Keynote Session
Monday, June 12, 2023
Time: 10:15 AM – 12:00 Noon
Kevin Duris, P.E.
IBC General Chair
Trumbull Corporation
Kevin Duris is an Executive Estimator for Trumbull Corporation, a prominent industry leader in heavy highway and heavy civil construction services across the mid-Atlantic states and headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA. Kevin has been employed by Trumbull Corporation for over 42 years and counting, holding positions as Project Engineer, Superintendent, Project Manager, Estimator and Executive Estimator. The projects Kevin has been involved with range from $5M to $500M.
Mr. Duris holds a B.S. degree in Mining Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh. Kevin is a registered Civil Professional Engineer in Pennsylvania.
Kevin has been a member in the American Society of Highway Engineers (ASHE) since joining in 1982. He received the President’s Award in 1998. Kevin held numerous positions at the local chapter in Pittsburgh, serving as President in 2000 and Co-Chair of the 2016 National Conference. At the National level, Kevin served on several committees from 2000 to present and served as National President in 2009. Kevin has been a member of Association of Bridge Construction & Design (ABCD) since 2017.
Mr. Duris was a mentor at Carnegie Mellon University to advise students during the Construction Association of Western Pennsylvania (CAWP) Student Estimating Competition from 2017 to 2022. He coached the winning team in 2022. Kevin currently is the Competition Advisor.
Kevin joined the Engineers’ Society of Western Pennsylvania (ESWP) International Bridge Executive Committee in 2017. He previously served as chair of the Construction Committee and Technical Program Committee before assuming the General Chair role this year.
Joseph Hartmann
FHWA
Dr. Joseph (Joey) Hartmann is currently the Director of the FHWA Office of Bridges and Structures and is responsible for the development and implementation of Federal regulations, policy and technical guidance that support bridge and tunnel programs to improve safety and design practice at the national level. His office has statutory, regulatory and delegated authorities for bridge and tunnel design on the Interstate System, implementation and oversight of the National Bridge and Tunnel Inspection Standards, maintaining the National Bridge and Tunnel Inventories and implementation of Federal floodplain regulations. In addition, his office provides leadership and direction in structural, geotechnical and hydraulic engineering aspects of all FHWA programs, and coordinates those activities with FHWA field offices, other Federal agencies, State Departments of Transportation (DOTs), local agencies, academia and with various other partners and customers. Since 2005, Dr. Hartmann has been an Affiliate Professor of Civil Engineering at George Mason University. He holds Bachelor of Science, Master of Science and Doctorate Degrees all in Civil Engineering from the University of Maryland.
Steve Harelson, P.E.
Colorado DOT
Steve Harelson served as the Chief Engineer for the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) from October 2019 – January 2023. He was responsible for integrated transportation program development functions including planning, engineering, design, and construction. He oversaw all project development and delivery functions; control engineering and construction contracts and managed resulting claims and liabilities. He also worked in CDOT’s Region 1 as a Hydraulic, Project, Resident and Program Engineer. He led the team that built the Eastbound Peak Period Shoulder lane in 2015, and the design of a similar project for the Westbound direction. In addition, other significant projects completed or underway include the Veterans Memorial Tunnel expansion, the Eisenhower-Johnson Tunnel Fixed Fire Suppression System, multiple expansion projects on US 285, and the Floyd Hill I-70 expansion project.
Originally from Leadville, Colorado, Steve joined CDOT in 2002 and retired in early 2023, he also has experience in the private sector; he spent 16 years in consulting engineering in Summit County, Lakewood, and Boston. Steve currently works for Dyer Mountain Ltd.
Steve holds a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Colorado State University, a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Colorado and is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Colorado.
Charles H. Thornton
Honorary Chairman, ACE National Board
Charles H. Thornton & Co.
Charles H. Thornton is the Chairman and managing principal of TT Group, Inc., a project management and developer of industrialized building systems and Chairman of Straam, a company offering services aimed at diagnosing, assessing and managing structures. Previously, Charlie was founding principal and Chairman of Thornton-Tomasetti; a 550-person organization providing engineering services, failure analysis, hazard mitigation, and disaster response services.
Dr. Thornton holds a B.S. degree from Manhattan College and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from New York University. Dr. Thornton has received a number of distinguished honors in his profession, including: election to the National Academy of Engineering in 1997; named Honorary Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers in 1999; awarded Engineering News-Record’s Award of Excellence 2001; selected to receive the Hoover Medal for 2002; and selected to receive the Benjamin Franklin Medal in Civil Engineering 2003; elected to membership in the National Academy of Construction in 2005 and elected to Honorary Member of AIA in 2006.
Dr. Thornton is Chairman and Founder of the ACE Mentor Program, a non-profit organization that, each year, offers guidance and training to inner city high schools in architecture, construction, and engineering in cities across the U.S. including; New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Stamford, CT; Chicago, IL; Pittsburgh, PA; and Washington, DC.
Dr. Alison Black
ARTBA
Dr. Alison Premo Black serves as senior vice president and chief economist for ARTBA. She oversees the association’s Transportation Investment Advocacy Center and the Transportation Officials, and the Research and Education Divisions.
Dr. Black manages ARTBA’s economics staff and is responsible for over 100 studies examining national and state transportation funding and investment patterns, including the association’s landmark economic profile of the transportation construction industry, state bridge condition profiles, federal-aid highway dashboard, and annual modal forecast.
She has been interviewed numerous times as an industry expert for national and local print, television and radio, including the NBC TODAY show, the Washington Post, NPR, USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, The Economist and industry publications. She has testified before state legislative committees in Illinois, Kansas, New Jersey, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania.
Dr. Black completed her PhD in Economics at The George Washington University and holds an MA in International Economics and Latin American Studies from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). Dr. Black graduated magna cum laude from Syracuse University with majors in International Relations, Latin American Studies and Spanish. She is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa and Golden Key Honors Societies, and a recipient of the Syracuse Remembrance Scholarship.