CDM Smith Presents 2018 Awards in Technical Excellence, Mentorship and Innovation at Annual Meeting

BOSTON – CDM Smith held its Annual Meeting on April 9, 2019, welcoming direct share­hold­ers of the privately owned firm to its Boston head­quar­ters. In addition to celebrating a strong performance in 2018, the reception included CDM Smith’s annual awards presented to industry leaders in technical excellence, leadership and mentorship, and exceptional client service. 

The Best Technical Paper Awards program recognizes individuals for delivering technical excellence, advancing the firm as an industry leader, and showcasing our expertise.   

• The award for the Best Peer-Reviewed Paper went to Charles E. Schaefer Jr., PhD, for his paper “Evidence of rock matrix back-diffusion and abiotic dechlo­ri­na­tion using a field-testing approach.” This paper was published in the February 2018 issue of the Journal of Contaminant Hydrology. 
• The award for Best Non-Peer-Reviewed Paper went to Ahmad Habibian, PhD, PE, for his paper, “Achieving Lifeline Infra­struc­ture Resilience Through an Adaptive and Risk-Based Approach.” This paper was published in the Journal of the American Water Works Association in August 2018.

The President’s Award program recognizes two outstanding individuals in the areas of Innovation and Mentorship for the prior year. Recipients are nominated by their colleagues and chosen from a very competitive field by the President and Chief Operating Officer Tony Bouchard.

• The 2018 President’s Award for Mentorship went to Firas N. Makarem, CFM, Senior Vice President and Envi­ron­men­tal Scientist, who has been an advocate for many employees and mentees throughout their tenure, working across units to help them excel in roles and respon­si­bil­i­ties that fit their skills and bring long-term benefit to the firm. 
• The 2018 President’s Award for Innovation went to Scott Aldridge, Principal and Senior Manager, Innovation and Disruptive Tech­nolo­gies, for spear­head­ing the use of mixed reality and drones, estab­lish­ing CDM Smith as the leader in these fields, and cementing our reputation as a truly innovative firm. 

The Thomas Camp Award – named for our founder – represents the critical integration of client service, technical and business excellence. The Thomas Camp Award recognizes the project and project team that best achieves all three facets of excellence. 

• The winner of the Thomas Camp Award was the Ion Exchange Resin Plant and East WTP Improve­ments for the City of Boynton Beach, Florida. Expecting significant population growth and challenged with a restrictive consumptive use permit and limited space for treatment expansion, Boynton Beach partnered with CDM Smith to address their increasing water demands. The solution was the progressive design-build of an ion exchange resin plant using state-of-the-art technology that allowed the blending of different groundwater supplies into high-quality potable water with a reduction in chemical treatment costs.

“The high-performing, cross-unit CDM Smith team delivered a solution that will support the potable water needs of a growing population and a thriving business community for the next 30 years. To me, that’s what a legendary client experience looks like in action!” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Tim Wall. 

CDM Smith is a privately owned engineering and construc­tion firm providing legendary client service and smart solutions in water, environment, trans­porta­tion, energy and facilities. Passionate about our work and invested in each other, we are inspired to think and driven to solve the world's envi­ron­men­tal and infra­struc­ture challenges.