Cunningham has spent nearly seven years in the industry, and serves as Central Texas Operations Team Leader at EMA Engineering & Consulting, Inc.

For Cunningham, one of the most rewarding parts of engineering is knowing that the work happening today could remain long after those responsible for it are gone.

“We are building structures and buildings that will hopefully last past our lifetimes,” Cunningham said. “Seeing the building we were a part of being built or helped redesign is a constant reminder of what we accomplished building that facility.”

The people behind those projects are also what keep him motivated. Cunningham strives to deliver quality work for his clients while helping the members of his team grow along the way.

That teamwork is something he wishes more people understood about the industry.

“It takes a lot of different groups of people to come together and take on problems head on,” he said, pointing to the collaboration between architects, engineers and contractors required to turn a vision into a functioning building.

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Of Cunningham's many career accomplishments, he's particularly proud of the growth of EMA's Austin office. At one point, the team consisted of just Cunningham and Mike Cork. Today, it has grown to 10 employees and become one of the company's top-performing offices.

“Seeing where we came from to where we are now really shows who this team is and what we can do in the future,” Cunningham said.

Outside of work, Cunningham has already seen quite a bit of the world. By age 18, he had visited 13 countries and more than 10 U.S. states: experiences that he says gave him perspective and an appreciation for home.

In the future, he hopes to continue traveling and give his children the same opportunity to experience what the world has to offer.