PlantSuccess 2009 Gulf Coast
Best Practices Driving Plant Performance
Hilton Houston NASA Clear Lake
Conference: April 16, 2009

Energy has become a fundamental topic in any comprehensive discussion of national security. Decisions relative to assured sources of energy as well as the distribution, transportation, processing and consumption of energy have significant impact upon the economy, the environment and the security of the United States. It is time for the leadership of the country (government, private industry, academia, etc.) to work together to develop a path forward and insure the continued security and prosperity of our nation.

 

Ken Eickmann is a Senior Research Fellow for the Energy Institute at the University of Texas. He recently chaired three committees for the National Academy of Sciences and the National Research Council focused on how to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign sources of fuel. He has also served as the Director of the Construction Industry Institute (CII), a national forum for construction research, where he led a collaborative effort by engineering and construction owners, contractors, and academia to improve one of the nation's largest industries. As CII Director, he guided more than 700 individuals from the Institute's 100 member companies in research projects involving more than 30 of the nation's top universities.

Prior to joining CII, Eickmann (Lt. Gen., USAF, Retired) completed a distinguished and highly decorated 31-year career in the U.S. Air Force. His last assignment on active duty was Commander, Aeronautical Systems Center, Wright-Patterson AFB, where he led the nation's largest center of excellence for research, development, and acquisition of aircraft, aeronautical equipment, and munitions. In that capacity he managed more than 2,800 programs, executed an annual budget of more than $11 billion, and employed a work force of approximately 12,000 at 35 locations worldwide.

Eickmann is a Registered Professional Engineer and a Certified Acquisition Professional in Acquisition Logistics, Program Management and Systems Planning, Research, Development, and Engineering. He also is a recognized expert in propulsion technology and has published several papers in technical journals in the U.S. and overseas. Eickmann also is a member of the faculty at UT Austin. He holds a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from UT Austin, a master's degree in Systems Engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology, and is a graduate of both the University of Michigan School of Business and the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.

Eickmann has received many awards, including the Distinguished Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster. The State of Oklahoma declared July 11, 1995, as "General Ken Eickmann Day" in recognition of his leadership and assistance to Federal and state rescue and recovery efforts following the April 19, 1995, bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City. He was presented with the Order of the Sword by the enlisted men and women of the U.S. Air Force in 1998. In 1999, he was honored as a Distinguished Graduate of The University of Texas at Austin College of Engineering. Eickmann currently serves on the UT Austin ROTC Faculty Advisory Committee and is Vice Chairman for the State of Texas Engineers Task Force on Homeland Security.

He and his wife, Charlene, both native Texans, have three grown children and six grandchildren.