Meet the Team

Dr. Derek Houtz - CEO

With his PhD in Aerospace engineering, specializing in microwave remote sensing, Derek has been engaged in environmental monitoring for over a decade. Derek built the first TerraRad Tech prototypes in his lab at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL).

Robert Sedin - COO

With his education and background in International Business, Robert oversees much of the daily operations. In leading the corporate development efforts, he is inspired by the unique market potential of TerraRad and the profound benefit it can have for our natural world.

Simon Bourguigne

Lead Electrical Design Engineer

Simon Bourguigne is an Electrical Engineer with almost a decade of experience in the hardware design industry. He brings the practical skill needed to turn a conceptual design into manufacturable product and be able to scale production. At Terrarad, he will be overseeing design, testing and manufacturing

Lars Horvath

Lead Product Engineer

Lars Horvath is currently completing his master’s degree in Electrical Engineering at ETH. He has experience working as a Radio Frequency Design Engineer for the ARIS rocket sudent project and coordinates our collaborations with the ETH Deperatment of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering (DITET).

Paul Hartzell

Global Sales Advisor

Paul began his sales career in 1982 with the NYSE firm Kidder Peabody and worked for public companies such as Sorg Printing, RR Donnelley & Co., Merrill Corporation and Seagate Technology, with postings in London, Singapore, and New York. From 2002 to 2012, he created a global brand by leveraging 52 direct sales, 7 inside sales and multiple channel relationships to build the world’s leading virtual deal room platform named DataSite. Startup revenue grew from inception to $125M with EBITDA of 52% in 2011 and generated revenue of more than $500M and in EBITDA of more than $250M with worldwide adoption. Prior to his professional sales career, Paul pitched more than 700 innings of Major League Baseball for four teams from 1975 to 1985. He is a graduate of Lehigh University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering.

Simon Steffen

Sustainability & marketing manager

Simon Steffen has a MSc. in Climate Science with an emphasis in economics from the Oeschger Center for Climate Change Research at the University of Bern. At TerraRad, Simon is involved on multiple fronts and works to ensure that the focus of the endeavor is never lost, we are working to create a company that is of benefit to the natural world and its finite resources. 

Strategic Advisors 

Shaen Bernhardt

Counsel and Business Development

Mr. Bernhardt holds a Bachelor of the Arts in International Relations with a concentration in Security Studies from Boston University, a Juris Doctor with concentrations in National Security Law and Securities Law from Georgetown University Law Center, and a Master of Business Administration with concentrations in Strategy and Entrepreneurship from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. Mr. Bernhardt has also studied International Law at the University of Florence, and International Business at the University of St. Gallen’s HSG.

Mr. Bernhardt is a founder or principal of several start-up ventures.

Hansjürg Valentin

Board Member

Hansjürg Valentin has extensive experience in company leadership, having served as the CEO and President of Valentin Pontresina AG for over 40 years. Hansjürg maintains a large network of potential investors in the Engadin valley of Graubünden, Switzerland..

Dr. Mike Schwank

Chief Scientific Advisor

Mike has spent the last 30+ years studying passive microwave remote sensing of soil and snow. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering and his PhD in Physics, Mike has significantly contributed to the ESA Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite mission, as well as pioneeering many cryospheric remote sensing tehcniques.