Coffman Promotes Two Engineers to Principal

Coffman Engineers promoted two colleagues in the Anchorage office to the role of Principal.

Nicholai Smith is an electrical engineer, the electrical department lead for key oil and gas clients. He received his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Wyoming and started with Coffman in 2010. His experience includes multidiscipline design team management, medium- and low-voltage power distribution, primary and standby generation, medium- and low-voltage protective relaying, industrial control system design, telecommunications, gas detection, project management, startup engineering, lighting design, energy conservation, and providing owner engineering services.

Smith’s background in construction has been instrumental to delivering practical designs for complex, multidisciplinary projects. As a project manager and lead engineer, he leads projects through all phases of development. He is also an AEE Certified Energy Auditor.

In 2020, his peers selected Smith for the Anchorage office Neil Pearson Award because he is “an excellent mentor, leader, and engineer who works hard to maintain positive relationships with clients and coworkers.”

The other new principal in Anchorage is Rob Wasserman, a project management professional and civil and structural engineer. Wasserman specializes in industrial projects, including petroleum facilities, liquified natural gas facilities, refineries, and terminals.

Wasserman earned a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering from the University of Wyoming and joined Coffman in 2017. In his role leading the project management group, he works to strengthen the entire multidiscipline team by providing qualified technical project managers and engineers for larger projects, allowing technical staff to focus on the design details.

Wasserman’s management experience includes projects for upstream and downstream oil and gas clients, from conceptual studies and facility development plans to pre-engineered metal buildings and truckable module design.

“Nicholai and Rob are dynamic leaders who bring a wealth of knowledge to our company and clients,” says Coffman Engineers General Manager Tom Looney. “They make concerted efforts to mentor and train their staff and emphasize leadership, accuracy, and hard work to build lasting relationships.”