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CONSTRUCTION
The Industry’s Newspaper
2101 IH-35 So. # 202 Southgate Bldg. • Austin, Tx 78741 • (512) 447-2900 • www.constructionnews.net
Keith Crawford new
owner of Capital Rentals
July 2002 Volume 2, Number 7
Grid Olympics draws
Materials community
By Rachel Jordan
C
apital Rentals welcomed Keith
Crawford as the company’s new
owner and president this April.
Crawford previously worked with
Bank of America for 19 years handling accounts across Texas before stepping into his
new position. He said the spark to enter the
concrete industry came from handling accounts with individuals like Royce
Faulkner, the previous long-time owner of
Capital Rentals.
“The business and the equipment itself
always fascinated me,” said Crawford. “I
have always kept a pulse on the construction industry. I grew up in Lampasas,
graduated from the University of Texas at
Austin and have lived in Austin ever since.
As with Bank of America, Capital Rentals
is truly a leader in its industry. As I recall,
Mr. Faulkner brought the first concrete
pump to Austin in the late 1960’s. The company has been locally owned for 30 years
and should hopefully continue so for the
next 30 years.”
Crawford says plans for the company
are to ensure it’s growth and quality of services. Examples of such initiatives are that
the company opened a new yard in Belton
to better serve the Temple, Waco and Fort
Hood areas. As well, Capital Rentals is
working for J.D. Abrams on the interchange of Ben White Boulevard and IH-35
and is also working with Martin K. EBY
downtown for the new city hall building.
“Probably some of the most encouraging aspects of working with this company
Grid Olympics competitors try to hang the new Armstrong ceiling tile in the quickest time.
continued on Page 20
B
Keith Crawford (left) and project manager, Efrain Gonzalez, at a job site in Georgetown.
ruce Bonnet, president and owner
of Lone Star Materials, Inc. and
Clayton Luedtke, owner and president of Austin Acoustical Materials, Inc.
helped organize the annual Armstrong
World Industries Grid Olympics for material suppliers and subcontractors in the
Austin area.
This year’s contest gave notice to a new
ceiling tile each contestant used Thurs.,
May 13th from 5pm to 9pm at the VFW#
8787 in north Austin. Subcontractors who
competed in the timed event were recruited
the past few months to hang acoustical grid.
“We have always had a good turn out
in Austin for this,” said Bonnet. “We had
probably about 11 acoustical companies
competing this year. These types of con-
tests were held across the country at one
time and the winners went to the national
competition in Las Vegas where the
Armstrong grid plant is. The contests are
now held more on local and state levels.
Armstrong’s motivation for this year’s contest was to expose suppliers and subcontractors to the company’s new materials.”
According to Clayton Luedtke, approximately 100 people attended the event
to watch the competitors while eating
scrumptious catfish.
“It is a lot of fun for the people who
actually do the installation and it is amazing how competitive this event is,” said
Luedtke. “We sent out flyers to spread the
continued on Page 20
McComb Construction unites with
San Marcos building community
W
henever McComb Construction
Company, Inc. begins a new
project, specifically in an outlying Austin-area community, it is understood that their clients are involved with the
project every step of the way.
“When we go into a community
around Austin, we like to have the local
subcontractors participate in the project,”
said Keith McComb, president of
McComb Construction Company, Inc.
“This benefits the owner by providing
stimulation to the local economy. We were
able to select a large portion of the project
team for the new Southwest Texas State
University Distribution Center project in
San Marcos. The subcontractors from San
Marcos came in knowing what STSU expected and turned out to be a benefit for us
while benefiting the community at the same
time.”
McComb said the construction of the
distribution center is a typical project for
the company using a Butler metal building. In addition to serving as the general
contractor for the project, the company also
designed the facility. McComb does approximately 90 percent of its work within
a 50 mile radius of Austin. In addition to
working on projects with Butler pre-engineered buildings, McComb does tilt up
projects incorporating some of Butler’s
materials.
“We also do quite a few churches, and
are about to start construction on the new
three buildings for the El Buen Samaritano
This month in Focus
Site Work /
Paving Industry
Episcopal Mission in south Austin,” said
McComb. “We have done some industrial
and multifamily work, but mainly stay in
the commercial arena.”
McComb Construction was founded
by Jim McComb in January of 1987. He
worked as a small company with a couple
of employees for several years and in 1989
The new STSU Distribution Center in San Marcos.
P.O. Box 791290
San Antonio, Texas 78279-1290
Change Service Requested
called upon Keith to join him. “One of the
first things my father did when he first
started the company was to contact Butler
to set up his buildership with them. He had
worked with them in the past. It was just a
natural progression that when he started his
company, pre-engineered buildings would
be one of the main focuses. In July 2000 I
was named president of the corporation and
am in charge of all operations. Chris
McComb, my brother, is vice president of
marketing and does all of our civil design
work and all of our project development.
My dad is now the CEO and works with
the estimator and handles most of the budget estimates. Chris Higgs is one of our
vice presidents and is also a project manager and served on the project for STSU.”
Total project cost for the distribution
center was $1.6 million, which is around
the average project cost for McComb. The
center is the receiving locale for all freights,
storage and assets for the university.
“One of the interesting aspects of the
project was that the old distribution facility needed to be torn down in order for stucontinued on Page 20
PRSRT. STD.
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
SAN ANTONIO, TX
PERMIT #4043
Page 2 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
Central Texas’ largest max capacity
test stand comes to Austin
C
ontractors concerned with hydraulic equipment no longer have to
travel outside Central Texas to find
piece of mind.
Texas Hydraulics & Pneumatics, a
complete hydraulic machine shop in operation in Round Rock since 1999, secured the
largest max capacity hydraulic test stand
in Central Texas in May. According to the
company owners, Craig Johnson, general
manager for Texas Hydraulics & Pneumatics, his brother and sales manager for the
company, Trey Johnson and shop foreman
and technician Steve Rush, the machine is
able to detect practically any malfunction
on a hydraulic part, be it hydraulic pumps,
motors or valves.
“We do complete teardowns and rebuilds and with the new stand, we are able
to completely test a rebuilt part before it is
reinstalled,” said Trey. “With this process,
we are able to guarantee that the repair and
maintenance work completed has been
done correctly the first time.”
The company works with end users,
single-man operations on up to million dollar companies to the nation wide rental operations that include Sunstate, Nations
Rent and United Rentals. As Craig further
states, to help keep customers and attract
those in new areas, securing a test stand was
mandatory.
“We have had customers state that if
we are going to rebuild their pumps and
motors, they want them tested as well to
certify that all parts are operating at top
level,” said Craig. “Now that we have the
stand, we are looking forward to fulfilling
those customers’ needs as well as those of
future customers.”
Craig worked with a designer and plan-
ner in Cleveland, OH to have the machine
built. The company began testing parts and
equipment for customers at the end of May,
and had a waiting list of customers ready
to be the first in line.
“We are able to mock the tested level
for each pump or motor and can work
within a rate of up to 6,000 PSI and 150
GPM for the test stand’s pump,” said Craig.
T
I
n a show of support for its customers, employees and the Round
Rock Express baseball team,
Dupont Flooring Systems supplied
60 plus tickets for the Thurs., May 23rd
game against the San Antonio Missions.
The Express won 7-3 over San
Antonio and, according to the news
report from the Express Web site, the
team had 14 hits that night with four
different players having a multi-hit
game.
Those who attended the game
were able to not only enjoy a cool,
clear night that lured out the city’s
famed bats that flew over the ball park,
but also half off beer and sodas.
Who says business and pleasure
can’t go together?Ω
Correction
“We have a broad range of hook ups on the
test stand for each individual piece of equipment. We can test approximately four
pumps a day, with the whole process taking a minimum of three hours for each
pump to get it off the machine or truck,
of Fri., July 19th. A welcome reception and
silent auction will take place later in the
evening at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, with catering by The Salt
Lick. Radio Personality Cactus Pryor will
be present to entertain the crowd with the
stories that have helped make him a household name across the state.
After the golf tournament and auction
Saturday, Golden Trowel Awards will be
announced during an awards ceremony later
that evening along with other association
honors. To register online, go to
www.texasmasonrycouncil.org.Ω
I
won’t have problems. We give them the
option whether they would like to have
pieces tested. Not everyone needs to have
the testing done, but if they want equipment
checked out, that option is now available to
them.”Ω
n response to confusion
from the editing of the Accounting Column in the June
2002 issue of Austin Construction News, the article has been
reprinted, unedited, in this
month’s issue.Ω
Color, laminated REPRINTS
of articles/photos are available.
Call for more info, or email
reesa@constructionnews.net
Austin
(512) 447-2900
San Antonio (210) 308-5800
L-R: Trey Johnson, sales manager, Craig Johnson, general manager, shop foreman and
technician, Steve Rush stand next to their new hydraulic test stand.
TMC Convention in Austin
he only convention designed specifically for the masonry industry by
masonry professionals is coming to
Austin July 18th through the 20th.
The Texas Masonry Council invites
those interested in attending to the historic
Driskill Hotel in downtown Austin to witness bricklaying demonstrations and competitions, educational seminars, board
meetings and general meetings and of
course exhibits.
A special excursion to the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum will take
those signed up on a tour on the afternoon
hooked up to the test stand and assessed.”
As Craig and Trey further state, test
stands are definitely becoming a requirement in hydraulic and pneumatic shops.
“The large contractors can’t have
equipment down keeping them from doing
their jobs,” said Craig. “It costs a little more
to have their pumps or motors bench tested,
but at least they are guaranteed that they
Dupont
Flooring Systems
hits the ballpark
Happy 4th of July!
CONSTRUCTION
COMPLETE INVENTORY OF
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Toll Free
1-800-580-9052
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Fax (210) 477-3090
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Associate Editor:
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Sales Representative: Colette Gordan
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Production/Graphics: Claire Watkinson
Administration:
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© 2002 Austin Construction News
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Austin Construction News • July 2002 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 3
Justice Center brings FOCUS to offenders
F
OCUS, a new program at the Travis
County Community Justice Center
(TCCJC), gives incarcerated offenders a chance to rebuild their lives.
FOCUS, which stands for Fundamentals Of Construction and Understanding
Self, is in its first year at the Travis County
Community Justice Center, and was named
by 13 graduates who completed the first
five week course June 14th. Judge Samuel
T. Biscoe was the guest speaker at the
graduation ceremony and imparted words
of encouragement to set daily goals and stay
focused on accomplishing them.
Classes in construction and building
trades along with psychotherapy sessions
rounded out the five week program. Upon
completion, each graduate received certificates recognizing them as certified in CPR
and OSHA guidelines as well as a certificate from the Austin Chapter of Associated
General Contractors of America and 8
hours of college credit from Austin Community College. The certificates serve as
references that each graduate has skills that
qualify them to work in the construction
industry.
Warden Kenneth Karl for the TCCJC
L-R: Tom Serafin and Silvestre Villarreal, Jr. of the Capital Area Training Foundation,
Jon Betcher, president of AGC Austin and Judge Samuel T. Biscoe stand in front of
the building structure where the FOCUS program will be housed.
provided a living area separate from the
general population of the confinement fa-
cility for offenders involved in the FOCUS
program. Working under the leadership of
ACC’s Building Construction Technology
program coordinator, Warren Heatwole,
the students began building a new structure
that will become the classroom for future
FOCUS classes.
The design of the FOCUS program
grew from the ideas of Judge Samuel T.
Biscoe, District Attorney Ronnie Earle,
family therapist Dr. Steve Larson and the
Capital Area Training Foundation’s Construction Gateway program. Each party felt
that effective therapy was a necessary part
in teaching offenders how to change their
lives. Therapy was combined with the life
skills training of Construction Gateway’s
leadoff instructor Ed Miller to create the
psychotherapeutic Life Tools program.
The Life Tools program was combined
with the vocational training and job placement program developed after Construction
Gateway.
The FOCUS program received funding from the Travis County Commissioner’s
Court, and is overseen by Travis County
Justice and Public Safety Planner Kimberly Pierce. Ω
ASA state conference in Sept.
T
he Austin Chapter of the American Subcontractors Association
(ASA), in alliance with ASA of
Texas and the Texas Construction Association, invite all subcontractors throughout Texas to the first state conference for
ASA, Sept. 11-14th, at the Lakeway Conference Center in Lakeway.
In addition to raising money for the
association’s PAC fund, breakfast, lunch
and dinner seminars will be held to edu-
cate construction professionals in four core
areas of safety, legislation and politics, legal issues and leadership.
The seminars in safety will focus on
increasing job safety, reducing liability
claims and Workers’ Compensation by
forming a partnership between ASA and
OSHA. Those seminars concerned with legislation and politics will focus on what is
being done to assure all companies and
workers on projects are paid in a timely
fashion. Lien laws, contract bidding and
negotiation are some of the topics that will
be covered under legal issues and seminars
under leadership are soon to be announced.
Chuck Simpson, president of the Austin Chapter for ASA, said that the conference
is not all business, but members should feel
free to bring their families to share the experience and meet new people. A possible Casino Night out near Lake Travis is planned,
along with golf and other outdoor activities.
American Commercial Services
strikes Austin
A
fter a one-year successful run in
San Antonio, American Commercial Services is continuing its services and setting up a second shop in Austin.
“Clients in Austin we have worked
with since arriving in San Antonio provided
strong encouragement for us to expand to
Austin,” said Paul Ingram, president of
American Commercial Services. “They
have been very satisfied with the work we
have done and have been looking for one
company that provides the range and quality of clean and prep services that we do.”
Currently the company employs 40
individuals who are trained to know and use
the latest ADA compliances and regulations
and stay up to date on new technology that
relates to traffic paint. American Commercial Services provides services to general
contractors for make-ready and final clean
stages of a project. The company provides
all of the necessary stripping for ADA com-
pliance, signage and wheel stops.
“We specialize in both interior and
exterior make-ready services, and also install concrete sealers and concrete ceilings
for Wal-Mart, Home Depot, etc.,” said
Ingram. “As well, a large part of our revenue is in property management. Projects
we are currently working on in the Austin
area include the new elementary school for
the Del Valle Independent School District,
the new middle school for Killeen, and we
are also working on the high school in Llano.”
American Commercial Services has
been in operation for 12 years with headquarters in Phoenix.
The company has a new toll free number for individuals to call at 866-493-9990.
Those individuals interested in contacting
American Commercial Services regarding
a project in Austin may ask for Mike
Moreno, operations manager.Ω
For those interested in volunteering
their time to help organize conference
events, the Austin Chapter will hold a conference committee meeting Wed., June
26th at the Associated Builders and Contractors office at 3000 Longhorn Blvd.,
Ste. 104, Austin, TX 78758. Persons interested in finding out more information
may contact Chuck Simpson in Austin at
(512) 928-1136 or Raymond Risk at
(512) 473-3773, rrisk@texcon.org.Ω
210-651-0111
www.resunleasing.com
(866) Space 2U (866) 772-2328
rings your local branch
Resun delivers clean, affordable space, when and where you need it.
•
•
•
•
•
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Local Service from Branches Nationwide
Units Available for Immediate Delivery
Flexible Lease Options
National Accounts Welcome
Competitors’ Coupons Honored
Field & Sales Offices, Modular Complexes
SAN ANTONIO
(210) 337-6136
AUSTIN
(512) 251-3415
Paul Ingram outside his office in San Antonio.
Page 4 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
Kinetics acquires Spectra, moves to SW Austin
By Rachel Jordan
T
hough in Austin since the 1980’s, Kinetic Systems,
Inc. didn’t have a physical office until two years
ago. At that time, the Austin branch of the parent
company, Kinetics, was housed in a warehouse downtown.
Kinetics first began in the early 1970’s in Santa Clara,
CA as a high-purity piping contractor. Over the last 15 to
20 years some of the acquisitions the company has made
has allowed it to diversify and grow to a $1.3 billion dollar
international organization that provides various infrastructures in building needs primarily in the high tech industry.
Kinetics has three focus groups: electronics, pharmaceutical and what it calls general industries, which focuses on
the food and beverage, hospitals and higher education
markets. Recently the company added a new construction
group to oversee building of semiconductor facilities and
provided piping a mechanical system services to design
build projects. As well, the construction group supports
all three focus groups.
One such example that expands on the company’s
dedication to diversify is the recent acquisition of the locally-owned Spectra Engineering Group, which is now
Kinetic Engineering Group, and handles MEP work in
Austin and across the US.
“When Kinetics opened a new construction group, the
Kinetic Engineering Group moved to a more comfortable
and pleasing office setting in Southwest Austin from our
fabrication shop downtown used for high purity and a dirty
site for our other manufacturing divisions’ needs,” said Bert
Wells, operations manager for Kinetic Systems, Inc. in
Austin. “We have about 1,700-sf of office facility at our
new location and our 1,500-sf old office will just be used
as a fabrication facility.”
The newly assembled staff of Kinetic Systems, Inc.
Wells said the acquisition and move centralized the
engineering and construction group into one local facility.
“We have about 5,000-sf of clean room at our construction office and 60,000-sf of clean room at our manufacturing office up north. In the engineering and construction group we have close to 200 hundred employees. In
the manufacturing group we have around 400, all local.”
Wells said that business has been slow, noting that
seventy percent of overall company revenue is generated
from the high tech industry.
“Seeing how that industry has been slow, we were able
to pick up some of the losses through our general industries focus group and biopharmaceutical industry focus
group.”
Some of the key projects Wells said Kinetics is working on right now is the new power plant facility going in
for Austin Energy for the City of Austin, as well as work
with Abbott Laboratories, a local biopharmaceutical facility, and with Cypress Semiconductor, Dupont, Photomask,
Motorola and AMD.
“Our goal over the next couple of years is to keep our
solid ties with current clients while continuing to diversify and grow in the general industries, biopharmaceutical
and construction groups,” said Wells.Ω
Getting to know you
T
he Hills Café was taken
over by contractors and
suppliers the night of
May 21st, when the Associated
Builders and Contractors
(ABC) held their annual “Meet
the GC Night.”
There were 13 booths of
general contractors and 150 attendees comprised of subcontractors and suppliers enjoying
good food and company.
“This event is held once a
year and is a great opportunity
for subcontractors and suppliers
to meet with several general
contractors in one location, and
Ron Wright and Kathey Gillispie after receiving the
ABC Region III Instructor of the Year Award.
The Construction Labor Contractor
Your OnlySource for Skilled Tradesmen
We are the leader in the industry and we
have our clients to tell you why.
Call either location and let’s start
to build a quality partnership.
Butch White with Kathey Gillispie after
receiving the ABC Good Samaritan Award.
Contract approved for SH 130
T
Austin
512-452-0404
888-485-0404
San Antonio
210-509-3522
877-509-3522
Qualify For:
“Ultimate Hunting Challenge 2002”
in return, a great opportunity for the general contractors to meet the subs and suppliers,” said Kathey Gillispie, president
of ABC.
Awards were also given to three ABC
members for outstanding work or accomplishment throughout the year.
Todd Hanna of Consolidated Insurance was given the ABC Appreciation
Award. Hanna recently left Austin to attend officers training at Quantico.
Butch White of Austin Commercial was
given the Good Samaritan Award for aiding an accident victim earlier this year
and Ron Wright of TDIndustries received the ABC Region III Instructor of
the Year Award.Ω
he contract for the $1.38-billion
State Highway 130 was signed
Wed., June 19th, setting work in
motion to begin the 90-mile toll road from
I-35 at Georgetown to I- 10 at Seguin.
According to a Texas Department of
Transportation spokeswoman, Gaby
Garcia, portions of SH 130 should open
as early as 2007.
SH 130 is billed as the most expensive road project in Texas history. It is also
the first time Texas has entered into an
exclusive development agreement to build
a highway. Lone Star Infrastructure
LLC was contracted to complete the
project with assembled companies providing all services from design to land
acquisition to construction.
Garcia says the first work order
should be issued sometime this month to
focus on a 50-mile stretch between
Georgetown to just south of AustinBergstrom International Airport. Construction will begin in 2003 and is expected to last about five years.
Members of the Lone Star Infrastructure include: Fluor, Austin Road &
Bridge, Raba Kistner Consultants Inc.,
Southwest Strategies Group Inc., Macias
& Associates Inc., Balfour Beatty Construction Inc., O.R. Colan Associates
Inc., T.J. Lambrecht Construction Inc.,
Dr. Dallas Little P.E., DMJM + Harris,
Dan Zollinger, S&B Infrastructure Ltd.,
CTL/Thompson Inc., SWG&M Advertising Inc., Hicks & Co., TBE Group Inc.,
VMS Inc., Jones Bros., Inc. and
Bridgefarmer & Associates Inc.Ω
Austin Construction News • July 2002 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 5
Moore Supply Co.’s Bath and
Kitchen Showplace expands
O
ne company in town truly can boast
an understanding of remodeling
and renovation. Moore Supply
Co.’s Bath and Kitchen Showplace has remodeled its plumbing fixture showroom,
growing from 1,000-sf to approximately
4,000-sf for high-end plumbing fixtures.
More than 60 manufacturers will be represented. The premier fixture will be Koler,
and several other fixture lines including
Grohe, Broadway, Philriche and Jado.
“Our showroom is to cater towards
builders and homeowners who are looking
for fixtures off the beaten path, the higherend, luxury product that is not found in most
places,” said Marshall Maedgen, general
manager in Austin. “These are exclusive
lines of these product brands. Although
there was a lull in the Austin market over
the past six months with regard to the high-
end homes, it seems to be coming back with
a solid strength. We are seeing a lot of million dollar plus homes being built once
again.”
Maedgen highlighted the fact that the
new showroom provides a beautiful surrounding similar to what customers imagine when thinking about how they would
like to decorate their own home.
“We even have working units in the
showroom, which, to my knowledge, is one
of the first in the city,” Maedgen said. “We
are making a large investment, but believe
it will pay off quickly by the type of product lines we sell. As well, our contractor is
Bill Clawson and Associates and they have
done a wonderful job.”
The showroom is open Monday
through Friday from 9-6pm and on Saturdays from 8-1pm. Ω
The Moore Supply Co. and Bath and Kitchen Showplace facility located at
8740 Shoal Creek Blvd. in north Austin.
RESUN marks 3rd
anniversary on IH-35N
R
ESUN leases and sells mobile
modular space; from 25 sf guard
sheds to 400,000 sf multiple story
facilities. In business since 1986, RESUN
has 40 locations in the U.S., with three in
Texas. The San Antonio branch, opened in
1999 and located on IH-35N in Selma, covers South/Central Texas and staffs four personnel.
On the occasion of its 3rd anniversary
in this marketplace, Myrtie Austin, local
branch manager, said most business is with
general contractors and subcontractors in
San Antonio and Austin. “We are diversified in other things we can do, including
schools, correctional and medical facilities.
We offer all the resources of a large company with a personalized level of service.
If the construction industry slows down, a
company like RESUN would be one of the
first indicators, which is why we diversify.”
RESUN was the provider of all the
modular buildings for the 2002 Olympics
in Utah, including field offices, press
booths, among others.
Myrtie said during their 3-year tenure,
her branch has grown from a fleet of zero
to 500 units. “With regard to profit, we’ve
always been 100% over-budget; our revenues continue to increase and we’ve never
had a revenue loss. When we opened in
March of 1999, Lisa Chavez, fleet manager, and I operated from our cell phones
while making our initial contacts. We occupied a mobile office building, an example of our product line, which we have
since doubled in size. Our branch was in
full operation within 3 weeks. Our staff
now includes Elaine Buchhorn, senior
sales representative, and Tammy Wright,
sales coordinator and administrative assistant.
“We are not a manufacturer,” Myrtie
explained. “We supply specifications to
manufacturers who build units for us. How
sophisticated a building can be depends on
one’s budget. As a rule, we carry a fleet
inventory of singles and doubles, and we
custom build according to specifications.
Modular facilities can be built today with
long lived components, including concrete
and steel.”Ω
Lyda Builders emerges
after acquisition
O
n Mon., June 3rd, Lyda Constructors, Inc. of San Antonio was acquired by Swinerton Incorporated, becoming the newest member of
the Swinerton Family of Companies, a
general contractor with offices throughout Texas and the Western United States.
With the acquisition, Lyda Constructors has changed its name to Lyda Builders, aligning it with the Swinerton Builders offices in Houston
and ten other cities.
Founded in 1960 by
Gerald Lyda, Lyda
Constructors has completed over 300 construction
projects
throughout
Texas,
Florida and Colorado
over the past four decades. Considered a
“major player” in San
Antonio, Lyda has had a
big role in shaping San
Antonio’s skyline with Tower of the
Americas, Westin La Cantera, Security
Services Federal Credit Union Corporate
Headquarters and other high profile structures.
Lyda’s scope of work and depth of
experience includes corporate facilities,
office buildings, health care facilities,
hotels and resorts, retail centers and institutional facilities.
Swinerton, founded in 1888, today
builds over $2 billion of commercial work
annually, with expertise in construction
management, design/build, all forms of
general contracting, structural steel, concrete, tenant improvement work and architectural woodwork.
San Antonio Construction News
spoke with representatives of both companies. Don Esbjornsen, Senior Vice
President of Swinerton Builders, said the
driving force behind the acquisition
started with Lyda’s desire to sell, and
negotiations have been ongoing for a few
months.
“Swinerton is, of course, interested
in South Texas, and we saw this as an op-
portunity to find what we consider a top
company, with like minds and like goals,
that we can capitalize on,” Don reported.
“We are keeping the entire employee base
of Lyda. We have a small Swinerton
Builders group here, and that entire body
of employees will be combined into Lyda
Builders. There is a plan to set up entirely
new offices, and we’re working on that
right now. The local office of Swinerton Builders will be closed. Instead of calling the
emerging
company
Swinerton Builders, to us
it made sense to call it
Lyda Builders, because
of their tenure and tradition in the local area.”
Don, whose forté is operations, will remain with
Lyda Builders in a consulting role.
Jack Dysart, P.E., who
has run Lyda for 10 years, will remain,
serving in the capacity of President for
the new company. Asked how he feels
about the recent acquisition, Jack said
Swinerton is an outstanding company.
“I think it’s exciting to have Lyda become a member of Swinerton, Inc. As
President of Lyda Builders, I’ll be functioning in much the same way as I have
for the last decade,” Jack emphasized.
“The opportunities are going to be larger,
however, because we have a strong backing from Swinerton, which is one of the
top general contracting firms in the country. We’ll continue to do the same type of
projects we’ve done in the past, but you
may see us working in different markets
and spreading out a little bit. That would
include the Rio Grande Valley, Austin and
Dallas. By and large, we’re still Lyda
from San Antonio. We’ve been here a long
time, 42 years, and we’re going to stay
here. I think this acquisition is good for
Swinerton, good for the Lyda family, in
that they’ll be able to see the company
continue. It’s a very good move for the
Lyda employees, as well.”Ω
FOUNDATION PROBLEMS CORRECTED
Residential
Since 1992 Multi-Family
Commercial
444-LIFT
FREE Inspection and Written Estimate
ASSOCIATED BUILDERS
AND CONTRACTORS,INC.
CENTRAL TEXAS CHAPTER
ABC would like to wish
everyone a safe and happy
4th of July Holiday!
L-R: Myrtie, Lisa, Elaine, and Tammy.
3006 Longhorn Blvd. Suite 104 Austin, TX 78758 Ph: 512-719-5263
Page 6 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
CenTex House Leveling
works magic
NAWIC awards Barnes-Davis
scholarships
T
he Austin Chapter of the National
Association for Women in Construction (NAWIC) awarded two
young ladies from the Austin area a BarnesDavis Scholarship June 6th during a
monthly chapter meeting.
Pat Turner, scholarship committee
chair and office manager for Ideal National Mechanic Corporation, along with
Kathleen Rhea and Mary Burger helped
to send out and review applications for the
scholarship.
“We sent applications out to schools
across Central Texas,” said Turner. “This
year I was almost overwhelmed as the committee received 15 scholarship applications
from which two winners were chosen,
Meghan Thomson and Carolina
Rodriguez.”
Thomson, from Lake Travis High
School, plans to attend the University of
Texas at Austin to study architecture and
interior design.
Rodriguez attends Reagan High School
and after graduating, plans to first attend
Austin Community College and then the
University of Texas to receive her degree in
architecture and interior design. Rodriguez
has only lived in the United States for the
past two years with her family that are all
predominant Spanish speakers. However, in
the time she has resided in America, she has
become proficient in the English language.
Among others, requirements to receive
a scholarship include solid academic standing, financial need and a plan to pursue stud-
ies within the construction fields. The
scholarship is also awarded to young men
with an interest in the construction industry who meet all the requirements.
“The scholarship is named after Florence Barnes,” said Mary Burger, scholarship committee director and past president
of the Austin Chapter of NAWIC. “She was
a charter member of this chapter and its
second president. She worked for Fox
Schmidt, retired in 1971 and shortly after
past away. Her family knew how important
NAWIC was to her and that she was a tremendous advocate of education. After her
death, her family received memorial gifts
in monetary funds. A committee was
formed by the chapter and lead by Fannie
Davis to determine how to use the funds.”
Burger further states that the committee decided to offer scholarships to young
men and women who were entering the
construction field. The scholarship came
into being in 1972, and additional funds
were contributed by the Florence Barnes
family estate to set up a basis to have a continual source of funds for the scholarship.
Over the years more and more funds have
been contributed to the scholarship fund.
“In 2000, additional funds were applied to the scholarship in recognition of
Fannie Davis,” said Burger. “The name of
the scholarship was then changed to the
Barnes-Davis Scholarship Fund. From
those funds, we try and give one or more
scholarships each year, depending on the
amount available.”Ω
N
ot only can CenTex
House Leveling
and Foundation
Repair revitalize structures
built to never falter, but in
the process transform attitudes.
Ben Cooper, founder
of the company, was the last
hope to restore the south
Austin Monaco Condominiums on Oltorf Boulevard to
livable standards after several contractors before had
passed up the project claimL-R: Narciso Leija, field superintendent; Ben Cooper,
ing it beyond repair.
owner and president of CenTex and Dario Garduno,
Marc Knusten, an invice president of operations stand in front of
vestor whose client owned
the Monaco Condominiums.
several units of the Monaco
Condominiums, had hired CenTex in the low the high points to ease downward onto
past to repair his own home’s foundation newly installed piers. Meanwhile, also usas well as those of several other properties. ing piers, they would raise the lower secWith this previous experience, he felt tions up to the middle elevation. This way
CenTex was the right choice for this project CenTex would raise one side by six inches
and lower the other side by six inches.
this past year.
Jim Andrews, an outside engineer
According to a release from CenTex,
the Monaco Condominiums were built in was hired to consult and comment on the
the mid 1980’s during a drought. There feasibility of the proposal. Andrews said
were two separate three-story buildings that while CenTex’s method is a new conwith 20 units, each comprising 15,832-sf. cept that is not yet widely used, it worked
During construction, the builders cut into well on this project.
“I thought the solution was creative,”
the hillside of the property to make room
for the condos. However, the expansive Andrews said. “It allowed the condo assoil they built on, characteristic of Cen- sociation to repair the building within an
tral Texas, combined with the drought, economical range, to keep their investwater drainage and a high water table lead ment and spend a smaller amount of
to one side of Building One “heaving up” money to fix the problem.”
Because CenTex’s method for this
within a year of construction. The difference in floor elevations in the worst areas building used tunnels, it eliminated the
was as much as 12 inches. As much as need to enter the condominium units and
three inches in the building was enough go through the floors to reach the foundation. In addition to being less expensive,
to consider foundation repair.
Raising the lower portions to an even the use of this method meant no residents
level usually repairs slab foundation dam- had to be relocated during the project.
While the major constructive repair to
aged in this way. Using jackhammers, holes
the
Monaco
Condominiums is complete,
are torn in the building’s floors and piers
CenTex
is
still
“on duty” as far as Cooper
are installed in the slab lifting it to become
is concerned. “That’s because CenTex
a structural slab foundation.
CenTex instead determined which parts backs up all its work with a lifetime guarof the building were stable and left those antee,” says Cooper. “The building now
alone. For the portions that were heaved up, rests on a CenTex warranty. If there is any
their plan involved construction tunnels un- further settling of the piers, which is not
derneath the foundation slab and removing unusual in a case like this, CenTex will
soil beneath those portions; this would al- monitor and adjust for it accordingly.”Ω
TACLA014827E
TACLA000136C
L-R: Carolina Rodriguez and Meghan Thomson pose with Pat Turner after each was
awarded a Barnes-Davis Scholarship from the Austin Chapter of NAWIC.
AC - DESIGN - FABRICATION - INSTALLATION
SERVICE - HEATING - VENTILATION
3312 DUKE ROAD
AUSTIN, TEXAS 78724
512-928-2470
“Excellence in Service”
Sharon McGee
President
ASSOCIATED BUILDERS
AND CONTRACTORS, INC.
www.rmmechanical.com
1109 Ruth Ave.
Austin, TX 78757
• Residential, Commercial & Industrial
• Professional Full Service Electrical Contractor
• Highly Trained & Experienced Employees
• Specializing in Custom Remodeling
• Certified Lutron HomeWorks Dealer
Phone: 512-454-5325 Fax: 512-454-2090
Austin Construction News • July 2002 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 7
Less man hours with DC Wire Express
By Rachel Jordan
A
s most construction professionals do, electricians
measure a job in man hours. So many man hours
completes a job in a certain amount of time. Two
electricians, Bob Collier, now vice president of Express
Technology L.P., and Ed Allen, president, don’t worry
about counting the hours anymore.
Five years ago, the business partners, then starting up
their own electrical contracting company, were looking for
a solution to pulling wire for large jobs. Wire pullers that
were on the market were too expensive for the start up. So,
the two put their heads together and began designing a
pulling machine that cut down on the number of man hours
and that could handle large jobs.
The result came about two years ago with the manufacturing of the motor for the DC Wire Express by
Campbell Hausfeld. A partnership between the manufacturer and Express Technology L.P. formed when Allen and
Collier were noticed as return customers to the manufacturer and interest about what they were wanting to make
lead to the telling of the concept for the DC Wire Express.
Now only out on the market for three months and currently only sold within Central Texas, Collier and Allen
said the DC Wire Express, named for the fact that it is
powered by a direct circuit that pulls wire in a timely fashion, helped pay for itself the first time they put it to use on
a project for an Extended Stay American Hotel.
“Ed and I finished pulling wire for the entire building by noon in one day,” said
Collier. “As electricians, we
know what professionals in
our trade need to perform a
job quickly and well.
Partnering with Campbell
Hausfeld provided the design
aspect to create a machine
that requires no assembly and
is efficient to use.”
Collier said there is no
training to use the DC Wire
Express. Reading the owner’s
manual is all that is needed.
“It is always hard introducing a new concept and
way of working to an industry that has operated in a certain manner for a number of
(L-R): Ed Allen and Bob Collier stand next to the DC Wire Express.
years,” said Collier. “Most of
the electricians that I have
met in my time have never used a wire pulling machine We are hoping to change the way electricians operate and
that they didn’t have to bolt down or assemble, and never offer an opportunity for the work they do to run more
used one where no one ever sustained any pulled muscles. smoothly and simply.”Ω
AGC Annual Family Fish Fry
F
or the past few years, the Austin Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) packs the
Crockett Center on Highway 290 East with
approximately 600 attendees for the annual
AGC Family Fish Fry.
This year’s event was catered by HRichards Oil Company Thurs., June 20th.
“This is one of our largest functions
that allows members to network, get away
from work, have some fried catfish and visit
with each other in a relaxed and fun atmosphere, said Jon Betcher, president and
CEO of the Austin AGC. “This is also our
largest fundraiser. Money raised here goes
to our Education Research Foundation and
Education Committee where we supply the
on-site and build up kits for fifth grade and
middle school children throughout the Austin area, as well as to our general fund. We
have 65 donated items for silent auction and
live auction and raffle. Among them is a
half-carrot diamond donated by Kruger
Diamond Jewelers in Barton Creek Mall.”
Betcher said for future fish fries, the
AGC hopes to outgrow the Crockett Cen-
ter.
“Every year this event gets a little bit
bigger and better, and we have more and
more items donated,” said Betcher. “Our
members are incredibly generous. As well,
This is an opportunity for members to do
business with members. We also encourage non-members to come out to experience the AGC. We have so many events
throughout the year, this is just one example
of how much fun they can have and network with potential clients and business
partners.”Ω
Chris Conlee & Rosie Bamburger of Tradesman
International came to grab a cold one & check
out what the vendors had to offer.
Attention
Contractors
Texas Owned and
Operated Since 1974
We have moved to 2 new locations to serve you better
We Beat Anybodys Deal!
(L-R): The crew from Bartlett Cocke L.P., Mark Klein, Tom Ankers,
Michael Tietz, Hal Brown and Lawrence Tota.
EBay Real Estate premiers
online auction
E
Bay Real Estate, announced the
launch of its new homes category,
along with an online auction in
June, to feature a variety of in-demand
properties from communities throughout
the U.S. Access the New Homes section
directly via:pages.ebay.com/realestate/
newhomeconstruction.html.
Builder Homesite, Inc. (BHI), a consortium of top U.S. homebuilders, is placing thousands of listings in the eBay new
homes category, representing custom designed and model homes from leading
builders like KB Home, Plantation
Homes and David Weekley. The new
homes category offers homebuyers a
wider inventory and a faster, easier way
to preview and make an offer for properties online.
The innovative system reduces the
anxiety normally associated with buying
a home by using the Internet and the eBay
auction format to make the process more
transparent, allowing homebuyers to more
closely follow the progress of their bidding online.
New home postings on eBay Real Estate will contain everything necessary to
help buyers make a more informed purchasing decision, including photos of
model homes, architectural drawings,
floor plans, maps, community information
and property descriptions. Potential buyers can also contact builders directly for
further information, or to arrange tours of
homes in their area. In addition, eBay Real
Estate offers first-time buyers an online
library of “how-to” articles for help with
purchasing a new home.Ω
South
North
2101 W. Ben White Blvd.
Austin, TX
16401 Central Commerce Dr.
Pflugerville, TX
512-383-8386
512-989-0001
Hitachi NR83A Framing Nailer
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Porter Cable FR350NC Nail Gun
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$219.99
Texas Tool Traders...Where Austin Saves!
Page 8––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
someone else and decided to start our own
business.
ACN: Had you had any construction experience up to this point?
JG: No, working with my friend and laying tile was my first job out of school. So,
we got our own business going and we were
making good money, but we didn’t know
how to save it and spend it. We ended up
closing the doors on it, and I got a chance
Luxury Tile
to move to Austin. At that time, my mother
and stepdad moved to Austin also and
started building a house. I came to Austin
Editor’s Note: Jerry Guebara, owner of and worked a bit as a waiter at Lone Star
Luxury Tile in Cedar Park, has no qualms Café and was barely making it. However, I
about setting out to do something he has met my wife, Jo, at that point at Dessau
never tried before. Making permanent de- Dance Hall and we instantly connected and
cisions doesn’t scare him, not being able started spending a lot of time together.
to does. Born and raised near Houston, ACN: Is she from this area?
Guebara soon made his way to the Austin JG: Yes, she was born and raised in Ausarea, a profession and the realization that tin. I met her family and instantly fell in
the picture he has for his life is slowly com- love with them. During this time I started
ing into formation.
work with Trafton & Son Inc. in Austin for
about a year, but I had it in my head that I
ACN: Do you have any brothers or sisters?
wanted to start my own company.
JG: I have a sister, Veronica, and a step brother ACN: Around what time was this?
named David. My parents got divorced at a JG: This was in 1998. I got tired of makyoung age. I went to live with my mother for ing money for someone else and wanted to
a while and never really kept in touch with be my own boss, set my own hours and take
my father. My mom, Virginia Patty, sister and jobs that I wanted to take. I explained to Jo
I lived together in Humble, TX with my that was what I wanted to do and she supgrandmother. I was about four or five years ported me one hundred percent. The first
old.
couple of months things were very slow,
ACN: Did you play sports while growing up? but it steadily got busier and busier. It has
JG: When I was a little older I played base- now been five years that Luxury Tile has
ball. I went to live with some family friends been in existence and I’m still growing.
in Alvin, TX for a while named Sue and ACN: In addition to being your own boss,
Johnny Wolf shortly after moving to my what do you like about the profession you
grandmother’s. I was on a team and played have chosen?
baseball with Nolan Ryan’s son. I remem- JG: What I love about it so much is I don’t
ber one time at a game, we didn’t have a go to the same place year in year out. I get
first baseman coach. I was young and I to meet interesting people that I have things
didn’t really know Nolan Ryan that well. I in common with or that have hobbies and
had seen him on T.V., but didn’t quite un- interests I have always wondered about. As
derstand the status he held. So, when we well, I do a lot of work with American Tile
needed the first base coach, he came right Supply. The company helps pass out my
on in and coached it for us. My stepdad was business cards and I am able to meet more
the coach and my
interesting people with
stepmom was the “There was no business with the name that working relationteam mom, so I Luxury Tile when I decided to register ship.
practiced every
a business name for my company. I ACN: Is the kind of
day. I came up to wanted something that was going to partnership you have
bat at this particu- stick out and Luxury Tile was it. Tile with American Tile Suplar game and hit a
is a luxury; a house can have lino- ply common in your line
good one out to left leum or vinyl instead. As I see it, the of work?
field. Nolan Ryan choice of my business’ name reflects JG: Yes, you really
is still at first base
want to have not only a
a similar choice my customers
when I came rungood professional relamake in choosing tile.”
ning up to it and he
tionship, but being able
told me to stop. I kept on going and made to interact on a daily basis, I am able to
it to second base and eventually back home. understand the people here better. My wife
When I got back to the dug out, my stepdad and I do a lot of thing with my sales rep,
yelled at me about how I hadn’t listened to Brian, and his wife on the weekends. Yet,
Nolan Ryan. So, I went and apologized to we never combine our social life with our
him and he told me not to worry about it, professional relations. Though we are
that I probably hadn’t heard him. But, I had friends throughout work, it never interferes
heard him, I just thought I could make it to with getting a job done.
second base, which I did.
ACN: Tell me a bit about your services and
Later on, my mother got remarried and operations.
I ended up moving back in with her and JG: Right now I don’t have any employees
her husband, Mike Loscuito. They moved and do most of the work on my own, though
to Conroe, TX right on the lake and I went I do have some workers I can call to work
to school in Willis. Throughout high school on a part time basis when needed. I do
I played tennis and did pretty well.
mainly commercial and residential work.
ACN: What did you do after graduation?
About 90 percent of my work is residenJG: I had a friend of mine, Jerry Holiday, tial, which I like in only having to deal with
who was in the tile business and living in a homeowner. Typically the homeowner
College Station. He was about four or five doesn’t know too much about tile, and will
years older than I was. All of his family is get me involved with the project and want
in the tile business, there is a Holiday Tile my opinion. My customers have also told
in Huntsville. He asked me to move in with me that they appreciate the fact that I come
him and become his helper. At that time we out to the house, bid the job, deliver the
worked for Forester Tile in Bryan, TX. tile, do the work and then they pay me. With
After a while, we got tired of working for this, I am able to strike up a good trust with
Spotlight
Jerry Cuebara
• Celotex Ceilings
• Chicago Metallic
• Interfinish
• Capaul Ceilings
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them.
mind for business and an entrepreneur’s
ACN: This business style automatically fearless drive?
then shows you care about your work.
JG: When I started, I was 22 and was probJG: Yes, a lot of tile contractors can go in, ably the youngest contractor in the tile busislap the tile down, get paid and leave to their ness. Yet, I have never been the type to be
next job. It takes me longer to do a job be- told what to do and how to do it. That is
cause I am, how do you say it. . .
why I would never make it under a boss. I
ACN: A perfectionwill do the work if I
ist?
“. . .When I got back to the dug out, have to, but I have alJG: (smiles) Yes, my stepdad yelled at me about how I ways wanted to have
and my wife saw hadn’t listened to Nolan Ryan. So, I my own business to
that when I put the went and apologized to him and he see my own accomtile in our house. If I
told me not to worry about it, that I plishments.
am not happy with
ACN: Do you and Jo
it, I will pull it up probably hadn’t heard him. But, I had have or want chiland lay it down till heard him, I just thought I could make dren?
it to second base, which I did.”
it fits just right.
JG: Yes, we have been
That’s just how I
trying and now it is
have always been. It also shows that I care just a matter of time. I’m 27 and I have
about the customer’s house.
waited as long as I can stand it to be a faACN: Where does the name Luxury Tile ther.
come from, do you work with higher end ACN: Tell me about your weekends.
materials?
JG: I am on the Barbecue Committee with
JG: No, to tell you truth, I was at the state the Star of Texas Fair and Rodeo. We put
office where a business owner can search on the barbecue cook-off, and that takes up
for a business name. In selecting the names a lot of my time during that season in the
of small businesses, you view all the ones spring. I would never pass up the opportuthat are already in existence. I had the name nity to participate, it is a blast and it is all
Luxury Tile in my head. There was no busi- for the youth of Central Texas involved with
ness with that name when I decided to reg- the Rodeo. I also started a golf tournament
ister the name for my company. I wanted two years ago in conjunction with a buyer’s
something that was going to stick out and group with my friend, Tim Simms. We had
Luxury Tile was it. Tile is a luxury; a house a great turn out this year at Star Ranch Golf
can have linoleum or vinyl instead. As I see Course. The first year we ended up raising
it, the choice of my business’ name reflects about $4,000. We take the money to the
a similar choice my customers make in Rodeo’s livestock auction, which is very
choosing tile.
special. We are able to see the kids who
ACN: What is your favorite project you have put their animals up for auction tryhave completed?
ing to get the bids as high as they can. Once
JG: I laid the tile around a swimming pool something is purchased for say $2,000, the
and inside a gazebo on a ranch for some kid who it was bought from comes up, and
friends of mine out in Lampasas. Jo and I the smile on the kid’s face just makes you
ended up getting married in the gazebo. I melt. These kids work so hard all year, and
worked on it in the dead of summer and those few seconds of making a purchase just
learned never to do a swimming pool at that make all those long hours completely worth
time in Texas. In addition, I had never it. This past spring we were able to raise a
worked on a project like this before where little more than $7,000 at the golf tournaI took about 25 tiles to a tile designer that ment to go into the next livestock auction
cut them using sand and water into the with.
shape of the state of Texas. Those tiles were ACN: What are some other goals you
placed in the middle of the gazebo. It turned would like to accomplish?
out excellent, and then my wife and I got JG: To have a shop and a showroom and
married on top of it all, so we got married get off my knees and have a crew of guys
on top of Texas. (he chuckles). That is the that I can trust that are good tile setters. I
most memorable and the largest project I would like to grow my company a bit more.
remember working on. It was a little more I wanted a showroom and shop by this
than 5,000-sf and I did it all by myself. It point. It didn’t happen, but I am not giving
took about a month.
up on it. In 20 years or so, I see myself in
ACN: Where do you think you get your the tile business, just bigger.Ω
Austin Construction News • July 2002 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 9
CFMA/SpawGlass tour
expanded Convention Center
B
onnie Raitt came out to sing a little
R&B for a special Austin City Limits show May 16th on the official
opening night of the new expansion for the
Austin Convention Center.
Yet, members and guests of the Central Texas Chapter of the Construction Financial Management Association
(CFMA) and SpawGlass Contractors got
a sneak peak of the entire new structure
from top to bottom the day before anyone
in Austin.
Each year for the past five years,
CFMA has chosen a high profile project in
the Austin area to allow members and
guests to tour. The tours provide an outlet
for contractors to show work first hand with
an in-depth review into construction procedures and unique aspects of a project.
Total construction time for the expansion project was two years. The new facility has four banquet halls, the largest ballroom in the city at 23,418-sf and adds
470,400-sf to the convention center that
now covers six city blocks.Ω
Working in the Heat
Joann Nataranjan
Heat stroke, the most serious health problem for workers in hot environments, is caused
by the failure of the body’s internal mechanism to regulate its core temperature. Sweating
stops and the body can no longer rid itself of excess heat. Signs include (1) mental
confusion, delirium, loss of consciousness, convulsions or coma; (2) a body
temperature of 106 degrees F or higher; and (3) hot dry skin which may be red, mottled,
or bluish. Victims of heat stroke will die unless treated promptly. While awaiting medical
help, the victim must be removed to a cool area and his or her clothing soaked with cool
water. He or she should be fanned vigorously to increase cooling. Prompt first aid can
prevent permanent injury to the brain and other vital organs.
Heat exhaustion results from loss of fluid through sweating when a worker has failed to
drink enough fluids or take in enough salt or both. The worker with heat exhaustion still
sweats but experiences extreme weakness or fatigue, giddiness, nausea, or headache.
The skin is clammy and moist, the complexion pale or flushed, and the body temperature
normal or slightly higher. Treatment is usually simple: the victim should rest in a cool
place and drink an electrolyte solution (a beverage used by athletes to quickly restore
potassium, calcium, and magnesium salts). Severe cases involving victims who vomit or
lose consciousness may require longer treatment under medical supervision.
Work practices such as providing plenty of drinking water — as much as a quart per
worker per hour — at the workplace can help reduce the risk of heat disorders. Employers
should also consider an individual worker’s physical condition when determining his or
her fitness for working in hot environments. Older workers, obese workers and personnel
on some types of medication are at greater risk.
Alternating work and rest periods with longer rest periods in a cool area can help workers
avoid heat stress. If possible, heavy work should be scheduled during the cooler parts of
the day and appropriate protective clothing provided. Supervisors should be trained to
detect early signs of heat stress and should permit workers to interrupt their work if they
are extremely uncomfortable.
Glen Hortsman, project manager for SpawGlass (far left) points out details about
the new ballroom and expansion to CFMA tour members and guests.
Employee education is vital so that workers are aware of the need to replace fluids and
salt lost through sweat and can recognize dehydration, exhaustion, fainting, heat cramps,
salt deficiency, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke as heat disorders. Workers should also be
informed of the importance of daily weighing before and after work to avoid dehydration.
Daikin securing
presence in U.S.
D
aikin Industries Ltd. held briefings
June 6th in Austin and June 7th in
San Antonio to give energy officials
and interested individuals an opportunity
to receive a first hand look at the company
and new product lines.
In trust with the alliance sealed last
November between the Air Conditioning
Division of Daikin Industries Ltd. and
Trane’s American Standard Companies
Inc. Air Conditioning Division, Daikin is
helping to make its presence and products
more well known in the United States.
Headquartered in Japan, Daikin is the
world’s only manufacturer of both air conditioning equipment and refrigerant chemicals,
and is actively engaged in intensive research
into ozone friendly refrigerants and energy
efficient systems that will reduce carbon dioxide emission and limit global warming.
According to a Daikin release, through
the alliance, the companies will be able to
provide their own customers a complete
line of heating, ventilation and air conditioning products, services and solutions for
major industrial, commercial and residential markets. Daikin will supply Trane’s
chiller products and solutions expertise to
its strong existing customer base as a way
to expand its applied business.
As stated at the briefing in Austin, over
the last decade, Daikin air conditioning lines
were welcomed into homes and commercial
buildings across Asia and Europe only to
recently be introduced to the United States.
The new VRV (Variable Refrigerant Volume)
system from Daikin is being geared toward
small commercial and residential markets
and for retrofit projects in the United States.
The VRV system has a maximum of
16 indoor units connected to one condensing unit. The indoor units can be set for individual temperature in an office room or
specific room in a home. However, mentioned at the briefing was the fact that
Daikin product lines don’t account for humidity control as much as customers in the
southern United States would prefer.
Presently there are no manufacturing
facilities in the United States, but Daikin is
looking for opportunities to give demonstrations of the VRV and other lines to increase interest and sales. With a substantial volume the corporation will then look
into building manufacturing facilities in the
United States.Ω
Time Insurance
Agency
Serving Austin since 1961
Insurance
•
Bonding
• Builders Risk
• Automobile
• Surety Bonds
• Homeowners
• Workers Comp
• Property
• General Liability
Give us a call today
1 5 0 7
S .
I H - 3 5
512-447-7773
A u s t i n ,
T e x a s
Acclimatization to the heat through short exposures followed by longer periods of work
in the hot environment can reduce heat stress. New employees and workers returning
from an absence of two weeks or more should have 5-day period of acclimatization. This
period should begin with 50 percent of the normal workload and time exposure the first
day and gradually building up to 100 percent on the fifth day.
7 8 7 4 1
The Austin OSHA office has pocket cards on heat stress for free distribution which can
be obtained by calling 512-916-5783.
A
ustin Construction News invites our readers to submit photographs
(headshots) and a brief informative bio about your company’s employees who have recently received promotions, or about new employ-
ees your company has recently hired. We will publish your contributions in the
Round-Up section of our newspaper on a first come, first serve basis. We want to
know who’s who in the Austin construction community, and so does everyone else!
Austin Construction News
2101 IH-35 S., #202, Austin, Texas 78741
Fax to: 512-447-2922 Email to: sbutler@constructionnews.net
Has Your Old Service Finally Given Up?
Page 10––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
Heavy turnout for
“Heavies” tournament
How to get
free publicity
H
M
arketing and publicity are the driving force behind every viable business. The benefits of publicity are enormous. When massive amounts of people know who you
are, what your product or service is and how it can benefit them,
your chance of obtaining new clients dramatically increases.
The challenge is that fancy ad campaigns, marketing research and publicity
agents can represent a sizable investment.
There are times when these resources may
be appropriate. For most of us though, the
best kind of publicity is FREE PUBLICITY,
or at least very low cost publicity. Here are
the top ten ideas and resources about obtaining FREE PUBLICITY that I have collected over the years that may benefit your
company.
Join organizations and associations:
Become an active member in the organizations that represent your industry and speak
on behalf of the organization to consumer
groups and potential clients.
Send out press releases: Notices of
changes or improvements in your business
can be sent to industry trade journals, local
newspapers, association newsletters and
corresponding associations.
Teach a class: Continuing education
classes for school districts and community
colleges provide an opportunity to share
your business knowledge and experience
with others. Send out press releases of your
classes and put the notice in your marketing kit.
Form alliances: Act as a sub-contractor or joint venture with others when possible. Their clients, in effect, become yours
and visa versa.
Ask! That’s right. Ask! Ask for at least
3 leads from every client and provide a selfaddressed, stamped envelope for their convenience. Reward them for the new business
you obtain from their referral.
Paul Montelongo
Be a radio or TV guest: Offer your presence to a radio or TV show when there is a
newsworthy item relating to your business.
Have stuff and label your stuff: Carry
your brochure, one-page ad, and promotional material with you at all times. Label
everything from your trucks and cars to
your pen and pencil sets.
Get a coach or be a coach: Having
someone hold you accountable to your
goals and plans is valuable. Your coach will
endorse you as someone worthy of the trust
of others. Mentor a young entrepreneur.
Coach a new businessperson. Share your
knowledge.
Send an e-mail newsletter: This is a
no-cost way of maintaining a presence in
front of your clients.
Get involved in lateral organizations:
Join and get involved in organizations that
support the construction industry. This will
lead to more business from sources you may
not have consciously targeted.
One note of encouragement is to FOLLOW UP. Whatever leads for potential
new business come your way needs to be
followed up.
Until we have the honor to meet in
person, remember, “Success is YOUR
choice, choose well.”
Paul Montelongo is the author of 101 Power
Strategies; Tools to Promote Yourself as the
Contractor of Choice. Paul has owned and
operated his own multi-million dollar
construction company for over 23 years.
Visit Paul at www.ContractorOfChoice.com.
ighway, Heavy, Utility and Industrial
contractors left the
I-35 corridor behind them on
Thurs., May 23rd, escaping
to the Hill Country for an afternoon of golfing rivalry.
The Associated General Contractors of Texas
2002 PAC Golf Tournament
was held at River Crossing
Golf Club, Spring Branch,
TX.
Linda Ublacker, Secretary/Meeting Planner,
AGC of Texas said it was a
L-R: Jerry Lutz, Aggregate Haulers; Huntley Turner, Martin
stellar turnout. “We have
114 players today, and this Marietta Materials; Brant Day and Nathan Masar, V.K. Knowlton.
is the highest attendance in our history. companies. I selected this location because
Members have come from Austin, San An- it’s a beautiful new golf course, the price
tonio, New Braunfels, and San Marcos to represented a good value, and the scenic
location is accessible from all directions.
support our tournament.”
Bryan Moore, Insurance & Bonds, Today we’re enjoying a record turnout!”
And the winners were:
Inc., helped organize the tournament, BBQ
dinner and award ceremony. “Our agency 1st Place Gross: Chase Gardner, Johnson
Oil; Richard Ehlinger and
Jed Vahn, Cierra Pipe; and
Edward Trevino, Trevino
Trucking.
1st Place Net: David Kopp,
TxDOT; Bobby Nauert,
Danny Reininger and
Terry Jackson, Hunter Industries.
2nd Place Gross: David
Dahse, SMI- Texas; Jim
Siddons, Frank Siddons Insurance; Mark Herod and
L-R: Paul Sanchez and Clay Moore, Texana Machinery; and Oran Bissett, Acme Bridge.
Josh Cox, Black Topper Technology.
Longest Drive # 9: Edward
Trevino, Trevino Trucking.
has been affiliated with AGC of Texas since Closest to the Pin: Bratt Roszell, Mort
1988, and we work with several member Roszell Co.
Austin Construction News • July 2002––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page11
The Great Outdoors welcomes your photos and stories.
We will print on a first-come, space-available basis, and all photos will be returned when requested.
Mail to: Austin Construction News • 2101 IH-35 South, Suite #202 • Austin, Texas 78741
WESCO employees relieve tensions in the ring
C
women, Karen Gonzalez,
and Jenny Tapp, who had
signed up to fight, but said
they are still the best of
friends. The matches started
at 7pm and approximately 50
to 60 people showed up to
see colleagues duke it out
and relieve a little pent up
stress.
“I just gave everyone the
rules and gloves and let
them in the ring,” said
Torrance. “I don’t
think anyone really
trained for the match,
but I do plan to hold
this again next year.
With this match, it
seemed like all my
close friends were
(L-R): Trent Calhoun, referee John Torrance and John Doolittle
there and there was a
get ready to face off.
feeling in the air from
most everyone of not knowing what the hell is going that making it pretty homemade.”
to happen.”
After the fights were over with, Torrance said his
In all, six people turned out to box. In addition guests hung around and talked about the events of the last
John Torrance, right, keeps a close eye on the fighters to
to the fight between Gonzales and Trapp, there were few hours. About 11:30pm everyone started to head home
makes sure he calls close shots.
two more fights between, JB Brown and Mike and Torrance began to wonder how he would pull this event
“They just kept taunting each other until I finally said Haskell, and John Doolittle and Trent Calhoun.
off next year.
“I was nervous about what might happen if people
that they needed to get it out of their systems,” said Tor“It sounds as though the word has spread, and I don’t
rance. “They ended up not fighting that night because one got too worked up,” Torrance said. “I was the referee and know if my backyard will be big enough for another one,”
was sick and the other then went off fishing. But I still had made sure to call it close and that no one got hurt. There he said. “Regardless, I think it provided a good time for
were no injuries sustained. The ring was small, 12 x 12. I everyone, and one that surely won’t be forgotten.”Ω
three other fights lined up that did go on.”
Torrance said his manager was concerned about two just put up four sticks of EMT pipe and caution tape around
all it therapy, an extracurricular activity, or just good
old fashion fun, John Torrance, purchasing manager for WESCO Distribution Inc. calls it a night
he won’t soon forget.
Though he isn’t a boxer, Torrance enjoys the sport and
offered to hold a boxing match at his house Fri., April 26th
after calling out two WESCO colleagues, Shawn and Ed
Shellenberger, who also happen to be brothers. He arranged it so that they could work through some of their
tensions that aroused from daily interactions in a rink in
his backyard.
EDGAR
Lone Star Materials, Inc.
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Page 12 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
by John Jefferson
John Jefferson brings broad-based outdoor experience and travel to
Construction News’ outdoor page as its regular columnist. www.johnjefferson.com
All Photos taken by John Jefferson
Two with one cast
A
friend of mine – let’s call him
“William”– was returning home
one night. As he came down the
hill to ford the low water crossing, his
headlights picked up the little dam and
the pool behind it. Like a wino wanting
one more drink, he pulled in and got out
his rod.
“I threw a little jig with a twisterworm close to the bank,” he told me, “and
something hit it just as it reached the
water. I set the hook, but then it felt like
it was hung up. When I’d let off tension,
it would pull back. Then, when I would
pull, it would give a little, and then I’d
be hung again. I shined my flashlight
over there and could see my fish and it
looked like it was hung on a root.”
It took William a few tugs to realize
what had happened. There in the dark, a
large sunfish hit his lure as it came to
water. Almost instantly, a large snake
nabbed the fish! It had the fish by the
head, and wouldn’t let go. It must have
wrapped around a root, itself, because it
wouldn’t give more than a couple of
inches.
“We pulled back and forth for about
ten minutes,” William said. “Once, it
improved its grip like a dog pulling on a
rope, so I figured it must be getting tired.”
The snake finally gave up. It just let go.
William reeled the fish in and pulled
it up onto the dam. Measuring it without
touching, he saw that it was ten inches
long. “I was afraid to touch him because
I figured it was full of venom,” William
admitted. “Then I pushed him back into
the creek and he just swam off, kinda
listing to port.”
The fish sounded like it was one of
the goggle-eyed perches. At ten inches,
it was close to a state record (now 10.5
inches) , and would have certainly been
the Bull Creek water body record. After
consulting Russell Tinsley’s book,
Fishing Texas, with its beautiful color
plates of all Texas fish, we decided it was
probably a warmouth. If you fish and
don’t have this book, you can find it at
Academy or Oshman’s. You need it!
–––––––––––––––
A good book on snakes would help,
too. Most know the four poisonous
snakes when they see them: rattlesnake,
copperhead moccasin, cottonmouth water
moccasin and coral snake. From the
description, it sounded like William’s
snake had been non-poisonous. Chances
are, any snake you run into will be nonpoisonous. There are just more non-lethal
ones to run into than the other kind. Of,
course, non-lethal doesn’t extend to heart
failure, and I imagine that could occur
during a close encounter with a snake. A
cottonmouth nearly did it to me, once.
The non-poisonous variety need to be
left alone to do what nature intended.
They serve a purpose. They fascinate
many of us and make interesting, salable
photographs (see herein). Beyond that,
they are part of the balance of nature.
Eliminate all the snakes and see how
quickly the rodents and other nuisance
species take over the country. A good
snake book is Alan Tenant’s A Field
Guide to Texas Snakes.
All the
bookstores carry it.
At first glance, all snakes are frightening. Many, like this coachwhip,
are non-poisonous and beneficial.
Fortunately, most poisonous snakebites, like you would receive from this
rattlesnake, are not going to be fatal.
As for William not touching the fish,
he could have done so. Unless he lost
his mind and decided to make sushi, he
could have even eaten it. Even had the
snake been poisonous, there wouldn’t
have been much venom injected into the
fish, and the venom would have probably
cooked to nothing. Dr. Joe Abell, an
Austin physician, and a consultant on
Tenant’s book, says venom, to be
damaging to humans, has to be injected
into human muscle in order to reach our
bloodstream. Chances of it surviving hot
grease, then the acid bath of our digestive
system and still finding its way into our
bloodstream are lower than the odds of
my winning the lottery.
JJ
Wishing you a happy
4th of July
holiday!
Crane Works
512-929-5566
Capitol Aggregates, LTD.
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Austin Construction News • July 2002 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 13
Moonlight Madness
Capt. Steve Schultz - Baffin Bay Charters
D
uring the summer months, here in
the Coastal Bend, anglers can find
some of the best fishing along the
entire coast. Our bays are loaded with
resident fish and tide runners, which are
constantly arriving from the Gulf. With
school being out for summer and the
weather getting better everyday, that can
only mean one thing. Boating and fishing
pressure will be one of the most important
factors for not being able to find large
quantity of fish or stay on those fish once
you have a bite going. That is why I
emphasize so much that the best fishing is
usually during the week instead of on a
weekend. The other alternative is to fish
under the moonlight.
Fishing late into the evening and into
the night during the full moon can get you
out of everyday crowds and into some of
the more popular fishing areas without
on a set of rocks or a sand pocket you are
catching fish from, scaring all the fish
Robertson of South Texas Outfitters, and a
buddy of his joined me on one of the best
night fishing trips I have ever
experienced. We had been
planning this trip for a long
time with little success for
one reason or another. Our
trip started out of Bird Island
about two hours before
sunset. Within in 45 minutes
we had committed to a
location in Baffin Bay where
we would fish through the
night and have a good
chance of catching a big sow
trout. During the last hour
Bob Lindsey caught this nice 29 in. trophy, bound for the
of daylight and about an hour
taxidermist, on a trip with Capt. Steve Schultz.
into darkness, we caught
solid trout ranging from 18 to 25-inches.
away. It has reached a point where you Not long after that run, the fish turned off
have to do some homework and really think and we returned to the boat for a break.
about how you will go about Knowing that the major feeding time was
catching fish on any given not for another two hours, we took it easy,
day.
having a bite to eat and catching a power
One of the most nap. It wasn’t very long when we heard bait
important tools I use when working all around the boat and decided to
planning a night fishing trip, get back into the water and try catching a
besides the moon phases, fish for the wall. Within 15 minutes, I heard
are the Vector Tables which Jay say, “I’ve got a nice one on.” After
can be found in most several minutes, which probably felt like
hunting and fishing hours to Jay, he netted the big sow and let
magazines and some out a hooray. The fish turned out to be the
newspapers. Using the biggest of the night, measuring 30.5 inches
vector tables can narrow and weighing 8.5 lbs. Jay has been fishing
down major and minor for a long time, trying to catch a fish for the
feeding times and, in wall, and it finally paid off on a night trip
essence, save you time in under the moon.
Jay Robertson finally caught a 31 in., 8 lb. trout wall
When planning your fishing trip,
hanger during a night fishing trip with Capt. Steve Schultz. fishing. Moonrise and
moon set time are also very whether you are fishing during the daytime
important factors in or planning to grind it out at night, study
being hassled by novice boat operators and planning a night fish trip.
the vector tables for major and minor
impatient anglers. I have experienced all
Last month, several days before the feeding times, check sunrise and sunset
aspects of these people, trying to move-in full moon, long time friend and client Jay times along with moonrise and moonset
In case you step too close . . .
F
irst Aid ain’t what it used to be. And
I’m glad. That old “cut, suck and
spit” routine from my Boy Scout
Handbook is out. It just opened the door
for jokes about who your real friends
were,”anyway.
The recommended procedure nowadays, according to
Dr. Joe Abell, of
Austin, is to keep
the victim calm, apply a light tourniquet above the bite,
place a plasticbag
containing a small
amount of ice over
the bite (wrap it in a
wash cloth or bandana to keep it from
damaging the skin),
and get to a hospital
as quickly as you
can without running. More damage
is said to have been
caused by cutting
times, and commit to an area which has
structure and active bait fish. Taking all of
these factors into consideration can improve
your chances in catching better quality fish.
Always check the forecast to see if there
will be any weather changes while you are
on the water so there will be no surprises,
and always respect the water you are
fishing.
If you would like to plan an evening or night
fishing trip, feel free to call me at (361) 9497359. Good luck and good fishing. Capt.
Steve Schultz, Baffin Bay Charters.
DON’T MISS
YOUR TARGET
fang marks with a rusty knife and sucking
with less than a germ-free mouth than from
the bite. Limbs have been lost by tight
tourniquets, and skin frost bitten by immersing in ice.
Advertise with
Austin Construction News!
Call 512-447-2900
JJ
Hullupply
S o.
C
Photo by
John Jefferson
Robust 27 in. sow trout, released by
Charlie Smith, Alamo Concrete, on a
Baffin Bay Charter’s outing with Capt.
Steve Schultz.
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Page 14 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
Bass Virus resurfaces
in Lake Bastrop
River fun
T
here was no lack of fish or fun Memorial Day weekend for family and
friends of Steve Bryson, project
manager for Ranserve. Trucks, boats and
campers pulled in Friday the 24 th on a spot
of land just below Bastrop on the river.
When the campers were set and the
lines baited, there was lots of time for relaxation and the occasional game of washer.
The fishermen of the group divided
into two teams to see who could bring in
the most fish. They had to scout out the
best spots to place their lines and continue
checking and baiting them throughout the
weekend. Les Johnson, owner of L.W.
Johnson Construction, and Bryson’s team
had the biggest string in the end. You can
bet both teams are already thinking out their
strategy for next year.Ω
First string of fish pulled out the first day. Back to front (l-r) Junoir Proske,
Oscar Mertink, Fred Mitschke, Breanna Butler, Charlie Amidon, Les Johnson,
Blayne Butler and Michael Butler.
No more ticks
A
pril to June are prime months
to get tick bites or other reactions, according to the Texas
Department of Health. To avoid tickborne illnesses, such as Lyme Disease
and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, be
aware of the following.
For Lyme Disease, which is the
more frequently diagnosed tick-borne
problem in the U.S., the disease usually
begins with flu-like symptoms such as
fatigue, headache, fever and stiff neck
and joints. Occasionally there may be
skin lesions or rashes around the tick
bite. This disease is treated with antibiotics.
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever can
be transmitted through American dog
ticks, especially in the southeastern and
central areas of the U.S. The classic sign
for this disease is a small, spotted rash
that occurs first on the palms of the
hands or the soles of the feet, and then
spreads to other parts of the body.
Symptoms also resemble the flu with
high fever, headaches and muscle
aches.Ω
D
ozens of dead and dying largemouth bass were observed daily
the last two weeks of May on a
900-impoundment 30 miles east of Austin,
according to a release by Texas Parks and
Wildlife Department
(TPWD). Lab analysis at
the A. E. Wood Fish
Hatchery in San Marcos of
several of the bass recovered confirmed the presence of Largemouth Bass
Virus (LMBV). During
the investigation of the
dead or dying fish, biologist saw 122 dead bass
May 31st on Lake Bastrop.
A virus responsible for killing largemouth bass on four popular Texas reservoirs
in the summers of 1998 and 1999, and
linked to approximately 20 die-offs nationwide, has been recognized by Texas Parks
and Wildlife as making its way through
Lake Bastrop.
“This sounds pretty typical for a Largemouth Bass Virus outbreak,” said Dave
Terre, TPWD regional fisheries director in
Tyler and Texas, and who serves as a representative on a multi-state team of researchers investigating the virus. “The public should expect it would continue for a
time, maybe up to a month. This doesn’t
mean the bass fishing at Bastrop is going
to crash. We’ve experienced this on some
pretty major lakes in East Texas and we
know the lake will recover.”
According to Auburn University scientist John Grizzle from the TPWD release, LMBV is one of more than 100 naturally occurring viruses that affect fish but
not warm-blooded animals. Its origin is
unknown, but it is related to a virus found
in frogs and other amphibians and almost
identical to a virus isolated in fish imported
to the United States for the aquarium trade.
The fish poses no human health risks and
fish exposed to LMBV are safe for human
consumption.
TWPD says that Bastrop marks the
first active case of LMBV in Texas since
1999. However, Terre says that there has
never been a fishery lost because of LMBV.
“The only significant thing we’ve been able
to determine is threat when the virus occurs, angler catch rates, particularly for
large fish, decline for a short period and
then recover. Fishing could be slow, but it’s
not because the virus put a dent in the bass
population.”
Listed below are lakes in which the
virus has been detected. Aside from Lake
Bastrop, no known fish kills are now occurring in any Texas lakes due to LMBV.
In Central Texas, the following lakes and
waterways are known to be affected:
Brazos, Lake Hubbard Creek Reservoir,
Lake Possum Kingdom, Lake Whitney and
Lake Belton; Colorado, Lake Buchanan;
Guadalupe, Canyon Lake and in San
Jacinto, Lake Conroe.
In East Texas, the virus has been detected in the following river drainages: Red
River, Lake Texoma; Cypress, Lake Cypress Springs; Sabine, Lake Tawakoni,
Lake Fork and Toledo Bend Reservoir and
in Neches, Lake Athens, Lake Palestine,
Lake Tyler, Lake Nacogdoches and Sam
Rayburn Reservoir; Trinity, Lake Bridgeport and Lake Livingston.Ω
Engineering humor
T
here was an engineer who had an
exceptional gift for fixing all things
mechanical. After serving his company loyally for over 30 years, he happily
retired.
Several years later the company contacted him regarding a seemingly impossible problem they were having with one
of their million-dollar machines. They had
tried everything and everyone else to get
the machine to work but to no avail. In
desperation, they called on the retired engineer who had solved so many of their
problems in the past.
The engineer reluctantly took the
challenge. He spent a day studying the
huge machine. At the end of the day, he
marked a small “x” in chalk on a particular component of the machine and
stated, “This is where your problem is.”
The part was replaced and the machine
worked perfectly again.
The company received a bill for
$50,000 from the engineer for his service.
They demanded an itemized accounting
of his charges. The engineer responded
briefly; one chalk mark, $1; knowing
where to put it, $49,999.
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Austin Construction News • July 2002 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 15
Site Work / Paving Industry
Equipment Dealers grow with Austin area boom
Keeping contractors stocked and operating
is the name of the game for equipment companies. With their help, the Austin-metro
corridor, from San Antonio to Waco, is forever changed and growing still.
L
annie Gill is vice president of Equipment Depot in Austin, which has
been in operations since 1975.
“We are a diversified
dealer in construction and industrial rental and sales, and are
now making $25 to $30 million
in sales in the Austin area,” said
Gill. “We also have service and
parts departments in all of our
locations and in Austin employ 35 technicians.”
According to Gill, Equipment Depot
handles several lines of equipment and was
the largest and No. 1 Skytrack dealer in the
United States last year, as well as the New
Holland dealer for skid steers and backhoes.
“There has been quite a bit of change
with the skid steer loader,” says Gill. “New
Holland came out with a new model that
was well received in the industry. It provides a low center of gravity and is very
smooth with little maintenance. In the Austin construction area, we are the Genie JLG
dealer. We are the only authorized dealer
for these lines in this area, as well for the
Daewoo heavy excavator and dirt dealer,
not to mention that we are a Clark, Caterpillar and Daewoo and Mitsubishi dealer
for forklifts.”
In the time Gill has been with Equipment Depot, he says the company has been
extremely focused on stocking diversified
equipment and needed services. With
Austin’s growth, the company has also expanded up and down the IH-35 corridor
increasing its buying power with locations
in Dallas, Waco, San Antonio and Laredo.
“In this market, you either have to be
big or go home,” says Gill. “You can’t be
small and take advantage of
business opportunities in this
market. We handle about 90 percent of the forklift business in
Austin, and we are probably the
largest construction rentalhouse in town with approximately 1,200 rentals in stock.
We cater to the large contractor
on to one-man operations.”
Along with the expansive
equipment selection, Gill says that Equipment Depot has a full-time trainer to work
with customers’ operators to help them understand OSHA regulations in operating
equipment. Yet, with all the services that
are provided, Gill still can see
room for improvement within the
industry.
“I think the biggest change or
enhancement that could be made
with the construction industry in
general is to better relay information and increase communication,
especially to those construction
professionals in outlying areas.
Publications like Austin Construction News help to do that.”Ω
B
ud Degroot, Austin area
manager for Texana Machinery, based out of San Antonio,
will have served six years with the company come September. Each location is a
full line dealership consisting of parts, service, rental and sales departments. The
Austin branch has 23 employees.
“I have worked in the construction
equipment industry for 32 years, and owned
my own excavation business for 15 years
before coming to Texana,” said Degroot.
With his hands-on knowledge of construction equipment, specifically with the
full CASE line of equipment and ToroDingo line Texana carries, Degroot has
gained an enhanced perception of the needs
of contractors in the site work and utility
industry.
“In the construction industry, the excavator has taken the forefront as far as the
all purpose machine,” said Degroot. “We
are seeing machinery of all sizes and shapes
become multifunctional. Skid steers have
a lot of different attachments, as do wheel
loaders and loader backhoes. We are seeing people who want one machine to do a
multitude of tasks. Therefore, up time is,
paramount in the contractors
mind. If they have only one
or two machines on the job
with a number of attachments, and one goes down,
they are out of business. The
key to this business is service, and our goal is to offer
the best service in town.”
Degroot finds that both
Austin and San Antonio are
good growing markets.
“Our goal is to keep expanding
Texana’s services and facilities in order to
better serve its customers. Since 1994, we
have experienced continual growth in all
areas of our business. We send our mechanics to CASE for training with that specific
equipment line, and we also have in-house
training where manufacturers bring their
trainers to us. We also use computers for
tutorials and online training. This isn’t just
an old nuts and bolts industry like it used
to be. A lot of equipment has onboard diagnostic computers, which makes this line
of work more technical than just changing
or repairing parts.”
C
ooper Equipment Co. was founded
in 1959 by Robert “Bob” L. Cooper who began operations from his
home. In 1980, the company was moved
from near the San Antonio airport to its
present location on the far north side of
town on Loop 1604. In 1984, Bob’s son,
George Cooper, became president of Cooper Equipment Company when his father
retired.
“The company began with E.D. Etnyre
asphalt distributors and expanded into many
different accounts over the years,” said Cooper. “We heavily support all the products
we sell and offer an annual school for customers for certain asphalt equipment.”
Cooper said that he has grown up in
this industry working during the summers
in the late 1960’s. After graduating from
Texas A&M University with a degree in
mechanical engineering, he eventually
came to work for his father on a temporary
basis in sales and found that he very much
enjoyed selling equipment and helping customers attain products that help them earn
a living.
Though the company location is in
north San Antonio, it is only an hour from
Austin. Cooper says his company has
worked in Austin since ‘day one’ with Rick
continued on Page 16
New perspectives, business styles in paving industry
C
raig Teykl is the Austin manager
for Aggregate Haulers and has
held the position for two and a half
years. He has been within the paving and
trucking industry for 18 years.
“Austin is such a dynamic, growing
city, so many people love being here,” says
Teykl. “It is so funny when we are hauling
materials to a site and happen to pass a
neighbor complaining about the noise or the
fact that the trucks are coming through.
What they forget is that the house that they
live in was built in a similar fashion. How
were all of the materials delivered and utilities installed? It was all done through paving and development work. A good message to send out is that we can’t stop
growth, let’s try as a community to control
it and make sure we are doing it the right
way. This is such a neat city. For my family to live here is a great pleasure.”
Approximately 100 other employees
work for Aggregate Haulers in Austin,
which handles work in 100-mile radius of
the city. There are a little more than 800
trucks statewide in locations in Dallas/Ft.
Worth, Houston, Mexia and San Antonio,
which is the corporate office.
“Our work is mostly in the civil market including utility and road construction
in hauling aggregates, primarily gravel
trucks,” said Teykl. “As well, we also do a
lot of hot-mix hauling; anything to do with
road construction.”
In looking at business trends over the
last year, Teykl reflects with optimism and
sees signs for solid growth and work in the
future. “We have been blessed with solid
business. Over the last five years we have
exceeded our budget expectations. However, we are seeing a correction in the mar-
ket right now, which started in the middle
of last summer. The growth that we are experiencing is not what it was, but business
is still good. At a point, demand was far
exceeding supply, but the market has found
some stabilization. As the largest trucker
in Austin, we have been fortunate to provide a quality service.”
One of the projects Teykl refers to that
will help keep the paving industry humming
is the work to start on Highway 130. An interesting approach to the project is that the
team assembled to build the road plans to
use concrete paving methods. According to
Teykl, this will cost more upfront than to
use asphalt, but the long-term maintenance
contract is substantially less. The overall
price is a lot less than first assumed.Ω
F
or 11 years, Jerry Faust, Austin sales
manager for Capitol Aggregates Ltd.,
has kept all senses piqued on the
growth and changes in the hot mix and paving industry in Central Texas.
In Austin, Capitol Aggregates has 150
employees. With locations across Texas,
the company has three locations that make
hot mix asphalt and ready mix concrete and
paving materials, along with five ready mix
concrete plants and is a supplier of construction materials that includes sand,
gravel and crushed stone products.
“I’ve spent 21 years as a sales person
in the materials business in San Antonio and
Austin,” said Faust. “There really has not
been a great deal of change in the manufacturing of products. The fuels used in the
asphalt plants are changed somewhat, heading to heavier oils from natural gas. Plants
themselves have changed on a limited ba-
sis. The types of plants that are used to make
the materials are those that were assembled
20 years ago.”
According to Faust, TxDOT has done
a lot of work in improving pavements and
some of the materials used in the pavements. However, he says the manufacturing process and the process of selling to
customers is for the most part unchanged.
“We are involved in some of the work
that is ongoing right now with the new highways and interchanges,” said Faust. “We track
demographics to try to assess markets to appeal to now and those to look into for future
growth and expansion in this industry. We
plug away and do our job everyday, expanding our production capacity and keeping up
with the market as it has grown. Hot mix asphalt and ready-mix concrete are widely used
and important materials. We don’t anticipate
that to change any time soon.”
T
he amount of drivers and
traffic in Austin can be
seen as directly related to
the growth of the paving and site
work industry in the area. For
companies such as Wheeler
Coatings Asphalt, Inc., the opportunity for growth as a company translated into expansion
into different areas of service.
“We have about 160 employees and like to consider ourselves a
full-service pavement construction and
maintenance organization,” said Dean
Donnellan, vice president for Wheeler.
“What is unique about us in Central Texas
is that we do everything from pot hole repair to highway construction. Jack
Wheeler started the company in 1981 predominately performing maintenance work,
and it has grown along with Austin and the
market to where we are at the same level
with some of the larger paving contractors
in the state.”
Proof of Wheeler’s growth is seen in
its latest line up of projects.
“We just wrapped up a state project at
Parmer Lane and also are underway on a
night time project in downtown Austin on
IH-35, which extends from Town Lake up
north to 1325 in Round Rock,” said
Donnellan. “It was started last year and
we’re continuing throughout this summer
to complete this. Anyone that travels IH-35
at night knows we are there. We have also
wrapped up some projects at the new airport
as a subcontractor for Chasco Contracting.”
Looking down the road, Donnellan
sees the company maintaining or increasing its market share, and at the same time,
reacting to the changing markets.
“Recently there has been
a slow down in the private market, specifically the building of
commercial office buildings
and residential subdivisions,”
said Donnellan. “We are trying to maintain and attain as
much of that work as we can.
Yet, we are also trying to focus on public work. I think
what we are most proud of here is to be
able to retain good employees. When it
comes down to it, the people make it happen. The company’s success is based on
everyone.”
continued on Page 16
Page 16
Site Work / Paving Industry
once he left IBM.
“The equipment company my father, Bill
and also sell products to governmental and Butler, and I ran was called B’s Rent All.
county agencies,” says Cooper. “Overall, I When I was talking with my father about a
am most proud of cultivating relationships name for the store Mark and I were
with customers. We are starting up, we began brainstormvery grateful to our cus- ing and since we are in Liberty Hill
tomers who have given with the high school mascot being
us their business and it is the panthers, and we rent bobcats,
rewarding meeting their and since both cats make tracks, Cat
needs. I know that all I Trax Rentals just fell off the tongue
can do is employ good and into place.”
people and offer top
With compensation for leavbrand equipment. The ing IBM, the two friends, now
rest is up to building solid business partners, bought their
relationships with both our suppliers and first bobcat and trailer and started
especially our customers.”
first renting it out at the auto parts store
down the street where their store is now
located.
etting up an equipment dealer lo“Once we made enough from renting
cation in the mighty expanding the bobcat, we continued to buy more
community of Liberty Hill some equipment and our own office and yard and
might compare to hitting the jackpot, at have continued to grow,” says Morgan.
least Brian Butler, president of
“That first bobcat was fourCat Trax Rentals and his partner,
teen years old and we bought
Mark Morgan, vice president of
it from Brian’s dad.”
the company think so.
The company now has
Cat Trax Rentals has been in
four full-time and three part
operation for five years. Both Buttime employees.
ler and Morgan had worked at IBM
“We rent out a majority
and decided to leave the high tech
of rock saws, bulldozers,
industry when it began to become
bobcats and equipment for
unstable. Butler had been in the
landscaping and surface
equipment business with his father
preparation and septic and
Brian Butler
in the late 1980’s and was thinkexcavation,” says Butler.
ing about pursuing that line of work again “We are almost even in the markets we rent
to, which comes out to about 60/40 commercial to residential. We get customers
from a majority of Williamson County,
along with Travis and Burnet Counties, but
don’t like to send equipment
too far in case something
needs to be serviced. One advantage with our locale is that
there are not a lot of lulls with
the rate of development in this
area. It is all coming this way
and we are ready for it.”
To meet the demand and
growth in the Liberty Hill market, Cat Trax had to stock more
of the larger equipment such
as bulldozers and backhoes and change its
delivery set up.
“Before, customers used to haul the
equipment on a trailer themselves,” Said Butler. “Now we perform more of the deliveries. Equipment is now made more user
friendly and doesn’t require as much training to operate. We like to stock a good line
of equipment that falls under that category
to help our customers complete their jobs
with as much ease as possible. Bobcat, Caterpillar, CASE and John Deere make up the
four major lines we carry. We also try to
specialize in new tools, and only keep them
two to three years and then change them out
for newer ones just to ensure no customers
will run into any problems. One key to our
success, we didn’t have much operating capital when we started, but we keep a list of
what people call up requesting.”Ω
meet it. Industrial Asphalt & Seal provides
maintenance work for asphalt needs. It was
started three years ago and employs workers who have been with the company for
26 years. We work mainly in the Hill Country, though have worked in El Paso and
Eagle Lake. Total, there are about 85 employees between the
paving company,
hot mix and the
maintenance company.”
Currently, the
company branches
are working on the
project at the Ben
White / IH-35 interchange and just
completed a parking lot in Bastrop County for a Home Depot. As well the branches are also working
on projects up north in Lakeway. One of
the more challenging projects for the company branches that has also become one of
the proudest accomplishments was laying
down the majority of the runway for the
Austin Bergstrom International Airport. All
work was completed in 12 days without any
penalties.”
Asphalt Paving Company of Austin,
Inc. started to expand when Jill graduated
from college and joined the company. At
that time, she and her brother Little Joe
decided to produce their own asphalt.
“The product of asphalt itself hasn’t
changed as far as how it is made, but the
ingredients used have been altered some to
comply with what the highway department
requires,” said Little Joe. “That includes
different oils and polymers used, which
helps with the durability and longevity of
the product.”
Little Joe further states that the trucking side of the company
evolved along with
growth in capacity.
“We have 20 trucks and
two oil tankers, and we
haul the liquid and the
raw material to projects
along with all material
for Asphalt Paving Company of Austin, Inc,” said
Sam Shackelford, president of Material Transport Inc. “With this set up, it gives us control over operations and scheduling of
projects by being able to provide all services for projects in house. I have 85 outside customers we haul for as well and lease
25 trucks.”
Jill Shackelford, president of Industrial
Asphalt and part owner of Industrial Asphalt & Seal has helped to see that the materials her husband’s trucking company
hauls is put to good use. “I run the operations of Industrial Asphalt. We supply asphalt to the City of Austin, which is an accomplishment we are very proud of. We
have had that contract to sell asphalt to the
continued from Page 15- Equipment Dealers grow with Austin area boom
Chapman handling sales in the Austin and
surrounding areas.
In addition, Cooper says what makes
his family’s company
unique is the dedication
to handling only certain
types of equipment.
“We are more of a specialty equipment house.
When I took over, we
started to focus in on one
segment of the asphalt
industry with road and
asphalt equipment. At first though, my father was especially pleased in selling what
intrigued him. Underground boring rigs,
cranes, trenchers, etc. Since I now oversee
operations, we purposely do not have backhoes, cranes, boring rigs, haul trucks and
so forth. We stayed allied to our philosophy of offering special top quality equipment, service and parts in the asphalt and
road segment of our industry. We rent pavers of all sizes and have a wide range of rollers, which we stock and rent. We have recently
expanded our roller lines by taking on
Vibromax rollers in addition to our Sakai
roller line.”Cooper Equipment’s clientele includes major highway contractors to small
parking lot contractors. The company also has
crack filling equipment to serve maintenance
contractors.
“We will do business with general contractors who do some of their own work,
S
continued from Page 15- New perspectives, business styles in paving industry
T
hree family members have joined
forces and wits to supply the Austin
area with asphalt and paving services for years to come. In 1977, Joe Jackson began Asphalt Paving Company of
Austin, Inc. only to transition comfortably
into retirement when his son, known as
Little Joe Jackson, stepped up to the plate
and now serves as vice president of Asphalt
Paving and Industrial Asphalt & Seal in
Austin Construction News • July 2002
addition to two other branches: Industrial
Asphalt, run by Joe’s sister, Jill
Shackelford and Apache Material Transport, Inc., run by Sam Shackelford.
“A full-service asphalt company since
1977, all of our branches combine to work
on streets, highways and parking lots for
the city, county and commercial and residential markets,” said Little Joe Jackson.
“Basically, if there is a need for asphalt we
continued on Page 17
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operated since 1971
Committed to meeting
our customer’s needs
with:
The Concrete
Pumping Company
• 24 hour live dispatch & service
• Skilled operators & mechanics
• Trailer pumps & all boom sizes from 28M to 45M
• Insurance coverage
2001 Safety Awards
• Full maintenance
512-385-3535
800-460-4609
Look for our ad on page 479 in your
Southwestern Bell Yellow Pages
Austin Construction News • July 2002
INDUSTRIAL
INDUSTRIAL
ASPHALT
ASPHALT & SEAL
INC.
INC.
ASPHALT
CITY WORK
BUY
RESIDENTIAL
COMMERCIAL
STATE WORK
PAVING COMPANY OF AUSTIN, INC.
P.O. Box 1649, Buda, Texas 78610
SEALING
PAVING
Page 17
Site Work / Paving Industry
STRIPING
LEASE
RENT
POT HOLE REPAIR
WBE * DBE * HUB
23 YEARS EXPERIENCE
(512) 312-1666
Next
Month in
Aug. 2002 Issue
Interior Construction
& Finishes
Flooring Contractors /Flooring Suppliers
Construction materials suppliers
Construction materials
manufacturers
Tile Contractors / Tile Suppliers
Granite & marble contractors
Granite & marble suppliers
Ceiling Contractors
Ceiling Material suppliers
Painting Contractors
Paint Suppliers & maufacturers
www.texanamachinery.com
Any company that sells items
to interior finish or GC’s for
interior finishes
opened our own testing facility that allows
us to test the asphalt we make in house. To
that end, I am a certified quality tester of
asphalt, and took classes at the Texas Hot
Mix Asphalt Association where I was
awarded certification by the state. We have
an in-house tester that checks the incoming aggregate for proper gradation and
blend.”Ω
RV
S SUUR
VEEY Y
This month we are highlighting the Site Work and Paving Industry.
The response was 4%.
50% considered their company “small” with less than $2 million in sales.
00% considered their company “medium” with $2 - $5 million in sales.
50% considered their company “large” with $6+ million in sales.
3 = Neutral
4 = Disagree
JOB SITE ISSUES
Staff includes full-time mechanics to maintain equipment: ........ 50 00 00
Shortage or delay of materials is common: ................................ 00 00 00
Jobsite safety is a priority: .......................................................... 100 00 00
Project coordination/planning/scheduling is better than ever: .... 50 00 50
We’re so busy, our field personnel frequently work overtime: .... 00 50 50
50 00
100 00
00 00
00 00
00 00
CONTRACTOR RELATIONSHIPS
Progress draws are paid on time: .............................................. 00 50 50
GC’s acknowledge us on the excellence of our work: ................ 100 00 00
We’re reluctant to work with GC’s who are new to the area: ...... 00 00 50
Contractor supervision on projects is efficient: .......................... 100 00 00
Conflicts with contractors over completion times are increasing: . 00 00 50
00
00
00
00
00
00
00
50
00
50
LEGAL ISSUES
Threats of lawsuits have increased: ........................................... 00
Liability exposure has increased: ............................................... 00
Attorney’s fees for company representation/consultation have
increased: ................................................................................... 00
Our company has never been involved in a law suit: ................. 00
50 00 00 50
100 00 00 00
50 00 00 50
00 50 50 00
FINANCIAL ISSUES
Our profit margin is better now than one year ago: .................... 50
We prefer banking with a Texas-based bank: ............................. 00
Operating costs have risen substantially over the past year: ..... 00
We are projecting an increase in business in 2002: ................... 00
One of the companies was involved in a lawsuit in the last 12 months.
None of the companies were audited by the IRS in the last 12 months.
One of the companies was inspected by OSHA in the last 12 months.
None of the companies are woman and/or minority owned.
2 = Agree
––––––––––––––––––
Customers are becoming more value-focused vs. low-bid
shopping: .................................................................................... 00 00 00 100 00
continued from Page 16- New perspectives, business styles in paving industry
1 = Strongly Agree
SAN ANTONIO
(512) 272-8922 (210) 333-8000
(800) 615-3804 (800) 483-9262
Call for space reservations
(512) 447-2900
city for the past two years and most likely
will continue to do so. We have grown our
volume substantially every year. Sales have
averaged to be up 25 to 35 percent every
year, and the majority of the work we get is
on a quality basis, not a low bid. We have
grown from $4 million to $30 in about five
years. The bulk of our paving is done because of how we work. We became self sufficient with our hot mix plant and have
AUSTIN
–––––––––––––––––
PARTS
SERVICE
SALES
RENTALS
00 00
50 00
100 00
50 50
50
00
00
00
00
50
00
00
100 00
00 00
00 00
100 00
50 00
00
00
00
00
00
PERSONAL
5 = Strongly Disagree
Results are measured in percentages.
I have encouraged people I know to enter the Industry: ............ 00
Business demands have reduced time with my family: .............. 50
Affiliation with professional associations improves our credibility: 50
I still have time to play: ............................................................... 00
I generally work on Saturdays: ................................................... 00
00
50
50
00
50
PERSONNEL
Have more employees than one year ago: ................................. 50
Labor pool for qualified field personnel is increasing: ................ 50
Employees are requesting more pay and benefits than those
provided: .................................................................................... 00
Our staff includes a full-time marketing position: ....................... 00
Current workload requires overtime for our office staff: ............. 00
00 50 00 00
50 00 00 00
00 100 00 00
00 50 00 50
00 50 00 50
INTERNAL OPERATIONS
Record keeping has increased due to city, state and fed
regulations: ................................................................................. 50
Company growth will require relocation to larger facility in 2002:00
Company loyalty is at an all-time high: ....................................... 50
Turnover of office personnel is low: ............................................ 00
50
00
00
50
00
50
50
50
00
00
00
00
00
50
00
00
FOCUS Commentary
“A lot of companies are low balling site work bids to
maintain cash flow and personnel retention.”
Page 18––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
SAFETY
INSURANCE
Extra, Extra Read
All About It
Fall Protection Reminders
By Gerald Schappe
By Steve Schutze
F
alls are the leading cause of construction worker fatalities
in the United States. The Texas Workers’ Compensation Commission informs us that in Texas, 121 workers
have died in falls since 1998.
I
t seems like all you hear about insurance is negative. Policy
exclusions, rate increases and claims handling problems. Over
looked are several things that insurance companies do for their
clients to enhance both parties’ ability to run a profitable operation.
For instance, one of our companies that
writes for several general contractors includes coverage for “ways and means” on
design build projects at no charge. They
also provide safety materials like posters
and manuals and will assist clients in establishing various safety programs for specific areas such as working in confined
spaces.
They also provide aggregate limits on
a per project or location basis rather than
per policy period, some coverage for accidental pollution at a jobsite and a limited
amount of coverage for damage to property in your care custody and control at a
jobsite or offsite storage location.
Many companies now include “blanket additional insured” endorsements also
at no extra premium. This means that anyone whose contract requires you to name
them an additional insured is included as
an insured on the policy. You no longer
have to pay for the additions or wait several days while the endorsement is processed before you can send evidence to an
owner or general contractor.
The “fire” or property policy you carry
on your office/shop also includes several
“extras.” Employee theft is often included.
This can be important if an employee steals
materials, makes unauthorized purchases
at a supply house or, and we have seen this
happen, simply disappears with a company
truck.
The property policies often extend
coverage to property in transit. This is usually called cargo coverage and sold as a
separate policy. You can find limits of anywhere from 5-25 thousand dollars included
on the property policy. You can also get
coverage subject to a fixed limit for your
equipment while away from your office.
For example it could apply to computers,
printers, and fax machines while being used
in a jobsite trailer.
Most construction companies do not
concern themselves with loss of income
from a fire at their office or shop because
most of their work is done away from the
premises. However many subtrades do perform work at the shop, sheet metal operations for instance, or could have other problems from loss of tools, plans, submittals
and other valuable papers. Insurance companies now include coverage for business
interruption, the cost of reconstructing valuable papers and loss of income from losing
accounts receivable records.
Read about the extras in your coverage. You may find that you have insurance
for something you thought you had to pay
for yourself. Don’t say your insurance company doesn’t give you anything other than
a calendar and a hard time.Ω
Steve Schutze, owner of C.A. Schutze
Agency, which specializes in bonds and
insurance for the construction industry.
(512) 447-5507.
When You Need A Lift . . .
In recognizing this complexity, OSHA
has developed systems and rules intended
to prevent employees from falling off, onto,
or through working levels. These rules
clarify that an employer must identify and
evaluate fall hazards and provide specific
training for workers. Fall protection is
needed where walking or working surfaces
are six feet or more above a lower level.
OSHA includes nine fall “protection” systems in 1926.502 Subpart M—its comprehensive fall protection rule for the construction industry. Employers are able to select
the specific type of fall protection measures
used.
1. Guardrail systems are conventional
restraint systems with vertical barriers consisting of toprails, midrails, and intermediate structural members such as balusters.
Guardrail systems prevent workers from
falling and keep objects from dropping to
lower levels.
2. Safety net systems are conventional
fall arrest systems consisting of mesh nets,
including panels, connectors and other impact absorbing components.
3. Personal Fall Arrest Systems
(PFA) are designed to be used by one person. They consist of an anchorage, connectors, and a body harness. Additional components include a lanyard, a deceleration
device, and a lifeline.
4. Positioning Device System enables
a person to work with both hands free on a
surface such as a wall or other vertical struc-
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Fax (210) 651-3051
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ture. They are typically used in form work
and concrete rebar placement. They are not
considered Personal Fall Arrest Systems.
5. Warning line systems consist of
ropes, wires, or chains and supporting stanchions that form a barrier to warn workers
they are near an unprotected roof side or
edge.
6. Controlled access zones are areas
in which certain work may take place without use of guardrail, personal fall arrest or
safety net. Access to the zone is controlled.
7. Safety Monitoring Systems are
monitoring procedures assigned to a competent person for warning workers. The
system does not provide a physical means
of preventing or arresting falls and conventional fall protection systems cannot be
used.
8. Covers are rigid objects used to
overlay openings in floors, roofs, roadways
and other walking/working surfaces.
9. Fall Protection Plans enable workers doing leading edge work, precast concrete erection work, or residential construction work to use alternative fall protection
systems or methods when conventional systems are infeasible.
When it comes to fall protection, training is important and may well be the key to
a successful fall protection system.Ω
(512) 282-6866
Austin, Texas
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N
o matter the engineering
field, the National Society of
Professional Engineers
(NSPE) 2002 Annual Convention &
Expo will have opportunities for networking and viewing new products,
technologies and techniques at the
Disney Coronado Springs Resort July
11th-13th in Orlando, FL. For those interested in attending, applications may
be found on the NSPE Web site at
www.nspe.org.Ω
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Austin Construction News • July 2002 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 19
ACCOUNTING
LEGAL
Sales Tax–Lump Sum
or Separated Contract
(Revisited)
Worker’s Compensation
By William M. “Skip” King
T
here are risk factors to not carrying Workers’ Compensation insurance. Workers’ Compensation is governed
by the Texas Labor Code. The following is an explanation
of three classifications of employers under this code.
The first is an employer who carries
Workers’ Compensation, the second is an
employer who does not carry Workers’
Compensation, labeled a “non-subscriber”
and finally, the third classification is that
of a self-insured employer. Under this classification, an employer would have to set
up a special fund and comply with most of
the requirements for an insurer. Cost effectively, this is usually not a viable option.
The first two types of Workers’ Compensation coverage are similar to each
other. The second type of coverage, self
insurance, is essentially setting yourself up
as a Workers’ Compensation insurance
company. The employer needs to set up a
retention fund that is acceptable to keep
money in the bank ready and available to
pay claims.
Most of the time, the employer also
carries an employee to serve as risk manager and administer the Workers’ Compensation retention fund. No employer should
attempt to operate in this manner without
legal counsel. Depending on the problems
that it solves, most contractors, including
general contractors, find that it is not cost
effective and that it is more trouble than it
is worth.
The third classification provides the
most trouble. The concept is that the employer does not carry Workers’ Compensation and is called a “non-subscriber.” A nonsubscriber is penalized in some very dangerous ways. A non-subscriber, in the event
if an employee injury claim, is exposed to
the same allegations as a regular negligence
claim. Moreover, the non-subscriber is not
allowed to use a number of defenses that
are generally available in a negligence
claim. One of these defenses would be that
the employee caused, or substantially contributed to, his or her own injury. This defense is not available to an employer who
is a non-subscriber. This can be very dangerous and very expensive. No employer
should risk being a non-subscriber without
consulting legal counsel.
In conjunction with non-subscriber status, a lot of schemes have been developed
to “borrow” or “contract” employees. In
most instances, a borrowed or contracted
employee does not qualify as an independent contractor despite the efforts to make
this so. The degree of control over the
worker is determinate of whether the
worker is an employee or an independent
contractor. Most of the “borrowed employees” are controlled directly by the independent contractor. This exposes the employer
to a non-subscriber negligence claim.
In many instances, it is better not to
attempt to come up with a method of avoiding the need for Workers’ Compensation
insurance. The exposure to liability and
damages is too high. If you want control
over your workers, do not attempt to avoid
Workers’ Compensation by hiring “contract” or “borrowed” employees. Never
enter into one of these type of agreements
without consulting your lawyer.Ω
William M. “Skip” King, partner at King
& Hardesty. Areas of practice: Civil
Litigation. (512) 479-9500,
sking@1411west.com.
By Terri Graham & Renee Clark
D
uring editing of last month’s article, several lines were deleted. The deletion
of the information made the article unclear in areas. Hopefully, the following will clear up an questions that arose as a result.
If a contract (lump-sum or separately
stated) is to perform either new construction of either residential or nonresidential
reality, or to repair or remodel an existing
residential improvement to reality, the
charge for construction labor is not subject
to sales tax. Under lump-sum contract, you
pay tax on all your supplies, materials
equipment, and taxable services when you
buy them. You don’t charge your customer
tax. Under a separated contract, you give
your suppliers resale certificates instead of
paying tax on materials you incorporate into
the customer’s real property, and on certain services if the charges for the services
are separately identified to the customer.
Real property services, which include
landscaping, yard maintenance, surveying,
building or grounds cleaning, removal or
collection of solid waste and structural pest
control service, are taxable services unless
they are purchased by a homebuilder as part
of a contract to build a new residential structure or to provide improvements in connection with the building of the new residential structure. With the exception of
homebuilders, under a separated contract,
the contractor gives the service providers
resale certificates instead of paying the tax,
and will collect the sales tax from the customer on the separately stated charge for
the services. The contractor pays the tax on
such services under a lump-sum contract.
All contractors who repair, restore, or
remodel nonresidential real property must
collect tax on the total sales price to the
customer less separately stated charges for
unrelated services. The contractor may
accept valid resale, exemption, or direct
payment exemptions certificate in lieu of
tax. Previously, lump-sum and separated
contracts were treated differently for tax
purposes. This distinction is no longer valid
when the contract is for repair, remodeling, or restoration of nonresidential real
property. The entire contract price (incorporated materials, labor, etc.) to repair and
remodel an existing nonresidential (commercial) improvement to realty, whether
lump-sum or separated, is subject to sales
tax.Ω
Renee Clark and Terri Graham, principals of Clark-Graham PLLC, have
combined experience of more than 30
years in tax and accounting services.
Their combined areas of expertise
include: services for individuals, small
business, trusts, individual and corporate
taxation. They may be reached
at (512) 502-2454.
Don Young Company, Inc.
City Hall update
A
ccording to a release from the
City of Austin, construction of
the three-level underground garage near the Warehouse District remains
on schedule. The columns and decks for
the second parking level are almost complete. Construction on the first level and
a Family of Fine Window Products
Residential
and Commercial
Window Products
basement level, immediately below the
main City Hall structure, are underway.
The most visible changes in the garage
have been the ongoing additions of parking decks, which are poured by Querry
Concrete Floors of Austin.Ω
Specializing in
dimensional
limestone
for buildings,
homes,
landscaping,
and patio
applications.
produced with
“quality standards”
among the highest
in the industry.
Replacement
and
New Construction
Thermal-Break Aluminum Windows
Welded Vinyl Windows
We proudly feature
Cardinal Low E2 Low Solar Gain Glass
quarry
P.O. Box 1006
3500 FM 2843
Florence, TX 76527
254.793.3355 tel
254.793.0182 fax
www.saladoquarry.com
Don Young Co.
Windows & Doors
1920 Shipman
San Antonio, Texas 78219
1-800-299-6864
(210) 225-0352
www.dycwindows.com
Page 20 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
continued from Page 1- Keith Crawford new owner of Capital Rentals
is that there is already such a solid and
wonderful staff assembled,” said Crawford.
“We have always been known for our high
quality of equipment. I have seen that first
hand, and we have strong relationships
with some of the best construction companies in the area, which is one of the reasons that led me to make the purchase.
“Everyone thinks taking on this position is quite a change. Yet, when it really
gets right down to it, this isn’t all that much
different than business I handled before, except that I don’t travel overnight anymore.
Both banking and concrete pumping are
service businesses and have to deliver on
what is promised at a reasonable rate. At
Capital Rentals, everyone works as a team
to meet and hopefully exceed customers
expectations, which is no different from
what I was doing at the bank.”Ω
continued from Page 1- McComb Construction unites with San Marcos building community
dent housing units to be built in its place,”
said Chris Higgs. “We were to build the
new distribution center in six months beginning in November and have everything
completed by June. Yet, we were able to
complete the project on time and the distribution center employees move in on May
6 th. This allows the demolition phase of
the old warehouse to start as scheduled.”
The new warehouse facility nearly
doubles the warehouse and receiving space
for STSU and leaves room for expansion
for the growing university.
“We worked closely with several sets
of people with STSU and the developer,
Capstone Development Corporation, who
all helped the project finish well,” said Lee
Urbanovsky, superintendent on the
project. “We hired the architect, Cox Design Associates, and the other engineers
and were able to assemble a good team
with the subs and companies from San
Marcos and the STSU staff working on this
project. The new facility is set up for all
employees to conduct business more efficiently and everyone we have talked to has
complimented the building.”
STSU wanted to do the landscaping
around the facility itself. McComb supplied research and plans to the owner suitable for the facilities design.
“Upon completion, we passed out a
comprehensive set of “as built” records the
facility’s maintenance employees can use
for future reference,” said Higgs. “The
owner can now assess the bids for that work
with information we helped provide, and
they can move forward with that part of the
project without us having to be on site.”
Subcontractors and consultants involved with the distribution center project
include: HBC Engineering, Inc.; The Cleaning Solution; AFS Environmental, Inc.;
Johnson Consulting Engineers, Inc.; Cox
Design Associates; Pickett Kelm & Associates; Thomas D. Brown & Associates; Action Fence Co.; Clarence Cullen Company;
Tecom UST Systems; G.H. Powers; Voges
Drilling Company; Shepler’s Inc.; C.L. Concrete, Accessibility Review Consultants; Restoration Systems of Texas, Inc.; Velasquez
Masonry; Nucor Vulcraft-Grapeland; 5 Star
Fabrications, Inc.; Neenah Foundry Company; Sloan’s Custom Cabinets; LMCurbs
Div Longview Mechanical Contractors; Hull
Supply Company; Hutchins Garage Doors;
Morris Glass Company; Floorcraft; Lonestar
Interiors, Inc.; Coburn & Company; T.H.
Willis Co.; The Texas Express Co.; The Miner
Corporation; TMG Trevathan Marketing
Group, Inc.; Butler Manufacturing Co.; Ed
Boyle Associates; San Marcos Air Conditioning; SimplexGrinell; Austin Prewire;
“B”Alert; andCurrent Electric, Inc.Ω
ROUND-UP
T
he American Institute of Steel
Construction (AISC)
presented Lawrence
(Larry) G. Griffis,
P.E. with its Lifetime
Achievement Award
on April 24th during
the North American
Steel Construction Conference in Seattle.
The award provides special recognition to
individuals who have provided outstanding service over a sustained period of years
to AISC and to the structural steel design/
construction/academic community.
Griffis is president of the Structure’s Division with Walter P. Moore, engineers
and consultants. The division encompasses parking consulting services, research & development, structural diagnostic services and structural engineering services.Ω
E
rik Wilek was
appointed the
new counter salesman for Summit
Electric Supply. He
has been with the
company for 10
months and comes
to Texas from Iowa,
where he attended the University of
Northern Iowa.Ω
D
aniel Womack has joined Jim
Connelly Masonry Inc. as construction manager.Ω
T
om Hasse was
promoted to
counter warehouse
manager for Summit Electric Supply.
He has worked for
the company for the
past year and will
oversee receiving, the warehouse and the
front counter. Hasse’s background includes 22 years as a journeyman electrician.Ω
J
eff Castellaw
has been hired
in his first position
working within the
electrical industry
as a driver for Summit Electric Supply.
He will deliver supplies to job sites and handle the shipping and receiving in the store’s warehouse. His background includes work
within the HVAC and plumbing industries.Ω
H
olt Caterpillar named Russell
Brown as service manager. He
has worked for the company for three
years and previously worked for the
U.S. Air Force.Ω
J
ohn Thompson has joined Jim
Connelly Masonry Inc. as a project
manager.Ω
ABC Casino Night
on Flagship Texas
T
he beginning of every summer,
members and friends of the Central Texas Chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC)
set sail on the Flagship Texas Riverboat
Charter on Lake Travis.
This June 13th, the night began at
6:45pm when the boat undocked as
members and guests were able to enjoy
a memorable sunset amidst drinks, a
buffet dinner, door prizes and of course
the many tables where all aboard could
try their hand and possibly win four grand
prizes and one jackpot prize.
The Jackpot winner for the night was
Travis Kirpatrick of Baker Drywall. He
won a two night stay at the Doubletree
Hotel in New Orleans and a gift package
to Harris Casino.
Once the 10 o’clock hour approached, the Flagship turned back to port
to allow all aboard a safe trip home.Ω
The crew from Baker Drywall is all smiles and ready for a fun night ahead.
Let Us Help You Cross The Finish Line
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Fountain Park Plaza III
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continued from Page 1- Grid Olympics
draws Materials community
word to compete or attend. Some people
have been practicing and some haven’t.
Even more, some of these guys haven’t even
been drinking beer because they are so serious about wanting to win.”
Prize money was awarded to first
through third place winners. Nathan
Landers and Bennie Christain, Baker
Drywall, won first place and $300, second
place winners were Mike Hernandez and
Matt Lathrop, Central Texas Drywall,
with $200 and third place winners were
Patrick Rourk and Scottie Blackwell,
Baker Drywall, with $100. In addition, 30
door prizes were handed out.Ω
Austin Construction News • July 2002 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 21
ASSOCIATION NEWS
For more information call 512-452-4332.
ABC
July 4-5: Associated Builders and Contractors office will be closed.
July 8: Safety meeting at 11:30am.
July 10: ABC of Texas meeting.
July 12: Legislative committee meeting at
11:30am.
July 18: Apprentice dinner and graduation
at the Renaissance Hotel beginning at 6:00pm.
July 22: Membership committee meeting
beginning at 11:30am.
July 26: Conflict to Consensus class held
at the City of Austin.
For more information call 512-719-5263.
AGC
July 25: Associated General Contractors
will be going to the Round Rock Express
vs. San Antonio Missions baseball game.
July 31: Bonding 101 seminar co-sponsored by the Austin Chapter AGC and
Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. at the
Doubletree Hotel Austin beginning at 11:30am.
For more information call 512-442-7887.
AIA
July 2: American Institute of Architects
Austin will hold its ExCom Meeting at the
chapter office.
July 16: Tour of Palmer Community Center beginning at 5:30pm. RSVP required.
July 30: Government Affairs Committee
meeting to begin at 11:30am.
July 31: Regional & Urban Design Committee meeting to begin at 11:30am.
ARA
July 11: The Austin Remodelers Association will hold its Board of Directors meeting.
July 25: General Membership meeting at
11:30am at the Old San Francisco
Steakhouse.
For more information call 512-708-0637.
ASA
A
T
he American Subcontractor Association-Austin Chapter (ASA) held
a mixer June 11th at the Red Lion Hotel.
Chuck Simpson, of Austin Sales &
Scaffold and 2002-2003 president of the
ASA, started off the evening with an update on the association and appreciation
plaques for all of the board of directors for
their time and involvement in the association. The following individuals received
recognition: Jerry Kelly, P.E., retired; Neva
Biggs, Biggs Plumbing Co.; Doris Reid,
R&R Masonry, Inc.; Nick Page, Nick’s
Bricks Masonry; Johnny Lacy, C.P.A.,
Brown, Graham & Co.; Mitch Elengold,
Hertel Insurers Group; Ann Riddel, Ann
Y. Riddel, Attorney at Law; Larry
Roepke, Floyd’s Glass; Larry Werner,
Life Med Services; Bobby Pruitt, Schmidt
Electric Co.; Todd Hewitt, Texas Fifth
Wall Roofing; Andy Hyatt, Dean
Johnston, Inc. and Chuck Simpson, Austin Sales & Scaffold.
After a great dinner the group enjoyed
listening to guest speaker Terry Keel, State
Representative, District 47.Ω
July 9: American Subcontractors Association will hold its monthly meeting at the
Old San Francisco Steakhouse beginning
at 11:30am.
For more information call 512-266-0798.
NAWIC
The National Association of Women in
Construction will not hold a monthly meeting in July.
Aug. 15: “Riverboat Cruise”
For more information call Bridget Ross,
CIT at 1+(512)858-4661 ext. 204 or email
at bross@qnsi.net.
Board of Directors for ASA Austin
TMC
July 18-20: Texas Masonry Council’s annual convention to be held at the Driskill
Hotel in Austin.
For more information call 1-888-374-9922
ext. 105.Ω
CAUTION
ccording to PREVENT BLINDNESS AMERICA, nearly 13,000
fireworks victims keep hospitals
busy every year. More than half of those
injured are children. Fireworks not only
injure users, but also 40 percent of fireworks
mishaps injure bystanders.
The three types of fireworks that keep
ASA Mixer
hospital emergency rooms busy during this
holiday period are bottle rockets, firecrackers and sparklers. Bottle rockets and firecrackers can fly in any direction prior to
exploding and sparklers burn at temperatures hot enough to melt gold.
Take extra care this holiday to ensure
safety for yourself and all around you.
Check out our website at
www.constructionnews.net
To get the job done . . . right
Anchor Post Products
Of Texas, Inc.
Anchor Fence • Anchor Access Control
Dallas • Ft. Worth • Houston • Austin • San Antonio
For more information contact Bob Oldham (V.P.)
Tel: 830-606-5516
Fax: 830-606-5565
Austin: 512-402-0706
1470 N. Business IH 35 New Braunfels, TX 78130
Look for our ad on page 679 in your
Southwestern Bell Yellow Pages
CENTRAL TEXAS METAL ROOFING
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1-800-428-7412
Texas
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See our ad at RENTAL SERVICE
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Page 22 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
LOOKING FOR PARTS?
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The Business Section
Evelyn Page
Nick Page
Nick’s Bricks Masonry, Inc.
Specializing in Quality Masonry Projects
Light Commercial
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• General Liability
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Fax: (512) 388-2352
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Office: (512)343-0280 / 1-800-473-8962
Fax: (512)343-0352 /
shuffle put your
M
Richard All, Braun & Butler Construction; Nathan Barry, Braun & Butler
Construction; Gerald Daniel, Hensel
Phelps Construction; Keith Elliott, Baker
Drywall; Shawn Fay, Constructors & Associates; Darrell Frazier, Workman Corporation; Wayne Gilley, Constructors &
Associates; Gary Hall, American Constructors; Kenton Heinze, Braun & But-
• INSPECTIONS • PLAN REVIEW
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email: dcd@ev1.net
THE INSURANCE STORE
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Ph:
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Fax: 512-930-5483
1500 West University Drive, #108 Georgetown, TX 78628
2001 Drinking Water
Quality Report
CSHI graduates two
OSHA classes
ay was a stellar month not only
for the warmer weather and sunnier days, but for the fact that 17
more construction professionals know the
ropes in proper OSHA safety etiquette from
Construction Safety and Health, Inc. Below is the list of individuals who graduated
from the 10-hour OSHA class May 20th
and the 30-hour OSHA class May 22nd.
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contractors equipment, umbrella liability
business card here!
www.capitolcityinsurance.com
ELIMINATING
(512) 940-4226
Don’t get lost in the
• Bonds
ADA INSPECTIONS
T
he City of Austin reports that the
“2001 Drinking Water Quality Report” is included as an insert in the
June Utility bill reaching more than
320,000 homes and businesses served by
the City of Austin Water and Wastewater
Utility and Austin Energy. The annual
report, commonly known as the “Con-
sumer Confidence Report,” as state in a
City release, contains details and results
of water testing conducted on the City’s
drinking water system in 2001. Results
showed water provided to City customers in 2001 met all national and state standards. To receive a copy of the report,
call (512) 972-0146.Ω
CSHI OSHA 10-hour class of grads.
CSHI OSHA 30-hour class of grads.
ler Construction; Jeff Krueger, Braun &
Butler Construction; Greg Leroy, Braun &
Butler Construction; Mike Mangrum,
Braun & Butler Construction; Johnny
Palmer, Workman Corporation; Randy
Pitman, Braun & Butler Construction; Tim
Shelton, American Constructors; Jared
Smith, Baker Drywall; David Trueblood,
Workman Corporation; Instructors: Del
Tally CSP and Betty Tally CSP.Ω
Austin Construction News • July 2002 –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Page 23
ARCHITECTURAL ACCESSIBILITY IN TEXAS
FOCUS ON ACCESSIBILITY LAWS & STANDARDS
On Location
The Fair Housing Act
Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (amended 1988)
The design and construction requirements of the Fair Housing Act
apply to all new multifamily housing first occupied after March
13, 1991. Covered multifamily dwellings are: (1) all dwelling units
in buildings containing four or more units if such buildings have
one or more elevators, and (2) all ground floor dwelling units in
other buildings containing four or more units.
REQUIREMENT 6:
Reinforced Walls for Grab Bars
“…covered multifamily dwellings with a
building entrance on an accessible route
shall be designed and constructed in such
a manner that all premises within covered
multifamily dwelling units contain
reinforcements in bathroom walls to allow
later installation of grab bars around toilet,
tub, shower stall and shower seat, where
such facilities are provided” Fair Housing
Act Regulations, 24 CFR 100.205
The Fair Housing Accessibility
Guidelines (the Guidelines) do not require
that grab bars
be installed in
bathrooms.
However,
the
Guidelines do
require
that
bathroom walls in
dwelling units
covered by the
Fair Housing Act
to be sufficiently
strong to allow for
later installation of
grab bars for
resident use. This
requirement
applies to all
bathrooms, and
also to powder
rooms when the
powder room is
the only toilet
facility on the
entry level of a
multistory
dwelling unit in an
elevator building.
Grab bars are
critical for many
people
with
m o b i l i t y
impairments to be able to safely transfer
on and off the toilet. Safety for everyone
is greatly increased by the addition of grab
bars at bathtubs and showers. The
Guidelines do not prescribe the type or size
of grab bars, nor the structural strength they
must exhibit. The Guidelines state only that
the necessary reinforcement must be placed
“to permit the later installation if
appropriate grab bars.” HUD encourages
builders to look at the 1986 ANSI A117.1
Standard, or an equivalent or stricter
standard, or their state or local building
code in planning for or selecting
appropriate grab bars. Note: The Fair
Housing requirements for grab bars in
dwelling unit bathrooms is not as stringent
as required by ANSI A117.1, Uniform
Federal Accessibility Standards, ADA
Accessibility
Guidelines,
Texas
Accessibility Standards, or most building
codes.
1 st place Open Flight winners of the 2002 Spring Golf Tournament at
Barton Creek Country Club.
1 st place Presidents Flight winners of the 2002 Spring Golf Tournament
at Barton Creek Country Club.
Robert Buck, AIA, has provided architectural
accessibility plan reviews/inspections for over
2600 projects in 13 states. He is a Texas
Department of Licensing & Regulation Registered
Accessibility Specialist (RAS), ADA Accessibility
Consultant to the Brownsville Independent School
District, and Fair Housing Consultant for the City
of Austin. 13438 Bandera Road, #104, Helotes,
TX 78023 (210-695-5326)
David Blackburn, owner of Blackburn Service Co. takes a moment to pose for a photo.
Shaffer
Concrete
Mixed & Metered On Site
L-R Kenneth Davis, Jimmy Olivares and Steve Thompson, manager of
Johnstone Supply located at 4201 S. Congress Ave.
Concrete Pumping
Small Orders Welcome
2 Yard Minimum
Commercial • Residential
Saturday & Evening Delivery Available
At No Extra Charge
252-7894
Look for our ad on page 480 in your
Southwestern Bell Yellow Pages
Employees of J-V Marble located at 305 E. Industrial Blvd.
Page 24 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Austin Construction News • July 2002
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