"When the Commodore 64 personal computer first came out in 1982, Page Principal and Senior Project Manager Scott Tucker made sure he was the first on the block to own one. At that time, not much software was available for it other than an Assembler Development Kit -- “basically software to write your own software,” Scott explains. Once started up and displaying only a “READY _” prompt, he realized learning the machine’s language would be an enormous challenge. For hours, Scott and his electronic engineer brother worked doggedly, forgoing sleep and food, writing assembly code to display a letter “A” on the monitor. Sometime around 2 in the morning, the team was rewarded when the elusive “A” finally appeared on the small, blue screen. Congratulatory shouts and slaps filled the quiet house -- much to the chagrin of Scott’s wife. Scott says the story represents his attitude toward challenges: to him, the best reward comes from achieving success in projects that have been intellectually stimulating and often tedious and difficult.
In the Science and Technology department at Page, Scott manages large, complex, and technically sophisticated projects. His favorite kind of work involves protecting buildings against threats, both internal and external. Buildings facing internal threats include bio-containment labs and high-security intelligence facilities; threats from the outside include hurricanes, lightning, earthquakes, floods, explosions, vehicle impacts, terrorist activities, or even site conditions like shifting soil. He also enjoys working on buildings that accommodate specialized technologies or that encounter phenomena not accounted for in standard construction."
Examples include acoustics, vibration, radiation, electromagnetic interference, and even HEMP (High-altitude Electro-Magnetic Pulse) effects.
Complex projects like these require high levels of collaboration and particularly creative problem solving. “Working closely with a team is a necessary element of any architectural design work, because the built environment today is too complex for any one person to own the entire process,” Scott says. “The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.” As for creativity, Scott feels it affords an opportunity to do something no one else has done before; new problems to solve offer new opportunities to learn something interesting. Basically, Scott enjoys any project that comes with a chance to learn “cool new stuff.” Someday he hopes to help design a performance hall or opera house with all its attendant acoustics and aesthetics – a fitting project, considering Scott’s interest in classical music.
Scott’s life-long love of learning has resulted in a wide range of interests, including science fiction, drawing and painting, photography, computer science, motorcycles, bicycling, and attending the opera. Before finally settling on architecture, he studied fine art in college and obtained a degree in political science. He and his wife of more than 35 years are supportive fans of their daughter, a professional opera singer. He is proud to be a naturalized Texas citizen, and he enjoys the diversity of people, professions and arts he encounters living in Houston.
