Unveiling the Power of Rani Engineering

Improving Lives by Creating Quality Experiences

ABOUT US

Established in 1993 as one of Minnesota’s first minority-owned engineering design companies, Rani Engineering has become a highly recognized and award-winning firm.

Located in Minneapolis, Rani is a well-known TGB/DBE/MBE/SBE and Veteran-Owned consulting firm providing professional and technical services to public and private sector clients nationwide.

At Rani, we focus on building partnerships that provide shared values built on a foundation of reliability and quality. Our collective team of experts is committed to client satisfaction. We support this commitment with dedication, experience, and project management focusing on frequent and in-depth communication. Our record of successful and collaborative projects shows that our top priority is satisfied clients.

Some of the Services We Provide

The Markets We Serve

Transit Highways

OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM

Andrew Nordseth, PE (MN)

Principal

Andy Nordseth has 24 years of experience in civil engineering. His experience has primarily focused on structural and transportation-related project delivery, from project scoping to preliminary design, final design, and construction administration. Andy’s project experience spans from major transit urban infrastructure initiatives with many stakeholders to rural preservations and transportation infrastructure.

Darwin Yasis, PE (MN)

Highways Lead

Darwin has over 28 years of experience in concept development, preliminary and final design, and construction. He has worked on numerous transportation projects, which vary in scope and complexity. Darwin has worked in both the private and public sectors and has a proven track record of delivering projects from inception to plan development and construction.

Heather Spencer, PE (MN)

Principal | Site Development and Local Roads Lead

Heather has over 27 years of global experience in site development, water resources, and street design. She is a dedicated and intuitive leader who has managed numerous projects from scope development, planning, design, and construction. Heather has experience with utility coordination and drainage design for large transportation projects, including several MnDOT projects and State/Federal Aid projects.

Lance Newman, PE (MN)

Principal | Utilities Lead

Lance Newman has 31 years of experience. He is one of the area’s most experienced and respected experts in utility coordination. Lance’s focus for over 20 years has been utility coordination and design, including leading utility coordination on some of the biggest civil design and construction projects in Minnesota’s history. He has led utility coordination for a variety of MnDOT and Metropolitan Council projects throughout the state.

Peter DeMuth, PE (MN)

Principal | Transit Lead

Peter offers more than just 14 years of transit design and construction experience. He also offers technical experience in project management, agency & stakeholder coordination, utility coordination, preliminary engineering, final design oversight, and design coordination. His recent prospects handling transit projects including Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) make him well accomplished. While with Metro Transit, Peter spent eight years designing and constructing several LRT and BRT projects.

Amanda Bergstrom, PE (MN), CPESC, LEED AP BD+C

Water Resources Lead

Amanda has over 21 years of experience providing Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPP), Erosion Prevention/Sediment control design, and inspection services. She has worked on numerous MnDOT projects throughout the state. Amanda is a Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control (CPESC), a Certified Construction SWPPP Designer, and a licensed professional civil engineer in Minnesota.

Jason Howard, PLS (MN)

Survey Lead

Jason has 24 years of experience in the surveying industry, with both public and private sector survey projects. He has been involved in construction surveying for streets and highways, land development, the subdivision of property, ALTA land title surveys, surveying for telecommunications towers and equipment, surveying for electrical transmission projects, construction surveying for commercial building sites, and as-built surveying for MnDOT assets.

OUR PROJECTS

FRANKLIN AVENUE RECONSTRUCTION CITY OF MINNEAPOLIS

Rani provided project management and final design of the roadway and intersections, storm sewers, BMPs (infiltration swales and underground storage/ infiltration chamber), lighting, utility coordination, stormwater pollution prevention plan, and sediment and erosion control for this right-of-way reconstruction project featuring bicycle and pedestrian-friendly design.

Franklin Avenue raised pedestrian crossing at Bryant Avenue

Heywood Lower Lot

Metro Tranist Minneapolis, MN

Metro Transit tasked Rani to provide design and construction support for repaving the 49,000 square-foot lower lot, including restoration of pavement deterioration, installation of new security cameras, and installation of infrastructure to accommodate future two-way, card-access operated gates at both the N. 8th Ave and North 5th Street entrances. The project is for a Smart Technology System using next-generation card readers and parking management software to actively manage parking lots and ensure enough spaces for PM peak service providers.

Pedestrain Ramp Upgrade

Hennepin County

Minneapolis, MN

Design improvements included pedestrian ramps, signal upgrades for APS, and relocating/ adjusting catch basins. Rani served as consultant project manager for this project and provided utility coordination. Rani conducted field walks and provided preliminary recommendations for almost 300 ramps within the project corridors. Rani provided the final engineering design for approximately 70 ramps in two packages.

Woodhill Drainage Study

MnDOT Metro District Burnsville, MN

The Rani team investigated flooding issues for several residential properties in Burnsville that began after the MnDOT TH13 reconstruction project in 2014. We used XPSWMM to create a model of pre- and post-construction conditions to determine the causes of flooding. Then, with input from MnDOT and Burnsville, we used the post-construction model to evaluate several options and determine an optimal combination of mitigation measures to alleviate the flooding.

Ponds Condition Analysis

Ramsey County St. Paul, MN

Rani Engineering was tasked to provide a condition and Hydrologic / Hydraulic Analysis of the Larpenteur/Como Diversions Ponds System. The analysis included a review of existing documentation, field investigation, XP-SWMM modeling of the system, and recommendations for maintenance and improvement.

TH 14

MnDOT District 7

Sanborn to Springfield, MN

Rani was tasked with the ADA-compliant design of walks and pedestrian ramps, roadway design of the 9-mile corridor, and drainage design including storm sewer and culverts, stormwater prevention plan, turf establishment/ erosion control, and utility coordination. Rani also played the role of Prime, managing the project, and coordinating between Rani, sub-consultants, and MnDOT staff. Our team also put together all documents for the statement of estimated quantities and cost estimates associated with the project.

TH 27 & TH 75

MnDOT District 4

Wheaton, MN

The project was a mill and overlay, with improvements to drainage structures and ditch cleaning in Wheaton. Rani provided coordination and management to keep this fast-paced project on schedule, including collaborating with the owner, local stakeholders, subconsultants (roadway design and traffic), and utility companies. The design team developed plans, special provisions, and cost estimates using MnDOT, AASHTO, and FHWA standards.

TARGET FIELD INTERCHANGE SIGNAL TRACKWORK METRO TRANSIT

MINNEAPOLIS, MN

Due to a stray current attributed to the existing DC switch heating system, the rail has experienced significant damage at the Target Field Interchange Interlocking. Metro Transit requested the replacement of corroded rail and damaged trackwork structures. A new switch heater design utilizing an AC power was engineered to mitigate stray current concerns.

Rani provided top-of-rail and topo surveys. The team also contributed to the design of a completely new switch heater system utilizing switch heater products from an industry-respected manufacturer (Thermon) and a 480 VAC feed from the local power utility (Xcel Energy).

METRO Blue Line Extension

METRO TRANSIT

MINNEAPOLIS, MN

The Blue Line Extension will extend from downtown Minneapolis into the northwest suburbs. With 11 new stations, the line will connect to the METRO Blue Line and METRO Green Line, the future METRO Green Line Extension, the Northstar commuter rail line, and local and express bus routes.

Rani Engineering’s Systems Team provided train control engineering and system-wide electrical engineering services for the 13-mile extension.

MidAmerica LRT Extension

BI-STATE DEVELOPMENT AGENCY

ST.LOUIS, MO SUBURBS

St. Clair County Transit District and Bi-State Development Agency are building a 5.5-mile extension of the existing St. Louis MetroLink Light Rail System. The extension will go from the current Shiloh-Scott passenger station and end at the main terminal at MidAmerica Airport. The extension was initially designed in the late 1990s but never constructed due to cost concerns. The consultant team is updating the design to comply with industry standards and lessons learned over d ecades of experience.

Rani is responsible for a large portion of the train control design of the project. Rani provided design and coordination services for system-wide electrical needs on the project, including conduit routing, conduit selection, utility vault/pull box placement, and cable trough needs.