Experience
"I still get together with people I did a job with in the mid-’90s. We’ve watched our kids grow up, and we still keep in touch."
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Influences
"My father was a big influence on me. He owned a mechanical contracting company where I would help out on projects now and again during my high school years. Usually this was when he thought I needed something to do to keep out of trouble! It was my first exposure to the HVAC industry and all the mechanical systems that are a part of a building. This came full circle for me, recently, on a hospital renovation project that involved air handling units my father installed in the 1970’s. It was a cool feeling to see his company’s tag on the units."
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Culture
“Dunham’s culture is unique in a lot of ways. We’re a widely held corporation, which gives people a real stake in doing the highest-quality work and running a solid business. We have an open office environment where no one is shut away in a corner. We don’t have the electrical department on one side of the room and mechanical on the other. We’re positioned by business unit—healthcare, commercial, education, etc.—because it’s all about collaboration. And our partners are right there in the middle of it all, helping and nurturing the staff. We’re professional, but not uber-corporate. A lot of firms talk about quality; we live it. We strive to be the best firm, not the biggest. And work-life balance is something I stress, because family comes first. This isn’t a job; it’s a career.”
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Engineering
"For the most part, the systems we design are hidden When I drive by a building we engineered, I see the people and the process we went through to make that building happen—the tough meetings to meet budgets, the challenges we overcame as a team, and the fun we had during the process. The irony is that if we’ve done our job well, you won’t notice the mechanical systems. Our systems are like your organs; you don’t really want to see them, but you need them to work properly and you surely know when they’re not!"
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Relationships
“I have had the good fortune to have worked with numerous great clients, many of whom I consider friends. I still get together with people I did a job with in the mid-’90s. We’ve watched our kids grow up, and 20+ years later, we still keep in touch. I’m fortunate to have several long-term clients that I worked with for nearly my whole career. Last, but not least, I want to have fun while I work. A good friend of mine, who happens to be a General Contractor, once told me 'it doesn’t cost any more to have fun!' That is so true. I believe you will perform better if you enjoy what you are doing."