PEOPLE & COMPANIES Theresa Engler, executive director of DFI, was unanimously elected to The Moles, a fraternal organization of the heavy construction industry. Moles members are leaders in their profession who are dedicated to promoting the industry and supporting their colleagues through outreach programs and networking opportunities. Engler has been the executive director of DFI since 2006 and served as the assistant director from 1998 to 2006. She has spearheaded significant growth at DFI — tripling the membership base; expanding technical committees; and adding educational events, publications and regional chapters in Europe, India and the Middle East. Before DFI, she worked for the National Timber Piling Council. Engler attended Fairfield University and is a member of the American Society of Association Executives as well as its New Jersey and New York Chapters as well as the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC). She is also the first female board member of the Academy of Geo-Professionals (AGP). Dr. Fred H. Kulhawy, P.E., G.E., 71, professor emeritus of civil and geotechnical engineering at Cornell University and a consulting geo- technical engineer, died Tuesday, May 12, at the Cayuga Medical Center. He was an active member of DFI since 1989 and was DFI’s 2007 Hal Hunt lecturer, presenting “Communicating Technical Issues with Levity and Panache,” and a speaker for the DFI Educational Trust in 2011 at the annual gala, presenting “A View of Civil Engineering as Portrayed in Postage Stamps.” Kulhawy received his B.S. and M.S. in civil engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. His teaching and research focused on foundations, soil-structure interaction, dams, soil and rock behavior, and geotechnical computer and reliability applications, and he authored over 365 published technical papers and reports. Kulhawy gave more than 1,420 lectures around the world and received numerous awards for his work from ASCE, ADSC, IEEE and others, including election to Distinguished Member of ASCE, the ASCE Karl Terzaghi Award and Norman Medal, and the CGS Meyerhof Award. Kulhawy had extensive experience in geotechnical engineering practice with several consulting firms, and was a private consultant for major projects on six continents. Dr. Sissy Nikolaou, Ph.D., P.E., was appointed dir- ector of the Board of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI). EERI is the recognized authority in earthquake investigations and in the dissemination of multidisciplinary earthquake risk reduction information both in the U.S. and globally. Nikolaou is a practicing earthquake engineer with over 20 years of experience. She is a senior associate with Mueser Rutledge Consulting Engineers in New York City, where she directs the firm’s geo-seismic department. She holds M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from SUNY- Buffalo in civil engineering. Equipment Corporation of America (ECA), a leading distributor of foundation construction equipment, acquired the assets and merged with sister company New England Construction Products (NECP) on March 1, 2015. NECP, located in Taunton, Mass., will continue serving Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, Maine and Rhode Island as ECA Boston. ECA is retaining the core team from NECP. David Sciortino will continue his service as vice president and Boston branch manager. Anthony Sciortino will assume the position of sales engineer and Bob Martinelli will remain service manager. ECA also sponsored and participated in the Bucks County Veterans Golf Outing in Telford, Pa., in May to help fund free transportation for veterans to VA Medical Centers in Philadelphia and Coatesville, Pa. This unique service has transported 13,000 veterans and traveled 350,000 miles since being started by the County of Bucks 12 years ago at no cost to the taxpayers. Schnabel Engineering, Glen Allen, Va., has announced that Gordon M. Matheson, Ph.D., P.E., PG, will serve as presi- dent for the Geopro- fessional Business Association’s (GBA) May 2015-April 2016 year. Matheson will succeed Steven D. Thorne, PR, D.GE, who served for the May 2014-April 2015 year. Matheson is president and CEO of Schnabel Engineering and has more than 35 years of experience nationally and internationally, meeting a wide variety of geo-engineering challenges. He is the author of more than 35 publications and has been active in industry and profes- sional societies for many years. Marvin Phillips retired from Atlas Tube, effective May 15, 2015. Phillips wa s the corpor a t e metallurgist since 2009 and provided a wealth of knowledge and experience. His technical expertise was appreciated by customers and coworkers alike. Phillips also served as a speaker for the DFI Atlas Tube Student Day annually. DEEP FOUNDATIONS • JULY/AUG 2015 • 105
