Emergency Characterization of Unknown Materials

Rick Houghton is recently retired from Houghtons, Inc., having sold the business to Bill after working with him for over a year. Rick was a firefighter and paramedic for 19 years and then operated Houghtons, Inc. for 20 years. Rick trained first responders in Raman and FTIR analysis for 12 years. He holds an Associate Degree in Applied Fire Science and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Safety (cum laude). Rick authored Emergency Characterization of Unknown Materials (CRC Press, 2007) and Field Confirmation Testing for Suspicious Substances (CRC Press, March 2009). Rick will be responsible for oversight of the second addition and remain the primary author. William Bennett is the new owner of Houghtons, Inc., a private, veteran owned training and consulting company focused on hazardous materials response. Bill has 32 years' experience with the Air Force; 15 years' experience operating the mobile analytical laboratory for the Michigan National Guard's Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team. He has regularly worked with federal, state and local first responders. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Management (Organizational Security) and a Master of Science degree in Management. Bill will be responsible for updating WMD components and writing the new technology section for high-pressure mass spectroscopy. He will co-author the new chapter on sample manipulations.