August Newsletter – Meet Us in Our Virtual Meeting Room

Meet us in our virtual meeting room

The pandemic has challenged all of us to adapt and pivot to a more virtual lifestyle. Like most businesses, we have hosted virtual meetings through Teams, Zoom, and other online platforms. With this seemingly permanent shift to online platforms, we have created a virtual meeting room as a means to engage the public while offering an equitable and safe online platform for participants to easily access.

BETA’s virtual meeting room platform has been rolled out successfully to our clients who have used it to present information, garner feedback, and showcase project details in a way that reaches a broader audience. Using innovative 3D technology, our clients can now host personalized, real-time, and face-to-face meetings with remote attendees. From town meetings to project updates, this highly customizable tool can be an invaluable asset for communities that are looking to enhance or, when needed, replace in-person events and communication. Click here to read more about BETA’s Virtual Meeting Room platform.

Summer Intern Spotlight

Summer isn’t the only thing we are sad to see on its way out! Our interns have played a major role in our success this summer. We asked a few of them to tell us a little about their experience this summer at BETA.

“I have learned so much in my time at BETA. Before this internship, I had never used ArcGIS software. Now I feel like my skills are solid enough to be a big help on projects and getting office work done. I have learned a lot about the field work that goes on at BETA, such as stormwater inspections and RoadBotics and GPS mapping. 

BETA has helped me feel much more prepared to start my career.” 

– Jacob, BETA Intern

“I’ve acquired a ton of knowledge on drainage systems, how they work, where they go, how they’re maintained, and even what sort of pollutants can exist in systems, as well as why they might be present. 

I gained background knowledge on how projects come about by helping with bidding reports and I’ve developed skills in GIS which will definitely prove useful later on.” 

– Dan, BETA Intern

“I wanted to intern at BETA because it is a multi-disciplinary firm and there is such a wide variety of projects worked on. You can tell that BETA cares about having a relationship with their clients, as well as their employees.

I have learned so much in my time at BETA, every day is different. One new program I have learned is Lumion, a 3D rendering software. My computer skills have improved tremendously.” 

– Miranda, BETA Intern

We’re going green… with a blue car!

With a corporate-wide commitment to sustainability, we are thrilled to have added a Toyota Hybrid RAV4 truck to BETA’s fleet. This vehicle will primarily be used by our asset management specialists to collect pavement data and by field staff for site visits.

A typical pavement management project could require up to 100 miles per day of commuting travel, plus the mileage accumulated during data collection. Using hybrid-mode during data collection will significantly reduce noise pollution while also reducing emissions. When starting up, sitting idle at intersections and lights, or moving at low speeds, the car is powered solely by the electric drive motor, drawing energy from the hybrid battery through the power control unit. The Hybrid’s battery never needs to be plugged in as it is constantly re-charged by either the gas engine or electric motor during deceleration and regenerative braking. We are excited about this significant eco-friendly solution as we continue our mission to improve the communities where we live and work.

Welcoming two new hires

Lauryn Mulcahy joined BETA this month as a Staff Scientist in our environmental services group. She recently received a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from Worcester State University. Her coursework included Hydrology, Ecology, Geographic Information Systems I and II, Digital Landscape Analysis, and Computer Programming. In her time at school, Lauryn completed a digital landscape analysis of the Boston Harbor and researched the impact of climate change on coral reefs. She also used GIS to conduct research on car accidents around school zones in Worcester County.

Gary James brings over 40 years of civil and environmental engineering experience to BETA. Joining us as a Project Manager in the environmental sciences group, he has been responsible for the design and permitting of many civil and environmental engineering projects in both freshwater and coastal scenarios. Gary’s environmental permitting experience covers local, state, and federal regulations including the MA Wetland Protection Act, MA DEP Section 401 Water Quality Certification, Section 404 Army Corps filings, and MA Chapter 91 associated with coastal structures and coastal dredging. He has performed dozens of Phase I dam inspections and dam structure repair designs; pier foundation designs; and design of stormwater management projects. Gary is experienced with assisting planning boards, zoning boards of appeal and conservation commissions.

We are committed to future growth

Do you want to become an employee owner? We are currently looking for talented staff across many of our disciplines in offices throughout New England. BETA will challenge you with interesting work and offers the potential for growth and advancement. Browse our current job openings.

To start receiving BETA’s monthly newsletter directly to your inbox, please subscribe here.