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.

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.

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.

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 Production Engineering 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 Production 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.

Ethan Baur is a Production Engineering Tech at AbsolutAire.  In his current position, Ethan is responsible for a range of tasks, including reviewing project files, creating record drawings for customer and production use and generating shop order entries to facilitate smooth production processes. Beyond his primary responsibilities, Ethan actively supports in-house production, providing valuable assistance and contributing to additional engineering processes.  Ethan also plays a role in coordinating and preparing advance ship processes and offers post-sales support to the customer service team, demonstrating his commitment to maintaining excellent customer satisfaction.  With his expertise in SolidWorks, AutoCAD, and Inventor, Ethan also contributes to light design work and basic CAM operations, showcasing his versatility and dedication to delivering high-quality results.

Prior to joining AbsolutAire, Ethan garnered valuable experience and honed his engineering skills through various roles. Ethan gained experience as a CAD Designer in the spectator seating industry.  He also worked as an Engineering Documentation Technician, implementing engineering changes and inputting bill of materials.  With an Associate of Applied Science in Computer-Aided Drafting & Design and certification in SolidWorks.  Ethan's technical expertise, attention to detail and dedication to delivering high-quality results position him as a valuable asset to the engineering Department.

Joseph Stotler is a Production Engineering Draftsman for AbsolutAire. In this current role, he works closely with the Manufacturing Production team to ensure designs are efficient and current.

Joseph joined AbsolutAire in 2024 after working for Groupe Beneteau in Cadillac, MI as a Marine Drafter. Prior to that, he worked at Timken in South Haven, MI as a Machinist.  Joseph Studied at Van Buren Technical center in Lawrence, MI and graduated with honors & student of the year awards.  Joseph has experience in manufacturing, design and assembly within the boating, automotive & military components industries.  He has also received training in Lean Manufacturing, Kaizen, 5s, quality control & CNC operation/ programming.