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Volume 14
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Number 1
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JANUARY 2017
A deep history
Pushing others up
L-R: Moss Utilities’ Case Whitfield and Garrett Moss
Dan Lombardo (second from left), 22KILL representatives and veterans at a check presentation.
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ven though Moss Utilities was established five months ago, the company has more than 90 years of family experience behind it. President Garrett Moss and general superintendent Case Whitfield both hail from families who made careers in the construction business. “I’m actually the fifth generation of the Moss family to be in underground utilities,” Moss says. “My family worked for Cullum Construction, which has been doing utilities since the early 1900s. My great-great-grandfather, my great-grandfather, my grandfather and my dad all worked there.” Moss’ father R.H. “Hal” Moss started Moss Construction Co. Inc. in 1989 and was soon joined by Moss’s grandpa Ted and uncles Mark and Brad. In nearly 20
years, the company was pulling in $45 million in revenue a year with more than 200 employees, but a recession forced its closure in 2008. “I grew up around the office while my dad was working; I was playing and riding 4-wheelers in the construction yard,” Moss says. “We have pictures of me on machines when I was 2 or 3 years old. It’s been in my blood for a long time and Case is the same way.” “My dad started Whitfield Plumbing in 1984,” Whitfield, who is also a master plumber, adds. “We were primarily builders for large custom homes. We were in business until about 2010. We were doing residential construction too, so the 2008 downturn really put us in a hard spot afcontinued on Page 20
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hen Walker Engineering vice president Dan Lombardo is in a room, it’s not unusual for him to ask construction industry members to drop and give him 22. Sometimes, hundreds of people will fall to the floor at once. Lombardo encourages the exercise; he is a national board member of 22KILL. Named to honor the 22 U.S. military veterans who take their own lives each day, the organization helps veterans transition to civilian life through counseling and transitioning programs. For nearly three years, construction and developer companies including KDC, Beck, Adolfson & Peterson, Turner, Balfour Beatty, Hill & Wilkinson and Austin Commercial have joined Lombardo at his “Leaders In
Construction” honor ring events. Attendees do 22 push-ups to earn an honor ring, and in turn challenge other construction firms to earn rings and raise funds and awareness for 22KILL. “I call them ‘Leaders In Construction’ events because the people who help this mission, to me, are leaders,” he explains. “The ring is not just for veterans, but for anyone who is a true patriot and believes what the flag stands for. The push-ups are for men and women currently serving or who have served and in the memory of the people who took their lives because they believed there was no way out but suicide from PTSD, and stresses from transitioning back into the civilian world.” continued on Page 20
Just what the doctor ordered
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ith more than 150 employees, the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP)’s membership and staff was growing at a rapid rate. Their office space, however, wasn’t, and ACEP couldn’t find an existing building in the area that met its needs. To solve the problem, ACEP purchased six acres of land near the Dallas/ Fort Worth Airport and enlisted the talents of general contractor Structure Tone Southwest Inc. and architect BOKA Powell. ACEP asked the team, which included Structure Tone Southwest vice president Denis Gee, Blake Evans and Jamie Pierce, to create and build an energy-efficient space that would accommodate its accelerating growth. The new ACEP headquarters, located at 4950 West Royal Lane in Irving, consists of a 54,030-sf core and shell tilt-wall office building. The three-story structure boasts a unique shape featuring tilt-up
The American College of Emergency Physicians’ new headquarters, built by Structure Tone Southwest, received a Tilt-Up Concrete Association award.
concrete panels, natural stone veneer and a full-height curtain wall, with punched openings and multicolored panel reveals. The building’s modern, sleek exterior is softened with lush landscaping that exceeded code minimums. The team landscaped more than 30 percent of extra area than code dictated and planted twice as many trees in the space’s islands than code required. A walking trail circles the site, and employees and members are greeted with an impressive masonry and glass entrance spanning the three stories. High-end interior accents include a 3-D custom wood wall, plaster ceiling, international floor tile and a custom backpainted glass that includes LED lighting. A grand staircase featuring glass and steel railings connects two levels, and the building utilizes LED lighting systems and an integrated lighting control system. Members and staff can take advantage of continued on Page 20