FUELED | A Fenstermaker Podcast

Dr. Kam Movassaghi is currently President and CEO of Movassaghi Group, PEC, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He has experience in civil engineering in the areas of consulting, academia, and government. Dr. Movassaghi received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Louisiana, Lafayette in 1963. He then went on to earn his Master of Science and his Ph.D. from Louisiana State University’s Civil & Environmental Engineering Department in 1965 and 1971, respectively.

Dr. Movassaghi served as an engineer in several engineering firms in his early career. He then joined the faculty at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette where he was selected to head the Department of Civil Engineering. Under his direction the department expanded programs in research, developed a design computation laboratory, developed a graduate engineering management program, and received very successful ABET accreditation reviews.

In 1998 Dr. Movassaghi was appointed by then Governor “Mike” Foster as Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development. With this position, Dr. Movassaghi was able to increase the annual construction project lettings by 78 percent with no net increase in annual revenues. He also implemented a comprehensive management plan to expedite completion of the TIMED program, the largest construction program in the history of the department. Dr. Movassaghi accomplished these and many among other notable feats in the 6 years as he served the state in this role.

Dr. Kam was also the President of Fenstermaker from 2005 – 2014 and was excited to be a part of our first season of Fueled.

Season 1 of FUELED is focused on infrastructure. Each guest appearing on Season 1 brings a unique vantage point, knowledge and experience with the topic. In episode 2, John D. Foret, PhD shares his wisdom and expertise concerning coastal infrastructure.

Dr. John Foret is Vice President of Environmental, and the Environmental Leader to a staff of fourteen biologists. His duties include supervising all environmental staff activities as they relate to industry permitting activities (air/water/wetland), wetland delineations, mitigation banking consultation, wetland habitat restoration consultation (emergent marsh, shoreline protection, reef restoration), environmental assessments, biological assessments, project budgets and timelines, and project management. Prior to his time at Fenstermaker Dr. Foret served as a Research Fisheries Biologist for 18 years with DOC/NOAA/NMFS Galveston Laboratory. He was the Team Leader within the Fishery Ecology Branch in Lafayette, LA and managed all activities associated to the Coastal Wetlands Planning, Protection, and Restoration Act (CWPPRA) as they related to coastal fisheries habitat restoration. He was also a Federal restoration project manager for NOAA Fisheries in the CWPPRA Program.

Season 1 of FUELED is focused on infrastructure. Each guest appearing on Season 1 brings a unique vantage point, knowledge and experience with the topic, beginning with Dax Douet, PE:

Dax Douet is an Engineering Director with 22 years of professional experience in design, planning, and project management. He has designed highways, roadways, drainage systems, interchanges, roundabouts, standard intersections, and various site developments. Mr. Douet also has numerous years of experience in the bidding and construction administration of projects. During his tenure here at Fenstermaker, Dax has performed multiple reviews of construction plans to determine constructability of designs under actual field conditions and live traffic loading. Additionally, Mr. Douet managed the preparation of over thirteen transportation feasibility studies for the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development. These feasibility studies were conducted for a wide range of transportation projects throughout the State of Louisiana to include roadway improvements, interstate highway interchanges, and grade-separated bridge structures. Mr. Douet has also led the preparation of geometric line and grade studies to support more than five Environmental Assessment documents in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) guidelines. He has managed various multi-disciplinary projects and performed roadway corridor studies, traffic safety analyses, and feasibility studies, which encompass design, right-of-way, environmental, and utility work. Mr. Douet was previously a city engineer responsible for roadways, drainage, development review, municipal code development, utilities systems, and various other municipal engineering tasks. Throughout his career, Dax has worked with various local, state, and federal agencies. A life-long resident of Acadiana, Dax was born and raised in St. Martinville, Louisiana and currently resides in Youngsville, Louisiana.