MAJOR GENERAL PETER J. OFFRINGA (RETIRED)

Highlights

• Deputy Commander and Deputy Chief of Engineers, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

• Deputy Director of Strategic Planning and Integration, Rocky Flats Department of Energy Site

• Director of Project Management & Facilities, Laboratory Management Office, University of California

Biography

For 32 years, Maj. Gen. Peter Offringa served with distinction in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  His career culminated in 1991 when he was appointed Deputy Commander and Deputy Chief of Engineers, second in charge of the Corps of Engineers’ $12 billion military, civil and environmental engineering programs.

For nearly two decades prior to this appointment, Gen. Offringa rose quickly through the ranks at the Corps of Engineers, serving as Director of Military Programs, Assistant Chief of Engineers, and Deputy Director of Civil Works. During this time, he oversaw management of civil works projects and military construction involving nuclear and Superfund sites.  He was also involved in wetlands reclamation and chemical demilitarization.

This experience resulted in his appointment in 2000 to be a senior member of the management team charged with closing the Rocky Flats Plant outside Denver, CO.

The Energy Department once described the Rocky Flats Plant cleanup as “the most significant and challenging environmental cleanup in the history of the United States.” Although projected in 1995 to take 65 years and cost $37 billion, Gen. Offringa and his team achieved closure in 10 years at a cost of $10 billion.  

Since 2003, Gen. Offringa has overseen or been involved in facilities operations for the University of California at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. 

Of special note, he helped oversee construction of the National Ignition Facility, the world’s largest laser system consisting of 192 giant lasers in a 10 story building the size of 3 football fields. The NIF was selected as the 2010 Project Management Institute’s Project of the Year.

During the 1980s, Gen. Offringa was assigned to the Corps of Engineers’ Ohio River Division, where he oversaw more than 4,500 personnel with activities in fourteen states. 

Gen. Offringa graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point with a Bachelor of Sciences degree.  He holds a Master of Science degree in Applied Science (Nuclear Physics) from the University of California.  He also graduated from the U.S. Army’s Air War College in Montgomery, Alabama.

Other achievements

• Registered Professional Engineer (Pennsylvania)
• Graduate of the Harvard School of Management and Governmental Affairs
• Professor of Chemistry and Physical Chemistry, United States Military Academy
• Commanded soldiers in battle during two tours in Vietnam

Email: poffringa@dawsonassociates.com