Kirk N. Ellis


Kirk N. Ellis, P.E., S.E., is the President of KNE & Associates. He left the firm of Clark Gribben & Associates in February 1987, where he was Vice-President and Partner/Shareholder. Kirk has a very broad range of experience as principal-in-charge and/or the structural engineering design of numerous projects including major Hotel/Casino Projects, warehouses, schools, hospitals, university buildings, office buildings, banks, major public works structures, apartment buildings, parking structures, HS20 rated bridge structures, commercial and industrial buildings, and structural rehabilitation/restoration/seismic retrofit work. He has over 36 years of experience in the structural engineering and structural dynamics field.

Kirk N. Ellis, P.E., S.E., became a Registered Civil and Structural Engineer in Nevada in 1976 and 1979, respectively; and in California in 1975 and 1978, respectively.

Kirk attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he obtained a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Science in 1972. He was listed on the Dean's Honors List several times while at UNLV. He relocated to Reno, where he has been since. Attending the University of Nevada, Reno, he obtained a Master of Science in Civil Engineering in 1974, specializing in structures and structural dynamics. During his graduate studies, he maintained a perfect 4.00 grade point average.

While finishing his Bachelor of Science program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and for a period thereafter, Kirk was employed by URS John A. Blume & Associates Engineers as a research engineer. He was involved with the Dynamic/Seismic modeling and structural analysis of the majority of the high-rise structures then in Las Vegas. This was in connection with the testing of up to 2-megaton nuclear events at the Nevada Test Site, which caused ground shaking in Las Vegas. He also authored or co-authored several technical reports on structural dynamics related subjects.

While completing his Master's Degree program at the University of Nevada Reno campus, Kirk was employed by the Civil Engineering Department as a Graduate Teaching Assistant. He was responsible for the teaching of several upper division courses in Civil Engineering. From 1976 to 1978, he taught Computer Programming for the Civil Engineering Department at UNR, as a part-time adjunct Professor.

Kirk is a Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and Past President of the Truckee Meadows Branch for 8 years. Also, he recently held a position with the Historic Resources Commission for the City of Reno. He is also Past President of the Nevada Section, ASCE; and is a Member of the National Society of Professional Engineers. In 1980, he was elected by the Reno Chapter of NSPE as the Young Engineer of the Year. He is also a Professional Member of the American Concrete Institute, the American Institute of Steel Construction, the Post Tensioning Institute, and the Pre-stressed Concrete Institute. Kirk is also a member of the Structural Engineers Association of California Central Division (SEAOCC) and was a Member of the Seismology Committee for Earthquake Resistant Building Design, and on the SEAOCC Board of Directors, Eastern District. Kirk is also a member of the Structural Engineers Association of Nevada (SEAON). He has also served as a Guest Member of the Nevada State Board of Registered Professional Engineers on numerous occasions.


Since college, Kirk has designed an impressive volume of work, as can be seen from the Projects Page.
Click here for a copy of Kirk N. Ellis's Resume