INDUSTRY VETERANS
Honoring the Accomplishments of 6 Industry Veterans
Here, we pay tribute to six experienced professionals, learn what has shaped their careers and find out what the next generation needs to know.
Pumps & Systems Staff
Aleksander (Aleks) Roudnev
Retired: Chief Engineer
Hydraulic Design
“Go see your pump working in the field. Talk to the people who operate and service it, and truly listen to their concerns. Always think about the future. Treat your pump as part of a broader, future product range or family right from the start.” This is the advice Aleksander (Aleks) Roudnev, 81, offers the next generation of pump professionals.
Roudnev has seen and accomplished a lot in his 30-plus-year career. He has served as chair of the Hydraulic Institute (HI) Standards Committee and Slurry Pump Committee, as well as vice chair of the general guidelines committee. He has worked all over the world—from Russia to Iran to Madison, Wisconsin. Though he is now retired, he is viewed as an invaluable resource by his peers, to this day remaining a consultant with the Hydraulic Institute, and he truly embodies the spirit of this award.
Roudnev has received a great deal of education and training over the course of his life, beginning with receiving his degree in mechanical engineering from Bauman Moscow State Technical School (MSTU) in 1969. He ultimately received his Ph.D. in 1990 before attending the University of Utah, where he completed a management/supervisory course.
Speaking on his training, Roudnev said, “Bauman MSTU gave me a solid theoretical foundation. [Working] at VNIIGidromash, I gained diverse experience working on water, chemical, cryogenic and slurry pumps. The University of Utah course taught me the principles of people management, but the most valuable practical experience came directly from the field.”
Roudnev said the best part of his job was “seeing your designs go into production and successfully find their place within the industrial process.” He also stressed the importance of teamwork. “Do not try to do everything yourself—you most likely will not be able to. Learn to be a true team player.”
That role has meant a lot to Roudnev. “Being part of a team that engineers robust solutions for the toughest applications—balancing severe erosive wear with hydraulic efficiency and ultimately saving mining operations from costly downtime—brings a profound sense of accomplishment.”
As for what challenges the industry is facing today, Roudnev pointed to the environment. He added, “Integrating AI into the development process to achieve real, practical benefits is another significant hurdle.”
At the end of the day, Roudnev’s main priority is his family. “Above all, my deepest sense of purpose comes from my family. My wife, Larissa, has been by me through 54 years of shared history, and our grandson, Alex, connects me directly to the future. Together, they give my life its deepest sense of purpose.”
Doug Smith
Senior Applications Engineer
SEEPEX
Doug Smith, 66, started his career as a draftsman in Springfield, Ohio. Armed with a degree from Clark Technical College, he rose through the ranks to eventually become an applications engineer. Today, he is not only a senior applications engineer, but one so knowledgeable that his colleagues have nicknamed him “DougGPT.”
While some of that knowledge was gained through traditional, classroom-based education, Smith credits hands-on training with doing the most good for his career. “Practical experience has helped the most,” he said. “Training with coworkers has been very beneficial.” He also received a great deal of help from mentors over the years, who advised him to be “willing to listen and learn. Be open-minded to different ideas and ways of doing things.”
Over his 40-plus years of experience, Smith has seen the industry change from “chisel and stone tablets to electronic tablets [and] computers. I am leaving the workforce just as AI is coming in, so it will be interesting to see the effect it has on the pump industry.”
Smith will be retiring at the end of 2026, and he feels one of the biggest challenges facing the industry is “finding new and young engineers that are willing to work in this field.” As he and others in his experience bracket retire, he believes it is important for younger engineers and operators to “be open-minded of how to do things. There is a lot of knowledge in the veterans that they can use to help them. I was in their shoes at one time, and looking back, I realize how those veterans helped me to grow in knowledge.” Reflecting on the people who helped him along his journey, he continued, “I want to thank all those former and current coworkers and bosses that helped me along the way to be the employee that I am today. Without them, I would not have been able to do what I really enjoy doing.”
John Merrill
Manager of reliability engineering, americas
EagleBurgmann Industries LP
John Merrill, 57, is no stranger to putting in the work. His resume is filled with association involvement, including being a member of the American Petroleum Institute (API) Task Force, a committee member for the American Society for Metals (ASM) International and an associate member of the Hydraulic Institute. And for more than 19 years of his 35-year career, Merrill has been working at EagleBurgmann and is now the manager of reliability engineering, Americas.
He also stays up to date on the latest in the industry thanks to both his suppliers and his employer. “Our suppliers offer excellent training for products, such as elastomers, bearings, seal face materials and supply system instrumentation. My employer offers a massive array of internal training for topics such as safety, interpersonal skills and ethics compliance.”
Merrill has been a fan of training since the beginning. “Very early in my career, my boss sent me to several pump and compressor headquarters for their authorized distributor training. I am a comparative learner, so it was a great way to see what best practices they all used and what were unique to certain designs.” When asked what some of the best advice he’s received is, he shared that one of his mentors encouraged him to observe experienced technicians whenever he had the chance without interrupting their process.
As for what he enjoys most about his job, he said he enjoys seeing so many different and interesting facilities, including open pit mines, biopharmaceutical facilities and nuclear plants. He also really appreciates the people: “I have several lifelong friends that I met through this industry. Some of those friendships have been forged in stressful situations over the years.”
When he’s not working, he enjoys tennis, running and spending time with his family in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Cathy Wilson
Sales Manager
Sunair Co.
Cathy Wilson, 65, has had a rich and varied career that began when she received her bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering back in 1982. Since then, she has worked a myriad of engineering and sales positions and has amassed a truly impressive list of qualifications and certifications, including North Carolina Registered Professional Engineer, ISO Internal Audit Certification, Women in Business honoree and Pump Systems Assessment Professional Certification. Despite her numerous credits, the training that has helped her most over the course of her career has been hands-on field experience at customer sites, which she calls “invaluable.”
Education and customer focus have always been at the heart of Wilson’s career trajectory, and when asked to name the best part of her job, she replied, “taking care of my customers and seeing to their satisfaction.” She added, “Secondly, the vast amount of learning and knowledge that I’ve accumulated over the years has kept me fully engaged. It’s been a constant learning process from day one, and I expect it will stay that way until I retire.”
Of course, the past 40 years have not all been a smooth ride, particularly in the early stages of Wilson’s career. “Overcoming generational perspectives around gender norms [has been hard]. It’s gotten a little easier over the years, but especially in my early career, it was a constant challenge. This impacted my income, my confidence at times and my overall experience.” Wilson would later serve on the diversity committee for the Society of Maintenance & Reliability Professionals and do her best to empower people who, like herself, did not always have an easy time in the industry.
These days, Wilson is most concerned about the impact of AI and the internet on sales professionals. “Now, anyone can go to a chat platform and get answers to any question at the click of a button. The catch is that this doesn’t replace experience and wisdom, which is the competitive differentiator for technical sales professionals in this space.”
Overall, Wilson’s experience in the industry has been a meaningful one. “Being able to understand how things are made and how the world works from an industrial perspective has made a huge difference in my life,” she said. “It’s been a fascinating ride.” When asked to share her advice for younger engineers and operators, she said, “Don’t assume anything. Understand the technology and become the expert. Ask questions if you don’t know something, [and] lean on your senior people instead of relying on the internet to fill in your knowledge gaps. Put the customer first—it’s about relationship building, so don’t take the quick win at the expense of longer-term success.”
She concluded, “Pumps are here to stay. This technology has been around for millennia and the world simply doesn’t really work without it. This is valuable work that’s worth doing.”
Paul Skippins
Commercial Sales Director
Pioneer Pump
“I always tell new employees that they probably have two to three years to decide whether the pump industry is for them. If you’re still in the industry after three years, then you’re in for life. It doesn’t always work out that way, but it mostly does!” That theory was certainly true for Paul Skippins, 63. After his father suggested he explore engineering as a career, he applied to several companies and accepted an apprenticeship technician role at Girdlestone Pumps.
That decision 47 years ago has led to a lasting and rewarding career according to Skippins, who now is semiretired and works in a technical and sales support role for Pioneer Pump. “I could only have dreamed about the experiences and opportunities that the pumping world has presented. My plan was to retire three years ago. However, I am still enjoying what I do and working with our customers and team at Pioneer Pump.”
Skippins said having skilled engineers willing to train and guide him made all the difference. He noted that ensuring he had skills beyond industry knowledge was also key. “The leadership and personal development training have been the most insightful. Many new managers are comfortable managing the tasks that got them to a management position but can struggle with the leadership aspects of the role. When I was given my first leadership role in 1994, the company thankfully invested in a residential leadership development course for me to attend. This was an excellent course that helped to get my managerial career off to a good start.”
As for what advice he’d offer to young engineers, Skippins encouraged “be flexible, inquisitive and patient. Try as many roles as possible, take every training opportunity offered even if you feel it’s not directly relevant at that time.”
Outside of work, Skippins enjoys spending time with his wife, Caroline, and his children and grandchildren. He also enjoys road running, boating and watercolor painting.
Jack Claxton
Vice President of Engineering
Patterson Pump Company
Jack Claxton, 74, has been working in the industry with Patterson Pump for 51 years, starting as a mechanical engineer and working his way into his current role as vice president of engineering. He’s also been a member of the Hydraulic Institute (HI) for 40 years, with nominator Denielle Giordano saying, “[Jack’s] leadership over the decades has shaped not only Patterson Pump, but the industry at large through his contributions at HI. Over the years, Jack has received both the HI Member of the Year and Lifetime Achievement awards to honor his contributions and currently serves as the vice president of technical affairs on the HI Board of Directors.”
When asked about the kind of training that helped him the most, Claxton noted that hands-on technical experience combined with exposure to seasoned engineers and field experiences was the most valuable. “Early in my career, I benefited greatly from working directly with senior engineers, design experts, field service experts and customers. Seeing how pumps actually perform in the field—especially under difficult operating conditions—provided insights along the way that strongly influenced my engineering and standards work.” Claxton added that “committee and standards activities were also invaluable because they required looking beyond a single company’s practices and understanding broader industry needs and technical perspectives.”
On what working in the industry has meant to him, Claxton said, “I’ve had the opportunity to contribute to technologies and standards that support critical infrastructure and essential services for products that are shipped around the world. Just as important, the industry has allowed me to work with many talented and dedicated people over the course of my career. The professional relationships and collaborations developed through this work have been one of the most rewarding aspects of my life.”
Outside of the industry, Claxton enjoys spending time with family, along with travel. “I usually stay busy with home projects, hobby cars and volunteer work. I enjoy learning, so I enjoy reading on a broad range of topics.”
In This Issue
