Guam Contractors’ Association
CONSTRUCTION NEWS BULLETIN
for Guam Residents
Vol.53 Issue 08 AUGUST2012
CONTENTSAUGUST2012
16
Feature Story
6
Update C ommittee S.A.M.E.
10 14 16
C ommittee Update N AWIC News Story F eature IAN Corp
18
Story F eature GPA
22
Feature Story
22
Story F eature Agility
28 30 32 35
P hoto Highlights H appenings G arrison Report N ew Members
The Chamorro phrase for “Happy Labor Day” is:
Minagof Ha'ånen Hotnaleru brought to you by "Learn Chamorro" www.learnchamorro.com
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THEDIRECTORS
THEEDITORIALS
PRESIDENT James A. Martinez, GCA CHAIRMAN Robert Salas, Landscape Management Systems VICE CHAIRMAN Tom Anderson, Black Construction PAST CHAIRMAN William “Bill” Beery, Tutujan Hill Group SECRETARY/TREASURER Art Chan, Hawaiian Rock ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS: Patty Lizama, Individual Assurance Company Paul Calvo, Calvo’s Insurance Carlo Leon Guerrero, M80 Office Systems Inc. Ray Yanger, Matson Navigation CONTRACTORS DIRECTORS: Tom Nielsen, Maeda Pacific Corporation Juno Eon, Core Tech International Mike Venezia, Hensel Phelps John Robertson, AmOrient Louis De Maria, dck pacific guam LLC
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Guam Contractor’s Association (GCA) in conjunction with AdzTech and Public Relations, Inc. publishes the Construction News Bulletin (CNB) monthly. Reproduction of materials appearing in this publication is strictly forbidden without written permission by GCA. While we always strive for accuracy, we will from time to time overlook mistakes. In order to help us improve the quality and accuracy of this publication, we ask that you take the time to look at the information provided and notify GCA of any corrections as needed. Opinions and editorial content of this publication may not necessarily be those of the publisher, staff, GCA members, GCA Board of Directors and advertisers. For more information about advertising in the GCA Construction News Bulletin contact the advertising department at (671) 477-1239/2239 or email at adztech@teleguam.net. Distributed to GCA members or can be obtained by stopping by the Guam Contractors’ Association office located at 718 N. Marine Corps Drive, Suite 203, East West Business Center, Upper Tumon, Guam. To find out more about how you can become a GCA member contact Guam Contractors’ Association at Tel: (671)647-4840/41 Fax: (671) 647-4866 or Email: gca@teleguam.net. Postmaster. Send address changes to Guam Contractors’ Association, located at 718 N. Marine Drive Corps Suite 203, East West Business Center, Upper Tumon, Guam.
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THETEAM PUBLISHER: James Martinez SALES & MARKETING DIRECTOR: Geri Leon Guerrero AD SALES: Marty Leon Guerrero June Maratita PRODUCTION: Geri Leon Guerrero Christopher “Taco” Rowland Tanya Robinson PHOTOGRAPHERS: Marty Leon Guerrero Christopher “Taco” Rowland EDITOR: Adztech CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: John Robertson David F. Macaluso Ted Garrison GCA STAFF: Francine Arceo Desiree Lizama COVER: Bright New Lights of GPA’s LED Street Lights
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S.A.M.E. UPDATE
AUGUST 2012
Society of
SUPPORTIVE INITIATIVES -
American Military Engineers GUAM TRANSPORTATION PROGRAM Guest speaker at the July meeting of SAME Guam Post was Joanne Brown, Director of the Department of Public Works. Ms. Brown provided an overview of the Guam Transportation Program. Key points are outlined below.
Village Streets Master Plan Storm Water Drainage Master Plan Transp. Storm Drainage Manual Guam Road Network Implementation Plan (for storm water drainage) - Right of Way Manual - Guam Transportation Training Initiative - Transit Business Plan, 2009 – 2015 - Standard Plans & Details - Bridge Inspection and Rating Program - Traffic Management Program - Environmental Procedures Guide
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Funding Sources Report for Long Term Transportation Needs Traffic Signal Timing & Coordination Program Program Management Information System Construction Management Program Construction Management & Inspection Services Manual ADA Compliance Program Asset Management Information System (AMIS) Training Program for DPW, Design Consultants & Contractors
Numerous federally funded supportive initiatives were initiated and engaged to: - Support or augment the program, - Improve the DPW’s capacity to deliver projects, and - Ensure compliance with federal regulations.
PROJECT UPDATES
CAPT Heckmann presents Guam Post coin to Joanne Brown
PROGRAM UPDATES
- Just over $100 million in projects are currently under construction o Of 13 projects island wide, 8 are nearing completion o Major delays due to asphalt mix standards and archeological findings o Includes the first two DOD funded projects undertaken by the DPW - Approximately $64 million in road projects are currently in design o 13 projects – 7 are bridge related o Includes Route 14B (Ypao Road) and the Harmon Cutoff - Additional $18 million in projects in various planning stages o Includes Tiyan Parkway, and traffic signal communications system and upgrades
CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS
DPW has taken a very aggressive stance in ensuring that all projects are completed on time and within budget - Holding DPW Highways Staff, Program Management Team, Designers, Contractors and Construction Managers accountable - Revamping internal administrative and accounting processes for more efficiency - Focusing on public outreach to keep our public informed and our motorist safe - Ensuring that the DPW is compliant with all Federal Highway Administration requirements
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S.A.M.E. UPDATE PLANNING AND DESIGN
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GUAM POWER AUTHORITY ATURIDÅT ILEKTRESÅDAT GUAHAN P.O. BOX 2977 • AGANA, GUAM U.S.A. 96932-2977
On Labor Day we celebrate our dedicated GPA employees. THANK YOU for your efforts in providing strength and prosperity to our island.
Biba GPA!
Minagof Ha'ånen Hotnaleru
COMMITTEEUPDATE
Military, Government and Labor Relations Committee Update August ‘12 agree with CSIS’s emphasis on the need for DOD to articulate the strategy behind its force-posture planning more clearly. Congress must also be confident that the DOD force planning and realignment proposals are realistic, workable, and affordable.” This statement appears to be a prelude to a change in their earlier hard and fast opposing position. More on this subject to follow as it unfolds.
By John M. Robertson Realignment of Military Forces in the Pacific Region Some interesting developments occurred in Washington DC during the month of July, news of which has only been partially made public. The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) released their report to the Secretary of Defense and the Congress entitled “U.S. Force Posture Strategy in the Asia Pacific Region: An Independent Assessment” on 27 June 2012. The 110 page unclassified portion of the report was made available by the office of Congresswoman Bordallo in mid July. An independent assessment was mandated by Section 346 of the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act along with a “Preferred Laydown Plan” by the Commandant of the Marine Corps and a detailed master plan by the DoD. The CSIS report is in general agreement with planning by the Pacific Command and faults the DoD senior leadership and the Congress for slowing its implementation. In a 27 July statement by senators Levin, McCain and Webb, they make the following important points: “While we are still reviewing this 110-page report and its classified annex, we note that CSIS raises a number of issues that are worthy of further consideration. For example, CSIS concluded that “DOD has not adequately articulated the strategy behind its force posture planning nor aligned the strategy with resources in a way that reflects current budget realities.” This is particularly important as support for the resourcing of major overseas initiatives, in the current fiscal environment, will depend to a significant extent on a clear articulation of U.S. strategic imperatives and the manner in which the investments address them. “We
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Joint Region Marianas Change of Command – 27 July 2012 On 27 July, Vice Admiral (Select) Paul Bushong was ordered by the CNO to detach as Commander Joint Region Marianas and U.S. Pacific Command Representative Guam/ Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands/ Federated States of Micronesia/ and Republic of Palau and report to the State Department for duty in Jerusalem as the United States Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority. He was relieved by Rear Admiral Tilghman Payne, the new Commanding Officer for our region. Admiral Bushong gave what can be described as one of the most remarkable speeches of any military official in recent time. He said what needed to be said and only he was in a position to make such bold comments. It should be read in its entirety because local news accounts have only reported key segments. Quote: Good morning. Thank you for coming. I am honored and humbled by your presence. Admiral French. Thank you for making the long trip out here from Washington, DC. As I was preparing for this day, I was looking back on the last two and-a-half years on Guam, trying to decide what to talk about. One thing I recognized is that I have given a lot of speeches during this assignment. Somewhere beyond sixty or so. That’s just the ones that I have a copy of. Tilghman, I might have forgotten to mention how much you will likely be out in the community, talking. But in general, when someone asked me to speak at some event or talk to their group, I would agree, if my schedule supported it, and then I would try to figure out something useful to say. Often it was trying to give some historical perspective. Other times
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it was just giving my perspective on how things were going, but as a matter of personal pride, I tried not to give any fluff speeches. So as I prepared for today, I had a few options. One is to talk about all of the things I did on this tour, both personal and professional, how much I enjoyed it, and say goodbye. Not very interesting. Another is to thank every person that I’ve had contact with over the tour, and that can certainly fill the time, but it is pretty boring. I think we have all attended some of those changes of command. So I choose to talk history and my perspective. Now I would ask somebody to keep an eye on Matt Knight, my public affairs officer. He is probably right at the edge of distress over this. He asked me about a month ago what I needed with respect to a speech, and I told him I didn’t need any assistance. I was just going to get up and tell everybody what I thought, and he hasn’t slept well since. Guam has played a unique strategic role in the Pacific for over 100 years and will continue to play a strategic role for the foreseeable future. In January, President Obama released the “emerging defense strategy”, which explicitly states that the number one priority with regard to regions is the Pacific. This was based on the recognition that, for the United States to remain a great power, able to influence world events to our advantage and in support of our core values, we must get our fiscal house in order. To do this, we must get our economy going, and the key to that is the Asia-Pacific, where the three largest economies of the world come together and the majority of rapidly growing economies exist. Just a glance at a globe immediately tells you that Guam is a big part of our Asia-Pacific strategy. Governor Calvo says it best when he tells visitors that “Guam is America in Asia.” Guam was obtained by the United States as a result of the Spanish American War of 1898. For many years it was used as a coaling station allowing the U.S. to fuel ships transiting the Pacific. It was also host to a transpacific cable station in the early 1900s connecting the U.S. to the far reaches of the Pacific, and PanAmerican
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Airways used Sumay as a seaport for its flying boats in the 1930s. The United States of America never made Guam a colony and only put enough resources into Guam to make it stable. It never stripped any resources from Guam, the most obvious sign of any colonization effort. Any of the current talk of the U.S. colonization of Guam or meetings of the Decolonization Committee is insulting to those of us who serve in the United States military and who would willingly give our lives in the defense of Guam and its citizens, all fully American citizens. Guam was captured and occupied by the Japanese for 2-1/2 years in World War II and liberated by United States Marines on 21 July 1944. This year we commemorated the 68th anniversary of Liberation Day. The battle was very intense with significant casualties. The intensity of the battle is often lost in the fog of history and the mixing of the Liberation of Guam with Saipan, Tinian, the invasion of Peleliu, and the landings on Normandy in Europe, all going on at the same time. Almost twice as many Marines were killed or wounded during the liberation of Guam as were lost or wounded on Guadalcanal. I actually had a United States Senator, who was passing through Andersen Air Force Base on the way to further points in Asia, ask me if there had been a battle on Guam in World War II. We need to understand the history. After the liberation of Guam in 1944 was when the Navy came in really big and made Guam the island that the SeaBees built. With many battalions of SeaBees, they built the breakwater that provides shelter for the outer harbor, dredged the inner harbor from swamp land, built Polaris point and Dry Dock Island, the commercial port, the power system, the roads, the airports, the water system to include Fena reservoir, and the wastewater system. That was also when Nimitz Hill, where we are today, was developed and established as the site of the Commander, Pacific Operations Areas, Admiral Nimitz’ forward headquarters. I have aerial pictures from 1944 that show flag circle drive and the seven flag houses in their same footprint as today. A horseshoe pit for Admiral Nimitz is also visible. As far as you could see back toward the current headquarters building, which was the site of Admiral Nimitz’ headquarters, were Quonset huts, barracks, staff buildings, tents, and logistics sites. This hill was the location
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from which the Pacific campaign was run following the liberation of Guam, to include the landings on Iwo Jima and Okinawa, and the huge naval battle of Leyte Gulf. At the end of World War II, there were 225,000 active duty military on Guam, and we controlled over 60 percent of the island. Other than during the Japanese occupation, the island was under military governorship, specifically a Navy governor, my ancestor, from 1898 to 1950, when oversight of the island was shifted from the Department of the Navy to the Department of the Interior. An Organic Act organizing the government of Guam was passed by the US Congress in 1950, and the first locally elected governor took office in 1970. All of this was as a result of the Guam legislature which unanimously voted to send a representative to Washington, DC with tasking to stay there until an act was passed which bestowed U.S. citizenship to the residents of Guam and established a locally elected government. I must admit it puzzles me when I hear the current talk of “self determination” since, by my reading of history, that self determination was made 65 years ago. I go into all of this to give some background to the sometime expressed opinion that the importance of Guam to the United States is one-sided, driven solely by what the military wants out of it. There have been quite a few cases where the military needed the strategic location and capabilities of Guam and built up rapidly only to fairly rapidly draw back down and walk away once the crisis passed. Examples include World War II, the Vietnam War, and then in the late 1990s, as we were trying to reap the "peace dividend" by drawing down overseas bases and forces, several installations on Guam were closed and the military drew down to its lowest level since World War II. Then some wise people in DC looked at a globe, looked at United States' trade numbers, looked at where our key alliances are, looked at where our security challenges are, and realized that the Pacific is it, and that Guam is key to our posture in the Pacific. Not just nice to have, but the linchpin of our security strategy in the Pacific. Strategically located… United States sovereign territory… very impressive port and airfield capabilities… and significant logistics capabilities. The answer was obvious. The last two years have been full of debate
COMMITTEEUPDATE on what the military on Guam will look like in the years to come. At times the rhetoric has made it seem that that it was an us vs. them mentality with the military working against the Guam community. Now, when I look around I don't see a Navy community separate from the Guam community. I see that the vast majority of Navy civilian employees, whether working for the Base, NAVFAC, or Region, are locals, serving their nation as Navy civilians. I see a very large number of locals who have served careers in the military, retired, and returned home to Guam to live and continue to serve in their local villages. I see large numbers of active duty military doing voluntary multiple tours in Guam, and I see a significant number of service members retire and stay in Guam. To me, active duty members asking for multiple tours in Guam and retirees setting up residence here means that the military is part of the community! Guam is our community, too. Now the Marine Corps relocation is delayed, but it will come. It will be smaller and will take longer than the original plan, but it will have less impact off of the bases. However, there will also be less economic stimulus off of the bases. We are still figuring and studying on locations, laydowns, and methods. Guam has the rare chance for a mulligan. For those of you that don’t play golf or recognize the term, a mulligan is a free turn or ball in golf that you can play when you completely shank a shot. You get to say, my bad. I messed that up. Let me try that again. And that is where we are with the buildup. Over this tour, I participated in several of the meetings between senior Washington, DC officials and local officials. A consistent theme was that the DC officials kept coming out here to hear what the locals had to say, were always told the same thing (we want a smaller buildup, a slower buildup, and stay within your existing footprint), but nothing ever happened with that. Well, now there has been a change in plan, fully in line with the requests of the local officials. 4700 Marines, only 1600 of them permanent party with families (assuming they have families). The others will be rotational. We are relooking at ways to fit them fully within our current footprint.
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COMMITTEEUPDATE
But here’s the rub. If we fit everything within our current footprint, there won’t be much benefit for the local economy or the local population. For example, we roll SeaBee battalions (or parts of them) through here regularly. Andersen Air Force Base has a continuous bomber presence and many refueling aircraft and all of their crews on Andersen. You just don’t get a huge lift to the economy. In fact, you don’t even notice them. The Marines have a need for a world class training range. Training in the Pacific with our Allies and partners will only grow in line with our emerging defense strategy. We could probably fit them at the Naval Magazine by bulldozing mountains along with real historical and archeological sites. Or we could jam them into disparate sites on the west side of the island with danger zones that impede water sports and fishing. But that is not ideal for the Marines or Guam. And here is the real rub. The Government of Guam, which by the way owns 48 percent of this island, (and I have to ask
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you, what is THAT doing for you) has low value land with no utilities and no services, which would be an ideal location for a range. The Navy, on the other hand, now owns 27 percent of the island and is fully committed to owning less land when this buildup is completed, has high value, developed land, some of which has fully functional housing which could be part of our “net negative” commitment. So here’s where we are, in my opinion. Before we spend another three years in studying the options for Marine Corps siting, it is time for Guam leadership to step up and lead. Time to tee up your mulligan and get this buildup back on track to the benefit of the island and the people of Guam. Well, it is time for me to wrap this up. I have probably gone on for too long, but you have probably sensed that I have a few opinions on these things and that I care very deeply about Guam. Dona and I have truly been blessed throughout our four-and-a-half years on Guam, spread over two tours. We will miss Guam and we will miss our many friends from Guam. Thank you for making our time here so
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enjoyable. Tilghman, congratulations on coming to a great job. I guarantee that you will love it here and that the people of Guam will welcome and embrace you and your family as one of their own, just like they did us. End Quote The engineering and construction industry is at a critical juncture because of the halt in planned military construction on Guam and the CNMI. The interruption is due at least in part to actions and inactions of certain local political leaders as illustrated in the foregoing. This is an election year and it is now up to us to support those candidates that we can depend on to do the right things going forward. The Government and Labor Relations Committee is open to all members of the association. Contact the GCA office for time and place of meetings.
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NAWICNEWS
NAWIC
SPECIAL
PROJECTS The National Assoication of Women In Construction Guam Chapter #381 presents: NAWIC helps Simon Sanchez High School in minor renovations.
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n o i t a r o p r o C N IA
FEATURESTORY
acaluso M F d i v a by D
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FEATURESTORY
Since 2005 IAN Corporation has been serving the needs of the people and been building a better Guam. IAN Corporation is led by Ian “Jay” Chong who has over 23 years experience in the construction industry. Chong established IAN as a licensed general contractor in 2005. Over the years the corporation has been specializing in civil works, commercial and emergency response teams projects to such organizations as DZSP21. According to Chong, “We are a full ish. Our team is with our clients every step of the way, making sure that all the important details are done to their satisfaction. We have fundamental goals, build quality projects safely, on time and on budget, no matter how challenging, unique the project or the size. Our commitment to our customers is our top priority.” IAN Corporation operates primarily in the heavy construction. It also operates in other construction industry segments including mass structure excavations,
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opments both commercial and residential, pipelines and utilities, land clearing and grading, excavation support systems, foundations and ground improvements, electromechanical works, bridge and renovation. In addition IAN provides the highest quality earthmoving equipment and mechanic service trucks on Guam. “Our rental tion equipment is available at competitive rates with on site mechanical support,” said Chong. Some of the jobs IAN has completed are various Department of Defense, Federal and Local projects which includes lead abatement and demolition at Naval Base Guam, Tower Foundations constructed at Radio Barrigada, Replace rollup doors at Navy Base Guam, water blasting and replacing air condition units at the Naval Hospital, dredging, water and sewer, electro-mechanical works, remodeling and building.
As of mid July, there are two ongoing projects IAN is working on as the prime Wildlife project which requires a multi species harrier fences installed for the Guam National Wildlife Refuge. The second one is a U.S. Coast Guard project which requires IAN to provide and install new 200KW generators. IAN is also has Sub-Contractor on a number of projects which includes 6.6 MW Generator rewind at Orote Power Plant, The North Ramp waterline installation project at Andersen Air Force Base, Civil works for NEXION antenna tower Installation and demolition works at Naval Base. IAN also has given back to the community by supporting several local groups and organizations in their efforts to raise funds for various types of community activities. They also look forward to becoming more engaged in our local community in the future.
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FEATURESTORY
Lighting Up Guam’s Streets BY David F. Macaluso
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FEATURESTORY New efficient LED street lights are being installed throughout the island, making the roadways brighter at night for Guam’s residents. Once this American Recovery and Reinvestment Act project is complete, it could have an expected savings of nearly fifty percent in the Department of Public Works power bill. GPA was given $2.5 million of ARRA Funds to replace old low pressure sodium street lights with new energy efficient LED street lights. This replacement project began in November 2011 and it is nearly complete. When the job is done, GPA would have replaced over 1500 lights. In the past there were street light issues with the villages because there were not enough street lights on the roadways or in the neighborhoods which could lead to traffic accidents and crime. GPA Specific Project Engineer Francis Iriarte said, “The scope of the work for this ARRA project was a one to one replacement, so we are not installing new street lights or changing burned out lights in the neighborhoods, we are just replacing the existing low pressure sodium light fixtures with new LED lights. Right now GPA is only focusing on the main roads like Route 1, 4, 8, 10 & 16 and a few roads within certain villages.” Johnson Control Incorporated (JCI) is the contractor that GPA hired for this job. JCI dates back to 1885 and is a global diversified technology and industrial leader serving customers in over 150 countries. The solve solutions that will optimize energy and operational efficiencies of buildings. JCI is currently working on additional projects for GPA that includes upgrades to a number GovGuam facilities making them energy efficient. For this streetlight project, JCI brought in an outside lighting specialist to the island. And how much energy and savings will this new LED light give to DPW? According Iriarte, “As far as energy savings, the numbers are more than 50% expected savings for DPW. The customer on record is DPW and I’m sure it helps them. ”Having an expected saving of 50% could mean a lot for this agency. In the past DPW had some challenges paying for their street lights, but that problem has been taken care of and now they are making their monthly payments. Having any kind of saving in this economy could mean a lot for this agency and GovGuam.
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The average cost to power a private street light is $38. per month. But with the introduction with these new LED lights, GPA could go back to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to petition for a different rate because its more efficient and with this expected savings GPA could build a case for additional funding to help retrofit and change out more lights around the island. The new LED bulb gives off more light, makes the road more visible and you can see actual colors compared to the older amber lights, which made everything look yellow/orange. According to GPA Spokesman Art Perez, While in Oakland, California he noticed that there were new LED lights installed and placed all around the city. He asked an Oakland police officer what he thought of the new LED lights. The Oakland police officer said he love the new lights because if they are looking for a suspect wearing a blue shirt, the LED lights aid them in determining that the suspect is indeed wearing a blue shirt. The older amber lights would make it more difficult to see the blue shirt because under those lights it would appear black.Perez adds, ”It’s my hope that in the future we can develop a street light standard on island. There is a standard, but there isn’t a light placement standard like will the be a light on every pole or every other pole. This is a standard that is really used in the mainland.” GPA will meet with the Island mayors next month (September) to gauge the feed back on the new lights. This will give the island residents a chance to view the difference between the old and new lights. “A lot of people I’ve talked to had very positive comments about the new LED lights. If it saves money people will like it even more. That money can be re-invested back into the system,” said Perez. “These lights have a warranty for 10 years so this is good because it cuts back on the operation cost. This is one case where I can say with confidence that we are very happy to use the Grants funding for its intent and usage.” There are strict guidelines on how ARRA Funds can be spent. One requirement is all products have to be made in the USA. These new LED lights are made by General Electric. This helps the country and creates jobs. Another good thing about this grant is it keeps money circulating in our local economy. JCI was hired, they have a local staff and we are getting savings off these energy efficient lights.
In the meantime, GPA is also wrapping up another ARRA grant funded project which is making upgrades to a number of GovGuam agencies. This ARRA Grant worth $8.1 million and was given to GPA by the United States Department of Energy. The funds were used to retrofit 44 facilities belonging to 12 GovGuam line agencies. The agencies include Public Health, Mental Health, Department of Public Works, Guam Fire Department and its stations, the Guam Library and its satellites, the Guam Police Department, Department of Agriculture, Department of Parks and Recreation, Department of Youth Affairs and the Department of Administration. According to eighteen year GPA veteran Iriarte said. “As of a month ago, five additional facilities were added to the list. The retrofit project will include Adelup, the Government House, Chamorro Village, Finegayan Elementary School and KGTF. The kind of work we are doing involves completely changing out and putting in new fixtures and completely retrofit of the entire lighting system throughout these GovGuam agencies. This project started in November 2011 and should be completed at the end of this month (August). Additional work to these facilities includes replacing air conditioners, refrigerators, fix water closets, urinals, floor restrictors, sinks and showers, electrical work, roofing and tinting windows. The two local contractors doing the work for GPA is JCI and Science Application International Corporation (SCIC) working as partners with the agency. And from those contractors, they have partnered with several smaller contractors. SCIC partnered with International Bridge Corporation (IBC), which is the firm that built the new JFK Campus in Upper Tumon. JCI partnered with several specialists, companies like JRM to replace all the air conditioners, Barrett to work on the plumbing, ZOOM to do all the electrical work and Island Tinting to work on all the windows and doors.Iriarte is glad to be to be a part of these ongoing projects because he feels like he is making a difference to the island. When all the retrofits are made to these GovGuam agencies, Iriarte believes that there will have a 50% expected savings from their power bill. More savings that can be reinvested into those agencies.
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FEATURESTORY
Around the World and On Guam Written By: Dave Macaluso
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FEATURESTORY
Handling and storing close to 58% of the islands oil along with maintaining the Department of Defense fuels are a just a few things Agility is doing on Guam and around the globe. Agility is one of the top ten logistic providers in the world. It handles the whole gambit of logistics services from freight, warehousing, fuels, chemicals, life support as in housing projects for the workforce. Its a global organization that has over 500 offices in 100 countries. According to Agility’s Program Manager in the Pacific Region John M. Dennett, “There’s not a continent in the world that we can’t get to. We are represented in as well as have agencies in.” Agility is Kuwaiti owned and publicly traded in Dubai’s stock market and annually grosses a little over 6.8 billion dollars a year in sales. “Basically we stand for customer service. Customers come first and there is nothing to large or too small we can’t handle,” said Dennett . “We want to provide superior service in the field of logistics services whatever shape that may take.” Agility has been incorporated on Guam since 2008. It started off small with only a cubicle and Dennett. Then Agility paid $17 million when it bought the GORCO (Guam Oil and Refining Company) facility, the old oil terminal, from Shell in 2009. That is operated under Agility’s Tristar Terminals Group, which is also a Guam based company. Tristar is a wholely owned by Agility subsidiary, but there are several parts to this global company. Tristar is a fifty / fifty joint venture between the Agility Defense Government Services and the Global Integrated Logistic Services (freight forwarding). Tristar is a fuel storage facility on Guam and under contract it stores close to 500,000 barrels of oil for the Guam Power Authority. “Basically we store the islands reserve
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supply fuels at our facility for GPA’s power plants throughout the island. We lease GPA’s pipeline, our B pipeline is set aside for their use, basically every drop of oil that flows into Cabras flows through our pipeline. We also have a fuel storage with IPE,“ said Dennett. Tristar has a close working relationship with GPA because they store fuel for the power agency. This is a mutually beneficial arrangement because GPA doesn’t have to build very expensive fuel tanks to hold their fuel. The Tristar facility sits on 235 acres, has 24 storage tanks and its total capacity can handle over 4 million barrels. It currently represent 58% of the islands total capacity to store oil and that includes the Department of Defense and all the commercial sights. This fuel warehouse holds jet diesel, residual fuel oil (RFO’s) which is the heavy fuel oils that GPA burns. There’s a 17-thousand cubic foot liquefied petroleum gas ( LPG ) sphere Tristar stores for its LPG customers. It leases the F-1 finger tip pier from the Port Authority of Guam to allow fuel ships to come in to the port. The company also schedules all the fuel ships that comes into Guam for its various customers. Agility started off as the Public Warehouse Corporation (PWC) in Kuwait, owned by the Kuwaiti Government. PWC has been around since the early 90’s but didn’t come into its own until the early 2000’s. It later secured a $14 billion contract with the United States Department of Defense to provide fuel for the U.S, troops in Iraq and to operate all dining facilities during Operation Iraqi Freedom. According to Dennett, There was a point PWC was serving close to a million meals a month at different dining facilities throughout their different entities. “When you looked at our cargo pipeline of food, we had about $235 million in food value on the road or on the ocean some-
where on its way to Iraq at some point,” said Dennett. Big contracts with the DOD helped the company acquired another company named Global Integrated Logistics and that company has been around since the 1800’s. As time went on, Agility also formed TransLink which does fairs, events and exhibits. According to Dennett, “If you need a Russian MiG to appear in the Paris Air Show, we can do that. We also helped China during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.” A few years ago, on February 26, 2008, the New York Philharmonic had a concert at East Pyongyang Grand Theatre in North Korea. This was a significant event between North Korea and the United States relations. The entire concert was broadcast on North Korea State Television. Agility was the one that logistically helped New York Philharmonic move their equipment into North Korea. Dennett adds, “We also own Projects Logistics which deals with the movement of gas, and the movement of heavy equipment for the oil, mining and construction industries. In addition, Agility has 22 fuel depots for the United Nations and are also building a U.N. fuel depot in Haiti for the aftermath of the 2010 Haitian Earthquake. Agility came to Guam with the buildup in mind, but then they found out that Shell wanted to sell its facility and the fuel storage business presented itself to the company. Agility hired the former Shell employees to help run the fuel facility. Shortly after that, It received a 1.2 million barrel fuels contract from DOD... Dennett said, “We currently employ 37 employees and we pay close to $32,000 a month in gross receipts tax (GRT), that’s 4% off Tristar’s gross injected into Guam’s slow economy. Tristar is not like other fuel providers where they are wholesalers, where they are exempt from paying GRT.
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FEATURESTORY
Tristar has to pay the tax because its a liquid warehouse. Right now Tristar is open to new ideas and looking at different energy initiatives. Initially Agility looked at the workforce housing that would be needed for the anticipated military buildup, but the company took a more cautious approach to that buildup plan. “Even if DOD says they are coming and are going to do things, Agility felt it was best not to execute anything until we were 100% sure that we had the customers. Just because they say something it doesn’t mean it’s going to happen,” said Dennett. Agility has experience and supported workforce camps all around the world and it can mobilize up to 10,000 people. Agility built mining camps around the world and it also has camps in Libya with the reconstruction of Libya. Libya is also getting ready for the 9th International Building & Construction Exhibition in May 2013. Dennett adds, “Once we get the permits we can build workforce camps within 90 days. I think the military buildup will eventually come, but it will be a very slow build up. It won’t be this big spike in activity that everyone expected. It will be slower and it will be with fewer people. I think the opportunity won’t be as robust for Guam, it will be steady but not a big infusion of cash, especially if the military decides to stay on their side of the fence line. If they build barracks to house military members and their families, then you won’t see a big impact on Guam’s infrastructure because everything will be behind the fence.” So in the meantime, Agility’s business model is to concentrate on Tristar and the fuel contracts. To be responsible for the fuels safe keeping, the inventory and giving it to the clients when they need it in the quantities that were sent to fuel facility. Tristar is also trying to expand the fuel business on Guam. It would like to see if it could bring more outside investment
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from other companies and countries. Tristar is currently storing 2 million barrels of fuel storage. And the facility can actually handle an additional 2 million barrels. If Tristar can fill those empty tanks, then the company can generate more revenue and increase its workforce and that will eventually increase the taxes that will be paid to the Government of Guam. Dennett hopes to attract oil traders, or other folks that may need fuel or possibly if the DOD decides to store more fuel at the facility. With this additional fuel being stored at the sight, it will generate additional money for Guam, but it’s also important at the same time the island’s environment is protected. “The fuel industry can obviously cause a lot of damage to the environment if not handled properly and it’s Tristar’s goal to be a good environmental stewards,” said Dennett. Before Tristar, the old sight was a refinery that was built over 60 years ago. It had storage tanks and made Jet fuel for the bombers during the Vietnam War. And then Shell bought it. “Its an old facility and it does have some contaminants there and it’s on public record, but Shell is doing their part with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) to evaluate the contamination in the ground and will take whatever steps they are going to have to do to clean it up,” said Dennett. “And our goal is not to cause further damage and if we do eventually leave Guam, we will leave this land better than when we got here. According to Dennett, the old refinery is slowly being dismantled, its about 90% dismantled. Tristar got permitted for the demolition and used local companies like Green Guam to scrap it. “When we first bought the sight, we spent an additional $10 million to upgrade the old facility. We used local companies such as Bascon Construction, Rico’s
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Construction, Santiago and DCK. We hired local Guam companies to help renovate the storage tanks in preparation for the Department of Defense deal. We also hired local companies like Gresco to help clean up the environment and G4S for our security. Agility has been here since 2008 and has given back to the community. The company sponsored the Guam USO because so many of the employees at Agility are from the military. Dennett believes that the USO provides a great service for our men and women who are defending for our country. Agility also supports the US Navy leagues that are supported by the US Department of the Navy. According to Dennett, this league was first established by President Teddy Roosevelt. Dennett said Guam Contractors Association is very important for its members because it helps promote their mutual interest for all Guam contractors whether its for the training of the future workforce or the need to band together to impact legislation that may affect the construction community. “Agility has been a member of the GCA since January 2010. We joined GCA to avail our services to the other GCA members and to see what services other GCA members may have that we will hired to do work at Tristar. While being a member of GCA, in the future we would love to help support local construction companies especially if they buy supplies and materials from the mainland, we would love to help pack those materials, and bring them to Guam. According to Dennett, Agility is here for the long haul. They are not like some of the off island construction companies that will come here to do the work and then leave once the job is complete. Agility is here and part of the community. It plans to be part of Guam’s landscape for the years to come.
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PHOTOHIGHLIGHTS
GCA Luncheon July 18th, 2012 Fiesta Resort Guam
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PHOTOHIGHLIGHTS
17th Annual Safety Conference July 24th - 26th, 2012 Hyatt Regency Guam
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THEHAPPENINGS
Guam Contractors Association
BOWLING LEAGUE Week 17
Place 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
# 4 10 8 5 3 1 6 9 2 7
Points Points Pins plus Last Wk Lask Wk Team Name Won Lost Handicap Won Lost -1Hawaiian Rock Products 1 50012 4 0 818 52 16 Black Construction Corp. 49485 0 4 773 46 22 Guam Crane Services 47950 4 0 651 42 26 Hawaiian Rock Products 2 49282 30 3 1 715 38 DCK Pacific 48548 30 3 1 766 38 CMS 48021 31 0 4 631 37 Advance Management inc. 37 47900 4 0 666 31 CarQuest 44 46499 1 3 540 24 Cassidy’s Association Insurance 18 46030 4 576 50 0 Adztech & Public Relations 41147 0 4 0 16 52
-2920 775 651 780 737 627 713 565 570 0
-3889 762 771 847 815 621 691 530 563 0
HDCP Total 3032 2781 2871 2840 2882 2689 2883 2760 2816 0
Guam Contractors Association /Guam Masters Basketball Association Liberation Day HoopsTournament
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GARRISONREPORT
Improved Reliability Is the Key to Increased Profits by: Ted Garrison Ted Garrison, president of Garrison Associates, is a catalyst for change. As a consultant, author and
speaker
he
provides
breakthrough
strategies for the construction industry by focusing on critical issues in leadership, project management, alliances
strategic
thinking,
strategic
and marketing. Contact Ted at
800-861-0874 or Growing@TedGarrison.com. Further
information
can
be
found
at
www.TedGarrison.com."
Construction management efforts typically focus on productivity to control costs. However, the problem is reliability, not production. Studies reveal that more than 90 percent of the tasks performed on projects finish within the duration assigned to them at the beginning of the project. In contrast, more than 50 percent of the tasks assigned on any given week are finished late. The number one reason is that the task couldn’t start when it was scheduled. When you can’t start on schedule because the team in front of you has not finished on time, it demonstrates unreliability, which is a killer because it causes significant waste. When contractors can’t start assigned work when scheduled, the contractor ends up with people not working at full capacity. Since this has been an ongoing problem for years, unit prices reflect this situation; therefore, many don’t even realize the magnitude of this waste. Now that the project is behind schedule, the contractors need to speed up. This results in either working overtime or adding people to the project. Both of these
situations are likely to add extra costs for the contractor, and those costs don’t include the lost time while waiting to start the task. Ed Anderson, one of my NCS Radio guests on my New Construction Strategies program, talks about the underlying problem. He calls the waste Chase Up©. Chase Up© is the time you spend chasing people or being chased to ensure everyone does what he or she is supposed to do when it is supposed to be done. The problem is that despite construction supervisors at all levels complaining about spending as much as 50 percent on Chase Up© activities, it doesn’t seem to eliminate the late deliveries. The reason is that chasing people doesn’t address the root cause of the problem. It’s like using an aspirin to cure a headache without worrying about why you have the headache. While late delivery is a headache, it’s not the cause of the problem. To listen to Anderson’s interview on Chase Up©, go to: www.jackstreet.com/jackstreet/WCON.Ande rsonE2.cfm. To protect themselves from this situation, contractors build contingency into their prices because typically they can’t get a change order for these internal project delays. Over time, this contingency has become part of their standard unit costs. Since contractors believe their true costs are reflected by the job cost reports, they don’t even realize they have inserted a contingency for this waste. After all, this waste occurs on every project, so isn’t this expense a direct cost? The result is it’s difficult or even impossible to get contractors to lower their estimated costs because under current practices, they need the contingency. However, when they learn how to remove this waste, they can decrease their contingency and lower their unit costs. This results in higher profits. The problem is virtually no one monitors reliability. The focus is on productivity. However, just monitoring productivity can provide misleading information. For example, a plumber is scheduled to finish all under-slab work by the close of business on Thursday so the slab can be placed early on Friday morning. The plumber is 95 percent complete at the close of business, which isn’t too bad from his perspective. However, the slab now can’t be placed on Friday. This has a major impact on all the trades involved with placing the concrete. In this case, the plumber’s productivity is 95 percent, but his reliability is zero. Reliable means you are 100 percent complete when you are supposed to be, or you are not reliable. It’s black and white with no gray area. Imagine if contractors were paid based on reliability, not production. What if they got paid for a task only when it is on schedule?
Over time, contractor prices have been squeezed to the breaking point. In response, the contractors schedule their work the most efficient way for themselves to minimize their costs. This is without regard to reliability or its impact on the other contractors. Poor reliability increases everyone’s cost and even prevents improvements in productivity. Increased reliability is the solution because it would lower costs and provide more accurate cost figures. Almost a hundred years ago, Henry Ford said the best way increase business is to decrease costs. There is no better way to reduce costs than eliminate waste. The result would be greater contractor profits. This requires measuring the reliability of all the project’s contractors. If you select contractors with high reliability, project costs will be lower through the elimination of waste. Further, when supervisors can spend less time chasing people because they are more reliable, they can focus on other more productive activities. How to Increase Reliability When reliability is measured and everyone is held accountable for his or her own reliability, total project reliability improves. The use of techniques such as pull planning or Last Planner© provide the tools to improve contractor reliability. Collaboration and communication among the people actually performing the work gives those in the trenches an understanding of not only what’s needed from them but also when it’s needed and why. When the individual contractors realize how much time and labor costs they can save by working with other contractors to improve everyone’s reliability, they typically embrace the process with enthusiasm.Those contractors that don’t want to participate in this process should be not be allowed to participate on projects because they hurt everyone. Pull-planning techniques have appeared under several names, such as the six-week look-ahead scheduling and Last Planner©, to name a couple. Implementing these techniques along with measuring reliability will result in a significant improvement in performance and profitability. If you would like to learn more about this concept, please feel free to contact me for more information. Behind Schedule
Reliablity Productivity
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NEWMEMBERS
JULY 2012 Contractor: Architectural Painting Services, LLC P.O.Box 1206 Hagatna, GU 96932 GCA Contact: Darren Crisfield, President Email: crisfield2@bigpond.com Ph: 671-646-6939 Fax: 671-646-6976 Description: Painting Contractor
Resorts World Manila 10th floor NECC bldg. New Port City, Pasay Phillippines GCA Contact: Christine Ibarreta Email: hsm@rwmanila.com Ph: 632-908-8000 Fax: 632-908-8139 Description: Integrated Resorts
Associate: 1Stop PCS 118 Chalan Tan Maria, Ipan Talofofo, GU 96915 GCA Contact: Regina Burnley, Owner Email: regina@1stoppcs.info Ph: 671-797-0808 Fax: 671-649-3454 Description: Relocation Consultant, Real Estate Christopher Arnsfield P.O.Box 9759 Tamuning, GU 96931 GCA Contact: Christopher Arnsfield Email: Christopher.arnsfield@gmail.com Ph: 671-483-9210 Description: Residential Real Estate Denanche Security Agency P.O.Box 326263 Hagatna, GU 96932 GCA Contact: JD Castro, Vice President/GM Email: customerservices@dsaguam.com Ph: 671-472-9811/2 Fax: 671-472-9814 Description: Security HDR Inc. 341 S. Marine Corps Dr. Ste # 103 RK PlazaTamuning, GU 96913 GCA Contact: Christine Pascus Email: Christine.pascus@hdrinc.com Ph: 671-989-5558 Fax: 671-989-5557 Description: Security Premier Properties Management P.O.Box 6974 Tamuning, GU 96931 GCA Contact: Wallace Roberto Email: premier@teleguam.net Ph: 671-649-4663 Fax: 671-647-6770 Description: Real Estate
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AUGUST 2012 Contractor: Dylan Mechanical Construction Services, Inc. P.O.Box 4701 Hagatna, GU 96932 GCA Contact: Harold Cullick, PE Email: Harold@dylanmechanical.com Ph: 671-989-4880 Description: Mechanical Engineering, Construction Management, Contracting
R&D Marketing P.O.Box 5624, Hagatna Guam 96932 GCA Contact: Reynaldo Tesalona Email: eraleen@guam.net Ph: 671-633-7471 Fax: 632-7471 Description: Supply of Electrical Materials & Equipment
Associate:
Saxon Donegon Investments 148 Chalan Tan Maria Ian Talofofo, GU 96915 GCA Contact: David Fitzgerald Email: Commodity Brokage Ph: 671-788-4483 Description: Commodity Brokerage
Construction Consulting Guam, LLC 275G Farenholt Ave PMB 180 Tamuning, GU 96913 GCA Contact: Keith Farrell Email: keith_farrell@indopacificgroup.com Ph: 671-482-5825 Description: Project Management, Claims, Estimating Crown Maintenance Service P.O.Box 20897 GMF, Barrigada GU 96921 GCA Contact: Daniel Balicha-Owner Email: junybalicha@gmail.com Ph: 671-632-8154 Description: Janitorial Services
SST, Special Security Team P.O.Box 9622, Tamuning, GU 96931 GCA Contact: Philip Muna, President Email: philmuna@sstcorp.com Ph: 671-797-3325 Description: Unarmed Security Services
O&M Safety Analysis P.O.Box 22135 Barrigada, GU 96921 GCA Contact: Mark Von Weber, Operations Offices Email: markvonweber@gmail.com Ph: 671-969-5620 Description: Environmental Health and Safety Consulting Firm
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