Don Hopkins, PE Expert Witness
Curriculum Vitae

Fire Protection Engineer

Contact this Expert Witness

  • Company: Hopkins FIre
  • Phone: 443-655-5903
  • Cell: 443-655-5903

Specialties & Experience of this Expert Witness

General Specialties:

Engineering and Fire

Keywords/Search Terms:

Fire, Fire Protection, Sprinkler, Fire Alarm, Corrosion, Fire Protection Engineering, Fire detection, Forensic engineering, Modeling

Education:

BS Fire Protection Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park; Master of Science, University of Maryland, College Park

Years in Practice:

29

Additional Information

I am a professional engineer with more than 30 years’ experience related to the design and installation of fire protection and fire alarm systems. Throughout the course of my career, I have performed numerous fire and loss investigations for cases involving fires, fire protection system inadvertent discharges, fire protection and fire alarm system malfunctions, improper building and fire protection system design, and improper building construction. I have deposition and trial experience and have forensically analyzed a wide range of cases and assisted clients in litigation matters. I have technical experience with the design of water-based fire suppression, gaseous suppression, fire alarm and emergency communication systems, code-consulting, forensics/litigation support, corrosion evaluations, research/fire testing, fire/smoke modeling and timed-egress analyses. I have experience with the development, installation, instrumentation, completion, and evaluation of small- and large-scale fire tests. I have overseen the installation of many fire protection systems and have investigated numerous system failures including pipe corrosion and sprinkler issues. I was a long-time member of the NFPA 13 Standard for the Installation of Sprinkler Systems Sprinkler System Discharge (SSD) technical committee, the NFPA 25 Inspection, Testing and Maintenance of Water-Based Fire Protection Systems technical committee, the NFPA 909/914 Protection of Cultural Resource Properties and Historic Structures technical committee, and the NFPA 232 Records Storage technical committee. I am a member of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and a Fellow in the Society of Fire Protection Engineers.