Tommy Begres, DNP, EMTP-IC, serves as the Senior Director of Medical Affairs at SERB Pharmaceuticals, where he leads initiatives focused on safety countermeasures designed to protect both military personnel and civilian first responders. In addition to his corporate leadership role, hospital acute care experience Tommy has dedicated more than two decades to public service as a professional firefighter with a full-time fire department in Southeast Michigan.

Recognized for contributions to national security; Tommy’s work led to the organization receiving the Homeland Security Investigations Partnership Award in November 2018 for developing countermeasures that protected field operatives nationwide His combined expertise in frontline emergency response and medical leadership uniquely positions him at the intersection of clinical practice, public safety, and pharmaceutical innovation.

Mitch Wells earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Chemistry from Monmouth College, Monmouth IL in 1995 and a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN in 2000. His Ph.D. research was conducted with Professor R. Graham Cooks, and involved improving the performance and applicability of mass spectrometers for field use as chemical and explosive detectors.  He spent two years as a post-doctoral colleague of Professor Scott McLuckey at Purdue, developing novel instrumentation and methods for the characterization of biological molecules, including whole proteins and DNA oligomers.

In 2002, Wells became senior research scientist at the newly-founded Griffin Analytical Technologies (now part of the Integrated Detection Systems business unit Teledyne FLIR Defense), contributing to the company mission to move gold-standard Mass Spec chemical detection technology out of the laboratory and into the field for detection of hazardous substances, including chemical warfare agents (CWAs), toxic industrial chemicals (TICs), explosives, and narcotics.  Wells has served as the PI on numerous government- and internally-funded research projects, including for Department of Homeland Security, JPEO CBRND, and DTRA.  He has published approximately 30 research papers and reviews, given numerous posters and oral presentations at scientific conferences, and is a joint holder of numerous patents concerning mass spectrometry technology.   

Ralph A. Suppa is a Fire Captain and Station Commander with a metropolitan fire department, with more than 20 years in the fire service and over 14 years in special operations. He is the CEO of Cervitas Solutions, where he helps fire departments, healthcare organizations, and industry prepare for hazardous materials and lithium-ion battery incidents.

Ralph serves on the International Association of Fire Chiefs Hazardous Materials and Lithium Ion Battery Committees, he chairs its Battery Medical Task Group. He is also an InterAgency Board subject matter expert, contributing to work on decontamination, operations, and medical considerations involving alternative fuels and lithium-ion batteries. He serves on state and national commissions to build standards for lithium ion batteries. His work connects incident response, responder health, and the practical challenges of electric vehicles and battery energy storage systems.

Ralph has presented internationally in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Turkey, sharing lessons from the field with fire service and industry audiences. He brings a responder’s perspective to emerging battery hazards and a commitment to turning research and guidance into actions crews can use.

Casey Galligan joined Avon Protection in 2021 and is the Senior Director for the US Homeland Security and the Department of Defense. 

He is a retired Green Beret with 20 years of experience leading high-performance teams in special operations with combat deployments to Afghanistan and strategic training in Asia and Latin America.  At Avon Protection, his team focusses on soldier systems, including respiratory, powered air, supplied air, subterranean, and full ensemble solutions. They have secured several DOD awards and contracts over the last few years and support critical programs such as the Joint Service General Purpose Mask (JSGPM), CBRNE Specialist and SOCOM respirators, and filter programs.

The team place an emphasis on experimentation events to identify current capability gaps and accelerate the development of innovative end-user-focused solutions.

Casey holds an MBA from the Emory Goizueta Business School, an MA in Strategic Security Studies from the National Defense University, and a BSc in Finance and Marketing from Florida State University.

Maj. Rafal Matuszkiewicz is the head of the Chemical and Ecological Rescue Department at the Fire University in Warsaw (Poland). He is a member of the rescUE DSIM Poland team (Detection, Sampling, Identification and Monitoring). He has many years of experience in project management in Eastern European countries, particularly in Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. From 2014 to 2016, he implemented first project titled CBRN - Cross-border Safety and Cooperation with the Main Department of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Lviv region. Currently he is the coordinator of the project "Support of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in rescue operations against CBRNe threats

Dr. Scott Hartley is the CEO of Proengin Inc. which develops and manufactures chemical and biological detection systems.  In this role, Dr. Hartley is responsible leading and directing Proengin operations in North American.  Proengin is a leader in flame spectroscopy technology which is able to quickly and precisely identify key materials found in chemical warfare agents, precursor materials, binary agents, fourth generation agents as well as many toxic industrial chemicals.  This technology is also able to identify key biological materials found in toxins, bacteria and spores. Proengin technology has been adopted for use in over 72 countries and is used for military, first responder, HAZMAT, chemical and security applications.  

Prior to joining Proengin, Dr. Hartley was served in various Business Development roles for BAE Systems/Armor Holdings where he worked on personal protective equipment and combat vehicles.  He also previously worked at Gentex Corporation where he held various engineering, program management and general management roles.  Dr. Hartley holds BS degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Mathematics from Cedarville University, dual MBA’s in Finance and Operations Management from the University of Scranton, and a Doctorate of Management degree in Technology Systems Management from the University of Maryland.  He holds 11 patents and serves on the Board of Directors for the Warrior Protection and Readiness Coalition. 

Corey Collings brings over 20 years of hands-on expertise in hazardous materials, CBRNe response, technical rescue, and emergency preparedness. His service in the US Army focused on counter-IED and explosive hazard operations, search and extraction, and technical and mass decontamination.

Transitioning to law enforcement, Corey specialized in crisis intervention, opioid (including fentanyl) response, and hazardous materials operations. In the private sector, he has pioneered innovative decontamination tools, dry decon tactics, and training programs now deployed worldwide.

As Technical and Training Director at First Line Technology, Corey leads research, development, testing & evaluation (RDT&E), and training for science-based solutions specifically focused on technologically advanced decontamination methods and lightweight, modular decontamination systems. He has trained thousands of federal, state, local, and military personnel, built a global training program from the ground up, including contract supporting DoD and first-responder missions. Corey holds a B.A. in Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, post-graduate work in Counter-Terrorism, and numerous CBRNe/HazMat certifications.

He is passionate about delivering simple, effective, field-proven technologies that enhance warfighter and responder survivability in contested CBRNe environments.

Counterterrorism Division, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED)

Stewart Robertson has served as Major over the Counterterrorism Unit/Division at the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) since 2018.  The Counterterrorism Unit is comprised of 9 individual and highly specialized departments/units that include: Arson Investigation, Aviation, Bloodhound Tracking and Canine Team, Bomb Squad, Counterterrorism Dive Unit (CDU), Protective Services/Emergency Management (PSEM) Unit, SWAT Team, Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Team, and SeaHawk Interagency Operations Center (IOC) (South Carolina Port Security Unit).

He started his career at SLED in 1998 within the SLED Forensics Laboratory and since then has also served in the Arson Investigations Unit, and Bomb Squad where he became an FBI Hazardous Device Technician, until rising to the rank of Captain and Bomb Squad Commander in 2014. As Captain, Robertson supervised the Arson Investigations Unit, the Bomb Squad, and the Counterterrorism Dive Unit (CDU). 

Throughout his over 27 years at SLED, Major Robertson has had the privilege to work and train all over the world.  He also spent much of his career participating in collateral duties as both an operator and leader on the SLED SWAT team, SWAT Entry team, WMD team, Bloodhound Assistance team (BAT), Air Rescue team, Clandestine Lab team, and Counterterrorism Dive Unit (CDU) as one of the few SMEs in the country certified by the FBI as an Underwater Hazardous Devices Technician, an ATF Task Force Officer, FBI Task Force Officer, Special Deputy U.S. Marshal Commission, an instructor/subject matter expert in several disciplines to include (CBRNE), and a higher education adjunct instructor.

Major Robertson also holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology/Criminal Justice, a Master of Arts’ Degree in Criminal Justice, and a PhD in Criminal Justice/Homeland Security.

Kevin W. Johnson is a retired Supervisory Forensic Operations Specialist/Paramedic, serving 25 years with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Laboratory Division’s Technical Hazards Response Unit (THRU) in Quantico, Virginia. He supported THRU’s global mission to provide hazmat, technical, medical, and health/safety services in support of complex FBI forensic operations. He is a member of the NFPA Technical Committee for Hazardous Materials Personnel, an adjunct to the IAFC Hazardous Materials Committee, and was on the Interagency Board (IAB). Prior to joining the FBI THRU in 1999, he served 23 years as an EMS, Fire, Hazmat, Dive, Flight Medic, and Technical Rescue responder & supervisor in Jefferson County (Louisville), Kentucky, and in retirement he rejoined the Pleasure Ridge Park Fire Protection District (KY) as a part-time Training Instructor. He also works part-time as a National Security Analyst Expert in WMD Counterproliferation/ICS for GDIT and provides instruction on hazmat topics as needed for Safeware/Hazard3. He has an MS in adult education from the University of Louisville and is a certified Associate Safety Professional.