KANSAS CITY, Missouri — Burns & McDonnell is adding significant new veteran talent to its team that supports the life sciences industry. The global design-build firm has added four professionals with more than 95 years of combined experience spanning the pharmaceutical, biotech, animal health, medical device and gene therapy sectors.

This expansion positions the firm to better support the sector as a record $90 billion in public and private funding has poured into life sciences companies throughout North America, reflecting a 150% growth rate from 2018 to 2021.

Based in Kansas City, Missouri, and Greenville, South Carolina, the new hires will boost project management capabilities as part of a rapidly expanding national team that supports the firm’s growing roster of life sciences clientele.

“The life sciences industry is exploding at an unprecedented rate, and there is no sign of it slowing down anytime soon,” says Tim Burkhalter, life sciences development director for Burns & McDonnell. “As these sectors continue to grow, there is a rising demand for high-tech, high-capacity new and upgraded manufacturing facilities. In response, we’re adding these game-changing leaders who will strengthen our team and provide our clients with advanced, integrated solutions that help tackle the challenges associated with supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, rapid deployment pressures and mass product distribution.”

The additions to the life sciences team include:

• Ryan Ford — With a more-than 16-year history of working across the architecture, engineering and construction landscape, Ford has managed the design of cutting-edge solutions that maximize project efficiency and quality. His vast project experience includes pharmaceutical packaging, filling lines, warehousing, hazardous storage, potent compounds and animal health facilities, as well as laboratory and higher education facility design. Skilled in project management, strategic facility planning, feasibility studies and building renovation, Ford is a registered architect in several states and is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards.
• Roger Myers — Committed to developing state-of-the-art large-scale projects for chemical, pharmaceutical and manufacturing companies, Myers has experience managing all phases of capital projects from project development, bidding, estimating and justification through design, procurement, installation, construction and startup. By leveraging his more than 25 years of experience in design, project management and construction administration, Myers has delivered innovative solutions and multidiscipline engineering projects for both greenfield and brownfield industrial facilities across the U.S.
• Stephen Petrus — Dedicated to delivering high-quality life sciences and manufacturing projects to clients nationwide, Petrus leads teams that focus on providing engineer-procure-construct (EPC) projects. He has nearly 20 years of international consulting, engineering and construction experience working with companies in industrial, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, technology and federal sectors. Petrus is a licensed professional engineer as well as a certified LEED AP BD+C professional.
• Darin Richardson — With nearly 35 years of experience in project management, lean integrated project delivery (Lean IPD), and design and construction execution for various industrial facilities, he has supported a wide range of projects including those for life sciences, food and beverage, consumer products, specialty chemical and water customers. From starting as a project engineer to his current role as project manager, Richardson has been an invaluable asset within the realm of design, retrofit and validation of industrial and pharmaceutical buildings throughout his career.

Burns & McDonnell specializes in integrated design-build delivery, achieving a history of success for projects completed on time and within budget. The company ranks No. 6 in Manufacturing and among the top contractors in the U.S., according to Engineering News-Record.

About Burns & McDonnell

Burns & McDonnell is a family of companies bringing together an unmatched team of 10,000 engineers, construction and craft professionals, architects, and more to design and build our critical infrastructure. With an integrated construction and design mindset, we offer full-service capabilities. Founded in 1898 and working from more than 60 offices globally, Burns & McDonnell is 100% employee-owned. Learn how we are designed to build.