People Spotlight: Meet Martin Garcia
Our People Spotlight series gives you an inside look at our technical experts around the world. This week, we are highlighting a senior water/wastewater engineer from our Water business in the U.S. West region and providing an insight into their inspiration and work.
Martin Garcia joined AECOM five years ago after 34 successful years at Denver Water managing, designing and constructing a wide range of projects. His roles ranged from civil engineer to project manager, focusing on complex piping projects as well as tank, pump station and treatment plant projects. He was involved in the design and construction of a pipeline that connected the suburban enclave of Glendale to the Denver Water system, and he was part of the team that designed the 40-mile water transmission and distribution system from scratch for Denver International Airport (DEN). Following the opening of the airport, he was involved in its water distribution system expansion and upgrades over a 25-year period.
After overseeing the design work for the Northwater Treatment Plant during his time at Denver Water, he took the opportunity to work at AECOM and assist with technical support during the construction phase of the project.
Tell us about what inspired you to join the industry.
From a young age, I was always fascinated with infrastructure — highways, buildings and the layouts of cities. My father worked at Denver Water handling distribution system maintenance, so I was familiar with Denver Water from a young age. He worked there for 30 years, and our careers overlapped for about a year and a half. When I was in high school, I learned that civil engineers are involved with infrastructure, and so I chose to study that subject in school. Then, I got a job in civil engineering after coming out of college, at a large oil refinery in southeast Texas. When there was a downturn in the oil industry in the mid-1980s, I got laid off. This gave me a chance to come back home to Denver, and to join Denver Water. I have worked in the water industry ever since, and now I also work in wastewater.
From a young age, I was always fascinated with infrastructure — highways, buildings and the layouts of cities. My father worked at Denver Water handling distribution system maintenance, so I was familiar with Denver Water from a young age.”
What is your favorite AECOM project that you’ve worked on and why?
All of my projects have been interesting, but the best I would have to say is the Salt Lake City Water Reclamation Facility because of the teamwork that the project required. In addition to half a dozen or more disciplines, there were many different offices involved from the United States and Canada. The process design for the project was done in Winnipeg, and we also had people working from Vancouver, Virginia, Ohio, California, and here in Denver — with each office contributing a different specialization. Winnipeg had a wastewater design center, Virginia handled specialty systems, Vancouver handled odor control, and here in Denver we did the yard piping along with plumbing and other building systems, and the architectural design.
I was involved with the yard piping, because of my background from Denver Water. Since this was a wastewater plant, it was different for me — but it was still about moving water around. There were several different processes scattered all over the site and a lot of existing infrastructure that we had to navigate to get from point A to point B, and then from point B to point C. We had to move the water from one process to another, and I collaborated with civil engineers to coordinate all those different parts of the process. Each process engineer managed a specific section of the treatment process, and we coordinated with them as to where the pipe needed to connect into their building.
The teamwork that occurred on the project among the different engineers, the offices across the United States and Canada, and the collaboration with the client made it very memorable for me. And we did it all remotely from our own offices, and from our homes even during the COVID-19 lockdown, using virtual collaboration tools.
All of my projects have been interesting, but the best I would have to say is the Salt Lake City Water Reclamation Facility because of the teamwork that the project required. And we did it all remotely from our own offices, and from our homes even during the COVID-19 lockdown, using virtual collaboration tools.”
Tell us a story of how your work positively impacted the community.
When working on utilities and infrastructure, there’s always going to be an impact on the community. The Salt Lake City Water Reclamation Facility project will allow our client, the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities, to continue meeting their discharge requirements and support the rapid growth of the area. The population continues to grow in Salt Lake City, and this project will allow them to meet the rising demand and build capacity resilience for the future with a more reliable and efficient water reclamation facility. For example, there will be less nutrients in the discharge because of the updated processes designed by AECOM.
The Salt Lake City Water Reclamation Facility project will allow our client, the Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities, to continue meeting their discharge requirements and support the rapid growth of the area.”
Share a piece of career advice.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. As a young engineer, you aren’t going to have the benefit of experience. But those who have gone before you will have that to share. As you progress through your career and gain that experience, you can then share it with those coming up behind you.
When I started, there was a lot I didn’t know, especially about the water industry, so I asked a lot of questions. Now I’m on the other end of the spectrum, helping younger engineers here at AECOM. I’m glad to help them out when they ask questions. That’s one of the things I like most about what I’m doing now — helping the younger engineers learn.
