It’s golf season in Florida and our Cape Design Engineering Co. (CDE) team came out swinging in support of local scholarships last month. As corporate sponsors of the Palm Beach State College and Eastern Florida State College Foundations’ golf tournaments held on October 31st, CDE contributes to scholarship funds and helps students in-need advance their education.
The funds raised during the annual golf events go directly to students pursuing degrees in engineering, healthcare, and technical subjects. You can see more about the PBSC Golf Tourney in the video below and review the scholarships offered at EFSC.
CDE and parent company 8-koi have provided design engineering and construction services to both schools over the years and regularly offer student internships. We are proud to support our local state colleges and students!
Eastern Florida State College Health Science Building
Finished view of the Palm Beach State College Belle Glade Technical Education Facility
Li Li (her first name is the same as her last) was recently celebrated for her loyalty and longevity marked this month by 20 years serving CDE and now the 8-koi team. Currently, Li works to support new construction, having worked on projects that included: Daytona Beach State College Hosseini Center, Palm Beach State College Technical Education Facility, Space Shuttle Processing Facility (SSPF) Science Annex at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, and the Eastern Florida State College (EFSC) Student Union and Health Sciences Building. She’s also worked on various renovation projects for EFSC, Brevard County School Board and Florida Power & Light.
“I like to work on different kinds of projects so I can always learn something new,” she said.
After earning her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering at TsingHua University in Beijing, China, she continued her education in the US earning her Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado.
In 2001, Li began working for CDE. With decades of experience, she’s skilled in handling projects through the beginning to end phases – from conceptual building, mechanical and plumbing system designs through the construction phase, and overcoming the challenges in between.
Around the Merritt Island office Li has a reputation for working smart and hard. She is the proud mother of her high school son, who has also earned a reputation for his smarts and she’s the wife to her husband engineer. When she’s not working, she enjoys gardening – planting all kinds of flowers, vegetables and fruit trees.
8-koi and CDE are grateful for Li’s dedicated 20 years of service to the team and customers. As 8-koi’s COO, Dean Rosenquist, put it, “There is no doubt that you have made your presence an invaluable one in our company. As you continue to commit yourself to uphold our values and vision, we won’t ever stop appreciating you.”
We congratulate you, Li Li, and thank you for 20 years with CDE!
CDE’s Vice President of Design Engineering, Victor Diaz, personally delivered KN-95 masks earlier this month to the Dean of Academic Affairs and Health Science’s Edward Willey at Palm Beach State College to ensure practical training could continue safely for the faculty and students of the school’s acclaimed nursing program.
The delivery was a part of parent company 8-koi’s community outreach during the COVID-19 public health crisis to ensure frontline personnel, first responders, schools, and non-profit organizations could continue their important work safely.
“We had to learn a lot in the beginning, but we are so fortunate to have these supplies on hand and fill a need when so many lives are at stake. These donations exemplify our company’s core values of being thoughtful and dependable and represent the ‘human touch’ our team strives to deliver in service excellence every day – even at a safe distance.” says CDE Owner Inga Young.
CDE’s Victor Diaz and Edward Willey from Palm Beach State College
CDE and 8-koi have provided design engineering and construction services to PBSC and other Florida schools over the years and regularly offer student internships. You can see more about these projects at https://www.cdeco.com/projects/.
This annual awards program recognizes exemplary leaders and outstanding advocates for small businesses, and businesses that support small business programs on federal agency contracts. Nominations aim to honor individuals and organizations that show great achievement for their support of the A/E/C profession.
CDE is nominated in the SAME Small Business Award category for support as a small business. Other categories include SAME Large Business Award for support of small business programs, SAME Industry Small Business Advocate Award, and SAME Post Small Business Liaison Officer Award.
Awardees will be selected by the eligibility criteria for work completed for any federal agency within the last five years from nomination due date in an outstanding manner. Nominations include supporting details to include:
Letters of commendations, awards, previous project evaluations, etc. to show past performance from client or prime contractor,
Company’s track record for working with other Small Businesses in the Industry,
Company’s track record for the professional development of its employees through participation in SAME education and training activities; and
Company participation in one or more small business conferences (e.g. SAME Small Business Conference, Veteran-Owned Small Business Conference, and SAME Post-sponsored small business conference).
The awards ceremony will be held during the Virtual SBC Opening General Session held November 4-6.
Palm Beach State College (PBSC) selected Cape Design Engineering (CDE) to provide Professional Engineering Services in several disciplines across the college’s five campuses in Belle Glade, Boca Raton, Lake Worth, Loxahatchee, and Palm Beach Gardens.
As a preferred service provider, CDE will have the opportunity to perform on PBSC’s structural and mechanical/electrical/plumbing (MEP) continuing services contracts for single projects under $1,000,000. CDE is a wholly-owned subsidiary of 8-koi, a minority- and woman-owned small business headquartered in Merritt Island, FL.
“Our CDE team has a long-standing reputation for excellence in supporting academic institutions across Florida. I’m proud of the work we do to help students learn and teachers teach. We look forward to meeting PBSC’s physical plant needs for years to come,” says 8-koi President Inga Young.
CDE has provided engineering support to PBSC on a variety of projects for almost two decades. In 2010, CDE successfully completed work on the 34,000 SF Technical
Palm Beach State College is nationally recognized as an innovative academic leader advancing student success through its unparalleled commitment to excellence, engagement, and dynamic partnerships.
Education Facility at the College’s Belle Glade campus and was responsible for MEP design of the facility and for modifications to the campus central energy plant. It was the first public State College facility to earn the prestigious USGBC LEED Platinum rating in the State of Florida. Also, thanks to CDE’s ingenuity in the design, PBSC enjoyed a NET ZERO increase in energy costs despite adding a new building to the campus. [To see more about this project click here!]
Other related higher educational projects completed by CDE include the Daytona State College 2.5-million-gallon Thermal Energy Storage System, the Wayne Densch Athletics Administration Building at the University of Central Florida, and the Eastern Florida State College Health Sciences and Student Union Buildings.
In March 2019, 8-koi acquired Merritt Island design-build firm Cape Design Engineering Co. (CDE) to expand WOSB design engineering and mil-spec construction capabilities. Since its founding in 2008, 8-koi has grown to offer a diverse range of services that helped to earn the title “Florida’s Companies to Watch” in 2018 by GrowFL.
About 8-koi
8-koi is an 8(a) certified minority- and woman-owned small disadvantaged business headquartered in Melbourne, FL. Founded in 2008 by Inga Young, 8-koi specializes in providing Design Engineering, Construction, Training/Technical and Administrative Support, and Healthcare-Related Services to government agencies across the United States. 8-koi’s work within these divisions meets rigorous training/technical specifications to include Mil-Spec design-build, facility renovation, medical admin and direct care, quality assurance and risk management. See more at https://www.8-koi.com/.
About Cape Design Engineering
Cape Design Engineering Co. (CDE) was incorporated in 1997 by Lutfi M. Mized, P.E. and Kannan Rengarajan, P.E. to offer full-service, multi-discipline engineering and construction firm. CDE is well-known for commercial, industrial, educational, medical, institutional, military, and government facilities to include the designs of critical launch systems and facilities for NASA and USAF rocketry programs. Acquired in 2019 by 8-koi as a wholly-owned subsidiary, CDE continues to provide exceptional contracting services on time and within budget. See more at https://www.cdeco.com.
It’s that time of the year again for our yearly newsletter! There have been some changes at CDE and this newsletter will introduce you to those changes and the people behind them. Also, in this edition are several interesting project profiles CDE has recently worked on. We hope you enjoy it!
We are excited to announce the latest iteration in the growth of CDE. Our company, now in its 22nd year, is transitioning to the ownership of 8-koi, a vibrant, multifaceted, Melbourne-based firm that is recognized as one of Florida’s fastest growing companies.
We are also pleased to announce that co-founders Lutfi Mized and Kannan Rengarajan will remain at CDE, only now with the enhanced ability to focus their energy on their first passion – engineering. This latest evolution of the company allows Lutfi and Kannan to be even more hands-on with client needs.
“Our commitment, as it has always been, is to continue to provide the best professional engineering services to our clients,” Mized said. “CDE will not only maintain its name, its Merritt Island offices, and its staff, but most importantly its same standard of excellence.”
Rengarajan noted that “this is a great fit that solidifies CDE’s future growth. This was an important step and we are thrilled to be making it with 8-koi, a company with so much vitality and a gold-standard commitment to client services.”
For the past several years, CDE has often partnered with 8-koi and its owner, Inga Young. Her savvy business sense impressed us from day one – and still does today. She also shares the same core values that we do. We are confident that combining her talent, energy, and ambitious leadership with CDE’s well-established reputation and business model will ensure our company’s future success.
“I am delighted to be bringing the management expertise and personal touch of 8-koi to CDE,” Young said. “And I am even more delighted to have the expertise of Lutfi and Kannan still onboard to help guide the company.”
Lutfi and Kannan look forward in the coming weeks to introducing Inga to our clients.
Sincerely,
The CDE Team
For more about 8-koi, please visit their website here.
CDE is a leader in providing engineering design, construction, and design/build services to an array of clients. CDE especially excels at providing designs for educational institutions from K-12 through the university level. In fact, CDE recently was awarded four new contracts by Florida K-12 entities.
Volusia County Schools
Volusia County Schools awarded two new individual contracts on a continuing basis for Structural and Electrical engineering services. This is our first time working with Volusia County Schools, and we look forward to partnering with their excellent team as they serve more than 61,000 students and 8,000 employees, helping them to ensure that each of their students receive a 21st-century education.
Brevard Public Schools
CDE is proud of our long history with our home county's educational administration entity. For more than a decade, we have provided Brevard Public Schools with MEP, Fire Protection, and Structural engineering services. Just last year, CDE was called on to help Brevard Public Schools with Cocoa High School, performing a sweeping revitalization of existing systems while also designing a new classroom building. In January 2019, Brevard Public Schools awarded CDE two new contracts. Those contracts have us providing on a continuing basis Structural engineering along with MEP and Fire Protection services. We at CDE believe in the truest sense of community, and we consider it a privilege to help our county's educators and also the students who will pave the way to the future.
We are convinced, and we believe you will be too, that CDE offers a clear advantage to the education community. Again and again, we have yielded quantifiable results – evidenced by the number of K-12 contracts awarded to CDE from Flagler County Public Schools, Volusia County Schools, Brevard Public Schools, and Indian River County Public Schools.
Is there any goal or project with your school district, college, or university that we can help you achieve? We would love to be of service to you!
