Engineering

Kris has worked in a variety of roles since joining AbsolutAire in 2005.  Currently he manages Electrical Controls and DDC Engineering. He also helps out as a Sales and Application Engineer and with the Customer Service Department. He is responsible for coordinating the efforts of the electrical engineering group, quoting many of the custom units across all product lines, product development and providing engineering support to the customer service group. Kris really enjoys working on the more complex units such as energy recovery or humidity control units that set AbsolutAire apart from many of our competitors.

Prior to joining Absolutaire in 2005, Kris had more than 20 years of industrial design and engineering experience. As a high school student, he began his career preparing submittal drawings for Espec Corporation in Hudsonville, MI. After college, he became involved in the designing of Espec’s world-leading environmental test chambers and had added responsibilities in CNC machine programming. Prior to accepting his current role at AbsolutAire, Kris also designed industrial fluid chillers at Koolant Koolers Inc. in Kalamazoo, and was a project manager and salesman at American Metal Fab Inc. in Three Rivers, MI.

In 1989, Kris earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology and a certificate for Drafting and Design Technology from Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, MI. During his business career, Kris continued his education with courses and training in universal refrigeration, team leadership, and value stream mapping.

Bruce Owen is an Electrical Engineer at AbsolutAire. In this role, Bruce has a range of responsibilities including product electrical systems design, project technical support, and electrical research and development.

Bruce began his HVAC career in 1978 with Rapid Engineering in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He held various positions in manufacturing and engineering during 12 years with the company. In 1990, Bruce left the company to become a realtor with Westdale Better Homes & Gardens in the Grand Rapids area. He then joined AbsolutAire shortly after its start-up in 1992 and, for a number of years, managed electrical assembly before assuming his current position of Electrical Engineer.

Bruce has taken selected classes in Electrical Systems Design at Grand Rapids Junior College. During his time with AbsolutAire, he has also participated in various specialized training opportunities provided by HVAC component suppliers, including Maxon Burners, Honeywell Burner Controls, and Lincoln Motors.

Tom Wisser is an Electrical Engineer at AbsolutAire. In this role, Tom has a range of responsibilities including product electrical systems design, project technical support, and electrical research and development

Tom began his career with AbsolutAire following graduation from high school.  Over his many years with the company, Tom has steadily risen in responsibility.  His experiences have included stints in plant maintenance and safety, product paint booth operations, unit assembly, electrical controls production, management, and customer service.

In addition to continual on-the-job training, Tom also has specialized training in electrical systems, field start-up procedures, and warranty claims fulfillment.

Nelson Howard is the Manager of DDC Engineering at AbsolutAire.  Nelson’s primary responsibilities include DDC control system engineering, custom programming, supporting and training internal programming personnel, providing phone technical support to field technicians, re-engineering and troubleshooting, and performing onsite field start-ups. He also works closely with AbsolutAire Sales, Engineering, Customer Service and Quality Control staff, assisting with technical questions and quality control/manufacturing-related issues as well as in house unit testing prior to shipment.

Nelson began his AbsolutAire career in 2013, following more than 20 years of field service work in South Central Michigan.  He has held positions as a Fire Protection Engineer, and service technician for SimplexGrinnell, once the world’s largest fire protection company.

In 2001, Nelson earned an engineering certification in fire protection from the National Institute for Certification in Engineered Technologies.  He has also performed control programming for Radionics, Ademco, Andover Controls, Sonitrol, and Northern Computers, in addition to writing communications software for the OS/9-UNIX platform.  He is CPR Certified and Confined Space Rescue trained, is a volunteer with the Battle Creek Police Department, and is also a Boy Scout leader.

Tim Miller is an Electrical Manufacturing Engineer at AbsolutAire. In this role, he is responsible for electrical design and manufacturing implementation, focusing on wiring and assembly standards, SOPs, component selection, and change orders. Plant floor implementation in these areas also requires creating data entry and information tracking programs to analyze manufacturing efficiencies and project planning.  

Tim started his engineering career at Dart Container, working for 16 years as a Technician, advancing to Data Acquisition Specialist, followed by Electrical Designer. After that time, he held multiple positions as a Controls Engineer, contracting for Pfizer, Coca-Cola, Kellogg, and General Motors. Tim has been with AbsolutAire since 2017.

In 1983, Tim earned an Associates Degree in Applied Science from Lansing Community College, and has taken multiple software and hardware training courses throughout his career.

Deborah (Deb) McDonald is the Engineering Project Manager for AbsolutAire.  In this role, Deb oversees projects to ensure collaboration is achieved between Mechanical, Electrical & Design Engineering in providing record drawings to the customer and production prints to Production of the final product as desired by the customer.  Her team is the liaison between the initial sale completed by Sales Engineering and the final product completed by Production.  In addition to previously mentioned responsibilities her team is responsible for project management, review of customer orders, bills of materials, unit design, and providing support to customer service with post-sales engineering.

Deb joined the AbsolutAire team in December 2013 as a Mechanical Engineer where she worked closely with the sales and electrical engineering groups.  Prior to joining the company, she deployed with the Seabees of the US Navy Reserves as a builder/carpenter.  Deborah’s time served with the US Navy Reserves was from 2007-2015.  Upon her return from deployment in 2011, she enrolled at Kalamazoo Valley Community College, where she received her Associates Degree in Occupational Technical Studies. 

Mike Donathen is a Design Engineer at AbsolutAire.  His primary responsibilities include producing accurate and comprehensive mechanical prints for the assembly floor.  Mike works closely with AbsolutAire engineering and sales staff, as well as shop floor assemblers and builders.

Mike joined AbsolutAire in 2017 after working for Prime Solution in Otsego, MI as a Design Engineer, and Fogg Filler in Holland, MI as a Mechanical Designer.  Mike studied at Baker College in Muskegon, MI and has an Associate’s degree in CAD Design Technologies, in addition to a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technologies.  Mike has several years of experience in manufacturing and assembly within the boating, railroad, and bottling industries.  He has also received training in Lean Manufacturing, Kaizen, 5S, Statistical Process Control, and Quality Control.

Kevin is a Design Engineer at AbsolutAire. His main responsibilities include producing accurate and comprehensive mechanical prints for the assembly floor. Kevin works sensibly with AbsolutAire engineering and sales staff, as well as shop floor assemblers and builders.

Kevin joined AbsolutAire in 2020 after working for Parker Hannifin Richland, MI as an Engineering Specialist, and SP Industries in Hopkins, MI as a Mechanical Designer. Kevin studied at Kalamazoo Valley Community College in Kalamazoo and has an Associate’s Degree in CAD / CAM Design, in addition to a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Management. Kevin has several years of experience in Machine Design within the Pneumatics and FRL’s, Waste Compaction, and Audience Seating industries. He has also received training in Lean Management Systems.

Michelle Plummer is the Sales Administrator at AbsolutAire. Her primary responsibilities include sales order entry, project quotation management, engineering administration, and responding to AbsolutAire sales rep and customer inquiries.

Michelle joined AbsolutAire in April 2018.  Prior to joining AbsolutAire, Michelle held a variety of customer service and childcare positions.  Michelle graduated from Western Michigan University in 2015, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology: Behavioral Science with a minor in Sociology.