Leadership
DCA is guided by the experience and expertise of the Board of Directors. Each year, during the DCA Convention, new board members are elected to two-year terms and other directors remain to fulfill their elected term.
The following individuals make up the 2024 DCA Board of Directors:
Mark Albert
President
Albert studied business at Rhode Island College and engineering at the University of Rhode Island prior to founding AGI Construction. AGI has grown from a small family-owned company into a regional natural gas contractor servicing New England and upstate New York with nearly 300 employees. Albert has recently been asked to serve on the Board of Directors for the Northeast Gas Association. He also serves as a vice-chairman of the Government Relations Committee with the DCA.
Mark Albert is the founder and chief executive officer of AGI Construction (AGI), headquartered in Smithfield, Rhode Island.
Daniel Carson
Vice President
Dan Carson is the president of Carson Corporation headquartered in Lafayette, New Jersey. Carson has more than 30 years of experience in the construction industry as a specialty contractor performing both HDD and civil construction. Carson joined the DCA in 2013, served as co-chairman of the Trenchless (HDD) Committee, and was elected to the board of directors in 2018.
Dan Carson is the president of Carson Corporation headquartered in Lafayette, New Jersey.
Doug Reeves
Treasurer
Reeves began working in the utility industry in 1989 performing power pole and power line inspections in Indiana. A career change in 1990 initiated a shift to the natural gas industry, where Reeves performed and later managed code compliance services such as leak surveys and line locating throughout the upper Midwest. Reeves moved to Minnesota in 1997 and joined Q3 Contracting (Q3C) in 1998. During his time with Q3C, Reeves held multiple positions in field operations management and estimating. He was named president of Q3C in September 2017 and moved into the senior vice president role with PSC in January 2021.
Doug Reeves is the senior vice president of Primoris Services Corporation (PSC), Little Canada, Minnesota.
Robert Darden, CMP, CAE
Executive Vice President
Rob joined the staff in July 2009 bringing to DCA over 25 years of international meeting management and association experience, most recently as Executive Director of QuEST Forum, an international telecom association. Previously he held executive positions with the Young Presidents’ Organization and Spear One Productions. Rob graduated from Louisiana State University and is a member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and has earned certifications as a CMP (Certified Meeting Professional) and CAE (Certified Association Executive).
Ray Swerdfeger
Immediate Past President
Ray grew up watching the company grow from a few employees to over 500 at its peak. As a child, his father would often take Ray to work on the weekends teaching him to operate backhoes and loaders. From the age of 15, summer and winter breaks from school were mostly spent in the field learning to install pipe and build brick manholes. After high school, Ray went on to earn a Bachelors of Science degree in Construction Management from Colorado State University. In January of 1995, he started full time with the company as a crew foreman in New Mexico. In 1997, Ray became superintendent of the directional drilling crews in Denver. He expanded the directional drilling into a full service trenchless division.
Ray Swerdfeger is Vice President of Miller Pipeline, in Pueblo West, Colorado
Mike Hickey
Past President Director
Hickey started as a commercial diver for Oceaneering International in Morgan City, Louisiana, in 1978. In 1980, he began working as a laborer in the gas utility industry in New York. In 1990, Hickey and his three brothers joined the Hallen family in their construction business. In 1994, he was put in charge of the utility operations for Hallen and has held that position ever since. It was also in 1994 that he began attending DCA meetings.
Hickey served as 2019 DCA president. He also served a four-year term on the board of directors with the Northeast Gas Association as an associate member.
Mike Hickey is currently the executive vice president of operations for The Hallen Construction Company in the New York tri-state area. Hickey is a former chairman of the DCA Safety/Risk Management Committee.
Dan Britz
Director
Britz joined the industry as a project manager with Minnesota Limited in 2008, overseeing transmission facility and maintenance projects across the central U.S. He was appointed president of Minnesota Limited in May 2021. During his tenure, he navigated multiple ownership changes in a dynamic market and continued to provide core leadership and innovative, strategic planning to the organization.
Britz graduated from Bemidji State University with a bachelor’s degree in industrial technology and completed his Master of Business Administration from St. Cloud State University.
Throughout his career, Britz has been active in industry events and associations, ,including serving on the PLCA board of directors in 2022 and as a member representative for the PLCA, DCA, INGAA, and other organizations.
In January 2024, Dan accepted the role of president for Michels Utility Services Inc., where he continues to develop strategy and organizational structure.
Bill Colson
Director
Colson started in the industry in 1997 as an operator in the operating engineers. He worked his way through the ranks of operator, foreman, safety assistant, safety manager, project manager, and general manager. Colson has worked with many union pipeline contractors and HDD contractors across the nation. When Pretec formed in 2016, Colson was asked to fill the role of general manager. Colson has been attending and actively participating in the DCA since 2017, including becoming a co-chair of the Safety/Risk Management Committee in 2018 and being elected to the board of directors in 2023.
Bill Colson is the general manager of Pretec Directional Drilling LLC, Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Colson has served as co-chairman of the DCA Safety & Risk Management Committee.
Chad Davis
Director
Davis began his career with Miller Pipeline in 1997 as a laborer. He quickly progressed to operator and then became a foreman in 2000. In 2005 he was promoted to superintendent, and in 2011 he stepped into his current role overseeing construction operations in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas. He has spent the last decade managing large projects, spearheading start-ups, and integrating acquired operations in the eastern and southern areas of the United States.
Davis is active with the DCA as well as other industry organizations and state gas associations. In 2014, he was selected for the Daniel Watters Individual Achievement Award at Miller Pipeline. The award recognized Davis for his loyalty, leadership, performance, and integrity, and helped set the standard for those to follow. Davis is also active with the Children’s Bureau of Indianapolis and Habitat for Humanity.
Rob Hotz
Director
Hotz currently leads ECI’s Trenchless division, which includes the estimating, project management, and construction operations teams. Hotz has a Master of Science degree in civil/geotechnical engineering from Missouri University of Science & Technology and is a licensed Professional Engineer in 10 states. He previously served as manager of engineering, division manager, and vice president of operations at Laney. Prior to joining ECI, Hotz worked with GeoEngineers, Inc., Mears Group, and Laney Group.
Hotz is active in several industry associations, including DCA, PLCA, and North American Society for Trenchless Technology (NASTT). He and his wife started attending DCA functions in 2016 and have enjoyed the many friendships and connections made since. Hotz has served as co-chair of the Trenchless Committee, the Strategic Vision Committee, and the Future Leaders Committee.
Rob Hotz is the general manager of HDD operations for ECI Contracting, West Concord, Minnesota.
Stephanie Krabbe
Director
Krabbe’s joined the industry 15 years ago, working in accounting for a gas contractor. Since then, she has also worked in large scale project management, training, and workforce development.
Krabbe moved to InfraSource in 2013 and has held a multitude of roles in her 10+ years with the organization. One of Krabbe’s greatest accomplishments was the development of their Leadership Academy program six years ago, which continues today. Through that project, Krabbe found a passion for workforce development, and has since developed military programs, college programs, and technical school relationships to drive the workforce of the future forward.
Krabbe is active with the DCA and is currently co-chair of the Innovation & Technology Committee. Prior to becoming a co-chair for the committee, she served as co-chair of the Workforce Development Committee, worked on the SkillsUSA Playbook initiative, and helped create the DCA Leadership Development Program, which launched in 2023. She has been a panelist for many DCA, American Gas Association, and Center for Energy Workforce Development events.
Stephanie Krabbe joined InfraSource in 2013 and is vice president of operations for Michigan and Nebraska, based in Lennox, Kansas.
Andy Miller
Director
Andy Miller is the equipment fleet manager and director of special projects for Alex E. Paris Contracting Co. based in Atlasburg, PA. The Alex Paris Company is a 4th generation full service heavy/civil/utility and pipeline contractor that has been in business for over 95 years servicing the Mid-Atlantic areas.
Miller graduated from Washington & Jefferson College with a B.A. in business and received his MBA from the University of Pittsburgh in 1987. He has been involved in the construction and heavy equipment industry since childhood. He joined the Alex Paris Company in 1993 and has been active in all aspects of the organization since. Miller attended his first DCA convention in 2012 and is currently co-chair of the Government Relations Committee.
Nate Eastway
Director at Large
After eight years as a structural engineer for an Indianapolis consulting firm, Eastway joined Gabe’s in 2011 as the engineering and estimating manager and contract administrator. He became the vice president of HDD and specialty (civil) projects in 2016 and was named chief operating officer in July 2023, when Gabe’s added their telecom and wireless divisions to his responsibilities. He continues to be the responsible charge professional engineer for Gabe’s and their sister company, Stratis, Inc.
Eastway is active in national, state, and local associations of pipeline, gas, telecom, and wireless industries. He is an active participant with the DCA, PLCA, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Insulated Conductors Committee. He started attending DCA functions in 2013 and is the current co-chair of the Trenchless & HDD Committee. This will be his first term on the DCA Board.
Nate Eastway is chief operating officer, Gabe’s Construction Co. Inc., Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
Sarah Mahlik
Associate Member Director
(Elected by the Associates)
Sarah Mahlik joined TT Technologies in 2013 and is currently the National Accounts Manager. She covers Midwest states for sales as well as larger national accounts, helping to promote, educate, and train customers and engineers on trenchless technology.
Mahlik has a Bachelor of Business Administration with majors in both finance and marketing. She has worked in various financial institutions, including Accenture and Price Waterhouse Coopers, as well as in sales and management for the Kohler Company.
Mahlik started attending DCA functions as a child in the 1990s and has been an active member for the past eight years. She regularly attends the Annual Convention, the April DCA & AGA Utility Workshop, and the Mid Year and Fall meetings. Mahlik serves as a member on the DCA Strategic Vision Committee. She is also active in the North American Society for Trenchless Technology (NASTT) and serves on the board for the Midwest Society for Trenchless Technology (MSTT). Mahlik also belongs to the Underground Contractors Association of Illinois organization.
Mike James
Associate Member Director
(Elected by the Associates)
Mike James joined ISCO, Louisville, Kentucky, in 2005 and is currently vice president of sales and business development.
James started in the mechanical construction industry where his father worked and transitioned to the industrial piping business in 1988. James’ has professional experience in all aspects of the HDPE (polyethylene) piping industry, including fabrication of fittings, inside sales, customer service, outside sales, sales management, business development, and many years of general management with financial responsibility.
At ISCO, James helps manage a large sales team in addition to focusing on domestic and international business development activities. James has more than 30 years of experience working with builders, developers, mining companies, pipeline contractors, pumping companies, engineering firms, and government agencies. He develops business through trusting relationships and understanding what people expect from a quality supplier. He is a believer in working hard and creating your own luck.