As the director of sustainability for Ascend Performance Materials, Chris Johnson is responsible for driving the company’s efforts around environmental impact reductions and setting sustainability targets throughout the business

Prior to becoming the sustainability director in 2019, Mr. Johnson held a number of roles at Ascend and its predecessor over the past 23 years. He has extensive experience in manufacturing and capital projects, including stints as a production supervisor for acrylonitrile, as a turnaround and reliability lead, and as director of capital planning.

He graduated from Texas Tech University with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering.

Jack recently retired from Shell as a Principal Engineer for Utilities, Energy/GHG Reduction, Renewables. Jack has a keen interest in helping companies with the Energy Transition and is currently doing consulting work with Petrogenium and Buehler Consulting. Jack has over 40 years of operations, engineering, and commercial experience with Shell, Union Carbide, and DOW Chemical including the last 15 years with Shell focused on energy efficiency, reliability, and GHG reduction. He has helped Shell identify Energy and GHG reduction opportunities for assets and new capital projects and was most recently supporting Renewable energy projects supporting the Energy Transition. He has broad experience working with Downstream Refining and Chemicals, Upstream, and LNG. Jack has conducted energy assessments at the major Shell North and South America refinery sites and supported JVs and 3rd party Energy Studies. Prior to joining Shell, he had with many roles including Operations management, site Utility optimization, start-up of three ethylene crackers, Process Engineering, Feedstock purchasing, and JV contract negotiations.

Jack is member of AIChE and the Ethylene Producers Committee (EPC) and has chaired the EPC Technology session at the annual EPC conferences. He is active member of the Advisory Board of TIEEP (Texas Industries Energy Efficiency Program). Jack has a Bachelor’s Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Delaware.

Carlos E. Camera is the Senior Manager of Major Capital Projects at SABIC - Americas with nearly 34 years of business development and capital project development experience for the petrochemicals, refining, oil & gas and LNG industries. In his current role, he is responsible for major capital project development from the conceptual phase to the start-up phase including feasibility, economics, sustainability and technology evaluations. Carlos has a very extensive understanding of various process technologies that allows him to develop regional growth with the alignment of the corporate strategy and the business units.

Prior to SABIC – Americas, Carlos was a Director of Major Capital Projects in CHEVRON developing major capital projects in the U.S., Angola, Kazakhstan and Venezuela. He also was part of several project execution leadership teams and steering committees.

Carlos is an active advisory board member of the Construction Industry Institute (CII) where he is part of the leadership team. He also served as the technology vice president of the Gas Processing Association Venezuelan chapter (AVPG) where he chaired the executive board members and led the technical and main conference committees. He is also a founder member of the Project Management Institute (PMI) chapter in Venezuela. He holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Nicholls State University, where he was recently indicted to their Hall of Fame. He also holds an associate degree in Project Management from the Simon Bolivar University.

John Curry is an Engineering Consultant for Energy, Utilities and Combustion Equipment for CITGO Petroleum. For the past 15 years John has developed best practices for Energy Programs to aid in day to day optimization programs at the CITGO Corpus Christ Refinery. These programs have helped the refinery reach and maintain first quartile Energy Intensity Index (EII) rating with Solomon and Associates since 2006 as well as achieve “Energy Star Certification” through the DOE the past few years. John is the corporate Fired Equipment SME and helps the other CITGO refinery sites with process heater troubleshooting, optimization and revamps. He has broad experience working with downstream refining, combustion equipment and process chemicals, upstream natural gas plants and midstream pipelines.

Prior to joining CITGO, John worked for Conoco, Koch Pipeline, John Zink Company, and Betz Process Chemicals with many roles including Operations Engineering, Project Engineering and Management, and Technical Sales. John is a member of American Petroleum Institute Subcommittee for Heat Transfer Equipment developing industry standards and is the current Chairman of API Standard 535, “Burners for Fired Heaters”. He was a previous member of the Texas Industries of the Future Advisory Council out of which evolved the TIEEP Advisory Council. John has a B.S in Petroleum Engineering and an MBA from Texas Tech University.

Dr. Carlos Gamarra is a Senior Research Scientist and Director of Clean Energy at the Houston Advanced Research Center. He also serves as the Director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Southcentral Onsite Energy Technical Assistance Partnership (TAP) where he leads a team promoting the deployment of onsite clean energy technologies in five states across the US.

Carlos began his career designing, constructing, and commissioning industrial plants and optimizing industrial facilities as an energy engineer. He joined HARC in 2017, and his research explores the intersection of energy efficiency, distributed generation, community and industrial microgrids, artificial intelligence, energy planning processes and tools, and clean software development. Since 2019, he has served as the principal investigator on three DOE-funded projects.

Dr. Gamarra is pushing the boundaries of innovation in commercial buildings in his role as the Energy Manager of HARC’s Living Lab, a mid-size commercial office building that is certified LEED Platinum, certified LEED Zero Energy, and holds an Energy Star Rating of 99/100. Different technologies and operation strategies are tested and showcased in this building for other users to adopt. In 2023, Carlos received the Young Professional Award from the Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Alliance for his work on promoting the deployment of distributed generation technologies through the DOE’s Southcentral CHP TAP.

Ian M. Glasgow is the Director of Project Development at International Alliance Group (IAG) with nearly 20 years of process engineering and process integration experience for the refining, syngas, and chemical industries. In his current role, he is responsible for project feasibility analysis, process scope development, and owner’s engineering support executed at IAG. Services include performing process/project feasibility studies, technology evaluation, site evaluation, 3rd party due diligence, project assurance, and owner’s engineering oversight. Ian has a broad understanding of various process technologies that allows him to support clients' business, economic, and operational objectives. Prior to IAG, Ian was a Senior Process Engineer at Wood Group Mustang for over 10 years, and a Research Associate at the Process Integration in the Pulp and Paper Industry Research Chair at Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal.

Ian is an active member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) where he has Chaired the Executive Board Programming Committee, Fuels and Petrochemical Division, National Spring Meeting Topical of Refining, and Southwest Process Technology Conference. He is currently a Director on the Chemical Technology Operating Council. He also is on the Advisory Board for the Lamar University Midstream Research Center. He holds a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati and MS degree in chemical engineering from Auburn University.

Denyse Howard is a process monitoring engineer and the energy coordinator at the Chevron Phillips Port Arthur, Texas site. She graduated from Lamar University in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering. The site energy coordinators focus on finding low-cost energy and GHG reduction opportunities and actively share energy-related information across the different sites.

Before starting her current career with Chevron Phillips, her background over the last 12 years has primarily been in operations and expansion projects with various chemical companies.

Ron Pitman is the Manager of Technology for Energy, Crude, Sulfur, and Utilities in Motiva’s corporate Technical Excellence group.He has over 30 years of experience in technical leadership, process engineering management, operations management, technical support, and plant optimization that also includes 6 years of nuclear power experience in the US Navy Nuclear Program. The majority of his career was in various roles at MOTIVA, ExxonMobil, Valero, and the US Navy.

He graduated from University of Houston with an MBA with a corporate finance emphasis, Mississippi State University with a BS in Chemical Engineering, and Thomas Edison State University (US Navy) with a BS in Nuclear Engineering Technology.

Jim is the retired president of TLV Corporation, Charlotte, NC, formerly responsible for US and Canadian operations. He has 47 years’ steam systems experience, authored more than 60 technical articles predominantly in Chemical Engineering, Hydrocarbon Processing, and Chemical Engineering, provided webinars to over 3,500 attendees globally, been involved with the review and mitigation designs of over 12,000 underperforming steam and condensate system applications. He has presented at the Kister Distillation Symposium, Distillation Experts Conclave, Fractionation Research Inc., AFPM, AIChE, the Ethylene Conference, RefComm, IPEIA, IETC, eChemExpo, AEE World, TIEEP, Texas Industries of the Future, and ASHRAE.

He co-invented the world’s first combination pump/trap and created the “Extended Stall Chart” for draining stalled coils, heat exchangers, and reboilers, the “Drop-down Loop Seal” concept to help mitigate hammer in vertical risers of flashing condensate lines, and the 2-bolt combined steam trap strainer-connector. A past chairman of the Fluid Controls Institute (FCI), a grassroots standards writing organization for ANSI and ISA standards, he has received its 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award.

Jim is currently an Advisory Board member of both the Texas Industrial Efficiency Energy Program (TIEEP) and the TEES Industrial Energy Technology Conference (IETC), an avid tennis and guitar player, and has three energy management certifications. He earned his MBA in Management & Marketing from Wilkes University, his BSBA Accounting, & BSED Mathematics degrees from Kutztown University; all located in Pennsylvania. He is an AEE Certified Energy Manager (CEM), an IEP Certified Professional Energy Manager (PEM), & holds an Energy Management Diploma from NC State University. He is also conversationally fluent in French.

Frank Roberto retired from ExxonMobil in 2021 as a manager in the Offsites and Utilities discipline in the Global Projects Company with over forty four years of service. In this role, he supported new project development, as well as existing operations worldwide, across the company.

Frank joined Exxon Chemical Company in their Florham Park, New Jersey facility in 1976. Through a variety of engineering and technology assignments in the U.S. and Europe, he focused on energy and utility systems, including key roles in the development of several cogeneration projects and the global energy management system. He has supported existing operations of the company's facilities worldwide, been involved in several major project development activities for new facilities and has served as the global energy advisor for ExxonMobil Chemical Company, actively involved in the implementation and sustainment of the company's energy management system.

Frank graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey where he also serves on the Schaefer School of Engineering and Science Advisory Board and is active in the Stevens Alumni Association.

Eddy Trevino is the Director of the Texas State Energy Conservation Office (SECO). Through energy efficiency, SECO helps public entities improve working and learning environments. Energy efficiency assistance is provided through a technical assistance program, emerging clean energy technology program, education and training program, and an energy-efficiency revolving loan program. Mr. Trevino’s professional designations include a registered Professional Engineer and a Certified Energy Manager. He has 35 years of engineering and management experience. While attending the University of Texas at Austin, Mr. Trevino earned the following degrees: Bachelor’s in architectural engineering, an MBA, and a Master in TechnologyCommercialization.

He has more than 30 years of experience in process design for a wide range of projects in the refining and gas processing industry, in domestic and international locations. He has served in many roles, including Process Engineering on Projects, Office Management, Project Management and Engineering Management. He is currently the Department Manager for the Fluor Houston HSE and Process Technology Departments.

He has published and presented many technical articles about process design, project execution, energy transition and decarbonization, and holds patents for a combined hydrotreater process design.

Active in several professional organizations, he is a Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), and has served as Chair Elect, Chair, and Past Chair of the South Texas Section of AIChE. He has also served as a Trustee on the AIChE Foundation Board, and has held several positions with AIChE, including member of the Executive Board Programming Committee, and several positions with the Fuels and Petrochemicals Division, including Chair of the Division, Director, Newsletter Editor, and Treasurer. In 2012 he received the Fuels and Petrochemicals Service Award for distinguished service to the division and industry, and in 2017 received the South Texas Section Distinguished Service Award.

He is a graduate of Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering. He serves on the Texas A&M Chemical Engineering Department Industry Advisory Council, supports the Chemical Engineering Senior Design Class, and has been inducted into the Texas A&M Chemical Engineering Academy of Distinguished Alumni.