jr fowler bio picture

J.R. Fowler, PE

Chief Operating Officer

Value Delivered

J.R. oversees S.A. Comunale’s engineering and design team; the fire alarm, special hazards, and fire extinguisher divisions; as well as the fabrication, purchasing, information technology, and logistics.

Expertise

J.R. has more than 20 years of experience in the fire protection and mechanical industry. He joined S.A. Comunale as a Program Manager, then moved into engineering and design, and ultimately into integrating operations.

After earning undergraduate degrees in mechanical engineering and economics from Union College in New York, he earned a master’s degree in Fire Protection Engineering from the University of Maryland, as well as an MBA from F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College in Massachusetts.

A licensed Fire Protection Engineer in 27 States, J.R. also holds several National Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET) certifications in fire alarms, water-based systems, inspection and testing, and special hazard systems. In addition to his individual licensure, J.R. holds many of S.A. Comunale’s city and state licensures, nationwide.

J.R. sits on the technical committees of multiple National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes, (22,45, 303) and is a Future Leadership Committee member for the National Fire Sprinkler Association (NFSA). Additionally, he is member of the Society for Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE), American Fire Sprinkler Association (AFSA) and International Code Council (ICC).

His life safety projects range from 3-million-square-foot warehouses to 1,000-foot-tall high-rise buildings. He has worked on projects for over 30 Department of Defense facilities ranging from hangar aircraft suppression of U.S. aircraft, to inspection, testing, and maintenance for the 4.7-million-square-foot Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

The Personal Side

Originally from Connecticut, J.R. loves the ocean and sailing, and raced professionally throughout the US and Europe after College.