2M: "It was a great work environment and CH2M has great people," Taylor says; however, he is enthusiastic about new opportunities at Lounsbury & Associates, Alaska's oldest surveying and engineering company, founded in 1949. "It's a smaller firm, but it has a long history in Alaska, serving the state for more than sixty years. I'm excited to be here."

Taylor earned his bachelor of science in civil engineering from Portland State University and a master's in civil engineering from the University of Alaska Anchorage. He's an active member with the Alaska Society of Professional Engineers and volunteers annually for the Anchorage Engineers Week, taking place this year February 18-24.

"The really cool thing about engineering is how much of it is a part of every day and no one really notices," Taylor says, speaking of common engineering marvels that include clean drinking water, working traffic lights, or the management of storm water runoff from urban roadways.

Below, Taylor shares some of his engineering background, expertise, and advice.

What attracted you to engineering as a career?

Like most engineers, I was pretty good at math and science as a kid. I participated in summer science camps and made exploding volcanos for the science fair and things like that. I took some advanced math and sciences classes in high school. I was never the best student in class, but I wasn't afraid of taking technical courses. If I'm completely honest, I was more interested in playing sports growing up than I was in finding a career. Engineering kind of found me. The best I could do as far as college football was a small tech school in South Dakota. There were two career paths offered there, nursing and engineering. I picked engineering and before I knew it, I fell in love with it.

What kind of engineering work do you perform most often?

I am a civil engineer by education. Civil engineering is a broad discipline that includes earth and soils engineering, water resources, wastewater management, site development, transportation, and some structural...