Pearltry Suen, mechanical engineer at RTM Engineering Consultants has transitioned from a renowned career in ballet and brings that same strategic visualization required for concept design to her position as a mechanical engineer. Pearltry earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Central Florida. She is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), and participated in Formula SAE—an engineering design competition for undergraduate and graduate students providing participants with the opportunity to enhance their engineering design and project management skills by applying learned classroom theories in a challenging competition. Pearltry also holds the title of President of Knights and Damsels Dance Company (KDDC) at the University of Central Florida.
What do you like best about working at RTM?
One of the greatest assets of working at RTM is that we get the opportunity to take a project from concept to completion, while collaborating with my peers and working with the client to ensure the project is completed on time and within budget. I am constantly learning, whether that’s implementing a new project concept, technology or design approach. I have also been given the opportunity to be involved in the business development aspect of the company, namely researching potential new clients and coordinating and participating in external business development events. I appreciate that RTM allows its team members the flexibility to engage in multiple areas of interest within the company; the constant knowledge-share is phenomenal and you can’t find this anywhere else.
What do you bring to RTM?
A passion for engineering and providing excellent service to our clients. I enjoy what I do at RTM because I’m surrounded by professionals who throw themselves into projects of varying sizes, leveraging an extensive set of capabilities to deliver superior work. That is inspirational to me and I’m constantly working towards improving each client’s business beyond a single-project scope.
What was one of the most interesting projects you’ve worked on?
I interned at RTM before getting hired full time and had the opportunity to work on the beginning stages of the Orlando Police Department Headquarters and Crime Scene Facility project—which included the design of a new one-story state-of-the-art police crime scene facility that featured labs, evidence storage areas, training areas, and offices. Working at RTM and alongside our team of expert engineers has allowed me to be a part of some amazing projects, and I look forward to what this year has to bring. Being a part of the process and seeing the final product is so gratifying to me.
What’s a fun fact about yourself?
Before I began my career in mechanical engineering, I was a classically-trained ballerina for 20 years. I’ve had the honor and opportunity to train with some of the most world-renowned ballet companies – American Ballet Theatre, Joffrey Ballet, Hong Kong Ballet, Miami City Ballet, and the Orlando Ballet, and I was able to land my first principle lead-soloist role at the age of 16. I’ve been able to take those concepts of determination and hard work that it requires to choreograph a large production number with me to my position at RTM.
Pearltry Suen is based in our Orlando, Fla. Office and can be reach at pearltry.suen@rtmec.com.