Advisory Group

Richard Bourne, Associate Director and Founder, Western Cooling Efficiency Center
Richard Bourne is Associate Director of the University of California Western Cooling Efficiency Center (WCEC). Prior to founding WCEC, he was a principal at Davis Energy Group (DEG), where he served as founding president from 1981 through 1997. At DEG Dick managed a team developing emerging energy-efficiency technologies. Projects included the DualCool system for packaged rooftop cooling units; the IDEC advanced two-stage evaporative cooler; the HyPak hydronic rooftop cooling unit; the NightSky night-radiative cooling system; and the SunCache low-cost solar water heating system. Mr. Bourne served as Chairman of ASHRAE's radiant heating/cooling technical committee, and holds 20 U.S. patents.

Mark Henwood, CEO, Henwood Associates, Inc.
Mark Henwood is the CEO of Henwood Associates, Inc., an engineering company and a General Engineering Contractor that has served the hydroelectric industry for 28 years. During his career, he has developed 14 power projects, and his company currently operates five projects. Previously, he grew Henwood Energy Services, Inc. into one of the premier providers of software, information, and consulting services to the global power industry with more than 350 customers in the United States. He is active in promoting sustainable energy businesses as Vice Chairman of CleanStart and as the author of sustainable energy stock tracking web site Camino Energy.

Harry Laswell, Managing Director and Co-founder, American River Ventures
Harry Laswell is a Managing Director of American River Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in energy efficiency, energy intelligence and advanced materials companies. Prior to co-founding American River Ventures, Mr. Laswell spent 21 years with Intel Corporation, most recently as a Managing Director at Intel Capital, where he managed a team that invested in 41 companies -- nine of these companies had successful IPOs. Before joining Intel Capital, he held marketing management and general management positions in a number of Intel business units. Mr. Laswell was responsible for conceiving and launching new products that generated over $1 billion in annual revenues.

Mark P. Modera, Ph.D., Director, UC Davis Western Cooling Efficiency Center
Mark P. Modera is the Director of the Western Cooling Efficiency Center (WCEC), and is a Professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering department at UC Davis. He is also the Sempra Utilities Distinguished Scholar in Energy Efficiency. Dr. Modera joined the WCEC from Carrier Corp., where he was a Vice-President, and from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). While at LBNL, Dr. Modera developed an aerosol-based duct sealing process, and he subsequently established Aeroseal, Inc., which was acquired by Carrier in 2001. His broad experience in research, business, entrepreneurship, education, and regulatory environments propels the WCEC in its mission of partnering to advance energy-efficient cooling systems.

Curtis M. Rocca III, Managing Partner, DCA Partners
Curtis M. Rocca is Managing Partner of DCA Partners, an investment banking and private equity firm. In his career, he has held a number of top executive management positions with public and private companies, including serving as President, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Bio–Dental Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: BDTC) from 1990 – 1997. Throughout his career, Mr. Rocca has served as a Senior Advisor and Board Member to a number of public and private organizations, including service as Chairman of the Compensation Committee as well as an Audit Committee Financial Expert for public companies under Sarbanes–Oxley.

Michael Siminovitch, Ph.D., Director,
California Lighting Technology Center
Michael Siminovitch is the Director of the California Lighting Technology Center and a professor in the UC Davis Design Program. Dr. Siminovitch’s work entails research and development in new residential and commercial lighting technologies. He works with manufacturers, utilities and state agencies to test and demonstrate next-generation lighting systems. Dr. Siminovitch has developed many successful lighting products, such as the Berkeley Lamp, which saves three-quarters of the wattage used by traditional lamps. He has also developed an innovative fluorescent down lighting system for commercial and residential spaces, high performance torchiere, high efficiency sulfur lamp, and fiber optic illuminators.

Gary Simon, President and CEO, Acumentrics Corporation
Gary Simon is President and CEO of Acumentrics Corporation, a leading developer of solid oxide fuel cell systems and rugged power electronics. Prior to Acumentrics, Mr. Simon was Senior VP of Corporate Strategy and Business Development at Northeast Utilities, where he had a major role in more than $2.5 billion of transactions, was the head of corporate venture investing, and was a member of the senior management committee. Previously, he was Senior Director and head of the Global Power Practice for Cambridge Energy Research Associates, and was VP of Sales and Marketing for El Paso Natural Gas Company. Mr. Simon also serves as President of Sigma Energy Group, a clean technology investment and advisory firm, and is a board member of Capstone Turbine, SmartPower, and the Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance, serving as co-chair of CleanStart, an accelerator for clean tech companies.

David Springer, Principal, Davis Energy Group
David Springer is a Founding Principal with Davis Energy Group, one of the nation’s leading innovators in building and system energy efficiency. He leads western program activities for the Consortium for Advanced Residential Buildings, a Department of Energy Building America program partner. An active member of ASHRAE, he holds five patents and has authored 18 published papers on energy topics. A 1973 UC Davis graduate in Biological Science, he currently serves on the Board of Advisors for the UC Davis Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Department.

Margaret Wong, President and CEO, McWong Environmental and Energy Group
Margaret Wong is President and CEO of McWong Environmental and Energy Group, which specializes in the export of environmental and energy related technology and equipment for wastewater treatment projects in China. In addition, she founded and is CEO of McWong International, Inc./Pacific Lighting & Electrical, an OEM of HID and fluorescent ballasts for many of the world’s leading lighting companies. In 1984 Ms. Wong founded McWong International, which has become one of the West Coast’s most successful China trade companies. She was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Inc. Magazine, and received a Vanguard Award for International Trade from Coopers & Lybrand.

Octus performs no-cost energy analyses, including Energy Star benchmarking, for building owners, managers and investors. The analysis includes recommendations for energy-savings activities, measures and retrofit projects to provide you with the information you need to intelligently decide how to reduce your energy use and costs.