About Us

Pinnacle Engineering, PLC is a full service structural engineering firm founded on more than thirty continuous years of licensed professional engineering experience. Our Charlottesville office is centrally located in Virginia and the mid-Atlantic. Pinnacle Engineering strives to be the regional structural engineer of choice for discerning architects and owners, offering high quality design and client service. To fulfill that role, the firm is dedicated to being:

Pinnacle Engineering, PLC is certified as a Small Business by the Commonwealth of Virginia and meets small business size standards for engineering services established by the United States Small Business Administration.

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Our Services

Pinnacle Engineering offers the traditional analysis and design services through construction administration.  We analyze and design structural steel and reinforced concrete buildings using comprehensive three-dimensional models, and produce construction drawings using building information modeling (BIM) software.  Our BIM models are typically formulated using Autodesk Revit Structure.  Extending use of the BIM model into the construction fabrication process is a focal point.  Our structural engineering services include:

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Our Clients

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Our People

S. Keith Rittenhouse, P.E., Principal – Structural Engineer

Keith Rittenhouse established Pinnacle Engineering in 2002. His responsibilities include firm management, business development, project management, structural design, forensic studies and investigations, and expert witness advice.

Prior to forming Pinnacle Engineering, Mr. Rittenhouse was Principal and Partner at two multi-office structural engineering firms with responsibilities that included professional certification, project management, and design of institutional buildings, highway bridges, and rapid transit facilities. In his more than thirty years of experience as a licensed Professional Engineer, he has achieved much experience in design of higher education buildings throughout Virginia with increasing experience in the design of healthcare facilities. His investigation, forensic, and historic preservation work has encompassed a broad range from facility condition surveys and investigations of building collapse to projects executed at Monticello for the Thomas Jefferson Foundation.

Mr. Rittenhouse graduated from the University of Virginia (BSCE With Distinction and Master of Engineering in Civil Engineering), and is licensed as a Professional Engineer in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

Alvin M. Trout, P.E. – Structural Engineer

Alvin Trout has been with Pinnacle Engineering since 2004.  His responsibilities have included both structural design and project management of a broad range of projects that include Bavaro Hall at the University of Virginia Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia, the 100,000 SF Information Technology Engineering Building at the University of Virginia, and the Lee Hall Renovation and Addition at the University of Mary Washington.

Prior to joining Pinnacle Engineering, Mr. Trout was a structural engineer with the Virginia Department of Transportation and then with a Virginia-based multi-office structural engineering firm.  He is a graduate of Virginia Tech (BSCE Magna Cum Laude and Master of Science in Civil Engineering) and is a licensed Professional Engineer in Virginia.

Matthew S. Holzer, E.I.T. – Structural Engineer

Matt Holzer has been with Pinnacle Engineering since 2008 and has contributed both structural design and construction administration to a broad range of our higher education, healthcare, and residential projects. His design projects include the Jarman Auditorium Renovation at Longwood University and the Smith Building Renovation at Lord Fairfax Community College.

Mr. Holzer graduated from Virginia Tech with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and is an Engineer-In-Training in Virginia.

David S. Clark, E.I.T. – Structural Engineer

David Clark joined Pinnacle Engineering in 2008 and has worked on a wide variety of our higher education and healthcare projects.  His work has included design of two-way reinforced concrete flat slab floors for vibration-sensitive laboratories in the University of Virginia College of Arts and Sciences Physical and Life Sciences Research Building.

Mr. Clark is a graduate of the University of Virginia with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering With Highest Distinction.  He is an Engineer-In-Training in Virginia.

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