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Bee Vectoring Technology under the microscope
Growth during the downturn How Halliburton is using the oil downturn to grow in Canada
Top 10 GREENEST American businesses The most sustainable companies in the US
September 2016
EDITOR’S COMMENT
HELLO & WELCOME TO September’s special edition of Business Review USA & Canada Increasingly, as the world modernizes and requirements change, sustainability is a focus for individuals and businesses alike; consumers place a great deal of importance and trust in greener companies. As such, across all of our magazines, September is sustainability month. In this issue, Richard Restuccia, VP at Jain Irrigation, tells us all about smart irrigation controllers and sustainable agriculture. We also feature an interview with Michael Collinson, CEO of Canadian innovator Bee Vectoring Technology, about his work towards commercializing a unique crop protection solution. In addition, September’s list is America’s top 10 greenest companies, looking at how each of them achieved this accolade. September’s profiles include Alterra Power’s Jimmie Creek Hydroelectric Project, a renewable power facility in British Columbia; Halliburton, which discusses its contribution to Canada’s energy mix and extensive supply chain; S2NRG’s ambitious plans to solve the renewable energy gap; and Ames Construction’s USA Parkway Project. Enjoy this issue, and please do join the discussion on Twitter: @BizReviewUSA and @NellWalkerMG
Nell Walker Editor nell.walker@bizclikmedia.com
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CONTENTS
F E AT U R E S
06
34
Halliburton
PROFILE
Smart irrigation controllers & sustainable agriculture
12 Bee Vectoring Technology under the microscope
64 Alterra Power (Jimmie Creek Hydroelectric Project)
TECHNOLOGY
LIST
22 Top 10 greenest American companies 4
SEPTEMBER 2016
C O M PA N Y PROFILES ENERGY 34 Halliburton 50 S2nrg
CONSTRUCTION 64 Alterra Power (Jimmie Creek Hydroelectric Project) 78 Ames Construction
50 S2nrg
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Ames Construction
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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y
Smart irrigation controllers and sustainable agriculture Richard Restuccia, VP at Jain Irrigation, describes the numerous advantages of smart irrigation for agricultural businesses
Written by: RICHARD RESTUCCIA
S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y THE UNITED STATES Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates in the Southwestern United States that 60 percent of total water use is for outdoor purposes, and typically 50 percent of that water is wasted due to inefficient watering systems and methods. It also estimates 30 percent of all water use in the US is for outdoor purposes with 50 percent of the water wasted. We live in a time when water is no longer cheap or plentiful, and consumers need to take steps to manage water more efficiently. World population continues to grow rapidly. Currently we have around 7.4 billion people in the world and the United Nations expects this number to grow to over 9 billion people by 2050. More importantly, the number of people living in poverty is shrinking, which means we have more people to feed and more people are eating better. The big take away here is we need to produce 70 percent more food in coming years to feed everyone. The amount of water in the world is fixed and less than 3 percent of it is fresh water, with less than 1 percent of that available for human use. It takes water to grow food and considering the 8
September 2016
water wasted on landscapes, we need to make changes in the way we water landscapes and what we grow on those landscapes. The best first step you can take to reducing your water use is to purchase a smart irrigation controller for watering your landscape. What makes an irrigation controller smart? For a controller to be truly smart it has to be able to perform five basic functions. 1. To adjust watering run times based on weather data or soil moisture data on a daily basis. Most manual irrigation controllers are adjusted four times a year by landscapers or homeowners. A smart controller makes adjustments daily amounting to thousands of gallons of water saved over a year. 2. Ability to view and make changes to a controller from my computer, tablet, or smart phone. For contractors, managing multiple properties the ability to monitor and manage controllers without having to drive and touch each controller saves time and money. More importantly because they can evaluate data and
S U S TA I N A B L E A G R I C U LT U R E
make changes from the office, the evaluation process happens more frequently. Homeowners are much more likely to view their controllers and make changes if they can do it from their smart device than if they have to walk to the garage and adjust a hard-to-read display. 3. It has to have the ability to sense flow. This allows users to see real-time how much water is being used. It also
provides the ability to measure the flow of water for better water management and access to make changes easily. 4. It has to be able to sense high flow and shut a system down when high flow is detected and send an alert, either via email or text message to a technician to let them know there is a problem. Anyone who has experienced a high water bill as a result of a water
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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y line break that went unnoticed for days understands this value. 5. The ability to generate reports so you can analyze data to make better decisions about water management. It is important to know how much water you used this September. It is even better to be able to compare that with how much you used this same September last year. It is best to be able to make that comparison and include ET data for both Septembers. Good reports allow you to make that comparison. Soil moisture sensors or weather data? After you decide to purchase a smart controller, you are going to have to make a decision to go with a controller that makes watering decisions based on weather data or soil moisture data. Both have pros and cons - both are accurate and produce excellent saving. Here are some things to consider: Good weather-based controllers monitor the temperature, solar radiation, humidity and wind velocity (they measure evapotranspiration) and make determinations about how much water is in the soil, then 10
September 2016
water when appropriate. When they do water, they know how much water to apply for the soil to reach 100 percent saturation, and monitor conditions to know when water is depleted by 50 percent, turning the irrigation on to ensure the soil reaches 100 percent saturation again. The easiest way to understand evapotranspiration is to think the opposite of rain. Evapotranspiration (ET) is the amount of water that evaporates from the soil and plant surface, plus the amount of
S U S TA I N A B L E A G R I C U LT U R E
transpiration through the plant. Temperature, solar radiation, humidity and wind velocity all effect ET on a daily basis. Knowing when plants need water and knowing when they are full is the first step to a healthy thriving landscape. Under-watering and over-watering are both detrimental to your plants. The majority of plant issues seen today are a result of too much water. When you observe a plant that is not doing well the first impulse is to give it water. Often this is an incorrect
step. ET helps guide us to the best time to water. Imagine if you had a way to determine the moment you were getting hungry and then were able to satisfy that hunger without overeating. You would be happy and productive. By monitoring ET we can do exactly that and have happy thriving landscapes as a result. Weather-based smart controllers are typically easy to install, provide accurate data, and give users the ability to view programing and water use on a computer or smart device. Soil moisture sensors have been used for many years to measure how much water is held between soil particles. Because they directly measure water in the soil many experts believe this is the best way to determine when to water your landscape. The sensor sends the soil moisture readings to the controller, which then uses that information to automate when/how often to turn on the sprinklers and how long to run/ when to shutoff the sprinklers. Soil moisture sensors are very accurate. They are used successfully in many agricultural applications. Some of the challenges with soil
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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y moisture sensor can be calibration. Most need to learn when 100 percent soil moisture occurs. This is fairly simple for most professionals but sometimes tricky for the DIY person. Also, you may need to use multiple sensors in your yard because of different types of plant materials or exposure to sun. One more thing to keep in mind
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September 2016
is most soil moisture sensors need to be directly wired to the controller. This means trenching and running wires. Sometimes these wire need to cross or go under sidewalks or driveways. There are several wireless sensors available today and they might be a good solution if you need to trench across a hardscape.
S U S TA I N A B L E A G R I C U LT U R E
Wi-Fi or cellular It doesn’t matter if you have a weather-based controller or moisture sensor – you need to connect to your controller to see what is happening with your water and to make any changes. There are many choices for smart controllers with WiFi or cellular connections to access the data.
Cellular data connection especially makes sense in commercial situations where you have multiple controllers spread across a commercial campus or Homeowners’ Association. It also provides access easy in places that don’t have Wi-Fi connections or have technology departments that don’t want to allow an outside device connected to their network. Cellular connected controllers do have an extra Septemberly charge for the cellular connection, but the dollar savings of the smart controller more than offset the cost. For most homeowners who have control of their Wi-Fi networks a Wi-Fi connected controller is going to work best. The cellular connect fee varies but typically runs from $15 to $20 per September. You pay more than that for your Wi-Fi connection at home, but typically most homes already have this connection so it is not an additional cost. This is an economical way to connect your controller. Just make sure you get a good signal at the installation location of the controller. That is a lot of information to digest just to make a decision about what to use to water your plants. There is good news: the EPA completed a ton 13
S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y of research on the decisions you need to make before you make a selection and you can find all the information here. EPA has selected certain controllers for WaterSense label. To earn the WaterSense label, landscape irrigation controllers must be able to adequately meet the watering needs of a landscape without overwatering. Rising rates Clearly, there’s increased demand for water management expertise. Increasing water rates are one of the key drivers. Water rates are increasing across the country so companies and people pay closer attention to their water bills. This increase often leads to requests for us to do water audits and water assessments to determine how to manage water more efficiently. A smart irrigation controller is a responsible first step to improving water management. Good Wi-Fi controllers for your home can be purchased for around $200. One of my favorites, Rachico, at times goes on sale at Best Buy for $159. In many places water agencies offer rebates for purchasing a smart controller, sometimes as much as half the cost of the controller. You should 14
September 2016
check with your local water agency before purchasing a smart controller to determine if it has rebates and what the rebates cover. The cellular connected smart controllers that work well for large properties like HOAs or commercial sites typically are priced higher. Spending $3000 - $5000 per controller installed and programmed is not unusual. HydroPoint manufactures several controllers meeting the needs of HOAs and commercial properties. However, considering how much water can be saved, the money you save on water often covers the cost of the controller in less than two years. Matching a smart controller with drip irrigation in your yard is going to provide even greater savings while improving the overall look of your yard, because plants grow much better when they receive the right amount of water spread over a long interval. Just think how much a great looking landscape adds to the value of your home in terms of enjoyment and resale value. Each day it becomes more important to proactively manage the water we have. Smart controllers offer homeowners, landscapers, building owners and managers a better way to
S U S TA I N A B L E A G R I C U LT U R E
manage their landscape water. As the price of water continues to rise technological solutions become more affordable and we see water savings paying for the technology we need to manage water in a short
period of time. The water situation looks bleak at first glance, but with the technology available today and what will be introduced in the near future, most of our water issues will thankfully be resolved.
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TECHNOLOGY
Bee Vectoring Technolo under the microscope
Business Review USA & Canada speaks to Michael C CEO of Bee Vectoring Technology, about the science this innovative process and its impact on agriculture Wr i t t e n by : N E LL WA LK E R
ogy
Collinson, e behind e
TECHNOLOGY Can you provide a historical overview of the company? After a decade in development, Bee Vectoring Technology has commercialized a highly unique and disruptive crop protection solution which uses commercially-reared bumblebees to deliver minute spores of totally organic pesticides onto flowering food crops. The company was founded in 2012, after Dr. John Sutton and Todd Mason approached me for assistance in creating a specialist plastic tray for their newly developed organic pesticide powders. They contained a strain of clonostachys rosea, a perfectly natural fungus that is harmless to bees but attacks crop diseases and pests. The company went public in 2015 to fund the necessary costs of registration, making the technology as visible as possible to the global food growing market and move the company into a commercial viability. What kind of research had to be done to discover and isolate BVT-CR7? Dr. Sutton has studied the fungus clonostachys rosea for over 25 years. 18
September 2016
Through process of elimination, 1,400 microbes were evaluated and the specific strain that is now used by BVT was deemed to be the ideal strain. These microbes have been tested for various qualities, such as reproducibility, crop defense, and storage ability – all traits required to ensure commercial viability. Laboratory testing in combination
BEE VECTORING TECHNOLOGY
with field trials in a variety of crops over numerous years verified BVT CR 7 as a premier pioneer colonizer and endophyte. What do these pesticides prevent and how are you able to ensure they do not harm the bees? Technically, what BVT utilizes within
its system is not a pesticide, as that infers it is killing something. Once delivered to the plant, clonostachys spatially occupies the space where other diseases or fungus would normally enter. It is a pioneer colonizer and outcompetes pathogens by blocking the entry through rapid colonization ahead of pathogen entry. Numerous tests have been conducted 19
TECHNOLOGY – including field tests and toxicology tests – on clonostachys with BVTCR7 that showed no harmful effects on bees. Clonostachys is naturally occurring and has existed in the environment for millions of years. Bees therefore come into contact with it already in their natural environment. BVT does not genetically modify, synthesize any protein, or alter in any way the natural strain that has such a positive effect on plants. How and when did you start testing this technology? Sutton started testing and studying clonostachys in the early 80s, but wasn’t until the 90s that the idea of bee vectoring came about. The testing started slowly on commercial hives, to find the correct formula to adhere to bees’ legs while not causing them any disturbance. There were also many trials to find a perfect design for the tray that holds the powder. The bees with the powder would be put in greenhouses and tested for efficacy against disease control, and tested against other similar products for both vectoring and control.
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How have you gone about commercializing this technology? The first step was to find the proper ingredients for the powder, and the best way to produce vast quantities of clonostachys. Both are trade secrets. Plastic injection molds were made for the bee hives and tray parts and our commercial development and production facility was launched in August 2015. BVT identified five key, tier one crops as the main and principal target crops to focus our efforts on: these are strawberries, tomatoes, sunflowers, canola, and apples. Two of these crops are grown extensively indoors and outdoors, and we chose these as highvalue crops to demonstrate BVT’s disruptive potential. The two outdoor crops – canola and sunflowers – were chosen to demonstrate our system’s ability to control pathogens within large scale agricultural environments using bee vectoring. Demonstrations and trials with influential growers and universities were initiated during the period in which regulatory and registration processes were conducted.
BEE VECTORING TECHNOLOGY
How do you implement corporate responsibility? BVT has developed a completely organic and safe technology that would allow a reduction in chemical pesticides. The trials and studies that are underway are for the purpose of registering our proprietary agent CR7 as soon as possible. BVT has fortunately assembled a world-class advisory board with notable experts from industry leading organizations, such as Syngenta and Bayer.
What ongoing continuous improvement strategies do you adhere to? At the BVT facility, constant testing is done to improve production. This includes testing our production process and also testing samples from test sites. From this, BVT can learn what factors contribute to the success or failure of trials, which will ensure a perfect product delivered each time. We collect a significant amount of data from our field trials, and continue to refine our systems and 21
TECHNOLOGY
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contribute to developing protocols that can be passed on to the growers. How do you handle logistics processes, especially when the supply chain involves live creatures? BVT does not supply bees, but instead works with leading global bee producers who have over 20 years of experience in the logistical requirements associated with transportation. BVT supplies only the small trays that fit into the bee hives Vectorpaks - and these contain BVT’s proprietary inoculates. Clonostachys is found all over the world, and most countries allow importation. For those who do not, special permits are written and created to allow BVT to send product. Generally, we do not need cold storage shipment, as CR7 is safe at room temperature for the shipping period. Cold chain supply is a possibility in countries with exceptionally hot climates. How important is sustainability to the company? BVTs mission is to dramatically reduce the amount of chemical pesticides that are applied to crops. 23
TECHNOLOGY
The constant use of chemical products and pesticides on highvalue crops, and overuse, is of great concern to environmentalists across the globe and growers alike. The more chemical pesticides are used, the more resistance is built up by pathogens and subsequently, the less effective that pesticide becomes. The BVT system, because of its natural mode of action and spatial occupation, reduces the chance substantially of resistance build-up. BVT believes that its system is a 24
September 2016
foundational program for crops and can be worked extremely effectively in an integrated pest management program (IPM) with chemicals as and when infestation levels require chemical intervention. The BVT system has the ability to dramatically reduce the amount of sprays and the quantity of chemicals put onto crops, and into the environment. We are also constantly looking into partner products which can be added to the Vectorpaks to control multiple pathogens in a single delivery by bees.
BEE VECTORING TECHNOLOGY
What defines BVT and is the most important aspect of the business? The bloom period of any crop is a time when pathogens have a perfect entry portal to the plant. Spraying and other uses of insecticides and pesticides are environmentally and economically costly. What sets BVT aside from this current process is its ability to deliver through a natural process – the bees – allowing a consistent flow of beneficial microbes to crops on a daily basis throughout the bloom. The BVT system uses minimal amounts of actual product and in a highly targeted process. The natural endophytic properties of inoculant assists the plant in achieving a stronger vigor, thereby producing higher yield and enhancing its ability to defend itself against pathogens. BVT uses the natural method of pollination by bees to assist plants in higher yields and healthier food. What is your company’s biggest achievement of the past year? BVT went public on July 2015 and has received significant interest worldwide on its innovative and disruptive technology.
Demonstrations in trials in the USproduced excellent results with follow-on secondary demonstrations with growers currently in process. Other achievements include: - BVT opened its facility in Mississauga Ontario in September with machinery and capacity to produce $100 million dollars’ worth of products annually. - BVT is engaged with several universities in trials and demonstrations in the United States for which results will be available in the fall of 2016. - BVT has completed its mandatory toxicology tests required for EPA registration. All tests passed with flying colors, and will allow us to submit our final dossier for registration. - BVT has been recognized by numerous leading media publications including Popular Science, New Scientist, The Sunday Times and Fast Company.
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Greenest American companies Business Review USA & Canada explores the sustainable efforts of 10 US companies, judged the greenest American businesses in the world by Newsweek
Wr i t t e n by : N E LL WA LK E R
TOP 10
TOP 10
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ORACLE CORPORATION
COCA-COLA ENTERPRISES INC.
– Newsweek Green Score: 75.80 percent
IT business Oracle has placed sustainability as a top priority, due to the challenges inherent in maintaining an ethical supply chain – the company even published a white paper exploring these challenges. Oracle has a waste diversion rate of 76 percent; its huge Utah-based data center runs at energy levels which are 70 percent more efficient than the industry average. Between 2000 and 2011, electricity usage at Oracle HQ dropped 28 percent, with natural gas use decreasing by 25.4 percent.
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– Newsweek Green Score: 76.30 percent As one of the biggest beverage companies in the world, CocaCola has put a great deal of effort towards being greener, guided by its own sustainability report. This goes hand-in-hand with efforts to end child slavery in supply chains, assisting entrepreneurs with funding, empowering communities, and enabling scholarships. Coca-Cola’s hometown of Atlanta has a long history of sustainability, and the business is proud to continue that tradition.
G R E E N E S T A M E R I C A N C O M PA N I E S
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METLIFE INC.
ROCKWELL AUTOMATION INC.
– Newsweek Green Score: 76.40 percent According to MetLife’s most recent Global Impact Report, MetLife made green investments last year of $9.7 billion, which included stakes in 37 wind and solar farms, 48 LEEDcertified builds, and $3 million splashed out on other renewable energy project. The insurance company was the first in its sector to commit to carbon neutrality, and is fighting to reduce its energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions by 10 percent before 2020.
– Newsweek Green Score: 75.80 percent Rockwell has worked hard to comply with all relevant regulations regarding the restriction of hazardous materials, as well as striving to meet with the highest possible standards of ethics and sustainability. It aims, as outlined in its most recent Corporate Responsibility Report, to go above and beyond industry compliance. It is a member of several sustainability organizations, has been honored on the Dow Jones sustainability North American Index five times, and boasts a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s 2016 Corporate Responsibility Index.
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TOP 10
06
05
ECOLAB INC.
BIOGEN INC.
– Newsweek Green Score 78.40 percent
– Newsweek Green Score: 78.70 percent
As the global leader in water, hygiene, and energy services, Ecolab considers that it has a great deal of corporate responsibility when it comes to sustainability. It has helped other businesses across various industries manage their own greenness, and last year helped customers conserve 142 billion gallons of water, eradicate 26.4 million pounds of waste, and reduce greenhouse gas production by 10.5 trillion BTUs of energy. Ecolab wants to take its water reduction to 300 billion gallons a year by 2030, also planning to reduce GHG by 10 percent across all manufacturing plants as a standard continuous improvement strategy. Its sustainable services and solutions are customized to the client.
Biotechnology company Biogen has invested in sustainable innovations for many years, ensuring that it maintains best practice in energy and carbon reduction as per its sustainability policy. Biogen achieved carbon neutrality in 2014, and thanks to its unremitting improvement initiative, it continues to improve its environmental impact across supply chain and operations. Last year, 61 percent of its waste was diverted, with the rest going to waste-to-energy. It plans to increase the diversion rate even further.
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G R E E N E S T A M E R I C A N C O M PA N I E S
04
NVIDIA CORPORATION
– Newsweek Green Score: 78.80 percent This tech company prioritizes compliance with all relevant rules and regulatory bodies, focusing its R&D efforts on improving its green status based on a range of environmental policies. NVIDIA has done its part against climate change since 2007, maintaining a long-running GHG reduction plan. Its goals are to achieve LEED Gold standards for future HQ buildings, a landfill diversion rate of at least 80 percent, and a blended average Power Usage Effectiveness value of 1.55 for all data centers by the end of this year.
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THE HERSHEY COMPANY – Newsweek Green Score: 80.70 percent
As well as boasting a zero-wasteto-landfill status, Hershey has some ambitious environmental goals in place to maintain its green position in the future. This includes reducing greenhouse gases by 50 percent by 2025 (it has reduced this by 23 percent already since 2009), ensuring that its use of palm oil is deforestationfree, and the extensive utilization of electric vehicles in its fleet. Responsible sourcing is paramount for the food company, from farming, to paper, to sugar, and beyond.
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02 NIKE INC.
– Newsweek Green Score: 81.90 Nike has caused a stir in the media recently due to its impressive dedication to being green. While the footwear company has spent many years improving its environmental impact, its latest venture is to redesign its supply chain, according to the minimum requirements of its corporate code of conduct. Nike will only be 32
September 2016
using suppliers which also comply with its new manufacturing business model, and is innovating the roles of both technology and the worker. The company has also introduced a commitment to transparency, ensuring accountability across the supply chain and driving continuous improvement.
01 HASBRO
– Newsweek Green Score: 88.10 percent
Standing head and shoulders above the rest, the toy company has taken full corporate responsibility of its substantial impact on the environment. It focuses its efforts on two areas in particular: minimizing the impact of its logistical footprint, and reducing the environmental impact of products, including packaging. Hasbro has
strict KPIs in place to adhere to, and it has been openly reporting its own environmental influence since 2001. It is an industry leader in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and is continually slashing the numbers – as well as those of waste and water use – year-on-year.
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Growth during the downturn Written by Nye Longman Produced by Kymberley Page Moore
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HALLIBURTON
While many oil and gas providers are focusing on survival, Halliburton’s Canadian outfit is using the downturn as an opportunity to maximize its market share
“
We see Canada as a leading indicator of potential downturns on North American lands,” recounts John Gorman, Halliburton’s VP for Canada, who is optimistic about the future of his industry and the contribution his company can make to the future energy mix. “We started streamlining our efficiencies ahead of the curve, so at the time the downturn really hit, we were already on our path to creating structural differences within our organization to become a lower cost provider.” Like all companies facing the oil price downturn Halliburton faces a number of challenges, but the way it has gone about addressing them is unique. Coupling the latest technological advances in the industry with a competitive shift in the way it manages its supply chain, Halliburton has set the
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wheels in motion to make solid market and operational gains. “I think it’s really served us well, especially seeing as we are now coming into the second anniversary of the downturn,” Gorman adds. “Even before the downturn, our mantra had been to be the lowest cost per barrel provider in North America - Jim Brown is our Western Hemisphere President and he really focused on that as our primary driver. “From our high tech directional drilling and bit combinations to “Frac of the Future” technologies, we are drilling wells faster and producing more oil and gas per well to really improve our customers’ returns. At a time with economic challenges, this reduces the cost of services per barrel to the point where drilling and completion activities are justifiable.”
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USA
Operations
Utilizing nearly a century of expertise, the company is seeking to extract the highest possible value from its assets in order to thrive during the downturn. It is achieving this using superior products, materials and equipment, staffed by some of the most developed and experienced personnel in the industry. Halliburton’s operations in Canada cover both conventional and unconventional oil and natural gas services. All told, the company’s Canadian business covers all facets of completion and production
services: hydraulic fracturing, cementing, production chemicals, artificial lift, drilling and evaluation services; drilling, drill bits, mud, landmark graphics and various offshore services and operations. Halliburton Canada’s operations are spread across Western and Atlantic Canada from Fort Nelson, BC to St John’s Newfoundland. The company has been present in Western Canada since 1926 when Erle P Halliburton sent his two brothers, George and Paul to Turner Valley AB to start the spread of Halliburton into an oifiled services company with global reach.
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Congratulations for 90th Anniversary of Halliburton Canada! Our JAPAN TEAM is very proud of contributing to Halliburton's success with our supply of Bias Unit Core components for Geo-Pilot® Rotary Steerable System*. Bridgers Co., Ltd. (Focal Point - Commercial) Yuichi Yamamoto, President & CEO
MIN Consultant Co., Ltd. (Engineering) Dr. Akio Ikeda, President & CEO
SUN
TECHNO
Sun Techno Co., Ltd. (Financing) Ryozou Tamaou, President & CEO
With cooperation of Harmonic Drive Systems Inc. for manufacture
*Geo-Pilot is a registered trademark of Halliburton
6F MSK Shinbashi Bldg. 2-5-14, Higashi-Shinbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-0021 Japan Tel: +81-3-3432-2662 | Fax: +81-3-3432-2663 | www.bridgers.co.jp
HALLIBURTON CELEBRATES 90 YEARS STRONG
LEASING INFORMATION
Developing strong and lasting partnerships with amazing clients is at the core of how we do business. We are proud to congratulate Halliburton as they celebrate 90 years of success in Western Canada.
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Today, Halliburton is one of the largest oilfield services companies operating in western Canada providing excellent reliability and engineering to numerous customers from hydraulic fracturing to drilling. Halliburton has been present in Atlantic Canada since the 1970’s when offshore exploration activities around the Hibernia offshore oilfield were first kicking off. Nowadays, the company is looking forward to the Hebron platform work starting as they are well positioned with multiple services involved to make a big impact on that project. Gorman adds that alongside becoming the lowest cost provider, the oil price fall provided Halliburton with a chance to revamp a number of its operations and drill down on becoming a lean organization. A hitherto less explored activity that the downturn has necessitated is repurposing old oil wells which, as Gorman explains, has been an unexpected source of growth: “We believe we are going to grow out of the downturn. We have
actually had a better adoption of some new technologies like refracturing wells. One of our key strategies is coming back into wells and giving them a new life - very often back to production and very often with a lower decline curve. “If you can go into a well that’s already been drilled and recompleted - you can do it for half the price or less of a new drill and very often get close to the original production out of it. That is being brought into the business which really wasn’t there at all a couple of years ago.” From a strategic perspective, Halliburton’s presence in Canada presents the company with an opportunity to competitively grow its market share to make long term gains in a key territory. “Most of the strategies would be around market share growth. Given the depth and breadth of the downturn, growth in revenue or profitability is not a priority but we have been very successful at what we are aiming to do.”
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HALLIBURTON
Supply chain
As one of the largest players in its field, Halliburton recognizes the potential positive impacts of making its supply chain more efficient. Gorman explains: “Halliburton is a very large organization and from a strong logistics base. So when we focused on being the lowest cost per barrel provider we focused on the recovery factor of what we were getting out of the ground. “For example, we buy more sand than anyone else in North America including construction companies. You can obviously create some strong relationships with our vendors
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to be a very low-cost provider given the volumes we go through.” Remote technology also plays a role. From its real-time logistics center in Houston, Texas, Halliburton is not only able to track every truck and rail car in North America, it is also able to report on any delays or issues its cargo might be experiencing – in real time. “That also minimizes our trucking and rail costs and makes sure that we getting that product delivered when we need it,” Gorman adds. “If you look through a lot of our pipelines that are very product or manufacturing dependent, the more
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you can have a high turnover of equipment, you can accelerate your cash generation from making a very efficient supply chain organisation.” The company has looked at ways of increasing its production performance without reneging on its goal to be the lowest cost per barrel provider. A balance had to be struck. “We focused on trying to ensure that we have all of our technology resources available to make sure that our customers have the best technology to improve their production while keeping their costs at a reasonable level,” Gorman adds. Through Halliburton’s Guiding
Principles for Sustainability, the company continuously seeks to build on its role as an accidentfree, environmentally responsible company. It achieves this using a sixpoint strategy that covers financial performance, health, safety and the environment, global citizenship, transparency and collaboration with suppliers. As a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices, Halliburton endeavours to integrate the above principles into a business model that manages social and environmental risks as part and parcel of delivering long-term shareholder value.
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set up Halliburton University – an With over a century of experience online learning system that enables in the industry, Halliburton knows employees to document career how to develop a skilled workforce achievements while learning for roleacross its field operations, based competencies, competency manufacturing and professional assessments, and technical training. roles. Its current talent management It also provides a wealth of online strategy is focused on maintaining courses. The company is also its career and management keen to foster the next generation programmes while of talent; it offers making necessary positions within adjustments to its operations for remain competitive recent graduates or during the internships for those downturn. still to complete With upwards their studies. of 20 training Gorman adds: “From Number of employees facilities across a career progression at Halliburton the world, the perspective, we company provides develop high technical, operational and potential employees and we have a leadership training. Complementing partnership with the Mays School of myriad development programs, Business at Texas A&M University the company provides a where we provide financial and number of fast-track career business leadership training. While development opportunities. there has been a need to cut costs Keen to provide broader and in other areas, we have kept the more immersive access to its Texas A&M training as part of our educational initiatives, the company core leadership training initiatives. Talent management
50,000
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Through the President’s Leadership Excellence Program, Halliburton selects 30 of its most capable candidates and, after vetting from the CEO, trains them to fill top management positions within the company. “We train them to become the next leaders of the company. Very often in organizational announcements, you will see ‘graduate of 2000 and whatever year of class’. This is something we are very proud of; we have a great partnership with Texas A&M,” Gorman says. Given the cyclical nature of the oil and gas industry, attracting, developing and retaining the best talent comes with a number of challenges. Gorman and his HR teams have overcome this, however. Given the downturn, the company has had to look very hard at which staff it keeps on its books. Gorman explains: “We are in a very cyclic industry and have to balance the current needs of the business with its future needs. It’s
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always a challenge to determine how long a cycle will last and what sort of structural changes we can make to the business in order to improve our own economics. It’s a challenge for the entire industry.” Having refined an already highly effective business into an even more efficient operation, Halliburton’s Canadian operations are set to play a crucial role in the country’s energy mix for years to come. Gorman concludes: “I truly believe that Canada does the best job of being a very responsible environmental citizen and is embracing some of the most environmentally friendly produced oil and gas in the world. “As Obama recently said during a meeting with Prime Minister Trudeau - the world needs more Canada and I think the world needs more Canadian oil and gas.”
“Through the President’s Leadership Excellence Program, Halliburton selects 30 of its most capable candidates and trains them to fill top management positions”
Mind the gap: S2NRG & solving the renewable energy gap
Industrial assets can be sources of huge amounts of energy tr generated from the underutilized assets of the facility, represe is what S2NRG refers to as Industrial Renewable Energy, and Hybrid Energy technology platform designed to extract these sale to the grid. They believe that this approach will help to so Written by Dale Benton Produced by Kymberley Page Moore
rapped within the industrial process or enting major untapped sources of energy. This the company has developed the Integrated trapped energies and release them for olve the renewable energy gap.
S2NRG
“Even though we are using conventional technologies to do this, we are configuring those technologies in novel and innovative ways that allow us to have a holistic approach” – Gregg Bauer, Managing Partner
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ENERGY
“W
e saw an opportunity in very large industrial commodity companies like steel aluminium, glass and cement, to recover energy that is lost in the form of heat or from flammable gases the are emitted by the processes,” says Gregg Bauer, Managing Director and one of the founding fathers of S2NRG. “Our concept is that we can use conventional technologies to capture the Industrial Renewable Energy that’s being lost or wasted and combine it with traditional renewable energy from PV solar, wind turbines etc. installed on the sites and integrate those two forms of renewable energy together to produce what we call Integrated Hybrid Energy.” S2NRG as a company was founded after Bauer and his business partner Mark Roth were working on a project for a large steel company. Together
they realized that it wasn’t really sensible to be burning precious natural gas to produce energy or installing greenfield solar and wind facilities in locations where people don’t want them when this untapped energy source was readily available. “Nobody cares if you put something like a solar field or a wind facility on a steel mill site because they are generally ugly anyway,” says Bauer. This eventually brought them into the path of the founders of Dutch company The Source, Michel van Honk and Maurits van Oranje. The Source had been pursuing renewable projects in markets such as Brazil and Africa which was believed to be a good target for the new founded company: S2NRG. Based in Amsterdam and with a core operational office for the US, located in Boston, US, S2NRG now
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has operations in Europe and over the last five to six months began operating in Rio De Janeiro, which the company is using as a launch pad for the South American market. S2NRG believe that industrial assets can become sources of power, which they call Industrial Renewable Energy. “Is it green? If we increase the efficiency of how fuel is used by three times and reduce the carbon footprint of a complete facility, then it sounds pretty green to me. One of our core missions really is to carry forward this new concept where the market begins to recognize it as being really renewable,” says Bauer. “With more and more traditional renewable produced energy (solar and wind) coming online, the stability of the grid becomes more and more a problem. Energy can’t be stored. S2NRG refers to this as the renewable energy gap. “Industrial renewable energy
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plays an important role in this stability problem. Our capacity is constant and available 24/7.” Dealing with development Bauer admits that development is a complicated business, with a key challenge being geographical locations and whether to enter that specific market. “It’s a heavily knowledge-intensive business, both technically and commercially, and you have to go to the places that have the right conditions. So these large industrial plants need to be located in an energy market that makes our projects economically viable, a regulatory market that is supportive of these projects and you need relationships with the most senior executive of the industrial host,” says Bauer. “And what certainly will help is the aspiration of many grid operators for stable distributed
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ENERGY
“Is it green? If we increase the efficiency of how fuel is used by three times and reduce the carbon footprint of a complete facility, then it sounds pretty green to me” – Gregg Bauer, Managing Partner renewable energy production.” S2NRG is still a young company, and Bauer admits that their hands are full; with pipelines in the US, in central and eastern Europe and in Chile and Columbia, the company has full schedule. However, he says that as the company continues to grow there will be opportunities to expand. “As the company grows and we raise more capital there will be other markets that are attractive which we will then consider,” he explains. “But they will need to fit that criteria where we know that we have the correct resources and the correct relationships and commercial environment for that to happen.” The cost of capital One of the major questions that arise from any form of recycling or renewing
energy use, how does the company or the industrial host make money out of this? The answer is simple: the energy is served out to the grid, with the industrial host receiving royalties. “We integrate the energies sources in such a way that we maximise the economic benefit of the energy coming out of our plants to ensure that we are getting the maximum benefit of the real time energy market while allowing the hosts to modulate their process where possible, where it makes more sense to sell energy than it does to produce say, aluminium,” adds Bauer. Think of it as demand management taken to another level. These projects are funded by large energy private equity groups like EIF/ Ares. S2NRG shares the economics from the sale of power between the energy private equity groups, who own
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the power facility, and the industrial host in return for allowing the company to use the underutilized assets. This business model has proved hugely successful thus far for S2NRG. “The hosts like it because it comes to them as EBIT, the very purest form of economics that you can get – they have no cost of capital, no operating costs and no COGS. The private equity firms like this model because it gives them interesting new distributed power plants to invest in that they wouldn’t normally have access to,” says Bauer. “They also like it, because since we are not having to acquire land, we are able to reuse permits that our hosts have in place, our interconnect costs are much lower because the hosts have back connects to the grid. This allows us to connect in and back feed to the grid from interconnections already in place. Our cost of fuel for all intents and purposes is nearly zero
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– because we are using energy that is being wasted by the process anyway. “It’s a subsidised cost of fuel because the host gets a royalty, but the cost of fuel is essentially zero so it makes these plants very
ENERGY
economical to put in place because the cost of development and building are much lower. The cost of operating them are much lower, presenting a superior economic situation to our collective partners.�
Collaboration: the key to success Partnerships and relationships with customers is crucial to the success of S2NRG. Bauer recognizes this and calls
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upon the importance of collaboration. “One of the most important relationships to us is with the energy private equities/capital markets. We view them as our customers, we view the industrial hosts as our partners,” he says. “It’s a constantly moving process. All of us have very deep networks and relationships with senior executives at the larger industrial companies. Where we spend a great deal of our time is nurturing and maintaining and supporting the relationships with the energy private equity companies.” Governments and local authorities also play an important role, their wish for efficient renewable energy production
ENERGY
and economic development is evident. Collaboration with them on the right levels is another key to the success. A system perspective As a relatively young company trying to carve out a market for themselves, such a venture provides various challenges, as development companies are considered as risks. S2NRG is not just a development company, it has its own Integrated Hybrid Technology
systems for combining two sources of energy, and with this comes even further challenges – engineering how to configure these technologies for its projects. “The magic behind what we do is to look at the industrial facility from and engineering systems perspective. This allows us to conceive systems solutions that are just not possible when individual processes are considered. Even though we are using conventional technologies to do this, we are configuring those
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technologies in novel and innovative ways that allow us to have a holistic approach,� Bauer continues. A novel idea Novelty is one thing, but standing tall
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against competitors is another. Bauer believes that what separates S2NRG from other development companies is the innovative business model. Larger existing energy development companies will normally ask for the
ENERGY
industrial hosts to invest capital, or to sell the energy to the host, something which what Bauer describes as “very difficult and challenges the economics for the project”. “A typical energy development company has a core financial focus, that’s not what we do,” he says. “We have the profiles of competent systemthinking industrial professionals, which allows the company to go into industrial processes and look at them from a completely different perspective,” Bauer states. What makes S2NRG different is its ability to provide a solution for multiple audiences. “If you ask the capital markets, it’s our relationship with the industrial hosts and our ability to connect at the highest levels and to have the conversations that we can have. “If you ask the industrial host, it’s our relationship with the capital market. There’s no magic
to what we do, but there is some secret sauce and our integrated hybrid technology platform.” Moreover, the private equity firms like this model because it gives them interesting new distributed power plants to invest in that they wouldn’t normally have access to. In creating a market, new entrants are a certainty. But this is actually part of S2NRG’s long term goal. “We want to declare the market of Industrial Renewable Energy, carve out space for other developers who can join us in this market and rely on licencing our technology,” Bauer states. “Development is means by which to get our technology to market, but in the end of the day if you ask the founders what S2NRG is about, we will tell you it’s an industrial renewable energy company with a core patented technology that enables that.”
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The renewable energy revolution
e n We speak to Jay Sutton, Vice President of Alterra Power Corp, about the firm’s brand new Jimmie Creek Construction Project
Written by Wedaeli Chibelushi Produced by Tom Venturo
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T
he world is becoming increasingly environmentally conscious. How can energy companies serve communities with minimal damage to their surroundings? Jay Sutton, Vice President, Hydro Power at Alterra Power Corp, presents a solution. A civil engineer by training, Sutton is working with Alterra Power Corp to finalize the new Jimmie Creek Construction Project. “Alterra is a renewable energy company and we have wind, geothermal and hydroelectric plants located in British Columbia, the US and in Iceland,” Sutton explains. The firm is a global leader in its sector, operating seven power plants totaling 819 MW of generation capacity. The Jimmie Creek Construction Project is a renewable power facility constructed on the creek
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the project takes its name from, a waterway in British Columbia’s Toba Valley. The hydroelectric project produces 62 megawatts of power, enough electricity for over 15,000 homes. Sutton, who has worked on British Columbia hydroelectric projects since 2008, tells us more. The project “There are incredible resources up in Toba Valley. From a water perspective it’s a great geographical location for run-of-the river hydroelectric projects,” he says. Unlike traditional hydroelectric projects, which flood large areas of land, run-of-river projects divert a portion of the flow from the river into a pipe called a penstock. The penstock carries the water downhill to a generating station. Gravity produces the energy required to spin the turbines, then the turbines
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“They make sure there’s minimal environmental impact during construction so that there’s minimum impact afterwards”
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Photos sourced from the Jimmie Creek Hydro Project.
CONSISTENTLY EXCEEDING OUR CLIENTS EXPECTATIONS WITH OUR PROFESSIONAL AND CONSCIENTIOUS APPROACH IN COMPLETING EXCEPTIONAL QUALITY CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, WHILE MAINTAINING BUDGET AND SCHEDULE GOALS. Hazelwood Construction Services Inc. has been in business for over 20 years. During that time we have accumulated a diverse construction portfolio, including run-of-river hydroelectric developments, bridge installations, road construction, municipal infrastructure, as well as a variety of industrial and commercial construction projects.
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Ross Beaty Executive Chairman Ross J. Beaty is a geologist and resource company entrepreneur with over 40 years of experience in the international minerals and renewable energy industries. In early 2008, Mr. Beaty founded Magma Energy Corp. to focus on international geothermal energy development. In 2011, Magma and Plutonic Power merged to create Alterra Power Corp. Mr. Beaty also founded and currently serves as Chairman of Pan American Silver Corp., one of the world’s leading silver producers, and since 1985 he has successfully founded and divested a number of other public mineral resource companies. Mr. Beaty is a Director of The Nature Trust of B.C. and patron of the Beaty Biodiversity Center at the University of B.C.. Mr. Beaty is a past President of the Silver Institute in Washington, D.C., a Fellow of the Geological Association of Canada and the Canadian Institute of Mining, and a recipient of the Institute’s Past President’s Memorial Medal. In 2007, Mr. Beaty received the Association of Mineral Exploration of B.C.’s Colin Spence Award for excellence in global mineral exploration; in 2008, he received the Mining Person of the Year award from the Mining Association of B.C. and the 2008 Natural Resources & Energy Entrepreneur of the Year Award by Ernst & Young. In 2010, Mr. Beaty was awarded the prestigious Viola MacMillan Award by the Prospector and Developers Association of Canada and was selected as Mining Person of the Year for 2011 by Canada’s Northern Miner newspaper. In 2014, Mr. Beaty received the CIM’s Vale Medal for Meritorious Contribution to Mining.
produce electricity. When the water leaves the generating station, it is returned to the river it was diverted from. “There are many areas with steep valleys and high run-off in British Columbia,” Sutton continues. “So we hired a company do a screening of areas up and down the coast of British Columbia and the Toba Valley was one of the areas with the highest potential.” The Jimmie Creek Construction Project will join two existing Alterra plants in the Toba Valley: The East Toba and Montrose projects. Employees “The crews that operate our East Toba and Montrose project started training on the Jimmie Creek project
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“We had the company do a scr amount of areas up and down and Jimmie Creek was the are
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reening of a significant the coast of British Columbia ea with the highest potential�
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John Carson Chief Executive Officer John Carson is a highly experienced renewable energy business leader with a core expertise in structuring and leading financial transactions. His experience over the last ten years includes senior positions held in GE Energy Financial Services (Renewable Energy Group), Terra-Gen Power and Noble Environmental Power, and he has closed billions of dollars of transactions, primarily in the renewable energy space. His education includes a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a Bachelor of Science from Purdue University.
in January. They’ve been training for the last eight months so that when Jimmie Creek started generating in July they were fully prepared to start operations,” Sutton comments. He tells us about the Jimmie Creek Construction Project’s employment structure. During construction 200 people were working on the site, but now that the project has finished, the staff size has been whittled down to two crews of six
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employees. The smaller team will operate all three plants: East Toba, Montrose and Jimmie Creek. Sutton expands: “They’ll operate on a one week in and one week out rotation. There’s no roads to the valley, so when they work on site, they actually live on site at our East Toba plant.” Partners Alterra Power Corp worked with a number of partners to finalize the Jimmie Creek Project. “The financial partner that we own and operate the project with is called Axium Infrastructure, a Montreal based portfolio management company that are our partners on
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Jay Sutton Vice President, Hydro Power Jay Sutton has over 15 years of experience in hydroelectric, transportation and marine infrastructure projects. Mr. Sutton worked for BC Hydro as construction manager and for WorleyParsons for the construction of the William R. Bennett floating bridge in Kelowna. Most recently, Mr. Sutton worked for WorleyParsons as project manager for the Toba Montrose hydroelectric project prior to joining Alterra in May 2010. Mr. Sutton holds a Bachelor of Applied Science, Civil Engineering from the University of British Columbia. He is responsible for the development, construction and operation of hydroelectric projects at Alterra.
the two other hydroelectric plants, East Toba and Montrose, as well as our Dokie windfarm in Northeast British Columbia,” Sutton tells us. Axium has followed the project closely. “They made regular trips to site during the construction and recently visited the site to have a look at the project as it is being completed,” Sutton says.
Alterra Power Corp also partnered with Klahoose First Nation. The Jimmie Creek project lies within the traditional territory of Klahoose First Nation. Sutton elaborates: “We worked closely with the Klahoose during the construction, they performed to a number of significant contracts for the construction of the project and a significant amount of the workforce were Klahoose members.” Regarding clients, “there’s only one customer in British Columbia that purchases the power: BC Hydro,” Sutton says. BC Hydro and Power Authority is the main electricity distributor in British Columbia. It is owned by the Province of British Columbia. The Jimmie Creek
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$
57.8 million Alterra Power Corp annual revenue
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construction project is currently selling its power under a contract with Powerex Corporation. Its 40-year contract with BC Hydro will begin when full commercial operations start in August. Sutton adds: “We’re still finalizing the last remaining items on each of the construction
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contracts and contractors have a warranty that lasts three years on the project.” Sustainability Sutton moves on to talk about a
key focus of the Jimmie Creek Construction Project: sustainability. “These projects are renewable, they take nothing from the environment, they have no exhaust pipes and don’t emit
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any greenhouse gases,” he explains. minimum impact afterwards,” Alterra Power Corp has tried to Sutton neatly summarizes. minimize the area that the plant is constructed on. When the plant The future is constructed, the Alterra team Alterra is not stopping at the Jimmie rehabilitates all the areas that they Creek Project. “We have one more can, so they can replant project located in the valley grasses and trees to try called Tahumming River to restore the area. and it’s another small “They have a very run-of-the-river small footprint project. We hope to and they have no start construction in emissions, they’re 2017.” Number of low impact projects,” 2017 will be a employees at Alterra Sutton says. He big year for Alterra Power Corp added that there are – it is also looking at a number of people who developing wind and monitor the construction site solar projects in the US for and ultimately provide a review on construction around that time. Led by environmental stewardship. These the recently completed Jimmie Creek independent monitors are either Construction Project, Alterra is headed hired by Alterra or by the province. for future sustainable success. “They make sure there’s minimal environmental impact during construction so that there’s
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Delivering the USA Pa
Rising to the design-build challenge of N Construction brings multi-sectoral exper Written by Nye Longman Produced by Tom Venturo
arkway Project
Nevada’s USA Parkway Project, Ames rience alongside operational excellence 79
AMES CONSTRUCTION
“O
ne of the really big benefits of the USA Parkway Project is that it will really enhance regional mobility by creating a new route between two major corridors, Interstate 80 and US Highway 50,” says Ames Construction Project Manager Seth Alexander, who is proud of his company’s crucial role in the development. Tasked with both designing and building the project, Ames Construction is playing a major role in delivering an important stimulus to the regional economy and beyond. Operations Since its foundation in 1962 as an earthwork contractor, Ames Construction has always focused on delivering quality services. Now a mature player, the company has grown into a fullservice, heavy civil and industrial contractor. Still a family-owned operation, the business now has an extensive footprint across the United States and Canada and has developed its capabilities to serve customers from a number of different sectors. Together with transportation infrastructure
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“Water quality is a big issue within the State of Nevada. So we are constantly inspecting the site and making sure that we’re in compliance with all our permits” – Seth Alexander, Project Manager
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such as highways, railroads, and airports, Ames Construction’s expertise covers energy and mining installations, water processing, and a variety of commercial projects. The USA Parkway Project was conceived by Nevada’s Department of Transportation with the goal of enhancing connectivity in the greater Reno/Sparks and Fernley/Fallon areas. This will be achieved on the ground by extending the Parkway southeast by nearly 13 miles to reach US 50, close to Silver Springs. Alongside increased capacity for commuters, the expansion will also support freight traffic and serve as an alternative route in the event of poor weather conditions. The project is executed using the design-build method - a construction procurement arrangement where both design and construction services are performed under a single contract by the design-build
team. Unlike traditional project delivery methods, design-build allows for a collaborative effort between the contractor and designer. This collaboration allows for both the design approach and construction methods to be tailored to the needs of the project, which in turn, allow for reduced project schedules, reduced construction costs, and enhanced risk management. “What’s interesting about this project is that the north end is close to the Taho-Reno Industrial Center” says Alexander. “It’s currently the largest industrial park in the world and home to Tesla’s Gigafactory. Nevada is attracting high tech companies and one of the benefits of this project will be making the industrial park more accessible. “The great thing about it is it’s going to create job opportunities for people that currently would have to drive a long way to get to the park,” he
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adds. “That’s going to create a better way for them to get up there and access higher paying jobs. “It’s unique for me as a contractor; not only am I building a great project for Nevada DoT – and it’s a great project for Ames – but it’s a project that will have a lot of benefits to the surrounding communities.” Ames Construction is also using GPS grade control on its equipment which minimises the amount of survey-staking that has to be performed onsite. The company is utilising UAV drones to survey quantities on the 18-mile corridor every two weeks. “That allows us to ensure we’re meeting our production goals and also allows us to report accurate quantities to the owner and ensure the minimum testing requirements
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are being met,” Alexander explains. Sustainable development One key challenge for Ames and it’s 80-strong team is to ensure that the USA Parkway Project is delivered without damaging the cultural heritage of the area. The assortment of protected and endangered wildlife, archaeological sites and historic mining operations dotting the desert necessitate a careful approach – one that is communicated across the operation.
In his role as the site’s Project Manager, Alexander has day-to-day responsibility for health, safety, and environmental protection on site. He explains how the company is managing an increasingly important aspect of its operations: “One of the things that we were able to do with our design approach was to avoid environmentally sensitive areas 100 percent. Our staff also monitored construction activities to ensure that there’s no disturbance to those areas. “Water quality is a big issue
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within the State of Nevada. So we are constantly inspecting the site and making sure that we’re in compliance with all our permits.” Fully conscious of its scope to conserve local flora and fauna, Ames Construction is installing protective fences to protect both animals and
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motorists, and is also seamlessly accommodating two historic wildlife crossings into the parkway itself. Safety on the job is supported by a team of health and safety professionals whose unflinching work has earned the company a number of prestigious awards in this regard, Ames has been recognized at the local and national level for incident rates significantly lower than the national average. “Our safety record is something that we’re very proud of,” Alexander adds. “We have a job-wide safety meeting daily, and all of our supervisors on site undertake an inspection for the area that they’re working and the tasks that they’re performing that day.” Backed up by its enviable track record and dedication to quality value delivery, Ames Construction is set to complete the USA Parkway Project on time and in compliance with the high standards expected of such an important transportation corridor.
CONSTRUCTION
“Design-build is a construction procurement method where both the design and construction services are performed under a single contract by the design-build team. Unlike traditional project delivery methods, where design and construction are often performed independent from one another, design-build allows for a collaborative effort between the contractor and designer. This collaboration allows for both the design approach and construction methods to be tailored to the needs of the project, which in turn, allow for reduced project schedules, reduced construction costs, and most importantly improved risk management.� – Matt Horrocks, Lead Engineer
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