Aug 24, 1995

WRQ

WRQ, a Seattle-headquartered provider of PC connectivity software, has opened a satellite development office in the Austin, Texas area. Initially staffed by six veteran communications engineers, the office is the first of its kind for the company, and came about when a merger between two other connectivity companies freed up a group of experienced engineers who did not want to relocate. The Austin contingent will work on development of WRQ's PC-to-IBM midrange and mainframe connectivity line.

Aug 23, 1995

Washington Energy Company

Two Washington Energy Company executives have received new appointments and one has announced his retirement. Timothy J. Hogan, formerly senior vice president of supply and administration and corporate secretary, has been named executive vice president and chief operating officer. James P. Torgerson was appointed executive vice president and chief administrative officer. Previously, Torgerson was senior vice president of finance, planning and development and chief financial officer. He will continue as chief financial officer. Both appointments are to Washington Energy Company and Washington Natural Gas, its utility subsidiary. Also, James W. Gustafson, senior vice president of Washington Natural Gas operations, will retire at the end of this year. He will remain at the company in the interim as senior vice president, working on implementation of the company's re-engineering programs. Two other senior vice presidents have changed titles. Robert J. Tomlinson was named senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary for both companies, and William J. Wortley is the new senior vice president for government relations for Washington Gas.

Aug 22, 1995

McKinstry

McKinstry Company, a Seattle-based mechanical contractor and engineer, has appointed Larry Alhadeff to the position of service sales manager. Alhadeff joined the firm six months ago. In his new duties, he will oversee the areas of service sales, special projects sales and account management.

APPROACH Management

APPROACH Management has added four new team members to its staff. Tom Davies has joined as safety and health specialist. He has 16 years of management experience in safety and health, including a leadership role with the state Department of Labor and Industries where he helped to develop state-wide policies and procedures related to fall protection and other high-hazard industry issues. Michael T. Tsukada is the new RETRO coordinator. He is assisting with return-to-work and workers' compensation claim matters. Tsukada previously worked as a counselor coordinating return-to-work for injured workers and employers in the state. Bob Eaker has joined as the new safety and fire protection engineer. He works with clients who have specialized needs, such as consultation during design/build plan reviews and construction phases, and with employers who have concerns relating to ongoing safety operations and fire protection matters. Samantha Lipoma is the new office/public relations manager. She is responsible for the firm's marketing and public relations functions. She has worked as a reporter, freelance writer and office administrator.

PCA

Richard P. Bohan has been promoted to manager of education and training for the Portland Cement Association. He is responsible for all educational courses presented in the field and at PCA headquarters in Skokie, Ill. Bohan is a graduate of the Illinois Institute of Technology and a registered professional engineer. PCA also announced Roger E. Wilson is now manager of industry educational programs. In this newly created position, Wilson identifies and develops new educational programs for academia, construction education and unions. He holds a civil engineering degree from the University of Connecticut and has worked for PCA for over 36 years.

Aug 18, 1995

Windermere

Doug Sargent has been awarded the Accredited Buyer Representative designation by the Real Estate Buyer's Agent Council. He is associated with the Windermere Poulsbo office and has exclusively represented buyers for the past three years.

Aug 17, 1995

Dames & Moore

International engineering and environmental consultants Dames & Moore has announced the opening of a new office in Tacoma and appointed Laura Cooper as manager. Cooper has over 16 years of experience in the environmental business and has been a consultant for the past 5 years. She specializes in environmental management for industry and government. Previously, she was environmental program manager for the Port of Tacoma and a policy analyst with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in Washington, D.C. She is registered by the National Environmental Health Association as a hazardous substance professional.

Aug 16, 1995

Microsoft

Gordon Bell, former head of research and development at Digital Equipment Corp. and a computing pioneer, has joined the Microsoft Research Group in Redmond, where his responsibilities include exploring the use of video and high-speed networks to expand and facilitate human-human interactions and to reduce physical travel. He will also continue his work on scalable computing. While at Digital, Bell led the development of the VAX (TM) minicomputer and was responsible for the design and development of various other minicomputers and mainframes. In addition, as the first assistant director for computing at the National Science Foundation, he led the National Research Network panel that became the National Information Infrastructure/Global Information Infrastructure (NII/GII), and wrote the High-Performance Computer and Communications Initiative. Bell is author of numerous books and papers and a member of the National Academy of Engineering and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He was awarded the National Medal of Technology in 1991.