Omaha Engineering | Forensic Engineering | Omaha …...2019/03/01 · Omaha-based KPE, an...
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MARCH 1, 2019 THE WEEKLY BUSINESS PAPER OF GREATER OMAHA, LINCOLN AND COUNCIL BLUFFS VOL. 45 NO. 9 Forensic expertise boosts opportunities for KPE engineering by Richard D. Brown Omaha-based KPE, an engineering and architectural firm in its 19th year, is far better known for its forensic expertise and the testimony its professionals give regarding troubled projects across much of the country. However, the leaders of the 18-employee firm are aiming to increase their architectural and engineering billings by at least 20 percent this year as they plan and design a variety of projects. Education sector projects such as the initial $8 million phase-one of renovations to Burke High School, varied commercial endeavors such as the renovation of a former skating/entertainment building for use by Midwest Labs, work for Greenbelly — a restaurant that serves environmen- tally-responsible food — and Craft Axe, a recreational firm that offers customers an opportunity to throw axes at a giant dartboard-like target, are positioning KPE for continued variety of work and a growth goal for 2019 set at 20 percent. Brad Lauritsen, one of four associate principals at KPE, is finding his varied back- ground, which includes a stint as a structural analyst with Boeing in Wichita, and work for the government in San Antonio, where he developed an explosive-breaching field manual for law enforcement and the mili- tary, gives him unique perspectives as he completes his 11th year as a mechanical and investigative engineer and forensics department manager with KPE. “Our projects at KPE tend to be in the $3 [million] to $20 million range,” he said. With 18 em- ployees at its 1016 Leavenworth St. loca- tion, Lauritsen said the firm founded by Professional Engi- neer Kevin C. Power, expects to fill seven newly-created posi- tions in the coming months. Lauritsen has a Bachelor of Engineer- ing degree from University of Nebraska- Lincoln as well as a Master of Mechanical Engineering. “Our industry is good right now and we remain cautiously optimistic despite talk of a slowdown or recession coming,” he said. “With our additional positions we want experienced employees such as younger engineers and assistants who can address the strong demand for projects in the education, commercial and industrial sectors.” One of the largest projects KPE is Associate Principal Brad Lauritsen … Emphasis on forensic projects is opening doors for an increase in engineering and architectural work. involved in is providing architectural and engineering services to Burke, which is undergoing its most significant renovation since the school was built in the mid-1960s. The project involves an addition to the gym, modernization of band and vocal music classrooms, and in the newest phase, a $5 million investment in mechanical and elec- trical upgrades. Phase I was com- pleted last summer and Phase II is cur- rently in design. KPE, which started solely as an engineering firm, in the mid-2000s did the mechanical, engi- neering and plumb- ing design for Bel- levue’s new Lewis & Clark Middle School, which was the first educational institu- tion in the state to use a directionally (horizontally) bored geo-exchange well field, which saved the district more than $600,000 compared to the standard vertical well fields being built and leased to own by OPPD at the time, Lauritsen said. Another early project in Bellevue was the Bellevue Public Schools campus, which included the Lied Recreation Center, Offutt Welcome Center, Administrative Center and Transportation Center. Lauritsen said industrial facilities are expected to offer KPE a significant amount of work in upcoming years. Projects being readied involve electrical work in process- ing plants, structural design and planning, numerous renovations in food processing, as well as work in a concrete plant. “What can differentiate us is that we can respond with a quick turnaround,” he said. In the health care sector, work has in- cluded design and engineering on Depart- ment of Veterans Affairs’ assisted living, as well as for family dental and chiropractor clinics in Bellevue. KPE has had a long-standing relation- ship with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and has done work on schools at four locations. Lauritsen said another differentiating factor is that compared to other relatively smaller architectural and engineering firms, a larger percentage of the total employees — more than 50 percent — are licensed by their respective professional organizations. He said that has been important in the outcome of projects and KPE’s recent American Council of Engineering Com- panies’-sponsored award of merit, which it received for work done in North Dakota for the Mott-Regent Public Schools, which replaced a 107-year-old building with a state-of-the-art school featuring a variable refrigent flow (VRF) HVAC system with fan coils throughout the facility. Lauritsen said extensive work with the community enabled an $8.6 million bond issue to be passed by more than 60 percent of the voters. The whole project for the new school came in $1.3 million under budget. “In doing the forensic design and engi- neering work we put an emphasis on lessons learned and use that knowledge to steer clear of what not to do,” Lauritsen said. With the forensic work, KPE sees the work of other firms done throughout the Midwest, as well as any mistakes made. Leaking windows in commercial as well as residential properties are one of the most frequently evaluated problems. Roofs, which have frequently not been installed correctly, are also problematic. Sometimes it is in the quality of their construction or the installers haven’t fol- lowed industry standards, which change every few years. Structural collapses of buildings also precipitate investigations by KPE. Lauritsen and three other KPE engineers testify in courtrooms in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri. “We’ve looked at designs done in every state west of the Mississippi,” Lauritsen said. The forensic work — about 30 percent of KPE’s annual billings — is done for 300 to 400 cases per year. The June 2008 tornado in Millard provided much local work as damaged buildings were investigated to determine the cause and origin of the damage and to assess what need repairing or replacement. More recently, a KPE structural engi- neer was sent to the M’s Pub disaster to help officials determine how to make the Old Market scene safe. Last month Lauritsen, an expert in mois- ture mitigation in buildings and a certified thermographer, used infrared camera tech- nology to evaluate the drainage problems in two frozen pipes for a client in Des Moines. “I provide investigative engineering expert witness services for insurance claim cases primarily dealing with property loss (roofs, construction defects, fires, floods, wind and hail),” Lauritsen said. “I have experience in engineering design of me- chanical (HVAC and plumbing) systems and energy analyses.” Lauritsen is the only civilian to have completed courses at three levels that are typically taken by law enforcement and mil- itary personnel. His exploits were included in an episode of National Geographic’s Master of Disaster television program. “For the project I ran a test program where I built explosive charges and blew holes in walls and got to film it with high speed cameras and record pressure data,” he added. Reprinted with permission from the publisher of MBJ Inc. from the March 1, 2019 issue of the Midlands Business Journal This permission is for photo and article reproduction or placement on your Web site. Under no circumstances, because of spamming and other issues, will permission be granted to transmit our stories by e-mail. (Photo by MBJ / Becky McCarville) KPE Phone: 402-291-1444 Address: 1016 Leavenworth St., Omaha 68102 Services: engineering, architectural, forensic expertise Founded: in 2000 by Kevin C. Power Employees: 18 Goal for 2019: Increase overall billings by 20 percent; hire for seven new positions. Industry outlook: Firms are cautiously optimistic with strong demand for projects in education, commercial and industrial sectors. Website: www.kpe-inc.com
Transcript of Omaha Engineering | Forensic Engineering | Omaha …...2019/03/01 · Omaha-based KPE, an...
MARCH 1, 2019 THE WEEKLY BUSINESS PAPER OF GREATER OMAHA, LINCOLN AND COUNCIL BLUFFS VOL. 45 NO. 9
Forensic expertise boosts opportunities for KPE engineeringby Richard D. Brown
Omaha-based KPE, an engineering and architectural firm in its 19th year, is far better known for its forensic expertise and the testimony its professionals give regarding troubled projects across much of the country. However, the leaders of the 18-employee firm are aiming to increase their architectural and engineering billings by at least 20 percent this year as they plan and design a variety of projects.
Education sector projects such as the initial $8 million phase-one of renovations to Burke High School, varied commercial endeavors such as the renovation of a former skating/entertainment building for use by Midwest Labs, work for Greenbelly — a restaurant that serves environmen-tally-responsible food — and Craft Axe, a recreational firm that offers customers an opportunity to throw axes at a giant dartboard-like target, are positioning KPE for continued variety of work and a growth goal for 2019 set at 20 percent.
Brad Lauritsen, one of four associate principals at KPE, is finding his varied back-ground, which includes a stint as a structural analyst with Boeing in Wichita, and work for the government in San Antonio, where he developed an explosive-breaching field manual for law enforcement and the mili-tary, gives him unique perspectives as he completes his 11th year as a mechanical and investigative engineer and forensics department manager with KPE.
“Our projects at KPE tend to be in the $3 [million] to $20 million range,” he said.
W i t h 1 8 e m -ployees at its 1016 Leavenworth St. loca-tion, Lauritsen said the firm founded by Professional Engi-neer Kevin C. Power, expects to fill seven newly-created posi-tions in the coming months.
Lauritsen has a Bachelor of Engineer-ing degree from University of Nebraska-Lincoln as well as a Master of Mechanical Engineering.
“Our industry is good right now and we remain cautiously optimistic despite talk of a slowdown or recession coming,” he said. “With our additional positions we want experienced employees such as younger engineers and assistants who can address the strong demand for projects in the education, commercial and industrial sectors.”
One of the largest projects KPE is
Associate Principal Brad Lauritsen … Emphasis on forensic projects is opening doors for an increase in engineering and architectural work.involved in is providing architectural and engineering services to Burke, which is undergoing its most significant renovation since the school was built in the mid-1960s. The project involves an addition to the gym, modernization of band and vocal music classrooms, and in the newest phase, a $5 million investment in mechanical and elec-
trical upgrades.Phase I was com-
pleted last summer and Phase II is cur-rently in design.
K P E , w h i c h started solely as an engineering firm, in the mid-2000s did the mechanical, engi-neering and plumb-ing design for Bel-levue’s new Lewis & Clark Middle School, which was the first educational institu-tion in the state to
use a directionally (horizontally) bored geo-exchange well field, which saved the district more than $600,000 compared to the standard vertical well fields being built and leased to own by OPPD at the time, Lauritsen said.
Another early project in Bellevue was the Bellevue Public Schools campus, which included the Lied Recreation Center, Offutt Welcome Center, Administrative Center and Transportation Center.
Lauritsen said industrial facilities are expected to offer KPE a significant amount of work in upcoming years. Projects being
readied involve electrical work in process-ing plants, structural design and planning, numerous renovations in food processing, as well as work in a concrete plant.
“What can differentiate us is that we can respond with a quick turnaround,” he said.
In the health care sector, work has in-cluded design and engineering on Depart-ment of Veterans Affairs’ assisted living, as well as for family dental and chiropractor clinics in Bellevue.
KPE has had a long-standing relation-ship with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and has done work on schools at four locations.
Lauritsen said another differentiating factor is that compared to other relatively smaller architectural and engineering firms, a larger percentage of the total employees — more than 50 percent — are licensed by their respective professional organizations.
He said that has been important in the outcome of projects and KPE’s recent American Council of Engineering Com-panies’-sponsored award of merit, which it received for work done in North Dakota for the Mott-Regent Public Schools, which replaced a 107-year-old building with a state-of-the-art school featuring a variable refrigent flow (VRF) HVAC system with fan coils throughout the facility.
Lauritsen said extensive work with the community enabled an $8.6 million bond issue to be passed by more than 60 percent of the voters. The whole project for the new school came in $1.3 million under budget.
“In doing the forensic design and engi-neering work we put an emphasis on lessons learned and use that knowledge to steer clear of what not to do,” Lauritsen said.
With the forensic work, KPE sees the work of other firms done throughout the Midwest, as well as any mistakes made. Leaking windows in commercial as well as residential properties are one of the most frequently evaluated problems.
Roofs, which have frequently not been installed correctly, are also problematic.
Sometimes it is in the quality of their construction or the installers haven’t fol-lowed industry standards, which change every few years.
Structural collapses of buildings also precipitate investigations by KPE.
Lauritsen and three other KPE engineers testify in courtrooms in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri.
“We’ve looked at designs done in every state west of the Mississippi,” Lauritsen said.
The forensic work — about 30 percent of KPE’s annual billings — is done for 300 to 400 cases per year.
The June 2008 tornado in Millard provided much local work as damaged buildings were investigated to determine the cause and origin of the damage and to assess what need repairing or replacement.
More recently, a KPE structural engi-neer was sent to the M’s Pub disaster to help officials determine how to make the Old Market scene safe.
Last month Lauritsen, an expert in mois-ture mitigation in buildings and a certified thermographer, used infrared camera tech-nology to evaluate the drainage problems in two frozen pipes for a client in Des Moines.
“I provide investigative engineering expert witness services for insurance claim cases primarily dealing with property loss (roofs, construction defects, fires, floods, wind and hail),” Lauritsen said. “I have experience in engineering design of me-chanical (HVAC and plumbing) systems and energy analyses.”
Lauritsen is the only civilian to have completed courses at three levels that are typically taken by law enforcement and mil-itary personnel. His exploits were included in an episode of National Geographic’s Master of Disaster television program.
“For the project I ran a test program where I built explosive charges and blew holes in walls and got to film it with high speed cameras and record pressure data,” he added.
Reprinted with permissionfrom the publisher of MBJ Inc.
from the March 1, 2019 issue of the
Midlands Business JournalThis permission is for photo and article reproduction or placement on your
Web site. Under no circumstances, because of spamming and other issues,
will permission be granted to transmit our stories by e-mail.
(Photo by MBJ / Becky McCarville)
KPEPhone: 402-291-1444Address: 1016 Leavenworth St., Omaha 68102Services: engineering, architectural, forensic expertiseFounded: in 2000 by Kevin C. PowerEmployees: 18Goal for 2019: Increase overall billings by 20 percent; hire for seven new positions.Industry outlook: Firms are cautiously optimistic with strong demand for projects in education, commercial and industrial sectors.Website: www.kpe-inc.com
Midlands
Business JournalKPE
Reprinted with permission from the publisher of MBJ Inc.from the March 1, 2019 issue of the Midlands Business Journal.
This permission is for photo and article reproduction or placementon your Web site. Under no circumstances, because of spamming and
other issues, will permission be granted to transmit our stories by e-mail.
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