Alex Ataiyan is proud to come from a family of engineers. His father started out as a civil engineer before switching his focus to fire protection, and he always encouraged Alex and his brother, Zach, to pursue the field if it interested them. After earning a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at South Dakota State University and an M.S. in fire protection engineering at California Polytechnic State University, Alex now lives in the Minneapolis area and has been working in the industry since 2015.
“I always enjoy solving problems for clients, especially when the vision for their building doesn’t initially seem to fit within the bounds of prescriptive codes. It brings me a great sense of accomplishment when we can find solutions to achieve their vision while also maintaining safety and code-compliance,” said Alex. “Not all buildings and construction types are the same, and I like the challenge of finding the best solution for a specific project.”
Since his brother had nothing but positive things to say about the work experience and learning opportunities with Harrington Group, Alex joined the team at the end of February. He is excited to work on different types of projects, expand his engineering repertoire and learn from his new colleagues’ vast technical expertise.
Most importantly, the ability to work from home means more time with his three young daughters, ages five, four, and three. Since he no longer has to spend hours in the car each day, the girls keep him company while he makes coffee in the morning — they even have their own work-from-home play kits, complete with toy laptops, headsets, cell phones and coffee cups. His home office is soundproofed so he can focus while the kids play, and when he isn’t at his desk he loves working on home projects, playing board games with the whole family and experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen.