Bob Norman is an independent consultant with 35 years of experience in the petrochemical industry. Bob consults with KnightHawk Engineering on a part time basis as a corporate advisor and technical consultant. Bob has 27 years of experience in plant operation and management through his employment at Dow Chemical (25 years at Dow) and Westlake Petrochemical. He has 8 years as a technologist in the Engineering Construction Procurement business from Jacobs and Bechtel.

Bob’s career track has led him to become a recognized industry specialist in Ethylene manufacturing technology and management. He has a track record of improving plant operations by modifying equipment, improving operating practices and enhancing staff performance. Due to the many years of operation and troubleshooting experience, Bob is an effective resource in a multidiscipline environment with process, mechanical and control issues. Bob has a Chemical Engineering degree from Texas A&M University and has been a participant in the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (A.I.Ch.E.), the Ethylene Producers Committee (EPC), the Rotating Equipment Subcommittee of the EPC and the Operations Subcommittee of the EPC.

Cliff Knight is President of KnightHawk Engineering and a Professional Engineer with 28 years of experience. Besides his corporate responsibilities as President, Cliff is also Chief Engineer. Cliff specializes in design, failure analysis and troubleshooting in static and rotating equipment. Cliff has 21 years experience in utilizing computer applications, which include Finite Element Method, Numerical Modeling, Heat Transfer, Pipe Stress Analysis, and Computational Fluid Dynamics.

While with KnightHawk, Cliff has developed proprietary tools and methods for performing analysis on pelletizing dies, pressure vessels, heat exchangers, and centrifugal compressors. Cliff holds four patents related to this work. Before coming to KnightHawk, Cliff spent ten years at Dow Chemical, U.S.A., where he achieved the position of Sr. Mechanical Engineering Specialist and Group Leader. Cliff received his BSME degree from Louisiana State University. Cliff is a registered professional engineer in the states of Louisiana, Texas, Florida, Alabama, Maryland, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Indiana, Nebraska, New York and California.

Kevin Sicking is Vice President and Senior Controls Advisor with KnightHawk Engineering. He has over 30 years experience in the design, analysis, and troubleshooting of process controls, instrumentation, and electrical systems. Prior to his current position, Kevin worked for Triconex Systems, Inc. (Formerly TRI-SEN Systems, Inc.) in La Marque, Texas, where he specialized in the control of static and rotating equipment.

Kevin lead the development of numerous custom control systems, designed to solve unique problems in the operation and maintenance of industrial plants throughout the world. He also lead a Field Engineering team in Troubleshooting and Analyzing Control system problems. Prior to Triconex, Kevin worked for Dresser Industries in Houston, where he was a Senior Technical Services Engineer. Kevin was responsible for troubleshooting unique instrumentation and electrical problems as related to exploration, drilling, and production equipment. Kevin has a BSEET degree from the University of Houston.

Jim Salter is Director of Business Development for KnightHawk Engineering. Jim has represented and sold products and services in the Petrochemical and Refining industries for over 20 years. Prior to joining KnightHawk Engineering Jim worked for Texas Industrial Solutions where he was responsible for sales and marketing activities in the Gulf Coast refining and petrochemical industries.

Prior to Texas Industrial Solutions, Jim worked for Ohmstede United, Inc. and Furmanite America, Inc. for about ten years each, where he was responsible for selling repair services and heat exchangers. Other industries Jim has sold to include, Aero Space, Manufacturing, Production, Water Treatment and Fabrication. Jim Studied Marketing at Kilgore College in Kilgore, Texas.

D. Lee Hill is a Director of Speciality Engineering for KnightHawk Engineering. He has over 22 years experience in design, troubleshooting and failure analysis of static and rotating equipment. Prior to working for KnightHawk, Lee worked for MechAssociates in Victoria, Texas where he specialized in failure analysis, design audits and design modifications using numerical simulation tools such as Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA).

Prior to MechAssociates, he worked for Dresser-Rand Corporation in Olean, New York, Emerson Ventilation Products in Lenexa, Kansas, The Mechanical Engineering Department of Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas, Pratt & Whitney Aircraft in West Palm Beach, Florida and Hercules Aerospace, Inc. in McGregor, Texas. Some of Lee’s accomplishments include development of transient CFD technology for turbomachinery problems and noise reduction technology for centrifugal compressors, troubleshooting multi-phase flow problems, acoustic problems, turbine aerodynamic issues, particle erosion and deposition issues with hot gas expanders, combustion chamber issues, structural dynamic issues and thermal stress analysis issues. Lee is widely published on topics such as finite element analysis, bearing design, computational fluid dynamics, component interaction in rotating equipment, noise reduction, and machinery performance improvement. Lee holds 7 patents related to rotating equipment. Lee earned a B.S., M.S. and his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas A&M.

Shauna Askins is General Counsel for KnightHawk Engineering. She advises management on overall corporate matters including liability exposure, risk assessment, employee matters, compliance, and many other related issues. Before joining KnightHawk, Shauna clerked for Federal Magistrate Judge Mary Milloy in United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Prior to her clerkship, Shauna worked for Seyfarth Shaw where she practiced employment law, handling a broad range of issues including discrimination, retaliation, workers compensation, wage and hour disputes, employer recordkeeping, EEOC compliance and many others. She received her J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center where she graduated with honors and also served as Research Editor for the Houston Law Review in which she is published.

Before pursuing her law degree, Shauna worked in the insurance industry for several years, for both State Farm and Progressive Insurance in the property and casualty divisions. She earned a BA in Psychology with a minor in Management from Texas A&M University where she graduated cum laude.