After more than two decades of leadership, partnership, and dedicated service to our clients and colleagues, Rory Ronan and Craig Razza will be retiring this May.
In 1998, Rory co-founded Kohler Ronan in Brookfield, Connecticut with a clear vision: to build a firm rooted in technical excellence, trusted relationships, and genuine client collaboration. As the firm evolved, opening a second office in New York City in 2005, and establishing our current Connecticut home on Lake Avenue in Danbury in 2013, the firm broadened its geographic reach while deepening its presence in cultural and academic communities. Through every stage of growth, Rory’s steady leadership shaped the culture and standards that define our practice today.
At the heart of Rory’s philosophy was a simple conviction: every client and every project deserves our highest commitment. There was no hierarchy of importance or B team, only a consistent expectation of excellence. He believed engineers should work in alignment with the architect’s design and vision, serving as trusted extensions of our clients’ teams. “Engineering Excellence and Client Partnering” was not simply a tagline, but a daily operating principle under his leadership.
From the firm’s first projects at the Classic Stage Theater, Fairfield University, and Yale University in the early 2000s to work at the American Museum of Natural History and The Metropolitan Museum of Art shortly afterwards, Rory’s commitment to excellence laid the foundation for an extraordinary portfolio. Today, that work spans institutions such as The Frick Collection, The Museum of Modern Art, Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, The New York Public Library, The University of Notre Dame, The University of Virginia, and Princeton University, as well as historic and landmarked sites nationwide. It is a portfolio built steadily over time, project by project and relationship by relationship.
Craig was equally instrumental in shaping the firm’s strength and reputation. A mechanical engineer first and foremost, he helped develop and lead our commissioning practice while serving healthcare, corporate, public education, and university clients across Connecticut and beyond. His clients, including multiple municipalities, Aetna, Cigna, Yale New Haven Health, The Connecticut State University System, and countless Connecticut public schools, knew him for his hands-on approach and technical depth. Among his recent academic projects were the state’s first net-zero public school (Mansfield Elementary) and its first net-zero university building (Southern Connecticut State University School of Business).
Even as a Partner, Craig was the engineer who carried his own tools, climbed ladders, and navigated tight spaces to ensure systems performed exactly as intended. Widely respected as an “architect’s engineer,” he prioritized collaboration, constructability, and coordination. For over twenty years, he also shared his expertise as a Lecturer in Systems Integration at the Yale University School of Architecture.
Together, Rory and Craig leave more than a collection of work. They leave a firm strengthened by their leadership, integrity, and commitment to excellent engineering. From its beginnings with just two engineers in 1998, Kohler Ronan has grown into a firm of more than seventy professionals, supported by a leadership team that will continue to guide the practice forward. Their mark is visible in our portfolio, in our partnerships, and in the generation of engineers they have mentored. It will endure in every document carrying the Kohler Ronan name.
Please join us in congratulating Rory and Craig on their well-earned retirement and in thanking them for their lasting impact on Kohler Ronan and on the profession.
Check out the Commercial Observer’s article on “The Plan: Pace Lift! University’s Downtown Campus Is Getting a Makeover!”
Please join us in congratulating our newest Principal, 
Kohler Ronan’s Craig Razza, PE, will be a panelist for the roundtable discussion “From Concept to Certification: Exploring Connecticut’s Net-Zero Energy Building Achievements” alongside colleagues from DAS Construction Services, Southern Connecticut State University, QA+M Architects, CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, TLBA Architecture, and Consulting Engineering Services and moderators from Newman Architects and Pickard Chilton.
