A Night in Jerry`s World

April - June 2010
what’s new at Thomas Reprographics
A Night in Jerry’s World
Submitted by Blair Thomas, Dallas AEC Sales Manager
What’s
inside...
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A Night in Jerry’s World
2
Tricia Gustav, Women’s
Professional Football Player
Texas Children’s Hospital
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A ReproMAX Success Story
Brinda Snoke Awarded Best
“Idol” Picker
4
Thomas Cares
News from Arizona
Fooks Family Rescues an
Inseparable Duo
5
New Programming on TRtv
SandCastle 2010
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Thomas Tidbits: Stephen Spisak
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The Biggest Loser II
Thomas was a major sponsor for the 2010 Topping
Out event in Arlington, Texas. This is an occasion
for all of the AEC community to come together and
nominate, award and celebrate great projects from
the year before. And where else would you have
such a function but at the newest stadium in the
state of Texas, Cowboys Stadium? Held on the main
level of the stadium, leading architects, general
contractors and MEP firms gathered to celebrate
another year’s worth of success.
Opening speeches were given by Jerry Jones, Hall
of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach, and our very
own (not so famous) Blair Thomas. The evening
started with Jerry Jones receiving the first Visionary
Award for Texas Stadium. After receiving his award,
he infused his knowledge of sales by sharing the
first of his five keys to sales (“show me the money”)
before promptly forgetting the other four. Roger
Staubach shared a story of why the Cowboys won
the Super Bowl in 1977. They were more scared of
Assistant Coach Mike Dikta than they were their
competitors! Finally, Blair Thomas spoke on the
direction of Thomas Reprographics. We were just
happy he did not fall down climbing the stairs.
These events allow Thomas to mingle with industry leaders and build on past successes. We thank
everyone who participated through attending this
event and The Blue Ocean team for providing such
great video work for the full presentation.
Top: The new Cowboys Stadium. Middle: Blair Thomas gives
his speech at the 2010 Topping Out event. Bottom: Karen and
Curtis Thornton (left) and Thomas Perez (right) pose with
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
Tricia Gustav, Women’s Professional Football Player
By Theresa Kacer, Houston HR Generalist
Tricia Gustave (Houston, Store 24) is a member of the Houston Energy Football team,
which is one of the 17 teams nationwide that belong to The Women’s Professional
Football League (WPFL). Houston Energy has won the WPFL championships in 2000,
2001 and 2002. The Houston Energy started their 2010 season on April 3 playing the
Dallas Diamonds.
Tricia has been an employee of A&E – The Graphics Complex since September of 2000
and provides technical support to our FM sites in Houston. She started playing professional football for the Houston Energy in 2005. Tricia plays defensive end, corner,
linebacker, and tight end.
How did Tricia get started? “Women’s professional football had been around for seven
years when a good friend of mine finally convinced me to play. I had been playing flag
football for about six years, so when she would ask, I would say ‘you’ll never get me
in a shoulder pad to get hit; I will stick with flag.’ One year, my friend asked me to do
a workout program with her, and little did I know that it was a pre-season workout
program. I was hooked, and loved it.”
Tricia enjoys the game and the intensity from the players on the field. “Our toughest
team is the Dallas Diamonds; they are our rivals, but are a talented team.”
The 2010 season has ended with a season record of five wins and three losses. The
Houston Energy got knocked out of the playoffs by the Dallas Diamonds. Tricia vows
that “we will be coming back stronger next year, so I would love to see you guys there
cheering us on!”
For more information about the Houston Energy, please visit www.houstonenergy.com.
Texas Children’s Hospital
Submitted by John Gremillion, Houston Sales
The photo at right is from a project we did for Texas Children’s Hospital. TCH is
constructing a new Maternity Center in The Texas Medical Center and wanted to
use graphics to advertise their new facility. This is the second phase of a threephase marketing program designed to advertise the new TCH Maternity Center.
In April and May, we printed and installed over 10,000 sq ft of vinyl and mesh
material. The vinyl was laminated and applied to barricades being used to provide a safe walkway for pedestrians in the area. The mesh was applied to cyclone
fencing around the perimeter of the job site where the barricades were not being
used. Our Large Format Color department was given five weeks to complete the
project, and finished with one week to spare. The next and last phase is scheduled
for October of this year. After all is completed, the client will have spent approximately $250,000.00 on this project. Kudos go out to the entire Large Format Color department and the installers that worked on this project!
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A ReproMAX Success Story
The following is a letter written by Pat Gremillion, Vice President of Sales, to Rick Bosworth, President of ReproMAX.
I wanted to share with you a ReproMAX success story. Late last week (week of April 26th - 30th) we were invited to bid on the document management and distribution of a large construction project in San Antonio. The lead architect and the architect of record is located in Seattle and
currently has an FM with an ARC company. They were the firm that would ultimately decide who would manage the documents and print the
project. We were concerned, to say the least, but we thought we had a good story to tell and we were not going to give up without telling it.
The architect contacted us and asked for pricing for the project. Through some discovery questions, our Sales Manager in San Antonio was able
to learn more about the project and who was on the team. As it turned out, the GC that was partnering with another GC in San Antonio for
the project was a firm for whom we had just finished a similar project in Fort Worth. As a result, we felt a little better about our chances. Our
San Antonio Sales Manager quickly put together a proposal that emphasized our capabilities and experience on these types of projects. As we
researched previous and current projects of a similar nature, it turned out that we had a fairly impressive resumé to offer. We also focused on
putting together a team of print partners that would enable us to save the client on overnight deliveries by distributing the digital information
and then printing and distributing the documents locally. Our Sales Manager knew this would save the client a significant sum on deliveries
alone, and we certainly needed a discernable advantage in order to unseat the incumbent and win this project. I contacted all the print partners
necessary to fulfill the orders and was overwhelmed by the support we received and the enthusiasm about potentially taking this project away
from ARC.
We delivered the proposal on Wednesday afternoon While speaking with the architect on Thursday, the Sales Manager noticed the architect
was asking a significant amount of questions about the logistics of how we would manage the project. It certainly appeared the architect was
very interested. The architect awarded the project to Thomas late Friday afternoon. This was wonderful, but also very challenging because the
first distribution was scheduled to be delivered by Monday at 10 AM, and it was already Friday afternoon Central Standard time. The reason
I mention this is that there were a few deliveries that had to be made in the New York City, South Norwalk Connecticut, Toronto, and Tampa
areas. Since it was already late Friday afternoon and we did not have the drawings from this new client yet, we were concerned. We quickly
contacted all of our print partners and notified them of our success, and that the first distribution needed to be delivered by Monday morning
at 10 AM. The positive response we received from our ReproMAX partners and our newly found print partner that you directed me to in Seattle
(United Reprographics) was overwhelming.
Early Saturday morning (CST), we downloaded and preflighted the files, and then sent out the print and distribution instructions. The printing
was a significant success. Of the 23 deliveries that were made in two countries and 12 different cities, only one delivery did not make the due
time of 10 AM. It was a true testament to the strength of the ReproMAX Network and an excellent example of how we can use the network to
our advantage and the advantage of our clients.
Brinda Snoke Awarded Best “Idol” Picker
Submitted by Vikki Pandit, HR Manager
Turns out, there are still a lot of “American Idol” fans out there. This past season, Curtis Thornton put together a contest, called the “Thomas I’m Not Ashamed to Admit I Like American Idol
Best Picker Person.” We had to pick the top 12 contestants in order of elimination. There was
an elaborate scoring system that Curtis tracked every week. I say “elaborate” because I never
really understood it. We watched our favorites move on to the next week, or get kicked off too
early (Siobhan). Some of us loved to brag each week (Brinda Snoke), and some of us learned to
suck it up each week (me). We all know who should have won, but the winner, of course, was
Lee… which meant the Thomas I’m Not Ashamed to Admit I Like American Idol Best Picker
Person winner was Brinda Snoke. We think she must know somebody in Hollywood because
she picked Lee to win the first day. Oh well; I don’t want to sound like a sore loser, so congratulations to Brinda for being the best picker!
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Thomas Cares
News from Arizona
Submitted by Curtis Thornton & Ashley Ford, Corporate Learning Coaches
Submitted by Darlene Billings, Phoenix Sales Manager
Helping our community has always been an important
part of the Thomas vision and values. We are extremely
proud of the many employees recently that have contributed their time and talent to help their community.
In Minnesota, the Albinson team partnered with Governor Tim Pawlenty to present scholarships through the
Eden Prairie Chamber of Commerce. The team also contributed printing to the PACE Center, Champion of Children with Disabilities event.
Thomas was one of the major sponsors of the Annual AIA Volleyball Tournament in April. For more than 10 years Thomas has been among the Affiliate
sponsors for this event. Rob Lowe, Phoenix AEC Sales, is on the committee
representing TR. More than 16 teams of AIA member Architecture firms and
AIA Affiliate members spent the day for some fun in the sun. Sand volleyball,
a barbecue and great music were all offered to the teams and their families.
In Dallas, we helped sponsor Topping Out, an event that
honors the best construction projects from the previous
year and benefits ARC of Texas, a group helping individuals with disabilities. This year, Blair Thomas gave a stirring
speech and our Blue Ocean team provided the film production.
Also in Dallas, the second Annual Jimmy Mac Invitational
benefiting Susan G. Komen was played with employees,
clients and family coming together to honor the memory
of Jim McAnnich.
Phoenix Sales is pleased to have two new members to the Color Sales Team.
Magdalena Rozmilowski and Suziy Duncan joined the team in May. We welcome both ladies to the TR Team and wish them the best in their sales efforts.
Phoenix Store 31 was excited to get the Océ Arizona 250 for our large format
color graphics production. When our sister city, Miami, received their new
equipment, they shipped the Arizona off to Phoenix. One of our first large
projects was a project for a Fox Sports Grille on a military base in South Africa.
Rob Lowe’s client was very pleased with the outcome of this combination of
prints on plexiglass and graphic wall covering. It was fun to see the end result
of Terry, Howie and the Fox NFL sports gang being staged in our production
area. Great teamwork among the color digital, finishing and sales staff to get
this one out the door.
Fooks Family Rescues an Inseparable Duo
Submitted by Tim Fooks, Store 2 Manager
Store 2 manager Tim Fooks and his wife Gayla
recently added two new family members to
their home. Cleo, a lab mix, and William, a vizsla
mix, are each two years old. The DFW Humane
society wanted to adopt them together since
they had been together for so long. They were
found together on the street, fostered together,
and eventually went to the shelter where they
stayed together. “We knew their chances of
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staying together were low, so we decided to
take them both,” Tim said.
Tim says he and his wife made the correct decision to keep them together. “They do everything together. They eat together, hunt squirrels together in the back yard, and one is never
out of sight of the other.”
New Programming on TRtv
Submitted by Ashley Ford, Corporate Learning Coach
We’re very excited to announce a new series to our World Class Customer
Service programming. Email Etiquette, featuring Ian Miller, provides techniques and helpful hints when corresponding with internal and external
clients and colleagues via email. Mr. Miller is the Chief Information Officer
for Weil, Gotshal, & Manges, a law firm in New York and a client of The Blue
Ocean. We are thankful to him and his team for allowing us to bring you
this terrific series (and some more Repro Points)!
You can also check out the latest TRtv News Magazine on the TRtv News
Channel. This month’s TRtv Conversation features Marty Hellwig, our
Orlando Learning Advocate, who explains how TRtv brings the vision of
Thomas to life. If you have any ideas or suggestions for TRtv, please email
us at [email protected], or drop us a line in the suggestion box on
your My Thomas profile page.
SandCastle 2010
Submitted by Susan Barnes, Learning Supervisor & Executive Assistant
On Saturday, June 5th, thousands of people gathered at East Beach in Galveston for the 24th Annual AIA SandCastle Competition. This year
we had 62 teams competing for the coveted Golden Bucket award. With the help of our many volunteers, which included employees and their
families from the Houston, Austin, and San Antonio areas, we were able to provide a shady place for our customers to rest while they enjoyed
a grilled hot dog, chips and an ice cold beverage. Our 2010 tent was designed to represent a cruise ship docked at SandCastle. Debby Joiner
designed several banners that looked like the side of a ship, and Kris Hunt created cutouts of a Captain and Cruise Director who welcomed “passengers” to our tent. The S.S. Can-Do was the best looking tent on the beach!
Congratulations to the Golden Bucket winner, Matrix Spencer Architects with their sculpture, “Train Your Dragon”. To view all the entries, visit
www.aiasandcastle.com. I would like to personally thank the 2010 SandCastle Committee for all of your hard work and dedication to make this
year’s event the best ever!
Thomas Vision & Values
“...to be the world leader of Digital Print Solutions and Information Management through our commitment to World Class customer
service and innovation. We want to be an organization that our customers request, future employees seek, current employees
treasure and our peers admire.” – Bryan Thomas, President
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Thomas Tidbits: Stephen Spisak
Submitted by Tim Fooks, Store 2 Manager
from trained spotters are used along with Doppler radar data to
issue warnings of tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, and flash floods.
Stephen became interested in ham radio in high school. He was a
member of the Sherman High School Ham Radio Club. After graduation, he enjoyed listening to scanners where he would monitor
police and fire, but also kept an ear to the ham radio operators when
severe weather threatened. He also had an interest in photography
and weather. In 2006, the two hobbies came together when he was
licensed as an amateur radio operator. Across the United States there
are approximately 700,000 licensed ham radio operators. Many, like
Stephen, volunteer their time and equipment to help protect their
community.
If you have ever watched Storm Chasers on the Discovery Channel,
at one time or another you have probably thought the following: A)
“Those guys are crazy”; B) “Who in their right mind would want to go
into a storm when everyone else is seeking cover?”; C) “Their deductible is going to go up on their auto insurance”; or D) “That’s cool”.
Store 14 (Frisco, TX) manager Stephen Spisak’s answer would be D.
At least that is what he said recently when talking about watching a
funnel cloud form.
Stephen is a member of Collin County ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Services). They are a group of “trained amateur radio operators working together to serve our communities” according to the
group’s web site (www.collinares.net). In years past, groups like this
have been called by many different names. Most are familiar with
the name Civil Defense. Amateur Radio Emergency Service consists
of licensed amateurs who have voluntarily registered their qualifications and equipment for communications duty in the public service
when disaster strikes.
Stephen says he knows it sounds twisted to say it is cool to be out in
the elements when storms are forming, but that is what he enjoys
doing. When his ARES group was activated during spring storms,
Stephen had a funnel cloud form right over his head near Lucas, TX.
“It was cool,” he said.
Because of the training he received from The National Weather Service and FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency), Stephen is trained to assist the National Weather Service when severe
weather strikes. The National Weather Service relies on trained volunteers to supplement Doppler radar information on severe storms
and tornadoes. These dedicated individuals volunteer many hours of
their time to learn about and detect severe weather. Their valuable
cooperation is important in the warning process. Weather reports
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Disasters are not the only time ARES groups serve the community.
Stephen said his club helps out with parades, public service events,
and activities like MS 150 bike ride and the Susan G. Komen Race for
the Cure. At these activities, radio operators provide support roles
in addition to communications. Radio operators will man SAG (support and gear) vehicles that will assist riders in the event of a flat tire
or other maintenance issue, or they can call for medical support if
a rider is injured or becomes ill. They also man rest stops or water
stations and report on progress to a net control operator who then
relays information to race officials. By serving in these roles, they free
up emergency workers to work traffic and other safety roles.
Stephen (call sign KE5IUE) said he typically answers about 4-5 emergency call-outs a year in his hometown of Farmersville, TX in Collin
County. Most are weather-related. He is also an active member of the
Plano Amateur Radio Klub (PARK).
If anyone would like more information on ham radio, you can visit
the ARRL web site (www.arrl.org/licensing-education-training). This
is the national organization for ham radio operators. You may be surprised to learn that the FCC no longer requires a knowledge of morse
code in order to obtain your license.
Stephen began his career with Thomas Reprographics in 1998. He
worked for several years under David Laza in Addison before leaving
to take a job in drafting. He then returned a few years later, again to
work for Laza. In the fall of 2008, Stephen was named manager of the
Frisco Store which opened in December of 2008.
Thomas Tidbits is a regular feature in TR Talk. Each issue will feature an interesting
“tidbit” about an employee of our Thomas Reprographics Family of Companies.
Tim Fooks joined the company in 1996 and has gotten to know the employees
of the Dallas-Fort Worth market quite well. However, he needs your help. Please
send story ideas for future issues to him at [email protected]. Be sure
to include contact information along with the story idea. He would especially
like to hear from you if you are outside the DFW market.
Guess who!
The employee featured last month was none other
than Mike Chappell, Dallas Small Document Operator.
No Pot of Gold Here
Submitted by James Bernard, Phoenix CAD Operator
Where do you go to find great color?
Just follow the rainbow!
The Biggest Loser II
Submitted by Vikki Pandit, HR Manager
This spring, Dallas decided it was time to get fit. We had our first “Biggest Loser”
competition. About 13 employees and Bob Knappage participated in the contest. The contest lasted a grueling 12 weeks. Over 100 pounds was lost during
the contest period.
A little “healthy” competition is good for the soul (and
the wallet). We would like to encourage you to start
a competition in your city. You know what they say:
“Nothing tastes as good as healthy feels”.
The contest was won by Blair Thomas. Not only did Blair lose 25 pounds, he also
won almost $500! It was so much fun that we decided to do it again. We are in
the first month of a 16-week battle of the bulge. This time we are in teams of
two. Here is a list of our teams:
Hungry Hotties – Amber Kundmueller and Maria Leverett
Weigh Cool – Brinda Snoke and Debby Gentry
Chocolate & Swirl – Lester Bailey and Ben Jernigan
Boo-Tay Busters – Dan Schnitzer and Vikki Pandit
Double Digit Duo – Terry Smith and Blair Thomas
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Get connected!
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