Team Members

LEADERSHIP TEAM

President/ head of Engineering

Muhammad Shahab, PE, MBA is a seasoned engineering and management professional with extensive experience since 2006 in the oil and gas sector. Earlier in his career, he was involved in the design and construction of movable bridges, gaining strong technical and project management expertise. Over the years, Shahab has worked with local/international EPC contractors and OEMs, leading multidisciplinary engineering teams and delivering complex industrial projects. His work has taken him on numerous domestic and international business assignments, broadening his technical and leadership perspective across global markets.

In addition to his strong leadership in managing multidisciplinary engineering teams, Muhammad Shahab is a Subject Matter Expert (SME) in Static Equipment and Piping Systems. Throughout his tenure with several Engineering, Procurement, and Fabrication (EPF) arrangements, he has successfully engineered, designed, and supported the fabrication of pressure vessels, heat exchangers, and related process equipment. His project portfolio spans emerging technologies such as biomass-to-fuel, plastic-to-fuel conversion, renewable diesel, and hydrogen production facilities.

Mr. Shahab is proficient in multiple industry-standard design and analysis tools, with Aspen EDR and COMPRESS being among his primary proficiencies. He is a Licensed Professional Engineer (PE) in the states of Alaska, California, Iowa, Nevada and Texas, and is authorized to review, stamp, and approve design packages in these jurisdictions, with the ability to obtain additional state licenses as required.

Director of Projects/Electrical/Instrumentation Engineering SME

Dan Johnson is an accomplished Electrical and Instrumentation Engineer and Project Manager with extensive experience managing complex EPC and industrial projects across refining, chemical, renewable, and marine sectors. His expertise combines hands-on electrical design proficiency with strong project management leadership, driving multidisciplinary teams from conceptual engineering through detailed design, procurement, construction, and commissioning. As Project Manager for the Red Rock Biofuels Biomass-to-Liquids Plant, he planned, organized, and directed engineering, procurement, and construction teams to deliver an integrated EPC project—managing safety, schedule, budget, and quality from front-end engineering through project closeout.

In his role at Hargrove Engineers & Constructors, Dan served as Electrical and Instrumentation Engineer V/Project Manager on multiple high-value projects, including ExxonMobil’s $25MM Project Magnolia, Arcanum’s $50MM Project Robin, and Controlled Thermal Resources’ $100MM LithiumCo1 facility. His responsibilities included leading detailed design, developing control architectures, preparing design specifications, and overseeing procurement and installation support. These roles demonstrate his ability to balance technical design depth with leadership over large, cross-functional engineering teams while maintaining rigorous adherence to cost and schedule performance metrics.

Technically, Dan’s electrical expertise spans power distribution, ETAP power modeling, load analysis, fault current studies, breaker coordination, substation design, generator sizing, and field commissioning. He is proficient with industry codes (NEC, NFPA, IEEE, API) and tools such as ETAP, AutoCAD, Navisworks, and MS Project. His strong foundation in electrical engineering complements his project leadership in scope development, cost control, vendor management, and change/risk mitigation—making him a results-driven leader who integrates technical excellence with disciplined project execution.

Process Engineering & Flow Assurance SMEs

Frank Yang, P.E., PhD, MBA, brings specialized expertise in process engineering and flow assurance for onshore and offshore pipeline systems. He has extensive experience in multiphase flow modeling using OLGA and conducting surge/transient analysis with SPS, Pipenet, and AFT Impulse. Frank is also proficient in dynamic process simulation with Aspen HYSYS and UniSim, enabling robust evaluations of complex operating scenarios and system reliability. His skillset ensures optimized pipeline performance, risk mitigation, and reliable design solutions across upstream and midstream projects.

Tariq Al-Omari, Principal Process Engineer, is an accomplished Chemical Process Engineer with over 25 years of global experience across the oil & gas and renewable energy sectors. His career includes key roles at several organizations by leading FEED and EPC projects from concept through commissioning.

Tariq specializes in process simulation, modular refinery design, and renewable fuels, bringing a strong background in HYSYS, ProMax, HTRI, and hydraulic modeling.

Heat Transfer Application SME

Jack Piparia, provides specialized consulting services to HTRI (Heat Transfer Research, Inc.), supporting technical research and testing activities for air-cooled exchangers. His expertise spans across:

1. Troubleshooting & performance analysis
2. User training and software review
3. Advanced design simulation
4. Fouling & maldistribution mitigation strategies

With over 30 years of active association with HTRI, including participation in technical and other committees, Jack is recognized as a Subject Matter Expert in heat transfer applications and air-cooled exchanger technologies.

Exchanger Performance Evaluation

1. Troubleshooting & performance enhancement of heat exchangers
2. Process optimization for improved efficiency and reliability
3. Advanced design solutions with tube inserts, including:
   1. Twisted Tape Turbulators
   2. hiTRAN Thermal Systems
4. Fouling and maldistribution mitigation strategies to extend equipment life and ensure consistent performance

Static Equipment Design/Engineering SME

Sean Cai, PhD, is a seasoned Mechanical Engineer with over 18 years of experience in onshore/offshore oil & gas, modular refineries, waste-to-renewable energy, and EPC project execution. He has developed deep expertise in the design and detailed engineering of ASME pressure vessels, shell-and-tube heat exchangers, air-cooled heat exchangers, storage tanks, and truck loading arms.

Earlier in his career at Plant Process Equipment, Inc., Sean worked as Lead Mechanical Engineer, where he designed and developed pressure vessels, heat exchangers, air coolers, and tanks—from datasheets through 3D models and detailed fabrication drawings. He also provided procurement support, fabrication oversight, and site engineering support.

Sean is recognized as a highly analytical and results-driven engineer, proficient in code calculations, 3D modeling, and detailed fabrication drawings. His unique combination of design engineering, procurement support, and field/fabrication experience makes him a valuable asset and trusted specialist within the EPC industry.

CAD Design/Project Management (Small caps project)/Construction Management

Kelvin Rice has extensive CAD design and drafting experience, supporting mechanical and piping engineering deliverables across oil & gas and industrial projects. His expertise includes:

1. AutoCAD– 2D/3D modeling, drawing development, and revisions for piping, equipment layouts, and structural details.
2. SolidWorks– creation of 3D part and assembly models, design modifications, and detailed fabrication drawings.
3. MicroStation– preparation of plant layouts, general arrangements, and integration of multi-discipline drawings.
4. Skilled in drawing management and standards, including layer control, x-ref usage, and as-built updates.
5. Strong background in supporting engineers with detailed CAD drawings for pressure vessels, heat exchangers, piping systems, and structural steel.
6. Project Management: Experienced in coordinating multi-discipline engineering teams, managing schedules, budgets, and deliverables. Skilled in client interface, preparing progress reports, and ensuring compliance with engineering standards and specifications.
7. Construction Management: Proven ability to oversee field execution, including contractor supervision, quality inspections, constructability reviews, and resolution of site issues. Familiar with commissioning support, punch list closure, and turnover packages.

Pipe Stress and Fire Protection SME

James An, P.E. is a recognized subject matter expert in heat exchanger design and optimization, with particular expertise in using HTRI (Heat Transfer Research, Inc.) software for thermal rating and sizing. He has extensive experience in applying HTRI’s advanced simulation tools to design shell-and-tube, air-cooled, and plate-type exchangers for a wide range of applications in the oil & gas, petrochemical, and energy sectors.

Beyond heat transfer, James also brings licensed expertise in fire protection engineering, enabling him to evaluate and design firewater, sprinkler, and suppression systems in alignment with NFPA standards. This unique combination of process equipment design and fire protection knowledge allows him to provide holistic engineering support — ensuring plant safety while optimizing critical heat transfer equipment.

James technical proficiency also includes piping stress modeling using CAESAR II, covering thermal expansion, dynamic loads, surge, vibration, seismic, and slug force conditions. He has worked extensively on critical piping connected to pumps, compressors, turbines, exchangers, and flare systems, delivering optimized support solutions and flexibility analyses to maintain system integrity.

Rotating Equipment SME

Vishnu Patel is a senior rotating equipment engineer with deep expertise in specifying, sizing, and procuring compressors and pumps for large-scale LNG, petrochemical, and refinery projects, supported by decades of hands-on design, vendor management, and field experience.

Structural Engineering/Analysis SME

Tecky Surawijaya, P.E., is a structural engineer with 25 years of experience in designing both offshore and onshore structures backed by ocean engineering bachelor and master of engineering degrees.

Tecky has more than 10 years of experience in design of offshore and onshore modular units, ranging from truckable skids to mega-modules, covering construction, truck/barge transportation, lifts, commissioning, in-place, and demobilization phases.

He is highly proficient in structural design and analysis per IBC, ASCE, AISC, Classification Societies (ABS and DNV), API and ASME using tools such as Ansys and SACS.