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Volume 13
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Number 12
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Talking with The Tin Man
Family ties
Glenn Eldridge (bottom left) says Chelsea Decorative Metal Co. is based in Houston and ships all over the world.
L-R: Rick Sorsby, Eric Nedd and Gary Sorsby
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helsea Decorative Metal Co. is a family owned business owned by Glenn Eldridge. He is known as The Tin Man to his clients and employees. “People ask me what I do for living and I tell them I am The Tin Man,” Eldridge said. “They say, ‘Oh are you the one that is in the decorative metal business?’ My friend gave me the name and it stuck.” He says 2015 has been a great year for the company. Larry Kubezzka is Eldridge’s right hand man and Mike, Robert and Tony work in production. Growing up, Eldridge watched his father working in a tin and metal shop in New York.
“My father was an old timer who made deals with a handshake,” he said. “He passed away before I started to build the company. Everything I did, I did from trial and error. I admired my dad as a person and I learned to treat people fair and honestly. And that really works in my business.” Eldridge continued to work with tin ceilings like his father and moved the company to Houston in 1978. “Building the company has been an adventure,” Eldridge said. “I had to take every step by myself. I did not have a partner like my father, so I had to make all the decisions.” continued on Page 18
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ester and Wanda Sorsby founded Aztec Rental Center Inc. in 1966. Their family continues to operate the company at the original facility in Houston and at the Sugar Land location. The store was originally intended to be a sideline business, but it did not take Lester Sorsby long to realize the potential in the rental industry. Today, Wanda continues to handle all the billing and accounts receivables at the Houston location six days a week. She is one of the first people to arrive to work and the last person to leave. Lester and Wanda’s son Rick is the president and Allen Nedd is the vice president.
DECEMBER 2015
Rick’s son Gary and Allen’s son Eric are general managers. Eric’s brother Brian runs the Sugar Land store. “For the first few years of business, Aztec Rental Center operated as a mom and pop company,” Gary Sorsby said. In the early ‘80s the business took a huge leap when the “construction boom" hit. “In 1983, my grandfather realized how big the market for construction was and opened the second branch store in Sugar Land,” Gary Sorsby said. “As Houston expanded outward in the early ‘90s, the Sugar Land market exploded with construction.” continued on Page 18
Into the woods
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.E. Reed Construction LP completed the Sierra Pines Phase II project in The Woodlands in 433 days. Stream Realty Partners is the owner. The Sierra Pines Phase II marks the first-ever-built, six-story, tilt-wall office building in Texas. “In the past, tilt-wall construction has not typically surpassed three stories and is usually associated with industrial-type buildings,” said project manager Brian Owrey. “More than half of the building’s façade is glass. Utilizing tilt-wall panels for a six-story building on a very tight site, Sierra Pines Phase II was successfully completed on time.” Totaling 163,000sf, the $18.2 million project includes a Class A interior lobby with wood paneling, back-painted glass, structural glass entries and stone flooring/walls and a 165,000-sf four-story parking garage.
“The greatest challenge we overcame was the constraint put on us as a result of the small 5 acre site,” Owrey said. “The cutting edge construction method of stacked tilt panels performed requires strategic coordination and layout for both the 4-story walls and the 2-story stacked walls. We were able to perform this with no issues while preserving the required existing trees and site appearance.” E.E. Reed Construction has a positive standing relationship with both the owner/developer and the consultants. Owrey says he attributes the team’s success to solid/trustworthy relationships, constant communication and proactive thinking to mitigate any potential issues.
Sierra Pines Phase II
continued on Page 18