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Employee-Owner Spotlight: Alex Brochard, PE, Operations Manager, Lafayette, Louisiana

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By Braun Intertec | December 1, 2020

We recently met with operations manager, Alex Brochard, to discuss his background and his experience working on our Lafayette, Louisiana team.  

Tell us a little bit about your background.
After completing my Bachelors of Science in Civil Engineering at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in December 2008, I hit the ground immediately in the field of geotechnical engineering. My initial experience included construction materials testing (CMT), field logging, cone penetration testing, instrumentation monitoring; with gradual exposure to geotechnical engineering and report preparation. In December 2012, I became a licensed PE in Louisiana and have been involved with various industrial, commercial, oil & gas, airport, and municipal projects. I am also married and the proud father of two great children residing here in Lafayette. My leisure time is usually spent playing sports and camping, hunting and fishing with my son.

What attracted you to Braun Intertec?
A long-time geotechnical engineering colleague and friend based here in the Gulf region, Eric McClanahan, informed me of a local project engineer opportunity in Lafayette. Without hesitation, I jumped on it. My immediate recognition of the direction Braun Intertec was heading and apparent ability to grow and advance my career was extremely encouraging!

What would you say your superpower is?
One of my focuses is to advance the overall development of our region’s ability to communicate effectively; internally and externally. This pertains to correspondence with clients, development of reports and letters, and proposals. Over the course of my career, I’ve learned that concise communication is key in this business.

We’re professional service providers, so final deliverables should be polished. I like to challenge our field staff, young engineers, and those I manage projects with to continually strive at improving the appearance for all Braun Intertec transmittals.  

What should we know about the Lafayette team?
As a result of satisfying our local demand, we are rapidly developing as a team. Although we’re a smaller-staffed region from an engineering standpoint, our experience is well-rounded. Within our immediate group, we can tackle advanced-level geotechnical engineering, large-scale CMT, as well as environmental consulting .

Beyond Lafayette, it’s extremely helpful to have immediate access to all other professional staff within Braun Intertec. I can attest that Braun Intertec possesses specialty skills that many other competitors do not have in-house. These individuals also possess willingness to share experience broadly across the company. I highly encourage all within our staff to engage our experienced staff as a resource to improve the quality on your projects. Reach out – we’re like a toolbox of resources!

How has the team in Louisiana come together to get through not only the pandemic, but several natural disasters as well?
The help and involvement started from the top. The senior leadership at Braun Intertec were very proactive in spearheading efforts to get hands on with our staff in need after hurricane devastation and wanted everyone engaged. It was an immediate response to help. No questions asked.

Locally, when you know someone on your immediate team has been affected, you want to make a positive impact and assist in any manner you can. I’ve become aware that this mindset is the culture of Braun Intertec. Despite being a larger corporation, situations like this become personal. The leadership here seems to really care about the entire staff’s well-being.

How does safety play a role in your everyday work?
When you see the effort and resources frequently put forth by Braun Intertec to stress safety, it naturally echoes through the staff. Each internal meeting attended prioritizes safety as the first topic of discussion. Safety is critical and our company does a great job of stressing its importance!

What do you like best about your job?
I like having the opportunity for continued professional growth here in the South region. Our local capabilities are steadily advancing forward with much potential for us to keep the momentum going.  When I joined Braun Intertec in 2019, I immediately sensed the versatility of the group. Personally, I enjoy being challenged with different types of projects in both the geotechnical engineering and CMT fields.

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