January - Construction News

Transcription

Covering the Industry’s News
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CONSTRUCTION
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The Industry’s Newspaper
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Home Ofc: P.O. Box 791290 San Antonio, TX 79279 (210) 308-5800
 JAN 2010

Vol. 10 
Wright place, right time
40 and counting
L-R: Steve Wright, president; Kirby Carpenter, area manager; Brax Wright, CEO
Cow roping was just one of the many activities at the Alpha anniversary party
at the Don Strange Ranch in San Antonio.
T
he staff at Texana Machinery is answering the phones differently
these days at the company’s locations in Austin and San Antonio.
Effective Dec. 21, 2009, Associated
Supply Company Inc. (ASCO) acquired
Texana Machinery. ASCO is owned by the
Wright family, and the construction
equipment and material-handling rental
company is based in Lubbock, TX with 10
locations concentrated in West Texas.
ASCO is celebrating its 50th anniversary
in 2010.
“We are going to call ourselves ASCO
Texana Machinery for a period of time to
make sure we don’t confuse our customers,” said Kirby Carpenter, Texana’s former president, who will now be the Central Texas area manager for ASCO.
D
PR Construction completed the
St. David’s North Austin Medical
Center – Women’s Service Expansion and Renovation at 12221 MoPac Expressway North in 21 months.
Project Manager Brandon Murphy
says the new building’s structure was
constructed with cast in place concrete.
“The skin is precast and curtain wall,”
he said. “The vertical expansion structure, including the connector bridge, is
constructed with steel. The skin for the
expansion areas is metal framing, sheathing and E.F.I.S.
“Interior construction materials used
during the project include gypsum drywall partitions, acoustical ceiling, sheet
vinyl, carpet and VCT flooring, aluminum
and glass radius ornamental handrail system and watermark showers.”
According to Murphy, the square
footage for the Women’s Services Expansion and Renovation was 121,600sf. The
new addition was 33,500sf and the renovation totaled 56,700sf.
“We are very excited as the economy
picks up, to have the forward momentum
that ASCO has given us to really expand
what we are doing in Central Texas.
“We are going to be adding a tremendous amount of rental equipment,
over and above what Texana has rented.”
Over Texana’s 15-year history, it has
been the Case and Kawasaki dealer in
the Central Texas market.
“We traditionally have been dirt
guys, demolition guys, break the rock,
dig in the dirt, and ASCO does that too,”
Carpenter said. “But in addition to that,
they have a complete array of pumps,
compressor, concrete equipment, boom
lifts, reach lifts, scissor lifts. We will even
continued on Page 14
Y
ou might say Alpha Building Corporation was born in the last frontier. A little more than 40 years ago
Gordon Kovich and his wife, Viola,
founded Alpha Building Corporation to
pursue work at the Manned Spacecraft
Center in Clear Lake, TX, which is now
known as NASA.
Today, the Kovich’s daughter, Kathy
Acock, heads up Alpha and its 17 offices
in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Tennessee, and the company’s focus includes
many university projects as well as military and municipalities.
“When you look back at the years
you wonder how did we get this far?”
Acock asked. “Over 40 years ago my dad
set our course, which was to provide construction services and new construction.
Operation: renovation
A brand new facility built by DPR Construction for St. David’s North Austin Medical Center
is dedicated to the care of mothers and their newborn infants.
No. 1
We were blessed to be awarded the contract at NASA Johnson Space Center in
Houston for construction services.”
In 1988 Alpha changed business directions when Acock introduced job order contracting, construction management at risk and other methods of delivering construction. She wrote proposals
and won four contracts at military bases
in San Antonio. Acock opened the San
Antonio office to handle the new contracts, bringing her husband, Horace
Acock, and Ron Fuller.
Richard Booher, Alpha executive
vice president, says Acock grew up in the
business.
“She inventoried the tool room, did
“One unique aspect on the project
was the number of different phases that
had to occur,” he said. “Some phases
were ongoing at the same time in different parts of the hospital. At one point in
the project we had four major phases under construction in three separate wings
of the hospital without effecting operations of the existing facility.
“With the multiple areas under construction at one time, DPR’s focus was
how to complete each phase without disrupting operations of the existing facility.
DPR’s superintendents reviewed work
plans with the facility on a daily basis so
the facility knew exactly where work was
occurring in and around the existing facility at all times.” Murphy says the
use of DPR’s own forces to complete work
such as drywall partitions and ceiling systems was beneficial while working in the
existing facility.
“During the renovations phases
Page 2 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––----------------––––– Austin Construction News • Jan 2010
Right combination
Thoughts
for a New Year
An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in.
A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves. –Bill Vaughan
Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.
–Oprah Winfrey
A New Year’s resolution is something that goes in one year
and out the other. –Unknown Author
L-R: Robert Van Cleave, Balfour Beatty Construction; Steve Mechler, SpawMaxwell, a Balfour
Beatty company and David Spaw, SpawMaxwell, a Balfour Beatty company
B
alfour Beatty Construction recently
acquired SpawMaxwell Co., an interior construction contractor with offices in Austin, Dallas and Houston.
According to Connie Oliver, corporate communications vice president at
Balfour Beatty Construction, the acquisition is a strategic step forward for both
companies.
“The move will enhance SpawMaxwell’s growth in the vertical construction
market,” Oliver said. “The combination of
talents and services between both companies will further their continued expansion in Texas.”
Balfour Beatty Construction’s capabilities in exterior core and shell construction will complement SpawMaxwell’s
strength in premium corporate and
healthcare interior construction, she said.
“This is an exciting and significant acquisition for both companies,” said Robert C. Van Cleave, chairman and chief
executive officer at Balfour Beatty Construction.
“It will elevate the services we can offer, and provide us an immediate and
substantial presence in key Texas markets
outside our home base in Dallas. We’ve
been admirers of SpawMaxwell for years,
and look forward to having their company join the Balfour team.”
Steve Mechler, president at SpawMaxwell said, “While SpawMaxwell will
retain its brand, it will begin immediately
operating under “SpawMaxwell – a Balfour Beatty company”. SpawMaxwell will
continue to emphasize local decision
making, operating as an autonomous
unit within Balfour Beatty Construction.”
Balfour Beatty Construction is a general contracting, construction management and design-build firm. SpawMaxwell
Co. is a interior construction services and
general contracting firm. –ab
Construction News ON LOCATION
Christmas cheer
L-R: Rexel employees, Michael Lovell and Ryan Norton are all smiles as they wait
on customers. Rexel provides electrical supplies for industrial, commercial and
residential projects. –bd
Paint the town
L-R: This colorful trio from PPG Pittsburgh Paint Greg Yanta, Radamez Casillas
and Mike MacIntyre provide friendly service to their clients. –bd
Austin Construction News • Jan 2010 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-----------------––––––––––––––––– Page 3
Industry FOLKS
Mat Edwards
McCoy’s Building Supply
A
Texan through and through
20-year-old Lake Travis High
School alum Mat Edwards was born in
Waco and now calls Burnet home. “I’ve
lived in Texas all my life and love it,” he
says.
Edwards didn’t have to stray far
from home to find his career in the
construction industry. Working at his
neighborhood McCoy’s Building Supply came naturally after buying materials from them with his dad when he
was a boy.
This footloose and fancy-free single guy is pretty laid back about everything but his career at the moment.
A movie buff, he spends most of his
free time outside of work “chillin’” with
his friends.
“I have one motto that I live by,”
he says, “and that’s ‘Bang, bang, bang
on the drum!’” referencing a favorite
movie, Role Models.
Edwards says he had an “in” that
didn’t hurt when he went to interview
for a position with the company in
2006.
“My manager, Tracy Kasper knew
my dad as a customer of the store,”
says Mat.
One of the things he loves most
about his job is bonding with his customers.
“I handle a lot of customers each
day and have been able to grow good
bonds with many of them,” he says.
Mat has also enjoyed learning various parts of the operation and counts
himself lucky to have grown so much
professionally in the building business
in four short years.
“I’ve moved my way up from floor
sales, where I started, to yard dog to
now, delivery coordinator,” he explains.
“I do everything from cash sales to bids,
and I also special order doors and windows.”
He says he likes the people he
works with every day a lot. He credits
Kasper with teaching him how to best
work with customers.
Commercial sales representatives
Cody Swindall and Donna Whitworth
have made a unique contribution to his
career development as well. He says
that they help make his workdays more
stress free.
“Cody, Donna and I have a code
word. We say ‘LEAVE!’ if one of us is
having a ‘burn the place down’ kind of
bad day,” he jokes. “And if something is
going really good we encourage each
other with “COME ON!”
This lighthearted approach is just
another way that he’s built trust with
not only his customers, but also with
the people he works with.
“We always end up laughing at
each other,” he says, “and that just relieves a lot of stress!” –ap
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A.D. Willis Company is proud to announce that they
recently received a Leadership in Safety Award from the CNA Insurance
Companies. Singled out for their exceptional ongoing safety record,
Mike Haseldon, CEO of Guaranty Insurance Services, agents for CNA,
marked the occasion as momentous.
A.D. Willis employees on hand Dec. 3 to receive the award from CNA’s Paul Gouge
L-R: Charlie Glaze, Garrett Pipes, Paul Gouge Martin Riley, Jim Pipes, David Carroll
Page 4 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––----------------–––––– Austin Construction News • Jan 2010
born because my parents bought that
property at LBJ in 1962. I love the lakes
around here and said that’s where I’m going to go when I move out. I had a good
friend who lived at Lake LBJ, so we moved
here and rented a house together.
Rick Hull
Hull Supply Company
G
ood karma and clean living – for
Rick Hull, president of Hull Supply
Company, how a person approaches life and treats others in the process is essential, and for him, success has
been found through his fierce work ethic,
love of family and a zest for the outdoors.
What was your childhood like?
I was born and raised in Houston,
Texas. My dad worked at Gray Tool Company and my mom was a stay-at-home
mom.
When I grew up in Houston, I had a
bayou behind my house. I could take my
dirt bike and travel throughout Houston,
traveling the bayous. That was nice in
Houston growing up, being able to get
out and get around.
What about sports?
I started baseball when I was about
four years old – t-ball – that lasted until I
was 15. I was in minor Little League up to
majors.
But I was a big water-skier. My parents had a house on Lake LBJ and we
went up there a lot of weekends. I had
three older brothers who taught me to
two-ski at four years old, I was on slalom
by six years old and by 12, I was barefooting. I did a few water ski competitions on
a slalom course. I never won any of those,
but I did fair. When I moved up here, I was
part of a ski club. I really got into the
jumping. The longest jump was about
135 to 140 feet.
As the youngest of four boys, I bet you
gave your poor mother grief!
Oh yeah, my brothers broke her in
pretty well for me – my oldest brother’s
ten years older. They had to wait until they
were 15 before they could do what I did at
10! I guess they wore her down for me.
When, and why, did you move to Austin?
I stayed in Houston until I turned 18; I
moved up to Austin in 1980. It was time to
go; I had always loved Austin. We were always traveling through there since I was
How did you establish yourself here?
I got a job at Shurr Supply Company
in 1981. It was during the summer and I
needed some money. Andy Shurr, the
owner, was moving from a 500-sf facility
into an almost 2,500-sf facility. The first
day I got there, he said he’d give me $5 an
hour and that he’d keep me for two
weeks, and he handed me a broom and
said for me to clean the shop up.
Well I guess that’s a start.
Yes I worked all day, and it was August, and hot. By the end of the day, I
wanted to quit! But I swept this whole
place, and I did such a good job that at
the end of the day he said, “Forget the
two weeks. I’m giving you a dollar raise
and if you want to learn, I’m going to
teach you to grind frames.”
Did he teach you himself?
He got this other guy to show me
how to grind frames, and the guy would
do one frame, and then put it down. He’d
grind one side, put the Bondo on it, wait,
stand around, sand it and paint it. I did
that for about an hour and I was like, “Forget this!” So then I started stacking them
on the ground, stacking up about six
frames, and I would grind them all down.
The guy teaching me was mad; he did
not want to work this hard, so he quit!
Andy watched what I was doing.
What else were you learning?
I did this for about a month or so, and
during that time, at lunch, I would grab
some scrap metal out of the trash, and
practice welding; I had taken welding
shop in the 9th grade. The owner came
out and looked at the welds I was doing
and said, “Quit welding the scrap and
start putting frames together!” So I started welding frames together and moved
into the welding spot.
Then, he got in trouble on a hotel
project. There was a big mess up on the
doors. A lot of the doors had the cylinder
prepped on the wrong side. So I took a
110-volt cracker box welder and welded
all of the holes and redrilled the other
side and had to move some strikes on the
jambs. And that really started our service
department, and I became the foreman
and learned to estimate. And then I
bought Shurr Supply in 1985.
What prompted you to buy the business?
In 1984 I got in a car wreck with a
friend; he rolled his truck and I broke my
shoulder. I got a $25,000 insurance settlement, so I was going to start something
myself, a business, something small, but
my dad got to talking to me and I ended
up buying Shurr.
When I took over the business, I took
over the debt, and boy, were we in debt! It
was 1985, the market bottomed, and
about all we had was the debt. In 1987, my
dad loaned me the money to pay off the
bank and all of the manufacturers so I
could start with a clean slate. He said, “Son,
you’re on your own.” He figured he helped
me start out the wrong way, buying in too
deep by assuming the debt, so he lent me
the money to clean it up. I finished the
payoff schedule in 1999. But to this day, I
still send a payment to my mom every
month. My biggest belief is karma. My dad
had a saying, “Son, clean living, clean living: that’ll get you through life.” I try for
clean living. But just in case, I try to do the
right thing by practicing good karma!
Do you have a mentor?
My dad, in business and life. He
taught me, when you find good people
that take care of you, then you take care
of them. I was one to always listen. If
somebody wanted to help and somebody wanted to lead, I’d follow and learn.
When I got into this business, John Dean
of Dean Steel kind of took me under his
wing and really taught me how to be a
businessman. Lee Kirkley with Buell Door
taught me how to be a competitor.
Tell me about your family.
My wife Robbi and I have two girls,
Ashlee and Heather. Ashlee just went to
college at Wichita State in Kansas. She’s
actually going to school for sports man-
agement and trying to get on a NASCAR
team; she wants to manage a NASCAR
driver someday. I introduced her to NASCAR about seven years ago.
How did you do that?
I’ve had an infield spot at Texas Motor Speedway since they opened. It used
to be the “boys trip” but one year the
boys couldn’t go so I talked my family
into going – and the boys never got to go
again. My daughter fell in love with it.
And Heather?
Heather is 15 and a sophomore this
year. Last year as a freshman, she had an
opportunity to get on with an MBA medical trainer with the football team. She
has been in hog heaven ever since! I’ve
got good kids.
Has either of your daughters expressed an interest in pursuing a career with Hull Supply Company?
They used to love coming [to Hull
Supply] and working. My oldest was really
good at doing the invoices and the data
entry but I’ve steered them away from
this; it’s actually a pretty tough business.
What sports and activities do you enjoy today?
I’ve switched to waveboarding, like
most everybody else. It’s slower; I’ve
slowed down a little bit. I have a bad knee
from a car accident, and I can’t snow ski
anymore, so I taught myself to snowboard. I haven’t barefooted in quite a few
years. I’m sure I could, but those faceslams when you do it wrong … I was
probably going about 45 miles an hour
when I was barefooting it.
And do you still like the bikes?
I like to go dirt biking, normally with
the boys. The guys and I go up into the
mountains and camp out for about seven
days every year in Colorado. I have a KTM
520 and a KTM 450.
And other little adventures?
I normally go up to Lake Tahoe, and
have the best of both worlds. I usually
come back needing a vacation because I
gamble and then ski! I spend a lot of time
on Lake Travis year round. Last summer, I
built a house on Lake Austin, so I spend a
lot of time on the water. And I have a
ranch in Rockdale. The family and I like to
go out there, too. We have five buffalo,
four longhorn and five horses, and I’m
eventually going to start raising cattle
out there.
What would you like to do that you
haven’t done?
I have some property that I would really like to do an RV park there.
What would you attribute to your success?
I’m surrounded by really good people. I’ve built this business because I hired
good people and I’ve taken care of them.
I’ve had people that have been here since
the beginning. It goes back to karma: You
treat people right and they stick around.
–bd/mjm
Austin Construction News • Jan 2010 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-----------------––––––––––––––––– Page 5
Ringing in the season
Sharing the holiday spirit
O
ver 100 partygoers from Associated General Contractors (AGC) got into the
holiday spirit as they brought canned goods to benefit the Capital Area Food
Bank during their holiday party Dec. 9 at the AT&T Executive Conference Center. –dn
L-R: Ryan Ditter, Jesse Goddard, Jeffrey Goins, Sean Gamez, Todd Kulick, Edward Ybarra,
Caleb Benton, Ronnie Chappell, Ty Runyan, Titus Industrial Group
L-R: Mark Procyk, Western States Fire Protection, David Walker, Hilti, Mike Leur, Hilti,
Ryan Kiefer, Western States Fire Protection
T
he Newsboyz
entertain at a
holiday gathering held by Titus
Industrial Group
at the Bob Bullock
Texas State History
Museum. Heralded
as a “jubilant celebration of Christmas” the event
took place Dec. 5.
–ap
L-R: Back row: Ron Albee, Ilene Huerta, Front row: Debbie Petrikat, Rene Vacchio,
Raul Huerta, Chandra Aoueille´, Jay-Reese Contractors, Inc.
Submitted to Construction News
A handsome group
L-R: Travis Kirkpatrick, Baker/Triangle
Drywall, Greg Moore, Pro-Vigil, Inc.,
Jeff Sasser, Chasco Constructors
Journeyman Construction held its’ annual Holiday Party at the historic Driskill
Hotel in downtown Austin Dec. 12. Besides enjoying tasty refreshments, the 158
guests watched as 19 employees received company awards. –dn
Filling Santa’s sleigh
Claudia Garcia, RM Mechanical, accepts donated toys from Kasey Delz, Austin
Commercial and her husband Jeremy. The National Association of Women in
Construction (NAWIC) held their annual holiday party Dec. 4 at Dave and Buster’s
and charged unwrapped toys as admission. – ap
ACCOUNTING
Combating construction fraud
Jim Anderson, CPA, Partner
B2B CFO
The Woodlands, TX
onstruction projects are minefields of potential fiC
nancial risks for the unprepared contractor. Equipment theft, substandard materials, false pay applications, inefficient labor, bid rigging and bribery are just a
few of the fraudulent activities that can take place on a
construction project.
Who commits these crimes? Really, it
could be anyone, regardless of gender,
age, position of responsibility or tenure
with the company. As long as there are
situational pressures, opportunity and rationalization in the mind of the perpetrator, fraud will continue to plague contractors all across the country.
Can a company keep all fraud from
being committed on its jobs? Probably
not, but these are proactive steps that can
be taken to minimize risk and improve the
success of fraud detection measures.
Create a Code of Ethics. A written
document that covers how the company
will conduct its external business dealings and how the company expects its
employees to conduct their business
should be in place. All employees should
be required, on an annual basis, to renew
their pledge of compliance with the ethics statements and sign-off that they
have not violated these expectations.
Suppliers and subcontractors should also
agree to abide by the code of ethics before conducting business.
Conduct Background Checks. Check
past employment, criminal convictions, references, and education and certifications.
Conduct drug screening often, since employees will steal from a business to support an addiction. Remember, however, to
always get the written consent of candidates before doing research since many
federal and state laws govern the gathering
of such information. Consider a review/
update when employees are promoted to
positions of trust and responsibility.
Require Ethics Training. Fraud
awareness and ethics training programs
have been shown to be an effective way
to reduce the average fraud loss by as
much as half of what it is in organizations
without the training.
Start a Whistleblower Hotline. Access to a 24/7 anonymous hotline allows
employees to disclose a tip about a potential fraud without fear of confrontations. This is critical, as the majority of
fraud schemes are discovered either by
tips or by accident.
Conduct Internal Audits. These
programs should include an assessment
of labor costs, materials, equipment usage and job site security. They should
reconcile material requisitions and deliveries with estimates and account for any
significant differences. Special attention
should be paid to change orders, which
are common areas of fraudulent activity.
Again, research suggests that organizations with an internal audit program have
a shorter average duration to their fraud
schemes and with smaller average losses
than those without a program.
Conduct Surprise Payoffs. Surprise
payoffs (audits) of a project are the least
commonly used method of fraud deterrence. However, research by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners suggests that fraud detection is quicker and
smaller average losses are incurred when
surprise audits are conducted.
Develop a Supplier/Subcontractor
Screening Program. Such a program
would at minimum answer these questions: How long has the company been
in business? What is their track record?
Who have they worked for in the past?
What do customers have to say about
them? Include a “Right to Audit” in construction contracts. This allows the company to inspect the books and records of
subcontractors for a defined period after
the job closes.
Protect the Material Staging Area.
Routinely verify material quantities ordered and delivered to the project. Keep
stored materials secure and limit access
to trusted employees. Conduct regular
inventory counts. Compare materials
pricing by vendor across multiple projects or multiple vendors. There will be
some deterrent effect once people are
aware that you are watching.
Watch Out for Conflicts of Interest.
Keep an eye out for any personal relationships that might exist between your organization and a supplier or subcontractor.
For example, are there common family
members in responsible positions in both
organizations? While this alone is not
necessarily a problem, it does suggest
that the proposed relationship should be
scrutinized a little more carefully.
Considering the potential for significant monetary losses, it behooves construction company owners to make the
prevention of fraud a priority in their businesses. Though contractors never want to
feel their employees are unscrupulous
people, sometimes temptation or personal financial pressures can push even
the hardest working, most trusted employee into perpetrating fraud. It takes
knowledge, awareness and vigilance to
cultivate and keep honest, ethical employees and business relationships.
Jim Anderson is a Partner with B2B CFO®,
with over 30 years industry experience in
construction. As a partner with B2B CFO®,
a national firm of 150 partners, he provides
outsourced Chief Financial Officer services
to small and mid-sized companies, and
can be reached at [email protected].
INSURANCE
Treat your bond underwriter
like a partner
Steve Dobson, President
Statewide Bonding Agency
Austin, TX
A
re surety bonds an integral part of your business? If
so, have you met your bond underwriter? Do you
know their name? With the construction industry and
economy hurting, building a personal relationship and making your bond underwriter
like a partner is important so they can underwrite your company beyond the black
and white on paper. Building and maintaining a close relationship during this time
may be critical to your immediate future and long-term success.
Years ago I worked as branch manager and underwriter for a couple of
bond companies. I saw and experienced
the recessions of 1990 and 2001 both as
an underwriter and as an agent. During
those times, the construction companies
who had built a strong relationship with
their bond company underwriter received stronger support for their bonding requests than those who did not. The
bond company underwriters had become comfortable and trusting of those
construction companies and looked beyond just their financial numbers.
Because the economy is in a recession and construction spending has
slowed, bond companies are nervous. I
have spoken with some of my underwriters and they inform me they are receiving
a higher amount of statutory preliminary
notices from suppliers as well as a slight
increase in defaults and construction
business closures, as would be expected.
The economists state the economy has
bottomed, but the future is uncertain
and thus uncertain for your bond company. The following are a couple of suggestions to help make your underwriter
one of your partners.
Forecast business plan
Many construction companies have
had to make cost saving decisions, and
should have a plan for the next twelve to
twenty-four months. Share this business
plan with your agent and bond underwriter. Give them something to work
with rather than having them guess at
the worst, which is what they are doing.
Underwriters are what I call pessimistic
optimists. They underwrite for the worst
hoping for the best. Give them something positive with a written plan of what
you have done, where you stand and
where you are going.
Job site visits or photos
Has an underwriter visited one of
your job sites to see the wonderful work
you do? Have you sent them pictures of
your bonded job progression? In this
digital age and cell phones with cameras,
all it takes is a click, push a couple of but-
tons and a picture is being sent via email
to your bond agent to send it on to your
underwriter. They like to see progress,
visit job sites and actual pictures of the
work they bond. I used to be an underwriter so I know they like to get out of the
office or see actual photos of construction progression. Be proud of your work
and show it to your underwriter.
Timely financial statement reporting
Underwriters will always be looking
at your financial statement. Back when I
was in training as an underwriter I was
told an axiom, “Not all late financial statements are negative, but all negative financial statements are late.” If you have
positive year-end results, but you are late
in getting your books to your CPA or your
CPA is slow in producing your year-end
statement, you will be lumped into the
negative financial statement category
and risk being cut off. Make sure you
close your books as soon as possible and
get them to your CPA before they get
busy in tax season.
I am anticipating bond companies
suspending bonding for more accounts
this year than of years past due to delayed
financial statement reporting. Make
timely financial reporting a priority for
your accounting department. Also, keep
your bond company current with quarterly and semi-annual financial statements even if they do not request them.
An underwriter looking at your construction company on paper alone can
only take you so far. When you need to do
that larger project or take on a larger
backlog or just maintain the same level of
bonding capacity in spite of potential
lowered financial numbers, you may need
the underwriter to look beyond the numbers. To ensure this will happen, treat
your bond underwriter like a partner.
Steve Dobson has 22 years of construction
bonding experience and his agency is in its
10th year of servicing contractors in Texas.
He can be contacted at 512-416-8700 or
[email protected]. –dn
Austin Construction News • Jan 2010 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––--------------––––––––––––––––– Page 7
LEGAL
Celebrating a job well done
Greener horizons: Practical and
legal implications of new green
building laws
Adam S. Denton, Esq.
Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff & Miller, LLP
Dallas, TX
G
reen building practices are fairly recent concepts,
but are increasingly becoming the norm. The City
of Dallas is at the forefront of requiring green building
practices and may become a model for green building laws.
On October 1, 2009, the City of Dallas
enacted Ordinance No. 27131, which
mandates that new structures must be
planned, designed and constructed to
meet or exceed certain certified ratings.
Phase 1 of the Ordinance sets forth
standards concerning specific energy
and water use standards for: (1) new residential constructions and (2) new commercial constructions affecting less than
50,000sf of floor area in a single 12 month
period. For commercial projects less than
50,000sf, the Ordinance does not require
formal certification by the U.S. Green
Building Council. However, the Ordinance does require that projects affecting 50,000sf of floor area or more in a
single 12 month period to be LEED-certifiable or certifiable under an equivalent
green building standard.
Under Phase 2 of the Ordinance, effective on October 1, 2011, all projects
must be LEED-certifiable, Green Built
North Texas-certifiable or certifiable under an equivalent green building standard. Therefore, the Ordinance and all
pertinent provisions of the Dallas City
Code that it amends should be thoroughly reviewed because it creates various legal and practical implications that need
to be considered when entering into a
construction contract or performing
work on a covered project.
The Ordinance affects the relationship between project owners, general
contractors, subcontractors, engineers
and architects, as those entities will need
to consider the specifics of the Ordinance
applicable to the work to be performed.
Further, they will want to consider which
entity or entities will be responsible for
completing the permitting documentation and achieving the appropriate rating
or certification. Next, those parties should
consider the process by which projects
are submitted to the City of Dallas Building Inspection Department for approval,
including the specific checklists, applications and documents needed. This obviously is critical because, if the City determines that a covered project does not
comply with the approved plans: (1) it
may issue a stop order, (2) there will be no
final inspection until compliance is resolved and (3) no certificate of occupancy
will be issued. Additionally, violation of
the Ordinance carries a fine not to exceed
$2,000 upon criminal conviction.
Given these considerations, the parties to a construction project should carefully consider who will bear the responsibility for ensuring that a project meets
the green building requirements. Parties
should meticulously prepare and review
project and contract documents, especially flow-through provisions, in order to
address risk-shifting and assumption of
duties regarding such compliance. Typical form contracts may not directly specify the green building standards that need
to be achieved, so thought should be
given to spelling out those standards explicitly in project documents in the event
that a dispute arises.
Parties should consider what potential damages could arise out of the failure
to achieve project certification, including
the delay of substantial completion and
the costs of repairing or replacing the
work already performed. To this end,
parties should consider whether any liability insurance exists and/or applies to
protect them from any failure to comply
with the contract provisions or achieve
green certification. Traditional liability
insurance policies have not mentioned
“green” building practices, so it remains
to be seen how the insurance industry
will interpret existing policies when making coverage determinations with respect to these types of claims. Also, it remains to be seen to what extent insurers
will offer new liability insurance products
or coverages for these issues, since they
are becoming more prevalent.
Reported lawsuits addressing what
constitutes noncompliance with green
building requirements, what damages are
available for failure to achieve appropriate green building certifications or whether such claims are covered by liability insurance are scarce but definitely on the
horizon. Because green laws are becoming more prevalent, careful contract preparation and thorough review of the applicable construction standards are paramount to protecting one’s interests in this
new era of green construction practices.
Adam S. Denton is a partner in the law firm
of Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff & Miller, LLP and
specializes in the areas of construction,
commercial and insurance litigation. –dn
GS&C Architects recently celebrated the culmination of the new Texas A&M
Health Science Center (TAMUHSC) at a ribbon cutting ceremony. The firm’s team
members are pictured standing over a model for the 50-acre Round Rock campus with the first generation of medical students who will attend the center.
Shown L-R are: Krystal Lucero, Marcus Gibbon, Scott Somerville, and Janie Gribble, GS&C; four students from TAMUHSC; Ginny Chilton, and Tommy Cowan,
GS&C; and Michael D. McKinney, M.D., TAMU Chancellor. –ap
Building identity
Festive spirits
A merry group from Hull Supply
L
ots of folks enjoyed some holiday cheer while keeping an eye on their favorite
sports team during the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) annual Christmas Meet & Greet Mixer at Sherlock’s Pub Dec. 9. Nearly 80 attendees mixed and
mingled with coworkers and friends as they anticipated receiving one of the many
door prizes wrapped in brightly colored Christmas paper. –dn
Building Specialties Austin staff
A
new year brings a new name for
CALPLY, a supplier of building
products and services.
Three years ago CALPLY was acquired
by L&W Supply Corporation, a leading
national construction materials distribution company.
CALPLY’s name is now changing to
Building Specialties statewide, although
the company’s services will remain the
same.
Founded in 1956 in Pico Rivera, CA,
CALPLY focused on distributing plywood
and related items to the manufactured
housing industry. Success brought expansion to other locations and the addition of
acoustical products in the early 1960s.
The company added wallboard, steel
and plaster products in the ‘80s, and
doors, door frames and hardware in the
‘90s. Building Specialties provides products and services today to acoustical, drywall, plaster and roofing contractors, as
well as manufactured building companies, solid surface fabricators, government entities, institutions and exporters.
Today, with 29 locations in six states,
CALPLY joins the L&W Supply Corporation family of more than 200 distribution
centers in 38 states.
Building Specialties is a building products supplier. –kf
L-R: Sharon Swan, David Ford,
Holly Smith, ABC Staff
L-R: Jeff Turner, Acton Mobile Industries;
Rebecca Addy, ABLE Body Labor, and
Rebecca’s husband, Bill Addy
Austin Construction News • Jan 2010 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-----------------––––––––––––––– Page 9
Preparing for
Trophy Trout Season
by Capt. Steve Schultz
Sponsored by:
Trans Sport Boats, Yamaha Outboards,
Ronnie’s Marine, Minn Kota Trolling
Motors, Power-Pole Shallow Water
Anchor, Pure Fishing, Pflueger Reels,
All Star Rods, MirrOlure, Bass Assassin
and Columbia Sportswear
A
s we prepare to turn the page on
a new year and a new decade, I
can’t help but be excited on this
upcoming year. Baffin Bay fishing in
January and February can be very exciting
and rewarding. All you sportsmen and
women seeking a trophy trout for the
wall ought to have your gear ready to
go. There is no time like the present to
achieve a personal best fish or try to
surpass one you have under your belt.
Getting on the water is the first step
to getting that done. Another exciting
aspect for the new season is the addition
of a new and improved Transport boat.
George Major Jr., Holes of San Antonio hold a nice 7lb redfish caught
recently with Capt. Steve Schultz.
This new rig will be powered by a Yamaha
four stroke motor giving a quieter ride to
an awesome performing boat.
Most of the talk in and around the marinas
has revolved around the weather. Our
inconsistent weather patterns have made
patterning fish some what of a challenge.
Spring like conditions one week can spark
topwater action while a winter blast the
following week can make your knees
knock at the mention of the word fishing.
Unexpected rains late this year have also
changed the habits of winter resident
fish, but nevertheless we will strive to
make your outing a success.
To conclude for preparation in your
upcoming trips: Check your waders for
leaks using a flashlight in a dark room or
by filling with water. Replace old frayed
line on all your reels with fresh mono or
braided line. Also sharpen or replace old
dull hooks on all your plugs and favorite
lures. Now just give us a call and we will
handle the rest.
Wade fishing this time of the year is
not for the casual fisherman. The water
temperature will be cold, and the wind
chill factor usually makes it feel even
colder than it really is. But, after Mother
Nature has dealt you her best, you can
still catch some great trout if you have a
For information in booking your
next fishing trip, give
Capt. Steve Schultz a call at
361-949-7359 or visit
Baffinbaycharters.com.
Also please make note of
Steve’s new e-mail address:
[email protected].
Now booking for 2010 Fishing Season.
Family holiday party
Koetter Fire Protection LLC’s employees and their families spent an afternoon of
fun at Dave and Buster’s Dec.19. Nearly 120 adults and 40 children enjoyed a traditional buffet of turkey and ham with all the trimmings. Word has it that a person
couldn’t tell the adults from the kids once the games got underway. –dn
Capt. Steve Schultz caught and released this
nice redfish on a recent wading trip near the
mouth of Baffin Bay.
STEVE SCHULTZ
OUTDOORS, LLC
BAFFIN BAY
LAGUNA MADRE
LAND CUT
Koetter employees L-R: Dustin Lance, Corey Goggins, Elizabeth Goggins,
Rob Wren, Mike Felty and Caitlyn O’Connor
SPECKLED
TROUT
REDFISH
FLOUNDER
FISHING AND
HUNTING TRIPS
(361) 949-7359
www.baffinbaycharters.com
steveschultzoutdoors@
gmail.com
Jason and Jamiesue Ferguson
L-R: Thom and Jennifer Lish,
Theresa Justis
good game plan. My choice of location
to fish this month will depend on a few
basic variables. The first variable is the
direction and strength of the wind.
Following that, I will consider the clarity
of the water and the presence of bait in
the area I have selected to fish. The last
variable is the selection of lures I will
use for this particular area. I like starting
with the assumption that I’m going to
catch the biggest fish in the area the first
20 minutes of the wade, then vary from
there. Therefore, I will tie on a Corky
fatboy to start out with, but may get back
to the boat with a four-inch saltwater
assassin. The key to catching winter fish
is to stay open-minded and never be
afraid to be snuffed. Winter fishing can
be a tough time to locate fish, but with
a little knowledge of fish habits, you can
eliminate a lot of water and narrow down
the areas in which you want to fish. When
you decide on an area to fish, give it time.
I sometimes see a fisherman pull into an
area to fish, get out of his boat, and then
if he is not catching anything in a short
while, he will get back into his boat and
leave to try another area. It’s important
to fish an area thoroughly. Don’t give up
too easily.
U.S. Coast Guard &
Texas Parks and Wildlife Licensed
Good Luck and Good Fishing.
Ken Milam’s Fishing Line
Sponsored by Tropical Marine and Honda Marine
My name is Ken Milam and, for the past 26 years, I have been guiding fishing trips for striped bass on
Lake Buchanan in the Texas Hill Country. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity of getting to know
a good many folks in the construction trade.
Over the years,
lots of things have
happened on my
boat.
I hollered at Jim and he whirled
around to look at me. At that moment
Joe Mac grabbed a hold of the line on the
stuck lure and jerked just as hard as he
could! Poor Jim fell to his knees, but the
hook stayed stuck.
Then Joe Mac looked at me and
whispered that he had a nice sharp pocket knife, fresh sharpened last night. He
said, “Grab a good hold on that thing Ken
and hold it out!” I did it and Joe Mac gave
it a whack with his knife and Jim was finally free of the hook. The hook still had
a pretty good hunk of Jim on it, but we
were free for the fishing to resume! We
poured a little Crown Royal antiseptic on
the hole in Jim’s side and patched it with
electrical tape and finished up a darn
good trip.
To this day Jim B. still has an odd scar
on his side and quite a fish story to tell
about.
Here we are with a new year ahead of
us again. I get to thinking about all the
great folks I have met and good times I
got to be a part of. From my Dad taking
me hunting and fishing as a boy and going trapping with my Mom and Dad, to
the old trot-lining for yellowcat trips my
wife and I made as newlyweds and fishing with outdoor writer Russell Tinsley all
those years ago. The common denominator to all my best memories seems to
be spending time outdoors. I feel very
blessed to have had people around me
who knew how important time outside
was and who took time to share it with
me.
As you get started making your plans
for this year, look around and see if there’s
someone in your life you could take outside for hunting for fishing or whatever
you might enjoy sharing. It doesn’t matter if you are jerking perch from a stock
tank with your Aunt Betty or taking a
long hard look at your growing brood of
kids and trying to decide if you are up to
taking them out to the lake for their first
time. Go for it! I promise you the memories you make will be well worth it!
T
he main characters in this story are
long-time customers and friends
of mine, Joe McDaniel of Joe
McDaniel Construction of Austin, and
Jim B. of Austin Engineering.
Several years ago, Joe Mac brought
his grandsons and Jim B. out for a day of
fishing. Fishing early in the day was just
so-so. We had done some top-water fishing and still had some top-water lures
tied onto the poles. It was starting to get
late and I had one spot to go to late in the
evening that had been producing a
bunch of fish real quick. When you live
bait fish for stripers on our boats you are
fishing with 8-11 rods - so when the
school moves under you, it can be mass
confusion. We arrived at the spot I had in
mind and set up. The fishing action went
from 0 to 60 in about two seconds. In no
time we had eight fish on at once and
had caught ourselves a serious case of
“Striper Fever”!
While everyone was engrossed in
fighting and catching one fish after another, Jim B. spied a pole getting hit hard
on the front of the boat. He made a rush
from one end of the boat to the other to
get that fish, but on the way he hit a snag.
One of the big top-water lures on a pole
not in use caught Jim right in the side!
Finally as things slowed down for a
little bit, we noticed that Jim B. had been
just standing still while everyone else was
scrambling around after fish. Then he
showed us the big top-water lure deeply
embedded in his side.
Joe Mac turned to me and said,
“What do we do?” I told him we should
get him to the emergency room and have
the hook removed. Joe Mac said, “Uhuh, fishing is too good. Get Jim’s attention Ken!”
Something about architects
and buildings
I
t’s probably no wonder that an architect’s favorite photo subject when traveling
abroad is, wait for it – buildings! Ryan Reynolds, Moman Architects, (shown hamming it up with a concrete ornamental Chinese foo dog) has discovered some unusual
cases in China and Greece on his latest jaunts. While photographing the Caryatids
Balcony of the Acropolis (shown) he was struck by what he calls the “most beautiful use
of structure in the world.” –ap
The hunt
P
reConstruction Services and
G&R Electrical teamed up at
the C5 Ranch in San Saba Country over the weekend of Nov. 13,
2009.
Left photo: Elvin L. Randall, Regional Director, PreConstruction
Services with a Scimitar Horned
Oryx, 37.5 in.
Right photo: Charlie Hamilton,
G&R Electrical, with a Blackbuck
Antelope, about 22 in. –rd
First bucks
D
ouble L Insulation’s Larry Lacy believes in the father son bonding
experience of hunting. “Hunting with your dad is a rite of passage
and something you will always share,” he says.
Lacy recently hosted young Ethan Bratton, 9, and his father, Chris, at
Boothill Ranch. Ethan is shown here as one very happy boy with his
first deer, an 8-pt buck. -ap
John Woodard from General Insulation also went with his dad, Scott,
to Boothill Ranch to get his first big buck of the season. –ap
Oh, deer
Long way to go to get a fish
Justin Walker, Estimator/Project Manager, Marek Brothers Systens, Inc.
This Mule Deer was harvested in November in Seminole, TX.
Justin is ecstatic about this! -rd
Fishing guides in Scotland are called “Gillies.” Tracey Dean, Dean Contracting,
says his gillie, John, was the best guy to fish with on the Naver River.
“Whoever was with John always caught the most fish,” he assures.
He’s pictured here, left, with gillie John and a beauty of an Atlantic salmon. Page 12 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––----------------–––––– Austin Construction News • Jan 2010
Extreme grocery shopping – The meat counter, select pork
and far. A thick layer of natural fat is marinating their ribs and hams as they wallow
in nature’s cooler waiting to go home
with you.
Where to look for the pork department
in your hunting area.
Cold weather removes the vegetation along creek banks and between pastures, exposing the natural hiding places
for hogs during the day. Check wallows,
the mud pits on the edge of a creek or
tank where water is or was. Another great
way to find the hogs’ movement is to
walk your property fence lines. Look for
the game trails that pass under or through
your fencing. Tree trunks will also show
signs of pigulation with mud rubs on the
trunk in areas where they are active.
T.J. Greaney
A
s the feral hog continues to procreate and work its way into every
nook and county in Texas, the lover
of pork should rejoice. Yes, for the farmer,
rancher and occasional golf course maintenance worker they are becoming a
problem that won’t go away. For the
hunter, the extreme grocery shopper, the
opportunities to stock the freezer with
ribs, chops and breakfast sausage are
better than ever before.
Like fruit, wild game has different
times of the year that it is better to harvest. For hogs it is winter. They have spent
the fall porking out on acorns, small
sprouts and the corn from feeders near
Drawing them in.
Preparation for hunting hogs can be
as simple or as complicated as you care to
make it. There are sweet smelling granular products with minerals and other nutrients available that work well. Some old
tricks used by farmers for years make for
easy fixing. Take a packet of raspberry
Kool-aid and add it to the corn in your
corn feeder. Another is diesel fuel. Add a
cup of fuel to a five-gallon bucket of corn,
mix well and leave it out for them to find.
A half-bucket of corn covered with water
left to ferment a couple of weeks before
your hunt is a nasty treat they also cannot
resist.
Other ideas that are proven to work
include the posthole. Take a set of post-
Drill ½ inch holes in the bottom half of
the pipe. Hang it about two feet from the
ground and the pigs will knock it around
to get the corn out, they love it. You can
do the same with a five-gallon bucket.
Firearms and arrows.
I am not a ballistic expert or a gold
metal archer, but I can tell you what I have
seen used to kill pigs for years. If your rifle
is big enough to hunt deer, then it will
probably be fine for hogs. I prefer the old
faithful .270, .243, or .223 calibers.
Shot placement is important if you
are going to get all the finest parts of the
meat; after all, that is the plan. Shoot from
the neck up if possible. Never, ever leave
your ambush spot immediately after
shooting. Pigs are greedy and many times
will come right back out. I have seen them
eat corn right on top of their fallen comrades, even nudging them out of the way
to get the corn under them.
Bow hunters, beware of shooting the
shoulder area. Big hogs, especially the
hybrids and the Russian boars have a
thick, cartilage shield over their vitals
The author’s daughter, Taylor, is an avid hunter around the shoulder. You won’t make a
and loves to hunt hogs with her dad.
kill shot through these plates of armour.
You will need to take a shot when the
hole diggers and dig a hole 24” deep, hog is quartering away, of course, but the
give or take. Fill the bottom half way with cartledge goes back further than just becorn then fill it back with dirt. Cover the hind the shoulder. This is a tricky shot but
top with some big rocks if you can find doable. Again any broad head or draw
them. Once the hogs find this spot, be weight you would use on a deer is good. I
pre-paired for a large hole. Take a 6” piece have recently begun using some of the
of PVC pipe five foot long. Cap one end
and place a removable cap on the other.
Stepping into big shoes
T
he president and CEO
of Jose I. Guerra, Inc.
gets a sparkle in his
eyes when he talks about
his work. “Solving problems
has always driven me,” says
Rick Guerra. “I’ve always
been a hands-on kind of
guy wanting to build things
and take things apart. So
engineering was kind of a
natural fit for me.“
In January of 2009,
Guerra was thrust into a
new role at the firm that his
father built. As Jose Guerra
approached retirement age
his son took on a new role.
“Yes, on a day-to-day
basis I’m now the point
guy,” he says.
Although the senior
Guerra has not been active Rick Guerra shows off some of the significant projects that
for many years in the actual Jose I. Guerra, Inc. has helped bring to fruition of late on this
display that adorns his front office.
design work that the firm
does, as chairman of the
board of directors he’s a valuable and
However it’s not been quite as hard
much needed resource for the company. “He still comes to all of the senior to transition back to “dad” in the family
management meetings,” says Guerra. setting. This was far easier.
“He’s just ‘dad’ all the time,” he
“And it’s great for me to hear his input on laughs.
company matters.”
When reflecting about his new role,
Rick Guerra and his family returned to Austin in 1994 after a stint in California as well as how the company has grown
to help the firm add mechanical, electri- over the years he says he feels honored
cal, and plumbing services to what was to be in this position.
“We started as a one man, minoritystrictly a structural engineering practice at that time. Calling his father by his first owned outfit 36 years ago and now we’re
name at work took some getting used doing some of the best projects the city
will ever see.”
to.
For a man who was once a little boy
“It was a hard transition at first,” he reveals. “To come in and call my father, who helped his father with small drafting
Jose, by his first name was something that tasks and cleaning the office, he says “this
is huge!” –ap
I had to consciously train myself to do.”
continued from Page 12 – Extreme grocery shopping
expandable broad heads but with mixed
results.
Selecting the right porker for your
freezer.
This is an important section for the
man, or woman, in charge of bringing
home pork from nature’s meat isle. My
first choice for overall meat like ribs,
hams, chops and pork tenderloins are
the 75 to 100 pound class pigs. I try to
take the sows opposed to the boars because I find their meat less gamy. Picking
the sow from the boar can be a tricky
process but if you have the patience and
ability to watch them for a while look for
udders.
When you
down a pig it is
best to gut and
hang it in a cool
place for as long
as you can,
maybe a day or
two. Hang them
head down and
rinse the body
cavity several
times a day. Do
not, if at all possible, butcher
your pig and
put the meat
directly into the
ice chest soaking in ice water.
Leave as much
fat on the meat
as possible for
your butcher.
The natural fat
is far better
than the added
beef fat or pork
fat they add if
you don’t.
Pork is a
mainstay at our
home
year-
round. Hog hunting is a family favorite.
Winter brings us to nature’s meat counter
for specials on the finest pork available
anywhere. Hams, ribs, chops and breakfast sausage from wild, free-range pork is
one of the finest and leanest meats available. Don’t miss your chance to stock up
this winter; with 2 million roaming Texas
alone, there is plenty for everyone.
T.J. Greaney is an outdoor writer
based in Austin, Texas. He is also Executive Director for the Kids Outdoor Zone
Youth Adventure Ministry.
www.kidsoutdoorzone.com
[email protected]
continued from Page 1 — 40 and counting
payroll, all of the invoices for receivables,
all the administrative side. Then she actually became a project manager. By doing that she was really well prepared to
take over, and was running the company
here in San Antonio. The other portion
was mainly at NASA, and her dad was
running that.”
Alpha held the NASA contract for 17
years and during that time built a portfolio of highly technical projects.
Acock became president of the company in 1991 and her father became CEO.
Gordon Kovich passed away in 1993 and
Kathy became the majority stockholder
of the company. In 1997 she offered part
ownership to six Alpha managers that
serve as the board of directors today.
“It has taken a dedication of the ownership teams, from Gordon and Viola
Kovich on down to our current team, to
mentor the young men and women that
will lead the company into the future,”
Acock said.
Acock’s son, Jonathan Rogero, also
grew up in the business. “He started as a
laborer,” Booher said. “I was a project
manager and he was a laborer-foreman
and then he became a superintendent.”
Booher said Jonathan worked in the
finance office for six months so he understood all of the financial processes.
“Then he worked for me for about a
half a year as my assistant. We promoted
him as the Texas regional manager over all
the jobs of Texas. I am really fortunate and
so is this company, because he has a lot of
the traits of his mother and his grandfather. He has a lot of business sense and
understands what it is about. And it is
about our people and our clients.
“I like coming to work every day, but
I recognize that sooner or later I will not
be doing that. I am more than satisfied
that we have somebody in the company
that can take over.”
Alpha brought the entire company
together in October at the Don Strange
Ranch in San Antonio for the 40th anniversary celebration. “Over 200 of us participated in their Cowboy Olympics, including cow-chip tossing, cow roping
and stick pony races. All of our people really know how to work hard and play hard
together,” said Pat Ralph, marketing
manager. –kf
continued from Page 1 — Wright place, right time
be in the crane rental business. So it’s a
big, big change.”
When asked where ASCO Texana was
going to put all that equipment, Carpenter said, “At our current locations to start
with. We hope to be announcing further
expansions as the spring goes along.
“This is like a dream to us. We are really excited about going on. We’ve got a
great team of people at Texana, and those
people will be on board with ASCO, going forward.”
The two Central Texas locations are
planning events in the future for customers, according to Carpenter. “People can
be looking for some grand opening announcements once we get things up and
going. We haven’t missed a beat as far as
doing business.”
Carpenter said there are plans for ex-
pansion in the Central Texas market. “ASCO has been a very successful
company. They have very high standards
and they are known for giving a lot back to
the community in the places they are located, and they are very well-run,” he said.
J.W. “Bill” Wright founded the Associated Supply Company Inc. in 1960 a
Towmotor lift truck dealership and U.S.
Army surplus equipment store. In 1965
Caterpillar Tractor Company bought
Towmotor, and Associated Supply Company, Inc. became a Caterpillar lift truck
dealer. Several other acquisitions and
mergers introduced other equipment
brands.
J.W’s sons joined the company in
1973 and 1975. The CEO is W.B. “Brax”
Wright and the president is Steve
Wright. –kf
continued from Page 1 — Operation: renovation
many existing ceilings and walls needed
to be opened for access to run new MEP
systems through the existing hospital to
accommodate the new spaces,” he said.
“DPR’s drywall crew installed and maintained the infectious controls and opened
the ceiling and walls to allow for the MEP
work to commence.
“Immediately after the MEP work
was completed, the ceiling and walls
were restored with the same crew. Eliminating the coordination of several different subcontracts minimized and in most
cases eliminated any disruptions that are
normally caused by this type of construction activity in an occupied area.
Murphy says a major challenge the
construction team overcame was removing several square feet of the existing exterior precast and curtain wall veneer to
accommodate the expansion of the second floor post partum wing and the new
well-baby nursery.
“Since the bottom section of the existing multi-story precast panels were required to be removed, new supports
were designed and installed to support
the upper section of the precast, allowing the bottom of the panel to be cut off
and removed,” he said.
“During this activity temporary weather protection, access and construction
noise were concerns that were overcome.”
“The demand for a patient bed is high
at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center
and it was very important to their operations to maintain and ultimately increase
the number of beds during construction,”
Murphy said. “Although the project added many new patient rooms, some of the
phases required closing existing patient
rooms to start the renovation.”
DPR worked closely with the facility
to understand the patient room demands
of each department, he said.
“For example, the new 30 bed medical surgery unit needed to be complete
prior to the post partum expansion which
required closing 18 medical surgery
beds,” he said. “The demand for the post
partum beds was not required until the
new women’s service tower was complete, so it allowed the facility to use
these private patient rooms for medical
surgery beds. This allowed DPR to continue with the second medical surgery
wing expansion on the 4th floor.
“DPR worked directly with Glenn
Spradlin, the director of the facility daily,”
he said. “Spradlin attended the weekly
subcontractor coordination and scheduling meetings. This allowed Spradlin to
be part of the planning process so that
there were no surprises when the work
was executed.
“Input from all of the team members
provided the best plan and limited disruptions while working in the existing facility.
If the plan required a different design approach to minimize disruption of the facilities’ operations, the architect, Earl Swensson Associates Inc., was quick to help implement a different detail to make the execution of the plan as smooth as possible
without jeopardizing the end product.”
Founded in 1990, DPR Construction Inc.
has 15 offices and approximately 1,800 employees. The general contractor focuses on
technically demanding and sustainable projects for the advanced technology, life science,
healthcare and corporate office markets. –ab
Key Subcontractors:
Gate Precast; CMC Alamo Steel;
All Commercial Floors; Alpha Painting
and Decorating Co.; Steve Ward and Associates; Dynamic Systems Inc.; Northstar
Fire Protection; Schmidt Electric Co. Inc. ;
Carroll Systems
Austin Construction News • Jan 2010 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––--------------––––––––––––––––– Page 15
This
th
Mon
Construction Forecast 2010
Strategic focus is key
Al York, Partner
McKinney York Architects
Austin, TX
W
hat is your projection for our area’s construction industry in 2010?
I think we will continue to see weakness in the construction industry for most of
the year. By midyear, we are expecting a slight upturn in new projects starting design
as savvy developers, homeowners, businesses, and organizations gain confidence in
the recovery and move to try and take advantage of low land and construction costs.
What will be some of the most signifi- How does your company plan to deal
with these challenges?
cant challenges in 2010?
We have always managed our busi
Most businesses in the construction industry have reduced staff and cut costs ness conservatively, so we feel well posiover the past year to respond to the tioned to grow as the recovery takes
downturn. As the industry begins to turn hold. We developed a strategic business
the corner, funding the increase in work- plan several years ago and we have conload can become a challenge.
Clients tinued to pursue those objectives over
can be slower to pay as they try to man- the past year. As a result, we have a more
age their own cash flow. For businesses diversified client base than at any time in
that borrow against accounts receivables our 26- year history. Our workload proto fund the work of new projects, the in- jections are as strong as they have been in
come stream from those receivables may two years. In 2010, we will continue to sebe insufficient to fund the increase in lectively pursue projects with clients who
workload. For some, the recovery may need and appreciate the intense level of
be more difficult to navigate than the re- design for which we are recognized but
cession as they find that it’s harder to in- our primary focus will be on providing
crease capital than it was to reduce ex- beautiful, responsible architectural design for our new and repeat clients.
penses.
Green approach to
the economy
Edward Moore, President
Gerard Electric Inc.
Schertz, TX
W
hat is your projection for our area’s construction industry in
2010?
It will more than likely be a lot like
how 2009 has ended. We are not seeing
a lot of private work out there right now
and what work is out there has drawn a
lot of competition from not only local
contractors, but from contractors from
out of the area. I’m hopeful that things
will pick up from the private side in the
second half of the year, but until that happens I think we are in for more of the
same.
What will be some of the most significant challenges for the construction
industry in 2010?
For us I think there are two areas we
will need to focus on, with the first being
finding ways to reduce overhead to help
keep us competitive. With the amount of
competition that we are seeing right now
it’s important that we find ways to keep
costs down, whether it’s reducing overhead or by using new products that can
reduce labor cost on a project.
The other thing that we will start to
see more of is the use of Green Technol-
What is your projection for construction industry employment in our area?
Will we see a change in the number of
available workers or available jobs?
My sense is that the contraction in
jobs is probably at or near its end. I am
expecting that in 2010 we’ll see a slight
increase in jobs.
What is your projection concerning
the cost and/or supply of materials?
The most surprising thing we’ve noticed in the past year was the drastic reduction in subcontractor costs even
though materials and supplies have not
dramatically dropped in price as suppliers have cut production to match the
weak market. We are expecting material
prices to remain relatively flat or increase
slightly in 2010 and for subcontractor
pricing to begin to increase toward the
end of the year.
How is the residential construction
market affecting our area?
Though Austin was a strong market
during the boom years, by all accounts,
we avoided the dramatic ‘bubble’ in residential real estate sector that affected
many parts of the nation. For that reason,
I don’t expect that residential construction market will dramatically slow or
ogy products. There are lots of new products now and more will be coming out.
Also, we will see more rebates offered
that will be advantageous to a business.
We are already starting to see some of
our customers beginning to look at how
implementing some of these technologies can benefit their companies, and
what rebates are available to them to reduce the cost of the upgrade, so being
well informed in this area will be very important.
How does your company plan to deal
with these challenges?
I think by just keeping informed and
attending seminars or webinars, so we
can learn how these technologies can
benefit our customers. We also will need
to keep updated on what rebates are
available to them and being able to help
the customer understand them.
Also by continuing to provide our
customers with service that encourages
them to use us on a project. Customers
still can control whom they use for a project. You never know when you may not be
the lowest price, but you are close enough
speed the construction economy of the
region in 2010.
government projects for 2010?
We saw a strong increase in government RFQ’s for design services in the last
half of 2009, so I am expecting that those
projects will begin to move into construction during mid to late 2010.
What will be the keys to success for
construction-related companies in
2010?
There can be as many hazards in the recovery as in the recession. For design
practices, it’s been said that more firms
choke to death than die from starvation. As projects start to reappear after a
prolonged famine, there is always a
temptation to take the first morsel that
comes along. I think firms that have the
willpower and wherewithal to remain focused on their strategic goals as the recovery starts to take hold will be in the
best position at the end of 2010.
Established in 1983, McKinney York Architects provides commercial, institutional,
educational, residential and planning services. –dn
that your reputation and the quality of
work you have done for them in the past
just might make up the difference.
We have been very successful at getting and maintaining repeat customers,
and I think it will play an even larger role
to our success in 2010.
government projects for 2010?
I do believe we will see more government projects this year. As Congress continues to try and stimulate the economy,
parts of that money will find its way to
our area. There are some out there that
don’t approve of the spending, but it’s
not necessarily a bad thing, because our
area does need the work right now.
Gerard Electric Inc. was started in 1974
with one service truck operating out of a
home and garage. In 1978 the business had
grown requiring more space and an office/
warehouse was built in Converse, TX, where
it continued operations until 2003. In 2003
the business had again outgrown its facilities and the company relocated to its current facilities on IH 10 East. –kf
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Page 16 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––--------------–––––– Austin Construction News • Jan 2010
Construction Forecast 2010
Competition expected to rise in 2010
Kevin J. Smith, President/CEO
Kevin J. Smith, Jr., Sales Manager
Equipment Management Services LLC
Houston, TX
L-R: Kevin J. Smith Jr. and Kevin J. Smith
I
n your perspective, what is your projection for 2010?
In 2009, we actually had a growth
year in our container rental business. In
2010, we are projecting an additional
growth year, somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 percent.
Have you seen any material or cost increases in your industry?
We have seen the industry become
very aware of their costs, especially ancillary costs. We would consider our product an ancillary cost to the contractor’s
overall project cost.
In addition, we have seen that our
market has become more competitive in
2009. We see this trend continuing in
2010. On the other hand, we do see our
market share improving.
What is your projection for employment in our area?
We are a rather labor intense business and we see that our available labor
has increased. Fortunately enough, our
scope of work has improved to the point
where we have been able to actually add
staff in 2009. We also anticipate adding
staff in 2010, as well.
From a labor management perspective, we see that the availability of the labor pool has increased. That is an unfortunate product of unemployment.
What do you think the keys to success
will be for 2010?
I think the keys to success are after
the sale, service and support. It is important to have a good follow up system
with the client base. We own and operate our own delivery trucks so we have a
very good on-time delivery ratio.
The other side of the coin is the pick
up process. When the contractor completes the use of the container, he wants
it off the site. It is also important to have
a good pick up program.
These things have worked for us very
well. If a client has an issue with a container, we will communicate and react to
the issue quickly. It really gets down to
service.
What will be the challenges in the next
year?
It is very easy to get into the container rental business. You don’t have to have
30 acres and several million dollars worth
of equipment, such as our operation.
Anybody can buy a container and
rent it. Our biggest challenge is we anticipate more competition in the coming
year. We have seen this growing in the
past several years. The rates might also
continue to get more aggressive.
How is the residential construction
market affecting our area?
Our business focus tends to be more
general contractors and commercial proj-
ect oriented jobs. It is difficult for us to
justify the cost structure of delivering,
renting and picking up a container for a
short-term job. There are also space restrictions in the neighborhoods that hinder our delivery and pick up efforts.
Is there anything you would like to see
happen on the local, state, or national
levels to benefit the industry?
I think in Texas, we have some advantages than some other states. Texas is
small business friendly, contractor friendly and generally a business friendly state.
That is a major benefit to the construction industry and us. We don’t have as
many restrictions as some states may
have. We have had the opportunity to
work in many states over the years and
consistently, Texas is a very user-friendly
state.
The only thing we could say to our
local, city and state government is to
keep that attitude.
Equipment Management Services LLC rents
and sells containers to general contractors
and subcontractors. The contractors use
these containers on commercial project for
equipment, parts or tool storage. –ab
Texas after the recession
Anirban Basu, Chief Economist
Associated Builders and Contractors
Arlington, VA
Texas outperforms
Texas is justifiably envied. It’s not that Texas did not participate in the national recession that began in December 2007 – it did. But its participation was brief and shallow and its economic expansion going forward is anticipated to be more robust than for the nation as a whole.
As an example of just how much
stronger Texas’ position is vis-à-vis the balance of the nation, in October 2009, the
state’s unemployment rate was 8.3 percent
according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
or 1.9 percent below the national figure for
that month (in October, the nation’s unemployment rate exceeded 10 percent for the
first time in more than 26 years).
But Texas’ relative performance is
even more impressive when one adopts a
more granular analytical approach. In October, 22 of Texas’ metropolitan areas reported lower unemployment than the national unemployment rate, and three had
higher unemployment rates (Beaumont,
Brownsville and McAllen). Two metropolitan areas boasted unemployment rates
below six percent that month (Lubbock
and Amarillo) and the major metropolitan
areas each supported unemployment
rates below 9 percent (e.g., Houston, 8.5
percent; Dallas, 8.3 percent; Austin, 7.2 percent; and San Antonio, 7 percent).
This is not to suggest that everything
is rosy in the Lone Star State, just better.
The Houston metropolitan statistical area
shed 78,200 jobs (3 percent of job totals)
between October 2008 and October
2009. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington shed
59,100 jobs during this period, San Antonio metro nearly 5,700 jobs and Corpus
Christi 5,600 jobs. All told, the state shed
307,200 jobs or 2.9 percent of total unemployment. But even in this respect, Texas’
performance has been better. The nation
lost 3.9 percent of its jobs over the course
of this twelve-month period.
In percentage terms, the most rapid
employment loss from September of last
year to September of this has been registered in Victoria (-4.6 percent), College Station (-3.9 percent), Beaumont-Port Arthur
(-3.9 percent) and Corpus Christi (-3.1 percent). In other words, even the most impacted communities in Texas performed as
well as or better than national averages.
Construction activity remains heavily
impacted by downturn
Across Texas, construction has been
disproportionately impacted by the economic downturn and this is certainly apparent in the employment data. Between
October 2008 and October 2009 in the
state, 109,600 construction jobs, or 16.2
percent of the pre-existing total were lost.
Job loss continues to be dominated by
specialty trade contractors, who were first
impacted as a group by the downturn in
residential activity and are now being impacted by a downturn in many nonresidential construction segments as they lost
56,200 jobs. Moreover, 29,500 jobs were
lost in heavy and civil engineering and another 24,700 jobs in building construction.
In the Houston area, 22,800 construction jobs, or 11.1 percent of the pre-existing total was lost. Job loss continues to
be dominated by specialty trade contractors, who were first impacted as a group
by the downturn in residential activity
and are now being impacted by a downturn in many nonresidential construction
segments. Moreover, 1,700 jobs were lost
in heavy and civil engineering and another 5,100 jobs in building construction.
The outlook for construction is better than recent history would suggest.
Residential construction appears to be
accelerating in much of the nation and
various Texas marketplaces have stabilized. According to the National Association of Realtors, between the third quarter of 2008 and the third quarter of 2009,
median sales prices of existing single
family homes actually rose in the Houston area, albeit just barely (0.2 percent).
With the first-time home purchaser tax
credit extended and expanded, the building momentum in the residential marketplace should linger through at least mid2010, and hopefully beyond.
Perhaps more importantly, out of the
$787 billion to be spent as part of the
American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act of 2009, $754.5 million were appropriated to the Lone Star State’s energy
industry. The federal government appropriated approximately $209 million for
the State Efficiency & Conservation Block
Grant Program. Among the entities positioned to benefit from implementation
of the stimulus package are Texas A&M
University, Sysco of Houston and several
wind energy producers.
There are significant construction
segments that are not positioned to enjoy near-term recovery, however. Commercial real estate remains weak, vacancy
rates have been on the rise, office rents
have been under pressure and the number of transactions has been tumbling.
According to CB Richard Ellis, in Dallas,
the average office sales price has fallen
from $154 per square foot in 2008 to $99
per square foot in September 2009, a decline of roughly 36 percent. The total vacancy rate for office space is now 22.7
percent, though that falls short of the
nearly 25 percent vacancy rate characterizing Austin. In San Antonio, the third
quarter 2009 vacancy rate stood at 17.3
percent. These rates are too high to justify a significant volume of new construction over the next two or more years.
Anecdotal and other evidence also
indicates that spending on refineries has
shrunk significantly over the course of
2009, impacting a number of markets on
the Gulf Coast and elsewhere in Texas. For
a time, refinery capacity was expanding
briskly as money poured in energy infrastructure. But the pace of capacity expansion has now slowed, though refinery
maintenance and capital spending (e.g.,
toward
environmental
compliance)
should allow for spending growth in
2010.
Anirban Basu was named Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) chief economist in
Feb. 2008. His primary responsibility is to
provide ABC with timely, comprehensive
analyses of important trends in the U.S. commercial and industrial construction industry.
Also, he is the chairman and CEO of Sage
Policy Group, Inc., an economic and policy
consulting firm in Baltimore, MD. –dn
Austin Construction News • Jan 2010 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-----------------––––––––––––––––– Page 17
The year ahead:
Far from a perfect ‘10
Ken Simonson, Chief Economist
The Associated General Contractors of America
Arlington, VA
C
onstruction had a rough year in 2009, both nationally and in Texas. Unfortunately, 2010 will provide
only mixed relief.
From October 2008 to October 2009,
construction spending dropped 14 percent nationally, with nonresidential down
11 percent and residential off 23 percent.
From November 2008 to November 2009,
seasonally adjusted construction employment slumped 14 percent nationally
and 16 percent in Texas.
In the Austin-Round Rock metro
area, there was a more modest 7 percent
decline (including mining and logging
employment, which the Bureau of Labor
Statistics combines with construction to
avoid disclosing data about industries
with few employers).
There was limited good news in November. The national decline in construction jobs slowed to 27,700, seasonally adjusted, from twice that level in October.
Seasonally adjusted construction employment in Texas fell by 2,500, or 0.4 percent,
in November, just one-seventh the size of
the monthly drop in October. (Seasonal
adjustment takes into account the normal
month-to-month variations due to weather or holiday patterns, but not exceptional
weather. Unusually mild and dry conditions may have helped construction employment nationally in November.)
It is too early to say if the state’s employment slide has bottomed out, but
homebuilding has probably turned
around. Sales of existing single-family
houses, condominiums and co-ops had
already increased almost 10 percent in
Texas from the second quarter of 2009 to
the third quarter, according to the National Association of Realtors. New-home
sales are likely to have risen also, as they
have done nationally, although there is no
comparable state-level data. Rising sales,
combined with relatively lean inventories
of unsold new houses, will bring a revival
of home construction, particularly in Texas’ fast-growing metro areas.
However, multifamily construction is
likely to keep shrinking in 2010. Job losses—plus a lack of openings for new college grads and other first-time job seekers—will hit would-be renters especially
hard, forcing many to double up or move
back in with parents. The first-time homebuyer tax credit, which has been extended to cover contracts ratified by April 30,
2010 (with closing by June 30), undoubtedly helps home sales but further depletes the pool of renters. Meanwhile,
supplies remain swollen with unsold and
repossessed houses and condos now being offered for rent. With so much going
against it, no wonder multifamily construction can’t attract financing.
What can the nonresidential building
industry expect going forward? Nationally,
the economy is showing signs of returning
slowly to health. Real (that is, net of inflation) gross domestic product (GDP)—the
sum of all purchases of goods and services
by households, businesses, government
and net exports—rose 2.8 percent in the
third quarter and is likely to keep rising
through 2010, though more slowly than is
usual after a recession. In particular, consumer spending, residential construction
and federal government purchases, fueled
by the stimulus legislation, should boost
real GDP. But business investment in equipment and structures, state and local government purchases, and perhaps net exports will remain weak for several more quarters.
A surge in home buying could spawn
at least a modest uptick in retail construction, as demand rises for neighborhood
shopping centers, home furnishing and appliance stores and yard and garden stores.
But other developer-financed construction—multi-family, office, warehouse and
hotel—will be dragged down by high vacancy rates, low rents and reluctant lenders.
Hospitals and universities, which
were undertaking a lot of construction
through the summer of 2008, were pummeled by the stock and bond market
meltdown that autumn. They could no
longer issue private-activity bonds to finance construction. Meanwhile, the value
of endowments and the prospects for
capital campaigns plunged. Now that the
“bond door” has swung open again and
portfolios have recovered, many of these
institutions may resume their multi-year
campus construction plans by late 2010.
Construction of power plants, wind
farms and transmission lines contributed
significantly to nonresidential spending
totals in 2009, especially in Texas. Those
segments look like winners again in 2010.
Federal funds will support numerous
types of nonresidential construction in
2010, though probably not enough to offset cuts in private and state and local government-funded construction. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the
“stimulus legislation” enacted last February, included the largest amount of federal funding for construction ever in a
single bill—approximately $135 billion.
The highway portion, $27.5 billion,
was distributed to states and turned into
contracts quite promptly in most states.
As of December 15, Texas had obligated
(committed to specific projects) 61 percent of its highway stimulus funds, even
though only 12 percent had actually been
paid to contractors.
Most non-highway stimulus money
has not even been awarded yet. But the
flip side is that more of the money will be
awarded in 2010, which will provide at least
a modest boost to a variety of nonresidential categories, although some projects
may not be funded until 2011 or later.
The members of the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) and its
12 chapters in Texas have pushed Congress and the White House to adopt a
multi-part Blueprint for Economic Growth
to assure that the stimulus money flows
faster and that selected additional spending and tax relief be targeted to support
productivity-enhancing public and private investment in structures. Without
such a program, contractors will be contracting in 2010, but the emphasis will be
on the second syllable!
Ken Simonson joined The Associated General
Contractors of America as chief economist in
Sep. 2001. He provides insight into what is
happening to the economy and what it implies for construction and construction related industries. He is sought out by local and
national media for his expertise. –dn
Page 18 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––---------------–––––– Austin Construction News • Jan 2010
Association
Calendar
Jingle, jingle
Content submitted by Associations to Construction News
AGC
Associated General Contractors
Jan. 7–8: OSHA 10hr Training
Jan. 20: First Aid/CPR/AED Training
Jan. 22: Installation of Officers & Outstanding Construction Awards Ceremony
For more info on events and classes, call
512-442-7887.
CSI
Construction Specifications Institute
Jan. 18: Chapter Meeting, 11:30am-1pm,
Texas Land and Cattle on S. Mopac. For
more info email Guy Cornett at cornettg@
whjarch.com or visit www.csinet.org.
Round-Up
The chips were flying at the Central Texas Independent Electrical Contractors (CENTEX IEC) Annual Christmas Party and Casino Night Dec. 8. Surrounded by the
elegance of the Stephen F. Austin Intercontinental Hotel Downtown, the evening
included dinner and Vegas-style games and door prizes. –kf
Photo by Michelle Eddy Photography
Warm welcome
Trinity Door & Window is pleased to announce the appointment of Michael
Goodman as commercial openings outside sales for the State of Texas. Goodman
holds a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Communication from St. Edward’s University and is a certified Fire Door Assembly Inspector. He is also nearing completion of his certifications as an Architectural
Hardware Consultant (AHC) and Certified
Door Consultant (CDC).
Submissions
Email info to city editor, with
“Round-Up” in the subject line:
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
[email protected]
L-R: Andy Bruch, Auto Gate; Aan Coleman, Coleman and Associates; Doran
McMahon, Bury+Partners; Mark Pearce, Flintco; and John Carter, Floyd’s
Glass Company enjoy the festivities during Flintco’s open house
held Dec. 10 at the Cross Park Drive office. –dn
These guys are aces
L-R: Johnathon Davenport and Kenneth Whiteel take a momentary break
from servicing their customers at Aces A/C Supply, Inc.
Aces is a wholesale distributor of HVAC equipment. –bd
Job Sights
Under the shadow of a Seymour Fogel mural once lauded by Fortune Magazine
as one of "the most distinguished national examples of architectural paintings,"
workers from AKA Builders begin demo work on The Starr Building. The
downtown Austin icon of mid- century modern design is being renovated
and put back into use after years of sitting abandoned. –ap
The historic 1929 Norwood Tower gets a boost to its protection from the
elements from RTC Waterproofing and Restoration, Inc. –ap
Jason Owens, project manager for Structura, Inc., inspects openings in the
exterior wall of the Arthouse at Jones Center which will receive specially designed
glass inserts. While preserving much of the original character and artistic
embellishment, the project will essentially reinvent the 1920’s building which was
originally the Queen Theater, and later a Lerner Shops department store. -ap
Skilled in the trades
L-R: Jim Alexander, market manager, Sharon Keegan and Kelly Floyd,
CLP Skilled Trade Solutions, take a moment from their busy schedule to pose for
a quick photo. CLP provides skilled tradespeople for a variety of commercial,
industrial and facilities projects. –bd
Page 20 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––----------------–––––– Austin Construction News • Jan 2010
What talent
do you wish
you had?
I wish I could play the guitar – I have taken lessons three times! I finally realized
that my talents lie elsewhere! Nancy Jones
APHCC of Texas
Sing!
Rick Marez
Building Specialities, Inc.
I wish I had the ability to make more
money!
Rob Harris
H&E Equipment
I wish I was Superwoman! (At home and
at work, I wish I could do everything at
once and keep singing!)
Toni Osberry
AGC Austin Chapter
I wish I could read minds! It would give
me one hell of a sales edge.
Charlie Glaze, A.D. Willis
In this economy right now I wish I could
read minds!
Sharon Swan
ABC Austin Chapter
I wish I had the ability to read minds – it
would make it so much easier to please
customers.
Cate Kendrick
Austin Lumber Company
I always wished I could play the guitar. I
would sit by the fire at hunt camp playing
all the songs everyone knew.
T.J. Greaney
Outdoor writer, Austin

January - Construction News

Transcription

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