It’s "National Professional Engineers Day" and we thought this would be the perfect opportunity to profile our own City Engineer, John Nett.
From streets to drainage, engineering has an impact on your everyday life.
"Take a typical work day. You get up in the morning, you’re ready to take a shower, you expect to have clean potable water. You get in the car, back out of the driveway, and you expect that the streets are going to be functional and operational," said City Engineer John Nett.
Nett has a background in Civil Engineering, which encompasses everything from buildings to roads.
“All of our infrastructure is aging. It’s being used. It’s having growth stressors placed upon it, specifically our streets, our water mains, our wastewater collection lines, and our wastewater treatment plant. The job of an engineer is to study those systems and assets and make sure that they’re functioning properly."
What does it take to obtain a Professional Engineer’s license?
"One is the educational background. That’s typically a four-year Bachelor of Science Degree from an accredited university."
That’s followed by a Fundamentals of Engineering exam, typically taken at the time you graduate.
“That’s the time that you’re working under a professional engineer gaining experience in the practice.”
The final step is taking and passing the Principles and Practice of Engineering Exam.
Nett worked for the City of Killeen before landing in Buda. He enjoys the face to face interaction of a smaller city.
“Working for a small city, I enjoy meeting people. You have the opportunity to come in and sit down face to face and talk about projects and development concerns.”
We are proud to celebrate City Engineer John Nett on this National Professional Engineers Day.
The first professional engineering license was issued to Charles Bellamy in Wyoming on Aug. 8, 1907.
In Texas, a 1937 gas explosion at a school in New London killed nearly 300 students and teachers. The tragedy led to The Texas Engineering Practice Act.
“So the Texas Legislature said they had to have a way that engineers can be found competent in the practice and licensed and ensure protection of public health and safety. So in 1937 the Texas Engineering Practice Act, the board was created and from that the board established the Texas Engineering Practice Act which we still practice today.”
You can watch the video version of the story here: Professional Engineers Day Video - City Engineer John Nett
