CHAIRMAN'S LETTER

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August, 2023

I hope everyone is having an enjoyable and relaxing summer and would like to welcome you back for another new and exciting year for the PEC of NJ.

On July 1, 2023 our new Executive Committee officially began their term, and the updated list of Officers is shown on the left. I would like to thank all of the past Officers for their time and efforts during the years, thank the current Officers for their commitment and assistance in leading this fine organization, and of course thanks to Vittoria Collins for all of her hard work each year. For those of you who don’t know me yet, my name is Michael Marks and I am Principal and founder of EIC Group LLC. We provide construction engineering services for many of our members throughout the region. I look forward to seeing some old friends as well as meeting others at our upcoming events.

The PEC is a diverse group of industry professionals. Our members include some of the largest Contractors, Consulting Engineers, Owners, and Construction Vendors in the area, but also include companies that may only have a few employees. It is a great organization to meet and network with each other, discuss engineering topics specific to construction, and help each of us develop both professionally and personally. I have been involved with PEC since the mid 1990’s and truly enjoy the camaraderie within the group. Through the years, I have had the privilege to work with many of you in the industry and have learned so much. I hope you find the group as rewarding as I do.

Our list of sustaining firms has continued to grow over the past few years, and my goal is to continue that growth and to have even more firms and individuals involved in our activities. The PEC is one of the most successful engineering organizations in the State and our sustaining firms are an integral part of that success. We ask that anyone who is not currently a member of NJPEC or whose firm is not a Sustaining Firm with NJPEC, please consider becoming a member. The Sustaining Firm fees help support our annual scholarship given to a deserving student each year. Additionally, by supporting us, we support you, by including your firm's name on our letterhead and displaying your logo at our meetings.

Whether you’re a contractor, a designer of construction projects or in any way associated with the construction industry, the PEC is your organization and the people who attend our functions are your colleagues. Broaden your knowledge, broaden your contacts, and join us at this year’s events.

We are continuing with our goal of providing three technical presentations between September and February, in addition to our regular programs. Our goal is to provide presentations that are informative, educational and technical to provide useful learning, which will also satisfy PDH requirements. Similar to previous years, our technical presentations are approved for New York State PDH credit. So if you have a need for PDH’s in NJ, PA, or NY please join us and take advantage of this opportunity. I am excited to announce that our first technical presentation is scheduled for September 19th, “East Side Access – A Celebration of the Engineering” by David I. Smith, Director of Geotechnical and Tunneling-New York at WSP. It will prove to be a very enlightening presentation, so please join us.

In addition to our regular meetings and technical presentations, please join us for our Unity Dinner on February 22nd, 2024 and our Bonhag Dinner Dance May 3rd, 2024, where we will once again honor our Construction Engineers of the Year and present our Sol Seid Scholarship Award. As in recent years, the Bonhag Dinner Dance will be held at the Grand Marquis in Old Bridge, very centrally located to all our attendees. So please mark your calendars.

Enjoy the rest of the summer and looking forward to seeing you throughout the year!

Very truly yours,
Michael Marks, P.E., Chairman
PEC of NJ