About the Author

Ramesh (RD) Patel was born in India and earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering in 1967. He then moved to the United States for further studies and earned a master's degree in mechanical engineering in 1970. Since then he has worked in the nuclear power plant industry for forty years, including thirty-five with GE Nuclear Energy in San Jose, California, in various engineering capacities. Patel was a member of several nuclear-related American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) code committees for over twenty-five years and is currently a contributing member of one of the nuclear piping code committees. He has coauthored five technical papers in the nuclear field and was a coinventor for three patents while working at GE Nuclear Energy. During his time in the nuclear field, Patel was involved in the development of critical procurement processes for the designing and purchasing of engineered equipment for a large project. The author used his forty years of experience and know-how to write this guide for the benefit of people involved in the procurement of engineered equipment in industrial/commercial projects, including engineers, designers, trainers, quality assurance engineers, and vendors. A professional engineer in the state of California, Patel has been a consultant for the nuclear industry since retiring from GE in November 2009. He currently lives with his family in California.