1. John M. Cefola PMP
4087 E. Rustler Way
Gilbert, AZ 85297
johnmarathon@yahoo.com
EXPERIENCE:
• 20+ years of project management experience with global projects up to $100 million
• Engineering management; including design, process, project, & construction engineering
• 10+ years experience managing maintenance; including all elements OSHA PSM, managing
maintenance and shop personnel, coordinating production maintenance & upgrade outages
• Regularly reported to boards of directors, presidents and department/area managers. I have honed all
interpersonal and presentation skills to effectively work with all organization levels
• Have worked in a wide variety of environments and production processes, and am familiar with
common processing equipment.
Director of Engineering Heliae Development 1/2015 – Present
• Directed design and process engineering, project management, instrumentation and controls, and
maintenance personnel
• Responsible for P&L for capital and various department budgets
• In charge of reusable reactor production – a vital component in all other processes
• Oversaw design and equipment supply for the company’s first joint venture; a full-scale production
plant in Japan.
Manager of Capital Projects Heliae Development 3/2013 – 1/2015
• Managed all aspects of building the company’s first 10-acre production facility.
• Responsible for all capital projects associated with algae production in a fast paced and demanding
start-up company.
• Direct reports include Project Managers, Project Engineers and Project Controls personnel
• Responsible for transitioning technology from the laboratory, through pilot plant testing, to full
production facilities
Senior Project Manager Calgon Carbon Corporation 2/2011-2/2013
• Project Manager for the green field construction of a $25 million new carbon reactivation plant in the
Phoenix, AZ area. Responsible for all aspects of project from site selection, permitting, design,
procurement, installation, commissioning and start-up. Regular strategic and status related reports to
upper management, extensive coordination with process and environmental engineering, plant
operations, sales, internal and external customers, all public utilities, and community leaders and
members
Principal Project Engineer Westinghouse 6/2009 – 2/2011
Westinghouse Electric was building twelve new nuclear reactor complexes throughout the world. These
state-of-the-art AP1000 plants had never been built before. I managed many aspects of multi-billion
dollar, multi-year projects, including:
• Identifying and addressing all constructability issues between the design and the actual field conditions
by applying my extensive knowledge of both process plant design & construction
2. • Providing project cost and schedule estimates and supports for facilities being constructed and
proposed new facilities in India, UK, Czech Republic, Brazil and elsewhere
• Authoring licensing documents required by the NEC for acquiring plant operating licenses
• Compressed the 48-month facility construction schedule to 36 months by identifying opportunities and
alternate approaches as I have done in prior positions in my career.
Engineering Manager (1/2005 – 1/2009) II-VI, Inc. 1/2005 – 1/2009
II-VI Inc. is the world leader in laser optics manufacturing, with the majority of their revenues realized
from the sale of laser crystals-based products. The MPZ Division produces all laser crystals for the
company; making MPZ the largest and most important II-VI division - essentially a $30 million
chemical plant within a $250 million company. As the Engineering Manager in MPZ, I had total
responsibility for all capital projects, process improvement initiatives and maintenance during the largest
expansion and yield improvement period in corporate history.
• Responsible for $5 million/year capital and $1 million/year wage budgets. Had complete
responsibility for project development and financial justification; budgeting; technical specifications,
bidding, and contract awarding and negotiations; managing project scope changes, environmental and
building permitting, demolition, construction, procedure writing and training, PSM compliance,
commissioning, start-up and project closing.
• Expanded staff of multidisciplinary engineers from three to ten, added two supervisor positions, and
grew the hourly workforce from four to ten employees.
• Increased in crystal growth yields from 50% to above 70% and improved gas production efficiency
from 87% to 92% by fostering an environment that encouraged innovation and change; and carefully
implementing process changes, standardizing procedures, and focused on continuous improvement.
• Responsible for OSHA Process Safety Management (PSM) compliance governing the highly
hazardous materials. Assured adherence to all applicable codes and regulations and working closely
with EPA, PADEP, local government agencies, and utilities and emergency services.
• Implemented a major process control system upgrade from PC based controls to state-of-the-art PLC
controls and network interfacing / data collection, resulting in a much more stable process and vital
process data attainment for use by the process engineers and operators
• Functioned as interim production manager in addition to my engineering management responsibilities.
I was intimately aware of and responsible for all P&L factors, production functions, and interaction
with in-house and outside customers.
• Extensively managed outside engineering firms, contractors, and technical specialists in support of
projects and production
Maintenance Engineer & Project Manager (3/2001 – 12/2004)
Managed the Maintenance Department comprised of electrical and mechanical technicians and three
machine shop personnel. Responsible for maintaining and maximizing the up-time of all production and
production support equipment.
3. • Fulfilled all aspects of OSHA PSM regulatory compliance, including computer-based management
of change and mechanical integrity data management.
• Coordinated contractor personnel in support of maintenance for highly technical or large-scale repair
and installation work.
• Replaced antiquated and unreliable emergency power system, coupled with the upgrade of the entire
production power distribution system. Included installation of an innovative generator system able
to transfer in under ten seconds while providing N+1 redundancy.
• Developed and implemented a custom CVD furnace cooling system with three levels of redundancy
to insure the safety of personnel and the surrounding community by minimizing the possibility of a
breach due to process overheating.
Project Manager Danieli Corporation 4/1997 - 3/2001
Danieli Corporation is one of the world’s largest OEM of steel making equipment and processing
facilities. As a project manager, I gained valuable international business experience, learned the inner
workings of equipment engineering, manufacturing and installation
• Managed multiple and concurrent international projects to design and supply a broad range of
production equipment and manufacturing facilities to steel companies in North and South America,
Europe, and Asia. The total value of these projects is in excess of $50 million.
• Managed or co-managed concurrent projects to supply two complete galvanizing lines to customers in
North and South America. Total combined contract values in excess of $50 million.
• Selected by senior management to implement the corporate initiative to consolidate all US operations
into one facility. Responsible for site research/selection, workspace construction, and coordinating
employee and equipment relocation. I also evaluated cost savings, synergies in corporate structure and
layout, information/communication systems, business continuity, and infrastructure. Relocation
achieved under budget and ahead of the one-year schedule.
Project / Department Manager US Steel 1/1989 - 3/1997
• Directed a $26 million Coke Oven Gas System modernization project. Scope included a new gas
mixing facility, replacing 34,000 feet of 54” pipe, and installing a 5,000 foot long line across the
Mon River to ET Works. Completed 12 months ahead of the 30-month schedule and $2.6 million
under budget. Annual cost savings in excess of $5 million.
• Co-managed the $35 million Primary Cooler Modernization Project. The scope included the
replacement of the inefficient indirect gas cooling heat exchangers with modern, environmentally
sound, and efficient direct heat exchanger technology. The benefits derived included improvements
to process efficiency, reduced employee benzene exposure, and compliance with EPA regulations.
• Project Team member on $250 million joint venture installation of the world’s first Continuous
Annealing & Tempering line. Performed multiple construction and commissioning functions with
engineers from Pohang Iron and Steel Corporation of South Korea and Mitsubishi of Japan.
4. • Directed the closure of one of Pennsylvania’s largest hazardous waste sites. Developed and
implemented a plan to close the site in place in lieu of remediation. Remediation plan costs were
projected to be in excess of $40 million and would have taken nine years to complete. The closure
plan was completed in one year at a cost of $4 million.
EDUCATION: MBA BS - Mechanical Engineering
Duquesne University Penn State University