Austin Construction News October 2019

Covering the Industry’s News

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The Industry’s Newspaper www.constructionnews.net H (210) 308-5800 H Volume 19 H Number 10 H OCTOBER 2019

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Electrical detective

A real rolling stone

Bryan Long, owner of Fusion Electric

Jim and Melissa Connelly, of Jim Connelly Masonry

ryan Long is one of the fortunate ones who found his life’s career path early on. Soon after graduating from high school, his mother’s boyfriend asked him to come to work with him at Mercury Electric. The first job he worked on was doing the electrical infrastructure for a new elementary school.

“And I’ve been doing electrical ever since,” he said. “It seemed to fit me, and I understood it.”

Long’s electrical career path had him work there for several years, but he did quit Mercury when he asked to go to their residential division to learn that aspect of the trade, but they said no. Long first got his taste of the residential side when he was asked to handle a job closer to where he lived, which he did.

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“I wanted to learn how to do residential so I could be a more well-rounded electrician,” Long said. He discovered that commercial and residential have different nuances and he wanted to learn all that he could.

Long went to work for a few other companies, and eventually started Fusion Electric around 2001. He called his company “Fusion” for a fairly simple reason: he worked for a particular company whose name began with a “G.” It didn’t go well, and this company was the only one in his life to ever fire him. “Fusion” begins with an “F,” which put it before the “G” company in the phone book. So there, take that. continued on Page 14

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im Connelly has been rolling along in the stone business for 40 years now, which begs the question: Will he still be at it at the 50-year mark? “You might want to check with me at 45, just to make sure!” he laughs.

The main thing is, Connelly is still having fun at age 61 and being in the masonry trade ever since college. Jim Connelly Masonry started in 1979 (incorporated in 2000) when Connelly became a partner in another masonry contracting firm, which became his own when the other partner went back to New York.

Looking back at his beginning in masonry, Connelly laughed again when he said, “It was all a mistake.” The University of Texas, Austin, student was undeclared for his major and worked as a masonry

helper for Richards Brothers Masonry.

Masonry won. Connelly “dropped out to pursue my masonry career. Masonry made more sense than school to me.”

Connelly became a partner at Miller Masonry when he personally bought a needed mixer to handle the increasing workload. It was Miller Masonry that became Jim Connelly Masonry when Mr. Miller left.

Connelly wanted to grow his business.

He had heard other contractors mention how much it helped to have one’s wife help out in the office, which frees up the contractor to be hands-on in the field. Connelly agreed. Enter wife Melissa.

“We met at church in 1992,” Melissa continued on Page 14

Vacant lot to vibrant destination

ogers-O’Brien Construction (RO) is helping to transform five city blocks in east downtown Austin, called Saltillo. The heart and soul of Austin, Saltillo is an exciting new development which brings dining, shopping, music and entertainment together to create a unique and vibrant destination bustling with activity. This is an important milestone in the more than 20-year effort by the community and Capital Metro to revitalize a vacant piece of real estate and increase rail and bus ridership.

Rogers-O’Brien’s scope encompasses over one million square feet and includes 115,000sf of retail and restaurant space, 150,000sf of office space, four below and above ground parking garages, and 1.4 acres of open space and public art. The Plaza Saltillo District will feature one of the region’s most diverse mobility infrastructure programs, including the established MetroRail station, plus pe-

destrian paseos, extension of San Marcos Street, electric vehicle stations, reserved Car2Go spaces, a B-Cycle station and an extension of the Lance Armstrong Bikeway.

The structural construction of Saltillo encompassed concrete with post-tensioned cable reinforcement. The Saltillo exterior was a combination of glass, metal panel, clay tile, terra-cotta tile, ceramic tile, limestone and aspect block CMU. It’s interior construction featured wood, ceramic tile, concrete tile, plaster and metal panel.

The presence of the Capitol Metro railway, which runs along the south side of the entire jobsite, presented a major challenge for accessibility to the site. The railway restricted much of the RO team’s access to the south side of the buildings, making it difficult to deliver materials and equipment. There were also strict guidelines put in place by Capitol Metro that had to be adhered to, including a mandaPlaza Saltillo during construction

continued on Page 14

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

Painting Texas, eh?

or a Canadian, Jeff Hawken sure has been to a lot of places in America. He met his wife in St. Louis, moved to Phoenix and finally settled in Austin.

Further, his company, Texas Painting Company, is so named “because eventually I want to be in all four of the major cities” in the Lone Star State. Hawken’s home base is Austin but opened the San Antonio branch in 2009 and the Houston location in 2019.

The main office began in 2005 when he moved down from Phoenix.

(Note: he did not like Phoenix at all. “That was the worst,” he said, of all the places he lived.)

Hawken started in the painting business while in college at the University of Western Ontario. As an economics and history major, he ran a franchise of ColJeff Hawken, owner of Texas Painting Company lege Pro Painters all four summers of school, making more money each year. College Pro Painters the commercial jobs are fewer but pay started in the ‘70s as a project for eco- more per job. nomics majors, and it’s still around today.

“The easiest things to paint are exte“It was great,” Hawken said of his experi- rior residential repaints,” he said. They ence running it. can get in and get out without fussing

Sensing a good deal, Hawken became with objects like furniture or have to work a paint contractor in Phoenix during a good around the occupants. Hawken does his time economically. He ran the company fair share of condos and apartment buildwith another person who bought him out, ings. “We [also] do a lot of stucco rewhich brought him to Austin. paints,” he added.

“I didn’t even know the Hill Country Hawken said that he doesn’t like new existed,” he said. Hawken and his wife home construction because painters are were watching a Rachael Ray show (who always having to go back and fix things, was doing shows all over the country at like repainting a wall after someone has the time), and this one happened to be knocked a hole in it. He will do some work from Austin. Hawken liked what he saw for a buddy of his when called upon. and moved from Arizona.

Even though the original College Pro

Once Austin got established, Hawken Painters has branched into different aropened the San Antonio and Houston eas (like window cleaning, lawn care, branches. Hawken trained each leader etc.), Hawken doesn’t see that happening and stays in touch with them with daily to Texas Painting Company. What he sees phone calls. Each location handles all its is opening the fourth branch in the Dalown logistics. las/Fort Worth Metroplex, then eventual “Dallas and Houston are monsters,” ly becoming an absentee owner, enjoyHawken said. At present, Texas Painting ing the fruits of his labors.

Company has 28 folks in Austin, 14 in San He does get back to Canada a couple Antonio and six in Houston. He wants to times of year and enjoys the Longhorns and open the Dallas office when he finds the other sports (yes, hockey). “I don’t miss the right person to head it. snow,” he said, “but the heat gets a little old.”

“All of Austin’s on fire,” he said. “Even In comparing Canada to America, he the suburbs are good. It’s a good place to said, “The pace is faster here,” except be. We’re pretty much at a sweet spot in maybe I-35 through downtown Austin at Austin,” with all areas of town booming. 4 PM. Still, the Canadian has found a “It’s a good place to be,” he said. good home here and is helping to make Like other contractors, Hawken said Texas look nice with a fresh coat of paint. that he does more residential jobs be- Texas Painting Company is a painting cause they are quicker and easier, while contractor, headquartered in Austin. -dsz

Round-the-year safety

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365 Workplace Safety Executive Director Sierra Dwight, and Gaylen White, employee of Greater Austin Development at ladder’s bottom, and Will Solock, Safety Director of Greater Austin Development, at ladder’s top.

nsuring workplace safety has never been more critical. The construction industry’s fast pace, however, makes it hard for business owners to keep up with the latest in safety regulations and products.

365 Workplace Safety is changing that. The non-profit, internet-based organization is dedicated to improving workplace safety for its members. 365WS members have round-the-clock access to online resources, such as professional human resource consultants and safety and risk management information.

Members also receive discounts on safety products through approved vendors, thanks to 365WS’ purchasing power.

365WS works to assist members in lowering their accidents and helping to control their insurance costs as well. UFG (United Fire Group Insurance Company) sponsors a popular benefit in which qualifying members can participate in a dividend on their insurance premiums if the program generates profitable results.

“Most of our members are small businesses where one person may wear several hats,” 365WS Executive Director Sierra Dwight says. “The resources we bring to them make their jobs so much easier. Once a person goes through one of my short webinars on the services available, they are amazed how much easier we can make their workloads.”

365WS was established in late 2016, and currently has more than 200 members statewide.

“The reaction to 365 has been very well-received, once we get people to understand what we have to offer,” Dwight says. “Our major push is to try to get people to go through a little webinar

with us and learn how to access all of the various things that we have available to them. Once they see that, most people are really excited about how it’s going to save them time and make things better for their company.”

Recently, Dwight traveled to Austin to demo a new ladder extension product that allows users to enter and exit roofs by going through – rather than around – the ladder. Viewing the demonstration are Will Solock, Safety Manager and Greater Austin Development employee Gaylen White.

“Ladders are one of the most dangerous pieces of equipment in the construction business,” Dwight explains.

“Even a fall from the first rung of a ladder can cause serious injuries. But, getting on and off the ladder at the roof line is the most serious exposure because it is a long way to the ground. When we came across this product, we wanted to field test it before recommending it to our members, and what better way to field test it than to have members test it for us.

Then, our goal is to see if we can get them a discount using the purchasing power of our membership.”

Future ladder demonstrations will be conducted in San Antonio, utilizing local 365WS members. 365WS also plans to introduce a traffic safety program to address safety for drivers of company vehicles.

“We appreciate 365WS presenting us with this ladder extension and showing us the other benefits of 365WS membership,” Solock says.

365 Workplace Safety in Dallas is an internet-based, non-profit organization promoting employee safety. –mjm

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

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Boxwood, Atlas combine

Lumber support

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ublicly-traded special purpose acquisition company Boxwood Merger Corp. announced a business combination with Atlas Immediate Holdings LLC, a leading provider of professional testing, inspection, engineering and consulting services.

In the agreement, Atlas will become a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of Boxwood, which will be called Atlas Technical Consultants Inc. Headquartered in Austin, the company has been building L. Joe Boyer will lead as Atlas Technical Consultants Inc.’s CEO upon deal closing. up to this moment.

“The platform for Atlas was established in 2016. The strategy was to Upon the proposed transaction’s create a firm that focused on infrastruc- closing, which is scheduled for late in the ture services,” Atlas Technical Chief Exe- fourth quarter, Boyer will continue to cutive Officer L. Joe Boyer explains. “I saw lead as CEO with Walter Powell serving some key opportunities in the marketplace as Chief Financial Officer. Stephen for quality assurance and construction Kadenacy, Boxwood’s Chairman and engineering services being pushed to the Chief Executive Officer, will become Atlas private sector. Working with one of our Technical’s Executive Chairman. capital partners, we began to develop a Moving forward, the company will platform, and acquired our first companies focus on continued growth. in 2017. We focused on three strong “We continue to really look for the regional brands in California, Texas and growth opportunities in this market that Georgia which built the base of the Atlas are right in our sweet spot,” Boyer says. platform. In 2018, we strategically expand- “We’re focusing on Texas, Georgia, the ed our service base by acquiring two other west coast, northeast and Midwest. “ firms which really gave us a nice blend of Besides growth, Boyer does not antictesting, inspection and certification ipate many changes as a result of the services, as well as design and engineering agreement. services. We needed a national client base “We’ve been doing quite well and and we acquired our last firm, ATC, in will continue on the growth path we’re January 2019.” on,” Boyer says. “It’s a real advantage to

Atlas Technical is now a powerhouse be publicly traded in our current markets. consisting of 3200 employees working in Clearly the advantages our clients will 140 offices throughout 40 states, with see is a much larger public company. We shares to be listed on the Nasdaq Stock will continue to be the same clientMarket upon deal completion. The new focused company that we are with company will benefit from the growing greater expansion of our capabilities and demand for inspection, servicing and services. This is certainly an exciting time repair of U.S. infrastructure. for us and we are equally thrilled about “It has always been a preferred what the future holds. “ strategy to take Atlas to the public Atlas Technical Consultants Inc. provides markets,” Boyer says. “We obviously mission-critical technical services that help its found a great partner in Boxwood who public and private sector clients test, inspect, was looking for opportunities in this certify, plan, design and manage projects exact space. So, it was really a great across transportation, commercial, industrial, opportunity for us to de-risk the going government, education and other nonrespublic process through this business idential markets. –mjm combination with Boxwood.”

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L-R: US Lumber Brokers’ Jenna Vineyard, April Holloway, Donna Koschade and Isabel Rodriguez

leven years ago, Ben Baker established US Lumber Brokers, but what he founded provides much more than domestic and exotic wood and wood products. To his employees Jenna Vineyard, April Holloway, Donna Koschade and Isabel Rodriguez, Baker has created an environment where the four women truly feel valued, listened to, encouraged and supported.

The decision to help more women get their start in a male-dominated industry was one Baker consciously made, according to assistant manager Rodriguez. She was working as a waitress when Baker, her customer, noticed her people skills and recruited her as an employee. She didn’t know anything about lumber, but Baker was happy to teach her. Rodriguez says over the years, Baker has done the same for other women, who make up about half of his staff.

“Starting with his hires, there are more women. When I came in, only Jenna and Stephanie were here. Now, we have also have Donna and April,” Rodriguez says. “It makes me feel really good. I work for someone who respects me and who takes the time to teach me. The fact that he showed us respect, made me feel valued and made me feel that I mattered in this company, that is something that I want in a boss.”

The women are especially proud that they have been a part of the company’s growth and success.

“The company has changed and grown so much in the last 11 years,” Vineyard, Baker’s first employee who works as an office manager and in sales, says. “I’ve seen the company change from adding employees, to moving locations, to adding delivery trucks, and growing our customer base. It’s been exciting to be with a company from the start. US Lumber Brokers is always trying to be on the forefront and to offer products and services that no one else does. We provide quality products that people want to use on their projects.”

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“I’ve been in the industry for over 11 years and enjoy the opportunity to help my customers facilitate any projects they may have,” sales rep Koschade says, echoing Vineyard’s sentiment. “At US Lumber Brokers, we provide our customers with quality material and service that is unmatched. I am grateful for the relationships that I have built through the years and enjoy seeing the various projects we have provided for.”

Baker’s approach seems to be working. Besides lumber, the company now also offers doors and windows and hopes to expand to another location within 24 months. The move will allow for a larger showroom and more space for his eight employees and any he hires in the future.

For now, Baker is helping to build up four strong female employees who are confident in their skills, work and place in the construction world.

“I am not intimidated and have a thick skin and I think it is a good quality to have in a male-dominated industry,” Holloway acknowledges. “I do think we have a disadvantage going in to start with, but there is less competition after getting in the door. Females bring a little softness to a male-dominated industry.

Keep your composure and don’t let things get under your skin. Be confident in yourself and your abilities. I know that’s how I handle it.”

More important, working at US Lumber Brokers helps the women build qualities in themselves.

“It has become a great experience for me,” Rodriguez agrees. “At other places, sometimes you feel overlooked and you’re not given the opportunity to do things that you know if you do them you can excel at them. Knowing that someone is willing to give me the opportunity not only gives me a chance to prove myself but shows me how to be better.”

Austin supplier US Lumber Brokers offers wood products for architectural firms and high-end custom home builders. –mjm

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

Five IRS audit mistakes to avoid

Non-Owned Vehicle Risk Management

Steven Bankler, Owner Steven Bankler, CPA, Ltd. San Antonio, TX

Mark Gaskamp, Sr. Vice President Marsh Wortham Austin, TX

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he IRS audits about one million taxpayers each year.

While the agency is understaffed, that doesn’t mean you’ll slip through the cracks. IRS software automates the selection process now by flagging returns that show abnormalities: Perhaps the return deviates from what’s normally filed, or it’s been linked to a family member, investor, or business partner who is being audited. Also, the more money you make, the more likely you are to be audited.

An audit may consist of a simple letter from the IRS or, when the stakes are higher, you may need to meet with an auditor in person. In either case, common mistakes can almost guarantee you don’t come out on top. They include: 1. Ignoring IRS requests and deadlines Failure to respond to IRS requests for information won’t stop the agency from taking action. The IRS has the power to request your tax information directly from financial institutions (banks, brokerage houses, credit card companies, etc.). If it’s an audit of a personal return, they could contact your employer. If it’s an audit of a business, they could contact both customers and vendors. All of these powers arise when the taxpayer (or authorized representative) fails to communicate or respond to the IRS’s Information Document Request (IDR). If the audit proceeds without your cooperation, the IRS can and will issue a Revenue Agent’s Report (RAR) and finally a Statutory Notice of Deficiency. Generally, you will have 90 days to file a court petition to The US tax Court. Again, failure to respond to this notice can cause the taxpayer to forfeit appeal rights. The IRS then begins collection procedures, which can include filing federal tax liens, wage garnishments, and levies. In Texas, we have a “homestead” protection - ordinary creditors cannot seize and sell your homestead. However, the IRS is no ordinary creditor. They HAVE the POWER to seize and sell your residence to pay your tax debts. Missing an IRS audit appointment could start you down this path.

2. Not filing past-due returns

One of the first steps in addressing an audit is to make sure you have filed all tax returns that are overdue. Don’t let the fact that you may not be able to pay the taxes affect the filing. Late filing penalties accrue at the rate of 5% per month, while late payment of the taxes incurs penalties of 0.5% per month plus interest. If you failed to file at any time in the past, the IRS can prepare and file those returns for you as a Substitute for Return (SFR). Those returns, however, will not include the deductions and credits you may be entitled to receive. The IRS will begin collecting the tax due shown on these returns (which may be inflated due to deductions and credits having been omitted). If these returns indicate you may be owed a refund, there is a limited amount of time that refunds will be returned to the taxpayer on late filed returns. You could also risk losing Social Security benefits as well as your ability to obtain home, business, or education loans.

3. Lying

verybody’s got one, some larger than others, some are not even owned, but they still create a risk for the organization. Construction operations have so many worker safety (OSHA) and liability issues (construction defect, mold, silica, etc… ) they often neglect addressing one of the greatest risks to the organization, vehicles and safe driving. In fact, motor vehicle accidents are the largest source of workplace fatalities in the work place.

This includes not only the owned trucks and other vehicles owned by the company, but also the use of personal vehicles on company business.

The most common tax-related lies are underreporting income (usually income received in cash or received outside the U.S. as foreign income) and claiming false deductions, both of which can trigger heavy IRS penalties, fees, and interest. And then there’s tax evasion and tax fraud, which can be criminal offenses that could land you in prison. When an auditor uncovers a cardinal sin like substantially underreporting your income or failing to report foreign bank and financial accounts, you may be heading down a long, dark path that could cost you dearly.

A serious auto accident involving an employee driving on company business is one of the few exposures that can result in a first party, property damage claim, second party workers compensation claim, and a third party liability claim.

Each can result in significant financial loss depending on the nature of the accident.

It is such a critical workplace safety issue OSHA, in cooperation with the National Highway Traffic Safety Association, has dedicated resources to develop a guide & resources to help show the importance of fleet safety. https://www.osha.gov/ Publications/motor_vehicle_guide.html

4. Not contesting when there’s a good reason.

The most important component of any fleet safety program is defining who is allowed to drive on company business.

Not just who is assigned a company truck, but who is allowed to drive their personal vehicles on company business.

This “non-owned” exposure can create a significant risk for any organization. The liability exposure for anyone operating a vehicle on company business ultimately falls upon the company, and can create as much liability as owned vehicles. Each year, our office sees multiple claims over $1MM involving “non-owned” drivers, so it is critical to make this a part of any fleet safety/ risk management program.

Don’t be intimidated. The IRS promises a right to professional and courteous treatment as well as the right to appeal disagreements. Utilize those rights when it makes sense. For face-to-face audits, you can speak to the auditor’s manager if you don’t like the way the audit is being handled. After an audit concludes, you can still contest it with the IRS Office of Appeals and have the decision reviewed.

If the appeals officer agrees with the auditor, you can go through the court system.

5. Not seeking expert help A qualified CPA can represent you before the IRS in a tax audit. This help is critical because you need someone on your side who knows not only tax laws but also IRS procedures. They’ll know how to present your case to both IRS Appeals and/or Tax Court. In addition, they could determine whether your penalties should be contested. When all else is said and done, a qualified CPA can help you negotiate payment of the tax bill, including applying for an installment agreement, and/or an offer in compromise, which allows you to settle your tax debt for less than the full amount.

Take IRS audits seriously because the IRS certainly does. If you don’t take control of an audit from the beginning, you lose your power to file, contest, or appeal on your own terms.

Steven Bankler has more than 42 years of experience in the accounting industry.

Steven’s expertise lies in consulting, planning, tax, and asset protection as well as exit strategy services for closely held businesses. He also provides litigation support (both as a testifying expert witness and a consulting expert), business negotiations and estate planning. Visit www.bankler. com for additional tax strategy tips and to learn more about Steven Bankler, CPA, Ltd.

The other aspect of controlling who is driving on behalf of the company is to ensure there are clear rules for the use of vehicles by non-employees and for nonbusiness use. Insurance coverage follows the vehicle, so if a 16-year-old kid hops in the superintendent’s company truck over the weekend and has a serious auto accident injuring a third party, the company will be responsible and the commercial auto policy will respond. Clearly defined rules for utilization of company vehicles can help reduce this exposure.

Once the list of individuals allowed to operate a vehicle on company business is identified, the next step is to determine the qualifications each driver must maintain in order to drive on company business. Failure to properly screen drivers will create potential “negligent entrustment” exposures for the organization and negative financial consequences should an individual with a poor driving history be involved in an accident.

Most insurance companies use the guideline of no more than three moving violations or at fault accidents in the past three years and no more than two violations or accidents in the past year as their guideline for an “acceptable” drivers. In addition, there are single events which should result in the driver being excluded from any driving privileges such as a DUI, driving without a license, or vehicular homicide. We encourage our clients to not rely on the insurance company to manage their drivers. It is best for new hires to provide their own driving record during the interview process and check motor vehicle record checks annually for your own staff rather than have an insurance company tell you who can and can-

not drive for your organization.

It is also a good risk management practice to require individuals to maintain personal insurance if they are driving on behalf of the company. These really need to be more that the state minimum limits of $30,000 per person, $60,000 per accident for bodily injury and $25,000 property damage, as they are not adequate to protect the individual or the company from a significant collision. Requiring a $300,000 combined single limit will help insulate the company’s auto policy and reduce the risk of the individual being personally responsible for damages beyond these state minimums (depending on the type of vehicle this might cost from $50-$100 per year for 10 times the coverage). The mileage reimbursement rates account for this level of insurance. Per the IRS mileage calculations, over 10% of the current .58 cent reimbursement rate is to pay for adequate insurance.

Managing drivers and fleet safety should be an important part of any risk management program. It can take some time to develop policies and procedures specific to your operations and maintain the records for company car drivers, but this is time well spent in order to reduce potential liability exposures for the organization.

Mr. Gaskamp is responsible for developing partnerships with clients to implement risk control strategies to reduce the organization’s overall cost of risk. He has over 25 years of insurance and risk management experience and is very active in the safety and risk management community. He is a national faculty member of the National Alliance Certified Risk Manager’s program and serves on the safety committees for the Association of Building Contractors, Association of General Contractors, Texas Aggregate, Concrete Association (TACA) and the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) Construction Specialty Practice. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Risk Management and Finance degree from the University of Texas at Austin. Mark can be reached at mark. gaskamp@marsh.com

Marsh Wortham, a division of Marsh USA Inc., was formed in 2018 upon the combination of Marsh and Wortham Insurance, and consists of Wortham offices in Texas and Marsh offices in Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. Our parent company is Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC), the leading global professional services firm in the areas of risk, strategy, and people. With 75,000 colleagues worldwide and annualized revenue approaching $17 billion, Marsh & McLennan Companies also include global leaders Guy Carpenter, Mercer, and Oliver Wyman.

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

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Rethinking the recovery of attorney’s fees as a means to save costs R. Carson Fisk, Shareholder Andrews Myers, P.C. Austin, TX

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n a construction dispute, settlement often makes a lot of sense based on fundamental matters such as certainty of outcome and conservation of time and cost. In fact, as a matter of public policy, the State of Texas encourages “the peaceable resolution of disputes” as well as “the early settlement of pending litigation.” But in many construction disputes—particularly those involving a couple hundred thousand dollars or less—the recovery of attorneys’ fees can be a major factor as to whether settlement is realistically achievable.

This is generally because in litigation or arbitration, the legal costs can quickly add up and, in some instances, become a disproportionately large number when compared to the actual principal amount in dispute. It is not uncommon for parties to spend $20,000 or more on attorneys for a $50,000-$100,000 dispute simply to reach a point where settlement negotiations might be productive based on the merits of the parties’ positions. This has the tendency to entrench parties in their positions given the need to recover attorneys’ fees’ in order to “be made whole.”

So while settlement often makes sense— so much so that it is reflected in statepolicy as codified by statute—does the ability to recover attorneys’ fees promote settlement or hinder it?

In the American judicial system, the recovery of attorneys’ fees in litigation is generally governed by what is known as the “American Rule.” Under this rule, each party bears its own attorneys’ fees, meaning that a party cannot recover such fees from the other party even if it prevails.

The rule applies unless there is a statute authorizing the recovery of attorneys’ fees or such recovery is permitted by the terms of a contract. Thus, in a straightforward negligence case (e.g., a case involving a slip-and-fall, car accident, etc.), a party does not have the right to recover attorneys’ fees from the other party.

However, in the construction context, a party often does have the right to recover attorneys’ fees. This is because multiple statutes apply—sometimes uniquely—to construction-related claims that permit the recovery of attorneys’ fees.

For example, statutes addressing mechanic’s and materialman’s liens, prompt payment, breach of contract, and the declaration of contractual rights all authorize a party to recover attorneys’ fees under certain circumstances. Additionally, many construction-related contracts provide the winning party the right to recover attorneys’ fees from the losing party.

With the recovery of attorneys’ fees routinely being an issue in construction disputes, the issue turns back to whether such a right of recovery is a help or hindrance to settlement.

Under one theory, the ability to recover attorneys’ fees promotes settlement. The focus of risk assessment is on the potential for an expanded negative result—the fact that the losing party might not only have to pay an adverse judgment or arbitration award, but also the attorneys’ fees incurred by the winning party. This increased risk motivates parties to take a more reasonable position in settlement negotiations. This often emboldens a party with the stronger position (or perceived stronger position).

But there is risk even for the winning party. Often the fact finder is not necessarily obligated to award the full amount of attorneys’ fees incurred, but rather what might be subjectively considered fair, just, reasonable, necessary, or a combination of these. So, while a winning party may have incurred $100,000 in attorneys’ fees, it may ultimately be awarded much

less. This, of course, makes a “win” less of one. And, as is often the case, each side may view itself as the party with the stronger position, presenting additional challenges.

Under another theory, the ability to recover attorneys’ fees hinders settlement. The focus of risk assessment is on the merits of the dispute, without attention to added-on costs such as legal expenses. If this approach is preferred, often parties generally must contractually agree that neither side has the right to recover attorneys’ fees or, in arbitration, that the arbitrator does not have the power to award attorneys’ fees. This approach can be particularly effective for early stage resolution of “smaller” disputes, such as those involving a couple hundred thousand dollars or less. It is at the early stage of a dispute where the parties have the best chance at a costsaving resolution, avoiding the steep and ongoing legal costs and associated commitments of time (generally resulting in additional, less tangible losses to the parties). But it is also the point in time where the parties know the least about their respective strengths and weaknesses in a case. Such information can be obtained, but only after spending money on attorneys’ fees—such fees not being recoverable. Thus, there is an increased incentive to settle earlier than later to avoid sunk costs. Conversely, parties may be inclined to adopt harsher or unreasonable approaches knowing that their exposure to attorneys’ fees is lessened or non-existent.

Neither approach is perfect under all scenarios, and unfortunately a decision on which approach to adopt generally has to be made well before any dispute is at hand. But owners, architects, engineers, contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers who leave the recovery of attorneys’ fees to chance are doing themselves a disservice. Thought should be given to the philosophy underlying any given approach, whether it be aggressive recovery or pragmatic resolution. Certainly state policy supports early amicable settlement, but the reality is that parties often feel strongly that the party who wins should recover all costs, including attorneys’ fees, from the party who loses. These theories and approaches should be considered, while keeping a party’s principles in mind, when drafting agreements.

R. Carson Fisk is a construction attorney, mediator, and arbitrator and shareholder at Andrews Myers P.C. in Austin, Texas. He may be reached at cfisk@andrewsmyers. com.

Maintenance versus construction Joann Natarajan Compliance Assistance Specialist OSHA Austin, TX

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SHA has both construction and general industry regulations. Construction activities fall under 29 CFR 1926, and maintenance activities fall under OSHA’s general industry regulations codified at 29 CFR 1910.

Though the OSHA regulations for construction and general industry frequently agree, there are some differences.

OSHA’s regulations define construction work as “construction, alteration, and/or repair, including painting and decorating.”

Section 1910.12(a) further provides that OSHA’s construction industry standards apply “to every employment and place of employment of every employee engaged in construction work.”

Unlike construction work, there is no regulatory definition for “maintenance,” nor a specified distinction between terms such as “maintenance,” “repair,” or “refurbishment.” “Maintenance activities” have commonly been defined in dictionaries as making or keeping a structure, fixture or foundation (substrates) in proper condition in a routine, scheduled, or anticipated fashion. OSHA has stated that maintenance involves keeping equipment working in its existing state, i.e., preventing its failure or decline.

Construction work is not limited to new construction, but can include the repair of existing facilities or the replacement of structures and their components. For example, the replacement of one utility pole with a new, identical pole would be maintenance; however, if it were replaced with an improved pole or equipment, it would be considered construction.

Additionally, the scale and complexity of the project are relevant. This takes into consideration concepts such as the amount of time and material required to

complete the job. For example, if a steel beam in a building had deteriorated and was to be replaced by a new, but identical beam, the project would be considered a construction repair rather than maintenance because of the replacement project’s scale and complexity. If a bridge was to be stripped and re-painted, that would be considered construction work even if the repainting were done on a scheduled basis. Replacement of a section of limestone cladding on a building, though not necessarily a large project in terms of scale, would typically be considered construction because it is a complex task in view of the steps involved and tools and equipment needed to do the work.

Work that is anticipated, routine, and done on a regularly scheduled/periodic basis to help maintain the original condition of the component will be suggestive of “maintenance,” although this must be considered in light of the scale of the project. If the work consists of repair as opposed to replacement, a key factor is whether those repairs are extensive. If the work consists of removal and replacement of equipment, an important factor is whether the new equipment is of an improved type. For both cases of repair and replacement, a key factor is the scale of the project, including the extent to which other equipment or structures must be moved or altered. natarajan.joann@dol.gov 512-374-0271 x232

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

concrete framed condominiums. In a booming Honolulu market, the high costs of construction and the fast pace of the work created an environment that valued innovation and fostered creative construction methods. Many of the technologies I learned in my time there have carried over to American Constructors today.

Marty Burger

CEO American Constructors Cedar Park, TX

E

ngineering has taken Marty Burger from an Oregon farm, to Hawaii, to Austin. In 36 years, it has also taken him from field engineer to CEO of American Constructors. Along the way, he has learned valuable lessons that he takes with him as he continues the work he loves.

Share about your background.

My dad was a dentist in Portland, OR and I was born in Portland and grew up there in my younger years. We moved to a little rural farming community just west of Salem, so I spent my formative years on an Oregon farm. I went to a very small high school; there were a total of nine kids in my graduating class.

I always knew I would go to college, and I enrolled at Oregon State University in Corvallis. I initially majored in general engineering and changed to construction engineering in my junior year.

Why did you study construction engineering?

Construction is very tangible to me.

Growing up on a farm there was a lot of hands-on experience. I got to help build grain storage bins, a barn and a number of building renovations. Though small, those projects were fun and engaging.

Construction Engineering was a relatively new degree program at OSU. It was led by a very dynamic group of professors, and I immediately fell in love with it.

How did your career unfold after college?

When I graduated in 1981, like most kids I initially wanted to stay near home. I had a number of job opportunities around the country, but not one of them was in Oregon. I took a field engineer job in Honolulu, HI, and by the end of my first day I knew I had chosen the right profession, and a great company where I would learn a lot very quickly. The company specialized in building high-rise

Did you experience culture shock, moving from Oregon to Hawaii?

Growing up on a farm and moving to Honolulu was quite different culturally. It taught me so much about life that has stayed with me even today. In Hawaii, if you work to become part of their culture, you are immediately welcomed; otherwise, they think you are just a temporary visitor. I embraced their culture, and loved their food, so I fit right in!

What brought you to Austin?

Bill Heine, the founder of American Constructors, was an Operations Vice President in charge of recruiting for the construction company in Hawaii, and he hired me after I graduated. Bill left Hawaii and came to Austin in 1982 and started American Constructors. I joined him in Austin about a year later as a field engineer and assistant superintendent.

The economy was starting to turn south in Hawaii, and I was ready to pursue other opportunities – including starting a family – but I chose American Constructors because I trusted Bill. He established a culture of innovation and excellence that allowed us to succeed from the very beginning. I’ve been with the company for 36 years this month.

What lessons have you learned in the past 36 years?

Most people think construction is about bricks and mortar, but it is a very people-focused business. It’s something you learn very quickly – it’s about your team, your clients and your partners.

The biggest lesson I’ve learned is to treat people right – with respect – because it will come back to you. At American Constructors, and from Bill Heine in particular, I learned to do the right thing from the beginning, even when it’s hard. Often, people look for the easy way out, but it’s best to do what’s right from the very beginning.

I’ve learned that no matter what type of work you are in, but certainly in construction, you will excel when you own the work, and own the process. This is one way that you can truly differentiate yourself and your business.

What do you enjoy about your work?

I enjoy construction because I love working with people and solving problems.

I enjoy producing something tangible: a building, a house, an apartment, a

American Constructors’ CEO Marty Burger

place where people work and live. Recently, we helped celebrate the opening of a new elementary school. Watching the excitement of those young children while they explored their new space for the first time was heartwarming. It’s moments like that when you really appreciate being in the construction business and how purposeful and tangible it is.

Another part of this business that I love is seeing young, new employees learn, grow and become building professionals.

Many now have children, and I want to be there to help them provide for their families.

It’s very gratifying to see people stay with our company for such a long time.

What advice do you have for those wanting a construction career?

Construction is not for the faint of heart. You have to work hard and be humble. Humility will get you a long way in this business. At American Constructors, we constantly strive to listen, to learn and to improve.

I advise new people starting their career in construction to raise their hand for every task that is available. You’re going to learn so much more – and much faster – than your peers, and your attitude will differentiate you. And always put people and customers first.

How do you spend your time outside of work?

My wife and I live in Austin and we have four grown children. I enjoy spending time with people, being outdoors and working. That doesn’t necessarily mean

construction work; it could be yard work or helping a friend or neighbor.

I travel some, for business, and we travel to see family and friends across the country. We also work on our bucket list when we have time; last year included some “leaf peeping” in the northeast.

There are many places we still want to see.

Is giving back to the community a key focus for American Constructors?

Philanthropy has always been a focus at American Constructors, and I take pride in how much our entire team has leaned into this aspect of our company culture. When the company was formed in 1982, Bill was already involved in the Boys and Girls Clubs, and we continue to support that organization among many others today.

The American Constructors Foundation, which we recently launched, focuses on bringing lasting and positive impacts to communities by funding charitable and educational organizations, providing scholarships and more to benefit the community.

What are your future plans?

I plan to work at American Constructors until I retire, and even after that point I want to be here for the company as long as I can help and be useful.

General contractor American Constructors in Cedar Park offers pre-construction, construction, specialty and facility services for K-12, higher education, commercial and municipal projects for all of Central Texas.

– mjm

Construction News ON LOCATION

Construction News ON LOCATION

L-R: Ruben Cadena, Rowan Laviscount, Jon Vistine, Noel Reyes, Vincent McNeal and Prisco Marquez of West End Roofing, Siding & Windows, A Beacon Roofing Supply Company visit with Construction News between customers. -cmw

New Bobcat of Austin Inside Sales Rep Gudelio Martinez wishes to say “hello” to all the folks in and around Austin. -cmw

Taking the time

Hello Austin

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

Page 7

Fall fishing possibilites

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

W

hen people think of saltwater fishing, most think of shorts and performance t-shirts in 90 degree weather. While we do love getting out on the boat in those summer months, there is also some incredible opportunities to cash in on saltwater fishing in the fall months as well. Fall fishing in our neck of the woods can actually be the best time of year for speckled trout, redfish, and other inshore species. The falling water temperature creates a feeding frenzy for these fish as they are gorging themselves on shrimp and baitfish that are stacked in the guts and sloughs in preparation for the coming winter.

An added bonus to fishing the fall in our area is the incredible opportunity for sight-fishing redfish. This time of year, the

T

Angler Sam Boatright was successful landing the 21-in. flounder and two 27-in. trout on his recent fishing outing with Steve Schultz Outdoors. Both trout were released after photo.

fish begin to school up. These groups that can sometimes be over 200 fish and our water becomes very clear. The thrill of pulling up on a flat and seeing a group of redfish pushing along is enough to get any angler’s blood pumping and an accurate presentation of an artificial bait or natural bait is usually all it takes to get a bite. At times, these schools are moving

Shooting for PAC

he Texas Construction Association (TCA) hosted its PAC Clay Shoot at the Greater Houston Gun Club. The highly successful event was held on Aug. 20. -cmw

Annie Oakley competition winners: 2nd Place: Darin Petting 3rd Place: Roy Hennick Four-Man Flurry winners: 1st Place: Marek Brothers 2nd Place: Scott Macon Equipment 3rd Place: Pelletizer Knives Four-Man Lewis Class winners: 1st Place: National Terrazzo 2nd Place: Marek Brothers

1st Place Annie Oakley – Ron Whitmore

3rd Place: Laticrete Two-Man Flurry winners: 1st Place: Marek Brothers 2nd Place: Scott Macon Equipment 3rd Place: Pelletizer Knives Two-Man Flurry Lewis Class winners: 1st Place: J Rollins 2nd Place: Chamberlin 3rd Place: Berger Iron Works

Top Woman Shooter – Kelly Vazquez

along the shallow water demolishing everything in their path and will actually race to get your bait before one of the other fish can beat them to it.

Another alterative to fishing for reds in the fall is fish for black drum. There is an abundant population of black drum in the Texas Coastal Bend. The black drum is often overlooked as a primary game fish by sport fishermen, but is highly valued as table fare by many locals. The commercial fishing industry in Texas harvests over 1.5 million lbs. of black drum annually which illustrates the demand for its flaky white meat.

Even though they get huge, the ideal black drum for dinner is typically under 5 lbs. A drum this size compares very favorably to its cousins – the red drum (redfish), the speckled trout and other highly sought game fish of the Coastal Bend in terms of flavor. Breeding stock drum over 30 in. have been nicknamed the Big Uglies for their relative unattractive features compared to all of their drum relatives like the red drum, speckled trout, croaker and whiting. Their high arching back and propensity to develop deformities as they grow large leave them without the streamlined torpedo shape of their cousins. Typically, their meat begins to get wormy and more coarse.

Thanks to its abundance and wide distribution around our bays and beaches, fishing for black drum along the Texas Coastal Bend is a year ‘round activity that is available to virtually anyone that wants to fish.

Most importantly, enjoy your time on the water. The fall and winter months can be some of the most beautiful times of year in the Coastal Bend and the lack of boaters on the water typically enhance the experience overall.

If you are interested in fishing this fall, feel free to give me a call or shoot me a text. There are some open dates available in October 24, 25, 28, 29, 30. To schedule your next bay fishing trip or hunting trip give Capt. Steve Schultz a call at 361-813-3716 or e-mail at SteveSchultzOutdoors@gmail.com. Good luck and Good Fishing.

Page 8

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

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

I

Vote “YES” for Prop. 5 on Nov 5

hope by the time you read this we will finally be done with all of the one hundred plus degree days that we’ve had this year! It’s time to get into fall and start to enjoy it! Football is back! Hunting seasons are opening and fall fishing is just getting started. But there is one more thing we get to do this fall. We get to vote!

I know, everyone has their attention focused on the big picture, the main event election that comes in 2020. We have a whole year to get all wound up about that one, but if you hunt, fish, or go to the state parks to camp and play and

September morning departure

Construction News ON LOCATION

Big smiles

The Big State Electric team in Austin is all smiles at they welcome Construction News to their home. -cmw

explore, you need to be aware that this upcoming election on November 5th is what matters today!

Texas did something good for our outdoors in 1993. The 73rd Legislative Session replaced cigarette tax funding for state parks with a portion of revenues derived from the sales tax on sporting goods via House Bill 706. Between 1993 and 2017, the state has collected nearly $2.5 billion in revenues from sporting good sales tax, but only 40 percent of those funds have made it to the state parks of Texas.

The trouble is that the money must be appropriated by the Legislature every two years. This makes it almost impossible for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to plan ahead for long-term capital improvements and open new parks such as Palo Pinto State Park.

Our state parks have over 10 million visitors every year and attendance continues to increase. Most of the parks are over 30 years old and are in need of repair. Hurricane Harvey alone did $50 million in damage to the parks. Most of the playgrounds are in urgent need of replacement and restrooms badly need renovation.

This is how you can help. Vote “YES” for Prop. 5 on November 5, 2019!

Prop. 5 is a constitutional dedication of revenue from the existing sales tax (called the Sporting Goods Sales Tax), so those dollars can only be used by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Texas Historical Commission on public parks and historic sites, and not for any other purposes. Best of all, this requires no new taxes or fees. A YES vote on Prop. 5 on Nov. 5 will be sure that our parks get the money they are due to protect Texas’ natural areas and historic sites, so we don’t lose the very things that make Texas a special place in which to live.

You can learn more about Prop. 5 at www.SupportTexasParks.org

Help us get the word out so this important matter gets noticed amid the noise and confusion of the daily news.

We can’t help a lot of the things we see happening our world, but your vote can help us protect those places we love to escape to when the world just seems too loud.

I’ll hop off my stump now and wish you a HAPPY ELECTION DAY, NOVEMBER 5th.

Joey around town

Construction News caught up with Kango Roof Superintendent Brian Hollandsworth while picking up supplies at West End Roofing Siding & Window. -cmw

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

Page 9

A new chapter begins

H

Joeris General Contractor President, Kenny Fuller

e has been in construction his entire life. Starting out as a subcontractor working for his dad, eventually moving over to the general construction side of the construction industry, Kenny Fuller has been named the new president of Joeris General Contractors.

Fuller has been part of the Joeris team for more than 20 years. Most recently, Fuller served as the company’s Executive Vice President. He succeeds John Casstevens, who announced his departure from Joeris after 24 years on Sept. 4.

With a career focused on client services and project management, Fuller’s client-focused philosophy will steer the company through this transition and continued growth in the market as the company deepens its values-based leadership. “To get the message out of who we are, especially the new values-based leadership piece portion. I don’t go very far without talking faith inside of what I do. Today’s values-based leadership becomes very easy to talk about inside of that arena. We have some amazing peo-

ple that we work with here and we’re just going to put the pieces together that allows them to voice their opinions and be what they can be.”

“The values are very much faith-based values. It’s been a part of who we have been since Leo Joeris started this,” says Fuller. “Our values are something we have reinforced within our mission statement.”

Fuller is very excited to be leading the charge with the company’s new values-based leadership. It allows him to work with people across all different parts of the company. Prior to Fuller’s new post, he had been primarily concerned with the private side of what Joeris does. Now he can embark into new arenas.

“We are excited about this next chapter at Joeris and look forward to continuing our Joeris Journey, providing the highest level of service to our customers, trade partners and Joeris team members,” says CEO Gary Joeris.

Joeris General Contractors is a full-service general contractor. -cmw

General Contractors Subcontractors

All in for 20 years

E

All Commercial Floors Inc.’s Kevin Jones and Wade Pasch

ver since Kevin Jones could crawl on floors, he’s been in the flooring industry. That’s because Jones’ father was one of the original founders of E&B Carpet Mills (now a large division of Shaw). Although Jones didn’t plan on a flooring career, he left the family business in 1994 to work in flooring sales. Jones rolled that knowledge and experience into starting his own business, but after building it into a multi-million success in under three years, he says things hit rock bottom: His partners shut him out rather than pay him the equity he earned.

Determined, Jones established All Commercial Floors in his Las Colinas garage on his birthday – March 2, 1999 – and borrowed from family and friends and the bank to finance it. ACF expanded to Nashville in 2001 and to Houston in 2003. After four years of payroll day panic attacks, Jones could finally exhale – ACF was a success.

ACF’s focus was on healthcare flooring until 2011, when it diversified to commercial projects. Branches in San Antonio, Irvine and Riverside, CA, Denver,

Resource Guide Suppliers

Service Providers

Suppliers

Subcontractors

Truck & Equip Dealers

Truck & Equip Dealers

Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and Nashville were also opened. This month, ACF will add a Birmingham, AL location.

“We’ll have 120 employees in 10 locations from Los Angeles to Birmingham,” he says. “The plan is to have at least two more locations – south Florida and Atlanta, GA. At that point, we will have nationwide coverage from coast to coast.”

Going into its 20th year, Jones is focused on brand building and attracting top talent. To do this, he recently hired Wade Pasch as Executive Vice President of Operations and Denise Perry as Vice President of Marketing.

“Before, we didn’t seek out the spotlight. We would do a $2 million flooring job and we were gone before you knew who we were,” Jones says.

“That has changed. We want people to know who we are. When they hear ‘ACF,’ we want them to know what is being talked about and we hope it puts a smile on somebody’s face when they say it.”

Subcontractor All Commercial Floors installs commercial and healthcare flooring. –mjm

Associations Service Providers

Announcing our new Resource Guide Don’t be invisible to the Industry

For Info Contact:

Dana Calonge Dana@ConstructionNews.net Buddy Doebbler Buddy@ConstructionNews.net

Page 10

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

W hat’s Trending in

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Epoxy Floors

poxy floor coatings are becoming the new trend. The two most popular systems would be metallic epoxy floor and epoxy flake floors. The benefits range from hiding flaws in the concrete to creating beautiful and unique one-ofa-kind masterpieces.

EPOXY FLAKE

Epoxy flake flooring is a high- performance coating that has generally been reserved for commercial and industrial use but is now being installed in many homes. It adds value to your home while giving it an updated, refreshed look that will last many years.

This coating is applied over concrete and can hide small cracks, flaws, stains and many other types of damage that have occurred over time or through construction. Epoxy flake floors can be resistant to so many everyday occurrences such as chemical leaks, stains, cracks scratches and even has a tire rating. Epoxy has much higher adhesion capabilities when it comes to coatings, unlike big box stores material. Flake epoxy floors can also have the added benefit of slip resistance. Slip resistance can be beneficial for

kitchens, garages, indoor commercial buildings, bathrooms and so many more places. When it comes to epoxy and flake, you can choose from a full broadcast or partial broadcast. The full broadcast floor consists of your selected chip colors broadcast to cover all the epoxy, and then encapsulated with a urethane topcoat.

Partial flake floors differ only in the amount of flake that has been put down.

With a partial broadcast, you will see the pigmented epoxy coating with flocks of your chip distributed evenly over the surface. When selecting your desired look, you will have the opportunity to choose your size of flake – from 1/16 inch to ¼ inch. Next, you move on to selecting colors of flakes. A typical floor will consist of two to four different colored flakes blended to create your desired color scheme. These flakes are then broadcast into your selected color of epoxy and expertly encased into a coating of polyurethane. A wonderful advantage to multicolored systems is the ability to camouflage dirt and debris, all while keeping a streamlined terrazzo-like floor. When these floors are installed, they become an

EPOXY FLAKE

almost seamless monolithic surface, which can eliminate grout lines in tile flooring and gaps that occur in panel flooring. These cracks and crevices can be a haven for debris and germs to form and build. Once there is a buildup, it can

become almost impossible to properly clean and sanitize to the fullest extent.

You can achieve an urban feel or go for more bright pops of fun colors. With an endless selection, you can achieve a highly customized look that still fits your budget.

METALLIC EPOXY

Metallic epoxy floors are truly the ment. Once the epoxy has hardened, the most unique and one-of-a-kind artistic metallic pigment becomes locked into coating you could choose for a floor. the epoxy coating. The installation techPeople will usually see photos of a beau- nique used determines the look of the tiful sleek, distinctive floor, or maybe floor when it is completed. This floor is they saw one in a high-end restaurant. then sealed with a urethane in order to Some may be trying to figure out what create the chemical resistant durable slip material could possibly be used to create resistant long lasting floor, while still this work of art, and if it’s right for their looking like a work of perfected artistry. specific needs. Like the flake floor, metal- Metallic epoxy floors can look like lic epoxy has the ability to withstand a marble, or can be an eye-catching pop to great deal while still managing to be ele- draw attention and be your showpiece.

Metallic epoxy is not limited to the floor, gant.

A metallic consists of three coats – it can also be a wonderful kitchen counprime coat, body coat, and topcoat. Each tertop coating. With its three- dimensionof these coatings pay a key role in creat- al appearance you can create something ing your floor. The prime coat is put that looks like quartz, granite or marble down to allow your metallic pigments to without the cost. With so many different stay true to color once applied in the styles, colors and installation exports to body coat. It also allows the pores to be- choose from, the possibilities are endless. come filled allowing the body coat to So, whether you’re building a new flow over as slick as glass. The body coat home, refurbishing an old one, or have a consists of an almost glitter-like pigment business, these types of floors can be being mixed with epoxy and resin, then made to fit every need for everyday life poured onto the floor and expertly ma- across all industries. neuvered creating jaw dropping moveWes Vollmer, Decorative Concrete Specialist (210) 771-7451 WesVollmer@gmail.com

METALLIC EPOXY

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

Page 11

A strong start

Association Calendar

Content submitted by Associations to Construction News ABC

Associated Builders & Contractors

Oct. 9: Excellence in Construction Awards Banquet, Omni Barton Creek Resort, 8212 Barton Club Dr., 5:30-8:30pm.

Oct. 16: Technology Forum, Miller Imaging, 10713 Metric Blvd., 10am-3pm.

Oct. 23: Membership Breakfast, Threadgill’s, 6416 N. Lamar, 7:30-9am. For more info, call Tracy Littlefield at 512-719-5263 or email tlittlefield@abccentraltexas.org ACEA

Greater Austin Contractors & Engineers Assn.

Oct. 10: ACEA Membership Luncheon, Norris Conference Center, 2525 W. Anderson Lane, 11:30am-1pm. For more info, go to www.aceatx.com or call 512-893-7067.

Energy Logix of Texas’ Jeff McCombs

J

eff McCombs knows you have to start somewhere, and in his 20-year HVAC career, he has started at the ground floor – twice.

The first time was in Arizona the late ‘90s, riding to job sites with his dad, an installation manager for a residential Trane dealership.

“He worked me twice as hard as the rest of the guys putting in duct work and installing split systems and package units,” McCombs says with a chuckle. “I completed a four-year apprenticeship through Southern Arizona’s PHCC in 2005. At that point, I was running residential service calls and selling energy saving agreements for ACS Air Conditioning Services. I then came to Austin where I got involved with the Entech Sales and Service’s commercial/ industrial side and was there for nine years.”

Realizing his upward mobility at the company was limited, he helped launch Energy Logix of Texas in 2014.

“I got into the business five months after Energy Logix started,” McCombs says. “Energy Logix bought out another contractor that was serving Austin and the surrounding markets for about 33 years. Energy Logix started with three guys: a salesman, a service manager, and a technician. I came over from a company that Energy Logix bought out.

“We just started building it,” he adds.

“We established our target verticals and what our perfect customer was going to look like. We were deciding if we were going to expand or rep a product. I have an extensive background with working in the medical industry through my employment at a previous company, so I knew a lot of the accreditation requirements; that was my bread and butter. I noticed there weren’t many contractors going after that market segment. I really started trying to get in front of facilities engineers and administrators and built a lot of relationships.”

Starting as a Field Operations Director/Technical Sales McCombs quickly worked his way up to become owner and general manager in 2015.

“It’s been quite a ride, coming from the ground-level, installation technician position, working my way up, getting my contractor’s license and then actually being involved in seeing the business side, but I enjoy every day of it,” he says.

McCombs is proud of the company’s evolution and its success.

“We really started looking at mission critical; our tagline is ‘Excellence In Mission Critical,’” he says. “We’re not going after 7-11s or restaurants, and we don’t do any residential; it’s all commercial and industrial.

Its mission critical facilities, such as outpatient ambulatory centers, hospitals, and data centers-types of facilities.”

Aiding this success has been Operations Manager Phillip Petty and the company’s staff of eight. McCombs hopes to expand that help in the near future by adding two more employees.

He also hopes to extend the company’s geographic reach.

“We currently have one office in

Cedar Creek, “he says. “All of the guys are dispatched from their houses, and I have some who are closer to San Antonio. We have a presence in San Antonio but our five-year plan is to have a physical office in San Antonio.”

McCombs plans for Energy Logix of Texas to reach out to the community soon as well.

“We would like to get involved in community outreach projects to raise proceeds to install air conditioning systems and fans in the homes of those earning a low income,” he says.

McCombs hopes that, although the company is young, its strong start will continue to gain strength.

“I want to keep growing the business with steady, controlled growth and keep taking care of our customers,” he says.

Subcontractor Energy Logix of Texas in Austin offers HVAC/R predictive maintenance, commercial refrigeration, repair, service and installation. –mjm

AGC Associated General Contractors

Oct. 10: Annual Fish Fry & Auction, Texas Disposal System Exotic Game Ranch, 11508 Carl Rd, Buda, TX. For more info, contact Toni Osberry at 512-442-7887 ASCE

American Society of Civil Engineers

Oct. 18-20: Younger Members Camping Trip, Pace Bend Park, TX. For more info, contact Bailey Pattison at 512-910-2272 DBIA Design-Build Institute of America

Oct. 3: DBIA-DFW Chapter 2019 Golf Tournament, Bear Creek Golf Club,3500 Bear Creek Ct., Dallas, TX, 8am-2pm. For more info, call 972-456-3200 or email info@dbia-sw.org

★★★★

HBA

Home Builders Assn. of Greater Austin

Oct.1: Dripping Springs Meeting, 11:30am1pm, Members & Non-Members.

Oct. 2: Wine’d Down Wednesday, Flooring Services, 15709 Impact Way, Pflugerville, TX, 4-6pm.

Oct. 16: Career Fair & Expo. For more info call 512-484-5588.

MCA-SMACNA

Mechanical Contractors Assn.

Sheet Metal & A/C Nat’l Assn.

Oct. 20-23: 2019 SMACNA Annual Convention, JW Marriott Austin, 110 E. 2nd St., Austin, TX. For more info, email Jim Reynolds at jimreynolds@stx.rr.com NARI National Assn. of the Remodeling Industry

Oct. 18: 1st Annual Chili Cook-off & Cornhole Tournament, 2121 Scarbrough Dr., Live Music, 2-9pm. For more info, call Kayvon Leath at 512-997-6270 or email kayvon@austinnari.org NAWIC National Assn. of Women in Construction

Oct. 2: 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 SEAot Structural Engineers Assn. of Texas

Oct. 24: Chapter Meeting, Maggiano’s Little Italy, 10910 Domain Dr., #100. For more info, call 512-301-2744

★★★★

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

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 2020 National Electrical Code Ryan Jackson, President Ryan Jackson Electrical Training Salt Lake City, UT

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his September, the 55th edition of the National Electrical Code® (NEC®) was published by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). As always, we find new Code rules to address new technologies and newly discovered hazards, revised requirements, clarifications, and even deleted sections and articles. The 2020 NEC adds four new articles (Article 242 Overvoltage Protection, 311 Medium Voltage Conductors and Cables, 337 Type P Cable, and 805 Communications Circuits), but it also deletes four as well (280 and 285 were combined into the new Article 242, 328 was moved into the new Article 311, and 553 was moved into 555). The 2020 edition experienced a similar number of changes as the 2017 edition, although most agree that the changes in 2020 are much more farreaching and impactful, regardless of which facet of the industry you are involved in.

Ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs) were first put into the Code in 1971, and every edition since then has seen new GFCI requirements. The success of GFCIs in preventing shocks from becoming fatal is without argument, and Consumer Product Safety Commission has the data to prove it. The 2020 NEC requirements for GFCI protection in dwellings were expanded as never seen before, with GFCI protection now required

for all receptacles (not just 125V, 15A and 20A) in the areas requiring the protection, such as laundry rooms, bathrooms, and basements—and not just “unfinished” basements, but all basements, regardless of whether they are “finished” or not. Additionally, all outdoor equipment in residential settings, other than lighting, must now be GFCI-protected as well.

This would include air-conditioners and water heaters, as well as RV receptacles.

Turnkey enclosure Keith Myers, General Manager IWR North America, Southwest Division

➤

Garland, TX

Michael Smalley ➤

Director of Business Development

IWR North America

St. Louis, MO

S

ince 1940, IWR North America has been providing turnkey building enclosure and custom specialty metal design services coast-to-coast. Headquartered in St. Louis, Mo., IWR North America is one of the longest-standing specialty contractors in the nation.

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

Keith: It’s great. It’s labor intensive, obviously, but there’s so much going on.

Texas is definitely ‘open for business.’

There’s a large amount of opportunity and growth going on. Dallas is growing quite extensively. The business climate is good, and Dallas offers an advantage by being so centrally located. Its business climate is conducive to getting a good foothold in the market.

Michael: On the national level, there are a few cities across the country that are growing quite a bit; Nashville is one of those. However, there might be some

drawbacks from the industry on the commercial side of things. The sectors of business vary, but commercial, healthcare and automotive are all rising, due to geographic areas, municipalities and corporate advantages. North Carolina, Nashville, etc. are seeing growth in most commercial sectors. Some cities and regions are developing incentives to get steady and continued growth.

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

Keith: For the Southwest, while we haven’t been open very long, we have had clients that are ready to find new partnerships and relationships with the offerings we provide. Our dedication to accuracy and strict project management has been well received. We know what our clients need, and where we fit in within the larger construction puzzle.

One of our first clients in the area inquired if the job was a ‘one-off’ or if it was the beginning of a new relationship, to

Adapting for success Ray Gurley, Jr., Owner/Partner 3G Drywall Liberty, TX

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hirty-seven-year-old, father of two, Ray Gurley, Jr. is a busy man. He and his wife (Jennifer) are expecting their third child and he still remains very active with his family as well as his business, 3G Drywall, a 3 plus-year-old company that performs commercial metal stud framing, drywall, acoustical ceilings, and doors and hardware.

What is the most significant challenge faced by the drywall industry?

We feel like there are three significant

challenges in the industry right now.

One: Labor/manpower. Currently there is more work than workers. This has been a

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

Changes in Article 230 for services include new requirements for an outdoor emergency disconnect for first responders, but only for one- and two-family dwellings. The allowance of two to six disconnects has been removed in many applications as well, and not just in residential. This was done to increase the safety of electricians working on the equipment. Whole-house surge protection is now required, and tamper-resistant receptacles are now required in more locations as well. While these changes will all increase safety, they will all increase cost as well. On the other side of the spectrum, the archaic and inflated load calculations of Article 220 were extensively revised, resulting in significantly lower load calculations for commercial and industrial facilities. These decreases could save a substantial amount of money.

Ten years ago, it is doubtful that anyone would have predicted that the NEC would ever have a new Part of Article 410 to deal with marijuana growing operations, yet here we are with Part XVI of that article doing just that. Ten years ago, few would have predicated energized ceiling grids and Power over Ethernet lighting either, but both of those technologies may be taking a bite out of the average electrician’s wallet if we refuse to keep current and evolve with an evolving in-

dustry. When solar PV systems started gaining in popularity, many in the industry rolled their eyes and waited for the trend to pass, the same way previous generations rolled their eyes about home computers.

Not only has Article 690 turned into one of the largest and most complex articles in the Code, but we now have energy storage systems, power management systems, standalone systems, and even dc microgrids to learn about. We can choose to bury our heads in the sand and pretend that these fads will all go away, but the fact is we are doing more things with less energy than ever before. The critical circuits of a building are no longer connected with branch circuits and feeders, they’re connected with twisted pair and optical fiber. Changes to the latter chapters of the Code reflect these quickly changing technologies.

As is always the case, dealing with change is a difficult part of our lives. In the electrical industry we change with the times or we get left behind.

Ryan Jackson has written and edited several books covering the National Electrical Code and has taught the subject in several states for trade associations, companies, government agencies, and contractors. He can be found online at www.ryanjacksonelectrical.com or on Facebook at Ryan Jackson Electrical Training. -cmw

which we showed how we forge partnerships that create lasting relationships.

The hot button would be creating the sense of longevity that many other contractors neglect in going from client to client, project to project.

Michael: We have a hot-button issue regarding availability of qualified workers in the field. It’s all about finding quality workers that can do the job right the first time. That is an issue across the construction industry everyone is seeing right now. IWR is focusing on actively growing a pool of leadership and developing the talent of these skilled workers.

Unions are wonderful at helping to get talented team members with a great number of resources.

ed that help to streamline processes of design and fabrication. It’s a large amount of front-end preparation that helps to change the industry for the better.

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

Keith: There has been a change in philosophy in the industry and a change in the relationships of the contractor base. There’s a growth in scope of what IWR can do. We are being relied upon by companies and partners to get a job done by finding creative solutions to problems that arise with a ‘can-do’ attitude.

Michael: We have grown our scope.

We are doing things today that we didn’t do five years ago--the use of technology both in administration and in the actual building side of things. We have been able to utilize new methods to make things happen more efficiently than ever before. Different tactics have been creat-

What are the rewards of the industry?

Keith: It’s great to work with interesting, great and compelling people and businesses. It’s a moment of pride to build relationships that will last a lifetime, and to see exceptional projects come to fruition that I can be proud to say, ‘I helped to create that.’ We like to have a high retention rate with our clients and are proud to say that we have so many clients that come back for projects time after time.

We are proud to be a first-class company built for longevity. We are selective about who we bring in because we strive to hire the best, so that we can be the best and offer the best. We are excited to continue growing in the Dallas market.

IWR is a subsidiary of MHS Legacy Group, a national holding corporation with roots back to 1895. -cmw

trend for the past few years. We meet about this topic weekly among the team.

Two: General contractors are doing more in-house self-perform drywall. This has been a challenge that we cannot really control. General Contractors are opening up a separate self-performing drywall division.

It has different pros and cons for everyone.

Like everything in our industry we adjust to these things in order to be successful.

Three: Younger/older generation integration. Taking the younger generation and merging them with the older generation has been a challenge for all construction companies. The younger side wants to try all the new advances in construction with tools and software. The old genera-

tion wants printed blueprints. They are set in doing things the same way, and they write everything down with a pencil and paper. So the challenge is taking the best of these two generations and merging them into a middle ground. It takes an in between with some give and take for everyone to be successful. Be open minded, but also understand the system and process in place. Most importantly, work as a team and always remember what is in the best interest of the company.

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

Cost increases? Other?

Keith: Labor shortage is the short, quick answer. Construction does not have a good reputation historically when it comes to the ‘Top Jobs in the Country’ and while that is changing currently, it won’t happen overnight. It takes time to change this attitude, both in managing and in completing the work. Until that change takes hold, there will be a continued labor shortage.

How has insurance and workers’ compensation rates affected your industry or business? continued on Page 13

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

Page 13

NEXT TH N O M

Architecture & Engineering

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

Painting with guidance Johnny Perry, Owner HIS Professional Painting Houston, TX

J

ohnny Perry has always had a passion for painting. “I realized my calling after God sent me to help out a church whose pastor was out of town,” says Perry. While visiting the parish, he painted the church giving new life to parish facility.

Perry has been painting for over 20 years and started his own business in 2016. According to Perry, as an active pastor, not only does he paint, but he anoints his projects with God’s blessings.

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

Cost increases? Other?

There are many factors and challenges we face in this industry, but some of the most significant includes labor short-

age and cost increases.

Labor shortage is a major challenge because it does take a certain skill set to do this work. It’s hard to find loyal and skilled workers.

Cost increases are also a challenge.

We are affected by fuel costs, insurance premiums, materials and labor increase.

Unfortunately, customers are not aware of these factors, and we lose money in the end.

Exploring new avenues Mike Kotubey, President North Texas TDIndustries Dallas, TX

M

ike Kotubey leads TDIndustries’ North Texas operations including mechanical construction, facilities maintenance and service. Kotubey is a proponent of Lean construction, prefabrication and integrated project delivery. When not in the office, he enjoys reading, learning and spending time on the golf course.

What is the most significant challenge your industry faces?

Like most other contractors, finding enough skilled labor is increasingly difficult. This has led us to further accelerate our fabrication efforts and explore new equipment and processes to better equip our partners (employees) to be more productive and safer.

Beyond labor, our industry must continue to embrace new techniques and processes to produce better outcomes for our customers. While technology can give efficiency a boost, early collaboration and project involvement can lead to even greater cost savings, shorter schedules and

improved safety onsite. The net is greater value to the building owner through the elimination of waste and duplicated effort.

What are the cost increases relating to your industry?

Tariffs have had both a direct and indirect effect. Many materials (valves as an example) come from China so we have seen an 11-24 percent increase in these costs. Additionally, some companies are using tariffs as an excuse to raise prices even though they may have not been directly affected. The net result is their profits are increasing and the end users are bearing those costs while gaining no value on their projects.

How has your industry changed over the past five years?

The changes in our industry happened due to the advancement in paint products. For example, we have reflective paints that are used to reduce heat.

Another example are aerial painting drones which can be used to save time and money.

work to go around, bringing more companies and homes into the area.

What is your workload like now compared to years past?

Our workload compared to the last five years has definitely increased. We have extended our reach into the commercial and industrial side, so when the work comes in, it’s more of a larger scale with more demanding deadlines.

Has the “Going Green” push affected your industry? How? The “going green” push has influenced our industry but in a positive way.

The new lifestyle of going green is awesome, it simply means “reduce, reuse and recycle.” It helps bring awareness to our earth and I’m all for that.

Has your industry become more competitive with the recent Texas population explosion? How has it affected your business?

Yes, the industry has become more competitive because Houston is a largely populated area and there is plenty of

What is the most rewarding aspect of our business/trade?

The most rewarding aspect of my business/trade is knowing that I was chosen to bring forth my customers’ vision.

HIS Professional Painting is a full-service painting contractor. – cmw

What is on the horizon for your industry?

In North Texas, the next decade will see increased acceptance of design-build delivery methods. We will continue to practice other deliveries, but owners who embrace design-build will find additional value – nimble project delivery; earlier collaboration; designs that incorporate fabrication and modularization; staged design and installation to match the construction schedule; and designing to budget so that costly redesigns are eliminated. Another benefit that design-build offers is the ability to design, coordinate and fabricate using a Revit model.

A byproduct will be the elimination of the many hand-offs between architect, engineer, and contractor, and the duplicated, wasted resources that process requires.

in less than 2 minutes. As more cities look to improve fire safety in high rises and large warehouses, we anticipate these becoming commonly required.

Have there been any significant code changes in the past year? Or regulations?

Firefighter Air-Replenishment Systems (FARS) aren’t new, but we are starting to see more Texas cities adopt codes in accordance with the International Fire Code. These systems bring breathing air to firefighters who are actively battling blazes, allowing them to refill their tanks

What is on the horizon for your industry?

In my opinion, our industry will see more products directed to DIY projects, encouraging everyone to have the ability to paint like a Pro.

What advice would you give someone wanting to enter the mechanical industry?

As a career, there is unmatched opportunity. Very few industry segments offer a person the opportunity to be an integral part of building or rebuilding the infrastructure of America. We offer a level of support and training that can propel a young person’s career so they can grow and prosper in a very short period and become a significant contributor to a vibrant part of our community.

What are keys to being successful?

Communication skills, a desire to learn, always look for a better way, Lean thinking, a willingness to invest in themselves to learn and grow as a person and professional, humility, an appreciation of the contributions that a diverse workforce can bring and strong collaboration skills.

TDIndustries is a full-service mechanical contractor. -cmw

continued from page 12 — Adapting for success

There has been a small increase cost wise in the past few years, however nothing too significant. We work with certain clients that require specific insurance requirements. We continue to invest more into training to help prevent injuries and to ensure we can always meet the project or client requirements. At the end of the day this added cost is not as important as everyone going home to their families.

Is timely payment and final retainage by general contractors an issue? How does this affect your industry/business?

This has and probably will continue to be an issue in our industry. There are a

lot of variables that we do not control that prevent retainage payments. It forces some companies to struggle a lot more than they should. For us, it affected us more in year one than year three obviously. We tend to lean on our banking relationships, our CPA, and our overall relationship with our clients to ensure that this risk is as limited as possible in these situations. This issue essentially affects your cashflow and this sometimes leads companies to turning down work or not growing and expanding. Some clients have adapted and created an APP program for all payments, and it can really be helpful at different times in a project.

How has the cost of materials affected your industry and your business?

We feel like material costs have their ups and down throughout each year. Similar to us, they have to have field workers to either make the material or handle the material and it is not easy when the demand is so high. So they are constantly trying to communicate and find newer and faster ways of getting material in and onto the job sites. The overall costs have been increasing. This is due to growth and demand.

Are you expanding the services you provide? If so, what are they and why?

We are always looking to add new things.

www.constructionnews.net

publishing the industry’s news

We are doing more specialty stuff all the time such as EZO Panels, specialty wood ceilings, Filz-Felt, Turf, Baffles, etc. Anything that we feel can help the general contractor and the owner client, we are willing to try. This also helps us get some projects when we are always willing to try new things. The industry keeps changing and we have to change with it.

However you also have to know when to say no on specific items that you are not very knowledgeable about. We want to eventually have a separate specialty division in the future. -cmw

Texas Style

★ ★ ★ ★

Austin Dallas/Fort Worth Houston San Antonio

Page 14

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

JOB SIGHTS

L-R: Juan Castro and Galindo Ernandez with Joe Bland Construction LP finish concrete after the pour at the new ExxonMobil at Ferguson and Cameron. -cmw

continued from Page 1 — Fusion Electric “I really didn’t have a clientele because I had been working for other people,” Long said, of his early days, “and I didn’t feel like that was right, to be taking other people’s clients. I started out as a general handyman at first.” That meant that Long would fix doors and mow yards, and when he discovered his folks needed electrical work, he’d mention he did that too. Eventually, Long was able to drop all the other stuff and just do electrical work.

Fusion Electric does mainly service calls, repairs and remodels, also boat docks and marinas. Long does not do any new construction. He did do more custom homes in the past but not as much anymore.

What Long enjoys most is being an electrical detective. “I love trouble-shooting,” he said. “That’s where the fun’s at.”

The problem could be a nick in the wiring, or even certain appliances causing the problem.

Long tells one trouble-shooting story that involved one person’s new television set turning off randomly. Turned out the problem was an old garage door opener whose frequency interfered with the TV when someone opened the garage. Mystery solved.

“Chasing down a problem is always interesting,” Long said. It gives him satisfaction knowing he has solved a client’s situation.

A lot has changed since Long first

started in the electrical trade. “You name it - I’ve seen it,” he said.

He mentioned that a big change has been in the residential area. “A lot more safety devices have come out for the residential sector,” he said.

Also, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth being so prevalent, the need for hard wiring a home all together to produce a “smart home” has been reduced. Everything works through the air as opposed to physical wiring, controlled by an app on a phone or tablet or car.

Even with the new electrical code book coming out every three years, different jurisdictions can amend or supplement the code with their own rules, providing their supplement is more, not less, than the code book.

Long keeps his employees up to speed on everything electrical, emphasizing continuing education. He has four folks in the field, one in the shop and one in the office. When he takes a new person on, Long is quick to see if he has the aptitude for electricity, not just the ability to physically connect two wires. He has to understand electricity.

What Long understands is when your new TV doesn’t work, you might want to check your garage door opener.

Fusion Electric is an electrical contractor in Marble Falls. -dsz

continued from Page 1 — Jim Connelly Masonry

Commercial Contract Division Manager for Pinpoint Strategies, Kristian Lopez, organizes a list of critical items needed to complete the Buda House Assisted Living project as they near its project deadline. -cmw

If you could retire anywhere, where would it be?

I think I would retire somewhere on a beach. I would love to go to Cancun and spend my life there. I’ve never been there but it’s on my bucket list to go. It looks so peaceful and I love the water. I would love to spend time with my family there; that would be the greatest thing.

Isabel Rodriguez, U.S. Lumber Brokers

Howdy: I would either go to Archer City, TX or to South Dakota. My grandfather grew up in Archer City, but I wouldn’t go unless I could have that place that [he] had. I spent some time in South Dakota; it’s cold and just a little different world up there.

Matt Tucker and Howdy Tucker, Central Texas Tiltwall

I think it would be at a higher elevation with a view, decent weather and within striking distance within family. All of those things are very difficult to find!

Marty Burger, American Constructors

I would say somewhere in the outskirts of West Austin. On an acre of land where we can be close to our kids. Or maybe even SA in the hill country. Either way, we just want to stay close to our kids; somewhere within driving distance.

Ron Peralez, Dependable Power Tool

We love Texas and we love Austin. We would love to buy a house by the lake or a ranch here in the Austin area.

Darna Sunseri, Compound Security Specialists Matt: I would like to retire in the mountains in Utah or Colorado. Howdy and I both grew up going to Creede, CO all of our lives with our mom’s side of the family. We ski and fish; there is a lot of stuff to do in Colorado up in the mountains.

A cabin on a lake in Maine, at least during the summer.

Adam Wagner, Market Square Architects PLLC The Amalfi Coast in Italy, southwest of Rome. I absolutely love Italy. I think the whole country is dynamite.

Jeff Hawken, Texas Painting Company

said. “I had just moved to Austin a few months before. We got married in 1995.”

Melissa agreed to work in the back office for Connelly, even though she had (and has) her own career as an entertainer/singer, public speaker and costume designer.

“It took me a while to get everything into the 20th century,” she recalled.

“There was a lot of primitive methods for keeping the books and stuff like that.”

Melissa’s efforts worked. “The growth happened really fast,” she said. “The first year I worked for him we had $125,000 gross sales. The second year $250,000; the third year $500,000 and then the fourth year it was like $3.2 million.”

With her HR background, Melissa hired key personnel to help the ship run steady.

Jim Connelly Masonry has had a robust presence in the Austin area, working on many municipal buildings (fire stations, libraries), churches (including a chapel on Ft. Hood), and homes.

Connelly has trimmed his staff down to a few good crews and cut down the amount of commercial work due to the burdensome amount of paperwork.

What he does most of these days is custom landscaping/hardscaping.

Even though he’s a masonry veteran, Connelly still enjoys the joy of the job.

“I’m doing stuff by myself,” he said. He cited a study that said masonry has the highest job satisfaction of any profession.

“It’s fun interacting with people,” he said, but the work itself is more gratifying. It really feels good to build a wall and at the end of the day, walk away and say, ‘I built that and it’s going to be there for a long, long time and it looks great.’”

“He does beautiful work,” Melissa said.

“It’s really gratifying to drive around the Austin area and see things [we’ve done].”

Melissa is working hard to update their website and in keeping the social media presence fresh. They did get rid of their fax machine, but Connelly is still holding onto his flip phone. “As soon as it breaks, I’ll get a smart phone,” he promised.

“As I simplify and downsize this, it gets easier,” Connelly said.

With Melissa keeping her husband up-to-date and squared away, Connelly is freed up to keep rolling along with his stones. So…it’s been 40 years now. Anyone want to place odds that Jim Connelly Masonry will reach the 50-year mark?

Jim Connelly Masonry is a masonry contractor in Austin. -dsz

continued from Page 1 — Rogers-O’Brien Construction Company Ltd. tory Capitol Metro supervisor on-site during any activities within close proximity to the railway.

Big name retail tenants like Whole Foods, Target, and Google were signed on late during the project and each came with a large laundry list of changes to accommodate their spaces. This threw a wrench in the team’s original schedule and created a ripple effect that impacted many scopes of work.

Despite these obstacles, RogersO’Brien found that creating a place that brings a new energy to the East Side of Austin made this project quite unique to the RO team. “An empty dirt lot next to the railroad tracks that has long been overlooked is finally being transformed into a new focal point on the east side.

We have the unique opportunity to not only fill in this missing piece, but to also create a central hub for living, working, dining, shopping, and entertainment that will be utilized by Austin residents for years to come,” says Superintendent Denny Dinsmore.

Project Manager Paul Muenchinger added, “Collaborative relationships with both Endeavor and JHP Architects was a positive and rewarding aspect of the project. We have a long-standing relationship with Endeavor, having previously worked together on several projects, including Domain 8, East Chandler Retail Center Site Package, and the ongoing Red River Residential Tower.”

Rogers-O’Brien Construction Company Ltd., established in 1969 by Steve Rogers and Pat O’Brien, is a family-owned general contracting firm with a third generation leading the company’s operations. The family attitude extends throughout their strong management team, many of whom rose up through the ranks to management. Today RogersO’Brien, which is headquartered in Dallas, has locations in Austin, Houston, and San Antonio with 411 employees.

The majority of RO’s customers are private, though they provide construction services for a substantial amount of public work as well. -cmw

Austin Construction News • OCT 2019

T

Four win big

he Associated General Contractors (AGC) Texas Building Branch (TBB) hosted an elegant evening for the presentation of the AGC TBB Outstanding Construction Awards. This year’s event was held at the Georgetown Sheraton Resort and Conference Center on Aug. 22. Thirty-four awards were presented to AGC members for their outstanding projects across the state. -cmw

Page 15

Construction News ON LOCATION

Showcasing tile

L-R: David Roach, Kiki Carmichael and Cristina Galindo at Arizona Tile are all smiles while showing their product line. -cmw

General Contractor – Industrial/Warehouse 1: Sabre Commercial Inc., Power House Remodeling Group

General Contractor – Educational Facilites 2: Bartlett Cocke General Contractors, Stony Point High School Auditorium

General Contractor – Interior Finish-Out 2: Sabre Commercial Inc., Vida Capital and Ovation Partners

General Contractor – Residential Multi-Family: JE Dunn Construction, Skyloft

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Austin Construction News • OCT 2019