The Best of the Best: An Introduction to the 2017 Engineer of the Year Award Nominees: Competition highlights Alaska's engineering talent and good works.

• Author: Taylor, Joseph
• Position: Architecture & Engineering

Each year Alaska's professional engineering societies nominate candidates for the Engineer of the Year Award. The competition is an opportunity to highlight the incredible engineering talent and good works that are taking place in our state. Each candidate's credentials are reviewed by an independent panel of judges who select the overall winner. The competition culminates with the recognition of each candidate at the annual Engineers Week Banquet and Awards Ceremony in late February, at which the winner is revealed. The judging criteria include:

* Significant engineering work over the past two years;

* Historical significant engineering work;

* Publications and professional presentations;

* Contribution to the professional societies;

* Other service to the professional community;

* Service to the broader community.

These criteria demonstrate that, in addition to engineering excellence, service to the community and the profession is a value held dearly in the engineering community. This year's candidates are no exception and they embody these values. As last year's Alaska Engineer of the Year, it is my distinct privilege to introduce you to a few of this year's Engineer of the Year nominees and the professional societies they represent.

Christine Ness

Christine Ness, PE, FPE, CFPS, is a registered Fire Protection Engineer and PDC's associate leading their fire protection services. She holds professional engineer registration in fire protection engineering in Alaska, Ohio, and Washington; is a Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS); and has Alaska Fire System Permits. Ness is the president of the Alaska Chapter of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers and the vice president of the Alaska Chapter of the National Society of Women in Construction. Ness possesses more than twenty-two years of fire protection and life safety engineering experience with extensive technical competence interpreting the model building, life safety, and fire codes, as well as state building and fire codes. She has specialized professional experience in both performance-based and detailed design for automatic sprinkler, fire detection and alarm, and building protection systems. Ness is also experienced in engineering systems for the protection of facilities using hazardous materials including flammable liquids.

Her projects can be found in the United States, McMurdo Station Antarctica, Fort McMurray Alberta Canada, Egypt, Iraq, Japan, Italy, Slovakia, and Trinidad and Tobago. Project types include systems design and analysis of special industrial facilities, healthcare centers, oil and gas exploration facilities, mining facilities, military mission compounds, telecom hubs, historic buildings, university campuses, airport traffic control facilities, and post-fire event industrial site forensics.

Working under a Lockheed Martin contract, Ness provided engineering support for FAA airport traffic control tower upgrades and new construction projects at a number of International Airports (O'Hare, Milwaukee General Mitchell, Indianapolis, Detroit Metro, Dayton, Cleveland Hopkins, Port Columbus), as well as several...