Simmons & White, Inc.

07/30/2026

SW sponsored The Citadel’s 2026 Academy of Engineers induction ceremony in Charleston, South Carolina, honoring ‘engineering leaders from both the public and private sectors who have enjoyed substantial success in their professional lives and made significant contributions to their communities.’

Our storied history with The Citadel continues to make a profound impact on the present and future growth of Simmons & White, Inc. Robert F. Rennebaum, P.E., ’84, Past President of the firm, is currently serving as the Chairman of The Citadel School of Engineering Executive Advisory Board and has been actively engaged with the School of Engineering for over 40 years.

With the assistance of past professors and Department Heads (Col. Thomas Dion—2026 inductee, Dr. Jeff Davis, and others), Rob has recruited and retained 7 Citadel graduates: Gregory F. Bolen, ’97, President; Kyle Duncan, ’99, Vice President; Paul Buri, ’03; Cody Floyd, ’18; Eric Vettel, ’21; Josh Gibson, ’23 and John Baker, ’23.

Simmons & White continues to support The Citadel through the establishment of Civil Engineering Scholarships, the founding of The Citadel Club of the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast, sponsoring engineering career fairs, and numerous other events throughout South Carolina and Florida.

06/15/2026

SW Spotlight—Meet Erik Cooper, P.E.! 🌟

Erik is a Senior Project Manager with Simmons & White in West Palm Beach, and a proud alumni of the Civil Engineering program at the University of Florida. 🌴

With 30 years of industry experience, his career has spanned a wide variety of projects across Florida, from northern St. Lucie County to southern Miami-Dade. He enjoys the unique challenges of each project, and seeing them through design, construction and completion. He has worked on everything from schools and golf courses to major commercial and urban developments. 🏗️

Born and raised in North Palm Beach, FL, Erik resides in his home town with his family. He is an avid offshore fisherman in constant pursuit of sailfish, dolphin, and swordfish, with his most favorite memories made on the South Florida and Bahamian waterways. 🎣 🐠 🐟 Erik’s passion for his work and love of the outdoors are matched by his enduring pride in his alma mater, where his daughter is a junior and his son, now in NYC, graduated in 2024.

Go Gators! 🐊

05/30/2026

05/19/2026

Simmons & White ranks in Top 10 ‘Best Places to Work!’ 🏆

Sarah and Payton recently attended the South Florida Business Journal’s awards ceremony at the Broward County Convention Center, where SW was a top 10 award winner in the small business category!

This annual event honors companies for their ‘superior workplace culture, employee engagement, and supportive environments.’

05/19/2026

The Orchards of Westlake is a 200 acre, 599 unit single-family residential development located within the City of Westlake, FL. Designed in two phases for Minto Communities, SW was responsible for paving, drainage, ICPR modeling, utility system, site roadway, water management and wastewater designs, lakes, underground storm drainage systems, lift station, and force mains, drainage studies, site plan approval process assistance, construction documents and observation, construction phase consulting, project management, contract administration, record drawings, shop drawing review, and value engineering. We also provided assistance with the FEMA LOMR and designed the off-site force main extension along Persimmon Boulevard.

Since 2013, SW has worked for six different developers within the City of Westlake and has designed, permitted and certified 14 residential development pods and the associated drainage, water, sewer and irrigation water main systems including 13 municipal lift stations serving approximately 3600 residential units. We also designed the Westlake Adventure Park, the award-winning Westlake Visitor’s Center and Wellington Regional Medical Center’s Emergency Room-Westlake Campus.

03/11/2026

Meet Eric Vettel, P.E.! SW Senior Project Manager in West Palm Beach, FL 🌴

In 2021, Eric joined Simmons & White as a Project Engineer after graduating from The Citadel with a Civil Engineering degree. A Charleston, South Carolina, native, he also played Division 1 football 🏈 for the Bulldogs and shared the college experience with his twin brother, a mechanical engineering major. Family means everything to Eric, who is fortunate to have so many relatives residing in the Charleston Lowcountry.

Eric recently earned his P.E. license and was promoted to Project Manager. He currently has multiple development projects under construction including ‘8111 S. Dixie’ in West Palm Beach, the ‘Residences at Marina Village’ in Riviera Beach, and ‘Port 32’ in Palm Beach Gardens. His day-to-day activities include preparing Site Development Plans, and coordinating with developers, architects, contractors, and site planners throughout the design/permitting, construction, and closeout phases of a project. He also just completed ‘The Hangar at PBIA’ 🛩️ 🚁🏎️ in West Palm Beach which included over 186,000 CF of storage provided in underground stormwater chambers.

Outside of the office, Eric stays extremely active by training in jiu-jitsu, participating in run clubs, regularly competing in marathons and Hyrox races, and testing out bike trails across South Florida. He also meets regularly with a local Toastmasters group to sharpen his presentation skills, travels often, and enjoys a nice sunny day spent at the beach, paddleboarding and at the local green markets. Last summer he completed the Grand Teton Half Marathon with his family and girlfriend in Wyoming, and completed the Half Ironman in Central Florida in December! 🥇

02/09/2026

It was a picture perfect day at Place of Hope’s 14th Annual Sporting Clays Fun Shoot! SW has been a proud sponsor for over 10 years, and we look forward to participating in this great event each and every time. 💯

📸 L-R: Tad Rowe, Zane Beard (Minto Communities, LLC), Bobby Knott (Kolter Homes), and Jamie Parrish

01/12/2026

The SW team celebrated the groundbreaking for the first “Class-A” mixed-income development in Riviera Beach—the Residences at Marina Village!

This eight-story public-private development along Broadway Avenue, just steps away from the Intracoastal Waterway, is creating an exciting mixed-use destination in northern Palm Beach County that will provide new opportunities for the local community while energizing this historic corridor.

12/15/2025

SW met dozens of exceptional engineering and construction students during The Citadel’s Fall Career Fair in Charleston, SC!

Consistently ranked as the top public institution in the southeast, and #14 nation wide for engineering, we’re honored to continue adding esteemed alumni to our team!