Samantha joined McCormick Taylor in 2019 and has three years of experience. Her role as a Structural Designer entails working on the design and drafting for bridge and retaining wall projects as well as assisting our more senior-level engineers with structural calculations. She coordinates with McCormick Taylor's roadway group to set the geometry of a structure and develop the preliminary design using various design programs. For the final design, she works on more heavy calculations and modeling as well as developing plans and design packages to submit to our clients.
Samantha enjoys that every project she works on is different. "I’ve been able to work on a large variety of projects ranging from small box culverts to multi-span curved steel girder bridges to historic truss rehabilitations. Each one of these projects provides a new set of challenges, whether it be more complex geometry, fast construction schedules, or tricky coordination with our roadway, traffic, and water resources staff."
Currently, Samantha is working on the SR 50-A28 over Chartiers Creek Bridge Replacement Project in Bridgeville, PA. Although she started working at McCormick Taylor after most of the design was complete, she's been able to see some of the challenges that come with building an ABC bridge now that the project is in construction.
Another cool project she is working on is I-83 East Shore, Section 2 in Dauphin County, PA. "The complex geometry of the entire interchange as well as the huge number of structures (I think there are over 50 structures that will be designed and built for this project) has made it interesting to work on," says Samantha. "It’s been cool to work with people from other disciples and other offices and to see how all engineering disciples come together for a project of this scale."
Samantha's favorite McCormick Taylor memory is attending the erection of the Messerall truss in Pymatuning State Park. The bridge is a historic truss that was relocated to the state park to be preserved as a pedestrian bridge. "This project was one of the first ones that I worked on at McCormick Taylor, so seeing it being built in person was a fulfilling experience."
