Nadya Hernandez likes to get into specifics: the specifics of construction projects, to be exact. As a civil engineer with the Port of Long Beach’s Engineering Design Division, Hernandez and her team review requirements for planned projects to ensure that once companies start bidding for the opportunity, they know exactly what’s expected of them. “We get involved with almost every construction project that the port does,” Hernandez noted. “We have to think about the qualifications that we require and make sure that the language is put in the contract documents very clearly, so that the contractors are able to bid in an effective manner and they know whether they’re qualified or not,” she explained. Hernandez joined the port as a civil engineering associate in 2015, after receiving her degree in the field from the University of California, Irvine. Last year, after completing the necessary certifications, she was promoted to the position of civil engineer on the division’s specifications team. “One of my favorite things right now is that I work under a person who loves what they do,” Hernandez said, a nod to the team’s senior civil engineer, Erin Alvarez. Overall, she noted, the port has been a great place to kick start her career. “The port provides a spectrum of opportunities to learn, to grow professionally and just to challenge oneself,” Hernandez said.