Leadership

With over 28 years of experience, Allan Ames, President of BR+A, is a Registered Professional Mechanical Engineer in nine states and LEED Accredited Professional. He is a frequent presenter at industry symposia including the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), Tradelines and Labs21. Allan is heavily involved in the engineering design for a broad range of project types for healthcare, academic, research and pharmaceutical clients nationwide. In addition, he is a Building Systems Committee Member for the Hospital Associated Infections Foundation (HAIF).

As Founder and CEO of BR+A, Gene Bard has been involved with Mechanical Engineering for over 40 years and is a Registered Professional Engineer in 34 states and the District of Columbia. He is a member of several professional organizations, as well as an active participant on the Leonard Center Advisory Board, College of Engineering for Penn State University and the Board of Trustees with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. In addition, Gene works with leading healthcare professionals to develop strategies to deal with the potential threat of Bioterrorism for our nation’s leading hospitals.

One of the Founding Principals of BR+A, Ted Athanas is a registered HVAC Engineer and has over 40 years of experience. He has overseen the design and integration of mechanical systems for a broad range of large building projects, including healthcare and research facilities nationwide. Ted has been honored by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) with an Energy and Refrigeration Award for the design of systems for an academic research facility.

Cris Copley joined BR+A in 1984 and is a Principal of the firm with over 30 years of experience. He has led the design and engineering of HVAC systems, energy conservation, modification and analysis on a multitude of healthcare, research/laboratory, science, academic, and corporate projects. Cris is a LEED Accredited Professional, an ASHRAE Certified Healthcare Facility Design Professional and a Building Systems Committee Member for the Hospital Associated Infections Foundation (HAIF).

Steve Levin leads BR+A’s Construction Administration Department and manages the construction phases for all of BR+A’s projects. Since joining BR+A in 1993, Steve has combined his design and construction experience to work on numerous projects for healthcare, laboratory, semi-conductor, industrial and central utility plants. Steve received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and is an active member of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

Dan Caron joined BR+A in 1986 and serves as Head of the Electrical Department. He has over 30 years of experience in the engineering of electrical systems and is registered in 29 states and the District of Columbia and holds a current record with the National Council of Examiners for Engineering & Surveying (NCEES), as well as a LEED Accredited Professional. Dan is a Principal Member of the NFPA 70 (National Electrical Code), Code Making Panel 13 and is also associated with the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers and American Society for Healthcare Engineering.

Mike Fahey is the Managing Principal of BR+A’s New York City office and has 30 years of experience in the field of electrical engineering and in project management. His experience includes the design of electrical systems for a multitude of new facilities and the adaptive reuse of existing facilities. Mike’s project experience includes facilities for healthcare, science and research clients nationwide.  He is also the Principal-in-Charge of our national proton therapy team.

Jean-Pierre (JP) Marjollet joined BR+A in 1992 and has 30 years of experience in the field of Electrical Engineering for major healthcare and research facilities nationwide. He has provided the design of electrical engineering systems for notable clients such as the John’s Hopkins Hospital and The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. JP received his Bachelor of Science from Northeastern University in 1987 and is a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers.

Kurt Scheeren is a Principal of BR+A and a Registered Professional Engineer licensed to practice in 14 states. For over 30 years he has provided mechanical consulting engineering services on many large-scale healthcare and research facilities nationwide. Kurt is a LEED Accredited Professional and an active member of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE). Kurt is registered with the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) has been an instructor of HVAC Design at both the Franklin Institute and the Boston Architectural Center.

As the Head of BR+A’s Plumbing and Fire Protection Department, Ron Howie has over 25 years of experience in the field of Plumbing and Fire Protection Engineering. His experience spans many building types including academic science, research, pharmaceutical, corporate and healthcare clients. Ron received his Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology from Northeastern and is currently a member, and Past President, of the American Society of Plumbing Engineers.

Marco DiRenzo has been with BR+A for over 25 years and has extensive experience in the engineering of HVAC systems with a diverse portfolio of renovations and new construction projects in healthcare, academic, and science and technology. As the Managing Principal of the Miami, Florida office, Marco oversees the office management and design including overall project responsibility, technical product quality, specification writing, and project engineering/management. Marco has also participated as a speaker at the ASHE PDC Summit and is a member of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

John O’Leary is a Principal at BR+A and has over 30 years of experience in the field of electrical engineering for architecturally oriented building projects. As an Electrical Project Engineer he has been heavily involved in the design aspects of numerous projects for a variety of research and healthcare clients. John received his Associate Degree in Electrical Engineering from the Franklin Institute of Boston.

Joe Witt has 13 years of experience within the engineering industry and joined BR+A as their Chief Financial Officer in 2003. He earned his MBA in Financial Management from Pace University and is a Certified Public Accountant in New Jersey. Joe is responsible for the timely filing of all federal and state tax requirements; insurance renewals; lease reviews and employee benefits. In addition, he assists the Principals with job pricing and project contract review.

Rick Taylor heads up BR+A’s Technology Services Group and has over 20 years of experience in physical layer infrastructure design, installation and MIS engineering management. His interactive process, operations and project management experience began in the building construction industry, installing Service Provider outside plant service installations for new commercial and residential construction projects. Rick is a Registered Communications Distribution Designer and is actively involved in several professional industry organizations.

Jim Graffam is the Manager of Building Commissioning Solutions at BR+A. Jim has over 25 years of progressive experience in the fields of mechanical engineering, direct digital controls and building commissioning. Having joined BR+A in 1997, Jim has worked to make “integrated” commissioning and systems testing standard practice for all of BR+A commissioning endeavors and the industry as a whole. He regularly finds himself in the role of educating others on getting the start-up and commissioning process right before installation. Jim’s Logic: You start at the end to find the beginning. Understanding complex configurations for integrated state-of-the-art building control systems is his major asset. Jim is a LEED Accredited Professional, an ISA Certified Control Systems Technician and a Certified Commissioning Professional with the Building Commissioning Association.

As Managing Principal for BR+A's Washington, DC office, Michael Benjamin has over 20 years of experience and has been responsible for the management and design of projects, from conception through construction. Michael’s project experience includes clients within the fields of Academic Science, Biomedical Research and Healthcare. Michael is a LEED Accredited Professional, as well as an ASHRAE Healthcare Facility Design Professional. Michael is currently active member of ASHRAE and the International Code Council.

Mark Giovagnoli is the Managing Principal of BR+A’s Philadelphia office and has over 30 years of experience in the design of HVAC systems, energy conservation and analysis. Mark’s project experience includes facilities for healthcare, science and research clients nationwide. Mark is a member of ASHRAE, American Society of Sanitary Engineers, National Fire Protection Association and the American Society of Plumbing Engineers.

As Principal of the firm, Steve Viehl has over 30 years of experience as an Engineer and Engineering Manager. Both a Registered Professional Engineer in 4 states and a LEED Accredited Professional, Steve’s experience includes the design of HVAC systems, alternative energy utilization analysis, systems life cycle cost analysis, master plan, feasibility studies and peer reviews for a multitude of new projects and the adaptive reuse of existing facilities. Steve is actively involved in several industry organizations including ASHRAE, the National Society of Professional Engineers, and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers as well as participated in the AIA Large Firm CFO Roundtable.

Fred Tamayo is a Principal in our New York Office. Fred came to BR+A with 19 years of experience in electrical engineering in 2006 and is a Registered Professional Engineer in 7 states. His experience includes design of electrical systems for a multitude of new facilities, building infrastructure, campus distribution, master plans, electrical substation design and the adaptive reuse of existing facilities. He has also been involved in low voltage, medium voltage and central utility plant design projects. Fred’s project experience has included healthcare, biomedical research, academic and civic projects nationwide.