Travis Rhoades Named Young Engineer of the Year

The esteemed Young Engineer of the Year award recognizes and celebrates young talent and professional development among local engineers. The Toledo Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE) announced Travis L. Rhoades, PE of The Mannik & Smith Group, Inc. (MSG) as the recipient of this year's award. "We are proud of Travis for his accomplishments, humbled that he chose MSG to work for and excited about his future contributions to our profession," states Richard Bertz, PE, PS, President and CEO at MSG.

A native of the Village of Convoy in Van Wert County, Ohio, Rhoades attended Crestview High School, graduating in 2000 and going on to study civil engineering at the University of Toledo. As part of a cooperative working education program, Rhoades worked as an intern for the MSG bridge design team during the majority of his college career. He obtained his diploma in 2004 and graciously accepted a full-time position as a structural design engineer at MSG's corporate headquarters in Maumee, Ohio.

In the nearly ten years Rhoades has spent working at MSG, he's had the opportunity to cultivate and develop his skills in civil engineering culminating positive, professional relationships with clients and regulatory officials during his work on projects relating to bridge design, highway and roadway design, commercial development and landfills. Rhoades currently works as a project leader and structural engineer in the MSG transportation group. His position involves design and strategic production coordination between the various teams that complete the multi-disciplined firm — always aiming to serve clients as a trusted advisor for projects requiring structural engineering components. Notably, Rhoades has been involved with multiple high-profile projects including serving as a bridge design engineer for the US-24 project from Fort Wayne, Indiana to Toledo, Ohio ('Fort to Port') and the SR-66 interchange in Defiance, Ohio, as well as also working on the project team involved with the Veterans' Glass City Skyway I-280 bridge, among others.

Rhoades appreciates being involved in his profession outside of his duties at MSG by serving as a Trustee for TSPE. He is also a member of the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) and the American Society of Highway Engineers (ASHE). For the past seven years, Rhoades has enjoyed the experience of representing MSG in the Engineer for a Day program that takes place during the annual National Engineers Week celebrations, which supports high school students interested in engineering and offers them an introduction to the field. "I have always been interested in building, tearing down and figuring out how things work. I consider myself lucky to have been able to work these interests into a career, significantly participating in distinguished projects and working alongside so many skilled engineers and insightful mentors at this relatively early point in my career," states Rhoades.