Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Tulsa Staff Grows 27%

Garver's Tulsa, Oklahoma office has hired seven new employees and now has 33 full-time staff - a 27% increase since the beginning of the year. Five full-time employees have been added since May. Garver also has continued its tradition of hiring college interns over the summer and providing the students with valuable engineering experience. Garver is fortunate to have a strong workload when many competing firms are losing staff or struggling to stay even. Garver credits our growth to loyal clients and our staff’s willingness to go the extra mile for clients to make their projects successful.

Jeremiah Dewey is a Construction Observer with 11 years of experience. His recent experience includes working as a quality control manager with LaForge and Budd Construction Company, and he has worked on many Kansas Department of Transportation projects.

Melissa Mixon is a Technician in our Transportation Group with 10 years of experience. Her recent experience includes working as a senior civil engineering technician with the DeShazo Group.

Richard Moon is a Senior Construction Observer with 31 years of experience. His recent experience includes working as an Assistant Residency Manager (Claremore Residency) for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation.

Garrison Smith, EI is a Project Engineer in our Transportation Group and specializes in bridge designs. He is a recent graduate from the University of Arkansas.

Marcia Wilbanks is an Administrative Assistant with 22 years of experience. Her recent experience includes owning and managing Wilbanks & Associates, Inc., an architectural firm in Tulsa.

Kyle Williams, EIT is a Project Engineer in our Transportation Group. He is a recent graduate from the University of Arkansas.

Michael Winterscheidt, PE is a Project Manager in our Transportation Group with seven years of experience. His recent experience includes working as a project manager and design engineer for Professional Engineering Consultants.

Eric Scott is a Technician Intern in our Aviation Group and attends Oklahoma State University.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Tour de Rock

More than a dozen Garver employees and associates participated in the eighth annual 2011 CARTI Tour de Rock bicycle endurance ride in North Little Rock, Arkansas. The ride offers 30, 50, 62, and 100-mile courses as well as a family fun ride, and all proceeds benefited the Central Arkansas Radiation Therapy Institute.

More than 1,000 cyclists pedaled for the cause, and $125,000 was raised through the event. The funds will allow CARTI to continue bringing the fight to cancer through extensive patient outreach, education, and advanced forms of radiation therapy.

Garver was a Gold Sponsor for the event, and the Garver bike team included Blake Staton, Scott Donaldson, David Yandell, Bert Parker, Bethany Mooney, Dan Williams, Nancy Fulmer, Brock Johnson, David Gambill, and several relatives and business associates.

More information and pictures are available on CARTI's website and Facebook page.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

New Professional Engineer

Garver congratulates our newest professional engineer, Adam Roberson, PE, for passing his exam and receiving his professional license.

Adam is an engineer in Garver's aviation group. Adam works in our North Little Rock, Arkansas office and has been with Garver for more than five years.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

New Building Strikes Gold at Air Force Base

The new Pass and ID building/visitor's center at Oklahoma's Tinker Air Force Base is the site's first LEED-certified building - and it has achieved Gold status.

The U.S. Green Building Council recently awarded the 3,775-square-foot building LEED Gold. The new structure was part of a Garver/The Ross Group project to revitalize the base's front entrance. Numerous "green touches" were incorporated into the visitor's center:

Optimize Energy Performance
The visitor’s center is expected to cost 24 percent less to operate than a comparable code-compliant building due to energy saving design strategies involving the HVAC, water, and lighting systems.

Water Use Reduction
Installing low-flow fixtures helps reduce potable water usage by more than 40 percent.

Construction Waste Management
More than 90 percent of the construction waste was diverted away from landfills, allowing materials to be recovered, recycled and reused.

Recycled Content
More than 23 percent of construction materials contained recycled content.

Garver provided structural, mechanical, electrical, and civil design on this design/build project. This project is featured in greater detail in our newest edition of our IQ newsletter.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

IQ Volume 3 Issue 2

The newest issue of Garver's IQ newsletter will hit the streets soon. This edition features:

A Complete Retrofit. Claremore, Oklahoma has upgraded its wastewater treatment plant and now uses a different treatment process to produce higher quality effluent. The conversion to an advanced activated sludge treatment process with BNR capabilities has increased future treatment capacity within the facility's footprint and integrated advanced technologies.

Artistic Security. Tinker Air Force Base is Oklahoma's largest single-site employer. Much of the traffic now flows through the base's revitalized front entrance. To create a new doorway that meets protection standards and incorporates aesthetic features, the improvement project required an extensive engineering effort.

Turning Open Fields into Airfields. Over the past decade, Garver has helped plan and design eight new airports in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Widened for Comfort. Mount Comfort Road, a minor arterial street in Fayetteville, Arkansas, now provides a smoother, less congested commute to nearby Interstate 540. A widening project expanded the road to four lanes and incorporated sidewalks, bike lanes, drainage upgrades, turning lanes, and intersection realignments.

Water Reuse. Membrane filtration can provide municipalities with profitable wastewater effluent.

Watch your mailboxes for this issue or read past issues on our Website.

Friday, June 3, 2011

How to Help Disaster Victims

After the tornadoes swept through Joplin, Missouri, our Garver employees found ways to help. Some of our Fayetteville, Arkansas engineers teamed with ENGAGE! and used chainsaws to help clear streets. We also had employees in our North Little Rock, Arkansas office work in their local neighborhoods to gather donations and deliver them to Joplin.

Even if you can't travel to Joplin or Tuscaloosa, Alabama or another disaster area, the American Red Cross provides many ways to help now and in the future.

Volunteer Training and Opportunities. Disaster-prepared organizations provide just that: organization. After recently visiting Joplin, Garver employee Mike Morgan has started the application process with his local American Red Cross to receive training and volunteer with future assistance teams. Every year, the Red Cross responds to 70,000 disasters, everything from house fires to tornadoes.

Give Blood. I donate blood every couple months, and I just received my "two gallons donated" pin. While there is always a need for blood after a disaster, don't forget about the rest of the year. The American Red Cross reports that every two seconds someone in the United States needs a blood transfusion and 5 million patients need blood every year. Only three percent of the population donates blood, so here's your chance to join an elite group of individuals. One pint can save up to three lives.

Financial Donations. One of the best ways to help is by donating money. While supplies are needed and appreciated, many times disaster areas have a difficult time storing clothes, toiletries, and other items until they can be used. It's often easier and faster to donate money that can be used by organizations to meet an area's specific needs.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Texas Airport of the Year

Garver congratulates Kerrville Municipal/Louis Schreiner Field Airport in Kerrville, Texas for its recent recognition as the General Aviation Airport of the Year by the Texas Department of Transportation Aviation Division.

The airport has made many improvements over the last 10 years. This includes constructing a new security fence and terminal building and relocating taxiways and an entrance road to accommodate larger aircraft. Since 2009, airfield operations have shown a marked increase and now average 60,000 a year.

"Kerrville Municipal/Louis Schreiner Field Airport enjoys the benefits of excellent infrastructure, a supportive community, and a capable management board and airport director, and its many contributions to the local economy make it a truly fitting choice for this prestigious award," the Texas House Resolution stated.

Garver is currently providing services to Kerrville to update the Airport Master Plan with an emphasis on terminal area development and alternatives, marketing planning, financial planning, and economic impacts. The master plan update is an integral tool in determining and siting future facility development.

AddThis

 
Subscribe to our blog Follow us on Facebook Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on LinkedIn