While many of us look forward to the day we can return to the office, Mack Newton is settling into his new normal of working from home. One of Harrington Group’s newest fire protection engineers, Mack started on earlier this month, and even when this period of quarantine is behind us, he’ll continue working out of his home office in Kansas City.
“I’ve always worked in a cubicle in a big office, so I’m happy to be trying this new way of doing things,” he said. “So far, so good.”
Mack comes to us with 15 years of experience in fire protection. After graduating from the University of Missouri – Kansas City with a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering, he took a job doing fire protection primarily for big box retail stores such as Walmart. He later joined a company that worked with power plants.
“I hadn’t even heard of fire protection engineering when I was in school,” he said, echoing a common theme within the industry. “But it certainly utilizes many aspects of mechanical engineering, and it seemed like a natural fit for me even though I had to do some learning.”
A knack for problem-solving plus that desire to learn have been driving forces throughout Mack’s career. He likes that the evolution of commodity classifications and building codes keeps fire protection professionals on their toes, and there’s always something new to learn.
“There’s always a new type of commodity, hazard or occupancy that needs to be protected,” he said. “As the type of hazard changes, the types of buildings that exist change. It’s a never-ending challenge to keep up with the changing landscape.”
A Kansas City native, Mack comes from a large family — he has four siblings and is the proud uncle of a niece and nephew. In his free time he enjoys lifting weights, going for walks, hanging out with his cat, Lucy, and going to concerts.