Regan Wakefield

Job Title: Electrical Engineer

Company: Commonwealth Engineers, Inc.

Location: Indianapolis

Age: 26

Years on the Job: 6

Interests: Watching TV, reading, playing video games, sewing, knitting, and doing home improvement projects

Regan Wakefield originally intended to go to college for video game design, but then she changed to computer science during her last semester of high school. After a year, she decided she had had enough of programming and switched to electrical engineering.

“Luckily, I discovered I loved it,” she said.

Born and raised in northern Kentucky, she graduated from the University of Louisville J. B. Speed School of Engineering in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in electrical and computer engineering. That summer, she was hired by Commonwealth Engineers. Most of her training was on the job through unofficial mentorship.

“My degree didn’t really cover MEP design and hadn’t touched on the National Electric Code at all, so everything I needed day to day for my job had to be learned on the fly,” she said. “I’m very grateful to the senior members of Commonwealth’s electrical team for answering all my questions and teaching me so much.”

She said her electrical engineering degree and MEP design training have both helped her in her role today. When projects are in the design phase, she focuses on drawing up single lines, riser diagrams, process and instrumentation diagrams, and equipment layouts. In the construction phase, she is responsible for reviewing contractor submittals and addressing issues as they arise.

One of her favorite parts of her job is making site visits, and she said that driving three hours each way into rural Kentucky feels like a vacation rather than a chore.

“I have a lot of fun throwing on my steel-toed boots and poking around in the switchgear I’m used to only seeing from behind a screen,” she said.

She is currently working on a design to upgrade the water treatment plant in Albany, Ky., and the wastewater treatment plant in Greenville, Ky. For these projects, she is coordinating with manufacturers, drawing up the plans in CAD, and writing and editing the specifications.

Down the road, she hopes to remain involved in engineering and, one day, become an expert in her field and an invaluable resource to the company.

“I know to get there I have to tackle it like any other problem – one step at a time – and keep my eyes and ears open every day for opportunities to learn and grow as an engineer,” she said.

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