A Letter from Our President

Hello to my fellow AACEI Pittsburgh Chapter members. First, I truly hope all our members have managed to stay healthy and safe during this pandemic. It feels odd that as I type this it is almost a full two years that we have been living with certain factors that have changed the way we live. I know for me personally and for people in my immediate circle, we have managed to evade the worst of this pandemic, but I also know that is not the case for many of our Chapter members. I hope that in 2022 and beyond, we can all look to a better future.

In my last letter, I wrote about how the construction industry had been experiencing both exciting and challenging times. I do not believe when I wrote those words, I could have imagined the degree of challenges that this industry would face. When I wrote that message the economy was growing, and many large-scale projects were on the horizon. Since then, the path has shifted. While construction is still a major driving force of our economy, the way projects are constructed has drastically changed. Everything from the obvious COVID protocols, to supply chain issues, to labor shortages which now are not necessarily related to the booming economy. These obstacles have changed the way we will look at construction in the future.

There are also positive changes that have emerged from this pandemic. Our industry has learned how to work more remotely. While construction itself is still very hands on, there are many aspects of the construction process that has allowed organizations to extend their reach in findings ways to work together.

Also, I believe that this pandemic has caused many organizations to think differently on how they measure project risks and possible unknowns that have always had the chance to sink the project ship, but often managed to survive and stay afloat. In today’s market, not properly accounting for these risks may have a much greater chance of seeing that project sink to the bottom of the ocean.

Now more than ever, our industry of Project Controls can have a major impact on the success of projects. Owners and organizations require much better measures and controls to be able to look around corners and address project issues before it is too late. Many of us have been involved on projects where there was not an abundance of Project Control measures in place. Some of this may simply be attributable to a lack of personnel, training, and development of future Project Controls professionals. This brings an opportunity for us to encourage our pool of younger professionals to look to organizations like AACEI to gain these crucial skills needed in our industry. AACEI has always been at the forefront of this industry and continues to have such a depth of knowledge and resources at its disposal.

I encourage every member to find ways to mentor and inspire the next generation of project controls and cost engineering professionals. I believe that our guidance along with the training and certification programs offered by AACEI will help improve the industry and all those involved as we navigate the challenges in this changing world.

As always, the Pittsburgh chapter of AACEI is here to support our members and encourage future members in achieving all their goals. I look forward to serving the Pittsburgh chapter as President again in the upcoming year and I hope for the day we can resume seeing a little more of each other in person.

Sincerely,

Antonio Fratangelo
President