Process and R&D engineer with a 39 year career in the chemical process industry encompassing operational, technical, and site management functions. Operational experience in process development and optimization, as well as plant engineering and construction. Started my career with Alcoa in Bauxite, AR, where I assumed supervision of an eight person technical engineering group within two years. Identified a critical process bottleneck and implemented a creative and highly cost-effective $15K solution which doubled capacity of a production unit, avoiding a planned $10MM capital expenditure. Sought broader experience in polymers and plastics with successive mid-career assignments at General Electric Plastics and Uniroyal Chemical, with significant technical and operational accomplishments at each company. Recruited to Advanced Polymer Systems In 1985 by a former GE colleague, a venture-capital backed start-up to produce polymer-encapsulated active ingredients under Good Manufacturing Practices procedures. At Advanced Polymer Systems designed the manufacturing process, supervised construction, and became Plant Manager. In 1993 formed a consulting company. Delivered successful results for diverse clients, including regaining air emissions compliance for a synthetic rubber plant (and a 12% capacity increase), solving a crippling process problem at an oil refinery, and implementing an FDA compliance program at a specialty chemical plant. In 1998, identified the opportunity to establish a toll manufacturing business in Louisiana, leading to the formation of my initial majority-owned company, Process Management, Inc. (“PMI”). The technology and process for recovery of high purity amorphous silica and renewable energy from biogenic matter was conceived and developed within PMI. The two underlying U.S. patents were issued in June 2002 and September 2007 and International Silica Technologies, LLC (“IST”) was formed in 2003 to commercialize this breakthrough technology.