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CONSTRUCTION
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The Industry’s Newspaper www.constructionnews.net H (210) 308-5800 H Volume 15 H Number 10 H OCTOBER 2018
And Tiger, too
All hands on deck
L-R: Kelly Hamer Service Manager, Derek Babola Chief Estimator, Erin Lionts Office Manager, John Bogue Operations, Clayton Payne President and Preston Payne is over Quotes/Tools/Materials.
Matthew Szynal, owner of Slight of Hand Metalworks.
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ome companies have “normal” names; e.g., “Bob’s Plumbing.” Other companies, however, have names that are more interesting. Take Tiger 2 Electrical Contactors, for instance. The story is: Clayton Payne’s older brother had his own electrical company in Dallas, named Tiger Electrical. He named it “Tiger” after his wife’s maiden name. Her name was Jenny Tiger. When Payne left his brother’s business and moved to Austin, he first worked for another large electrical contractor as the service manager. Unfortunately, they let him go. Payne had a client who worked for Dell Computers, and she offered him plenty of work if he started his own business, which he did. “That’s when I decided
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hen Stacy Eppen, owner of Epic Fun decided to renovate an old Big Lots store into a family fun center, Eppen knew she wanted a family-oriented contractor with a reputation for getting the job done. Third generational contractors John and Matt Haralson were born and raised in Austin. Their family has been active in the Central Texas construction industry since 1950. In 1992, the Haralson’s founded G Creek Construction, a family owned and operated construction company. G Creek specializes in commercial and municipal construction. Transformation of an existing 27,000sf Big Lots facility into the family entertainment center, Epic Fun took six months and $2,000,000 to complete. Renovation of the existing building included demolition of all interior structures and finishes, installation of an all new commercial kitchen, restrooms,
to jump out” on his own, he said. Payne named his company Tiger 2 Electrical Contractors, after his brother’s company. Payne’s first job with his new company was memorable. He was working at Dell when he saw that “everybody was on their computers, looking at the Trade Towers going down at that time.” The date was 9/11/2001. “I’ll never forget the time of my actual start date.” Payne started doing electrical work in high school shop class. “I’ve always enjoyed doing electrical work,” he said. Being from the Gulf Coast area, Payne did spend some time owning a marina. But with a growing family, he decontinued on Page 16
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ome people know early in life what they are not supposed to do or be. Matthew Syznal, owner of Slight of Hand Metalworks, says it clearly: “I’m a hands-on guy. I never saw myself as a paper pusher.” Take, for instance, the fact that he is a trained drummer. That takes hands. In fact, his drum teacher (back in Ohio) was taught by none other than Ed Shaughnessy of The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson fame. Szynal came to Austin from Ohio back in 1996 to pursue a musical career. But since his rusted out Isuzu Trooper pickup needed to have its frame welded to hold it together, he enrolled in Austin Community College in the metal arts program.
“I fell in love with the field,” he said. “I like the permanence of things that will last beyond my days.” The drummer now uses his hands to make both art and commercial/industrial things. “I’m always creating and have found joy in doing it yourself.” Szynal named his company “Slight of Hand” as a reference to the magician, who can use his hands to do wonderful things. Turning a piece of metal into an art object is in itself magical. In his life, Szynal has done many trades: electrical, plumbing and roofing. “I knew I wouldn’t have a desk job and be happy,” he said. If all this were not enough, Szynal also has an associate degree in engineercontinued on Page 16
Family fun for everyone bowling alley and most importantly erecting all the new attractions. The attractions varied from an elevated rope course, a three-story playground, rock climbing, arcades, bumper cars and minibowling. The biggest challenge faced was scheduling. The various entertainment vendors had to fall in line precisely as they were coming in from all over the world. Any lags or delays would result in complete disruption of the schedule, thus causing increased costs and remobilization fees by the attraction vendors. Working with a first time owner, starting a business on a tight timeline and budget, made this project unique. Major redesign was needed when issues arose during the permitting process. Making changes was quite challenging working with an out of state A/E team unfamiliar with City of Austin permitting Epic Fun, 7101 W. US Hwy 71 D
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