Carl Oberg

MY GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT: Throughout my seven years working at Pennoni, I have worked on a number of very interesting and complex bridge design projects. One I am most proud of was the I-676 Vine Street Expressway Bridge Rehabilitation Project in Center City Philadelphia. The $65-million project consisted of the replacement of seven two-span non-composite adjacent concrete box beam bridges spanning the freeway with new single-span composite steel plate girder bridges. Pennoni was the lead engineer for the project and responsible for the design of the largest of the spans, the 20th Street/Ben Franklin Parkway/Free Library Bridge. This project was complex and challenging because the bridge, when completed, would be 96 feet long and 643 feet wide, carry four different roadways, accommodate pedestrian and bicycle traffic, and create enhanced urban park spaces with planter boxes, plantings, a lawn area and an amphitheater. Many unique design features were implemented to accommodate the bridge’s expansive width, landscaping and park amenities. Construction began early 2015 and was completed at the end of 2018, a year ahead of schedule.

HOW DREXEL HELPED: Drexel’s engineering program, in my opinion, is the best in the nation. The program provided me the fundamental knowledge and skills to be successful. It was also very beneficial to have the majority of my professors have backgrounds as practicing engineers. I also cannot say enough about Drexel’s co-op program. My second and third co-ops were with Pennoni, the company I currently work for. For my third co-op I was able to do instrumentation, 3D modeling and analysis of bridges, and this is where I realized I wanted my career to be in structural bridge engineering. Also, thanks to Drexel’s co-op program, I had a job waiting for me with Pennoni’s Bridge Division upon graduation.

WHERE I’ll BE IN FIVE YEARS: Designing bigger, longer, more complex bridges. Bridges are my passion and I can’t see myself doing anything else. I also hope to be a mentor for younger engineers as well as inspire younger generations to pursue careers in engineering.