BATON ROUGE, LA — Neel-Schaffer announces that Chris Knotts, PE, F.ASCE, BC.WRE, has joined the firm and will serve as the Director of Business Development - Louisiana.

Knotts has nearly 40 years of civil engineering experience. He began his career in the private sector and for the last 26.5 years worked in various roles for the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LaDOTD) and the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources. He held the position of LaDOTD Chief Engineer — supervising 550 employees and overseeing the agency’s Office of Engineering — for the final six years before retiring from LaDOTD in October 2023.

In his new role, Knotts will be responsible for managing client relationships and driving business growth, catering to existing and prospective Neel-Schaffer clients across the state.

“Chris brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to Neel-Schaffer,” said Jerry Trumps, Executive Vice President for Neel-Schaffer’s Southwest Region. “He has worked for state agencies for decades, and throughout his career he has worked with various municipalities and parishes around the state. We will look for him to develop an outreach program that will allow us to connect with current and future clients and assist in expanding our services in Louisiana.”

Knotts is currently involved in the National Council of Examiners for Engineering & Surveying. He has held past positions in the Louisiana Engineering Society, the Louisiana Professional Engineering and Land Surveying Board, the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Louisiana Water Resources Commission, the Louisiana Watershed Initiative, and the Comite River Diversion Canal Task Force.

Knotts holds two degrees from Louisiana State University: a Bachelor of Engineering Technology and a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering. He earned a Master of Engineering in civil engineering (structures) from the University of Texas at Arlington.