Austin Construction News October 2018

Covering the Industry’s News

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The Industry’s Newspaper www.constructionnews.net H (210) 308-5800 H Volume 15 H Number 10 H OCTOBER 2018

And Tiger, too

All hands on deck

L-R: Kelly Hamer Service Manager, Derek Babola Chief Estimator, Erin Lionts Office Manager, John Bogue Operations, Clayton Payne President and Preston Payne is over Quotes/Tools/Materials.

Matthew Szynal, owner of Slight of Hand Metalworks.

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ome companies have “normal” names; e.g., “Bob’s Plumbing.” Other companies, however, have names that are more interesting.

Take Tiger 2 Electrical Contactors, for instance. The story is: Clayton Payne’s older brother had his own electrical company in Dallas, named Tiger Electrical. He named it “Tiger” after his wife’s maiden name. Her name was Jenny Tiger.

When Payne left his brother’s business and moved to Austin, he first worked for another large electrical contractor as the service manager. Unfortunately, they let him go. Payne had a client who worked for Dell Computers, and she offered him plenty of work if he started his own business, which he did. “That’s when I decided

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hen Stacy Eppen, owner of Epic Fun decided to renovate an old Big Lots store into a family fun center, Eppen knew she wanted a family-oriented contractor with a reputation for getting the job done.

Third generational contractors John and Matt Haralson were born and raised in Austin. Their family has been active in the Central Texas construction industry since 1950. In 1992, the Haralson’s founded G Creek Construction, a family owned and operated construction company. G Creek specializes in commercial and municipal construction.

Transformation of an existing 27,000sf Big Lots facility into the family entertainment center, Epic Fun took six months and $2,000,000 to complete.

Renovation of the existing building included demolition of all interior structures and finishes, installation of an all new commercial kitchen, restrooms,

to jump out” on his own, he said.

Payne named his company Tiger 2 Electrical Contractors, after his brother’s company.

Payne’s first job with his new company was memorable. He was working at Dell when he saw that “everybody was on their computers, looking at the Trade Towers going down at that time.” The date was 9/11/2001. “I’ll never forget the time of my actual start date.”

Payne started doing electrical work in high school shop class. “I’ve always enjoyed doing electrical work,” he said.

Being from the Gulf Coast area, Payne did spend some time owning a marina. But with a growing family, he decontinued on Page 16

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ome people know early in life what they are not supposed to do or be.

Matthew Syznal, owner of Slight of Hand Metalworks, says it clearly: “I’m a hands-on guy. I never saw myself as a paper pusher.”

Take, for instance, the fact that he is a trained drummer. That takes hands. In fact, his drum teacher (back in Ohio) was taught by none other than Ed Shaughnessy of The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson fame.

Szynal came to Austin from Ohio back in 1996 to pursue a musical career. But since his rusted out Isuzu Trooper pickup needed to have its frame welded to hold it together, he enrolled in Austin Community College in the metal arts program.

“I fell in love with the field,” he said. “I like the permanence of things that will last beyond my days.” The drummer now uses his hands to make both art and commercial/industrial things.

“I’m always creating and have found joy in doing it yourself.” Szynal named his company “Slight of Hand” as a reference to the magician, who can use his hands to do wonderful things. Turning a piece of metal into an art object is in itself magical.

In his life, Szynal has done many trades: electrical, plumbing and roofing.

“I knew I wouldn’t have a desk job and be happy,” he said.

If all this were not enough, Szynal also has an associate degree in engineercontinued on Page 16

Family fun for everyone bowling alley and most importantly erecting all the new attractions. The attractions varied from an elevated rope course, a three-story playground, rock climbing, arcades, bumper cars and minibowling.

The biggest challenge faced was scheduling. The various entertainment vendors had to fall in line precisely as they were coming in from all over the world. Any lags or delays would result in complete disruption of the schedule, thus causing increased costs and remobilization fees by the attraction vendors.

Working with a first time owner, starting a business on a tight timeline and budget, made this project unique.

Major redesign was needed when issues arose during the permitting process.

Making changes was quite challenging working with an out of state A/E team unfamiliar with City of Austin permitting Epic Fun, 7101 W. US Hwy 71 D

continued on Page 16

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Covering your asphalt

See Spot paint

Bernie Smith, owner of Asphalt Care of Texas

Janette Chermely (second from right), owner of Bright Spot Painting, with son Zachery Smith (far right) and some crewmembers.

ernie Smith knows a thing or two about the asphalt fixing business; he’s been doing it for 25 years now and runs Asphalt Care of Texas. He even still has his contractor’s license in Florida.

But when it comes to being a rancher and owning longhorn steers, well, that’s another story.

“I’m the worst rancher in Texas,” he laughs. For one thing, he’s given all his animals names, “now I’m stuck with all these pets.”

The New Jersey native’s forté is asphalt repair. The sequence is thus: fix the potholes first. Then clean off the parking lot (“We do mostly apartment complexes and church.”). Next comes the filling of the cracks, sealing of the parking lot, then wait for the seal to cure. The last stage is restriping it above the old stripes. The owner of the building determines the striping pattern of his parking lot.

Smith got into the asphalt repair business years ago. He used to be a brick paver, but when he observed a friend doing asphalt repair, he said, “That looks easier than what I do and got in into it that way.”

He bought a machine and started his own repair company right away.

Smith has three other men working with him, preferring to keep things smaller for better quality control. “I find that I get as much done with three guys as I did when I had nine,” Smith said. “I’m on every job.” Smith believes that doing a better job on fewer projects is better than doing more work but with a lesser quality.

“You’ll get way more work that way, from word of mouth,” he said, “and that is best advertising you’ll ever have.”

For Smith, doing a good job means that he’s taken something broken and made it good. “Sometimes you go into a

parking lot,” he said, “that looks like it’s been used for a bombing run for the Air Force. Then you fix it and make it look pretty, and when you leave there is sense of accomplishment at the end of the day.”

Since Smith has repaired asphalt in two states now, he has observed that there are not consistent codes when it comes to things like painting handicap spaces. There are differences among cities within the same state. Also, there aren’t standard sizes for actual parking spaces. Smith advocates for more standardization for this.

According to Smith, Texas has less regulations. “All you need is a pickup truck and a gun rack and you’re in business.”

One difference pavers up north have over those in the south is they will attach plows on their trucks and plow snow during the winter months when they can’t repair asphalt.

Smith enjoys a collegial relationship with others in the asphalt repair business, even if they’re officially competitors. He’ll call up another paver and compliment him on a good job when he sees it. And, if Smith is too busy to take a job, he’ll pass it on to someone else. And they’ll they do the same for him. “It’s nice to have that kind of camaraderie, because you never know when you might need them,” as in having to borrow some equipment if he breaks something.

The plan is to leave the company with his son-in-law in a few more years.

If the weather is bad, or if Smith finishes a job early and he’s between jobs, he’ll go back to the ranch and take care of his pets. There’s always something to do on the ranch, even if he claims to not be very good at it. “It keeps [things] fun,” he said.

Asphalt Care of Texas is an asphalt repair business in Coupland. -dsz

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hen it comes to rolling up one’s sleeves and getting to work, Janette Chermely is Exhibit A. She was an art major in graduate school, attending Steven F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches. To help put herself through school, Chermely was a painter. Not an on-canvas type of painter, but an on-wall type of painter. “I knew a bunch of carpenters and they needed a painter, and I became a painter.”

After graduation, Chermely had a desk job selling advertising, but didn’t like that. Then she got a job running paint crews for another company, but didn’t like that either.

Finally, she started her own company, Bright Spot Painting, in 2008. Bright Spot was incorporated in 2016.

When Bright Spot first started, it only did light remodeling. They would “fix any wood repairs before it got painted,” Chermely said.

Now, Bright Spot offers a wide complement of services, such as painting, staining, pressure washing and carpen-

try. Bright Spot’s target market is residential repaint, but has done, and does, a wide range of commercial projects, from offices to restaurants to retail. It did 12 Goodyear facilities across Texas.

Chermely runs a lot of the estimates, administration and client relationships.

She is bringing son Zachery Smith along and grooming him to someday take over the business.

Chermely usually has three crews out on jobs daily, with at least one woman on each crew, as “women are cleaner and more detailed oriented,” she says.

Bright Spot stays pretty close to the Austin area, and gets jobs via word-ofmouth, Angie’s List, Yelp and the BBB. On Chermely’s to-do list is to get more involved with groups like the National Association of Women In Construction (NAWIC).

The woman painter in college now owns her own business and has turned walls into her canvas.

Bright Spot Painting is a home improvement service company in Austin. -dsz

Drilled into him

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David W. Erfurt president of Erfurt Blasting Co. Inc.

orty-six years have passed since the late Marcus Erfurt established Erfurt Blasting Company Inc. and 26 years since his son, David W. Erfurt, took over the business. While David can remember the sound of his father’s voice doling out advice, he doesn’t have to look beyond his company’s thriving atmosphere to feel his father’s influence.

“One of the ways he influenced me is that I should not get myself too far extended financially,” David says.

“Businesses can go under really quick if they think they can take on the world.

We’ve been really smart about that.”

Heeding his father’s wise words has allowed David to grow the company to 35 employees that do general site work on local projects such as shopping malls and golf courses. It has also enabled them to take on special projects throughout Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. David says that he recently scored his “dream project” – One hundred miles of cross-country pipeline.

Despite the growth, David says he considers his company to be a “small

family business. We’ve got some key guys that have been with us. When most of our employees come on board, they stay with us; they don’t go somewhere else. My head blaster, Robert Flores, has been with me since he was out of high school.

He does a great job and takes the lead with all field operations; he runs everything out there. My second lead blaster, Chris Horton, can run and oversee any project out in the field as well.”

While some of David’s most valuable lessons came from his dad, some were learned through experience.

“I’ve learned a lot, but once you get down to it, it’s about the technical part and pleasing customers. Our customers are repeat customers. We don’t advertise, yet our phones ring every day and I get emails every day for projects.”

David hopes to continue to build on his father’s (and his own) years of good work.

“I hope in the future it’s going solid and strong,” he says.

Drilling and blasting company Erfurt Blasting Company Inc. is in Round Rock. –mjm

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

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Scaffolding vision

Bilt Rite Scaffold co-owners L-R: Jeff and Chris Kelley, co-owners

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ight out of the military, Charles Kelley went to work for a scaffolding competitor as a yard manager.

Before long he was promoted to sales/ project manager, becoming very versed in the scaffolding business. Following Kelley for nearly a decade, good friends Terry Norris and Dale Rundell approached Kelley to open a new company.

The trio founded Bilt Rite Scaffold in 2006 offering scaffolding design, rental, sales, and erection and dismantling services to Austin market.

Bilt Rite, “the-little-scaffolding-company-that-could,” hit the ground running and has been making a name for itself ever since. While the company’s ideal coverage area is a 100-mile radius of Austin, Bilt Rite has been successfully performing work all over the state of Texas, and now, out of state as well.

In 2015, Charles’ sons, Chris and Jeff Kelley, purchased Bilt Rite. Chris, 25, assumed the role of CEO/general manager.

Jeff, 27, is the company’s vice president.

Having their father as a role model, the duo has been carrying on, expanding the

company into new heights with the assistance of long-time employee, Veronica Lopez-Vera. One of the company’s first employees, Lopez-Vera started out building scaffold and is now the company’s office manager.

Since the two Kelley brothers purchased the company, Bilt Rite has had a lot going on expanding both geographically and project wise offering scaffolding services in all areas of residential, commercial and industrial. In addition, they are excited about their safety record since acquiring the company of having no loss days. If you know scaffolding, this is a “big deal.”

The Kelley brothers seem to truly have a knack for this. After taking over Bilt Rite Scaffold, they have managed to expand their horizons starting Bilt Rite Insulation, Bilt Rite Contractors, and Affordable Drill Towers. They have teamed up with ATTAG Training to offer scaffold user safety training and scaffold competent persons training to individuals and groups.

Bilt Rite Scaffold is a full-service aerial solutions provider in Austin, TX. –cmw

Rising Fenix family

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The Fenix Post Tension warehouse personnel in the warehouse

ince Carlos Cuellar was 19 years old and newly emigrated from Mexico, he has worked in post tension. He even levied his experience into establish-ing two post tension companies, with the most recent, Fenix Post Tension Inc., in 2003.

Carlos has put his knowledge and experience to work, building the company to 22 employees, four of whom are family. Carlos’ sons Erwin and Jason work as a controller and marketing sales rep, respectively, mother Arcenia serves in human resources and Deigo, Carlos’ nephew from Houston, is excited to be the Fenix’s newest project manager.

Erwin says his dad has long worked with family members, and is especially excited to have the next generation of Cuellars on board.

“I’m 54 years old, and trying to get more free time to do some things I like, so they are evolving into handling the everyday operations of the company,” Carlos says. “They are the ones who can take it to the next level, expanding it to other cities with the new equipment that we have. We have a bigger capability of

servicing those markets.”

Erwin, a former party bus owner who earned a degree in finance from the University of Texas in Austin, began working for the company as a teen. He and his brother Jason, who runs the company’s marketing and technical sides, enjoy supporting Carlos, whether it is at work or in far-flung locales like Hawaii to cheer him on as he competes in another Iron Man competition.

“Working with the family is great; it’s a good environment and keeps everyone motivated,” Jason says. “There is a lot more commonality between everyone and it’s a good place to work.”

“They see things very different than I do – good things and bad things that I was not aware I was doing,” Carlos adds.

“They are trying to improve the way we do things and have changed things, like going solar so we save on electricity with these machines. It’s great to see my kids follow up on something where I’ve done as much as I could.”

Subcontractor Fenix Post Tension is in Hutto. –mjm

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

My first real job wasn’t that real because I got hired and then I got fired the same day. It was with a restaurant.

Raunel Tejeda President Built on the Rock Industries Round Rock, TX

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n 2009, President Raunel Tejeda switched his company name from Exodus Construction, which is still how they do business, to Built on the Rock Industries. With the new name and logo, Tejeda, continues to operate and specialize in commercial construction. Not only did he conform to the construction industry, he made a life of it.

Where are you from originally?

I was born in a little town in Mexico. I grew up on the ranch [el rancho].

Do you have any siblings?

I have seven siblings. We are three years apart, so we didn’t get to enjoy each other much.

What was growing up on the ranch like?

Life on the ranch was amazing. There were no worries, just like a wild horse enjoying life. We had all kinds of animals and got to play with the animals [domesticated and not]. We went hunting; it was pretty much fun. There was work, but at the same time it was enjoyable.

What is your educational background?

I started where it is equivalent to high school here [in the US], but I didn’t finish the first year, so I don’t have an educational background.

When did you make the move to the United States?

After school didn’t work out, I came to the United States when I was between 16 and 17-years-old. I arrived in Austin and stayed with my brother.

What was your first job in Austin?

What happened?

When I got there, they asked me to mop the floors. In Mexico when you mop the floors, you mop them good, so I was taking my time mopping them. Then the manager got angry because I was doing it how I would do it in Mexico. He grabbed the mop and started getting the floor wet and said, “This is how you do it.” Then he fired me.

What came next?

After that job, my brother took me to work with him in construction.

Was it your brother who introduced you to the construction industry?

Yes, it was not much of a decision, but I had to work.

What were your first thoughts?

I started hanging insulation and, to me, it was exciting. It was a simple job.

Then because I was so happy doing it, everybody was like, “It doesn’t itch?” I said, “No, is it supposed to itch?” Then after that it started itching. On our breaks we would lay on them. I didn’t know it would itch, until I was asked if it itched.

What happened next?

That was my first job and then I started learning all the other things in the trade, such as framing and drywall.

When did you realize that you enjoyed construction and that this was a career path you wanted to stay on?

I’ve always liked to learn; learning for me is amazing. Everything that is new I embrace it and it doesn’t matter what field it is. If it is new to me I like it. At that time everything was new to me and I started learning. The learning experience is what made the job fun. Plus, the [English] language was new to me as well, I was learning that too.

Did you have a mentor?

My brother was the first one that started teaching me how to frame walls, hang dry wall and how to set the insulation in. His name is Jonas Tejeda.

You mention a quote on your website that states you “returned to God back in April 17, 2004.” What lies behind that statement?

In my younger days, I was living “la vida loca,” that took me to places that I didn’t want to be. And that is when I found God. But in the year 2000, I went astray again all the way up until 2004.

That is when I came back to Him.

Raunel Tejeda

Tell us about your family life. Are you married?

Yes, I am married, and my wife’s name is Amada. We have four children together but I have seven kids all together.

Funny, how you came from seven siblings and now you have seven children.

Yes, I have two that are in their 20s and one is 19. Then I have a 16, 13, 8 and 5-year-old.

What are your favorite family activities?

We are kind of a weird family (Tejeda chuckles). The thing that we enjoy the most is being with each other. It doesn’t matter where we are, as long as we are together. I didn’t plan for it to be like that, but somehow, we are attached to each other. One time my 5-year-old daughter was asked to stay over at another friend’s house and she said, “No, because I have to be with my family.”

Are any of your children interested in construction?

I have two of them working with the company. We are going to try to keep it family-owned and operated. I have my brother, Adrian Tejeda, working with us too. He’s been with us for about 11 years.

What is the future plan for Built on the Rock Industries?

The plan is to continue to grow. I want to expand to San Antonio, Houston and Dallas. Right now, I am working on training estimators for that purpose. We have always had good superintendents, foreman and employees.

What is one thing you want to accomplish before the year ends?

I want to break my previous record in sales.

Switching over to your personal lifestyle, how do you revive yourself from the workload?

Due to my relationship with God, I don’t suffer from stress or pressure. It is a journey that I enjoy with any little thing that comes my way. If there is a fire, there is always a way to put it out and move on.

If there is a mistake, we fix it. Everything that comes our way has a solution. Me, personally in my way of life I don’t focus on the problem, but rather focus on the solution. I tell the people that work with us to stop worrying about what it was and just do it right or fix it and let’s move on. I enjoy what I do because of what is in me and that helps me renew, not every day, but every moment as I go. So when I get home I am not frustrated, worried or anything. My wife and kids always see me happy and peaceful. I am just enjoying the ride.

Do you have any personal hobbies or interests? What are they?

I like classic cars. I collect them and use them. Sometimes I’ll sell the classics or trade them for another.

What classic cars do you own right now?

Right now, I have a ‘61 C10 and a 1977 Ford Ranger F150. I always wanted a 1977 Ford because that is the year I was born. I bought two ’79 Fords and I ended up selling them. Then I gave up on the ’77 and as soon as I gave up one showed up. And now it is in my garage.

What is the one classic car that you desire most and have not obtained yet?

Well that’s a hard question (Tejeda chuckles). I like the Mustang Cobra, the old coupe version in blue.

Built on the Rock Industries is a drywall subcontractor in Round Rock, TX. –lv

No fear of earning it

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e is not afraid to ever get up on a roof. Philip Earnest was raised in the greater Houston area in Richmond, TX. Earnest’s father was a general contractor, so he spent a lot of time around the industry. Earnest oversaw the multiple trades and what the day-to-day process was.

The Earnest family ended up moving to Kerrville, which is where he started his business from scratch with a caulk gun.

Earnest Roofing was established in 2008 by Earnest, the principle owner. Earnest Roofing is a commercial first and custom residential roofing company.

They have three locations: Kerrville, New Braunfels and Central Austin. The company does new construction, commercial roofing, commercial replacements and service work. They also have a fully functioning sheet metal branch that fulfills the custom work for any job. The branch is located in New Braunfels. The company has a large outreach with three locations.

The Kerrville branch services west San Antonio and north of I-10, New Braunfels

President and Owner of Earnest Roofing, Philip Earnest and his wife Callie Earnest out on the green.

services central San Antonio, east of I-35, and Austin services north of Buda and west of Fredericksburg on 290.

Sam Mott oversees sales and handles estimating for Earnest Roofing. He said, “Austin’s market is phenomenal and the growth is obviously expediential.

Part of our growth is to jump in with the growth [happening in the market], but really get established in some of the outer line communities.”

Currently they are working on the corporate location of USAA in San Antonio. One of their favorite projects was the Lutheran Church in Kerrville.

Earnest Roofing has 24 full time employees. A fun fact within the company was when the owner (Philip Earnest) married his wife Callie in their sheet metal shop. “They invited all the employees and all of our crewmembers. Of course, close family and friends too,” shared Mott.

Earnest Roofing is a roofing subcontractor located in Kerrville, New Braunfels and Central Austin. –lv

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Page 5

No kept secret

Central Texas shoot

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ver 150 members and individual shooters attended the Associated Builders & Contractors (ABC) chapter clay shoot Sept. 7 at Capital City Clays. Everyone enjoyed a day of relaxation, camaraderie, great food and fun. –cmw

2nd Place Team: Lasco - Mark Billings, Sean Feasel, Shannon King and Randy Barrington 3rd Place Team: Andrew Myers - Clayton Utkov, Andrew Scott, Cynthia Birdwell and Bill Davidson

Far right: Joe Miller and Vivian Miller with a few J M Utilities employees.

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hey haven’t moved locations because “persistence” is what has kept him in business for so long, said Joe Miller, president of J M Utilities. Miller wants to stay local and that is what he has done.

The company was established in 1978, and then incorporated in 1994. J M Utilities has had the same address since 1986. They are located in Cedar Park and continue to serve the Austin area, specializing in underground utility construction.

While most of their work is in the commercial market their services include installation of water, wastewater, fire, irrigation and storm drain lines. The company just finished Onion Creek Fire & EMS Station and the Cedar Park Police Station expansion. Right now the crews are working on the Guesthouse Hotel, Uptown Suites-Austin and Rollingwood Office.

The company has about 30 employees, half of which have been with the company for 10-plus years. Three employees have been with the company for

20 plus years. Miller leads his staff and company through prayer. He is very close to his staff and prays for his crew and their families. “We have a good team that works very well together and has a good reputation,” he said.

A part of that team is Miller’s two sons, BJ and Lance. BJ Miller is a field superintendent and Lance Miller is a crew foreman. With his sons by his side and persistence, he knows they will be ready to take over in the future. Miller also said that his wife Vivian is still the vice president and treasurer.

Outside of the company Joe, BJ and Lance are involved in trial motorcycle events. “BJ and Lance still compete and do pretty well, but I am on the sidelines now,” said Miller. Persistence may be what has kept him in business for so long, but passion and dedication is what outlines Miller and his company.

J M Utilities is an underground utility subcontractor, located in Cedar Park, TX. –lv

Flurry Competition Winners: L-R: Logan Anderson and Chris Carson

Wired right

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L-R: Johnny Carillo, Shaun Segard, AJ Downing and Carrie Downing

oing the electrical work for swimming pools is a niche that not many contractors get involved with. AJ Downing, co-owner of Wimberley Electric, is a licensed electrical contractor who found their niche in swimming pools.

Downing and his wife Carrie Downing, also co-owner, started their business seven years ago, establishing themselves in 2011. “We found our niche in swimming pools and that is the bulk of what we do around the Austin area. We wire pools for a variety of different pool contractors,” explained Downing. They also do small commercial and residential remodel.

Downing has been a master electrician for 12 years. He tells us how his business evolved. Downing and his wife came from Michigan, where Downing had a “pretty heavy commercial and industrial background.” When they came to Texas, Downing started working for another electric company in Georgetown for his first three years in Texas. Downing was a field superintendent and at the time he was “tossing around the idea” of starting

1st Place Team: Builders Gypsum Supply – Mark Billings (Best Overall Shooter).

Jim Moreno, Gary Cannon and Bob Munsey (not pictured).

his own company. Downing recalled a man working for him who was getting ready to start his own company also. “He was wiring with swimming pools and showed me what kind of profit margins he was getting.” Because of Downing’s Michigan background, he thought swimming pools was easy stuff in comparison to the work he had been doing.

Wimberley Electric services the greater Austin area and Wimberley because Downing found there was a need in the market.

Some commercial work done by Wimberley Electric includes a high-rise pool in Barton Springs right across from city hall, at least 10 to 15 other hotel pools and apartment complexes on the east side. Downing’s helping hands are from his two apprentices that work with the company. He says, “The most important thing other than safety is to do neat work.” Downing’s reputation is due to the neat work he ensures will be done.

Wimberley Electric is an electrical contractor in Wimberley, TX. –lv

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Beauty in the brick

Industry FOLKS Ashley Main Lead Designer Wimberley Glassworks San Marcos, TX

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he is an independent woman with a keen eye for light design. Ashley is an only child who was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta. Life was great in Canada she said. “A lot colder than Texas, but one of the most beautiful part of the world I still think. The people are really friendly and it is a vibrant place to be.”

Ashley’s educational path began as an undergraduate at the University of Calgary. Her undergrad degree was in fine arts, so she studied painting and sculpture. She also studied a little bit of graphic design.

After her time at the University of Calgary, exciting news came knocking on her door. Ashley was then accepted to Parsons School of Design in New York City.

Ashley went wheels up and moved to New York. She studied architectural lighting design. “One of my sculpture professors mentioned that lighting design might be something that I should look at. The more I looked into it I started growing in the field. It is a specialty that not a lot of people have.”

Ashley had a mentor named Ron, who does constructive type of art. He was supportive of her and wrote a recommendation letter for her to get into Parsons.

Her time in New York was about to change when a professor in New York received a call from the Wimberley Glassworks owner Tim de Jong. Tim was looking for someone with a creative background to come out to Tex-

as. “I was the one who took that role. It took a little bit, but I eventually ended up down here.

As the lead designer at Wimberley Glassworks, Ashley truly enjoys the creativity involved in her day-to-day. “I work on everything from helping with our residential clients all the way to working on our giant commercial art installations.”

Throughout her transitional time of living in Calgary, then going to New York, next moving to Texas, there was one companion who was by her side and that is Tinker. Tinker is a rescued cat that she has had for 13 years. “My Canadian cat” she calls Tinker.

Ashley also finds her creativity when at home. She enjoys picking out her art and working on arts and crafts projects. She explains that she likes building or making something to generate new ideas.

She also spends her free time playing with a rugby team. She said that is fun. Soon she will be moving to Austin and looks forward to living in the city.

Then again there is no place like home, so Ashley flies back to Canada once or twice a year to visit with her mom and dad. Sometimes her parents come to visit her in Texas.

She sure is independent, but also brave. Her journey seems to have just begun, but with a creative mind such as hers, she will continue to create art in light. –lv

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Jordan Scott, owner of 4GM Brick & Stone.

here are masons who merely slap mortar and brick onto their projects; then there are those who really care for their profession.

Jordan Scott is the latter. He describes himself as “very meticulous, obsessive.” He should be - he’s the fourth generation mason in his family.

Scott didn’t always love it, however. “As a kid, it’s not fun to have your dad be a bricklayer,” he said. That meant that during every break from school, he was working for his father, doing the hard work of a mason.

“I was resentful at first,” he said,“ but now I’m just so grateful that I have this trade, this skillset that not many people have.”

Scott says his father learned more from his grandfather (Scott’s great-grandfather) than he did his own dad (Scott’s grandfather). “He was really good at his job,” he said.

Scott’s family has plied their trade all over Texas - north Texas, Dallas, Houston.

Scott has been in Austin since 2007, working to get established. He started his own business - 4GM Brick & Stone - around 2010.

“4GM” stands for fourth generation mason.

Scott does about 80/20, repairs over new construction. He said he’s “geared up more towards repairs. I like it more. It’s more of a challenge.”

Scott can match the old brick as well as the old mortar, saying it takes time and experience to know what the mortar will look like once it dries.

Speaking of mortar, today we can just buy it pre-mixed in a bag. When his grandfather started out, he was the designated mortar mixer for other masons.

That’s all he did for years.

When Scott repairs an old building (the oldest one he’s worked on was built in the 1890s), he likens it to a dentist who takes care of a filling. Properly done, the dentist has to remove all the decay in the tooth. He doesn’t just apply topical or cosmetic stuff on top of the filling. Similarly, Scott has to carefully remove the decayed mortar as he replaces the bricks.

Some masons, he said, would just cut

corners and fill in the cracks at the surface level.

Much of his repair work is done, frankly, because of the poor job the original mason did. “People don’t even know how to spread their mortar anymore,” he said.

This can be true in new construction, as all too often, too much mortar is applied, building up behind the wall, which prevents the structure from having the ability move properly due to weather conditions.

Repairing someone bad work “is almost painful,” he said.

And don’t get him started when it comes to going either with painting the brick or staining it. “I just really don’t like painted brick,” he said. “The great thing about staining is that it’s not a paint. It’s transparent liquid. When you apply it to the brick, all those subtle tones, all those different colors in the brick, they shine through.

You can keep the beauty of the brick.” Scott uses a company from the U.K. for his stain.

Scott is a real connoisseur of bricks. “I have a mini-brick yard on my property,” from collecting bricks over the years. He never knows when he can find just the right brick for a restoration job.

Scott “advertised pretty heavily when I first started. Now, I have the reputation and the reviews.”

When it comes to perhaps having a 5GM succeeding him in the family, Scott isn’t sure, for one thing, he doesn’t have any children yet. But, passing on his legacy is something he wants to do. “It’s definitely a trade that I would want to share.

It’s kind of a dying trade. Not very many people are interested in it. Not many people see it as the craftsmanship that it is. It’s a very ancient, ancient trade.”

The ancient trade of bricklaying has found its home in the Scott family. Unfortunately, there is no way of adding up how many buildings in Texas this family has done. Whatever that number is, there is beauty in the brick.

4GM Brick & Stone is a masonry business in Austin. -dsz

SXSW Center topping out

A celebratory topping-out was held at the end of August for the new South by Southwest® (SXSW®) Conference & Festivals headquarters at SXSW Center on 1400 Lavaca Street. Harvey-Cleary Builders is the general contractor for the project. -cmw

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

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Tax law impacts accounting Scott Allen, CPA, Tax Partner Cornwell Jackson Plano, TX

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any commercial construction projects can extend beyond one year. Federal tax law provides special rules for accounting for these long-term contracts (Internal Revenue Code Section 460). The rules apply to all long-term contracts unless the contract is exempt due to several exceptions provided by the tax law.

Not a Long-term Contract These contracts are not considered a long-term contract, and are therefore exempt from the accounting for long-term contract rules.

• Contracts with architects, engineers or construction management • Contracts for industrial and commercial painting • Contracts completed before the end of the same tax year the contract commenced • Contracts with de minimis (minor) elements of eligible construction activities Exempt for AMT Purposes

Any individual business owner who is subject to Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) must use the percentage of completion accounting method on long-term contracts, unless the business structure is a small C Corp (eff. 2018) or engages exclusively in home construction contracts (80% or more of the estimated total costs are expected to be attributable to 1) buildings containing 4 or less dwelling units and 2) improvements to real property located at the building site and directly related to the dwelling unit) Talk to your CPA to determine if you will be subject to the increased AMT threshold for single or married filing jointly tax status.

To track expenses and income on non-exempt long-term contracts, contractors are typically required to use the “percentage of completion” accounting method for income tax reporting. The main disadvantage of this method is the inability to do much tax planning or tax deferment for things like accrued losses, uninstalled materials or retainage receivables, which can result in accelerated taxable income when compared with other accounting methods.

One of the exceptions to the tax law applies to companies with average gross receipts for the prior three years under $10 million. Under the new tax law effective for 2018, that threshold has been raised to $25 million. Now, long-term contracts of companies with average annual gross receipts under $25 million are considered exempt from the restrictive and complicated rules of Code Section 460.

For companies with average annual gross receipts above $25 million, compliance with the tax rules under Code Section 460 remains your only option.

If your CPA has not talked to you

about the potential tax saving benefits of a different accounting method for your non-exempt long-term contracts — or explored if your company’s longterm contract status is now exempt — this year is a good time to ask about it.

Because the accounting method chosen for each long-term contract must remain the same through the life of each contract, choosing the right accounting method is critical for any new long-term construction contract in 2018.

What is a long-term contract?

Before we explore various accounting methods, here is the simple definition of a long-term contract according to the tax code.

• Long-term contracts are those that on the contract commencement date are reasonably expected to not be completed by the end of the tax year.

Ironically, under this definition, a contract that is expected to take a week to complete could be a long-term contract. For example, if a contractor with a calendar year-end begins work on December 27 and expects to end on January 2 – the contract is a long-term contract.

Due to the complexity of accounting for long-term contracts tax rules — with their exceptions — as well as the variable nature of construction revenue, we often find that contractors are using a catch-all accounting method across all contracts. The key pitfalls of using the same accounting method for all long-term contracts over time may include: • paying tax earlier than necessary; • potential noncompliance with IRS rules as the company’s revenue grows; • and noncompliance discovered during an IRS tax audit, which could result in additional taxes and penalties.

For more information on Tax Law Changes and how they will affect your company, read November’s Accounting Column.

Scott Allen, CPA, joined Cornwell Jackson as a Tax Partner in 2016, bringing his expertise in the Construction and Oil and Gas industries and 25 years of experience in the accounting field. As the Partner in Charge of the Tax practice at Cornwell Jackson, Scott provides proactive tax planning and tax compliance to all Cornwell Jackson tax clients. Contact him at Scott.Allen@cornwelljackson.com or 972202-8032.

Strong return to work strategy; key to good Workers’ Comp experience Wes Pitts, Sr. V.P. and Southwest Regional Construction Practice Leader for USI Southwest USI Southwest Austin, TX

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’d like to share a best-practice strategy that can change your Workers’ Comp. experience for the better. Strongly consider a dedicated person to manage your Workers’ Comp. claims. This person needs to be genuinely caring for the welfare of your employees, but also a tough “bull dog” personality type. You want to be prepared with a strategy of using Return to Work and a Bona Fide Offer of Employment Letter (get sample from your agent and put on your letterhead) on all cases of an injured employee getting hurt, going to get checked out by the treating doctor and the doctor releasing them to light or modified duty, which is always what you want as an alternative to just sending them home off work.

A full release with no restrictions is ideal, but this is the next best strategy if released by the doctor with restrictions.

Establish relationship with occ. med. clinic (in-network with carrier if elected) that supports your goals of returning employees to work. Your claims manager should constantly be on the doctor to see your employee, and constantly on the employee to get in to the doctor. Call and press the doctor prior to seeing your injured employee how important this is, and that you have light and/or modified duty positions for the injured employee available either at your job site, your office, or in your yard/shop, and may be as restrictive as just sitting watching safety videos– need to be able to accommodate the restrictions the doctor sets per his release with the DWC-73 work status form. As soon as the doctor sees your injured employee and assuming they are released to return to work with restrictions, that same day you want to provide to your injured employee your bona fide offer letter (with copy of DWC-73 attached) and ask for their written acceptance or declination by a reasonable time that same day (we actually amend the typical bona fide offer letter by adding two signature options at the bottom: Injured Employee Name, I accept the offer of temporary, modified-duty job assignment; and Injured Employee Name, I decline the offer of temporary, modifiedduty job assignment). If they accept and don’t show up they may eventually be subject to termination just like any other employee that doesn’t show up (not that that removes the WC claim), and if they decline in writing, that could be same as their willingly terminating their employment and you might just write them a letter back acknowledging their desire to terminate employment with you. The main goal is to try to mitigate your Workers’ Comp. claim (have better experience on your Workers’ Comp., which is going to translate into a better modifier and better rates versus your peers) while positively bringing your injured employee back to their full duty, and often the dynamic of using this bona fide offer letter and bringing them back in on light/modified duty at same pay will motive them to want to get back to full duty. Same pay is recom-

mended because you want to try to keep the claim medical only, no lost time–important because if the claim is medical only and coded this way by your carrier then NCCI for purposes of your experience modifier calculation will discount the claim by 70%. If the injured employee resigns or you terminate them that does not mean the WC claim just goes away, but it does often put you in a better position in ability to potentially remove a “bad apple” from your workforce. The most important thing this strategy accomplishes is the perception among your workforce that, “when you’re employed here you won’t just get off work with a WC claim.”

They are expected to return to modified/ light duty immediately! This strategy begins to make a difference because they all talk to each other.

To run with this on Workers’ Comp. claims need to: 1. Get employee to treating doctor asap, reach out to employee and doctor, discuss game plan, your desire to get them back to work, was he released to full or restricted duty? You are seeking a Work Status Report (DWC73). 2. Clinic needs to follow any postaccident drug and alcohol screen requirement. 3. Get claim form DWC-1 filed with carrier as first notice. 4. Place bona fide offer letter on letterhead and send to the individual consistent with restrictions in DWC-73 (attach it to letter), and get this to the employee immediately after being seen and released. 5. A new bona fide offer of modified duty must be executed every time a worker’s restrictions change (after each follow up doctor appt.-attach the latest DWC-73 from doctor), accommodate updated restrictions (hopefully, able to perform more duties each time)..until released to full duty. 6. Work closely and weekly with carrier assigned adjuster on the claim with goal of getting it brought to a close.

Involve your agent’s claims manager or your producer as needed anytime and keep us updated of status or any questions with the claim.

Wes Pitts is a Sr. Vice President and Southwest Regional Construction Practice Leader for USI Southwest - Austin, TX. 512651-4107, or Wesley.pitts@usi.com

Construction News ON LOCATION

Nothing to lose

Paul Johnson and Adrienne Wilson, Competition A/C & Heat LLC in San Marcos, show no worries when Construction News came a calling. -cmw

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Some frequently asked questions about the OSHA Silica law

Getting your I-9 house in order J. Shannon Gatlin, Senior Counsel Cokinos | Young, P.C. Houston, TX

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rom the 2016 Presidential campaign up through the furor over separation and detention of immigrant families this summer, immigration has been a top priority of President Donald Trump and his administration.

Regardless of your personal politics, if you are an employer in construction or any related industry, you are in the crosshairs of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) now more than ever before. In today’s climate, Texas construction companies and others in related fields must take all reasonable steps to ensure compliance with the Immigration Reform and Control Act (“IRCA”), the federal law requiring the use of I-9s.

IRCA has three major requirements for employers: (1) complete I-9s for all employees within three days of the start of employment; (2) retain I-9s and any related documentation for government inspection; and (3) do not discriminate against employees or applicants based on their immigration status. ICE’s primary enforcement responsibilities concern the first two of these requirements. To that end, in the first seven months of fiscal year 2018, ICE had already conducted approximately double the number of worksite investigations and I-9 audits compared to all of fiscal year 2017. The Trump Administration has promised to quadruple the number of ICE enforcement actions from the Obama years, and has instructed ICE to develop a process that would allow it to conduct over ten times the number of I-9 audits conducted in fiscal year 2017, when employers paid more than $105 million in penalties for I-9 violations.

IRCA’s requirements for completing I-9s are not difficult but they are strict, and any failure to complete a necessary step or to complete the form within the required timeframes can subject an employer to monetary penalties. Establishing certain best practices and bearing in mind a few key points can help your company stay on the right side of the law if ICE pays a visit.

When it comes to filling out I-9s, the employee must complete Section I of the form by the end of the first day of work, while the employer must complete and sign Section II by the end of the third day after the employee has begun working.

An employer must review original documents evidencing a worker’s identity and employment authorization when completing Section II. Employers cannot require workers to provide a specific type of documentation, but instead must ac-

cept any of the approved documents listed in the instruction sheet that accompanies Form I-9; requiring particular documents is a form of discrimination known as “document abuse.” If an employee has employment authorization documents that expire, then Section III of the I-9 must be completed to reflect any renewed employment authorization.

For ease of compliance with any ICE actions, retain I-9 forms and photocopies of presented documents for each employee in a file separate from employee personnel files. These records must be retained for at least three years after hire or one year after termination, whichever is longer. Because an employer has only 72 hours to submit documents to ICE after receiving a records request, I-9s and related photocopies should be organized to allow for easy sorting and access. Employers should use outside counsel to conduct self-audits of their I-9 records and procedures every two or three years so that the self-audit and any related communications are protected by attorney-client privilege.

By following the above steps, your company can rest assured that it is wellprepared for an audit or investigation if ICE comes calling, and the odds of that happening grow with each passing day.

J. Shannon Gatlin is Senior Counsel in the Houston office of Cokinos | Young, P.C. Mr. Gatlin has been Board Certified in Labor and Employment Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization since 2014, and has practiced labor and employment law on behalf of companies nationwide since 2009. Mr. Gatlin can be reached at (713) 535-5504 or sgatlin@cokinoslaw.com.

Joann Natarajan Compliance Assistance Specialist OSHA Austin, TX

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SHA’s silica standard for construction applies to all occupational exposures to respirable crystalline silica in construction work, except where employee exposures will remain below 25 μg/m3, calculated as an 8-hour Time Weighted Average, under any foreseeable conditions. The exception applies only where exposures below 25 μg/m3 as an 8-hour TWA are expected or achieved without using engineering or other controls.

1. Has OSHA identified specific tasks that are likely to be outside the scope of the law because they typically generate exposures below the Action Limit of 25 μg/ m3 as an 8-hour Time Weighted Average under all foreseeable conditions?

Yes. When the following tasks are performed in isolation from other silicagenerating tasks, they typically do not generate silica at or above the AL of 25 μg/m3 as an 8-hour Time Weighted Average under any foreseeable conditions: mixing small amounts of mortar; mixing small amounts of concrete; mixing bagged, silica-free drywall compound; mixing bagged exterior insulation finishing system (EIFS) base and finish coat; and removing concrete formwork. In addition, tasks where employees are working with silica-containing products that are, and are intended to be, handled while wet, are likely to generate exposures below 25 μg/m3 under any foreseeable conditions (examples include finishing and hand wiping block walls to remove excess wet mortar, pouring concrete, and grouting floor and wall tiles).

2. Does the OSHA law cover workers who they are exposed to silica for 15 minutes per day?

The standard does not include a specific exemption for tasks with exposures for 15 minutes a day or less. However, employees who perform construction tasks for very short periods of time, in iso-

lation from activities that generate significant exposures to silica, will be exposed below 25 μg/m3 as an 8-hour Time Weighted Average (TWA) under any foreseeable conditions. Short-term silica exposures must be very high in order for those exposures to reach or exceed 25 μg/m3 as an 8-hour TWA; for example, if an employee is exposed for only 15 minutes, his or her exposure would have to be higher than 800 μg/m3 for that 15-minute period before the 8-hour TWA exposure would be at or above 25 μg/m3.

Some examples of tasks that could generate very high short-term exposures include abrasive blasting and grinding, which are typically associated with high levels of visible dust.

OSHA has identified carpenters, plumbers, and electricians as types of workers who may perform tasks (e.g., drilling with a handheld drill) involving occasional, brief exposures to silica that are incidental to their primary work. Provided that these employees perform these tasks in isolation from activities that generate significant exposures to silica, and perform them for no more than 15 minutes throughout the work day, their exposures will usually fall below the Action Limit of 25 μg/m3 as an 8-hour TWA under all foreseeable conditions; when that is the case, these employees will not be covered by the law. natarajan.joann@dol.gov 512-374-0271 x232

A small, big thing

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alter Mott knows what he’s talking about when he says, “We never know what small things can make a long-term change in life.”

For Mott, that is exactly what happened. It was a little over 25 years ago that Mott popped in to his local post office and ran into Wesley Dean, who had established his own air conditioning and electrical business, Dean’s Shop, in 1942.

Both being from the small town of Staples, the two men knew of and occasionally bumped into each other. Mott, who had years of electrical work experience and a degree in air condition-ing refrigeration, was in between jobs after working for a school district. Dean was looking for the perfect person to sell Dean’s Shop to. Soon, the talk turned to something that would change Mott’s life.

“The conversation came up about him selling the business and, halfjokingly, I said that he ought to sell it to me,” Mott says. “It went from there, and I bought the business in 1992.”

Since taking over Dean’s Shop, Mott jokes that he has sprouted “a lot more gray hair,” but he has also grown something else: A six-employee business committed to making central Texas a cooler, warmer and better place.

“I have worked with the Texas Workforce Commission on hiring disadvantaged youth,” Mott, who is both a product and advocate of vocational education, says. “We’ve run eight or ten kids through over the years and we’ve had one or two of them who have actually stuck with it and went on to work in the

Walter Mott, owner of Dean’s Shop.

field. I also work with the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo on a program called Ag Mechanics where the youth build projects; I go down and help judge and critique the project. We also collect food for the Hays County Food Bank, and I’m involved in a couple of different prison ministries.”

Mott now looks forward to the next 25 years. With his daughter Danetta Drew serving as office manager, Mott hopes to continue to run Dean’s Shop in a way that would make the late Wesley Dean proud.

Dean’s Shop is an electrical, air conditioning and heating subcontractor in San Marcos. – mjm

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

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black buck. I have access to several private ranches and can accommodate single hunters to larger corporate groups.

These are all inclusive hunt packages that can be tailored to your specific needs.

For pricing and availability please contact me at one of the numbers below.

I will also be scheduling my winter wade fishing trips in Port Mansfield starting in late January through March. These trips are strictly wading with artificial lures for trophy trout. Trips are minimum two days with accommodations and do book up fairly quickly, so don’t hesitate.

My 2019 calendar is now open for bookings for the entire fishing season. To schedule your next bay fishing trip or hunting adventure give Capt. Steve Schultz a call at 361-813-3716 or 361-3343105 or e-mail me at SteveSchultzOutdoors@gmail.com. Good Luck and Good Fishing.

Struggling at the end of the line

by Capt. Steve Schultz Sponsored by: Waypoint Marine, Shoalwater Boats, Evinrude Outboards, Fishing Tackle Unlimited, E-Z Bel Construction, Costa Sunglasses, Diawa Reels, Simms Fishing, ForEverlast Fishing Products, Interstate Batteries, MirrOlure, JL Marines PowerPole, AFW and AFTCO Clothing

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s we approach the end of the summer season, I can’t help but reflect back on what a great season it has been. Granted, trout fishing has tapered off in the last month due to weather and higher than normal tides. With the aftermath and destruction that was left after Hurricane Harvey, coastal bend guides were wondering if they would have a chance at all getting clients to come fishing. All in all, it turned out to be a pretty good year up to now. Fall and winter fishing is also shaping up to be pretty good for me also.

Lately, the area has been experiencing a lot of tropical rains and high tides

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Daniel Bodie, San Antonio, hooked this 25-inch redfish free lining piggy perch in the land cut with Steve Schultz Outdoors.

due to the activity in the Gulf of Mexico.

Combination of high tides and fresh water in our bay system has made it a bit more challenging to say the least. The areas we have been wading and catching

Bass fishing at its best

eid Fairbanks, Pinpoint Strategies Inc. shared these photos from some of is fishing expeditions he has participated in. -cmw

Reid and three-year-old son, Rhett enjoy a day of fishing.

decent numbers of fish are now too deep to wade. Fishing out of the boat is an option. However, you don’t catch the numbers or see the better quality of fish as you do when wading. Our saving grace this fall has been the large schools of redfish and black drum that usually show up this time of year. As you have probably noticed, there have been lots of pictures of these fish hanging on boards all over social media. These fish will stay in the area until the first few cool fronts start arriving later this month.

Moving into the winter months, I will continue some winter fishing but will also concentrate on guided whitetail deer hunts and exotic hunts for axis and

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Ken Milam’s Fishing Line Since 1981, Ken Milam has been guiding fishing trips for striped bass on Lake Buchanan in the Texas Hill Country, You can hear Ken on the radio as follows: The Great Outdoors: 5-8 am Saturday on 1300, The Zone, Austin and The Great Outdoors: 5-7 am Saturday on 1200 WOAI San Antonio The Sunday Sportsman: 6-8 am Sunday on 1300, The Zone, Austin All on iHeart Radio

Here comes the RAIN!

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ust when we were thinking we were about to be in big trouble again, here came the rain. We had so much heat this summer and so little rain, everyone was getting worried. It seemed that wildfires were getting way too frequent and hard to fight. We were beginning to think we would run out of water before we ran out of summer.

Up here on Lake Buchanan, we don’t have an aquifer to rely on, only granite rock that might have you a crack that holds water or not. When the lake level falls, all too often we have to say good bye to our wells too. Lots of folks end up high and dry for even household water and nothing is sadder than having to watch old oak trees die for lack of water knowing you can’t save them.

Now days when it rains here, it is like a holiday, a sacred thing that we don’t take for granted.

Along with the rain came the cool cloudy days we needed to start the transition into fall and I think we are all embracing that! The hunter’s ears perk up at all the doves flying overhead and it is hard to go down the road for all the nice bucks that are parading around. I’ll never know how the bucks can be so bold this time of year, out showing off their nice new horns, only to disappear when deer season opens. Deer are a lot smarter than we think. Acorns are beginning to drop off the oak trees and the deer and turkeys will be happy to find them.

Fishing is changing seasons too. The bit of nice fresh water from the rain brings in mud and nutrients that stir up the hot summer layers of water. Algae blooms energize the whole food chain of the lake and everybody gets plenty to eat so they can grow and get ready for spawning

next spring.

Stripers suffer in our Texas heat and lose their appetite, so this cooler water turns them into eating machines making up for lost meals that will often give us some real nice top-water fishing in the upcoming weeks. Catfish can be found along humps in river channels. Crappie will be holding on deep structure. White bass will be found on humps, with largemouth bass ranging up the warmer creeks. Fishing is pleasant this time of year and the catching can be some of the best of the year.

I’m looking forward to campfires and s’mores and watching the big old harvest moon rise over the lake. I love the comradery of the deer camp and all the tall tales that go with it.

It doesn’t matter if you head for the pasture or the lake, maybe take off for a gridiron road trip, or just head out to some of the local Fall festivals, it’s time to get back outside and remember all the things we love about Texas!

Half or Full Day Fishing Trips All Bait, Tackle & Equipment Furnished Your catch Filleted and Bagged for You Furnish your TPWD Fishing License & Refreshments, and WE DO THE REST!

Ken Milam Guide Service (325) 379-2051 www.striperfever.com

Call us for a Company Profile (210) 308-5800

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

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Of all things to sea

he outdoors is an escape from our concrete jungles. Travel can take you out of your comfort zone. Words can hardly express what was experienced in Mexico. All I can say is there is so much to indulge in, not just comida y tequila.

We embraced the Caribbean Sea waves while taking a sailboat to the wellknown Isla de Mujeres, a Mexican island in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Cancun. There we discovered the aquatic life while snorkeling. We swam with schools of fish! The Caribbean Sea is more than a clear blue ocean; it is a breath taking view of underwater life.

Xoximilco, Xoximilco! That chant will never be forgotten, nor will the food.

Crickets along with a taste of traditional cuisines of Mexico were on the menu

during our gondola dinner tour into the canals of Xoximilco. The Aztecs are known to have built the canals.

The Xel-ha Park is an aquatic theme park. You can explore the Mayan covered cenote (cave) with snuba, a snorkel and scuba activity that takes you 30 ft. below the water. The beauty beneath the ocean is remarkable and the history of these attractions is enlightening.

Cancun is full of life, entertainment and culture. Not only did I visit the country, I discovered the purpose of visiting.

The Spanish language will bring out your true Mayan.

When was the last time the outdoors took you out of your comfort zone? Where was your last outdoor adventure? What activity did you participate in? Share it. –lv

Lexie inside the Xel-ha Mayan cave.

Right: Lexie Velasquez smiling and snorkeling in the Caribbean Sea.

Lexie 30 feet below to view the underwater caves.

Family and new friends enjoying dinner, music and drinks on the Xoximilco gondola tour.

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Plastic yup

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Industry expert

IPEX marketing development specialist Tony Lopez shows off a duraflo gooseneck roof exhaust vent.

uraflo/IPEX USA LLC (IPEX) marketing development specialist Tony Lopez enjoys coming to Texas to sing the praises of the plastic mold manufacturer’s products. However, contractors who have seen other manufacturers’ weather- or delivery-damaged plastic products struggle to pick up the tune.

“I know that can be a hurdle for some contractors throughout the Texas market; they’re used to an aluminum or metal-type product category,” Lopez says. “However, we specialize in innovating against inclement weather, which can be pretty big in the Texas markets. We also back many of our products up with a pretty strong 35year warranty, since we’ve got UV protection built into that product material. We know it’s going to withstand.“ Denver-based parent company IPEX offers municipal, plumbing, mechanical, industrial and electrical products for a wide range of applications. Lopez focuses on Duraflo, the ventilation division within that, but says IPEX uses its larger focus as a plastic mold manufacturer to “achieve whatever product industry we need to.”

IPEX is so sure it can convert Texas con-

tractors it recently devoted Houston warehouse space to ventilation products.

“That is something we didn’t always have and that helps us in terms of the distribution point,” he says. “We get the product out to contractors, distributors and supply houses much faster.”

Because most of his time is spent in Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio, Lopez serves as Texas clients’ first point of contact. He also relies on Doug Stein for North Texas clients and Jerry Stein to help Central/South Texas contractors.

There is also a regional manager/sales manager in each state, and Lopez hosts contractor appreciation events.

“Our plan is to make sure that we target Texas as a whole and that we’ve got coverage there,” Lopez says. “We’re seeing traction in the Houston and Dallas markets; some are already hopping on board at the contractor and distributor level. We want to see it grow and populate the market with resources so they have anything they need.”

IPEX Companies design and manufacture thermoplastic piping systems. –mjm

L-R: Estimator Steve Lee, GM Travis Lee, project manager Stephen Baldwin, of Georgetown Millworks.

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ravis Lee is the newly appointed general manager of Georgetown Millworks. He started with the company about 14 months ago, and was named the GM just recently, being the project manager prior.

So what’s the difference between being the project manager and GM? Lee chuckles and says, “I still have the same workload as before; we just added the GM duties.”

Which means, Lee is the point man for the company to get their many projects done. When in doubt, call Lee. Georgetown Millworks started in 1996, doing both custom residential and commercial work. Now, however, the company concentrates strictly on the commercial side of the house. Lee is a self-taught millwork and construction person who knows a lot of people in the industry. Thus, if someone calls Georgetown requesting residential work, Lee will direct them to one of the many contacts he has made over the years.

“I started really young, working in the industry, doing construction,” Lee

said. “It’s just a matter of putting in the years. I’ve probably been doing it now for 30-plus years.”

Georgetown’s commercial clients range from schools, to churches, to restaurants, to retail and country clubs pretty much the entire spectrum. “We do a lot of schools, apparently,” Lee said.

Last year alone they produced over 5,000 student lockers. He said some schools have “amazing quality” work in them.

Georgetown currently has about 28 employees, but Lee is looking to hire more. Taking an architect’s drawings and producing a functional and beautiful, three-dimensional product, like an eyepopping reception desk, is always rewarding for Lee. He likes to “get them exactly what they’re looking for.” Georgetown uses several computer programs to aid in their production.

As the new general manager, he has plenty of ideas for the future of his company. Just call Travis Lee.

Georgetown Millworks produces architectural millwork, based in Georgetown. -dsz

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Page 13

THIS TH MON Jan: Construction Forecast Mar: Construction Education May: Concrete Industry July: Electrical Industry Feb: Construction Safety Apr: Women in Construction Jun: HVAC & Plumbing Aug: Service Providers

The future of roofing Jody C. Delino, Chief Financial Officer Texas Fifth Wall Systems Inc. Austin, TX

J

ody C. Delino graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Lamar University. He has been part of the Fifth Wall family since 2007.

What is on the horizon for the roofing industry?

Industry leaders are continually exploring ways to better manage the construction process through easier, more efficient construction and project management methodologies. For example, using technology to communicate more efficiently, drones to explore existing structures and infrared cameras to inspect hidden substructures for water intrusion have marked benefits to productivity, safety management, and customer satisfaction.

In addition, the roofing industry is developing the means to minimize the environmental impact by extending the life of roofing systems through asset management programs, recycling of waste materials, developing the use of energy efficient/low impact products such as zero VOC products, new cutting edge roof coatings to defer roof replacement for a time, and achieving higher energy efficient ratings using high tech in-

sulation products. The industry is also focused on devoting resources to better position us in the labor market by improving our professional image through certified education programs and better communicating roofing career opportunities. For example, the National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA) offers professional development opportunities to help advance executives’ and career minded individuals’ roles as leaders, managers and skilled workers.

With the construction industry’s big push on sustainability, where is the roofing industry headed?

Roofing system manufacturers and providers of building products are offering a wider selection of energy-saving options that are LEED® compliant, Energy Star® certified, and Cool Roof Rating Council listed. A few examples of the roofing industry’s effort to optimize sustainability include highly reflective roofing membranes that reduce air condi-

Painting, a strong industry Jay Elizalde, Vice President Santex Painting & Drywall Inc. San Antonio, TX

F

ounded in 1977 by Gerardo Elizalde, Santex Painting & Drywall Inc. has been family owned and operated since the beginning. “I like to think of our company as being in the customer service business, specializing in construction. The satisfaction of our clients is our number one priority, and we hope to service them successfully for another 40 plus years.”

Having been around the family business since he was a small child, Jay eventually found his way back after graduating from UTSA and working in the commercial real estate market. “Being a part of our family business is just a natural fit. I love what we do.”

How would you describe the state of the construction industry in general terms?

The current state of the construction industry is strong. Locally, the opportunities for quality specialty contractors have been steady for several years now. Recently we have noticed an increase in residential remodels coming online, which we view as a great indication of continued overall consumer confidence.

How has this increase affected your company and how you conduct business?

We are constantly looking for ways to service our clients more effectively.

This includes expanding our team with valuable new members to keep up with the needs of our clients here and in surrounding markets.

What are the “hot button” issues in your industry?

Quality labor is a big one. Most people outside our industry probably wouldn’t put

much weight on the difficulty of painting, taping and floating. However, those who have tried it for themselves understand that it takes a special level of skills to do a quality job. The pool of those skilled laborers can be shallow at times like these where we’re seeing increased workloads across the board.

What are the major changes in the industry in recent years relating to the type of work you do?

There are updated OSHO requirements regarding crystalline silica exposure in the workplace that we are keeping a close watch on. According to the sources we track, the current tested respirable levels of silica related to sanding joint compound are low enough not to require us to use engineering controls or respirators. However, these new challenges could be on the horizon.

SPECIALTY CONTRACTORS Sept: Green Building Nov: Architecture & Engineering Oct: Specialty Contractors Dec: Construction Equipment

tioning costs; skylight and day lighting products to optimize overall energy costs; roof garden systems with inherent environmental benefits while also aiding in storm water management; and life cycle management tools and processes to extend the roofing system lifespan.

In response to the increasing use of sustainable energy sources, roofing system manufacturers have developed solar ready roofing systems to accommodate the structural requirements, wind uplift ratings, and additional foot traffic needs of rooftop solar systems. Energy efficiency goals are also driving the need for a tighter building envelope, which likely amplifies the design and installation complexities of the roofing system. However, energy efficiency gains could be costly as such designs can lead to greater risks for realizing, as an example, the unintended consequence of trapping moisture within the building envelope.

Have there been any changes in regulations/codes affecting the roofing industry and what are they? How have they affected your company and the way you do business?

There is a regular cycle of building code updates that occur in the roofing industry. We are accustomed to dealing with such changes. A couple of the more significant changes scheduled to hit Texas soon are revisions to the Hail Storm Map and the Roof Wind Uplift Ratings.

The result of which will be slightly more costly yet more robust roofing system

Metal studs, sheetrock, paint, even plastic sheathing and tape see increases year to year.

How are you dealing with these challenges?

We are charged with the responsibility of educating our clients on these cost increases and rely heavily on our suppliers to assist with this. They do a wonderful job of providing access to information when needed.

What is on the horizon for your industry? Changes in technology, codes, ordinances, laws, other?

A lot of research and development goes into making paint products safer, more effective and more accessible to both contractors and the general consumer. Staying up to date with the new

designs to reduce catastrophic failures under certain weather conditions. As well prepared as we are to deal with code changes, we feel like we are challenged to navigate the ever-changing regulatory landscape. Our commitment to ensuring our business practices comply with the increasingly complex and often times poorly constructed or conflicting federal, state and local regulations is a constant distraction for our leadership. Most recently, the City’s efforts to deploy ordinances such as Ban the Box and City of Austin Sick Time Ordinance are examples of well-intended policy that increases business complexity. This can be very costly, interfere with our ability to meet the needs of our customers and forces us to choose winners and losers amongst our employee base.

Overreaching actions taken by one governing body that is eventually overridden by another further compounds the issue. Many times the risk of noncompliance built into such ordinances or actions are sufficiently significant that we are required to devote time and effort to revise policies and procedures anticipating compliance for rules or regulations that are ambiguous or never come to bear. Our preference would be that these various governing bodies are held to the same standard as those in private industry: operate within the confines of existing laws and regulations while working to influence desired and worthy change using established procedures offered by the responsible institution. -cmw

products and their methods of application presents its own set of challenges as it relates to educating our workforce as well as our clients.

What are the rewards of the industry?

The rewards are enormous. Nothing makes us happier than knowing we’ve exceeded our client’s expectations. It’s all about the call back.

What are keys to being successful in your industry?

Do what you say you’re going to do and know your limitations. These go hand in hand.

Santex Painting & Drywall is a painting and drywall contractor in San Antonio, TX. -cmw

Construction News ON LOCATION

Paints that smile

What is the most significant challenge your industry faces? Labor shortages?

Cost increases? Other?

The most significant challenge the painting and drywall industry faces, like every other trade, is a shortage of qualified tradesmen.

What are the cost increases relating to your industry?

Material and labor costs only increase.

A good coat of paint isn’t the only thing to brighten a room.

L-R: Marcus Brock, Steffon Martin and Jarrod Hill, Sherwin-Williams in San Marcos, have smiles that will brighten any room. -cmw

Page 14

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

THIS TH MON

SPECIALTY CONTRACTORS

To represent your company in an upcoming FOCUS, contact AustinEditor@ConstructionNews.net (210) 308-5800

NEXT MONTH (November 2018) ARCHITECTURE & ENGINEERING

Misclassified labor Randy Bradshaw, Executive Vice President, MIINC, LP and President, Mechanical Contractors Associations of Texas Dallas, TX

Glenn Rex, ➤ Executive Vice President Mechanical Contractors Associations of Texas Houston, TX

R

andy Bradshaw has 46 years’ experience in the mechanical/industrial contracting field, beginning his career as an apprentice in 1972 in the United Association.

Working his way through the craft positions, he began his management career in 1980 and was included in the formation of Miinc LP.

How would you describe the state of the construction industry in general terms?

Generally healthy, although in need of qualified additions to our existing skilled labor forces to meet the demand for our services in various parts of the State.

appeals to many companies because of the business friendly attitudes of the State.

Our population has grown consistently for more than 25 years. With growth comes the need for roads and bridges, houses and schools, and hospitals and healthcare related facilities. Population growth drives the demand for construction. On the Industrial side, the oil and gas industry has added opportunities for expansion on several fronts.

Has your company experienced an increase or a slowdown in business? What is driving this increase/slowdown?

Our commercial mechanical construction and service industry is cyclical.

The North and Central Texas areas are quite busy with projects. The Houston and Southeast Texas area is slowing down after several years of strong growth. Texas

As a mechanical contractor, what is your biggest challenge and how are you dealing with it?

Misclassified labor is a big issue in our industry. There is a growing practice of contractors who are really nothing more than labor brokers employing “independent contractors.” In theory, an independent contractor is truly indepen-

Glenn Rex has served the Mechanical Contractors Association of Texas as executive vice president since 1977.

New technology in demolition Timothy Ramon, President JR RAMON Demolition San Antonio, TX

J

R RAMON Demolition has provided house demolition and commercial demolition services to Central Texas and South Texas for over 50 years. They specialize in building demolition, bridge demolition, concrete removal, roll-off dumpster service, concrete saw cutting, asbestos abatement, site preparation/restoration services, disaster emergency response, and provider of recycled concrete aggregate. “We have earned our excellent reputation as the on-call demolition service provider for City of San Antonio, City of New Braunfels, and Texas Department of Transportation.”

The company also offers debris removal reduction and final disposition resulting from natural disasters.

What types of demolition work do you perform?

JR RAMON Demolition performs demolition projects of all sizes. We demolish bridges, water towers, school buildings, hotels, apartment complexes, airtraffic control towers, grain silos, hospitals, warehouses, office buildings, and anything else that needs to be removed.

We demolish about 500 houses per year.

We have worked on school districts in the Central/South Texas area, every military base in Texas, and in just about every zip code in the San Antonio and Austin areas.

We have even demolished quite a few aircrafts, defunct military or commercial airliners that get recycled for their valuable aluminum construction. A good portion of our work is in selective demolition, the interior gutting or partial removal of components of structures to accommodate renovations and additions to existing structures.

Are there any new demolition equipment or products that have made a significant difference in your production?

dent, sets his own schedule, and is responsible for his continuing education, safety, payroll taxes and benefits. In practice, in our industry, there are more and more contractors who misclassify their employees to be independent contractors so as to avoid the responsibility for payroll taxes, workers compensation insurance and the like, while still directing them like employees. This creates quite an un-level playing field for the mechanical contractor who cares about his or her employees.

How has the recent steel tariffs affected your industry? As a business owner, how are you dealing with these effects?

Today, material cost escalations are a big challenge. Most all of our member contractors are shortening the time period that their project estimates are good for, due to the concern of locking in material prices only to see the material costs increase repeatedly. While a bid price may have been good for thirty days in the past, today the price is quoted for seven days or less, so as to not be caught up in a material price increase. The mechanical contractor has no control over these price escalations.

What is the most rewarding aspect of the type of work you do?

There has always been a sense of pride in the construction industry for the craftsman to say, “I built that,” or for the company which has a resume of projects that generate the sense of identity of the company. That is certainly present today.

That said, there are many external pressures on mechanical contractors, as well as all of the specialty craft contractors to-

We’ve made a significant capital investment in robust technology to enhance capabilities of our large demolition excavators on mass structural demolition projects.

We’ve replaced old-style, mechanical couplers with a new automated hydraulic system that is like going from dialup to broadband. We now have five excavators adapted to use up to 15 different attachments for various projects. The attachments are interchangeable and all integrated within one automated, hydraulic system provided by OilQuick®.

How has this new technology changed your production?

In the past, demolition excavators’ tasks like breaking concrete and loading concrete would each require a different attachment that could take hours to swap out. The OilQuick system is designed and built for demolition applications and enables us to change from one attachment to another in seconds versus hours.

How is your business impacted?

The OilQuick system increases our efficiency by increasing the versatility of a single machine on a job site. One machine now performs tasks that in the past

www.constructionnews.net publishing the industry’s news

day. In certain markets, the low bid process is the predominant method of allocating work. Almost always, the lowest price comes at a cost to the quality of the construction. And this can make it hard to be proud of the work performed.

What has been your key to success?

Our member contractors are known for employing the highest skilled plumbers, pipe fitters, welders and sheet metal workers in the commercial construction and service industry in Texas. Too, we are known for our ability to deliver projects with professional project management, within the project schedule. When quality of construction counts, our mechanical contractor members are the preferred contractors of Texas’ construction users.

Please feel free to add information relating to this industry that we would not think to ask.

Prefabrication is a growing practice in construction. Our member mechanical contractors are on the leading edge of developing prefabrication. Coupled with Building Information Modeling (BIM), mechanical contractors are leaders in applying prefabrication and advancing the technology employed by the construction industry for the sake of gains in productivity.

Miinc LP is a full-service provider of HVAC, commercial plumbing and mechanical solutions in Dallas, TX. Mechanical Contractors Associations of Texas is a non-profit mechanical trade association. -cmw

required two to three machines. Now we send one machine with three different attachments to accomplish the same work in the course of a day that in the past would have taken two to three machines to do. It’s like turning a pocket knife into a Swiss Army knife. Operations are safer because what once required hours of physical labor is now completely automated.

What does this mean for your customers?

It means we get their jobs done safer and more efficiently. Less man-hours and less mobilization of heavy equipment results in less time on the job, which translates to lower overall cost to our customers.

Is this technology unique to your company?

JR RAMON is the only demolition company in the state of Texas currently operating an OilQuick system. For the last two decades the product and technology was in the European market and was only recently brought to the U.S. We are the first company in Texas to utilize their technology in the demolition industry. -cmw

Texas Style

★ ★ ★ ★

San Antonio Austin South Texas Houston

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Page 15

Page 16

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

JOB SIGHTS

L-R: Fernando Cruz, Hai Pham and Tam Chang with Efficient Air Conditioning visit with Construction News at the new Southern Oaks Church of Christ church in Manchaca, TX. -cmw

continued from Page 1 — Tiger 2 Electrical Contractors cided to get back into the electrical work.

That’s when he moved to Dallas to work for his brother.

After a while, Payne moved to Austin, where his wife had family and he went to work for Mills Electrical Contracting. “The truth is they decided to let me go,” Payne laughs.

With a couple of other electricians he knew, Payne started Tiger 2. He kept it small at first, giving him time to spend with his family and being there for his kids.

“I just wanted a little piece of the pie,” he explained. “I didn’t want everything.”

The last several years, however, with the girls grown and on their own, has seen plenty of growth for Tiger 2. They do only commercial projects in the vibrant Austin market. They have gone to Buda and Killeen, but Payne prefers to keep it local.

Because Payne had fostered such good relationships with general contractors, jobs come his way. “It’s all based on relationships,” he said, “and finishing the job on time and on budget.”

The biggest obstacle in Payne’s dayto-day work is acquiring good talent.

“Finding qualified electricians is probably

my biggest hurdle to overcome,” he said.

He’s a big proponent of groups like the Independent Electrical Contractors sending young folk through trade school and getting them trained and licensed.

Payne got his master’s license by studying after hours. “I’d lock myself in from 6 to 10:30/11 at night and I studied.”

Back then, it was the individual city that did the testing, in order to work in that city. Now, the state of Texas does the testing. Some states will reciprocate with Texas in terms of accepting each other’s licenses.

Payne doesn’t have any plans to expand Tiger 2 to other markets, but stay in the Austin area. “It’s an extremely competitive market that we’re in, he said.

There is plenty of work here.

For the future, Payne is hopeful that his son, whom he has just brought into the company, might take over Tiger 2 someday.

Who knows? If his son takes it over, maybe we’ll have a Tiger 3. The possibilities are endless.

Tiger 2 Electrical Contractors specializes in commercial and industrial electrical construction. -dsz

continued from Page 1 — Slight of Hand Metalworks

Owner and operator Johnny Morris with Johnny Morris Trucking was happy to stop and visit with Construction News after making a soil delivery at the new Bear Creek Crossing Subdivision in Manchaca, TX. -cmw

ing design and graphics, enabling him to produce his own website.

After completing his metal arts program, Szynal worked under another welder at his studio, but found that his hourly wage wasn’t equal to the contract jobs he got, so he formed Slight of Hand after a few years.

One of the first jobs Szynal did was making benches for Juan In a Million restaurant on Caesar Chavez, which has national notoriety. “Those benches kind of launched my career,” he said. “I kind of owe it to him [Juan].”

He created the now-famous sign at the El Arroyo restaurant, cutting out the word “Austin” and putting a star where the capital city is located.

Szynal shared shop space with glass artist Regi Thomas of Graphic Glass.

Through some of her contacts, Szynal was able to get well established around town. He has worked all over Austin, doing historical building renovations (like the Driskill Hotel) to doing work at coach Mack Brown’s house on Lake Travis.

Szynal gets his work primarily word-ofmouth. He placed his first real advertising, in the Austin Chronicle, just this past spring.

One thing that has worked well in his

favor is he took an autocad class. This made it possible for him to communicate with architects and builders on their terms. In other words, Szynal is not just an artist/welder, but also a trained builder. He highly recommends this skill to others in the field.

A big passion of Szynal is passing on his welding legacy with younger apprentices. “I really believe in mentoring younger people and not letting traditional things die,” he said. Schools will contact him with a student who wants to shadow him and study the craft of metal.

For the future, Szynal would like to get into large-scale public sculpting, the ones you see in civic areas like libraries and in downtowns. He’s applied all over the country to win various grants. “Art in public places is money looking for artists,” he said.

Szynal describes his love of welding thusly: “I was attracted to the metals program and building neat things that would last a long time.” He still uses the welder’s hands to drum, however. “I’ll always play drum,” he said. “It makes me feel alive.”

Nothing makes Szynal more alive than using his hands to magically create things, be it music or metal products.

Slight of Hand Metalworks produces custom fabrication in Austin. -dsz

continued from Page 1 — G Creek Construction

Carlos Chavez and Albert Rodriguez with Fermin Construction LLC enjoy a quick bite to eat at the new Food Box in Buda, TX. -cmw

3-story playground and lounge area

Giovanny Flores and Hector Morales with Motive Infrastructure are a little camera shy at the new Food Box in Buda, TX. -cmw

processes and coordinating vendors from around the world. The Balocity attraction came from Canada, the bowling setup came from Israel with Israeli installers, Clip & Climb came from Oregon, Spin Zone came from New Jersey, Laser tag from Florida, the remainder of the games came from all over.

“Owner, Stacy Eppen, was fabulous to work for because of the many moving parts that she had to deal with, especially it being her first foray into this type of business,” agrees Robert Petri, project manager and superintendent Brea Patton. The architect and engineer faced the challenge of working from out of state while trying to maneuver around

the local City of Austin codes.

G Creek Construction is a full-service, fully bonded general contractor in Austin. -cmw

Elevated rope course and arcade area

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Page 17

Association Calendar

Who is the most famous person you’ve met?

When and where?

Content submitted by Associations to Construction News ABC

Associated Builders & Contractors

Oct. 10: Excellence in Construction Awards Banquet, Fairmont Hotel, 101 Red River St., 5:30pm. For more info, call Amy Grace Torres at 512-719-5263 or email amy@abccentraltexas.org ACEA

Greater Austin Contractors & Engineers Assn.

Oct. 11: ACEA Membership Luncheon, Dave & Buster’s, 9333 Research Blvd., 11:30am-1pm. For more info, go to www. aceatx.com or call 512-893-7067.

AGC

Associated General Contractors

Oct. 11: Annual Fish Fry & Auction, Texas Disposal System Exotic Game Ranch, 11508 Carl Rd, Buda, TX. Oct. 25: AGC Annual Sporting Clay Shoot, Capitol City Skeet and Trap Club, 8707 Lindell Ln., 9am. For more info, contact Toni Osberry at 512-442-7887 NARI

National Assn. of the Remodeling Industry

Oct. 19: CotY Awards - Best Night Ever, s

The Mansion, 2312 San Gabriel St., 7pm.

For more info, call Kayvon Leath at 512997-6270 or email kayvon@austinnari. org NAWIC

National Assn. of Women in Construction

Oct. 3: Chapter Dinner Meeting, Pappasito’s Cantina, 6513 N. IH-35, 5:30-8:30pm.

For more info, contact Taryn Ritchie at 512-658-6573 or email taryn.ritchie@ryancompanies.com RCAT

Roofing Contractors Assn. of Texas

Oct. 10-12: RCAT 43rd Annual Event, Texas Roofing Conference, Gaylord Texan Resort & Conference Center, 1501 Gaylord Trail, Grapevine, TX. Oct. 10: RCAT Annual Golf Tournament, Bear Creek Golf Club, 500 Bear Creek Court, 12pm. For more info, 512-251-7690 or email rcat.tradeshow@rooftex.com SEAot

Structural Engineers Assn. of Texas

Oct. 25: Chapter Meeting, Maggiano’s Little Italy, 10910 Domain Dr., #100. For more info, call 512-301-2744

Submitted to Construction News

Round-Up

Michael Jenkins joins the Terracon team as the National Director for Transportation Construction Engineering Services. Jenkins has a proven track record of working on all aspects of transportation construction projects. He is a licensed professional engineer holding a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering degree with a minor in physics from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. -cmw

Round-Up Submissions

Submit Info & Photo:

AM Technical Solutions (AMTS) is proud to announce that Matt Shipley has joined the AMTS team as general manager. Shipley has extensive experience in managing multi-billion dollar clear construction and mission-critical projects. He reports directly to CEO, Kelly McAndrew. -cmw

Burt Reynolds. I was fishing on his dock when he came down. He asked me if we were catching anything and I said, “No, sir, not yet.” He chatted with us for a while.

Then he asked if we could back the boat up because his helicopter was coming to pick him up. He was a pretty nice guy.

Bernie Smith, Asphalt Care of Texas I met Jesus; have been with Jesus Christ three times in the Spiritual realm.

Raunel Tejeda, Built on the Rock Industries I met Kid Rock in person, at Kirkuk Regional Air Base, in Iraq, in 2010.

Nick Reynolds, Reynolds Electrical Service I met Arnold Palmer. We did one of his golf courses down in San Antonio and we had the opportunity to have lunch with him. He was a super nice guy.

David W. Erfurt, Erfurt Blasting Company Inc.

I got to meet David Robinson in the San Antonio area when I was in high school.

His kids went to high school there and we got to have a conversation with him. He is down to earth and good-hearted just how everybody says he is.

Sam Mott, Earnest Roofing At South by Southwest I was fortunate enough to be backstage and host Jon Hamm, you know Don Draper from the show Madmen, well I hosted him and the Bangles. He is very charismatic in person.

We watched the Bangles set and then hung out afterwards. It was a very odd “Keep Austin Weird” night. This was about four years ago.

Jason Schnurr, Schnurr, Inc.

Steve Morse, guitar player for Kansas.

Travis Lee, Georgetown Millworks

I met Steve Earle, who is probably my favorite songwriter back in 1988. I’m a singer/song writer myself, I was living in Nashville 30 years ago and chased him around for a little bit. I got to know him a little bit.

But the coolest story was while working as Wimberley Electric we were wiring a pool in Austin one day and the customer needed a service change. The superintendent introduced me to the homeowner and it was Aaron Franklin who owns Franklin BBQ in Austin.

AJ Downing, Wimberley Electric

I went to a concert in Richfield Coliseum, Ohio, in 1987. I saw Guns & Roses open for Aerosmith, and we ran into Slash at his hotel after the concert. I had him autograph my arm because there was nothing else for him to sign. I tried wrapping my arm in Saran Wrap the next day so I

I met Willie Nelson at his ranch outside of Austin. We had dinner out there with him. My favorite quote by him is about Austin: “There’s a certain freedom you feel when the closer you get to Austin, Texas.” It was March 2015.

Jordan Scott, 4GM Brick & Stone

Zig Ziglar, Austin

Walter Mott, Dean’s Air Conditioning & Electrical

I met Fuzzy Zeoller, the old golfer, down on the Gulf Coast when I had the marina.

He came down fishing. I had a great time visiting with him.

Clay Payne, Tiger 2 Electrical Contractors

Custom work

Brief company announcements of new or recently promoted personnel, free of charge, as space allows.

AustinEditor@ConstructionNews.net

could show it off to the kids at school, but unfortunately, during the shower water got under the Saran Wrap and I lost the autograph.

Matthew Szynal, Slight of Hand Metalworks

(210) 308-5800

The next reign

The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) announced the new leadership for 2018-2019. Front Row L-R: Linda Cudmore, Mtech-Icon Austin, Comfort Systems USA; Misti Shafer-Webb, Compliance Resources Inc; Ann Koziol, Vanguard Fire Systems LP; Kim Wheeler, CRH; and Jennifer Maxwell, Lott Brothers Construction Co., Ltd. Middle Row L-R: Steve Morrison, CRH; Cathy Schernik, Markel Corp.; Taryn Ritchie, Ryan Companies US Inc. and Danielle Dlugosh, Hensel Phelps. Back Row: Alex Jonata, Flintco LLC. -cmw

B

L-R: Sara, Dusty Brent, Casey, Lorianne, Hector and Eddie

.C. Fence LLC is a residential and commercial fencing company that has slowly grown over the years.

The letter B stands for Brent and the letter C stands for custom. Dusty Brent is the president of B.C. Fence, which was established in 1996. They are located in Cedar Park.

Brent talked about the custom work they do and said, “we can design or take a custom design and build a [custom fence]. Brent has four project managers and four to six crews.

B.C. Fence is a family owned and operated company. Brent has a son who works with them; he is a project manager in training. Brent mentioned maybe one day his son will take over.

He remembered starting this business as what he called a “one-horse operation.” Brent started his company and would handle installation, scheduling appointments, meeting with customers and building fences. Now Brent has a faith-based company with a close working staff. “We keep it family oriented and

close knit. We are all part of a team slash family,” said Brent. In fact, they conduct a weekly meeting that starts with prayer and a reading from the bible.

Brent has watched his company grow in both the residential and commercial departments. When he first started the company it had a main focus on residential. The commercial department came about in the mid 2000’s.

A commercial project that was just completed was with a new Costco in Pflugerville and the Round Rock area. It was mainly commercial chain link.

The B.C. Fence service area is the complete Austin area, including Leander, Cedar Park, Liberty Hill, Round Rock, Georgetown and Pflugerville. Brent enjoys the work he does and continues to do for those communities. As a fence contractor with many years of experience, B.C. Fence will continue to do custom work.

B.C. Fence LLC is a fence contractor in Cedar Park. –lv

Page 18

Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

HALLOWEEN ONE YEAR AGO

Classic SNL characters – Baker Triangle Austin

L-R: Chad Reilly, Zachary Cortez, Parker Gresak, Nancy Gresak, Nikki Hillin and Megan Ochoa, Triton Stone Group -cmw

Amy Hageman, Big Red Dog Engineering | Consulting shared this photo of the Austin civil, MEP and structural team from their first company-wide costume contest. -cmw

Spider-man, Spider-man, does whatever a spider can…Rolando Mims with Biggs Plumbing Co. Inc. on the job dressed as Spider-man. -cmw

Hull Supply Co. Inc. shared these photos of their “Justice League” crew. L-R: Tina Davila, Matt Campos, David Campos, Gabriel Zuniga, Melinda Gonzales and Michelle Horner. -cmw

Barlett Cocke Genreral Contractor and ISEC employees hand out treats at the Children’s Hospital. L-R: Sergio Sigala, Jason McGarvie, ISEC and Alicia Marqwuez -cmw

Hull’s “Monsters Inc.” crew gets the screams.

L-R: Javier Lopez, Joe Davila, Emily Merritt, Kenny Ames and Tonia Sherman. - cmw

L-R: Gypsy private Terri Fleming and Alice in Wonderland Cassidy Emens dress up at Rogers-O’Brien Construction. -cmw

Don’t forget to send us your company Halloween photos Email to AustinEditor@ConstructionNews.net Send Photo & Caption GOOD NEWS!

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018

Page 19

Doors, frames & more

Semper weld

Hull employees Evaline Alavarez and Daniel Sauceda awarding prizes to guests.

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hat’s in your future? That was the theme at the 2018 Central Texas Doors, Frames & Hardware Showcase hosted by Hull Supply.

The event was held on Sept. 14 at the Omni Southpark Hotel. A flying saucer set with lighted circuit boards “beaming” down made the connection with sophisticated door controls and futuristic technologies. Looks like Star Trek, Lost in Space and the Jetsons weren’t that far off after all.

“We’re proud to host this unique event dedicated to the architectural opening. It’s a mini-conference: part product showcase, part continuing education, and part networking,” says Emily Merritt, operations special project manager.

Participants connected with architects, designers, general contractors, facility and maintenance engineers, commercial property manager and planners from city, county and state agencies, universities and school districts.

Individuals were given the opportunity to learn how the navigate what’s next in the construction industry. And what’s next is all about doors, frames, hardware, access controls and restroom partitions and accessories. The event was part showcase, part Continuing Education and part networking.

The Hull Supply “flying saucer”

AAFAME’s Professional Series class was held, so that the group could also attend morning classes at the showcase.

The continuing education component of the tradeshow featured 26 classes throughout the day. Nineteen classes offered certifications for credits for the American Institute for Architects’ (AIA) continuing education program. Seven other sessions demonstrated installation techniques for various product categories such as frames, locks, door closers and exit devices, and how to combine them for effective security. New this year were sessions addressing security concerns for campuses and governmental facilities, and fire rated glass. Classes on the International Building Code and Texas Accessibility Standards as they pertain to architectural divisions 8, 10 and 28, and the NFPA Standards for Fire Doors were a big draw.

Major manufacturers of access controls, builders hardware, steel doors and frames, aluminum frames, wood doors, specialty doors and openings, fire rated glass, parturitions and accessories displayed their newest products. Specification writers and industry experts were on hand to answer questions.

Hull Supply is division 8 and 28 supplier in Austin, TX. -cmw

L-R: Hull Supply’s Shipping & Receiving Lead Paoloa Lozoya and Project Management Assisstant Evaline Alvarez

T

Steve Gouak, owner of Bombproof Welding.

he Marine Corps’ famous motto is, “Semper Fidelis,” Latin for, “Always Faithful.”

That’s a good trait for welders to have. A welder has to ensure that his/her weld is good enough to ensure a structure’s integrity.

Steve Gouak brings the Corps’ worldview to his craft as owner of Bombproof Welding.

The Pennsylvania native did a hitch in the Marines. His MOS (Military Occupation Specialty) was EOD: Explosive Ordinance Disposal. He defused bombs.

Prior to the Marines, Gouak was an auto mechanic. He loves cars. While enlisted, he did some off-roading with his buddies. “One thing led to another, then I got a welder and went down the dangerous road of becoming a welder.”

After his tour, he came to Austin because his wife is involved with state politics. Gouak enrolled in welding classes at Austin Community College. “I went through the intro courses,” he said, “just to see if I could learn anything new. Once I felt comfortable, I jumped on into the certification courses to get my 3 and 4G certification for structural welding.”

Once certified, Gouak started Bombroof Welding in February 2016. Since his in-laws owned a liquid feed and fertilizer store, Gouak did a lot his early jobs on ranches and farms, doing deer stands, cattle guards, machinery repairs and general equipment welding.

“The bulk of what I do is just general arc welding,” Gouak said, but offers TIG tungsten inert gas) and MIG (metal inert gas) welding.

“One strange thing in the welding industry,” he explained, “is there’s a lot of different certifications you can get out there.”

The testing and certification process is stringent and exacting. For the visual part of the examination, at any stage of the exam, such as putting a sample of the welding under a microscope, if any defects can be spotted, the examinee is flunked automatically.

If the visual part is successful, then

comes the bend test. The testers will take a piece of welding, then bend the metal in half, seeing if the weld holds. If it doesn’t, the person fails.

When it comes to an actual structure, Gouak said the welder takes the engineer’s design and make it a reality. The welder’s job is “to make sure that weld is as strong or stronger than the rest of the metal, so if something does fail, it should not be the weld. It should be somewhere else in the metal.”

“It’s one of those pride things,” he said. “You don’t want to be the reason that something [doesn’t work].” Semper weld.

Gouak wants to expand to do more structures in the future, once he acquires more equipment. “I’m hoping that down the road, as I build, I’m looking to get into small buildings like barns and steel buildings.”

For now, Gouak has combined his love of all things automotive and welding. He is active is the off-road and racing scene with various clubs and groups. Not only does he race himself, he volunteers his time fixing cars with on-the-spot welding for other drivers. One driver broke the steering arm on his car during trials, and Gouak welding it together in time for him to drive that night.

Gouak builds roll bars and protective cages for racing cars. When he has tipped his own cars on its sides, his work holds up. Maybe that should be part of the welder test as well at the college.

In the world of EOD, there isn’t any room for mistakes or “being close enough for government work.” Lives depend up on it.

In the welding realm, the same is true. Insufficient welding won’t suffice, as lives still depend upon it.

Gouak has taken his Marine Corps training and worldview into his civilian profession of welding, making sure people get what they need to see another day. Semper weld.

Bombproof Welding is a veteranowned welding business in Austin. -dsz

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Smiles cast in concrete

L-R: Robert Hoffman, Matt Weathersby, Bobby Pacheco and Lee Urbanovsky, the guys at CL Concrete Construction cemented their smiles with Construction News. -cmw

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2018