Leadership Team

President and CEO

David Mielke

A 25-year veteran of the chemical industry, David Mielke serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of ChemDesign. David’s leadership has been instrumental in strategically expanding their services in the agricultural, specialty chemical and fine chemical sectors. Prior to becoming President in 2006, he held positions as Director of Commercial Development and Vice President of Technology. He began his career as a development chemist with Aldrich Chemical and quickly took on more responsibilities in the areas of product development and management.

Under his leadership, ChemDesign has received national improvement and educational outreach honors from the Specialty Chemical Manufacturing Association (SOCMA), ChemStewards® environmental compliance, and safety awards from the Wisconsin Safety Council. In 2014, ChemDesign was named Business of the Year by the Marinette/Menominee Chamber.

David serves on the Board of Governors for SOCMA and the Board of Directors for the Marinette/Menominee Area Chamber. He is a member of the Optima Quality Consortium and the TEC Executive Committee (TEC XIII). He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and a Master of Science in Management & Organizational Behavior from Silver Lake College.

Vice President, Sales and Marketing

Rae Johnson

Rae has led the sales efforts of ChemDesign since 2004. He has over ten years of experience in the business development arena of the chemical industry, working for Hickson-DanChem, Brenntag and Ruetgers before joining ChemDesign. Rae is focused on developing chemical toll manufacturing relationships and is an active member of SOCMA and the Global Chemicals Executives.

Vice President of Operations

Joel Salzman

Joel oversees the operations management, engineering, materials management, and employee development functions at ChemDesign.  His key objectives are improving customer value, implementing lean manufacturing initiatives, and effectively coordinating plant activities across multi-functional departments.  With 18 years of experience in custom chemical manufacturing at ChemDesign, Joel has also held the positions of Director of Technology, Manager of Commercial Development, Building Manager, Process Chemist, and Senior Quality Analyst. Joel received a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and a Masters of Science degree in Management & Organizational Behavior from Silver Lake College. 

CFO

Trudi Janquart

Trudi Janquart serves as the CFO / Controller of ChemDesign. She has supervisory responsibility for the accounting, customer service, purchasing, and logistics teams. Trudi brings over two decades of experience in these areas in manufacturing settings. Her previous roles at ChemDesign include Staff Accountant, Senior Accountant, and Customer Relationship Manager. 

Trudi holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Northern Michigan University and a Master of Business Administration degree from St. Norbert College. She is a member of Women in Chemicals, a global community for women in the chemical industry.

Vice President of Business Development

Bryon Leggett

Bryon is responsible for expanding ChemDesign’s customer base in their vertical markets. He has experience as a consultant for fine and specialty chemical companies in areas related to pricing strategy, product portfolios, market analysis, import/export environments, product costing, financial analysis and outsourcing. He earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of South Carolina and a bachelor’s of science degree in chemical engineering from Clemson University. He served six years in the United States Army Reserve.

Human Resources and Employee Development Manager

Brian Bourgeois

Brian Bourgeois leads the professional development, recruiting, community relations, and training initiatives with ChemDesign Products, Inc. With over 35 years of experience in the chemical and gas industries, Brian has held key positions in chemical operations, HS&E, planning, and HR. His expertise includes professional development, employee recruitment/retention, process safety, equipment training, policy development, and worker’s compensation. He has advanced knowledge of regulatory compliance, ISO-9002, and SOCMA ChemStewards®.

Brian is an active member of the Vistage Organizational Development group, Chairman of the SOCMA Performance Improvement Committee, and has championed multiple chemical operator training programs in the industry.

Director of Health, Environmental and Safety

Tom Willis, CIH, CSP

Tom Willis is responsible for training, documentation and auditing compliance for their safety and risk management programs.

He has 27 years of experience in industrial hygiene program management, occupational health and safety compliance and train-the-trainer employee education. He is a Certified Industrial Hygienist, Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certified and professionally qualified in Rapid Action Team Six Sigma.

Tom holds a Master of Science degree in industrial hygiene from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial and environmental health management from Ferris State University.

Manager of Commercial Development and Quality Systems

Bob Romuald

Bob is responsible for new process development, continuous improvements, quality control and quality assurance. He has twenty-five years of experience in chemical process development and production with Aldrich Chemical and ChemDesign.  He has held positions as a Building Manager, Manager of Commercial Development, Manager of Research and Development and Director of Operations with ChemDesign. Bob holds a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from UW-Stevens Point, Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration and Master of Business Administration degrees from Lakeland College.

Technology Manager

Erica Beaumier

Erica is responsible for overseeing process development and analytical services. Her team focuses on helping clients design safe, efficient, and scalable commercial processes. Before her current role, Erica spent five years overseeing all Building 69 Operations and another five years as a process chemist with ChemDesign. Before that, she spent a decade as a college lab instructor in Chemistry. In 2019, Erica received the Women in Specialties Award from SOCMA. With over 20 years of experience in chemistry, Erica leverages her expertise to improve and optimize processes and custom synthesis projects with well-developed technical packages.