Jim Echard, P.E., President, BAI Group
Some places shape you long before you realize it. I live in the same small Pennsylvania town where Standard Steel was founded generations ago. Long before I became an engineer, or President of BAI Group, Standard Steel was simply part of the landscape. The sound of industry, the rhythm of shift changes, and the pride of people who made things that mattered was what I remember.
My father worked there. Growing up, Standard Steel was a symbol of skilled craftsmanship, steady work, and the kind of manufacturing that demands respect. Forged steel products left this town to support railroads, defense, aerospace, and mass transit systems across the country. The work was hard, precise, and built to endure, much like the community itself.
That sense of durability is what makes this story more than a technical project. Nearly 30 years ago, BAI Group began working with Standard Steel, helping support the infrastructure that keeps a complex manufacturing operation running safely, efficiently, and in compliance. Over time, our role has evolved, but the goal has stayed the same: protect what works, plan responsibly for the future, and make smart use of existing assets.
At the heart of our efforts today is a captive residual waste landfill, an essential but often unseen part of Standard Steel’s operations. With careful planning and close coordination with regulators, we’ve helped develop a forward-looking approach that extends the landfill’s useful life for decades without expanding its footprint. It’s a solution rooted in practicality, environmental responsibility, and respect for a facility that has been serving this community for centuries.
From an engineering standpoint, projects like this are about managing risk, extending the usefulness of existing infrastructure, and making decisions that hold up over time. The work is incremental and grounded in analysis, coordination, and practical constraints, with the objective of maintaining reliable systems and leaving sound options in place for those who will be responsible for them next.