Amy Infelt

Amy graduated Iowa State University in 1986 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and worked for Iowa Electric at Duane Arnold Energy Center before joining Design Engineers in 1989.  Amy was named Vice President at DE in 1993, Principal in 1999 and Managing Principal in 2005. She has been a registered Professional Engineer in Mechanical Engineering in State of Iowa since 1991 and a LEED Accredited Professional since 2009.  Amy is now LEED AP BD+C accredited as well.

Staying active in her field is important to Amy.  Since 2005, she has been active at the state level serving on numerous committees, boards and commissions – primarily at the State Fire Marshal’s office but most recently for the Division of Labor. Most notable memberships include the Building Code Advisory Council, the Commission on Energy Efficiency and the Elevator Safety Board.

A testament to Design Engineers’ work/life balance philosophy, Amy and her husband Doug make the time to enjoy their three children while at the same time, continuing to develop their respective careers.

Amy has maintained a professional focus based on first understanding the needs of the client, then working with them to review alternatives and ultimately selecting and designing systems that are best suited to their specific needs.

Q. Do you have a favorite quote or motto?
A. I have two – “preserve the core” and “create value in every role”.

Preserve the core is about focusing on doing what you know how to do best, are trained to do and have experience doing – and doing it really well. I believe that this approach has been key at Design Engineers since the quality of the work we do is our best asset in terms of marketing for the next project.

Create value in every role is about the importance of having a complete team – for instance, you can have a great concept but if you don’t do a good job in developing the details, it won’t work well. Or you can know how to design the system but if you don’t have team members that can help you to transfer your design into quality documents, your ability to design won’t take you very far.

Q. What is your greatest professional strength? 
A. I would say communication and leadership – good communication can prevent issues from occurring and also mitigate the damage and solve the problem once an issue has occurred. Good communication is one of the ways that I show leadership. I am also organized, detail-oriented and a hard worker.

Q. What is your favorite aspect of working in the midwest?
A. The ability to develop relationships with the architects, owners, suppliers and contractors that we work with on a daily basis and work within the context of these relationships. We often say that here at Design Engineers, we are about long-term relationships.