Ron Harley

Over the summer, Ron Harley completed the Fort Moore Stowers ES Playgrounds project. School projects always present unique opportunities and challenges. This summer the Playgrounds project at Stowers ES on Fort Moore had many obstacles to overcome. The work on multiple playground replacements was not allowed to start until after the school was out for the Summer. Work then had to be finished before students returned for the next year. Additionally, the project was 100% civil/exterior work. Between the constant weather delays and many other unforseen delays, there were many opportunities to overcome! On 9/17/24, Ron was presented with a bulldog award for his outstanding work to complete the project on schedule. Ron served as the project Superintendent/QC Manager/SSHO. He went over and above to help with project submittals and closeout. The final delivered project was a major upgrade for the school and all inspections passed with very high marks. USACE was very pleased with schedule and quality of the work, with the USACE Administrative Contracting Officer remarking “Thanks for a great project Ron! I appreciate all of your hard work and outstanding coordination with the customer.”

James Ruley

James Ruley was awarded a Bulldog Award for his performance on project 2402 – Replace Building 2 Flooring and Lighting.

The original sequence of the project was to perform the scope of work nights and weekends. Night shift was planned to start once the end users left for the day and the space would need to be returned in good working order to the end user the next morning. Multiple weekends were to be reserved for longer activities (asbestos abatement, flooring, and ceilings) starting at the end of the user’s workday on Friday and ending prior to the end user returning Monday morning.

The procurement of flooring was 6 weeks from approved submittals. James capitalized on this timeframe to lay the groundwork with the end users and COR to sequence the work within the space. This interaction resulted in the project to be divided up into 4 main phases of work. The agreement was that the end user would vacate a phase of work for 10 days and STI would take over the space and renovate the space prior to the end users moving back into that phase. This still required weekend work but did eliminate the night work and multiple mobilizations/containment setting up each evening and removing containment each morning. This provided for a more productive sequence of activities saving both Semper Tek and our Subtractors labor hours and cost on the project.

The results of James’s open dialog with the COR and end users gave the Government a higher quality product and a satisfied end user. By removing the start/stop sequence of night work in an occupied suite, this allowed Semper Tek and our Subcontractors to create a more productive working environment. Start/stop sequence of night work has a negative production rate differential. Working day shift it was easier to control Safety, Schedule and Budgetary items thus resulting in a highly successful project.

Joe Guffey

As often happens in Construction there was a last-minute change in Manpower Coverage.  This time it was for a Crane Lift on a Saturday 6/29/24.  A call was placed to Joe Guffey to see if he could help and without hesitation he accepted.  He did have plans for that Saturday, but he canceled them knowing how important it was to get the elevator machines/equipment hoisted up into the penthouse of the VAMC.   Those who have experienced Crane Lifts on a weekend and know the scheduling and safety pressure it puts on the field team.  The day got off to a slow start the Crane’s arrival time was delayed due to traffic so this added to the length of time everyone spent getting the Elevator Machinery to the penthouse.   Joe’s main role was to be supervision and make sure the machinery entered the louver opening without anyone placing themselves in a pinch point.  Joe took the initiative and helped the Subcontractors safely get the materials/equipment in the louver opening by leading by example.   Joe’s experience in construction and knowledge of the campus at Cooper Drive helped make the day a success.