Mr. Schmitt is a graduate of the Illinois Institute of Technology and is a licensed Professional Engineer in several states. He is also a service-disabled veteran and is the President of Red Pencil Ltd. Mr. Schmitt began his engineering career in 1973, working on highway design projects from surveys through plan preparation, and into construction inspection. His career includes over nine years in the public sector, serving in various design-related capacities with the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority, as well as being the Project Manager for the $2 billion design phase of Interstate I-355. For the past 20 years, he has focused his expertise on contract plan reviews, and he has personally reviewed over 500 sets of contract documents. Since then he has developed techniques to quickly identify anomalies within a set of drawings that might need to be addressed in order to avoid construction delays or change orders. His current assignments include serving as Quality Manager on construction projects, reviewing the documentation prepared by the inspectors to ensure that all required elements of the specifications have been met and payment can be processed without contention. Mr. Schmitt has routinely been invited to present topics for Professional Development Hours, Transportation Seminars and Conferences, serves on a Legislative Committee as well as a continuing education and professional development committee. He has served in technical societies and on committees at the local level, is a past President of the DuKane Chapter of the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers.