It’s World Engineering Day – an opportunity to celebrate engineering and the contribution of the world’s engineers for a better, sustainable world.
So we put some questions to Charlotte Smith, who is an Associate in the Ground Engineering and Contaminated Land team at our Bristol office.
What do you do at PJA, and what attracted you to your career?
I work on a range of projects, providing advice to developers on ground conditions. This includes assessing and mitigating the risks associated with contamination in soils and groundwater as well as characterising the engineering properties of the ground to ensure sites can be safely developed. I’m typically involved through the lifecycle of a development project, from feasibility and due diligence stages through to delivery of land ready for development and even during the construction phase.
I actually fell into my career rather than planned it! After completing a degree in Environmental Earth Science at university, a recruitment agency found me a role as an assistant environmental engineer and I haven’t looked back.
What kind of projects do you work on?
I’m currently working on a wide variety of brownfield and greenfield projects at PJA. These include the redevelopment of the Llandarcy oil refinery for predominantly residential use; the proposed West Midlands Gigafactory development at Coventry Airport; the redevelopment of a former steelworks in Newport for predominantly residential use; a logistics development in Basildon and a mixed use development in West Cheltenham.
I am involved in some challenging long-term development projects – I’m sure I will feel proud of these in a few years’ time when our input is complete!
Why do you enjoy your role?
Every site is different which brings different challenges. I find it genuinely interesting to build up a picture of a site through the various stages of a project, gradually adding more detail to increase my understanding of the ground conditions and associated risks. I also feel like my type of work makes a tangible difference and I do get a sense of satisfaction when I see development projects that I have worked on progress through to construction.
And what are the challenges?
There’s a requirement to ensure there are no unacceptable risks to humans, the environment or property in a finished development, balanced with the need to sustainably retain/reuse soils as far as possible.
In addition, developments need to be commercially viable, so our work needs to be cost effective and we need to deliver solutions to clients that provide value for money, whilst ensuring robust characterisation, remediation and mitigation of risks associated with contamination and the engineering properties of the ground.
What do you like about working about PJA?
I love that I get to work on a range of different projects for different clients, so there’s lots of variety. I work in a supportive team and because PJA is a relatively small company I know people at all levels which brings a personal feel to the working environment.
In the spirit of World Engineering Day, how does your work contribute to a better, more sustainable world?
By supporting developers in remediating and redeveloping brownfield sites via the planning process, we help to bring these sites into beneficial use. This can help drive improvements in local communities in a wellbeing and economic context.
Charlotte Smith, Associate
Charlotte has over 13 years’ experience in the assessment, management, and remediation of land contamination, gained on a diverse range of public and private sector schemes including highway, rail, residential and commercial infrastructure projects. Charlotte’s main interest is in the reclamation and remediation of brownfield sites and she has proven abilities in engaging key stakeholders and regulators and navigating the planning process to deliver land ready for development.
Get in touch with Charlotte: [email protected]
Find out more on our engineering services, including ground engineering and contaminated land services, here
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