I have been working since my mid teens.  I picked berries and delivered newspapers.  In my late teens I worked hard in farming, grounds keeping, janitorial services, and factory and warehouse work.  I paid for my first two years of college with hard work.  

While attending Kent State University, I got a job at Sears as a part-time salesclerk to help me overcome my shyness in meeting and conversing with strangers.     

Losing my student draft deferment and getting an uncomfortably low draft lottery number motivated me to enlist in the Air Force.  The Viet Nam War ended before I graduated from technical training school.  After serving a few years, the Air Force sent me to Ohio State University to get my Bachelor of Science Degree (received in August 1979) then to Officer Training School.  After serving a few years as an Officer, the Air Force sent me to work at the Eastman Kodak Company for 10 months to learn Energy Management.  I served in the Air Force just over 20 years and retired in January 1993.  

I went from Air Force Facilities Engineering into university physical plant operations starting at Texas Christian University, then Indiana University, Baylor University, and finally briefly at Dallas Baptist University.

My most recent experience is as a contractor consulting engineer and project manager in support various entities including IBM Americas Data Centers, the US Air Force at Tinker AFB, Ok; Lockheed Martin at the Fort Worth Naval Air Station and the Fort Worth Regional office of the FAA.    

The following links present my experience from varying perspectives.

Engineering

When making a career choice between architecture and engineering, I was told that to be an architect, I had to study History, Latin and Greek.  This news steered me toward engineering.  I also had a high school counselor tell me that I wasn't college material.  It is amazing what well meaning people believe and say to kids.  It may be a good thing that kids do not always listen.  

Engineering is using what you know to learn and manage what you do not know.  I learn best when I need to know something that I can apply to something I am doing.  Engineering has provided continuous learning opportunities.  

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Energy Management

I was a reluctant at first to participate in the energy program.  I had a tough time with thermodynamics and fluid mechanics in college.  "Energy conservation"  acquired a negative response due to the imposed restrictions on powerless people (no pun intended)  during the post Viet Nam War energy crisis.   Energy conservation  was an ugly term that meant (to me) that you did not get adequate heating or cooling unless you were part of upper management.

My 10-month Education with Industry with the Eastman Kodak Company changed my mind and made me an advocate for energy management and life-cycle cost analyses of energy conservation technologies during the design process.  The best major project I have been associated with won the Association of Energy Engineers Energy Project of the Year   for the year 2000. 

Reliability and Energy Engineering

Engineering critical facilities; whether engineering is for Data Center, medical or military (command, control and communication) facilities; requires extremely talented teams of engineers and engineering managers.  Most of the existing Data Centers may have been engineered initially and may have evolved unilaterally by operational changes unwittingly into facilities that are targeted today as large energy consumers. 

Contracts

I have good experience in contracting for construction and general services.  I have been usually involved in writing the Statements of Work (SOWs) and Requests for Bid (RFBs) or Requests for Proposals (RFPs).

I feel confident in contracting for services.  I know how to get service performed well at a fair price.  I prefer using a request for proposal process to get a sense of market interest and then narrowing the scope to enable and encourage competition.

I believe success in contracting is determined by the level of competent management given to the task of holding the contractor accountable.

My work with Waco Construction, Inc., CSP , LLC and Grubb & Ellis Management Services, Inc. on their contract operations and maintenance for Baylor University, Tinker Air Force Base and IBM Americas Data Centers, respectively, gave me valuable insights to share with anyone regarding contracting for total engineering, operation and construction support.

Operations

Operations is doing what must be done in the near term and sometimes with little notice.  The challenges are to maintain responsiveness, avoid over reacting to operational issues and stay within a lean budget.  

• Responses are generally planned activities to address operational events.  

• Reactions are generally unplanned actions to counter unexpected events.  

The key to continuous improvement and operational success is to study reactions to unexpected events and to develop appropriate response plans for future implementation.  Without these response-planning efforts, the absence or permanent loss of experienced operational personnel can severely impact operations during unplanned events.

Construction

I grew up with construction.  My father was a Master Carpenter.  My recent experience with hands on construction is somewhat limited to engineering and management.  I love working with wood and metals.  I have had great experiences troubleshooting problems with complex critical systems.  My biggest and most recent construction project was a $15,000,000 energy infrastructure improvement project at Baylor University.  I served as a third party contractor project coordinator between the customer (Baylor) and its performance contractor.

Work History

I have included over 30 years of work history in reverse chronological order with highlights of duties, responsibilities, accomplishments and awards.