March - Construction News

Transcription

Dallas/Fort Worth
CONSTRUCTION
™
The Industry’s Newspaper
www.constructionnews.net
(972) 517-4703

Home Ofc: P.O. Box 791290 San Antonio, TX 78279 (210) 308-5800
 MAR 2009

Vol. 7 
Mr. Basement
Take notice
Custom basement builder (and martial arts instructor) Willie King gets a kick
out of changing people’s minds about basements in Texas.
College pals JT Carpenter and Matt Cawthon are now business owners.
I
t’s the soil conditions. The possibility of
flooding. More space to tax.
Willie King, owner of L.V. Custom
Basements, and his assistant, Michael
Patrone, have heard every excuse there
is to not build a basement in Texas.
And, having been in the construction
business for 30 years, he has a counterargument for every one of those reasons.
First of all, having worked with his
family in their Texas-based pool installation company, he says he’s never encountered soil that proved to be too tricky for
basement installation as well.
Second, King says if the proper systems are in place when building a base-
ment to begin with, it likely is the only
space in the neighborhood not affected
by heavy rains.
Finally, unfinished basements are
considered storage and are usually nontaxable, like a garage, he says.
Now King wants to counter with
questions of his own:
First, why would Texas, with all of its
volatile weather, not utilize the safety of
basements?
Also, why do people only seem to
think basements are only for residential
use? After all, he says, it’s only a matter of
continued on Page 20
M
att Cawthon and JT Carpenter
simply cannot believe that for
years Florida has had something
Texas did not.
That something would be a Carrollton-based business Notice to Owner.
com The business creates and then mails
a document called a Notice to Owner of
Unpaid Balance to owners and general
contractors on behalf of a subcontractor.
And now, thanks to these Baylor buddies
who started their business last year, Texans are keeping up with the Floridians.
“Companies are closing every day,
and receivables is a huge part of that,”
Cawthon says. “The biggest fear of every
No. 3
person who does construction work is,
‘Am I going to get paid?’ If you want to do
the work, and you want to protect your
asset – your receivables – then the only
way you can do that is with a lien. But in
order to file a lien against someone’s
property, legally, you first have to send a
notice to the owner, which is the part that
nobody knows about!”
To simplify the process, Cawthon
and Carpenter hired an attorney and together created a template on their company’s website that a subcontractor can
access and complete.
The Bucks didn’t stop here
I
n 1942, the late Elvin “Buck” Russell
opened a liquor store near the intersection of I-35 West and Felix Street in
Fort Worth. As 66 years passed, and Russell’s son, Vernon, took over as the president and his grandson came aboard to
serve as general manager, it became increasingly clear that the business was experiencing growing pains.
But how would the family behind
Two Bucks Beverage Center, with such a
well-known location, address their need
to secure more space while not losing a
day’s business? Would a new structure
need to be built? Would the business
simply expand on its own dilapidated
World War II-era structure? Or would relocation to another part of town be the
only solution?
For answers, the family turned to
Speed Fab-Crete, a design-build general
contractor.
After noticing the 6-in.-thick precast
concrete wall panels Speed Fab-Crete
Covering the Industry’s News
Texas
Style
San Antonio  Austin  Dallas/Fort Worth  Houston
The design-build process enabled the owners of Two Bucks in Fort Worth
to work closely with the project designer and contractor on a new facility
while it was built 5 ft. away from the older structure.
P.O. Box 791290
San Antonio, Texas 78279-1290
Change Service Requested
used on other projects, and hearing reassurances that building a second independent structure on the site itself without
disturbing the original structure was possible, the family agreed to proceed.
“What was interesting is that it had
to be built basically adjoining the existing structure and keep the clients in business, meaning the business had to go on
as the structure was being built,” says
Chuck Freeman, vice president and principal at Callahan & Freeman Architects,
which served as the project designer. “So
from a construction sequencing standpoint, that was paramount in importance.”
Larry Vincent, who served as project manager and is the owner of Vincent
Acoustical Inc., agrees.
“It was the most challenging part,”
Vincent says. “It would have been almost
impossible to build had it not been design-build. Speed Fab-Crete was working
PRSRT. STD.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
DALLAS, TX
PERMIT #1451
Page 2 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Dallas/Fort Worth Construction News • Mar 2009
T
Expo-nentially cold
he roads leading to the Dallas Convention Center may have been icy,
but exhibitors still braved the brutal
weather to participate in the Dallas Construction Expo 2009.
Debb Hicks, a show manager of the
Jan. 28 and 29 event, said that 160 booths
were set up with local vendors ranging
from audio-visual to waste management.
“All the exhibitors have the newest and
latest in products, services and technologies,” she said.
The expo also featured a range of
seminars, including how to avoid construction contract pitfalls and web marketing.
Although the weather didn’t deter
the exhibitors, attendance was affected.
“In a two-day period, due to the
weather, we had about 1,800 to 2,000
people,” show manager Keith Bryant,
said. “We expected a lot more than that,
about 3,000.”
Despite a drop in expected attendance,
Bryant considers the expo a success.
“Due to the Dallas – and, in general,
Texas – economy, it’s a great place to put
on a show. I think the majority of exhibitors
Tore up from the floor up
are going away happy and we look forward
to doing it again next year.” – mjm
Midway Striping and Sealcoating/Anderson
Pavement Inc.: Gary Ardis, Paulette
Cervantes and Stacy Hultsman
Pro-Vigil: Medea Spigler and Tyffany
Broemser
Energy Smart Solutions/ Green Concrete
Solutions: Ross Rains
Southwest Construction Services:
Dan Phifer and Josh Renshaw
BMC West
I
L-R: USA Floor-Tec Inc. president Jason Keathly and Brad Burns in the company’s sales
department kick back and admire the floor’s shine.
t scrapes up carpet. It yanks up tile.
And it’s the patented invention of Jason Keathly, president of USA FloorTec Inc. in McKinney, that truly marked
his arrival on the flooring scene.
“My family’s been in the carpet business my entire life. They were carpet reps
for a large manufacturing firm,” Keathly
says.
“They introduced me to a guy who
was trying to build a machine to take up
carpet. I don’t have an engineering background, but I was interested in it. So we
threw our two cents in, and helped build
what’s called the Power Scraper – basically an indoor bulldozer. We’re kind of
unique in the fact that we actually started
the business by building a machine to
take up carpet and floor tile.”
With his father and brother, Keathly
founded USA Floor-Tec Inc. 15 years ago
doing carpet demo work with the machine for major retailers, schools and
churches nationwide.
However, it didn’t take long for him
to realize that he wanted the company to
evolve toward concrete preparations.
Now a full-service flooring contractor
with 25 employees, the company’s specialty is diamond polishing concrete.
Keathly is also active in helping to form
an industry standards board for this specialty.
With his dad and brother savoring
their retirement, Keathly is the sole proprietor of the business now, but he
doesn’t anticipate leaving any time soon.
Keathly loves what he does, even though
he may not be able to leave if he tried.
“One thing about the flooring business that everybody jokes about is you
might change jobs, but once you’re in the
flooring business, for some reason you’re
stuck!” Keathly laughs. “You may change
jobs, but you never get out of the profession.” –mjm
Construction News ON LOCATION
Boardroom blitz
Empire Disposal Ltd. and Empire Roofing
Inc.: Wayne Wooten and Cheryl McGlothlin
E W Wells Group LLC: Vincent Cortez
T. Arthur Reynolds and Lester Baldwin,
Safety, Environmental & Engineering
Solutions (SEES), and Dean Shinault,
Accessibility, Health & Safety Consulting
(AHSC) take a break at the expo mixer
sponsored by HCADFW.
Moore Erection LP:
Donna Ibanez and Dallas Cloud
LBL Architects Inc. President Michael Barnard and Vice President
Tom McCarty conduct a brief Friday afternoon meeting with their staff
in their Arlington office. –mjm
Happy to help
Castro Roofing
KAI Texas: JoAnne Proud and Kelley Dobbie
Class One Solutions
Magaly “Maggie” Ayala, receptionist and administrative assistant for DK Haney
Roofing’s sales department, is one of the first of many friendly faces you see
upon entering the company’s Fort Worth office. –mjm
Dallas/Fort Worth Construction News • Mar 2009 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 3
Resting on futons, not laurels
Good list-ener
Jeremy Vesper, an inventory manager at Interline Brands in Fort Worth,
is making his list and checking it twice. –mjm
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Cast of characters
L-R: Eddie Lesok, Trae Morton, David Gill, Debbie Carroll, Susie Lindsey,
David Gladu and Tim Michael, Advanced Cast Stone Inc., are enjoying their
newly renovated office space in Fort Worth. –mjm
Dallas  Fort Worth
CONSTRUCTION NEWS
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L-R: Ken Fridley, Diane Brown, Roger Garcia and Lance Vaughan are up from their welldeserved naps and ready to work at C&C Concrete pumping.
W
hen you walk into C&C Concrete Pumping’s Grand Prairie
location, it’s hard not to make
note of the mammoth futon tucked into a
darker corner of the spacious, but otherwise spare, office.
But the futon isn’t so much for visitors as it is for employees. And it’s not
there because the workers are lazy – quite
the contrary. The well-used futon is for
those who work the late nights so common in the concrete pumping business.
The staff has become accustomed to
these night shifts in the two years since
opening this latest location for the company, which also has offices in Austin, Miami and Orlando. Sales representative
Roger Garcia says that establishing the
business in the Metroplex’s stronger
economy is a round-the-clock endeavor
that allows for little sleep, but one that is
paying off.
“We’re growing, but only as big as
the market will let us grow,” Garcia says.
“I’m very excited about this market:
there’s a lot of work out here in Texas.”
Garcia says the success of this particular location, besides the advantage of
its being nestled between Dallas and Fort
Worth, can be directly attributed to the
staff. Every employee for the office was
hand-selected and recruited from competing companies. Every member of the
staff asserts that the long hours do nothing to dampen the enthusiasm for their
work.
“It’s a job you enjoy waking up to,
despite the fact that our day starts on a
Sunday night and ends on a Saturday
evening. The only day off we get is Sunday – unless we get called out on a Sunday,” Garcia says good-naturedly.
Fortunately, for Garcia and the others, the office futon is always ready should
anyone need it while working on a day
normally reserved for rest. –mjm
Plumb full of energy
Hot and cold
A
s English novelist
George Eliot famously
quoted, it’s never too
late to be what you might
have been.
Just ask Ross Emmett,
owner of Emmett Energy and
Plumbing. All signs pointed
to a career in accounting, for
which he had earned a college degree. But after nearly
two years managing the ledgers for a bridge business,
Emmett started reminiscing
about his younger days working with his family.
“My father, who also
owned Emmett’s Grocery in
Dallas, had a number of rent
Ross Emmett consciously decides to evolve
houses and as I was growing
in an industry that changes as well.
up, my brother and I both
learned how to do that stuff – we had to mett if he would like to become an inspecwork for a living!” Emmett remembers. tor, he saw it as an opportunity to expand
“When I was going to college, I did the his expertise. But driving more than 200
same thing, helping him on the weekends miles every day in Metroplex traffic, plus a
and summers.”
few car accidents, left him wondering if he
Emmett, not content in his account- had made the right decision.
ing job, longed to work for himself and Having been in the plumbing busibe outside more. When his brother Joe, ness most of his life, doing repair and rewho had established a plumbing busi- model on commercial and residential
ness, decided to move to Huntsville, Em- projects, and now armed with certificamett offered to take over the business for tions as an inspector, Emmett decided to
him, and was still overseeing that busi- do energy-related inspections. The work
ness 35 years later.
continues to allow him to be his own boss
When a customer who was a third- and be outside, allowing him to change,
party inspector in Fort Worth asked Em- but still remain the same. –mjm
Installer Joel Zuvia of Metroplex Air Solutions Inc. in Southlake contemplates
whether to run the air conditioner or the heater in the company truck as he sets
out to perform his duties on an unseasonably warm February afternoon. –mjm
Picking up the tempo
Master manager
With his commercial division at Tempo Mechanical firmly in place,
Ray Brown feels free to enjoy a weekly bowling date with his wife, Diane.
I
t was so nice he did it twice. The responsibility of starting a new commercial division within a company is an
Office manager Gloria Orta says she “does it all” at Master Construction
& Engineering Inc. in Dallas – and with a smile, too! –mjm
important one, and one that Ray Brown,
commercial manager at Tempo Mechanical Services in Irving, has enjoyed doing
twice over.
After his first turn at establishing a
commercial division for a company, he
left after 13 years when another company
purchased it, ironically Brown says, for
the strength of its commercial division.
When he noticed the company’s attention being shifted back to its residential division, he decided to explore new
career opportunities at Tempo Mechanical Services, and was pleased when the
company wanted him to start a new commercial division for it.
“It was kind of neat,” Brown says.
“Tempo was primarily a retrofit residential and new construction company. I was
presented with other opportunities, but
this one was certainly the most unique.”
Brown joined the company in July of
2007.
Brown remembers he hit the ground
running.
“The day I was hired on, we were already behind,” he laughs. “It was a matter
of getting the right people in place, which
was trial and error for quite some time.
But it’s been a pretty good run.”
Now that things have settled down
at work, he is now able to devote more
time to his prison ministry work with his
“biker-friendly” church, animal rescues,
his wife and favorite bowling partner Diane, and being a grandpa, which is so
nice, he has done that several times over.
- mjm
Dallas/Fort Worth Construction News • Mar 2009 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 5
Glass act
Ramirez’s risk
Letitia Haley Barker and her father, Don Haley
Nick Ramirez didn’t let financial or educational limitations
hinder his dream of starting his own business.
T
hirty years ago, Don Haley and Jim
Greer decided that they just might
be able to form their own curtain
wall glass and glazing business.
Through their years of work in the industry, both men had extensive knowledge and contacts in the glass business
to bring to the table. And they even had
their first employee in Haley’s daughter,
Letitia Haley Barker.
Armed with those advantages, they
set up Haley-Greer Inc. in one side of a
duplex while Haley lived in the other half.
With Greer occasionally traveling in from
Houston, Haley would go out to make
sales calls while his daughter would be
on the phone trying to find a Xerox machine for the business.
It was a leap of faith for the pair since,
as Barker puts it, “we didn’t know how to
actually run a business.” Also, Barker, only
two years out of college and young and
idealistic, was in sharp contrast to her father, who knew how to handle the occa-
sional business disappointment.
Barker says despite this, her father’s
intelligence and connections helped the
company soon secure work, as well as a
new building to house employees.
In the three decades since, HaleyGreer has grown from a desk in a duplex
into one of the nation’s largest curtainwall contactors.
The company has seen changes in
leadership as well. Barker, who left the
company but eventually retuned, is now
the company’s president. The father and
daughter’s work styles have also evolved
since their duplex days.
“We think much more alike,” Barker
says. “We are almost totally in line with
our business ideals, but also our personal
ones. I have really enjoyed the past 15
years of working with him.”
What will the next endeavor be for
the father-daughter duo? Deciding just
how to celebrate the company’s 30th anniversary. –mjm
A
person with $500 and a secondgrade education can achieve success in the construction industry.
They did for Nick Ramirez, owner of
Ramirez Construction Company in Fort
Worth. An immigrant from Hidalgo, Mexico, who had to quit grade school to help
support his family, eventually found work
for a residential builder and absorbed as
much information and as many skills as
possible while on the job, even being
promoted to oversee the concrete crews.
But at $2 an hour, the pay wasn’t enough
to sustain his family’s existence.
It was a fellow employee who encouraged him to start his own business
23 years ago, since, the employee pointed out, Ramirez “already knew everything
anyway.”
It was a decision Ramirez did not
consider lightly.
“It was scary,” Ramirez remembers. “I
thought, ‘What will happen if I don’t
make it?’” I was terrified. But I thought,
Copycats – and bears, boars . . .
Pay check
Leslie Grigsby, Stacy Trice, president Randy Trice and Robby Bransom of Randy
Trice Painting Inc. in Fort Worth are a pretty wild bunch – but probably not as wild
as the animals on display in the copy room (and some are even dressed up!). –mjm
Office manager and bookkeeper
Regina Cobb is all smiles because
she’s almost finished preparing the
payroll at Glenco Roofing Inc. in
Fort Worth. - mjm
Bass-ketball
Ready to roll
Charlie Keisling likes to talk basketball while Greg
Franklin is eager to show off the amazing fish in his
fishing photo album at Franklin Electric Supply in Fort
Worth – oh, and they talk about parts, too. –mjm
Maxwell Wholesale Plumbing Supply Inc. deliverer
Juan Servin has the truck loaded up and ready to go for
his Fort Worth runs. –mjm
‘I’ve got to give it a shot, or go back to
working by the hour again.’”
Starting with only a few secured jobs
and two employees, Ramirez worked 15
hours a day to get his concrete work business off the ground. It took a year, more
employees and steady work for Ramirez
to feel confident he had made the right
decision.
Barbecues, bonuses for completing
larger projects and employee basketball
games – Ramirez is an avid player who
never misses his Sunday game – are some
of the ways Ramirez likes to motivate his
crew of nearly 20 employees. And he motivates his children – two who earned
honors in college and one still attending
junior high – to pursue their education.
But for Ramirez, his own motivation
to work for another 10 years before possibly retiring is in the work itself, and the
knowledge that he has come a long way
from where he started. –mjm
rest of the year off to concentrate on
school.
A. J. Rodriguez and
Rodolfo “Rudy”
Rodriguez
Castro Roofing of Texas LP
I
t could be said that the Rodriguez
brothers – A.J., Rudy and Juan – and
their father’s roofing business grew up
together.
The business that was formerly Angel & Sons, and evolved into Castro Roofing of Texas in 1990, has not only just won
its eighth consecutive Golden Hammer
Award, but it also is one of the only construction companies in the state of Texas
to win an Epic Award.
And after 34 years in the roofing
business, the three brothers now wear
more suits than work belts. A.J. and Rudy
pause to reflect on how both they and
the business have changed.
How did Castro Roofing come about?
A.J.: My dad, Angel, started roofing
in 1975. He started out in his garage, with
$20,000 and a pickup truck. The first year,
we made about $100,000 – and had
$150,000 in expenses. And that was without us taking a salary!
When did get your start in the roofing
business?
A.J.: We used to work for our dad
when we were 12 or 13. We loved it! He
would let us go up on the roofs, and we
thought it was a lot of fun.
Rudy: When we first started, it was
my dad, some roofers and us. I enjoyed
that, because I liked competing against
the older people! Later, we had our own
crew.
A.J.: Once I was able to drive, we became a crew ourselves. We didn’t have to
rely on someone else taking us to work.
Rudy: Dad didn’t pay us in the beginning, but he did as we got older. I remember we used to make more in one summer than most kids in school who worked
at McDonald’s all year long. We would
work a few months, and then we had the
What do you remember about those
summers?
A.J.: We were competitive when we
worked as a team. It was just between us.
We would see how many squares of roofing we would do in a day, or in an hour.
Rudy: I remember that! If we didn’t
do “X” amount, we would skip lunch. We
wouldn’t earn our lunch until we did
enough squares.
A.J.: Or sometimes a storm would be
coming through, and we would work to
see if we could finish a certain area before
the storm hit us.
We would start when the sun came
up, and stop when the sun came down,
usually around 9 in the summertime.
Rudy: It hasn’t changed much since
then!
A.J.: Yeah, we’re still doing that!
What was it like working with your
dad?
Rudy: Actually, I enjoyed it. We never
really had any issues between us.
A.J.: It was fun. Dad was the nicest
boss you would ever want to meet – unless you were doing something dumb or
unsafe. Then he wasn’t so nice, especially
to me because I was normally the one to
try and do dumb things!
Such as?
Rudy: We do mostly commercial
now, but we used to do mostly residential, and it was all shingles. Once, we were
roofing some apartment complexes. It
was mansard wall and we had to put
some scaffolds up.
My dad drove up to the project site
and told us to be careful, to straighten
out the scaffold before jumping onto another scaffold. Dad left, and A.J. hadn’t
listened to him.
I can’t remember exactly what he
did, but he stepped on the scaffold when
he wasn’t supposed to and came down
with the scaffold. I was working on the
ground when it happened.
A.J.: It was a two-story apartment. I
had set up a board that was temporary. It
was just a small area.
I thought, “A few minutes, and I’ll be
finished. I’m not going to waste my time
setting up a scaffold.”
Dad had said, “Whatever you do,
don’t do that!”
I said “Yeah, yeah,” and watched Dad
drive off.
Two seconds later, the whole thing
comes down. I landed on my back, on the
concrete. Lying there, I realized both of
my brothers were standing over me,
L-R: Rudy, father Angel, and A.J. Rodriguez receive their eighth consecutive
Golden Hammer Award at the NTRCA Awards Banquet in February.
laughing their heads off, because I hadn’t
listened.
Rudy: I couldn’t stop laughing.
Was your dad furious when he found
out about A.J.’s accident?
A.J.: He didn’t find out until last year!
But that’s really one of the only times he
would get onto us, was when we weren’t
careful about safety.
How did your dad manage to keep
three sons – who also happened to be
his employees – in line?
A. J.: All he had to do was just give
you a look, and that was it! You wouldn’t
even think about it! He wouldn’t have to
say a word!
Rudy: He’d give us the look, and we’d
shape up!
How did your mom feel about her boys
working up on a roof?
A.J.: She was terrified.
What did your dad teach you?
Rudy: When I think about my dad, I
always think about his work ethic. He
never stopped working; he worked hard.
Even now, he’s 73, and he won’t retire.
Right now, we’re adding to our office and
remodeling, and he’s the general contractor!
A.J.: The main thing I learned was
work ethic also – go out early in the morning and come in late at night. It’s the same
way we follow.
When did you decide this summer job
was actually a career the three of you
would pursue?
Rudy: For me, actually, for all of us, it
was more of an accident than anything
else. I went to college and earned a degree outside of roofing.
When I got back from school, my dad
said he needed help. Basically A.J. and I
had two jobs. He had a night shift at another job, and so he would work at Castro
Roofing during the day. I had the opposite. I would work later, after my job, just
to help Dad out.
One thing led to another, the company kept growing, and we could no longer do that. So I decided to give it a shot
full time.
What have your years in the roofing
business taught you?
Rudy: Develop best practices. Instead of being reactive, have a plan, and
follow the plan.
What I’ve noticed in other businesses
is they don’t focus on the business side of
it, they just work as hard as they can, like
when we were young. But we learned
that when you have systems in place, run
the company like a business and treat
your customers better than you treat
yourself, and if you’re ethical, everything
else takes care of itself.
And, ultimately, what I’ve learned is if
you have the best employees, the job becomes a lot easier.
We strive to be ethical, and when we
hire, we tell our employees about our
ethics. What we’re trying to do is hire the
best people we can, to hire better people
than we are. It just makes it easier.
A.J.: That’s true. At one time, with my
employees, I used to be the one who had
to come up with everything. Now these
guys come up with everything! They actually come up with stuff that I would
never have dreamed of. We have lots of
fancy equipment, but really, our greatest
resource is the people.
Will your own children be involved in
the roofing business?
A.J.: I think so. My son is 16, and he’s
really interested in computers. He’s listening to sales tapes and things related
to that field. I don’t think he’ll be a roofer,
but hopefully he will learn enough of the
trade to contribute.
What is it like to work together now,
compared to how you worked together in the past?
A.J.: Now, we’re all running around in
different directions. It’s not like it was before where we were on the same roof.
The only thing we had to worry about
then was what roof we were going to do
tomorrow.
Now, we each have a talent we bring
to the business. Rudy’s the one who
knows about the business end of it. He’s
got a really good vision, for seeing what
tomorrow brings. I’m more mechanical.
Juan is really intelligent. He’s the technical guy.
You just won your eighth consecutive
Golden Hammer Award and an Epic
Award. What does your dad think of
the success your family business has
achieved?
A.J.: He’s just amazed. Not in his wildest dreams would he have thought that
we would get this big.
Do you take the time to stop and reflect on it as well?
A.J.: This week I went to a job we did
17 years ago. I had done the welding on
that project. My dad remembered I had
been red as a tomato since it was in the
summer, and I was welding pieces of aluminum flashing.
I talked to my dad for more than two
hours about it: it was so much fun. And I
was amazed. The roof looked like nothing needed to be done to it!
Rudy: Many times, we don’t stop to
think about how we started and where
we are. We don’t usually look back. Sometimes my dad will say something, and I’ll
think, ‘Wow, did we do that?’
The aquarium at Dallas Fair Park,
which is a project we did about 18, 20
years ago, is coming up to be re-roofed.
Man, we must be getting old!
A.J.: Time just flies. – mjm
Buying into construction
Industry FOLKS
linda Jackson
Texas Roof Management Inc.
N
Jeff Tomlins believed the commercial construction industry was worth investing in.
S
ome people spend years creating
their ideal businesses from scratch. And then there’s Jeff Tomlins. The
owner of Dallas-based OnsiteView.com
gleaned inspiration through his own investment world job, observing others as
they developed their businesses.
“We did some transactions with companies in the construction industry, and I
started thinking it was a great place for
opportunity, so I left the investment world
and started looking full time to buy a
company like this,” Tomlins remembers.
After deciding the OnsiteView.com
concept was his best fit, he met with the
company’s two previous owners, and
closed the transaction in the summer of
2007.
OnsiteView.com sells, services and
monitors video cameras for commercial
construction sites nationwide so that
anyone involved in the project can view
it daily online and watch the project as it
develops. An image is also captured every 15 minutes and saved for posterity.
The cameras rotate 360 degrees and run
24 hours a day, which means the client
can even watch a middle-of-the-night
concrete pour.
Tomlins not only liked the idea, he
liked the clients who would use it.
“What attracted me to this company
and this industry were the types of people in it,” Tomlins says. “I felt they were
really down-to-earth, hardworking, genuine and true to their word, and I enjoy
working with the customers on a day-today basis.”
When Tomlins isn’t monitoring jobsites through his company, he enjoys the
outdoors. He plays golf whenever he gets
the chance. And Tomlins is also a runner,
a pastime he has enjoyed for the past 31
years. – mjm
o, that’s not a typo. linda Jackson’s name actually does start
with a lowercase “l.”
“I was working in Cedar Rapids, IA,
in an advertising firm and part of my responsibility there was to OK the copy,”
Jackson explains. ”I just found it to be
incredibly cumbersome that I would
have to write capital ‘L, ‘ and then, at
the time, a capital ‘N’ [for my last name].
So I just started doing it with a lowercase ‘l.’ Then when I got married, out of
deference to my husband, I kept the
lowercase ‘l,’ but capitalized his last
name ‘Jackson.’”
The stylization of her first name
didn’t surprise one person in particular.
“I had my handwriting analyzed
once by a certified graphologist,” Jackson says. “She said, ‘Clearly, if 99 people
were marching in one direction, without a doubt you’d be marching in the
other.’ And I thought ‘Well, you know,
that fits.’”
Jackson hasn’t legally changed the
style of her name, but personally and
professionally she uses the lowercase
“l” and has since the mid-1960s. This has
caused all sorts of confusion on the part
of others, especially when she’s ordering items such as checks, stationary,
business cards and address labels.
“I write separate notes saying it
truly is lowercase ‘l,’” Jackson explains.
“I have to send along an example, because otherwise, they’ll be printing
them again!”
Jackson recently left a 26-year career in retail property management to
work in the roofing industry. Although
Jackson has only been with the company since October, she says she truly
enjoys her “customer care” role and is
currently working on the company’s
website.
Jackson’s new job has also afforded her a place for her “Wall of Honor”
which consists of 10 photos associated
with Dale Earnhardt.
“I’m a maniacal NASCAR fan,” she
says. When she first started dating her
now-husband, Jackson didn’t understand the appeal of watching drivers
make left turns for hours on end. Now,
they own seats at Texas Motor Speedway.
“I take 400 pictures on a NASCAR
weekend,” Jackson says. “I love the excitement, the drama, the strategy.”
Jackson lives in Bedford with “Mr.
Jackson,” as she calls her husband, and
two years ago purchased a weekend
home on Cedar Creek Lake. The acquisition not only gave her more quality
time with her beloved, but also inspired
her to learn how to ride a jet ski. Theater, crocheting and photography are
among Jackson’s other great passions,
but she says learning about the roofing
industry is definitely where her interests lie next. –mjm
Cruising the Internet
What dreams may come
L-R: Planet Granite’s Hugo Mercado, Troy Jones (holding the granite bear), Carlos Martinez
and Manuel Ayala stand in front of a slab of crema bordeaux.
T
he walls of the Planet Granite office
in Red Oak discreetly display a smattering of photos from the early to
mid ‘80s. Almost every picture is of a
young Troy Jones, in Texas, Louisiana
and Oklahoma, astride a bucking horse,
one hand planted firmly on the saddle,
one arm arched in the air. They’re images
of a youth in the beginnings of pursuing
a dream.
But Jones doesn’t want to talk about
rodeo-circuit dreams.
Instead, his eyes light up as he talks
about his journey to owning Planet Granite.
“I was in the floor business for a long
time,” says Jones. “Then I got a job with a
granite company doing remodeling in their
showroom. They liked my work so much
they turned me on to their fabricator, and I
realized that was what I wanted to do.”
Jones obtained the necessary tools
and began teaching himself the granite
business in his own driveway.
“It was difficult going from ceramic
tile and marble and granite flooring to
granite countertops,” Jones admits.
“It took a few years, but I got some
experience under my belt. I finally got a
job with another company installing,
then worked as an operations manager
at a company that I used to lay floors with.
It was a big learning curve for me too, but
it taught me the business aspect. Finally I
was able to get my money together and
start my own company two years ago.”
Also displayed in Jones’ office is a
small bear made entirely of pieces of
granite. Its creator is a young employee
of Jones’ who has already been offered
thousands for each piece he makes.
Whether this is the young man’s dream,
or just a hobby, is unclear, but Planet
Granite seems like a good place to dream
of the possibilities. –mjm
3-D Welding of Texas owner Dale Holden has welded his website into
a lean, mean selling machine.
T
he website Dale Holder created for
his company, 3-D Welding of Texas,
features the usual information one
might find on his competitors’ websites,
such as what services he provides and
photos of his commercial work.
But then, there’s that little bit extra
that his competitors’ websites likely don’t
have.
Take, for example, his “Items for Sale”
link. Before the Internet user can surmise
what a welder might be selling, two new
links reveal the answer.
One button guides you to “AKC Registered Yorkies.” Holden is an owner and
breeder of the dogs (the dogs keep his
schnauzer and chocolate lab company).
The second link takes the viewer to
photos of a surplus of Decorative Iron
Headboards.
“I built up about eight or nine of
them because a furniture store close by
wanted some,” Holden explains. “But he
only took three or four, so the rest of
them were sitting in my shop.”
Now they are on the site, and are
likely to be joined by some fire pits that
he also welded. When he doesn’t have a
pressing job, he says these projects “keep
my guys busy.”
Holden has had plenty of projects in
his 30 years in the welding business; in
fact, so much so that the last vacation he
took was an elk-hunting trip in Colorado
15 years ago. He’d love to take an Alaskan
cruise in the near future and just might if
he can find the time.
Perhaps his cruise photos just might
show up on the company’s website! –
mjm
INSURANCE
Why contractors fail:
Solving the surety dilemma
Bob Cave, Executive Vice President
SureTec Insurance Company
Austin, TX
C
ontracting is a risky business. One source reports
that between the years of 2004 and 2006, years of
relatively strong growth, over 23 percent of non-single family building and trade contractors failed. Surety bonds assure the contractor’s successful fulfillment of his contractual obligations and payment of labor and certain material suppliers. Therein lies
the dilemma of surety. Why do contractors fail? How does a surety identify and manage that risk?
The leading causes of contractor failure have been relatively consistent over
the past 35 years. According to a recent
review of 86 claim cases by the Surety &
Fidelity Association of America, the five
leading causes of contractor failure include (1) unrealistic growth, (2) performance issues, (3) character issues, (4) accounting issues and (5) management issues. Certainly there are other issues such
as material price increases, owner’s inability to pay or overall economic decline,
but each of these is much farther down
the list of common causes of failure.
The leading cause, unrealistic growth,
would include rapid growth in work programs, significant increases in the size of
individual jobs, geographic expansion
and changes in the type of work performed. It is interesting that lack of volume has not been cited among the leading causes of contractor failure in any
study I recall over the last 35 years while
overextension or unrealistic growth has
been a consistent leading cause.
Performance issues are usually associated with inexperience in the scope or
type of work undertaken and insufficient
numbers of personnel or personnel that
do not have proper training or experience.
Character and management issues
tend to overlap. Issues here include
changes in key personnel, retirement of
owner, sale of the company, lack of a plan
to ensure continuity in the event of death
or disability of the owner or key personnel and inexperience at the senior management level.
Inadequate accounting is a perennial
leading cause of contractor failure. The
lack of a fully functioning job cost accounting system and improper accounting practices reveal a weakness in management. Without a job cost system that
integrates the estimating and procurement systems, management simply does
not have the information necessary to
properly manage the company.
The “Analysis of Jobs-in-Progress” report is an integral part of the American
Institute of Certified Public Accountants
(AICPA) format and is the only forwardlooking portion of a contractor’s financial
statement. All other portions of the statement are either a “snapshot at a point in
time” (balance sheet) or a report on the
activity during the previous reporting
period. Trying to manage a contracting
business without a regularly updated
“Analysis of Jobs-in-Progress” is like driving down the freeway by looking in the
rearview mirror.
The surety industry summarizes the
exposures into the “3 C’s” of underwriting: Character, Capacity and Capital. The
prequalification process of the surety focuses on a review and analysis of each of
the risks areas cited as a major cause of
contractor failure. That investigation and
analysis is an intense process, the results
of which should serve to benefit the contractor as well as the project owner or
obligee. The surety must assure itself
that the contractor is qualified in each of
these areas.
The contractor generally must meet
the first two C’s, character and capacity,
and present the surety with evidence to
testify to the abilities and track record of
his company. There is little the surety is
capable of affecting in these two C’s, other than to point out weak areas needing
improvement.
The third C, Capital, is the only one of
the three that the surety can seriously influence or possibly recommend restructuring based on your financial statements. The surety will do careful analysis
of the financial statements and should be
able to offer wise counsel based on the
results of that analysis.
The financial statements should be
viewed as a tool of communication. Good
quality financial statements communicate the financial condition of the contractor to third parties, including your
surety and your bank. Your surety should
insist on statements prepared in accordance with the AICPA Audit Industry
Guide, using a percentage of completion
Deduction for energy-efficient
commercial buildings (build or
design)
Brenda Lee, JD, CPA, Tax Manager
BKD LLP
Houston, TX
G
oing green and saving green. It may be difficult to
believe that builders and designers can achieve tremendous tax savings while helping the environment, but it is possible due to the most
significant overhaul of the federal energy policy since 1992.
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 provided significant changes to the federal
energy policy. It also provided temporary tax benefits to real estate developers
who construct energy-efficient commercial buildings. Section 1331 of the Energy
Act enacted Section 179D, which provides a deduction with respect to energy-efficient commercial buildings. IRC
§179D allows a deduction amount equal
to the cost of energy-efficient commercial building property placed in service
during the taxable years 2006-2013.
The maximum amount of the deduction as prescribed by law is $1.80 per
square foot. This deduction provides an
incentive for building owners to upgrade
their systems and to design new structures in an energy-efficient manner.
According to IRC §179D(c)(1), the
term energy-efficient commercial building property is depreciable property that
meets all of the following requirements:
*The property must be installed on
or in a building that is located in the United States and is within the scope of standard 90.1-2001. Standard 90.1-2001 is a
standard of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning
Engineers and the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America.
*The property must be part of the
building’s interior lighting systems; its
heating, cooling, ventilation and hot water systems; or the building envelope.
*The property must be certified as
part of a plan designed to reduce the total annual energy and power costs with
respect to the interior lighting, heating,
cooling, ventilation and hot water systems of the building by at least 50 percent in comparison to a reference building that meets the minimum requirements of Standard 90.1-2001.
Detailed certification requirements
must be met in order to qualify for the deduction. The certification must be provided by a qualified individual and satisfy
the requirements of IRC §179D(c)(1). A
qualified individual is defined as an individual that is not related to the taxpayer
claiming the deduction under Code Sec.
179D; is an engineer or contractor that is
properly licensed as a professional engineer or contractor in the jurisdiction in
which the building is located; and has represented in writing to the taxpayer that he
or she has the requisite qualifications to
provide the required certification.
Pursuant to IRS standards, the 50
percent reduction must be achieved
solely through energy and power cost reductions for the heating, cooling, ventilation, hot water and interior lighting systems. Reductions in any other energy
uses are not taken into consideration.
Additionally, if the building fails to
comply with the overall building requirement of 50 percent energy savings, a partial deduction is allowed for each separate building system that contains energy-efficient property and that is certified
by a qualified professional as meeting
the applicable energy savings targets established by the IRS. The separate building systems are the interior lighting system; heating, cooling, ventilation and hot
water systems; and the building envelope. The maximum allowable partial deduction is 60 cents per square foot for
each separate system.
Furthermore, the basis of property
eligible for Section 179D is reduced by
the amount of the deduction allowed. As
a result of the basis reduction, any future
gain on the sale of the property will increase. The additional gain would be
subject to the recapture provisions.
It does not have to be your building
to qualify for the credit. This credit is
available to architects and engineers as
principal designers of the building. Although the deduction is generally allowed to the owner of energy-efficient
commercial building property, the treasury shall issue a regulation providing
that in the case of energy-efficient commercial building property installed on or
in property owned by a federal, state or
local government or a political subdivision thereof, the owner of the property
may allocate the deduction to the person
primarily responsible for designing the
property. For purposes of the allocation
of the energy-efficient commercial building property deduction to a designer of
government owned or publicly owned
building, a designer is a person who creates the technical specifications for installation of energy-efficient commercial
building property.
In the face of such difficult economic
times, the energy-efficiency deduction
can provide a great tax benefit to companies in the construction industry. This
deduction can result in tremendous tax
savings.
Based in BKD’s Houston office, Brenda
Lee is a member of the firm’s National Construction & Real Estate Group. BKD LLP, with
31 offices in 12 states, is one of the 10 largest
CPA and advisory firms in the U.S. Brenda
Lee may be contacted at [email protected].
LEGAL
Common misconceptions in
employment law
Robbyn P. Wysocki, Owner
Wysocki Legal Group P.C.
Dallas, TX
E
mployment law is not intuitive. It is based entirely on
statute, and we all know that politicians are not necessarily logic-based. Throughout my practice, I have repeatedly heard misstatements of the law by very intelligent individuals. I am hoping
this Top Ten list of my favorite misconceptions assists you in learning Texas employment law. My apologies to David Letterman.
10. I was harassed two years ago. I
want to sue my old boss! This statement
has two problems. Two years is too late. In
Texas, an employee has 300 days from the
date of a discriminatory event to report it
to the EEOC or the Texas equivalent.
Also, there is no personal liability under Title VII or the Texas equivalent. The
corporation may be liable, but not the individual who actually took the offensive
action.
9. I was fired, so I can’t collect unemployment. You may. Unless the employer can prove that you were fired for misconduct in violation of a company policy,
you will be able to collect unemployment. The employer has a hard time
meeting this proof without a written policy manual.
8. I have a new job, and I don’t even
get smoke breaks! Texas law does not
require breaks, although federal laws relating to non-desk jobs may.
7. I want to sue for wrongful termination. There really is no such thing as
wrongful termination in Texas. Unless
the termination was for a discriminatory
reason, the odds are good that there is no
legal claim. There is simply no legal protection against bad management.
6. Everyone knows that noncompete
agreements aren’t enforceable in Texas! They are enforceable so long as they
meet the statutory requirements – attached or a part of another contract, supported by consideration and reasonable in
time, scope and geography. Over the last
few years, Texas has been leaning toward
the enforceability of these contracts.
5. I’m going to quit my job next week.
I have four weeks of vacation so at
least I have that coming to me! Unless
the company specifically states in writing
that an employee is paid for vacation accrued but not taken, an employee does
not have the right to it. The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) will enforce a
written company policy, so if the policy
states that the employee is entitled to
payment, the employer will be ordered
to pay it. But if the policy does not exist,
or says the opposite, the employee will
not be paid for accrued vacation.
4. My employee walked out on me,
and took $500 worth of tools. I’m just
going to take it out of his last paycheck.
Without a written authorization from the
employee, the employer cannot withhold
wages. We build that permission into our
clients’ policy manuals, so that employers
are not in the terrible position of sending
a crook their last paycheck.
3. I’ve been working at this job for
seven years. How much severance will
I get if I lose my job? Severance is not
required in Texas, but a matter of negotiation. Some large companies have severance plans with set amounts paid based
on level and seniority. Smaller companies rarely have such plans.
As an employer’s lawyer primarily, I
often advocate severance in exchange
for a release. This prevents the employee
from suing the employer for discrimination or other claims, such as nonpayment
of wages. Even if they are meritless, it
may cost more money to defend than it
would to obtain a release.
2. I know this is a Right to Work state,
but what rights do I have in my job?
People often get the terms Right to Work
mixed up with At-Will Employment. A
Right to Work state means that a shop
that employs union workers may also hire
non-union workers. This actual issue has
never come up in my 19 years of practice.
However, At-Will Employment often
does. AWE means that both sides – employer and employee – have the legal
right to walk away from the employment
relationship at whatever time, and for
whatever reason, unless they choose by
contract to do otherwise.
And my favorite…
1. We just got sued. Can you defend
us on a contingency basis? Not likely. A
contingency arrangement with a lawyer
is a legal contract whereby a person or
company assigns the lawyer a percentage of a potential recovery. If you’re a
defendant, it is highly unlikely that a large
recovery is in your future. Thus, plaintiffs
may be offered contingency arrangements. Defendants, not so much.
Robbyn Wysocki is the owner of the
Wysocki Legal Group P.C., located in Dallas.
The firm specializes in providing general
counsel services to small and medium-sized
businesses, as well as trade associations.
She may be contacted at rwysocki@
wysockilegal.com or 972-789-5132.
continued from Page 9 — Insurance column by Bob Cave, SureTec Ins.
basis. (A tax basis statement is not intended to present the financial condition
of the company and is of limited value for
analytical purposes by either management or third parties.)
Yes, construction is a risky business.
To be a successful contractor requires
more than knowledge of how to perform
work in the field. A successful contractor
is first and foremost a good businessman.
Polish up on your business and management skills. You will need them, now
more than ever, as you navigate the
treacherous waters of a struggling economy. –ld
Austin resident Bob Cave is executive
vice president and director of underwriting
for SureTec Insurance Company, a Texasdomiciled property and casualty insurance
company. The company website is
www.suretec.com.
OSHA
The real cost of accidents
Joann Natarajan, Compliance Assistance Specialist
OSHA
Austin, TX
A
ccidents are more expensive than most people
realize because of the hidden costs. Some costs are
obvious — for example, Workers' Compensation claims
which cover medical costs and indemnity payments for an injured or ill worker. These
are the direct costs of accidents.
But what about the costs to train and
compensate a replacement worker,
repair damaged property, investigate the
accident and implement corrective action,
and to maintain insurance coverage?
Even less apparent are the costs related
to schedule delays, added administrative
time,lower morale,increased absenteeism,
and poorer customer relations. These are
the indirect costs — costs that aren't
so obvious until we take a closer look.
Studies show that the ratio of indirect
costs to direct costs varies widely, from
a high of 20:1 to a low of 1:1. OSHA's
approach is shown here and says that
the lower the direct costs of an accident,
the higher the ratio of indirect to direct
costs.
If your team wants to reduce accidents,
injuries, illnesses, and their related costs,
everyone must place as much emphasis
on safety and health issues as they place
on other core management issues, such
as production, sales, and quality control.
To be most effective, safety and health
must be balanced with, and incorporated
into, the other core business processes.
This module describes the necessary
"culture" and components of an
effective safety and health program.
"Safety First" may sound good, but in
reality, safety should not be considered
separately. Rather, it must become a basic
value of your company. Change "Safety
First" to "Safe production is our only
standard." This emphasizes the idea that
it's fine to produce as hard and as fast as
possible, as long as it can be done safely.
One way to improve workplace safety
Give us a call, or
email your editor
if you would like
your company and/or
personnel to be
in an upcoming issue.
is to develop a true safety and health
culture.
A strong safety and health culture is the
result of:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Positive workplace attitudes – from
the president to the newest hire.
Involvement and buy-in of all mem-
bers of the workforce.
Mutual, meaningful, and measur-
able safety and health improvement goals.
Policies and procedures that serve as reference tools, rather than ob-
scure rules.
Personnel training at all levels within the organization.
Responsibility and accountability throughout the organization.
When these criteria are consistently and
effectively aimed at accident reduction, a
positive safety and health culture is created.
What are the basic elements of a safety
and health culture?
•
•
•
All individuals within the organiza-
tion believe they have a right to a safe and healthy workplace.
Each person accepts personal re-
sponsibility for ensuring his or her own safety and health.
Everyone believes he or she has a duty to protect the safety and health of others.
[email protected]
512-374-0271 x232
Melissa Jones-Meyer
dfweditor
@constructionnews.net
972-517-4703
San Antonio home office
210-308-5800
Seeing stars
L
ittle did the Hilton DFW Lakes in
Grapevine know when booking a
Feb. 7 event that its roof was about
to be raised.
But that’s what happened when the
North Texas Roofing Contractors Association celebrated its “Stars Over North Texas” awards banquet. The party kicked off
with a bursting-at-the-seams cocktail
hour and concluded with hilarity on the
dance floor and at the casino tables.
–mjm
Golden Hammer Awards
KPost Company
Southwest Airlines Headquarters
& Data Center Facilities
Community Service:
KPost Company
North Dallas Shared Ministries
Supreme Roofing
Union Station – Roof Replacement
Frazier Roofing and Guttering
Habitat for Humanity
Castro Roofing of Texas L.P.
Cedar Hill Municipal Government Center
Bert Roofing/Pitts Roofing
NFL Players Assoc. 2008 Benefit House
Industry Associate of the Year
Joel Lewallen, Johns Manville
Castro Roofing of Texas L.P.
Frazier Roofing and Guttering
Industry FOLKS
Christy Allen
BMC West/Marvin Windows
Planning Center
If you knew Christy Allen, BMC West/
Marvin Windows Planning Center
well, you would probably tease her
about two things, other than the fact
she can do a dead-on pig oink.
The first is that she finishes the
many stories she tells with the words
“End scene.”
Why?
“So that everyone knows that it’s
over. “
The second is that she will remark,
“That’s a true story,” after someone else
finishes making their point.
This is a true story.
KPost Company
Supreme Roofing
KPost Company
Allen is 24 years old and shares a
birthday with her brother: they were born
exactly a year apart to the day. Although
she was born in North Carolina, Allen
grew up in Texas and loves having family
living close by. She also appreciates the
fact that it only takes her 20 to 30 minutes
to drive wherever she needs to in the
Metroplex, although explaining to others
her exact coordinates proves to be tricky.
“I actually live in the city of Dallas,” Allen says. “But I’m in Collin County. I live at
George Bush and the toll way, which
means if I were to have kids, they would
go to Plano schools!”
UNT is the school Allen attended. She
earned a bachelor’s degree in business
administration and entrepreneurship in
2006 and is currently pursuing an MBA
while working. Allen says she loves her
job as an architectural representative, especially when educating people on the
company’s products.
When she isn’t working, she is likely
playing softball, a passion since childhood. She plays two to three nights a
week on two different teams, serving as
captain for the ThunderBunnies and playing anything but pitcher and shortstop
on Mack Daddies.
Industry Leader in Commercial Roofing
Steve Patterson, Rooftech
Bert Roofing and Pitts Roofing
Allen also quilts, a hobby she started after admiring a friend’s wedding
present – a quilt made of the bride and
groom’s college T-shirts. Allen’s first
queen-sized quilt project was made of
her own UNT T-shirts.
But Allen’s favorite pastime is to
talk, and usually “gets in trouble” with
friends for talking too much, interrupting and always having a story to tell.
Yet none of these were addressed
in her 2009 New Year’s resolutions. Instead, she decided to give up sodas. At
the time of the interview, it had been
51 days of soda-free living. Allen says
it’s been great except for the caffeinewithdrawal headache, which she can’t
cure in her usual way – BC powder with
a soda chaser. She has since substituted
Crystal Light for her beloved cola,
which, she says, blissfully, tastes just
like Kool-Aid.
End scene. –mjm
West meets
virtual world
T
he Virtual Builders Exchange Network (VBX) is
joining up with the West
Texas Chapter of the Associated
General Contractors of America
(AGC) as an affiliate partner.
According to VBX Chief Executive Officer Michael T. Tollette, the relationship is a win
for both sides.
He said the partnership in
West Texas provides bidding information from four more plan
room locations in 2009 without
additional costs to current subscribers.
VBX is an online construction news service supplying information about construction
opportunities, from the design
phase through contract award.
–kf
tions, you don’t have to work the lures as
slow.
Between fronts and during extended
warming spells, the fish will move back to
the flats and on occasion right up into the
shallow water. Shallow water warms faster during sunny days, and it is not uncommon to find large trout sunning themselves in very shallow water.
Cold water doesn’t seem to affect redfish
like it does trout. If you can find them,
reds may hit any time of the day.
Springtime
obsession
Trout, on the other hand, may feed once a
day or maybe once for a couple of days, depending on what they ate. Sometimes they
may wait till the warmest part of the day to
feed. This means that on some occasions
the best bite many be late in the day.
by Capt. Steve Schultz
Sponsored by:
Trans Sport Boats, Mercury Outboards,
Chris’s Marine, Motorguide Trolling
Motors, Power Pole Shallow Water
Anchor, Pure Fishing, Pflueger Reels,
All-Star Rods, Mirr-O-Lure, Bass Assassin,
and Columbia Sportswear.
T
his is the time of year all of you anglers have been waiting for: a
chance to target that Trophy Speckled Trout. The time is now for those who
love to wade and be one on one with one
of the most sought-after trophy game
fish in the state.
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 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.
Wind plays a big part in how productive
your fishing trip will be. In March, we will
still be getting several cold fronts pushing through from the north. What usually
Fishing has been hit or miss lately, but Ron Shepherd of Rockport was able to catch
several nice trout, including this 5 lb. trout, fishing the rocks in Baffin Bay.
happens before a front is that the wind
begins to pick up from the southeast
generating a tide change. Unlike most
bay systems that get Gulf water pushed
in from a southeast wind, the Laguna Madre and Baffin Bay lose water from these
winds and gain water with a north wind.
Speckled trout become very active during these transitions and usually began
to feed actively. Water color and clarity
are also very important to the success of
your fishing trip.
As any hardware purist knows, you have
to have at least 6 to 12 inches of visibility
so that the trout can see your bait. If the
depth of visibility is anything less than
that, live bait works best.
Early spring 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. Most of my wading areas are
on the south shore of Baffin Bay and the
rocks around the Badlands, Cathead and
East Kleberg Point.
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,
Submitted to Construction News
Goose busters
Southern Star Concrete’s Chris Medders, Metroplex Concrete Construction’s Reggie
Reynolds and C&C Concrete Pumping Inc.’s Lance Vaughan had a great time getting their
goose during a December hunting trip to K & L Outdoor Adventures in Haskell. –mjm
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.
When wading this time of the year, I will
use a lot of MirrOlures and Corky lures,
and if it warms up enough I will try top
waters like the Top Dog and Super Spook.
Depending on how good of a warm-up it
is, and how hungry the fish are, they can
be quite aggressive. Under these condi-
Fishing has been fair to good since the
New Year. I am confident some of the
best wade fishing is still to come. If you’ve
ever wanted to pursue that trophy speck
for your wall, now is the time to catch that
dream fish.
For information on booking your
Trophy Trout fishing trip, give Capt. Steve
Schultz a call at 361-949-7359 or visit
baffinbaycharters.com. Alsp please
make note of Steve’s new email address:
[email protected]
Now booking for 2009 Season.
Good Luck and Good Fishing.
STEVE SCHULTZ OUTDOORS, LLC
BAFFIN BAY –– LAGUNA MADRE –– LAND CUT
SPECKLED TROUT –– REDFISH –– FLOUNDER
FISHING AND HUNTING TRIPS
(361) 949-7359
www.baffinbaycharters.com
[email protected]
U.S. Coast Guard &
Texas Parks and Wildlife Licensed
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.
A
good friend of mine, Horace Gore,
made the statement the other day
that if we get a good rain, 3-yearold kids will come screaming into the
house that the sky is falling – just because
they’ve never seen it before.
That is about the best definition of a
drought I ever heard. I can’t see hardly
anything green around here, and the
only bluebonnets likely to be seen this
year would have to be spotted with a
magnifying glass, but then you’d probably start a grass fire.
The local lakes that are not constant
level are beginning to look scary. Before
you just put the boat up and decide to
spend more time on the golf course this
spring and summer, listen up! Low-water
fishing can be some of the best fishing
you can do.
You do have to be more careful when
you fish a lake in low-water conditions.
You need to have a good topographic
map of the lake so you can have a basic
understanding of the places where you
need to be careful. A good depth finder
will be the second line of defense for you
and your prop.
Slow down and watch and learn.
Even if it is a lake you are quite familiar
with, you will still be amazed at the new
stuff you will discover.
This is where technology can be a
great help. Our fish finders can give us a
picture of the lake bottom in great detail.
The trouble is that we don’t really use a
lot of what we see. Say you are marking
fish suspended in 15 feet of water. You
will focus on the features and structures
in that immediate vicinity because that is
what matters at the time. Drop the lake
10 feet and the whole picture changes. Drop the water another 10 feet and
you are likely to be in unfamiliar territory.
What you need to know about now is
Low-water learning
Gary Cannon and party of Preslar Lath and Plaster
A good recent catch
that part you might have ignored the last
time you were on this spot.
Drive your boat around to spots that
look promising. Your fish finder will give
you a look at a whole new world and your
GPS will help you mark and remember
what you find.
It’s not all just about underwater
structure, either. Pay attention to sandbars and mudflats that are coming up. If
the water stays low for several months,
these places will grow all kinds of vegetation and willows and such.
When the water level does rise again,
this vegetation will be a rich source of
Half or Full Day Fishing Trips
All Bait, Tackle & Equipment
Furnished
Your catch Filleted and
Bagged for You
Furnish your TPWD Fishing
License & Refreshments,
and WE DO THE REST!
Ken Milam Guide Service
(325) 379-2051
www.striperfever.com
food in the way of insects and other small
things. Algae and moss will form here for
baitfish to feed on, and these can become
the nesting areas for many different species of fish.
If you like to duck hunt, you need to
remember these spots as well. Sometimes a flood won’t be strong enough to
refill a lake, but it will cover these places
with enough shallow water to provide
migrating ducks with food and cover.
If catfishing is your game, look for
steep, rocky areas. One of the best things
to do is just shut off the motor and stay
still for a bit. Wet a hook while you study
the area. The most important thing is to
listen. If you hear a slurping sound or a
low kind of drumming noise, it will often
be a rock ledge or cave that is getting exposed as the water level drops. These are
catfish hideaways. Now you know where
to set a good trotline or let loose a mess
of jug lines when things turn around. It is
a good idea to get pictures of the caves
and bluffs and mark them on GPS, so you
can get back there when the water comes
back up.
Take advantage of this unique learning opportunity, and you will have the
upper hand on your next fishing trip. This
is especially important if you fish competitively in tournaments. If you are not
at ease being on the lake in low-water
conditions, hire yourself a guide. You can
let him take the risk and benefit from his
knowledge, too, because he probably is
on the water almost daily.
Low-water years on area lakes and
rivers are really a blessing in disguise.
New vegetation invigorates the lakes.
Driftwood dries out and relocates with
the next rise and creates new habitat for
the fish. This normal ebb and flow of water levels helps to keep bodies of water
from becoming stale and unproductive.
With spring break coming up, here is your
freshwater forecast:
* On Lake Buchanan as well as most
other area lakes, the white bass will head
up river as far as they can on their spring
spawning run. The drought will keep
many of them from running as far as usual, so you may have to learn new territory,
too. Trolling with diving lures works great
for whites, but Fle-Flys, jigs and spoons
also do well.
* Stripers are roaming the lakes in big
schools looking for shad, but your bait or
lure will work just fine. (You can call us for
this!) Spring is when the larger stripers
are taken.
* Cat fishing has been productive on
trotlines and throw lines, especially along
the bluffs and under docks and such for
bluecats. Rod and reel fishing with live
bait or cut shad should get you a good
catch, too.
* Crappies (the tastiest fish in Texas
freshwater!) are getting ready to move
into the shallows to spawn. They can be
easily caught with live minnows. All you
need to find is a brush pile in the edge of
the water on a sunny day.
Don’t give up on fishing this spring. It
can sure get good when the fish only
have half as much water to hide in, and
it’s our job to keep them from becoming
overcrowded!
What’s good for the goose
“S
Aging gracefully
he will be mad at me
for telling her age,” says
Jodi Davis of LBL Ar-
L-R: Ted Blunck, Chris Wickham, Larry Humphries, Rich Antoine, Michael Humphries,
and David Humphries with a portion of their second-day harvest.
T
hough Texas winters are more
spring-like than chilly, nothing defines the winter season more for
Ted Blunck, Parsons Brinkerhoff, and
his son, Rich Antoine, Niece Equipment,
than a goose hunt.
Tim Kelley’s Waterfowl Outfitters Unlimited in Eagle Lake just west of Houston
is the spot for the duo’s annual goose
hunt. Antoine says the area’s nickname,
“The goose hunting capital of the world,”
holds true.
“We’ve been coming here since 2000,
and every year brings something different: lots of birds, and lots of fun.”
Also participating in the hunt were
brothers David Humphries, Atlas Copco, and Larry Humphries, ACS Dallas,
both of whom drove in from the Dallas
area, and Michael Humphries, Perry
Homes Houston, whose commute was
just under an hour. Additionally, Chris
Wickham, Parsons Brinkerhoff, drove in
with Blunck from Austin, making this his
first goose hunt in his history of hunting.
The men scattered themselves
among the wind-filled decoys on the
ground and waited patiently as the skies
became filled with flying targets. According to the guys, during their two-day
hunt, each aimed well, bringing in a fair
number of geese to fill their freezers. –va
chitects.
Oh, what the heck, what’s a
little secret between horse-lovers? “She will be 27 on April 5,”
Davis confides.
“She” is none other than
Candy Royale, a pinto-Arabian
cross that Davis has owned since
1994, and has even put into
competition.
“We used to compete locally
in dressage,” says Davis, who is
also a volunteer at Arlington Animal Services and president of
Friends of Arlington Animal Services (FAAS) “but Candy is retired, at least from competition,
these days.”
What exactly does retirement for a horse entail?
“She lives at Horseshoe
Ranch in Mansfield. Her favorite
thing to do is trail riding,” explains Davis.
And, apparently play the pasture a little. Rumor has it that Candy has a beau – a
gray horse named “Badger.” –mjm
Glover and a fighter
Wickham and his kill – not bad for his first
goose hunt!
Hidden among the decoys, the hunters wait for the birds to fly in.
L-R: Brother Eric, 20-year-old boxer Chap and father Tim Huggins, all of Huggins Electric
in Fort Worth, take a breather at Chap’s most recent bout, the Jan. 15 “Texas Slugfest 5”
at the Fort Worth Stockyards’ Cowtown Coliseum. Boxing’s in the blood: His 22-year-old
sister (and Huggins employee) Allana also pulls some punches. She traveled to Argentina
in 2005 with the USA women’s boxing team and was the first female Texan to win gold in
boxing at the Pan American Championships. –mjm
Quite pheasant indeed
Hunters – L-R front: Tim Michael, Romeo Collazo and Brad Westbrook; back: Granger
Hassman, Colt Westbrook and Danny Lows – pose with their prizes during the group’s
November pheasant hunting trip at Rooster Tail in northeast South Dakota. The 15,000acre resort professes to have some of the highest concentrations of wild pheasant in the
state, and each happy hunter went home with four pheasants apiece. Michael is with
Advanced Cast Stone Inc.; Collazo and Lows, ROC Construction; and Brad and Colt
Westbrook and Hassmann, Adolfson & Peterson Construction. –mjm
The freedom of owning a business as well as being a fishing guide is simultaneously
enjoying work and family. Jimmy Phillips, who owns both Phillips Construction and
Remodeling and Jimmy Phillips Guide Service, did just that during a November fishing
trip on Lake Richland Chambers with his granddaughters, 8-year-old Sarah
and 9-year-old Kel’lee Chancey (not pictured). –mjm
Fish and family
T
Go, Speed, go!
here is a reason Jeff Wilt,
Alpha Testing Inc. in Dallas bestowed his racecar
with the number 39. R a c i n g
was something he felt had to
do before he turned 40.
In 1998, Wilt found a group
that restored and competitively
raced vintage racecars. After
eventually deciding to race current equipment, he then joined
Sports Car Club of America
(SCCA).
What were his first memories of those early racing days?
“Besides claustrophobia?”
Wilt laughs. ““The challenges
when I started were putting on
a driver’s suit and a five-point
or six-point safety belt harness
and still function as a driver.”
Wilt said everything from his
Clockwise from right: Wife Beth, daughter Megan, son
fire-retardant undergarments
Casey and mechanic Charles Flemon all pitch in to
to reading the flags took some
keep Jeff Wilt, center, in last October’s SCCA National
getting used to.
Championship Runoffs at Heartland Park in Topeka, KS.
He says, “I’m a big guy. I
drive an open-wheel car, meaning there
aren’t fenders. It’s a single-seat car. I wear makeup of the cars is essentially the
it like a suit, basically. It’s very close to the same, so it all comes down to driver skill.
Wilt’s racing season begins in Februground. When you get going full speed, it’s a combination of being down low and ary and ends in October with the nationwearing the car – it gives you a pretty als. He competes eight to 10 times a year,
from Fort Worth’s Texas Motor Speedway
good sensation of speed.”
Speed, sometimes up to 110 mph, is all the way to the Hallett Motor Racing
what Wilt enjoys about the sport, cou- Circuit in Oklahoma.
Concerns about claustrophobia have
pled with the competition. He currently runs in a spec class, meaning that the since been replaced by constraints of
time and budget. Fortunately, Wilt says
he has found his family to be supportive
“integral” to his racing.
“My wife was my first crew chief and
still is,” Wilt says. “Both my son and my
daughter have crewed for me solo any
number of times. Like when I competed
in the nationals in October, I pulled both
of them out of school for half a week so
they could experience the whole week of
The competition …
the runoffs.” –mjm
Jeepers!
F
orty-two-inch off-road tires, axles
taken from a one-ton truck and “bits
and pieces of everything” on this
built-from-the-ground-up Jeep are what
take Rafe Williams, owner of Fort Worthbased R. Williams Electric Inc., to higher
ground in the spring nearly every year.
Since 2004, Williams has participated
in off-road rock crawling events in Moab,
UT (pictured) and Las Cruces, NM.
“I bought a Jeep that had burned
and salvaged the frame and bought the
body from the salvage yard – just the
body,“ Williams explains. “The rest of it is
a Chevrolet engine, Ford axles - there’s
not a lot of it that’s a Jeep!”
Sometimes, a winch is required to
pull Williams out in tricky areas, like the
dried-out waterfall area shown here. And,
without a roof and heater, this recreation
can get chilly. Also, there are no prizes
awarded in these events, which involve
hundreds of these vehicles playing a sort
of follow-the-leader game. But Williams
loves it.
“Being outdoors, especially out in
Utah, you can really get a long way from
civilization,” Williams says. “And it’s the
camaraderie of people that enjoy that
sort of thing. We travel all over the southern and western United States to do
that.”
His hobby of rock crawling has also
turned into a unique gift-giving idea. Every year, Williams makes a calendar of
photos from these events for his friends.
–mjm
Spaw’s guffaws
Comedians – L-R: back row, SpawMaxwell comedians Michael Greene, David Perez,
Bill Homrighausen, Patrick Stuart Stanley, Mark Johnson and,
front, Danny Spencer and Rick Brown – are ready to take on any hecklers.
S
pawMaxwell doesn’t mind if you
laugh at its employees – really! In
fact, capitalizing on the knowledge
that the construction industry is full of
jokesters and wise guys, the company
hosted a sold-out “Night of Comedy”
benefiting Heroes for Children, at Addison’s’ Improv Comedy Club and Dinner
Theatre Feb. 18. SpawMaxwell experienced serious success with previous comedy nights in its Austin and Houston locations as well. –mjm
“You’d Better Shut Up (YBSU)”
is the perfect go-to phrase for every
situation, according to Dallas office project
superintendent Michael Greene.
Dallas office project manager
Bill Homrighausen pontificates
on architects vs. contractors.
Lance Armstrong has an interesting
competitor in comedian David Perez, a
project superintendent in the Austin office.
Inside out
Buck truck
Carlton “Buck” Brown, owner of Buck’s Concrete in Fort Worth, is loading up
a truck to tend to concrete calls throughout the Metroplex. –mjm
L-R: Installer Ronald McCoy and Terry Waits, owner of Terry’s Heating and Air
Conditioning in Fort Worth, take a break from controlling indoor temperatures
and enjoy Mother Nature’s perfect temperature for a change! –mjm
Sharp guy
Forklift
Blanks Welding Supply manager Adam Sharp is the only one in the Fort Worth
store at the moment, but don’t worry, he’s pretty sure he can handle it! –mjm
Lone Star Forklift mechanic Mitch Walker is fixing Fort Worth
one forklift at a time. –mjm
What is your
favorite
lunchtime restaurant?
“My favorite lunchtime restaurant is Redneck Heaven in Lewisville. They have
some really nice ladies and some pretty
good food.”
Ed L. Bishop, Magnolia Lodging
“I love to go to Ojeda’s. The queso! I’m
not going to lie. I love the queso.”
Heather Paschal
Cross Timbers Architects
“Mercado Juarez Cafe. I like the atmosphere and the food. If you go for dinner,
they have a mariachi band.”
Jon Cavender, Encore Roofing
“Quiznos.
Mmm-mmm-mmm-mmmmmm. Toasty!”
Steve Drennan, Conley Group
Angelina’s Mexican Restaurant. It’s the
best Tex-Mex around; the tortilla soup is
the best!”
Luke Legrand, Conner-Legrand Inc.
“I stop at Humperdink’s for the apple walnut chicken salad. It’s very good.”
Tim Rainey, Supreme Systems Inc.
“If I was going to go somewhere, it would
be The Dream Café, at The Village on the
Parkway, Beltline and the toll road. It’s
quiet, elegant, but it’s not overly done,
and the food is very unique.”
linda Jackson,
Texas Roof Management Inc.
“Logan’s Roadhouse has quick service –
and steak and rib eye!”
Tommy Doty, Pitts Roofing
Which Wich? because you can order your
sandwich any way you want it.
Julie Glenn, J&M Contract Services LLC
Saltgrass Steak House. The variety of
food. The atmosphere. The service. The
food is good.
Rick Annett
Bradco Roofing Supply
Rafain Churrascaria. It’s a buffet. They
bring you fresh and smoked meats, Spanish cheeses. It’s wonderful.
Rebecca Russell
Castro Roofing of Texas
Formerly known as
ABC/AGC Alliance
Natural woman
Coming here soon: new signage
Connie Gomez of Natural Selections LLC
is the epitome of s-tile at the business’ Carrolton location. –mjm
Round up and walk on
F
rom north to south and
east to west, member associations of the Texas
Construction Association (TCA)
gathered in Austin for the 2009
TCA*PAC Round Up and Walk
on the Capitol.
Nancy Jones, Associated
Plumbing Heating Cooling Contractors of Texas (APHCC) executive director, says the walk is
important to the industry.
“Legislators must hear
from [us], their constituents, so
that they know what [we] want
them to do, and why.”
On Jan. 26 members filled J.
Black’s Feel Good Lounge in Austin’s downtown district for a
roundup and legislative reception, allowing “walkers” to visit
L-R: Joe Dan Parson, ARS Rescue Rooter,
with state representatives, senaFort Worth; Rep. Jim Jackson, and Lee McFarland,
tors and their staff on a casual
Herndon/McFarland Plumbing, Addison
level. Then, on Jan. 27 attendees
gathered at the Capitol for legislative visits With people from all over the state
to discuss various bills, including indemnifi- participating, Jones says the walk “was a
cation, retainage, immigration and others.
great success!” –va
T
here’s a new name – TEXO, The
Construction Association.
A newly remodeled office sitting on Stemmons Freeway is abuzz with
the activity of a combined staff of 16.
Yet there are still no business cards,
no new signs blazing with the new TEXO
logo, no matching shirts.
“There are things certainly that don’t
move as fast as you want it to,“ TEXO
President-CEO Raleigh Roussell says
about new organization, which resulted
from the Oct. 24 merger of the Associated Builders and Contractors of North
Texas (ABC) and QUOIN, an AGC chapter.
“It took us a long time just to get the
name. So now we’re trying to change
signs on buildings. We don’t have business cards yet because we have to wait
on those kinds of things.”
The organization has only had a few
weeks to build a website and order any
logo-bearing items since its Jan. 29 and
30 Tanglewood retreat when the decisions were made.
TEXO is a Latin term meaning “to
build; to weave; to construct.”
Roussell says, “We’ve been really
pleased with the way the leadership has
come together. The staff is working quite
well.” –mjm
Chocolates and politics
Jack Baxley, TEXO vice president of government affairs; Kevin Hoppman, Big D Metalworks;
Patrick Brown, Cajun Constructors; Tony Raider, AUI Contractors, TEXO; state Rep. Todd Smith,
District 92; and Phillip Hoppman, Big D Metalworks, TEXO
“W
e have a lot of important
work to do here in Austin,
working with this stimulus
package that’s coming out, and what it
will mean to the states and municipalities
and school districts here in Texas,” says
Jerry Gorski, Gorski Inc., ABC 2009 National Chairman. Associated Builders and
Contractors of Texas gathered on Feb. 2
for a Welcome Reception, which kicked off
their 2009 Legislative Day held on Feb. 3.
“I think this is a great event for the
free enterprise contractors. We have a
great opportunity to meet with all of our
legislators to let them know who we are,
and the issues that are important to us. It
was a great turnout this year,” says Andy
Koebel, Kunz Construction Company
Inc., San Antonio.
According to Jon Fisher, president
of ABC of Texas, the purpose of this biennial event is to provide members an opportunity to become more involved in
the government process. “The entire Texas legislature votes on our issues, so relationships all over Texas are important.”
On Legislative Day, members walked
the Capitol halls, donning stickers that
read “Get into politics, or get out of business!” and delivering packets of informa-
tion about the group’s seven legislative
priorities, along with chocolates bearing
images of the ABC of Texas’ logo, hard
hats and hammers. –va
Andy Koebel, Kunz Construction Company
Inc., ABC South Texas Chapter, and Jon
Fisher, ABC of Texas president
Dallas Cloud, Moore Erection, ABC South
Texas Chapter; Kathy Gorski, and Jerry
Gorski, Gorski Inc., Pennsylvania, PA, ABC
2009 National Chairman
CONSTRUCTION EDUCATION
Opportunities, scholarships abound
Orlando R. Bagcal, Instructor-Coordinator, Construction Management
Tarrant County College, Southeast
Arlington, TX
Labor – Bureau of Labor Statistics, there
are more jobs than students graduating
in this area and in the future because of
the aging work force.
Graduates in construction education
may work in any of the four sectors of the
construction industry, namely: residential, building, infrastructure and industrial
sectors as foreman, superintendent, field
engineer, office engineer, estimator,
scheduler, project engineer and more.
What are some areas of studies?
In construction education, one will
learn the diverse tasks associated with
planning, organizing, coordinating and
managing construction projects. One will
learn the different functions of project
managers such as estimating, scheduling, planning and controlling.
Orlando R. Bagcal says opportunities to pursue
a construction education are available and accessible.
T
o generate interest in education in
construction, how important is recruitment at the high school and college levels?
I would say that recruitment in the
high school level is very important. Senior high school students need to be informed of the vast opportunities awaiting them in the construction industry.
We need to clarify to the students
that being in the construction industry is
not all about holding a hammer and saw,
or materials and equipment! There is a
great deal more to it than that.
It is a physically and mentally challenging profession, one that can change
a lifeless set of drawings and specifications into something that will make landmarks on earth.
What opportunities for construction
education are available at area high
schools and universities?
According to the U.S. Department of
What surprises students about their
coursework in the construction industry?
Students are usually surprised how
much mathematics is involved: estimating, scheduling and planning all require
mathematical skills. I always tell students
that, to succeed in the construction industry, they must have those skills.
Is there a place in the industry for people who wish to leave a different field
of work and pursue a construction career mid-life?
Absolutely. In one of my classes, 80
percent of the class is between the ages
of 45 to 63 years old. An older student
finds it easier to grasp construction concepts because they have more life experience.
Are scholarships available for construction education?
Several agencies and organizations
related to construction – such as the Associated General Contractors (AGC), National Association of Home Builders and
the National Housing Institute – are offering scholarships to deserving and qualified students who are pursuing careers in
construction education.
How have construction education and
training changed over the years?
The processes involved in the construction industry have evolved through
the years because of technological advancement in equipment and computers. However, the concepts and principles
remain the same.
Today’s construction industry uses
powerful tools and equipment to speed
up work. Thus, it shortens the time of
completion of the project. Also, the use
of computer software helps speed up the
preparation of the construction drawings, specifications and predicted cost of
the project.
Also, we are working with a new curriculum, adding more green building
courses, as more cities are enforcing
green building requirements. –mjm
The future of construction
The Beck Group
Houston, TX
Emroy Jones,
Project Manager
Mindy Frink
Corporate
Human Resources
How important is recruitment at the high school
and college levels?
Recruitment is a big part of educating potential
employees about the industry. At Beck, we like to begin
“recruiting” as early as possible. We participate in many
career-day activities at elementary, middle and high
schools located in proximity to our various offices.
Many children have a preconceived notion that a
construction project manager or superintendent is the
man or woman out there pounding nails, painting, pouring concrete, etc. While these are all critical elements to
getting a building built, there is much more to it.
Part of the career-day participation is to give kids
an idea of what the day-to-day operations are for commercial contractors and the level of polish and professionalism required for such a demanding career.
In Houston, we worked with the AGC to establish
the CAST (Construction, Art, Science and Technology)
Academy at Furr High School. Along with study in these
areas with a construction perspective, the students actually study for and gain the OSHA 10 Hr. This places a
high degree of importance on safety in the workplace.
What opportunities for construction education are
available at your company?
The universities that Beck targets for recruiting all
offer bachelor degree programs in construction management, construction science
or some combination thereof. These programs prepare students for careers in commercial construction on the project management side.
Many of our field supervision staff (superintendents) came up through the trades.
Workers are recruited from trade organizations and schools offering programs in
surveying, field engineering, carpentry,
electrical work, concrete and so on.
Once hired as a laborer or on a crew,
workers who demonstrate capability
progress through positions like rodman,
instrument man, to field engineer and senior field engineer. Others are placed on
the superintendent track.
What type of in-house training is available at your company?
At Beck, for over a decade now, we’ve
required all employees to obtain a minimum of 40 hours of continuing education each year. Our internal program,
called Beck University, provides onsite
access to courses that focus on the hard
skills required on our jobsites.
In addition, our program offers softer
skill courses that make us better able to
work with one another and for our clients.
Skills like conflict resolution, presentations, business writing, managing emotions, delegating skills, etc., are applicable
to all positions in the company, and
courses on those topics are available
across the board as well. If a course is not
offered internally, employees have designated funds to obtain external training
that fits their individual career and project goals.
How important is “hands-on” training?
Because Beck offers such a variety of
professional services, it is important for
our employees to be familiar with the
business practices and functions of all areas. Last year we required all employees
to obtain eight of their 40 hours of required training in a cross-training manner. As a result, our architecture staff took
courses in concrete, rebar, electrical systems, etc. Our construction staff took
courses in real estate development and
architectural software. Our development
staff took classes on mechanical systems
and BIM.
In addition a handful of employees
spent from three months to a year or
more working in an area outside their
core discipline. For example, our IT manager worked as a construction project
engineer. Our Webmaster is currently
working as a project engineer. Many of
our architects have moved over to the
construction side and a few of those on
the contracting side of the house have
spent time modeling projects for our architecture group. It’s been a fantastic
success.
Emroy Jones and Mindy Frink can be
reached at 713-567-4420. –ab
Jumpstart to success
Tanner Flowers and Tyson Plummer
Elliott Electric Supply
San Antonio and New Braunfels, TX
W
hat are ways to attract young
people to the industry?
Flowers: Letting them know that
they can make a good living and provide
for a family on an electrician’s wages is
the supportive information that kids want
to hear. This allows them useful avenues
if they choose not to go to college.
How important is recruitment at high
school and college levels? Earlier?
Plummer: As with anything, the earlier you can grab a person’s attention and
draw him toward a career path, the
smoother the transition from education
to the job.
Catching a young adult and training
them at an early age allows the educator
to avoid any bad habits that could potentially become hazardous to him, as well
as others. Bad habits are hard to break,
and the longer a person practices them,
the harder they are to break.
Flowers: The level of education that
the students have access to is unheard of.
Mr. Vasquez and Mr. Del Torro at MacArthur High School have done an excellent
job of a variety of skills. The students
have been able to take advantage of
knowledge, from wiring a residential
house to learning the importance of motor controls. Hands-on training and oneon-one used to be the answer.
They have taken a classroom of up to
25 students in a hand-selected program,
and given them the opportunity to come
out of this class four years ahead of the
starting electrician. These are the types
of programs needed to ensure a successful future.
Does your company utilize other
sources of training? Trade associations?
Plummer: Elliott Electric Supply
takes every opportunity possible to educate their employees as well as the local
contractors. We set up vendor-inspired
trainings, job site visits, and participate in
local associations’ programs in order to
continue to learn everything possible
about the products, local/state codes,
and cutting-edge technology within our
industry.
With the broad line of products we
support, it is nearly impossible to know
everything, so one must have a drive to
learn as much, as fast as they can. We are
in a line of work that is ever-changing,
Students from MacArthur High School’s Technical Apprenticeship Program,
Electrical Systems Technology, participated in a recent Habitat for Humanity project.
and we must keep up or we will be left
behind.
What are some success stories related
to education and the workforce?
Plummer: One success story that
immediately comes to mind is a young
man who was a part of the MacArthur
High School Electrical Apprenticeship
Program, one Elliott Electric works very
closely with. This particular young man
started in the program when he was a
freshman and found something he liked
to do.
He continued to learn with the help
of Mr. Raul Vasquez and eventually graduated and was on his way to obtaining
his Journeyman’s license at the age of 18.
This would be considered a huge milestone in any electrician’s career but for
him to be this close at such a young age is
remarkable.
This would not be possible without
the guidance of Mr. Vasquez and Mr. Del
Torro. He is now working for a reputable
electrical contractor in the San Antonio
area and doing a great job. With these
kinds of efforts, everyone in the trade
benefits.
Tanner Flowers is the branch manager for
Elliott Electric Supply #73 in San Antonio,
and Tyson Plummer is the branch manager
for Elliott Electric Supply in New Braunfels.
–kf
Tapping early for recruitment
Wayne A. Crew, Executive Director
Manuel A. Garcia, P.E., Associate Director
Construction Industry Institute – Austin, TX
Is there a decline in interest among
young people in joining the ranks of
the construction industry?
Crew: Yes. Perhaps that will change
with the economic climate and the increase in spending in construction. Before the downturn, we were seeing shortages in both the university and the craft
professional level.
The fact is that we are not seeing
people choose construction as a career.
How important is recruitment into the
industry at the high school or college
level?
Garcia: I am a grandfather, and I’ve
observed that young children quickly get
into LEGOS and building things. Something happens between the early years
and adult years, and the interest gets
lost.
Crew: Because young people are
constantly exposed to doctors and lawyers through television, they can’t grow
up without knowing [those professions],
but you can grow up without knowing
about construction professionals, the
passion that construction can create and
the great things that construction does
for society.
training programs changed over the
years?
Garcia: If you go far back enough,
the training at one time was from father
to son. Later it became more formal and
was instructor-led. Today, with the onset
of technology, we have a proliferation of
on-line education opportunities.
It has expanded into what’s referred
to as “blended learning,” where you can
have an experience with a professor/instructor coupled with an on-line course,
coupled with a facilitated web conference-type learning experience where the
student can send in questions and get
them answered in real-time. It is definitely morphing, even as we speak.
What costs are involved in construction education?
Crew: Rather than what the costs
are, I think it is important to understand
the benefits.
A craft professional who comes out
of high school can start at 18 years old,
and by the time their career is over, they
can have a higher net worth than the
typical college graduate. A lot has to do
with [entering the industry at an early
age] and making money in the early years
as the individual is learning the craft, as
opposed to paying money for a college
education.
What areas of construction education
need to be improved?
L-R: Wayne A. Crew and Manuel A. Garcia
Garcia: The volume of work prior to
September was such that companies
were trying to move recent grads into the
workforce, giving them a lot of responsibility in order to tackle demand.
The biggest challenge right now, I believe, is transferring the knowledge base
from the baby boomers exiting the workforce into the young minds entering the
workforce so that they avoid the same
mistakes that have been made in the past.
What is on the horizon for education
in construction?
Garcia: We are interested in getting
more people into the industry. Our professional development committee put
together a development pack for a junior
construction manager getting into the
industry, identifying competence areas,
and places to go to for it, whether it is The
University of Texas or elsewhere.
Crew: If we can tap people’s passion,
and show young people what construction is all about, they can see that construction is a very noble profession, and it
does really great things. Our young people just don’t know that. –va
In its 25th year of operation, the Construction Industry Institute (CII) is a consortium
of more than 100 leading owner, engineering-contractor and supplier firms from both
the public and private arenas. More information is available at www.constructioninstitute.org.
NEXT MONTH
April 2009
Women in Construction
2009
Schedule
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Feb: Construction Safety
Mar: Construction Education
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May:Concrete Industry
Jun: HVAC & Plumbing
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Aug:Service Providers
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Nov:Engineers & Architects
Dec: Construction Equipment
Construction grad school
James T. O’Connor, P.E., Ph.D. Program
Coordinator, Construction Engineering
and Project Management (CEPM)
The University of Texas at Austin
Austin, TX
H
ow do students find out about your
program?
I think most students find out about such
programs through the Internet. Our website
offers quite a bit of information about the
program. And we get a lot of email inquiries.
We also have a fairly large and influential
group of program alumni who help in spreading the word.
Where do your students come from?
Years ago, I oversaw our admissions
process, and I remember we had something like 25 different countries represented among our 60 or so students. They
literally come from all over the world.
For example, in the last couple of
years, we’ve had our first student from
Vietnam and our first student from Nepal.
Beyond the U.S., we’ve always drawn
students from Europe, South America
and Asia.
Where do they go once they’ve earned
their graduate degrees?
Approximately two-thirds of our
Ph.D.s are going into faculty positions,
one-third into industry. The masters’
graduates are all going into industry or
government employment. And we’re
currently about half M.S. and half Ph.D.
students.
What kind of position would someone
with a master’s degree get in the industry?
It depends on how much experience
they’ve got. We try to target applicants
with a minimum of two years of experience. We have some with a lot more than
that, and a few with less than that. So
when our students graduate, they’re
quite attractive to industry.
We had a master’s student in the last
six or eight months take a job for $100,000,
and I think he got $30,000 or $40,000 in
signing bonus.
We had another student a year or so
ago who had eight interviews and eight
job offers.
But in this economy, I’m sure it’s
changed. And in Texas, as the price of oil
drops, so do many job opportunities.
But, in general, our program is one of
the best-known programs. And our students find jobs all over the country: East
Coast, West Coast, Texas, and outside the
country.
What kind of students are you looking
for?
We like to have students with solid academic backgrounds. We are an engineering-based program. So you need to come
with an accredited engineering degree, or
be prepared to make up the difference.
We always have one to four students
in our program that don’t have that engineering bachelor’s. Those students go
into makeup mode where they take another year or 16 months of makeup
course work that they didn’t get as undergraduates.
We like our students to have at least
two years of industry experience. And
then beyond that, student leadership
growth opportunities are important. Beyond IT tools, our business, of course, is
still a people business, and so leadership
talents remain very important.
Your website mentions that students
are encouraged to take courses in other areas. What are some of those?
Beyond our project management
curriculum, a lot of our students are attracted to courses in business. A course
in Negotiation comes to mind as a popular elective. Some of our students take a
course in law, which dovetails with our
specialty option in dispute resolution. Incidentally, that option has been generously supported by the local construction
law community.
the Construction Industry Institute I’m
leading a study on what the optimal job
site organization should look like in terms
of composition and headcount. This
study will examine how staffs are organized and will see if there’s any relationship between the size and organization
of job site staff and the way projects perform in terms of project objectives.
So industry participation in our research is something we’re always receptive to, and it would be nice to expand
our interaction with industry.
Another type of industry interaction
that we participate in frequently is continuing education courses. We deliver a
collection of standard course offerings
through our UT Center for Lifelong Engineering Education, and we also work with
companies to prepare custom courses to
be delivered on-site within company facilities. For the latter approach, we’re happy to work with companies to customize
the course content. We very much enjoy working with companies in this way.
What are some of the continuing education courses?
Executive education course topics
include
Modularization/Preassembly,
Constructability, Risk Management, Planning for Startup, Maximizing Engineering
Value and Design Effectiveness, FrontEnd Project Planning and Project Controls, among others. –ld
How does your department work with
the construction industry in Texas?
One example is research. If there are
companies out there that have an interest in participating in our research, we’re
certainly open to that.
As an example: Right now, through
James T. O’Connor is a professor of civil
engineering, the C.T. Wells Professor of Project Management and CEPM program coordinator at The University of Texas at Austin.
He may be reached at jtoconnor@mail.
utexas.edu.
It’s become more technology-driven
and management-driven.
I’ve only been doing this for six years:
I practiced law for 22 years. But from a
university perspective, if you look back
30 or 40 years ago, I think construction
education typically was more design-oriented. It had more to do with engineering concepts and so on. A lot of structures and things like that.
It still has some of those components, but it’s moved more into a management mode and a business mode. It’s
almost like a business management
course that specializes in the construction business. And so our students still
take some design courses and structures
and concrete and things, but they also
now take management and law and dispute resolution and things like that.
What are starting salaries for graduates in your department?
Our average starting salary the past
year was $55,000, and that was slightly
higher than the previous year. Ours is one
of the highest starting salaries on campus.
We’re seeing more pressure on the
job market obviously, right now. But from
what I can see, the salaries are going to
be fine. It’s just a matter of are there going to be enough jobs.
Do you see a declining interest in construction as a career?
In our area of management training,
we don’t really see it. We’re aware that
it’s there in the skills and the trades and
so on. We’re trying to educate our students about the labor shortage and to
help be part of the solution. But we don’t
see a declining interest. In fact, we see it
gaining strength.
Our biggest challenge, frankly, is just
to get the word out that this is an available major. There are a lot of people who
really don’t understand that construction
management is a professional career and
that there are opportunities like this in
the industry. –ld
Aggie Constructors
Joe Horlen, Department Head,
Department of Construction Science
Texas A & M University
College Station, TX
W
here do your students come from?
We get about 50 percent of our students from
freshmen coming straight from high school, and roughly 25 percent from junior college and 25 percent from
change of majors. That’s a ballpark; it varies from year to
year. The vast majority of our students are from Texas.
Are scholarships available from your
department?
Yes. We have tremendous support
from our industry partners, and we have
a large number of endowed scholarships
as well as annual scholarships. Last year,
we awarded about 150 students scholarships totally about $250,000.
We have roughly 600 students in the
undergrad program, and about 25 percent of our undergrads have some type
of scholarship through the department,
not counting scholarships that they get
through Texas A&M or otherwise.
Is an internship required for majors?
We require all of our undergraduate
students to take a semester-long internship. It’s not a summer, which is quite unusual. I think we may be the only program in the nation that requires a full semester internship.
Primarily, it’s to give them a broad
exposure to the industry, to show them a
little bit of estimating, scheduling, man-
agement, just a very broad section of the
industry.
There are roughly 300 companies that
are signed up to take interns. Probably
100 of those take them on a regular basis.
In addition to the required semesterlong internship, students can also take a
summer internship as an elective. Many
of them are taking both.
They’re trying to get a jumpstart on
their careers?
We’ve actually found roughly 50 percent of our graduates go to work full time
for the company they did their internship
with.
The companies love it because it’s a
great opportunity for the companies to
get a several months’-long interview!
So it’s great recruiting from the company’s standpoint, and from the student’s
standpoint, it’s a job experience they can
put on their resume, which builds their resume and gives them more opportunities.
What are some of the success stories
related to your graduates?
Until this semester – and we don’t
know yet on this semester – we’ve had
100 percent job placement for years. I
think a year ago, our students were receiving about five written offers each. It
was an extremely competitive entry-level
job market for our students.
Now, the times have changed, clearly.
I have some concerns about our graduates this May and this August and whether we will be able to place all of them.
But I think we’ll be very competitive,
however it shakes out, compared to other
schools or other programs or other degrees on campus.
A former attorney, Joe Horlen holds an
endowed chair in construction science at
Texas A&M. He may be reached at jhorlen@
tamu.edu
Round-Up
Pat Farquharson has been named HOLT CAT’s sales representative for the entire Link-Belt crane product line in the Dallas/
Fort Worth Metroplex. Faquharson previously served as the
company’s general construction sales representative.
Mayse & Associates Inc. in Dallas made
the following announcements:
Wm. Michael Schotte recently joined
the firm as project architect.
Dan Kazachki was promoted to project
architect after passing both the Architectural Registration Exam and California Bar
Exam.
Valerie Nichols was promoted to project
manager.
Christopher Cooper was promoted to
senior project manager.
Corgan Associates
Inc. in Dallas recently
named
Eric
Horstman as principal.
Wm. Michael
Schotte
Round-Up
This is a monthly section for brief
company announcements of new or
recently promoted personnel, free of
charge, as space allows.
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Email (w/digital photo, if available)
by the 15th of any month, for the
next month’s issue
(published 1st of each month).
Email info to appropriate city issue,
with “Round-Up” in the subject line:
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
San Antonio
Christopher
Cooper
Valerie Nichols
digging down in the dirt a few more feet,
even for a commercial project.
Basement misperceptions boggle
King’s mind. He grew up in New England,
where most people have basements in
their homes. King says he was fortunate
to have grown up in a basement apartment, with its consistently cool temperature in the warm summer months and
the small window that allowed him to see
the shoes of passersby as they strolled on
the sidewalk.
As an adult, he enjoys the more than
2,500sf his basement contributes to his
nearly 9,000-sf house in Fairview. While
his own basement houses his marital arts
business, a laundry room, four closets, a
child’s playroom, a kitchen, a master bedroom and bath, and an elevator, he
doesn’t understand why commercial
projects in Texas do not feature basements as well, and is bidding commercial
projects to prove his point.
For instance, he says, a day care center would greatly benefit from basement
space. It would provide more shelter for
children in dangerous weather conditions, while adding an extra play area and
storage. He asserts that music stores
could also benefit from basements, as
they are naturally soundproof.
He says that both projects would
gain more space without requiring more
property.
King is also engineering a solar-powered basement recirculation air system to
force the basement’s normally 65-degree
temperature to the warmer areas upstairs
– at no extra cost. –mjm
continued from Page 1 — Take notice
Submissions
Dan Kazachki
continued from Page 1 — Mr. Basement
saeditor@construction news.net
Austin
[email protected]
Dallas/Ft. Worth
[email protected]
Houston
[email protected]
Master plan
Master Mastic owners Michele and Brian Stilwell say change is good! The couple will soon be renaming their Richardson-based business as Stilwell Concrete
Waterproofing and Sealing to better reflect the scope of their work. –mjm
Growing up in a tile and flooring
family based in Florida, Cawthon says he
understands what Texas construction industry workers are experiencing as they
struggle to be compensated for their
work.
“Doing these notices has just been
something that we have sat around the
table and talked about forever,” Cawthon
says. “If it’s such a huge industry in Florida
and there’s no industry for it in Texas,
well, that’s crazy! I really believe that con-
struction drives our country, so I’m passionate about this.”
“I remember us having a conversation about it, even in college,” Carpenter
says. “Matt told me how it was so prevalent in Florida. We were about to graduate and figure out what we were going to
do with the rest of our lives. To look at an
opportunity that’s this big, and to do
something that could help subcontractors and material vendors as much as it
can – we’re really excited about it.” –mjm
continued from Page 1 — The Bucks didn’t stop here
directly with the owner, not
only from the conception but
all the way through the project
because it was so hard to do
with an established business
there.”
“It went smoothly,” Freeman says of building under such
challenging circumstances. “You
just have to address it. In other
words, the existing building had
to be shown on the drawings of
the new building. The buildings
were separated by 5 ft. Once the
new structure was in place, the
The product floor counts for half of the
old building had to be torn
19,000sf of the new store.
down.”
More space was the greatest need the owners, an updated look that still refor the business, and Freeman says the mained true to the store’s history was imteam worked closely with the client on portant. The outside of the building feadeveloping the floor plan layout.
tures Speed Fab-Crete’s precast concrete
The new 19,000-sf facility, which was wall panels highlighted with a wainscot
completed in October, nearly doubles and cornices in a rectangular panel of
the space of the original building.
Austin limestone rock, but remains mod
The products floor, which consists of est in design, with an exception or two.
gleaming stained concrete, comprises “It has a pronounced main entrance
half the size of the total building. Wine, in that it has to be recognizable from the
beer and wholesale storage is hidden be- freeway,” Freeman says. “It was bigger
hind illuminated coolers.
than it needed to be, for accessibility, in
While customers make their selec- gress and egress. The other thing that
tions, administrative staff can monitor was interesting was that they had a very
store activity from the three spacious of- old sign, which was reused.”
fices, conduct business in the conference Dave Bloxom founded Dave Bloxom
room or relax in the employee break Construction Company in 1951 in Fort
room that are all situated upstairs.
Worth, and renamed it Speed Fab-Crete
The use of a concrete wall system en- in 1962 after Bloxom’s engagement and
hanced the security of the building con- research in the development of the Speed
taining some very expensive product, and Fab-Crete precast wall building system.
the non-combustibility of the walls re- The company specializes in design-build
duced the cost of fire insurance coverage. contracting. – mjm
As important as more space was to
An old sign displayed in the new beverage center
Lunch bunch
Slab happy
L-R: Dedicated staff Mike Benavides, Zoe Aguilar and Alex Garcia work
through lunch at Equipment Support Services (ESS) in Euless. –mjm
L-R: Michael Liseiro, Teri Ehrhart, Klint Wright and sales manager Don Sanford
show off some slab at Stone Distribution Ltd. (SDL) in Fort Worth. –mjm
Time to tan
Two-year-old Keara St. John thinks she’s every bit as big as the equipment
on display at Equipment Support Services (ESS). Her grandmother, Cheryl
Phillips, marketing manager of financial services at the company’s Euless
location, proudly displays this photo – and several others of her
granddaughter with the machinery – in her office. –mjm
Got puppy?
Frank Rodriguez, president of F&R
Contractors Inc. in Fort Worth, is
back at the office to check on his
workers, and also his dog, which
just delivered a litter of puppies
(he says if you want one to get in
touch with him!) –mjm
publishing the
industry’s news
Texas
Style
Sunshine on Airmack’s Guy Plemons’ shoulders makes him happy,
so he’s decided it’s a “no coat” day in Fort Worth! –mjm
Association Calendar
Air apparent
Content submitted by Associations to Construction News
AIA Dallas
NAWIC-Dallas
American Institute of Architects
Nat’l Association of Women in Construction
Mar. 5: Dallas Career Fair, Dallas Center
for Architecture, 1909 Woodall Rodgers
Fwy., Suite 100, Dallas, 11am – 4pm.
AIA Fort Worth
American Institute of Architects
Mar. 5: Trinity River Vision Update and
Awards Dinner, TCU’s D.J. Kelley Alumni &
Visitor Center, 2820 Stadium Drive. Presenter: J.D. Granger. Rescheduled from
last month, please reconfirm reservations
if previously made. $20 members, $30
Emeritus and guests, payable at door.
Matt Jones, Chris Van Rite, Bob Cherveny, M&M Manufacturing Company
T
he air was charged with excitement as HVACR contractors from across the nation
gathered at the Fort Worth Convention Center Feb. 24-26. Informative booths,
educational workshops and lavish catering stations throughout the hall maintained the air quality at ACCA’s 41st Annual Conference and Indoor Expo. –mjm
PHCC North Texas
Plumbin-Heating-Cooling Contractors
Mar. 19: Monthly meeting, “Performance
Management,” Las Colinas Country Club,
5:30-9pm. Cost is $50 for non-members.
CSI -Dallas
Construction Specifications Institute
CSI-Fort Worth
Mar. 10: Program: “Low-E Coatings Role
in Energy Efficient Glazing FG002.” Presenter: Lisa Li. Riscky’s Steakhouse, Fort
Worth Stockyards, 11:30am.
Mar. 27-29: South Central Region Conference and Product Show, Embassy
Suites, Frisco. Includes all 10 chapters of
the South Central Region.
HCA-DFW
Hispanic Contractors Association-DFW

Location
 Location
 Location
Publishing the Industry’s News . . .
TEXAS Style
Dallas/Fort. Worth
San Antonio
Mar. 7, 8, 14 and 15: OSHA 510 Training
Class in Spanish, HCADFW Headquarters,
2210 W. Illinois Ave. Dallas, 8am. $50.
Mar. 27: Legal Seminar: “What Every Contractor Should Know Before Signing,”
QUOIN offices, 11111 North Stemmons
Freeway, Dallas, Presenter: Chris Montez.
IEC - Dallas
Independent Electrical Contractors
Austin
Houston
Home Office
(210) 308-5800
Mar. 19: Monthly dinner meeting, Colonial Country Club, 3735 Country Club Circle, Fort Worth, 5:30 pm. $32. Contact
Robyn Lehr at 817-715-2440 or
[email protected]
DFW-CFMA
Construction Specifications Institute
 Location
NAWIC-Fort Worth
Nat’l Association of Women in Construction
Construction Financial Management
Association
Mar. 27-29: South Central Region Conference and Product Show, Embassy
Suites, Frisco. Includes all 10 chapters of
the South Central Region.
Kay Basham, Carrier, Maggie and Vince Gillette, Gillette Air Conditioning
and Lanessa Bannister, Carrier
Mar. 16: Monthly dinner meeting, MCM
Elegante Hotel, 2320 W. Northwest Hwy.
Dallas, 6pm. Speaker: Alan Magee, Magee
Architects LP. $28. Call Kellie at 972-2760400 by Mar. 9 for reservations.
Mar. 11, 14, 25 and 28: Continuing Education Course over Current Protection
and State Law #4128, 1931 Hereford Drive,
Irving. $35. Call 972-550-1133 for reservations.
IEC-Fort Worth
Independent Electrical Contractors
Mar. 7-Apr. 11: Journeyman Prep courses, each Saturday.
Mar. 19: IEC Annual Meeting, Joe T. Garcia’s.
Mar.10: Lunch Meeting, CEF, Irving.
TEXO
The Construction Association
Mar. 4: Safety Superintendent Forum,
TEXO’s Conference Center, 11111 N. Stemmons Fwy. Dallas
Mar. 9: First Aid/CPR/AED, TEXO Dallas
Conference Center location, 8am-12pm.
Contractor/Industry members $70, Subscriber members $140, non-members
$180.
Mar. 11: First Aid/CPR/AED in East Texas
(Tyler), Tyler Chamber of Commerce, 315
N. Broadway, Tyler, 2-6pm. Contractor/
Industry members $70, Subscriber members $140, non-members $180.
Mar. 11: CSS#3 – Personal Protective
Equipment, Tools, Signs & Signals, Material Handling, TEXO Dallas Conference
Center, 7:30-11:30am. Contractor/Industry $50, Subscriber members $100, nonmembers $150
Mar. 11: CSS#4 – Temporary Electrical,
Welding & Cutting, Fire Protection/Prevention, TEXO Dallas Conference Center, 12:304:30pm. Contractor/Industry $50, Subscriber members $100, non-members $150
Mar. 18: CSS#7 Scaffolding, Fort Worth
location, 417 Fulton Street, 7:30-11:30am.
Contractor/Industry $50, subscriber
members $100, non-members $150
Mar. 18: CSS#6 Aerial/Scissor Lifts, Motorized Equipment. Fort Worth location,
417 Fulton Street, 12:30-4:30pm. Contractor/Industry $50, Subscriber members
$100, non-members $150
Mar. 27-28: Annual Spring Bass Tournament, Lake Fork at Lake Fork Marina, 275
County Road 1588 (off FM 17), Alba, TX.
Registration deadline Mar. 13. Call TEXO
at 972-647-0697 or email [email protected] for more information.
USGBC
U.S. Green Building Council
Mar. 21: Tour of the Trinity River Audubon Center, 6500 Loop 12, 10am-12pm.
Mar. 27: “Turning Green to Gold” Webinar, Herman Miller Showroom, 1700 Oak
Lawn Avenue, Dallas, 9-10:30am.
Barbecue chips
More than 60 members and friends of the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors
Association (PHCC) bet on having a good time Feb. 20 at the North Texas chapter’s
Texas Hold ‘Em party at the Addison Conference Center.
L-R: Dennis Mellan, First Cardinal of Texas, Scott Downs, Dallas Plumbing
and Earl Gordon, State Farm know when to hold ‘em. –mjm
Job Sights
Baker, Beatlegras and butt sketch
Felipe Gomez, Lloyd D. Nabors Demolition LLC., is tearin’ it up! A Fort Worth Camp Bowie
shopping landmark, Stripling & Cox, is being razed to make way for new retail and restaurant
space on the Boulevard. Frank Phillips is superintendent on the demolition project. –mjm
The phrase “There’s something for everyone” could not have been truer at
BakerTriangle’s 35th anniversary party on Jan. 28. Held at the Diamond Club
at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, customers and vendors were treated to
music by the bluegrass Beatles group Beatlegras, and had their backsides
immortalized on paper by Butt Sketch artist Robert “Free” Bradford. –mjm
L-R: The front sides of Jim Hollis, John Carver, Blake Michelson,
Preston McAfee and Pat O’Brien
New digs
Want brick with that? Jorge Valencia of Stovall Construction, which serves as the
general contractor for the construction of Fort Worth’s newest 3,000-sf Arby’s, grabs a
slice of brick to go. Paul Nobles is the superintendent for the project, which is
scheduled for completion in March. –mjm
Hispanic Contractors Association of DFW staff – L-R: Sylvia Davila, Icci Gomez
and Mayra Leon – start settling into their new headquarters at 2210 W. Illinois
in Dallas. Previously known as the Hampton-Illinois Library, the 12,000-sf space
began its metamorphosis in October into what will become classrooms, conference rooms, business center and much more for its members. –mjm
Don’t be alarmed! Jason Graham, project manager for TECS Electric Ltd., is just moving an
existing fire alarm strobe out to the face of the new wall in a classroom at Tarrant County
College’s southeast campus. General contactor for the project is Epic Construction. –mjm
A Potter Concrete employee takes a spin on the site of The Village at Sports Center.
The 100,000-sf sports-related retail and office space, situated on nearly six acres off
Arlington’s Cooper Street, will feature a football-shaped fountain surrounded by flags
from local high schools. Key Construction serves as general contractor; Steven Ybarra
is the project’s superintendent. –mjm

March - Construction News

Transcription

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