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Adrienne Vicari Named Vice President of Growth at HRG

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Adrienne VicariAdrienne Vicari is being promoted to vice president of growth, a new position that drives new client development across the organization.

This new position was created as part of an ongoing organizational realignment to scale the firm for growth while preserving its commitment to technical excellence and personalized service. The realignment creates unique channels for client outreach, technical expertise, and operational delivery, ensuring each gets proper focus and attention.

“To serve our clients best,” HRG’s Chief Services Officer, Josh Fox says, “we need to deeply embed ourselves in the markets we serve, building relationships and understanding their needs.  We also need to have a high level of technical expertise in the services we offer, staying up to date on emerging trends and technologies so that we are at the forefront of quality and innovation.  At the same time, we need to be an expert at project delivery, steering projects through challenges while meeting all schedule and budget goals.  Each of these responsibilities requires unique skillsets and dedicated effort, so we wanted to establish leaders for each area while facilitating collaboration across all three channels.”

Vicari will lead the first channel, focused on building and nurturing client relationships.  She will oversee a team of people embedded in HRG’s primary markets – government, utilities, and institutions – connecting with new clients, getting to know their operations, and assembling a team within HRG uniquely suited to meet their needs.  This team will ensure HRG is deeply attuned to the challenges our clients face, while creating capacity for technical and project delivery leaders to excel in their roles.

Vicari is well-suited for this role, which takes effect December 2.  She has more than 20 years of experience at HRG, serving clients across every industry and geographic we region we serve, and has consistently demonstrated deep insight into our clients’ needs and goals.  She previously served as practice area leader for HRG’s Strategic Management & Capital Solutions group, helping clients streamline operations and achieve financial sustainability. She has also served in a variety of leadership positions with industry and community organizations, such as the Society of Women Environmental Professionals, Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association (PMAA) Women’s Initiative Network (WIN) Committee, Pennsylvania Water Environment Association’s (PWEA) Utility Management Committee, and Girl Scouts in the Heart of Pennsylvania.

Vincent DiFilippo Nature Preserve Honored as Top Project

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The Central Penn Business Journal has named recent enhancements to the Vincent DiFilippo Nature Preserve one of the region’s Top Projects. HRG worked with Silver Spring Township to restore wetlands and meadows, add new riparian buffer plantings, increase parking, and add a boat launch at the preserve. These improvements simultaneously help the township meet its MS4 pollutant reduction plan goals and nurture wildlife while improving the recreational experience for township residents.

 

Shawn Fabian with Silver Spring Township's Jennifer Groller, Carl Machamer, and Scott Maldonado at the Central Penn Business Journal Top Projects Award ceremony

Shawn Fabian with Silver Spring Township’s Jennifer Groller, Carl Machamer, and Scott Maldonado

 

The nature preserve was already a popular place for birdwatching and nature walks, but, thanks to this project, it now has more shade, more wildlife viewing opportunities, and more aesthetically pleasing views with colorful flowers and plantings that simultaneously reduce watershed pollution. It is a bit of a natural oasis in the middle of one of the state’s most rapidly growing suburbs, and the boat launch creates a new convenient access point to one of the region’s treasured recreational amenities: the Conodoguinet Creek Water Trail. An expanded parking area makes it all more accessible to users, allows for buses to more easily turn around in the parking area to facilitate environmental education programing, and created two new ADA compliant parking spots for easier trail and boat launch access.

The project is a great example of how investments in the environment and recreational amenities go hand-in-hand where there is smart planning and thoughtful design. Silver Spring Township has made wise investments in long-term planning, so that each project they do – big or small – supports the community’s long-term goals. These plans have helped them attract extensive grant funding, including more than $252,000 for the nature preserve enhancements in addition to the grant funding that the Chesapeake Bay Foundation brought to the table from grants they secured for the riparian buffer along the Conodoguinet Creek onsite.

We’re grateful to work with Silver Spring Township and be a part of great projects like this. Congratulations to the township on this recognition and to all of the project partners, including the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, LandStudies, and KLA Roofing & Construction. Thank you to Shawn Fabian and everyone on the HRG team who contributed their time and talent to making this a successful project, including JJ Robinson, Jake Hoffman, Eric Fleisher, Terry Meek, Katie Valla, Lauren Zumbrun.

Jim Feath Named Vice President of Operations

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HRG has promoted Jim Feath to vice president of operations.  This is a key role in the firm’s organizational re-design initiative, which seeks to build a foundation for aggressive growth while maintaining the company’s reputation for exceptional quality and client service.

Ed Ellinger“To achieve our growth goals, we need to anticipate and offer the services our clients will need most in the coming years. Yet, even as we expand our service offerings, we must continue to deliver our services with the same quality, creativity, and attention to detail that our clients have always relied on,” Chief Operations Officer Ed Ellinger says.  “Our technical service experts will determine what services we offer and the quality standards for delivery. Jim will work with the operations leaders in each office to build capacity for those service offerings at the local level so that we can deliver projects to our high-quality standards while maximizing efficiency and operational excellence.”

Feath has managed operations for HRG’s Pittsburgh office since 2018 and has more than 25 years of experience with the firm.  He began his tenure with HRG as an intern shortly after the Pittsburgh office opened and has played a key role in its growth over the past two decades.  During that time, he amassed experience as a designer and project manager before taking a leadership role in regional operations.    He is a registered landscape architect with vast expertise in site planning and development, particularly in the areas of parks and recreational facilities, trails, and public spaces.  He is active in the industry as a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects and Pennsylvania Recreation & Park Society, but he is also actively engaged in the local community in Pittsburgh as a board member with the Butler County Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Cranberry Township Environmental Advisory Committee.  His vast experience with HRG and knowledge of regional operations make him ideally suited for this role as vice president of operations.

Erin Threet Named Vice President of Services at HRG

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Erin Threet has been promoted to vice president of services, a new role designed to maintain the firm’s commitment to quality as it pursues ambitious growth plans.

“HRG is growing: increasing our staff, adding new services, and expanding into new markets.  As we grow, we want to ensure our clients continue to receive the high level of service they’ve always received from us, and Erin will be an excellent steward in that regard,” HRG’s Chief of Services Josh Fox says.  “She will work with our service area leaders to align technical standards and ensure consistent deliverables across the organization.  She will also ensure staff members have the tools, training, and support they need to excel in their roles and produce quality work.”

Threet has already earned valuable experience in this regard as assistant vice president, overseeing operation of HRG’s Lewisburg office since 2012.  This role often required her to pull in resources from across the organization to complement local operations and deliver value for clients, so she has extensive knowledge of HRG’s operations and core competencies. She is also highly skilled at project delivery with more than 18 years of experience designing water and wastewater infrastructure for HRG’s clients.  She is a licensed professional engineer and member of several industry organizations, including the Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association (PMAA), Pennsylvania American Water Works Association (PA-AWWA), Central Pennsylvania Water Quality Association (CPWQA), Pennsylvania Water Environment Association (PWEA), and the Water Environment Federation (WEF). She has been a member of HRG’s board of directors since 2023.

HRG Named One of Pittsburgh’s Top Workplaces for the 3rd Year in a Row

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HRG has been named one of Pittsburgh’s Top Workplaces for the third year in a row! (Link opens in new window.) Kara Smith, Clayton Whitlach, and Andrew Scampone accepted an award on our behalf over the weekend, and we were featured with other winning firms in a special section of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Sunday. HRG ranked in the top 10 of the Small Business category (based on the number of people working in our Pittsburgh office).

Clayton Whitlatch, Kara Smith, and Andrew Scampone accept HRG's awards at the Pittsburgh Top Workplaces ceremony, September 2024. They are standing in front of a wall of navy, yellow, and white balloons.

 

This award is based entirely on employee feedback, so we are especially proud. Employees complete a survey, answering questions about pay, benefits, leadership, and direction of the company. Being a Top Workplace means our employee feedback exceeded national benchmarks in these categories.

This year, HRG also received special recognition with an award for Work/Life Flexibility.

Thank you, team!

HRG Names Cory Salmon Assistant Vice President

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Cory SalmonHRG has promoted Cory Salmon to assistant vice president.  Cory previously served as a group manager overseeing the water and wastewater division in southeastern Pennsylvania.  He will now oversee all operations in Southeastern Pennsylvania, managing the firm’s King of Prussia office, its financial resources, and the supervision of local staff.  He will also support key client management activities in the region.

Cory first joined HRG in 2014 as an intern and has steadily progressed through increasing levels of responsibility in the firm.  He has been instrumental in establishing and growing HRG’s presence in Southeastern Pennsylvania, relocating to the area in 2019 shortly after the King of Prussia office opened.  He has been a key team member or project manager on several noteworthy projects in the area, including the design of wastewater treatment plant improvements for Norristown Municipal Waste Authority, ultraviolet upgrades at Pottstown Borough Authority’s water treatment plant, and the interceptor rehabilitation program for West Goshen Sewer Authority.  Cory is also actively involved in the local community as a member of the Nether Providence Township Planning Commission and Environmental Advisory Committee as well as a board member for the Central Delaware County Sewer Authority.

Ed EllingerEd Ellinger, HRG’s chief operations officer, says, “Southeastern Pennsylvania has been a key growth market for HRG, and Cory is responsible for a lot of that success.  He is a dedicated engineer who cares deeply about his clients, his colleagues, and his community, and he always gives his best to every project.  I know he has the skill and the determination to lead this team to even greater growth in the years ahead.”

HRG Earns Its Highest Ever Ranking on the ENR Top 500 Design Firms List

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Cover of the 2024 ENR Top 500 Design Firms issueEngineering News-Record magazine has published its annual ranking of the nation’s top revenue-producing architecture, engineering, and construction firms, and HRG moved up 35 places to number 336 this year.

Our revenue grew by more than 20 percent in 2023, outpacing the industry average, thanks to the continued support of our clients and the dedication of our amazing team.  Thank you!

Engineering News-Record (ENR) is a leading trade journal for architects, engineers, and contractors. It compiles its Top 500 Design Firms list annually based on the revenue that firms earned in the preceding year.

George White Named Assistant Vice President of Lehigh Valley Office

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George WhiteHRG has promoted George White to assistant vice president.  White will oversee all technical and project delivery operations in the firm’s Lehigh Valley office on Glenlivet Drive in Allentown.  He will also support business development and key client management activities in this region.

White joined HRG in 2022 and most recently served as senior project manager in the firm’s civil group, which provides municipal engineering services and specializes in stormwater management.  He has played a key role in establishing HRG’s presence in the Lehigh Valley and has been a key team member on several of our noteworthy projects in the area, including the East Mountain stormwater and flood mitigation study in Scranton, the Easton Avenue flood mitigation project in Bethlehem, and the Bushkill/Zucksville intersection flood study in Forks Township.

HRG Opens New Office Space in Maryland and Southwestern Pennsylvania

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HRG continues its growth path by opening two new offices this month.  The first office is in the Professional Arts Building at 1 South Potomac Street in Hagerstown, Maryland.  The other is at 1040 Eberly Way in Lemont Furnace in Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

The office in Fayette is designed to bring HRG’s team closer to their established client base in the area, working with the county commissioners on their infrastructure bank program and representing several water and sewer authorities as their retained engineer.  Operations in Fayette and surrounding counties will be managed by HRG’s assistant vice president, Jim Feath.  Feath says this space is a demonstration of the firm’s commitment to localized service and investment in the community.

aerial photo of a wastewater treatment plant surrounded by trees

The Fairchance Georges Municipal Sewage Authority is one of HRG’s long-term clients in the Fayette area.

“We work side-by-side with our clients,” he says. “We truly embed ourselves in their community by participating in local organizations and creating a team of talented professionals who are actively involved with community groups.  That’s a key differentiator for how HRG does business, and this office space enhances our ability to do that. It also provides a convenient meeting place for collaboration.”

The office in Maryland is part of the firm’s long-term plan for growth and expansion beyond its primary base in Pennsylvania and West Viginia. HRG’s chief operations officer, Ed Ellinger, says the firm is specifically looking to serve communities in Washington and Frederick Counties.  “This region matches the key characteristics of the communities HRG typically serves,” he says. “It has strong community involvement and a forward-looking vision for growth: a great place to live and work!”

Though this is HRG’s first office space in Maryland, the firm has already established deep ties to the area, working closely with local stakeholders and business groups. “The Greater Hagerstown Committee and Washington County Chamber of Commerce have been very welcoming and helped us become a part of the fabric here,” Ellinger says. “We’ve been impressed by the level of organization and collaboration they foster on behalf of the community here.”  HRG is currently working with Meritus Health, Radnor Property Group, Design Collective, Inc., and Morgan Keller Construction on graduate student housing at a new osteopathic medical school in Hagerstown.

A rendering by Design Collective of the new graduate student housing in development at Meritus Health's school of osteopathic medicine

HRG is part of an integrated project delivery team developing apartments for students at a new medical school for osteopathic medicine in Hagerstown. (Rendering prepared by Design Collective and used with their permission.)

HRG Has Acquired Delaware-County-Based Bradford Engineering Associates, Inc.

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HRG has acquired Bradford Engineering Associates, Inc. (BEA). BEA is a small, privately held company based in Delaware County, and their main office is located at 2710 Concord Road, Suite 3 in Aston, Pennsylvania.

BEA’s core services are very similar to HRG’s existing water and wastewater service group with a specific emphasis on Act 537 planning, pretreatment consulting, infiltration and inflow (I&I) studies, construction management, wastewater system design, and geographic information systems (GIS) development. BEA has a mixture of clients within both the municipally operated and private utility markets.

Jason Fralick

“One of our strategies is to aggressively expand in both the municipally owned and private utilities sectors and geographically across the eastern portion of Pennsylvania. HRG has already established a presence with both employees and clients in the region and we believe there is significant growth potential for us there in the longer term. Southeastern Pennsylvania is one of the fastest growing regions in PA and it has many of the characteristics of an ideal HRG community,” said Jason Fralick, HRG’s President and CEO.

“Our approach for entering a new market is simple: establish a local presence and invest in the community to better understand their needs. From there, we deliver personalized, responsive service with impeccable quality, professionalism, and care. BEA will enhance that process while also substantiating the depth of services and capabilities we already bring to the table,” Fralick added.

Walt Fazler of Bradford Engineering, which has been acquired by HRG

Walt Fazler

As part of the acquisition, HRG has hired all previous BEA employees and will assume all BEA clients and projects within the region. BEA President, Walter Fazler, P.E. will work with HRG’s King of Prussia leadership team as part of the integration and growth strategy.

“I am very excited about this opportunity for both HRG and BEA. It’s a simple way to bring the depth and expertise of a nationally recognized leader like HRG to an operation like BEA that has existing momentum and an established presence in the region. As with any acquisition, alignment of the firm’s culture, core values, and commitment to quality are at the foundation of long-term success; we’re excited about how similar we are in these areas. We’ve worked together on projects and have serviced clients as a team for several years now, and we know what to expect from one another.” said Fazler.