AKF Group's new partners

AKF Group congratulates the following professionals on their advancement to partners of the firm: Dennis Froeder / New York, NY Dennis brings over 22 years of hands-on electrical field experience to his leadership role in commissioning for a broad range of project types, particularly those in the financial services and critical systems sectors. He has also built a highly accomplished team of experts, who share his commitment to assuring that all systems and components of a building are designed, installed, tested, operated, and maintained according to the client's operational requirements and business goals. Dennis is often called upon to integrate his commissioning expertise with the project's design and analysis and testing services. Some of these projects include: IAC, New York, NY; Deutsche Bank, New York, NY; and Federal Reserve Commissioning, New York, NY. George McKenzie, LEED AP / Boston, MA George has over 15 years experience in mechanical building design and consulting services on a broad range of projects for higher education, commercial and healthcare clients. He leads both the Sustainable Design and Building Information Management (BIM) Groups within the Boston office and is a proponent of the use of BIM during the project design phase. He is highly regarded by both clients and colleagues for his leadership skills and his steadfast commitment to serving as his clients' advocate throughout the life of a project; that dedication has resulted in many long-term client relationships such as: Harvard Business School, Allston, MA; Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Buzzards Bay, MA; and Northwestern University, Boston, MA. Paul Raschilla, EBCP, CBCP, CMVP, CSDP, LEED AP / New York, NY Paul has over 20 years of field testing and commissioning management experience honed through direct involvement in operations, facilities management, construction management, R&D, global manufacturing and military sectors. He focuses primarily on healthcare, educational research, critical systems and green initiative projects. He is sought after by clients based on his well-deserved reputation and he shares his expertise with staff through in-house training seminars and with colleagues through his many speaking engagements at industry conferences. His client list includes: New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY; Columbia University, New York, NY; and NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY. David Thornhill / New York, NY David is the firm's CFO, responsible for Finance, Treasury, HR, MIS, and Legal. He exercises a consistent, fair and pragmatic approach to management, holding people accountable, yet allowing them the flexibility to function on their own. Since joining AKF five years ago, he has made significant upgrades to the quality of services the firm receives and he is continually looking for ways to improve. In collaboration with the partners, he takes a strategic leadership role in long term planning to assure the firm's financial success for many years to come. Susannah Zweighaft, LEED® AP, PLDA, CLEP, LC / New York, NY Suzannah directs AKF's lighting studio and has over 30 years of lighting design experience on over 750 projects. She is a Certified Lighting Professional Consultant and an accredited Lighting Efficiency Professional and was a 2012 LUMEN Award judge in New York City. Her experience includes healthcare, institutional, corporate, commercial, museum, educational, public space, residential, monument, and sports facilities. She has designed the lighting for multiple LEED accredited facilities, combining aesthetics, energy efficiency, and cost effective design solutions, including: Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Boston, MA; and Monument Struggle Against World terrorism, Bayonne, NJ.