Expert Details
Water, Wastewater, Environmental Consulting, Occupational Safety, and Energy
ID: 735707
Texas, USA
Prior to this role, Expert was the Director of Project Development for Veolia North America, the Manager of Operational Excellence for TETRA Technologies (an oil and gas services firm), and Director of Operations for CEMEX-MRT, a company producing and marketing "green" cement and concrete. He has also worked for the Port of Houston and several energy and water companies developing projects and handling their engineering, environmental and operational aspects. Expert holds civil and environmental engineering degrees (M.S. and Ph.D.) from Colorado State University, an MBA from Texas A&M University, and an MPA in environmental management and economics from Harvard University. He is an agricultural engineering graduate of the National Agricultural University-La Molina in Peru.
Expert is a licensed Environmental-Civil Professional Engineer in the State of Texas, and a Board-Certified Environmental Engineer. Expert is an Environmental and Engineering Fellow of the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science. Expert is a professor and Center for Water and the Environment Management at GĚRENS Graduate School of Business. Expert is a frequent speaker at water events and has published extensively in water, energy and environmental management.
Education
| Year | Degree | Subject | Institution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year: 2007 | Degree: MBA | Subject: Business Administration-Finance | Institution: Texas A&M |
| Year: 1996 | Degree: MPA | Subject: Economics & Environmental Management | Institution: Harvard University |
| Year: 1989 | Degree: MS, PhD | Subject: Civil & Environmental Engineering | Institution: Colorado State University |
| Year: 1981 | Degree: BS | Subject: Agricultural Engineering-Water Resources Management | Institution: National Agricultural University-La Molina |
Work History
| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years: 2019 to Present | Employer: Undisclosed | Title: Senior Consultant | Department: NA |
Responsibilities:Water/wastewater, environment safety and energy consultant. Recognized leader in HSEQ -- health, safety, environment, and quality; as well as ESG -- environmental, social, and governance.Expert in sustainability and operations excellence in successful and effective safety and sustainability culture. Widely known for surpassing excellence in production and in quality targets. Subject matter expert and frequent consultant in project management and business planning. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2019 to Present | Employer: Undisclosed | Title: Director: Health, Safety, Environment & Quality | Department: HSEQ |
Responsibilities:Expert has served this industrial group as Director of Health, Safety, Environment and Quality from 2019 to present. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2017 to 2019 | Employer: Veolia North America | Title: Director, Business and Project Development | Department: |
Responsibilities:Directed business and project development of water/wastewater (desalination, reuse, treatment, DBO) projects. Ensured streamlined operations cost and budget control, stage gate approvals, contingency measures, and risk assessment/mitigation. Total value of construction projects: over $100 million.Bid and closed O&M contracts for mid-size water and wastewater municipalities in TX and OK. Worked with large municipalities to issue three large O&M and construction projects in TX. Value: over $100 million. Cultivated robust customer relations and provided high level of service exceeding expectations. Strong focus in quality, productivity, and environmental and safety culture development. Led a strategic growth plan -- including acquisitions -- for existing and potential new markets and customers, meeting financial and profitability KPIs at $80 millions. Coordinated with BD staff with strong use of Salesforce. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2013 to 2017 | Employer: TETRA Technologies | Title: Operations Excellence Manager | Department: |
Responsibilities:Directed all water transfer, treatment, storage and facility construction for oil & gas operations (2015-16 revenue: $120 million annually; staff: 300+; PBT: 6%+).Worked in all oil & gas U.S. plays, Canada and Mexico. Managed P&L, profitability, margins, budgets, cash flow, CAPEX, asset and staff utilization (2016: 20% cost reduction, productivity increase with 25% HC decrease). Successfully managed over $70 million in capital construction projects and over $50 million of heavy equipment, vehicles, over 70 pumps and related facilities. Focused on Kaizen, continuous improvement, reliability, waste minimization and recycling. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2011 to 2013 | Employer: TETRA Technologies, Inc | Title: HSEQ Director for the Western Hemisphere | Department: |
Responsibilities:Managed the company HSEQ programs; designed, monitored, reported progress and implemented strategies and systems, and their alignment/compliance across all business units.Developed, monitored, evaluated and reported KPIs and compliance of standards/procedures and regulations. Greatly improved KPIs (90% in two years), training and safety and environmental conditions. Performed site assessments and audits, incident investigations, risk evaluations, and environmental due diligence and permitting. Coordinated and implemented proactive and corrective actions. Hired, trained, coached and mentored and led a team of 35 in US, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, UK, Canada. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2009 to 2011 | Employer: ERM | Title: Senior Environmental Consultant | Department: |
Responsibilities:Led a team of motivated professionals to provide water management and environmental, safety and sustainability consulting services to oil & gas, LNG, electrical, maritime and mining firms, and lenders.Construction projects: water treatment facilities and natural gas/liquids pipelines (U.S.); gold mines (S. America); wind farms (Americas); gas-fired power plants and LNG plant (Peru); hydropower projects (Panama, Guatemala). Led the HSE audit of the third set of locks of the Panama Canal construction ($5.4 Billion CAPEX) on behalf of the lenders. |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2006 to 2009 | Employer: MRT a CEMEX Company | Title: Director of Operations Excellence | Department: |
Responsibilities:Managed the manufacturing of "green" cement, concrete, gypsum and other products, reporting to the President ($150M in sales/year). Oversaw 22 facilities within coal power plants and industrial sites.Directed operations, P&L, balance sheet, margins and cash flow (30% cost reduction in ‘07), budgeting and sales. Accomplished productivity enhancement (15% increase with 10% HC reduction in ’07-‘08). As project manager, directed $20+M capital construction projects. Negotiated with vendors and EPC contractors and monitored compliance. Managed all civil works (construction) of 12+ settling ponds, industrial buildings and landfills (inc. permit application, monitoring, dredging, water quality improvement, etc.) Led engineering, asset management, and HSEQ compliance by applying continuous improvement, operational reliability and consistency. Hired, trained, coached and mentored 40+ employees (engineers, supply chain, sales and HSEQ staff). |
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| Years | Employer | Title | Department |
| Years: 2004 to 2006 | Employer: Port of Houston Authority | Title: Senior Project Manager | Department: |
Responsibilities:Managed the construction of maritime/inland facility projects ($100+ million) that are commercially linked to the POHA (container, petroleum liquids, and general cargo terminals and intermodal/storage assets) and compliant with engineering standards, ISO, OSHA, OHSAS 18001, DOT and Federal/local regulations.Performed infrastructure engineering, financial and cost evaluation for several terminals (inc. one in Mexico). Coordinated project tasks with internal units, unions and consulting and EPC firms. |
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Government Experience
| Years | Agency | Role | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years: 1989 to 1995 | Agency: South Florida Water Management District | Role: Manager of Operations | Description: Technical staff member |
| Years: 2004 to 2007 | Agency: Port of Houston Authority | Role: Senior Project Manager | Description: Technical staff member |
International Experience
| Years | Country / Region | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Years: 1995 to Present | Country / Region: Canada | Summary: Water/wastewater, oil & gas, ports, mining, safety, environmental consulting. |
| Years: 1995 to Present | Country / Region: Mexico | Summary: Water/wastewater, oil & gas, electricity, ports, mining, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1996 to Present | Country / Region: Guatemala | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, mining, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1994 to Present | Country / Region: El Salvador | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1994 to Present | Country / Region: Honduras | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1996 to Present | Country / Region: Costa Rica | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1996 to Present | Country / Region: Panama | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, mining, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1994 to Present | Country / Region: Ecuador | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, mining, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1990 to Present | Country / Region: Peru | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, oil & gas, mining, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1995 to Present | Country / Region: Chile | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, mining, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1994 to Present | Country / Region: Argentina | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, oil & gas, mining, safety, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 1994 to Present | Country / Region: Brazil | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, ports, mining, safety, oil & gas, environmental consulting. Environmental sustainability training. |
| Years: 2001 to 2002 | Country / Region: The Philippines | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, environmental consulting. |
| Years: 1996 to 2002 | Country / Region: Puerto Rico | Summary: Water/wastewater, electricity, environmental consulting. |
Career Accomplishments
| Associations / Societies |
|---|
| Fellow, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Member, the American Water Works Association (AWWA). Member, American Association of Environmental Engineers & Scientists (AAEES). Member of the Finance and planning Committees, and Chief Examiner for the Texas Region. Member, Water and Environmental Association of Texas (WEAT). Member, Society of Petroleum engineers (SPE). |
| Licenses / Certifications |
|---|
| Professional Engineer, State of Texas. Expires: September 2023. Board Certified Environmental Engineer. Expires: December 2023. Certifications: Certified Safety Professional (CSP) and Associate Safety Professional (ASP). HAZWOPER, PEC Premier Trainer. Trained in Kaizen and Six Sigma. Environmental and Engineering Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (fellowship at the US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water Washington, D.C.). |
| Awards / Recognition |
|---|
| Outstanding Academic Partner Award, Colorado State University Environmental Science and Engineering Fellowship, American Association for Advancement of Science, Washington, D.C. ConAgra Agribusiness Award, Harvard Business School, Cambridge, Massachusetts Student Excellence Scholarship to the Graduate School of Business Administration, Lima, Peru |
| Publications and Patents Summary |
|---|
| Published extensively on economics, energy, water, environment and business. Forty-three papers published in professional journals plus thirty major publications have been written. This includes one case study for the Harvard Business School. |
Additional Experience
| Expert Witness Experience |
|---|
| Deposed in several severe safety incidents. |
| Training / Seminars |
|---|
| Computer training: Google and MS products. Project management. Total Quality Management, Kaizen and Six Sigma. Safety training instructor. |
Language Skills
| Language | Proficiency |
|---|---|
| English | Very proficient |
| Spanish | Very proficient |
| Italian | Proficient |
| Portuguese | Basic |
Fields of Expertise
acid mine water, activated carbon water filtration, aerobic municipal wastewater digestion, American Water Works Association, anaerobic industrial wastewater digestion, anaerobic municipal wastewater digestion, biological industrial wastewater treatment, brackish water, chilled water plant, Clean Water Act, cooling water treatment, conventional water pumping, drinking water chlorination, dewatering, drinking water, drinking water distribution system maintenance, drinking water treatment, energy and water management, drinking water disinfection, energy-efficient conventional water pumping, fresh water, groundwater, industrial wastewater, municipal wastewater disinfection, municipal wastewater treatment facility, industrial wastewater treatment, industrial water treatment, municipal wastewater, reverse osmosis water treatment, wastewater disinfection, water pollution assessment, alternative energy, electric energy generation, energy economics, Oil and Gas Engineering, environmental cleanup, Environmental Assessments, environmental due diligence, environmental economic analysis, environmental engineering, environmental enforcement, Environmental Management System, environmental management, maritime safety, occupational safety, petroleum, petroleum spill, petroleum pipeline, compressed natural gas, floating liquified natural gas, liquefied natural gas, natural gas pipeline, thermoelectricity