EMCOR – Redman Equipment and Manufacturing

Mechanical Engineer

August 2023 to Present | Torrance, California

Engineering, Manufacturing Coordination & Project Delivery

At Redman, I work across engineering, manufacturing, and customer coordination to move industrial equipment projects from design into production. My responsibilities include engineering review (including calculations and design), production coordination, customer communication, and resolving issues that affect project progress.

I also serve as backup to the Chief Engineer, assigning jobs, reviewing and approving engineering work and providing direction on manufacturing questions. This requires balancing customer requirements, technical standards, shop capabilities, and project commitments.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage five to six concurrent projects, with individual project values reaching approximately $2 million.
• Make, review and approve drawings and calculations prepared by myself, other engineers and drafters.
• Represent engineering department in customer meetings and regular meetings with the plant manager and shop supervisors, helping translate project requirements into clear actions and resolve questions affecting production.
• Coordinate engineering activities, schedules, purchasing requirements, shop priorities, and inspections. When problems threaten progress, I work with the people involved to resolve constraints and adjust priorities.
• Provide guidance through shop supervisors, and work with quality control to investigate discrepancies before equipment reaches the customer.
• Developed reusable inspection and test plans, schedules, procedures, and engineering templates to make recurring work more consistent and reduce opportunities for error.

Selected contributions

• High profile projects. I have worked on several projects reaching individual values of approximate $2 million in manufacturing costs alone.
  • I designed the external and internal vessels for Valar Atomics’ WardZero reactor prototype, completing the engineering calculations and drawings for Redman’s vessel scope. (Valar’s team was responsible for the insulation, electronics, and rods.)
    I worked directly with Valar’s engineers, guided their visits to Redman, and held regular fabrication progress meetings. I also developed the fabrication schedule and project job procedure, connecting the engineering requirements with the work needed to manufacture the vessels.
    The completed vessel is the prototype hardware used in Valar’s heat and pressure testing program, contributing to an early stage of the company’s reactor development.
    Read Redman’s public project overview

• Engineering software selection. I selected a replacement engineering-calculation program after the previous software was deprecated, addressing loss of a core tool the engineering team relied on to perform its work.
  • When Redman’s existing calculation software, RCS, was no longer being updated for upcoming engineering code requirements, I led the evaluation and implementation of a replacement.
    I tested Compress, CodeCalcs, DesignCalcs, and PV Elite before selecting CodeCalcs. The selected package also included PV Elite, providing access to both tools within the same purchase.
    During testing, I identified an incorrect flange classification that caused the software to use the wrong equation. I explained the required correction to the developers and reported user interface and output issues. I handled implementation and trained the other engineers and drafters on the software.
    The transition was completed by the end of January 2026, with no project delays.

• 2026 ASME audit support. I prepared the engineering calculations for Redman’s 2026 ASME audit, contributing to the company maintaining its ASME stamp and its ability to continue supplying ASME-certified equipment.
  • I prepared and presented the engineering calculations for Redman’s 2026 ASME audit, supporting retention of the company’s ASME stamp.
    Using CodeCalcs, I reproduced the ASME PTB-4-2021 reference calculations for tubesheets, heads, cylinders, nozzles, and flanges. All results matched the published examples, and the auditor accepted the calculations without questions or findings.

• Manufacturing quality and schedule protection. I identified a fabrication issue and directed its correction, preserving the planned customer delivery date and avoiding component scrap.
  • During a progress check on a heat-exchanger bundle replacement, I discovered that the required baffle cuts had been missed before assembly, despite being specified in the approved drawings and production schedule.
    I directed disassembly and completion of the required cuts. We then established an inspection hold point for the project, requiring review by me and Quality Control before reassembly.
    The correction added two days to production, which fit within the existing schedule. The planned customer delivery date remained unchanged, and no components were scrapped.

• Assembly improvement and cost avoidance. I developed a practical fastening modification that resolved a manufacturing constraint and avoided additional purchasing and engineering work.
  • When the shop identified insufficient wrench access during assembly, I developed a fastening modification that allowed tightening from the accessible side.
    The solution was implemented successfully, allowing the shop to complete assembly using the existing flange. This avoided purchasing a larger flange and revising the associated engineering calculations.