By Judi McInerney, ​Corporate Health and Safety Director

Last week NTH celebrated four years and counting of having no recordable incidents*.  This celebration coincided with a nationwide event titled “Safe and Sound” promoted by OSHA and MIOSHA to encourage every workplace to celebrate safety successes and for companies to have a safety and health program. NTH’s last recordable incident took place on May 25, 2015. The success of not having any recordable incidents for more than four years was a result of NTH employees embracing the concept that Safety is a Core Value; developing and/or using a Job Safety Analysis (JSA) for upcoming tasks; completing a Health and Safety Plan prior to project work where the potential hazards associated with the tasks are identified as well as a means to mitigate them; and exercising safe work practices when actually performing the work. 
 
During the safety celebration in Northville, a brief summary was offered on the various ways NTH management supports health and safety including, but not limited to, providing employees safety training, hi-vis jackets, shirts and hoodies; surveyor’s hi-vis vest (with lots of pockets); hard hat liners; cooling items for hot days; sub-zero gloves; Cold Weather Cut Level 2 hi-vis gloves; Neos Overboots; canopy for hot days; hand warmers; different types of body harnesses (to ensure comfort and fit for males and female employees); shaded safety glasses as well as regular safety glasses.  

*Recordable Incident – incident that results in death, days away from work, restricted work or transfer to another job, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness or any other significant injury or illness diagnosed by a physician or licensed health care professional.
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By Bridget Caddell, SHRM-CP, HR Specialist

NTH Consultants welcomed our summer interns in early May and already most of them are wrapping up their internships and heading back to school. It has flown by! Our Learning, Experience And Development (LEAD) Internship Program gives students the opportunity to learn and experience the civil engineering industry first-hand. Interns are provided with mentoring and guidance as a first step towards selecting a career upon graduation. We also see the LEAD program as an opportunity for interns to “test drive” the company. Is this really what they are looking for? Do they enjoy doing this every day? Do they like the environment they are working in? We want passionate people to join and stay with NTH because they LOVE what they do. This year, the group of interns exceeded our expectations and three will be staying on board during their fall semester!  
 
There were many new additions to our LEAD internship program this year, including sponsoring our interns to participate in the After 5 Intern Program in Detroit, MI. This program introduces new workers to Detroit, allows them to experience the dynamic social and business life that it offers, and gives them the opportunity to network with other interns. The goal is to retain young talent and convince them that their future is in the Detroit area. Similarly, NTH believes that by improving the intern experience, young professionals will be inclined to stay with or return to NTH for full-time employment.

We have partnered with various college liaisons to stay in touch with talent and receive feedback from students. One of NTH’s college partners is Kyle Liechty, Intern and Co-op Coordinator at Michigan State University. On Wednesday, August 7, we welcomed Kyle to our Northville office to learn about the experience the Facilities Rehabilitation Intern, Ethan Frakes, had this summer. It was a great way to hear from the student and college mentor on how to best attract intern candidates in the future and to discuss the overall internship experience. Kyle was able to see NTH’s office environment and meet the Asset Management team that Ethan has been working with. It was helpful to receive feedback on how to attract interns and to improve our program. Ethan is pursuing his Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering from Michigan State University and plans to return to finish his final semester this fall.

Overall, our LEAD program was a success this year. We had some talented, energetic and bright interns who chipped in on many of our most significant and high-profile projects. In addition to Ethan, we had the following five interns this summer:

• Colton Morrow returned to NTH as a Geotechnical Intern this year. Colton is working towards a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering at Michigan State University and will finish his final semester this fall. Colton will be staying on board with NTH, working from the Lansing office.
• Tiff Raetzel came to NTH this summer as a Civil Design Intern. Tiff recently received her Master of Science degree in Environmental Engineering from the University of Michigan.
• Jordyn Kreucher started her first internship with NTH this summer as a Geotechnical Intern. Jordyn is pursuing her Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Michigan and will be returning there for her junior year in the fall.
• Emily Loftis joined NTH this summer as a Construction Support Intern in our Livonia Lab. Emily is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Engineering from Michigan State University. She will return to MSU in the fall for her junior year and will continue to assist Construction Support with project work in the Lansing area.  
• Mikayla Topp started with NTH this summer as an Air Quality Intern in our Grand Rapids office. Mikayla is pursuing a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Calvin University. She will return to school in the fall for her junior year and continue to assist the Air Quality team in Grand Rapids.

We want to thank all of our 2019 Interns for committing to this opportunity. It is inspiring to see young professionals with such high aspirations and initiative and we are happy to have them as part of our NTH family! Prospective 2020 interns should watch for postings in January and apply here. 

​NORTHVILLE, MI — NTH Consultants, Ltd. (NTH) today announced that Philip Rasor, P.E. has joined the company as a Principal Engineer. Rasor will bring his 35 years of experience in designing, managing and directing civil infrastructure projects to our Public Infrastructure Market. Mr. Rasor will work to grow our service offerings within the transportation market to better serve our DOT, county, and municipal clients.
 
Prior to joining NTH, Mr. Rasor served as VP of Operations for an ENR’s Top 100 Design Firm’s Transportation Discipline. In that role he worked with the Division Managers on execution and delivery of key projects, quality assurance protocols, resource leveling, monitoring of backlog and replenishment, as well as the P/L for the individual profit centers and the overall discipline over a geographic area of five states and two overseas offices for municipal, county, state and federal agencies. Mr. Rasor also served as a City Engineer and led design teams on a variety of transportation infrastructure, municipal infrastructure, and public utility projects. 
 
“Phil is an important strategic hire for us due to his experience in bridge and roadway design, as well as his track record for excellent client service, responsiveness, and leadership,” said Jason Edberg, Senior Vice President and Public Infrastructure Market Lead at NTH. “We are confident that Phil will be able to lend his expertise to NTH’s existing core strengths of condition assessment and structural rehabilitation to help improve our region’s bridge and roadway infrastructure.” 
 
Mr. Rasor is a graduate of Ohio State University with both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Civil Engineering. He has served as a Board Director (2015) for the American Society of Highway Engineers (Central & NE Ohio) and has been a member of the American Public Works Association, the Ohio Water Environment Association, the County Road Association of Michigan, the Michigan Association of County Drain Commissioners, and the Society of Military Engineers.
 
Mr. Rasor joins our team of professionals who are committed to improving the quality of life in the regions we serve by providing efficient, economical, and sustainable solutions to our water, wastewater, and transportation infrastructure clients. NTH experts help our clients extend the service life of their existing infrastructure through our intense focus on asset management: inspection, condition assessment, and rehabilitation of transportation, water, and wastewater infrastructure.