District Digest News Stories

McCain named Nashville District Employee of the Month for April 2021

Nashville District Public Affairs
Published June 23, 2021
Brian McCain, district surveyor in the Engineering and Construction Division’s Survey and Mapping Section, is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District Employee of the Month for April 2021. He is seen here June 23, 2021 in Nashville, Tennessee, working on a computer aided design (CAD) program in support of a project. (USACE Photo)

Brian McCain, district surveyor in the Engineering and Construction Division’s Survey and Mapping Section, is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District Employee of the Month for April 2021. He is seen here June 23, 2021 in Nashville, Tennessee, working on a computer aided design (CAD) program in support of a project. (USACE Photo)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (June 23, 2021) – Brian McCain, district surveyor in the Engineering and Construction Division’s Survey and Mapping Section, is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District Employee of the Month for April 2021. He is recognized primarily for his efforts surveying for a project in Middlesboro, Kentucky.

“He executed a full site survey, processed all data, generated required survey deliverables and put them in the project delivery team’s hands,” said Lt. Col. Sonny B. Avichal, Nashville District commander. “His survey efforts included locating utilities, bridge surveys and channel cross sections.”

The commander said McCain adjusted his schedule and reprioritized work to ensure the project would be delivered on schedule. He went above and beyond and even worked with utility owners to uncover sewer manholes, giving the Nashville District design team additional confidence with the accuracy of the right-of-way data.

“Brian is a perfect example of effectiveness and efficiency, as this type of work would typically require a one-to two-month turnaround time, with many hours of coordination between data collectors and product generators,” Avichal said.

Frank Mills, Construction Support Branch chief and supervisory civil engineer of the Survey and Mapping Section, said McCain developed more than 80 work limit products for the Loyall ponding acquisition, which is the number one priority of the district’s project synchronization team.

“He did it all himself,” Mills said. “He worked long hours and efficiently executed product development. I’m impressed how fast he turned it around and how dedicated he was to a project that he was only remotely involved in. He is truly a skilled team player.”

McCain is a one-stop shop for all things related to surveying and is currently working on boundary surveys at Lake Barkley, J. Percy Priest Lake, Center Hill Lake and Dale Hollow Lake. He is also involved with topographic surveys at Defeated Creek and Cheatham Dam within the Nashville District, and Meldahl Lock for the Huntington District.

Regarding the support provided at Middlesboro, Kentucky, McCain said his main challenge involved coordinating with local utilities to ensure he could locate the complete inventory of utilities.

“I made sure that I located all of the utilities that were in the area because there is nothing worse than mobilizing on a project and missing something,” McCain explained.

McCain began working for the Nashville District in June 2020. In the past he worked with notable companies like Gresham Smith & Partners, Thornton & Associates, Inc., and PDC Consultants, which is an aeronautics firm.  His surveying skills contributed to projects like Metro Greenways, Nissan Stadium, and Music City Center.

He is a native of Nashville and is currently licensed to practice land surveying in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama. He attended Nashville State Community College where he also helped with lab classes for surveying.

McCain credits his grandparents who raised him for instilling a great work ethic and his wife Ashley for her love and support. He said land surveying is his career and hobby because he loves doing it that much.

At work, McCain credits Mills and Alex Fenili, his coworker, for always being supportive of his tasks.

“I feel like I’m completely covered. They are just a phone call, text, e-mail or smoke signal away,” McCain said.

Fenili, also a land surveyor, said McCain’s willingness to respond quickly to support the project in Middlesboro, Kentucky, speaks volumes to his character and work ethic. He also spoke highly of the expertise and experience McCain brings to the team from the private sector that exponentially increased the knowledge base and in-house capabilities of the survey program.

“He has been a blessing to our team and is one of the main reasons we have gone from a $200,000 survey program to a $2.2 million survey program over the past 12-18 months. He gives 110 percent day in and day out on every project he touches,” Fenili said.

(The public can obtain news, updates and information from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District on the district’s website at www.lrn.usace.army.mil, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/nashvillecorps and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/nashvillecorps.)