Materials Engineering Expert Witnesses: 9

Dr. David A. Rockstraw, PE, is a distinguished figure in the fields of Chemical Engineering and Intellectual Property, with an impressive blend of academic and professional credentials. He has over 30 of years of experience in chemical processing and phenomena in industry, national labs, academia, and private consulting.

Dr. Rockstraw is the former Robert Davis Distinguished Professor and Academic Department Head of Chemical Engineering, Interim Academic Department Head of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering and Creator and Director of Brewery Engineering at New Mexico State University, with over a decade of experience in the chemical process industry and national labs. 

Litigation Support - Dr. Rockstraw has supported NSF grants as a co-PI and consultant, testified in trials, arbitrations, and depositions on dozens of occasions, and has the experience of over 80 expert witness engagements and over 30 technical consultant engagements, the majority involving patent infringement, trade secret theft, and patent validity.  Work on these cases has frequently required Rockstraw to perform laboratory research or direct full-scale plant tests to collect the evidence needed to support a client’s position. He is a clear communicator, skilled educator, having experience in a wide range of chemical manufacture processes. Dr. Rockstraw is licensed in TX, NM, and CA.

Areas of Expertise:

Chemical Engineering Materials Engineering Chemical Plants Process Analysis / Forensics Chemical-related Intellectual property & Trade Secrets Explosions / Fires Chemical Safety /Hygiene Matters (Chemical and Materials Phenomena) Water

Petrochemicals Pharmaceuticals Agricultural Chemicals Fluorochemicals; Monomers, Polymers and Plastics Plutonium Processing Membrane / Electro Membrane Processes Biofuels Processed Foods

Paul Eason is a Licensed Professional Engineer, Nationally Certified Fire & Explosion Investigator and Forensic Consultant. His expertise comes from a strong background in industry and academia. In addition to his consulting practice, he is a professor in the School of Engineering at the University of North Florida, and maintains a graduate faculty appointment in the Materials Science and Engineering Program at the University of Florida. 

Dr. Eason has testified in numerous trials and depositions in the following practice areas: 

Product Design & Manufacturing Analysis - Metallurgy & Materials - Fire & Explosions - Industrial Accidents 

Areas of Expertise: Product Liability and Materials Failure Analysis, Product Defect & Safety Issues including: Metals, Plastics, Glass, Ceramics, Corrosion, Fatigue, Overload & Material Selection 

Fire and Explosion Analysis including: cause and origin determination, product related fire causation, industrial process accidents, dust explosions, welding / brazing accidents

Dr. David W. Riley is an Extrusion Analysis & Plastics Rheological Consultant. Dr. Riley has spent over nineteen years as a consultant in the field of Plastic Processing. He has over forty years of experience in developing Polymer Defect Technology and fifteen years in developing the field of Plastic and Polymer coefficient of friction related to the feed section of the extruder.

Areas of Expertise:

• Expert Witness
• Analytical Instrumentation Adaptation to Processing Equipment
• Friction Analysis
• Melt Rheology
• Extrusion Equipment: Design & Analysis of Production
• Telecommunication Cables and Insulation
• Power Cables and Testing XLDPE
• All phases of PVC Compounding & Extrusion
• Thermal Stability of Polymers
• Surface Chemistry, Metals & Polymers

Derek B. Gilboe, PE, a Metallurgical Engineer with over 30 years of experience, focuses on asset integrity using knowledge of metallurgy, materials, and processes in multiple industries on four continents in environments from arctic to desert in onshore and offshore conditions. He brings extensive knowledge in standards and regulations relating to Oil and Gas Piping and Pipelines.

Mr. Gilboe has experience with operators, service providers, and consultants on projects ranging from $100k to over $5 billion. His specialty has been midstream and piping, focusing on forensic engineering, integrity engineering, and failure investigations.

Litigation Support - Mr. Gilboe provide analysis and opinions for legal cases and is open to any client requiring expert witness services for a legal case or an organization requiring fractional engineering services. He can explain complex engineering concepts, principles, methods, and standards in a clear and understandable way. He analyzes, evaluates, and verifies engineering evidence, such as documents, drawings, calculations, tests, experiments, simulations, or models and provides independent and objective opinions on the engineering aspects of a case, such as causation, liability, damages, or remedies.

Areas of Expertise:

Energy Oil and Gas Pipelines (Gathering, Transmission, and Distribution) Downstream (Refining, Gas Processing, Storage, and Chemicals) Onshore, offshore, desert and arctic conditions Forensic Engineering Metallurgical Engineering Welding Engineering

Design Errors Product Failures Construction Defects Manufacturing Defects Failure Investigations Commerical disputes involving technical matters Energy and construction site safety

Expert Background: Dr. Thomas L. Read is the Principal and CEO at A. Read Consulting, LLC. He received his PhD. from Stanford University in 1972 and has over 25 years of manufacturing experience in electronics, metallurgy, factory safety, failure analysis, glass fracture, glass failure and bottle failure. As a member of the electronics industry, he has earned process patents and has an extensive background in manufacturing techniques.

In parallel, Dr. Read has spent over twenty five years as a consultant to attorneys and engineers. He has given more than 100 depositions and has appeared in court numerous times.

Company Profile: Read Consulting, LLC is a full service laboratory providing services in the following areas:

Failure Analysis; Factory Safety and Personal Injury (including machine guards and manufacturing safety)

Glass Failure Analysis - Glass Fracture, Glass Failures and Bottle Failure

Metal and Ceramic Failure

Grinding Wheel Failures

Intellectual Property and Patent Disputes

Product Liability and Product Quality

Manufacturing Disagreements (such as Intellectual Property, Failed equipment and Contract Disputes)

Reverse Engineering

Since 1988, Real-World Forensic Engineering, LLC ("RWFE") has provided engineering services to industries and government labs, as well as litigation support to both plaintiff and defense attorneys practicing in many areas.

RWFE Areas of Expertise Include:

Components & Machinery Metallurgy & Corrosion Dynamics of Impact & Collisions Friction Analysis / Slips, Trips and Falls Intellectual Property & Patent Review Accident Reconstruction / Animation Computer Aided Design Education & Training

Electrocution & Switch Malfunction Grounding & Lightning Protection Lightning Impulse Testing Products and Premises Liability & Safety High-Voltage & Current Power Systems Bridge Design and Safety Fire & Explosion Cause and Origin And Much More...

At RWFE, we proudly distinguish ourselves by our Four C's:

CREDENTIALS. COMPETENCE. CREDIBILITY. COMMUNICATION.

Credentials:	B.S., M.S., M.Eng., M.B.A., J.D., and Ph.D. Degrees Licensed Professional Engineers in Mechanical, Electrical, and Civil Engineering Tenured University Professors and Professionals NAFI Certified Fire and Explosion Investigators (CFEI) Licensed Master Electricians
Competence:	Over 80 Combined Years of Experience in Engineering R&D, Industry, Academia, Consulting, and Expert Witness Litigation Support Over 120 Combined Deposition and Court Testimonies
Credibility:	Internationally Recognized in Our Areas of Expertise More Than $19 Million in Peer-reviewed and Funded Research Grants Over 200 Combined Scientific Publications and Journal Articles
Communication:	Over 20 Different Undergraduate and Graduate-level University Courses Over 30 Invited Short Courses, Talks, and Lectures

Design Evaluation – Accident Investigation – Intellectual Property - Failure Analysis – Fire Cause & Origin – Component Testing - Computer Aided Drafting – Accident Animation - Expert Witness & Litigation Support

www.ExpertEngineering.com

Consultants. Experts. Innovators.™

Operating from more than 110+ offices around the globe, we provide services to corporations, insurance companies, law firms, and government agencies.

Rimkus experts specialize in forensic consulting and construction dispute resolution in the hospitality, retail, and restaurant; industrial; marine; oil and gas; power and renewable energy; transportation; and pharmaceuticals industries.

Rimkus experts solve complex challenges wherever in the world they occur. We are dedicated to serving our clients so they can achieve timely resolution of accidents, claims, and legal disputes.

Our highly diversified, global team of engineers, scientists, architects, and technical specialists systematically evaluates all available evidence, applies scientific principles, specialized knowledge and, when appropriate, utilizes the latest analytical technologies to arrive at scientifically sound opinions and solutions for our clients.

Rimkus Global Services Overview

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Architecture Biomedical Engineering Building Consulting Building Surveying Civil and Structural Engineering Construction Claims and Disputes Digital Forensics Environmental Health Science Fire and Explosion Science Geotechnical Engineering Human Factors

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Rimkus operates from 110+ offices worldwide, with headquarters in the following cities.

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Dr. Shakir Shatnawi, PhD, PE, is a nationally and internationally recognized expert in the Transportation Engineering industry. Shakir has a Ph.D. in Transportation Engineering. He has over 30 years of practical and extensive engineering and transportation expertise covering industry and public agencies including FHWA and the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). 

Shakir is currently the president of Shatec Engineering Consultants. He taught highway engineering, traffic engineering and transportation engineering and pavement design at California State University. Dr. Shatnawi served as a principal investigator on multi-million dollar transportation projects. He held various positions at Caltrans including a Senior Transportation Engineer, a Supervising Transportation Engineer and a Division Chief.

 Dr. Shatnawi's education and experience demonstrates a wealth of engineering knowledge encompassing highway design, traffic engineering, pavement design, geotechnical engineering, materials and construction . As a recipient of many acknowledgements from the government, Dr. Shatnawi has an impeccable reputation within the industry for his significant professional contributions. As an expert orator, he frequently shares his knowledge at major conferences around the world. Dr. Shatnawi provides expert witness services in the following areas:

Traffic Engineering Highway Design Standards Highway Specifications / Guidelines Public Agency Policies / Practices Pavement Design / Materials Construction defects Highway Geometric Design Drainage Asphalt Concrete Highway Repairs / Maintenance

Construction Quality Control / Quality Assurance Construction Claims Surface Conditions - Friction, Skid Resistance Road Defects Traffic Safety Highway Safety Traffic Control Devices / MUTCD Sight Distance Requirements Roadside Hazards ADA Requirements Code Violations

View Dr. Shatnawi's Consulting Profile.

Thomas W. Caldwell, PE, has over 40 years of experience in Materials Research and Development, Process and Product Development, and Manufacturing Operations in the Precision Cast and Machined Products industry.

Mr. Caldwell has designed and manufactured components for consumer and industrial products, including safety-critical applications such as aircraft landing gear brakes, seat belt lockup devices, windshield wiper, and window lift motor systems. He has experience creating and guiding technology development and manufacturing partnerships in Europe and Asia, licensing and selling intellectual property and creating supply chains in China.

Mr. Caldwell has lectured in the USA, Germany, Switzerland, and India on manufacturing premium quality metal products and manufacturing processes, and was a technical paper peer reviewer for 20 years for the Society of Automotive Engineers. A United States patent holder, he has published peer reviewed research in electrochemistry and materials processing, and has written and spoken numerous times on the subject of Materials Selection.

Litigation Support - Thomas W. Caldwell, PE, is a testifying and consulting expert for both plaintiff and defense counsel. His cases involve product failure for ferrous and non-ferrous alloy products such as hand tools, recreational and exercise equipment, fire fighting apparatus, rotating industrial machinery, construction hardware, piping, and lighting fixtures. Mr. Caldwell utilizes destructive and non-destructive methods for insuring product integrity.

Areas of Expertise:

Design Engineering Materials Failure Analysis Materials Engineering Mechanical Engineering Metallurgy Power Tools Products Liability Design Defects

Manufacturing Defects Fitness for Use Equipment Operation and Maintenance Accident Reconstruction Material Selection Manufacturing Process Design and Scale Up Safety Component Product Quality Control Safety Component Quality Systems Management

View Thomas A. Caldwell's Consulting Profile.