Engineering Team Lead and Project Manager
Q & A with Jake Behrens
Role: Engineering Team Lead and Project Manager
Q: Tell me about your job and how it contributes to the overall goals of CIRAS to help companies prosper.
I have two roles within CIRAS: Engineering Team Lead and Project Manager. Our team is fantastic and I’m lucky to have them and their years of experience; this group can help our clients solve a litany of engineering challenges from materials analysis, various forms of testing, simulation, and so much more. As a Project Manager, I help clients primarily with 3D Scanning and Additive Manufacturing, two advanced technology solutions that go together like peanut butter and jelly… If clients have something physical they need brought into the digital world or something digital they need brought into the physical world, I can help.
Q: What skills or experiences have prepared you for this job?
In past roles, I’ve been involved in managing both plastics and metal fab equipment that covers a lot of Iowa businesses’ products, and the knowledge I have from those past roles is invaluable. However, growing up on a farm is probably the most influential thing for me; “Farm kid from Iowa.” seems like it could even go on your resume sometimes.
Q: What types of companies do you work with?
All of them… If I were to fire off a quick list of notable businesses, it might be metal fab shops, plastic processing facilities, heat treating companies, real estate companies, architecture firms, rehabilitation clinics, hospitals, medical device manufacturers, ag equipment manufacturers, alternative energy equipment manufacturers, and more. Big companies, small companies, new and old, every day is different.
Q: What opportunities for advancement are available for companies by working with CIRAS?
Tough question to answer because it seems like one of my colleagues is always going out and helping a client in a new way that we’ve never done before! Whether it’s engineering, technology, business strategy, marketing, operational improvements, or anything in between, it seems like we always know someone who can help. If I had to give a concise answer to this question; we help companies know what’s possible to overcome their challenges.
Q: How do you stay updated on the latest developments or trends in manufacturing/government contracting?
By being curious… I’m blessed to be in a role where I’m allowed to wander and wonder with part of my time, and it feeds into my favorite part of the job. Through working with Digital Lab Partners, combing through vendor “What’s New” emails, digging through online resources, attending trade shows, and listening to what challenges our clients are facing to steer it all, I try to stay on top of things that can help make our clients lives better.
Q: What is the best part of your job?
Helping people find new resources, technologies, and methods of approaching challenges has to be the best part of my job. Helping people, in general, is great, but steering someone to a new approach or tool that they’ve never experienced before is twice the fun!
For more information, contact Jake Behrens at jbehrens@iastate.edu or 515-815-5003.