A ll attendees of the Management Re-treat were required to read the book
“Who Moved the Cheese?” by Spencer Johnson, M.D. and decide which character in the book they most identified with. The major focus of the retreat was how we deal with change as an organization and indi-viduals. The owners wanted to celebrate the internal and external changes and cre-ate internal excitement about all of the positive aspects of the changes that have taken place within RQC in the past year.
RQ CONSTRUCTION—QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER
RQ CONSTRUCTION—QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER
Continued on page 4
1
The City RQC Built The City RQC Built in 8 Monthsin 8 Months
The MOUT (Military Operations on Urbanized Terrain) training facility at Fort Irwin was completed in October 2007.
R Q C O N S T R U C T I O N — Q U A R T E R L Y N E W S L E T T E R
T he simulated city that RQC built in eight months is comprised of 55
buildings, including: simulated businesses, guard towers and specialty buildings (consulate and government buildings). The buildings are set up to allow for a variety of training scenarios. There are ladders to access roofs, mouse holes (underground tunnels leading from one room to another), a simulated trapped elevator and even anchor points to repel off of the taller buildings.
When the Army put the MOUT at Fort Irwin out to bid in 2006, it took six rounds of bidding before the project was awarded in 2007. Meeting budget limits with an innovative approach to design and ensuring we could meet the fast-track schedule requirements won this $11.8 million project for RQC.
The innovative approach to the project was using Eco-lite. Ecolite is a thin shell concrete construction method that allowed RQC to deliver the project at a reduced cost and much
faster than the traditional concrete block or tilt-up construction methods that have been used on MOUTs across the country. Ecolite even has extra benefits because the wall panels are even stronger and if dam-aged during military exercises, the panel(s) can be replaced.
All of the wall sections of the buildings were prefabricated at Ecolite’s manufactur-ing plant in Barstow. This was the first project that RQC has used Ecolite. RQC worked with the Ecolite personnel to re-fine a quality control program that de-creased errors and increased the amount of panels fabricated per day. An RQC temporary office was set up at the manu-
facturing plant where RQC man-agement worked diligently with Ecolite personnel to perfect new production methods and quality procedures.
To meet the fast track sched-ule the RQC/Ecolite team had to manufacture 1,135 wall panels for the overall project. It took an average of 11 hours for a four-man crew to construct a 24 ft. x 48 ft. two-story building. That’s fast!
Fall Edition
November 2007
In This Issue The City RQC Built 1
Who Moved My Cheese? 1 CEO Corner 3
In the Woodwork - Completed Projects 4 Safety Corner 5 Firestorm 5 Community Corner 6 Party Time 8 Contests 10
Big Change in 2008 - New Office in Carlsbad 3 Grand Slam - 10 Year Service Awards 3
Continued on page 2
MOUT Team delivered 1,135 wall panels to complete the project
Who Moved the Cheese?Who Moved the Cheese?
2
Harleys Take The Road to Management RetreatHarleys Take The Road to Management Retreat
Our Cheeseheads - RQC Owners
H arleys were the favorite modes of transportation to the 2007 RQC Management Retreat.
RQC Bikers Included: Don and Bethany Rogers, Randy and Bonnie Pritchett, Clayton and Suzanne Lang, Ed Robles, and Jim Deppe. If you ask these guys, the party starts when they left their garage. Judg-ing by their smiles, they might be on to something!
Dapper Mike, Cowboy Don, Fireman Mitch, Legal Sultan Rod, and King George
Some of the major changes in RQ over the past year:
• In-house Design capabilities • Added Qualified and Experienced Staff • Proposals In-house • Management Structure • Incentive Compensation Program • Management Controls to Avoid Legal
Problems • Change in Culture • Increased Bonding Threshold
The more effectively we deal with change, the more likely we are to thrive as a company.
Changes in the workplace do not have to create stress and confusion. We need to view change as an opportunity to acquire new skills, achieve career progression and embrace a new way of working. Many of us have a grudging acceptance of the need to change. But the reality is that if we wait until change is forced on us then we stay perpetually behind on the learning curve.
If you would like to read the book , call Suzan Barba to check one out. We also have audio books available.
In the cheese mode, George presented all of the owners with their own unique cheesehat, which started the whole retreat off with everyone breaking out into laughter and grabbing their phones to take pictures. Doug Youngdale took the picture here.
Change is nothing new. Most people find change difficult. Many of us tend to resist change even though we know it is good for us. Some of us are uncomfortable with change because it is the unknown. Some, however, seek change and welcome its challenges.
It is important that each of us remain flexible and responsive, we should be able to adapt to the new situation and ensure that we make the most of the new opportu-nities. As an organization, RQC must be innovative to remain competitive and successful; with innovation comes change.
Being able to effectively manage change is a critical factor for the well being of the organization. We should be able to use the opportunity of change to foster innovative ideas and solutions. Some of the changes in RQ over the past year have developed wonderful opportunities and successes for the company and all of our employees.
The simple yet enlightening, very short story portrays four characters who live in a “Maze” and look for “Cheese” to nourish and make them happy. The “Cheese” is a metaphor for what you want to have in life and the “Maze” is where you look for what you want. In the story, the characters are faced with unexpected change. Eventu-ally one of them deals with it successfully and writes what he has learned from his experience on the Maze walls.
Continued from page 1
3
A new tradition was initiated at the Management Retreat this
year - The 10 Year Service Award. George wanted to honor our long-term team members with a significant trophy, a baseball bat. These bats are professional grade, hand carved in maple wood, and customized with the name of the team member engraved with special thanks for their years of
Service Awards Service Awards
Big Change Coming in 2008 - We’re Moving to Our New
Office Building in Carlsbad!
T he Biggest Change to come in 2008 will be the move into our new office building in the Carls-
bad Raceway Business Park. Owning the building and moving to Carlsbad will gives us the flexibility we need to be more productive and grow. In addition, our office location will be more accessible to our clients and subcontractors. This Class A office/R&D park building will have 20,558 sf of space compared to the 12,580 sf we currently occupy in Bonsall. What a difference this is going to make for all RQC employees. Space!
Future Address: RQ Construction, Inc.
3194 Lionshead Avenue Carlsbad, California 92011
dedicated service. Stop by one the recipient’s desk and ask to see their new trophy which is most likely hang-ing on their office wall.
The following team members were presented with a 10-year Service Award Gift Bat to show RQC’s grati-tude.
• Mike Patterson
• Don Rogers
• Mitch Tharaldson
• Randy Pritchett
• Larry Morser
• Debbie Rose
• Sam Kirchmeier
• John Savage
• Erik Palmer
• Vince Vidaca
Unfortunately we didn’t get a picture of this group at the retreat.
GRAND SLAM - 10 Year Service Awards
Debbie from accounting and Randy from operations have been crossing
bats for 10 years!
Continued on page 5
C hange. A small word that is sure to stir the emotions within many of us - some negative
and some positive. Maybe it is the fear of the unknown on the other side of change that scares us the most. Sometimes change can be unpleas-ant and it isn’t always what we want.
But we do like positive change. To make change positive we must understand that we af-fect change for improvement, or we fall victim to change. Therefore, if you become a change agent for improvement, you make change work for yourself. You either lead change or you are a victim of change. Clearly, being a leader of im-provement in my experience is a lot more fun than being a victim.
At RQC, the words change and innovation are synonymous. We believe so strongly in positive change at RQC that it is and has been a stated value of ours since the company’s inception. Fundamentally, RQC is all about change - change for improving our markets, our people and our capabilities.
Innovative ideas that deliver great results are like golden eggs. We have experienced many golden eggs over the past 12 months; some of them are listed in this newsletter. However, this article isn’t about those golden eggs. This article is about something far more valuable. It is about the RQC goose. It is about cultivating and keep-ing the goose strong and ahead of the competi-tion.
One of our major strengths is our culture of continuous innovation and improvement. If RQC continues to be the goose that lays golden eggs of innovation, then our vision of growing our markets, people and capabilities will be achieved in ways that we can’t even imagine at the moment.
Remember we don’t control what happens in the future but we sure influence it. Be an archi-tect of innovation and you will be delivering a prosperous future for yourself and RQC. Now that’s exciting!
The RQC Goose
CEO CEO CornerCorner
4
In the Woodwork In the Woodwork -- Completed Projects Completed Projects
RQC is expecting another Outstanding CCASS on this project. The team deliver-ing the outstanding results of this project includes Project Manager Pete Pizzo, Su-perintendents Sam Kirchmeier and Adam Winter, and Project Engineer Eric Taylor.
Continued from page 1
New Office Building — Continued from page 4 Top brass from Washington visited the site in July and expressed enthusiasm in using Ecolite on other MOUT facilities in California and Texas. It is imperative that MOUT training facilities be constructed rapidly to support the needs of the mili-tary. Training centers like this one at Ft. Irwin allows the Army to train soldiers to understand the sociological and psycho-logical impacts of fighting a war in highly populated areas. MOUT training is now a part of basic training for the active and reserve Army and Marine Corps.
The MOUT at Fort Irwin has been an extremely profitable project from both an economic and marketing standpoint. This MOUT has given us much exposure, dem-onstrating that RQ delivers outstanding and innovative projects! RQC will be bid-ding on several MOUT projects in the next few months in California and Texas.
All departments will be on the ground floor level (15,666 sf) and the Executive wing will be located in the 4,892 sf mezza-nine. Each department head will have input on the floor plan. The new building floor plan will be laid out so that each department flows with the departments they work with. The interactive open area concept will have multiple meeting rooms for large and small gatherings. Opus De-velopment, the company that built the building, will be doing the TI work.
Storage areas will have overhead doors for easy access. In the rear of the building there will be picnic tables where we hope to have more picnics and company func-tions. George also promises a basketball court! Parking is both convenient and generous, 77 parking spaces. We expect the building to be ready for occupancy in March.
Twentynine Palms LAR Maintenance Facility & BEQ - This task order was unusual because it had two completely different kinds of facilities at two different locations on the base. The Facilities included a Vehicle Maintenance Facility (VMF) and Bachelor Enlisted Quarters (BEQ). Charlie Taylor served as the Superintendent for the BEQ, while Steve Benson served as the Superin-tendent for the VMF. They are expecting an Outstanding CCASS on this contract from NAVFAC. Other team members include: Rob Smith, Bruce Denney, Kevin Soares, Josh Carroll and Bridget Boyden. Great Job!
University of California Santa Barbara Student Resource Center & Snidcore Hall - Special thanks for the outstanding job that Larry Morser has done in completing close-out on these projects. Kudos from the client: “In finish-ing a contract we don’t usually get the fol-low through from contractors like we have from RQC.”
Riverside County Historical Courthouse Renovation This historical project had many issues that became apparent after the demoltion phase. The project team worked through 448 change orders and 637 RFIs and delivered the project to a very satisfied client. Kudos to the Team: John “Dutch” Van Hovel, John Savage, Brent Swanson and Kathy Dexter.
Camp Pendleton BEQ 14008 - The project was delivered ahead of schedule and we are expecting another CCASS rating from NAVFAC. Way to go Craig Shadle, Vince Vidaca, Rick Montes and Andi Allemao.
LAR Vehicle Maintenance Facility (VMF)
Craig Shadle, Matt Amdur, Mitch Tharaldson, Brad McDermott, Sophia Arguello, George Rogers,
Mike Patterson, Don Rogers, Jon Gargan
Victorville City Hall Addition & Renovation The project team attended the ribbon cutting ceremony in August. Special thanks to the entire team for delivering another Out-standing Evaluation from the Client. This project is RQC’s largest project to date.
The City RQC Built The City RQC Built
LAR Bachelor Enlisted Quarters (BEQ)
Bryan Skor is on top of the MOUT!
destroyed an estimated 1,300 homes, including Andi Alle-mao’s. Our hearts go out to Andi, who lost not only her home but a lifetime of posses-
sions in the fire. If you would like to help with a donation to help Andi rebuild her home, please contact Charlene Miller at extension 351.
We would like to express our sincerest gratitude to all the firemen and women who have worked so hard to keep us safe. Each and everyone of you are real life heroes. We are also thankful for the gen-erosity and compassion of the Owners of RQC. The owners graciously paid all RQC employees for the time they missed at work because of the fires.
Even with the office closed because it was located in the evacuation zone in Bonsall, it didn’t stop our accounting department. A special thanks go to Hol-lee Coffman and Annette Clark who made sure we all got paid for the week by doing payroll on Annette’s dining room table.
5
W e are all devastated to see the toll that the San Diego county fires
have taken on the lives of the people around us. The firestorm turned more than 450 square miles from San Diego to northern Los Angles into a raging inferno, forcing 320,000 people to evacuate and
Safety CornerSafety Corner
One of the members of the RQC Family lost her home to the Fires—
Andi Allemeo
tice good housekeeping on the worksite. Good housekeeping means that building materials are kept in order to maintain clear pathways for easily transporting
loads. It means stacking lum-ber to allow proper lifting from above the knees and below the shoulders.
Workers can help protect themselves from overexertion strains, fatigue, and injury by taking care of their body, eating well, exercising, and getting proper rest. Stretch-ing before work activities and during the day increases flexi-bility. If the muscles or liga-ments have weakened over time from lack of exercise or
age, workers are more susceptible to over-exertion than if they’re physically fit.
Overexertion can result in physical fatigue, a reduction in work efficiency and a decrease in the speed and quality of work. Preventing overexertion injuries is a lot easier than correcting them. Teach workers to take care of themselves both on and off the job and train them in proper work practices.
Article complements of the State Compensation Insurance Fund
the work. One important way to prevent injuries from overexertion is to train work-ers on when to use a mechanical assist or to get help from another worker. They should be instructed not to try to move or lift an object they can’t safely handle. When in doubt, they should break down the load into smaller parts.
If workers can’t break a load down, they should be advised to use me-chanical assists such as hand trucks, drywall lifts, forklifts or carts. But, they should ensure that the hand truck, wheel barrel or other moving equipment is in good operating condition. The work saving device may put more strain on the body if it’s overloaded or doesn’t work properly. If the wheels on a cart are not aligned, they could strain their back, arms or shoulders trying to move it. When no mechanical assists are available, workers should ask for help from other workers.
Another overexertion preventative measure is to encourage workers to prac-
O verexertion injuries are the single largest classification of injury in construction.
And, overexertion results in the types of injuries that most commonly involve days away from work. By implementing simple work practices, many overexertion injuries can be prevented.
Overexertion injuries are caused by tearing or stretching of tendon, ligaments or muscles when loads lifted, carried, pushed, pulled or otherwise handled ex-ceed the limits of the joint system doing
Firestorm 2007
Don’t Under Estimate Overexertion
From the Desk of Don Rogers
RQC Chief Safety Officer
The problem solving and "can do" attitude of
folks in our industry amazes me, what a
great group of people you all are! But that
same admirable "can do" quality seems to
make us reluctant to ask for help from others,
even when WE KNOW that we should. This
brief article is a reminder, that whether we are
on a job site, at the office or home we need
to think before we tackle too much.... and end
up reaching for the pain killers! And you
young folks out there, listen up! ... the strain
& abuse you put your body through now will
catch up to you, so take care of it!
Congrats to Carolyn Harper’s son, Andre on his graduation from Army Boot Camp at Ft. Knox, KY
on March 16th. He is currently at-tending AVN school in Eustis, VA.
Steve Noel finished taking Level 1 & Level 2 Revit Training for the Design Department. Steve, also,
received his License to practice Architecture in Arizona. Way to go!!!
Bravo, Kathy Dexter, for completing a 72 hour continu-ing education regime that cov-ered all aspects of tax law, repre-sentation and ethics, while
becoming an Enrolled Agent (Enrolled to practice before the IRS).
I t was a cool and breezy February morn-ing as the contracts department headed
out of the office. They rode along the 15 freeway, each lady with a smile on her face. They had been long awaiting the closeout meeting and tour of the Riverside County Courthouse. The anticipation of seeing the result of many months of hard work built after each mile. As they remi-nisced over every paper cut this project pained them with, they became more eager. Little did they know, they were in store for a lockdown. The closeout meeting was as expected, but the tour brought more surprises than ever. It
6
started out typically with a few oohs and ahhs, and Q&As about the renovation. Then Dutch led the ladies to the jail cells. “Hmm… how can we refuse this photo op”, thought Leilani. So, each of the la-dies hurried into the cell for some hilari-ous photos; Lyn, Denise, Julie, Suzan, and finally Leilani. But wait, what was that, Dutch closed the door too far. It locked! “Who has the key”,
Congrats to Doug Youngdale’s son, Erik, on his internship at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento.
Kudos to Timothy Rogers, Don’s son, who is studying at Purdue Uni-versity on a four-year NROTC schol-arship he was awarded.
Keep it up, Bruce Denney! Who after 40 years of smoking has been smoke-free for over 10 months. Great job!
Congratulations to Leah, Sarah Ammens’ daughter on her gradua-tion from basic training with the Air Force. She is now training as 'Special Forces'.
everyone stammered. What key? The locks had yet to be updated, so Leilani was trapped! If you think, that it couldn’t get much worse for a very claustrophobic Leilani, boy are you wrong. The cell she was locked in went black. Finally, the power
went on, and a Marshall arrived to rescue Leilani from the loneli-ness of the wretched 10x10’ cell.
Her nightmare was over and the team was relieved to re-turn to the safety of RQ’s main office. Needless to say, the Riverside County Court-house is a Project that these ladies won’t soon forget.
Good thing the Marshall showed up to set Leilani free.
Community CornerCommunity Corner
Contracts Department GetsContracts Department Gets Locked Up Locked Up
Best wishes to Terry and Angelika Stolpp, who celebrated their 31st wedding anniversary in June.
Kudos to the P-599S, LAR Company Mainte-nance Facility MCAGCC, 29 Palms Team on receiv-ing the Annual RQ Safety Award. The Team members are:
• Charlie Taylor - Superintendent • Rob Smith - Project Manager • Kevin Soares - Site Safety Officer • Steve Benson - Assistant Superintendent • Bridget Boyden - Field Administrator
PromotionsPromotions
Since the last publication of the Cornerstone the following promotions were announced:
Randy Pritchett - Director of Field Operations Craig Shadle - Chief Financial Officer Laura Beauvais - Project Manager Brent Swanson - Project Manager Adam Winter - Superintendent Carlos Smith - Asst. Superintendent John “Dutch” Van Hovel - Construction Coordinator Suzan Barba - Office Manager Don Rogers - Chief Safety Officer Eric Taylor - Lean Process Manager Bethaneé Kuczmarski - Marketing Coordinator
February – Julie Ignacio
April – Suzan Barba
May – Janis O’Rourke
June – Aaron Espinoza
July – Laura Knudsen
August – Imelda Oli
September – Sarah Ammens
October – Andi Allemao
November – Hollee Coffman &
Annette Clark
Small Business: Small Business: Good Faith Effort Good Faith Effort Incentive Program WinnersIncentive Program Winners
February – Liaoming Sun April – Aaron Espinoza June – Crystal Crosswhite July – Bethaneé Kuczmarski August – Brent Swanson September– Daniel Lincoln October – Sarah Whitehead
6 7
Kylee Cecilia Knudsen, Born to Rick & Laura on September 19th. Congrats to Kaitlynn on
becoming a big sister!
BabiesBabies——BabiesBabies——BabiesBabies——BabiesBabies
Miles Daniel Taylor, Born to Erik & Kristen
on August 25th. Our congrats extend to
George & Pat Rogers on becoming grandparents.
Joel Barandiaran Whitehead, Born to Sarah & Aleix
on May 3rd. Congrats!!!
Nathan Daniel McDowell, Born to Lynea & Scott
On May 15th . Congrats go to Dana & Becky on
becoming grandparents again!
Brody & Bryce Crosswhite,
Born to Gary & Jill on June 10th.
Congrats to Crystal on becoming a sister again!
Peter Frank Pizzo IV, Born to Pete & Lindsie
on September 5th. Congrats to Sophia on becoming a big sister!
The Baby Boom The Baby Boom Continues Continues
Expecting:Expecting:
Andy & Anabel Natali Late December
Craig & Lise Shadle
Early January
Troy & Saliha La Coursiere Late March
Bradley Allen McDermott III, Born to Bradley & Blair
on September 27th. Congrats go to Brad McDermott on
becoming a grandfather!
Congrats go to Sarah Ammens on becoming a Grandmother, to
Daitona Katherine Lewis. Born to AJ & Miranda
on February 23rd.
Party Time!!!Party Time!!!
E veryone was invited to the Feb-ruary potluck luncheon at the
main office. With the Valentine’s decorations, finger-food theme, and great conversation everybody enjoyed the festivities. The food was bite-sized and tasty; we enjoyed mini-tacos, hot wings, meatballs, cream puffs, and many, many more miniature treats.
That must be one sour strawberry, Liaoming
8
Suzan says “No” on seconds Drink up, Marcella, there’s plenty of punch
No one has a problem accepting a meeting with food, friends & desserts
Julie’s all smiles following the toast
So that’s all it takes to get Larry and Mitch to stop discussing work; hot wings
Jan, you would be smiling if you didn’t pass on the cupcakes!
The team is already contemplating how to get more awards
6 out of 6 — It’s a sweep! Here’s to many more awards
Champagne all-around!
A toast to the multiple awards we received at the end of March
was shared among RQ personnel. As confetti flew through the air, George and Mike spread the excitement of receiving 6 out of 6 awards bid in a row. The total value of the awards was $66,638,000.
George points out the team’s accomplishments with great pride
Everyone looks on with anticipation as the awards are posted to the government’s website
9
Aaron washes down his lunch
Trevor chows down
Debbie enjoys a drumstick
Suzan serves some refreshing drinks
Leilani is in shock from all the delicious food
Our grill masters, Craig & JD dished up some tasty meats!!!
Dana brings a little sunshine to this shady table
Crystal satisfies her hunger with a Ball Park Frank
I n October, everyone pitched in to throw a BBQ
luncheon. From salads to chips, burgers to dessert, every-one enjoyed their favorite picnic cuisine! With the smell of sizzling burgers and chicken in the air, everyone headed out of the office to take in some fresh air, sunshine, good food, and great conversation.
Doug & Anabel, starring in The Great Cake Race!!!
Game TimeGame Time
CORNERSTONE NEWSLETTER
E D I T O R S
George Rogers III Chief Executive Officer
Mike Patterson Chief Operating Officer
Mitch Tharaldson Vice President
Don Rogers Vice President
S T A F F
Janis O’Rourke Marketing Services Manager
Bethaneé Kuczmarski Marketing Coordinator
RQ’s Cornerstone Newsletter is published by RQ Construction, Inc. Entire contents is copyrighted
2007. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is strictly forbidden.
Congrats to last issue’s LAR Maze Champs: Dana Hofseth, Eddie Robles & Micah Youngdale They each received an Edwards Theatre Gift Card Pack, containing admission for two and money for the concession stand.
10
AMENDMENTS
AMPHIBIOUS
ARCHITECTURAL
ARMORY
AUTOCAD
CIVIL
CONFERENCE
DESIGN
DRAWINGS
W ith all the excitement of our recently awarded design-build projects, Doug
is on the hunt for hidden design-build terms. Help him locate the words and you may find your own treasure! The first three people with the correct response will win an exciting prize! Contact Bethaneé at ext. 249.
ELECTRICAL
ENGINEERS
ESTIMATING
EVALUATIONS
EXPERIENCE
INNOVATIONS
LEED
MAINTENANCE
MECHANICAL
MEETINGS
OPERATIONS
PLANNING
PROPOSALS
REGIMENTAL
RENDERINGS
REQUIREMENTS
SAFETY
SCHEDULE
SPECIFICATIONS
STORAGE
STRATEGIES
STRUCTURAL
TEAMWORK
WATERFRONT
WINNING
Design-Build Word Search
Word Bank:
RQ Construction, Inc. 5256 S. Mission Rd., Suite #210
Bonsall, California 92003 Phone: (760) 631-7707
Fax: (760) 631-8013 www.rqconstruction.com
Comments, suggestions and articles are welcome. Contact Bethaneé Kuczmarski
E-mail: [email protected]
Get Ready for Giving
I n the RQC Holiday Tradition we will be collecting donations for the Fallbrook
Food Pantry. Please drop off your donations at the front desk of the Main Office starting Monday, November 12 through Tuesday, November 20. Items needed are dried and canned goods such as pasta sauces, soups, rice, mac and cheese, breads and cereals, baby foods, disposable diapers (NO formula). Fresh fruits and vegetables are welcome, too! If you have any questions, please contact Suzan at ext. 230.