2017 40 Under 40: Brian Coffield, PE, LEED AP BD+C, 36

Principal, Lead Mechanical Engineer, SmithGroupJJR, Washington

By Jack Smith, Content Manager, and Amara Rozgus, Editor-in-Chief May 15, 2010

Brian Coffield, PE, LEED AP BD+C, 36

Principal, Lead Mechanical Engineer, SmithGroupJJR, Washington, D.C.

BS Mechanical Engineering, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg

Coffield is a principal and lead mechanical engineer in the Higher Education Studio of SmithGroupJJR’s Washington, D.C., office. In this role, he focuses on energy-efficient mechanical designs for clients, such as the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and American University. His design approach aims to maximize energy savings while minimizing design complexity through techniques, such as building orientation, shading, and building-envelope design. Coffield has participated with his local ASHRAE chapter to fill roles, such as technical programs chair. He regularly presents at conferences and meetings on the latest sustainable design topics to groups, such as the American Institute of Architects, ASHRAE, the National Building Museum, and the U.S. Department of State. In his community of Fairfax, Va., Coffield volunteers with the local schools as a volunteer for the WATCH D.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) program, founded to bring positive male role models into schools to enhance security, reduce bullying, and encourage education. He is an avid runner. After competing on the cross-country and track teams during his time as a student at Virginia Tech, he hung up his spikes, but he didn’t completely stop. He began participating in different races, such as the “Muddy Buddy,” a biking/running race series that entails teams competing against each other as they tackle a series of obstacles, concluding with a giant mud crawl. Coffield also loves spending time hiking in the mountains. His favorite adventures include summiting Longs Peak, a 14,000-ft mountain in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colo. He also enjoys fishing for trout in Glacier National Park, Mont. He loves to get his hands dirty and work on home improvements and relishes in seeing the finished product. But most of all, he loves the demolition phase.