Edward Gaither, P.E., CCPSC, is a process engineering consultant with PROtect, LLC, a risk management, process safety, environmental compliance, non-destructive testing, and mechanical integrity firm. He specializes in process safety and has analyzed, designed, installed, and commissioned many different food, pharmaceutical, and biofuels processing unit operations over his career. He also serves as a mentor for young professional engineers. Prior to his role with PROtect, Gaither was with EAD, an engineering, automation, and project management firm primarily serving clients in the food and pharmaceutical industries. He has also served as production manager for a fuel ethanol facility and as an R&D engineer for a process engineering firm specializing in value-added products from fats and oils. Gaither is a licensed professional engineer and holds a BS in chemical engineering and an MBA from the Univ. of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is a Certified Process Safety Professional (CCPSC) and a Preventive Controls Qualified Individual under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s Food Safety Modernization Act.