HAMPTON, VA — Pancopia LLC today announced that Austin Johnson has joined the company as an Agricultural Engineer, where he will support commercial system development and deployment of Pancopia’s FreshFlush™ nitrogen and water management platform for swine operations.
Johnson’s appointment supports Pancopia’s ongoing transition from pilot-scale validation to field-ready commercial systems designed to improve in-barn air quality, enhance animal performance, and strengthen nutrient and water management outcomes for producers.
Johnson earned his Bachelor of Science in Biosystems Engineering from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in May 2025. His academic and professional experience includes applied engineering research, environmental testing, and nutrient and water management planning developed through multiple grant-funded initiatives.
While at the University of Tennessee, Johnson contributed to a USDA-funded research collaboration focused on agricultural spray application performance and field measurement methodologies aimed at improving production efficiency. He also supported a NASDA–EPA funded project within an extension internship program, assisting with nutrient management planning efforts for surrounding urban and community-scale agricultural systems.
Johnson’s undergraduate design experience includes the development and validation of a small-scale hops drying system, a project recognized by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) and awarded third place in the AGCO National Student Design Competition. The work was featured in ASABE Resource Magazine and recognized at the ASABE International Meeting held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
“Austin brings a strong foundation in applied agricultural engineering and a practical design-build-test mindset that aligns well with our commercial development needs,” said William Cumbie, co-founder of Pancopia LLC. “As we expand FreshFlush™ deployments, his experience supports our focus on reliable, repeatable systems for producers.”
In his role, Johnson will support engineering execution across commercial system development activities, including field implementation and iterative design refinement. This announcement is role-focused and does not include proprietary project details.
About Pancopia LLC
Pancopia LLC is an environmental technology company headquartered in Hampton, Virginia, focused on creating and commercializing technologies that maximize the asset-value of waste. The company adapts water technologies originally developed for NASA to solve pressing challenges in the agricultural sector. For more information, visit www.pancopia.com.
More information about DOE SBIR awards is available at https://science.osti.gov/sbir.
Media Contact:
Pancopia LLC
bill@pancopia.com
Hampton, Virginia
