Engineers Week 2022 Team Feature: Frank Kohout
Engineers Week is a time to celebrate the work of our talented engineers and to inspire the next generation of innovators. This week we are featuring a few of our Cyclone Energy Group team members and have asked them to share their thoughts about the impact engineers have in our world.
Meet Frank Kohout. Frank joined the Cyclone team in 2015. As the Director of Special Projects, Frank oversees, manages, and provides engineering expertise and project execution for Cyclone’s atypical projects and initiatives that don’t belong in Cyclone’s other established business units. These functions can include design, consulting, RFP management, construction management and final commissioning, and will engage the expertise from Cyclone’s other business units as needed. During his tenured career, Frank has worked in design, held various corporate engineering and global roles within a Fortune 50 company, and joined Cyclone for the purpose of helping to grow the company. His accomplishments include obtaining a BSME from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, being a licensed PE in Illinois (and at one time being a licensed PE in all 50 states), and has been involved in NFPA and ASHRAE technical committees as a voting member in the areas of kitchen ventilation and tall building design. He holds a LEED BD+C accreditation as well as ASHRAE’s Building Commissioning Professional certification (BCxP). He enjoys travel with his family and being outdoors in his free time.
- How do engineers make a difference in our world? I’ve learned during my +30 year career that everything can look good on paper (or in a program), but in reality things can (and typically do) behave quite differently than predicted. So how do engineers make a difference? They use their creativity to develop solutions that bridge the gap between dreams and practicality. IMO, engineering is the art andscience of turning mathematical and scientific theories into reality. We see examples of their work everyday, such as how to make a large building operate seamlessly and more efficiently .
- Your thoughts on the need for engineers, technologists, technicians in our world? As the use of technology in our everyday lives has increased, so have the opportunities to better utilize, manage, and maintain it. And as these opportunities have grown, so have the need for people who understand it. You could equate this need to how a positive feedback loop functions.
- Thoughts on the need to engage students in engineering? The talent needed to maintain the items answered in question #2 is only going to grow. To keep that pipeline of talent flowing, young people need to be informed about the opportunities – both in monetary and in problem solving fulfillment – that a career in engineering can provide. Yes, engineering can be a difficult subject, but having that degree will provide many enjoyable and future looking opportunities.
- Reimagining the ways engineers can turn what seems impossible into the possible.IMO the greatest future opportunities for future engineers are in reducing people’s impact on the planet; an example would be the challenges for the field of decarbonization. The other area is in people’s health, including solving problems related to existing medical conditions, and working towards solutions for the prevention of illness.
