ALBUS & ASSOCIATES - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Technical Services Manager

Chris Wright, Technical Services Manager - Chris is responsible for many of Albus & Associates' field responsibilities. He schedules inspections with clients and technicians, as well as… Read More Chris is responsible for many of Albus & Associates' field responsibilities. He schedules inspections with clients and technicians, as well as with geologist/engineering and special inspectors and deputies. Daily, Chris reviews reports, plans, timecards, and test data, and is the Assistant Radiation Officer at AAI. You can also find Chris performing fieldwork, such as density testing of soil, aggregate base and asphalt, footing inspections, and sampling of field materials. Chris studied natural sciences and math at Lake Tahoe Community College and has taken additional classes at various Cal State campuses. He maintains Hazardous Operations and ACI certifications. In a previous life, Chris taught skiing and snowboarding and was in the ski patrol at Heavenly Valley Resort in Lake Tahoe; additionally, he was involved in wildland firefighting as an EMT. He previously served as the caretaker of a lakeside estate, performing a variety of tasks and fulfilling odd requests for an eccentric, wealthy individual. The pleasant environment and working closely with the AAI staff is what Chris likes most about his job, as well as the recognition of hard work done well by upper management. In his spare time, Chris travels to Hawaii, Costa Rica, Panama, Bahamas for surfing and scuba diving, and pursues skiing and snowboarding trips to resorts in Utah, California, and Colorado. Though sushi is his go-to favorite, Mexican food is a must have staple!

Job Titles:

• Project Engineer
• Project Manager

Daniel Albus, Project Engineer - Danny is a Project Engineer with AAI and serves in a variety of roles at the company including Project Manager, Lab… Read More

Dan performs field observations and inspections for rough grading projects and occasionally assists with drilling for investigation projects...

Job Titles:

• Founder
• President
• Principal Engineer

David E. Albus President, Principal Engineer - Dave is a founder of Albus & Associates and has over 38 years of experience in a variety of geotechnical investigations… Read More Value engineering is often paid lip service by firms in our industry. We take this effort seriously by examining every element of a project and applying this concept to improve performance, reliability, quality, safety, and life-cycle costs, from the start and through to the finish, not as an afterthought! This saves time and effort up front, minimizing and typically eliminating the need to "re-do" proposals and contracts to meet your budget constraints. Our combination of commitment and unvarnished persistence to ensure the best solutions - based on supported, dependable engineering principles - is the heart of the Albus difference. Dave is a founder of Albus & Associates and has over 38 years of experience in a variety of geotechnical investigations and earthwork construction projects that have included large-scale mass grading, water/waste water facilities and conveyance, mid-rise structures, residential and commercial structures, transportation corridors, golf courses and entertainment facilities, distress investigations, and small earth dams. He has dealt with complex geotechnical conditions such as extensive peat beds, hydraulic fills, tie-back and cantilever shoring systems, surcharge and sand drain systems, landslides, liquefaction mitigation, and slope stabilization. Dave regularly provides guidance on geotechnical parameters for design of shallow and deep foundations, retaining walls, shoring, pavements, trenched and bored underground utilities, and remedial and general earthwork construction. He is regularly sought after for his opinions related to causes of distress, methods of mitigation and repair, and offers expert testimony for litigation matters. Dave's also been very active in the testing and evaluation of infiltration systems for storm water quality management since 2006 and has overseen hundreds of investigations for design of WQMP throughout southern California. He has given numerous presentations to civil and geotechnical engineers regarding the proper methods to perform infiltration testing and data analysis for design. He has set the gold standard for design of drywells and drywell systems. Dave earned his B.S. in Civil Engineering, with a major in Geotechnical Engineering from The Ohio State University. He has also taken a variety of short courses in the areas of slope design fundamentals and in the evaluation and mitigation of seismic hazards from universities around the U.S.

Job Titles:

• Administrative Assistant
• Office Manager

Kimberly Keller, Administrative Assistant/Office Manager - Kim is Albus & Associates' part-time Administrative Assistant and Office Manager and is responsible for a variety of duties, including office… Read More Kim is Albus & Associates' part-time Administrative Assistant and Office Manager and is responsible for a variety of duties, including office operations, accounts payable, event planning, and human resource functions. Her career includes positions in a host of work environments including Capital Group, Avery Dennison, Squaresoft and the Norton Simon Museum. Her favorite part of her work at AAI is planning events from start to finish. Kim holds multiple degrees, including an MA in psychology from Philips Graduate Institute, an MBA in finance from Cal Poly Pomona, and a BS in finance, real estate & law, also from Cal Poly Pomona. When she's not running the office like a well-oiled machine, Kim spends her time reading, enjoying ballet, and taking care of her two daughters.

Job Titles:

• Chief Engineering
• Chief Engineering Geologist

Mark Houser, Chief Engineering Geologist - Mark's primary role at Albus & Associates is overseeing the geology team and reviewing their work. Additionally, Mark performs.... Read More Mark's primary role at Albus & Associates is overseeing the geology team and reviewing their work. Additionally, Mark performs site reconnaissance, subsurface exploration, geologic mapping, and fault rupture investigations for the preparation of geologic and soils engineering reports, particularly for site flat land and hillside development and/or improvement. He also conducts forensic investigations of building foundation distress from ground movement, including natural soil processes and landslides. Mark also can be found performing site observations during construction, including soil removals and bottom excavations, shallow and deepened foundation excavations, and both temporary and permanent cut slopes. Mark earned his BS in Geology at California State University of Los Angeles; however, he began studying geology at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, where he lived for two years. Prior to becoming Chief Geologist for Albus and Associates, Mark was the owner of Houser Geologic, LLC, which specialized in hillside residential projects performing similar tasks as described above. In addition to the wonderful staff at Albus and Associates, Mark enjoys working with and developing respectful relationships with our clients. Working on a wide variety of projects, including those that are challenging and complex, is one of his favorite parts of his job. Mark is married to his wonderful wife Christina; their daughter, Helene, is 13 years old and will begin high school in the fall of 2024. His family enjoys skiing, camping and spending time with their extended family. Mark's father's work as an environmental engineer has also allowed him to travel to many countries throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East. In his spare time, Mark is an avid golfer and fisherman.

Job Titles:

• Project Engineer
• Project Engineer - Mark 's Key Duties at Albus & Associates Include Geotechnical Investigations, Preparing Geotechnical Reports, and Designing and Analyzing. Read More

Mark Principe, Project Engineer - Mark's key duties at Albus & Associates include geotechnical investigations, preparing geotechnical reports, and designing and analyzing... Mark's key duties at Albus & Associates include geotechnical investigations, preparing geotechnical reports, and designing and analyzing foundations and retaining structures. Mark also performs soil observations and testing. Mark obtained his B.S. in Civil Engineering, and M.S. in Civil Engineering with an emphasis on geotechnical engineering at California State University, Fullerton. He is an Eisenhower Transportation Fellow, which promotes innovative change in the fields of infrastructure. Mark maintains certifications in hazardous waste operations and emergency response and in OSHA 40. The variety of projects, in particular their broad complexity and scope, is what Mark enjoys most about working at AAI. He also likes the seamless integration between the field and the office support, which allows him to see the overall picture of our work and support for our clients. Mark and his wife have one daughter and share their home with their dog, Simba. In his spare time, he enjoys woodworking, eating tacos, and watching the Lakers… but not all at the same time!

Job Titles:

• Business Director
• Business Director - Miriam Oversees Several Functions at Albus & Associates, Including Contract Management, Human Resources, Customer Relations, Marketing. Read More

Miriam G Zacharias, Business Director - Miriam oversees several functions at Albus & Associates, including contract management, human resources, customer relations, marketing... Miriam oversees several functions at Albus & Associates, including contract management, human resources, customer relations, marketing and business development, and the overall administration of AAI's business. She devotes much of her time to finding efficiencies and facilitating the flow of operations to free up engineering and other technical resources to perform their work as effortlessly as possible. Miriam earned her BS and MS in Human Ecology and Consumer Sciences at the Ohio State University and pursued her PhD in Holistic Nutrition from Clayton College of Natural Health later in life just for fun. She has experience at Microsoft Corporation as Director of Business Operations and as a sales executive, as well as running a consultancy firm to guide scores of smaller firms in business management and development. Miriam has published two books and is working on a third that will hopefully see the light of day. In her spare time, Miriam can be found hiking the beaches, cycling the trails, and exploring new ways to get fit while having fun. She adores cooking and seeking out new restaurants with fun vibes and fabulous fare. Music is a key part of her DNA, having spent 12 years of classical piano study, and she regularly spends evenings listening to tunes in her living room, with a bourbon in hand and something good in the oven for dinner.

Job Titles:

• Accountant

Monica Moore, Accountant - Monica is AAI's Accountant and handles the company's financial reporting, accounting, HR generalist duties, insurance, and... Read More Monica is AAI's Accountant and handles the company's financial reporting, accounting, HR generalist duties, insurance, and more. She is instrumental in making sure that t's are crossed, and i's are dotted when it comes to bringing on new staff, customers, and vendors and making sure all licenses are in place for AAI's work to proceed without a hitch. Monica attained her Bachelor of Science in Accountancy at California State University, Northridge. She particularly enjoys working in AAI's family-run environment and finds the management and staff great to work with. An avid UCLA sports fan, Monica loves to travel and considers herself a foodie. In her off-hours, she spends time going to the movies and reading suspense thrillers and mystery novels.

Job Titles:

• Associate
• Engineer

Ron DeRuiter, Associate Engineer - Ron has had a variety of responsibilities at Albus & Associates (AAI), including lab testing, field investigations involving drill and sampling,… Read More Ron has had a variety of responsibilities at Albus & Associates (AAI), including lab testing, field investigations involving drill and sampling, onsite investigations of distressed structures, preparing construction plan sets for segmental retaining walls, preparing most AutoCAD exhibits and plans for our projects, and preparing final reports for rough and post grading construction services. He has been AAI's radiation safety officer since acquiring our radioactive materials license to possess and maintain nuclear soil testing gauges. Ron studied math, geology, oceanography, landscape architecture and IT at several universities, and has been with Albus & Associates since day one, 25 years ago. Prior to AAI, he held engineering roles in geotechnical companies Leighton and Associates, Schafer Dixon/Huntingdon International and Petra Geotechnical. Ron grew up working on dairy farms in the California Central Valley, then joined the Navy, serving as a sonar technician. What he enjoys most about working at AAI is the variety of projects and working in close contact with our diverse in-house talent to create unique solutions to benefit our customers. He's also a fan of the company's generous supplies of snacks, beverages, and allowances for personal time off. When not working, Ron enjoys rockhounding, mostly in the Mojave Desert, and is very active in his church. He has been married for over 41 years and has two daughters and 3 grandchildren, whom he adores.