• active and passive solar heating,
• air conditioning,
• historic building preservation
• human factors like indoor air quality

I first learned how to do an energy model with pencil and paper. It was very exciting to learn how to design and justify energy conservation measures. Then the Energy Crisis went away about 1982. The energy recovery methods that I thought were so cool were no longer needed or cost effective. But the career path open to me was still basically HVAC controls and design. So, this is what I did, and this is what I do.

To be sure, most, if not all, of my professional peers are schooled in mechanical engineering. ( and they possess a B.S. Mechanical Engineering). I do not have that specialization. However, I am uniquely qualified and experienced.

Like many professional engineers today, my desire is to serve the design and construction industry. Many people do not remember the 1970s. I prepared for an energy shortage then, and I remain ready to help attack the problems of this new energy crisis.

1. Serve as a high level resource on the latest science and art of building, or introduce you to one. Knowledge includes minimizing building energy (carbon) footprint via energy recovery, advanced control approaches , daylighting design, indoor air quality, ventilation, cogeneration, photovoltaic systems, etc.
2. Recommend energy-efficient design solutions and technologies, including lighting, HVAC, building envelope measures and passive solar and ventilation measures.
3. Validate and summarize energy audits of existing facilities by third parties.
4. Identify various alternative energy conservation measures and predict energy usage based on energy modeling. Includes economic analysis and financial projections with payback.
5. Work with the design and construction teams, sharing and validating others energy models (compliant with DOE-2 and BIM GbXML) as third party reviewer.
6. Provide documents and regular verification required for obtaining LEED energy credits.
7. Work closely with you on alternative solutions for building and system energy usage.

Most of our relatives lived in NY, so my family used to drive through New Jersey to New York , home to some of the most obviously polluted areas in the world, with all manner of oil refineries, chemical plants, chemical dumps etc. I learned the different impacts of different factories, I could even tell you where we were by the smell. The chemical plants used to gag you if you caught a whiff while driving by on the turnpike.

The event that got me really stirred about this was the first Earth Day in 1970. Coincidentally at that time, I had a teacher who asked us to read a book entitled “Silent Spring”, by Rachel Carson. This book really opened my eyes to our destructive impact on the birds, and by extension, all of the environment. I understood that we were building a technology that was unsustainable in the long run and eventually would destroy us.

I decided at that point, at age 16, that I had to do something about it. I went on to college, majored in environmental design, and took as many courses as I could relevant to environmental conservation and energy efficiency. I gravitated to HVAC engineering after graduation and since I have always tried to design the most energy efficient solutions. Signifying my commitment to this, I became a LEED accredited professional in 2006. My career has been, and will continue to be focused on energy efficient, sustainable building designs, and reducing our societies impact on the planet to net zero..

To begin with, I knew very little about DC/Northern Virginia. To be honest, my only brush with northern Virginia was Arlington, which I had visited a dozen times before, and enjoyed it every time. And besides Arlington, I only knew I-95, which I had used to drive through many times.

Yesterday, after work, about 6 pm, I had a chance to try out that new invention, the private toll road, on a trip up to Leesburg, Loudoun county, where my wife and I want to live. I do not know the history of the Route 267 Toll road that runs from the beltway all the way to Leesburg, 30 miles or so. But I know it was the only way to get to Leesburg in under 90 minutes. I heard it was surprisingly popular even though it costs $3.95 cents to use it for the full length, and yes it is popular. The first 5 miles nearest the beltway were either stop and go or slow. After that it gets better and you can reach Leesburg in 35 minutes or so, after you leave the beltway interchange. It seems to relieve a lot of traffic going northwest through dense population centers like Reston and Herndon. It also serves the Dulles Airport. After the first 15-20 minutes of congestion, it moves pretty well and seems to be a sufficient, if not ideal, way to get to Leesburg and points west.

We want to keep horses and still be able to commute to a job in town. I am okay with it, so far. I have not attempted the morning commute to work on it yet. I shall find out and report back on it soon.