Preparing the Next Generation of AEC Industry Leaders

CIVIL ENGINEERING INTERN

Russell, a fourth-year civil engineering student at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and Vice President of the Institute of Transportation Engineers UIC Chapter, contributed to roadway and traffic assignments that connected technical standards with real design needs. His summer included geometric design, traffic control plans, parking analysis, and exposure to tools and standards such as MicroStation, AutoCAD, OpenRoads, ProjectWise, the AASHTO Green Book, Illinois Tollway standards, MUTCD, and accessibility guidelines.

CIVIL ENGINEERING INTERN

Danielle is currently a student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst working toward a degree in civil & environmental engineering. She spent the summer supporting utility and infrastructure projects, contributing to conduit design, traffic control plans, and construction drawing development. Her work included creating plan sheets, developing conduit alignments and profiles, coordinating revisions across multiple drawing sets, and evaluating utility and traffic control considerations to meet project and client standards. Through these experiences, she gained hands-on exposure to AutoCAD, utility coordination, and the collaboration required to deliver complex civil and electrical engineering projects.

CONSTRUCTION INTERN

Cody supported our Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) FLEXROAD project, where his work included creating and reviewing tickets, assisting with construction inspection, reviewing specifications and materials, and participating in progress meetings with INDOT and other project partners. His internship experience helped him better understand how projects start, how to check plans, and how to document site conditions and construction activity on jobsites. Cody is currently attending Valparaiso University to obtain a degree in civil engineering.

CONSTRUCTION INTERN

Giuliano, a student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), spent the summer on two resurfacing projects in Glen Ellyn, Illinois: our Lambert Road and Riford Road projects. His responsibilities included overseeing subcontractor crews, taking measurements, completing calculations and paperwork, answering subcontractor questions, and reading plans and special provisions to understand the project’s requirements. Through the process, he walked through major resurfacing stages including prep, saw-cutting and removals, concrete, milling, and repaving.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING INTERN

Alex, a rising junior at UIUC, used tools including IkeOfficePro, TED, PoleForeman, and Google Earth. His featured project was the Equinox data center, where he created a KMZ file using TED-CEGIS, participated in a walkdown in Minooka, Illinois, and designed utility poles for a section where poles were being replaced for a new data center.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING INTERN

Aldren, a student at Drexel University, worked in our Pennsylvania office on Accelerated Services and solar efforts. Some of the work he assisted with included application processing for solar programs, package construction and delivery, design work, and working with AS8.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING INTERN

Shaheer, a junior at UIC focusing on power and electronics, worked across various distribution tasks within our Utilities division. Shaheer was heavily involved in various projects and his work included physical walkdowns with IKE Device Capture, photo organization, KMZ and TED markups, manhole markups, and radio survey.

CIVIL ENGINEERING INTERN

Moses, a rising senior at UIC, supported the Utilities Infrastructure Master Plan at Philadelphia International Airport. The project involved updating exterior master utility drawings so designers and contractors can view airport utilities in 3D through Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Moses’s work included Civil 3D and Extended Data modeling for stormwater, electric-power, electric-communications, and electric-airfield elements.

PROPOSAL INTERN

Meriam, a rising senior at DePaul University, supported subconsultant package development, resume development, proposal support, and content and data management, as part of Primera’s Corporate Marketing team. Her work included gathering project information, qualifications, resumes, certifications, and supporting materials for multi-disciplinary pursuits.

“This experience allowed me to take ownership of an effort, strengthen my communication skills, and learn the value of asking questions.”

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING INTERN

Jude, based in our Pennsylvania office, focused on PECO AIR work. His main tasks included preparing roughly 30 pole packages per week, creating work orders and tickets, gathering primary and secondary maps, redesigning poles for replacement, entering materials in AS8, supporting air permits, and automating portions of the design process. Jude is currently working toward his degree in electrical engineering at Drexel University.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING INTERN

Ryleigh, a Drexel University student, returned to Primera for her third and final co-op experience. Her work with the PHI Distributed Energy Resources team included solar application review and CYME load flow analysis, helping assess potential impacts to secondary systems and transformers. One of her biggest takeaways from this experience is to:

“Give yourself grace when learning something new!”

CONSTRUCTION INTERN

Nate worked from our PCWP field offices in Chicago, where his main project focused on updating water service lines throughout the City, including water main work, lead service line replacement, and restoration. His work centered on the restoration division, where he supported warranty management, quality assurance inspections, field operations, and construction documentation. His major takeaways included that clear documentation and communication keep large public infrastructure projects moving forward. Nate currently attends Eastern Illinois University and is working toward his degree in construction management.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING INTERN

Sam returned for his second summer at Primera after another year at UIUC and focused on substation project work. His assignments included CAD and drafting support, markups, point-to-point work, and design work. He was happy to work on some cross-disciplinary coordination efforts with our civil, structural, and substation teams.

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING INTERN

Aarushi worked in our Utilities Distribution department on 4/12Kv conversions, voltage optimizations, and capacity expansions. Some of her responsibilities included walkdowns, TED data maintenance, TED markups, radio survey, IKE Office organization, and manhole inspections. She is currently attending UIUC to obtain a degree in electrical engineering.

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING INTERN (BRIDGE)

Rosie is a rising senior at UIUC, majoring in civil & environmental engineering and minoring in Spanish and architectural studies. She worked on various Transportation projects including Illinois Route 22 and Morton Arboretum. She gained experience performing culvert and retaining wall markups, quantity checks, wall inspections, MicroStation drafting, and practiced deck designs using the Bridge Manual.

“This summer taught me the value of asking questions, staying organized, and communicating effectively. I also learned that every piece of work plays an important role in creating a successful final design.”

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING INTERN (UTILITIES)

Sean, a rising third-year student at Florida Atlantic University, worked with new tools such as RISA-3D, Mathcad, Bluebeam, and AutoCAD. Some of the projects he worked on included creating a calculation package in Mathcad, creating a 3D model of a manhole cover and a steel cover over a cable trough, revising drawings in AutoCAD, and revising submittals on multiple projects. Sean described every project as a marathon, with multiple people working toward the same goal.