OAK CROSSING

OPEN FOR BUSINESS

BY CARRIE-ANN JASPER-YEARTY, Vice President of People

We are excited to announce the official opening and dedication of our two new buildings on the Jasper Ventures Whitehouse campus. The new buildings provide functional space for our employees to work and collaborate, as well as a beautiful venue for our community to gather. The naming of the venue, Oak Crossing, points us to the great oak tree that was carefully preserved during the construction process. In Joshua chapter 24, we find the tribes of Israel gathered to reflect on God’s provision and deliverance and committing to faithfully serve the Lord and obey him. In verses 25 and 26, Joshua made a covenant with the people to incline their hearts to the Lord, wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and then placed a large stone under the oak tree near the holy place of the Lord. As a company, we have seen God’s provision – His divine guidance – for more than 28 years. As we dedicate these buildings to His use and glory, we want to make this same covenant: to faithfully serve the Lord our God and obey him. We hope that each time you pass under this oak tree to attend a meeting or an event at Oak Crossing, you will be reminded of this covenant and you will consider how God has gifted each one of you specifically and uniquely to do the work you do here at Jasper Ventures, and that you will be encouraged to do it excellently.

NEW WORKSPACE

FUELS TEAMWORK

BY JIM NEWBURG, Automations Manager

Iwas traveling through Oklahoma on spring break when the pandemic became serious in the eyes of most Americans, and we began to work remotely. You do not realize the challenges that exist when you cannot just walk to another employee’s office or cubicle and have a simple discussion. Zoom meetings helped the situation but did not give you the same effect as a good face-to-face meeting.

Returning to work provided some normality, but you could not help noticing that many of your friends were no longer at work. I saw that great progress had been made on our new office. I had mixed emotions and questioned if the new building was even necessary, especially in times like this. It took about a week to understand why the new building was so important.

It was neat to see the collaboration that was happening between the different groups within engineering. My programmers were constantly working with process engineers and the instrument group. Drafting was in and out of people’s cubicles and offices. This new building allowed all the right people to work closely without emails or phone calls. Work happens more efficiently and with less confusion.

One of the challenges that comes from working in the field is getting information from the office. There were many times since moving into the building, I had to call in from the field and found that multiple disciplines were able to quickly support me and my team as we faced challenges. This is critical to the success of our company, as we are in the customer’s eye, therefore quick resolutions and answers give the customer confidence.

While we may have been hesitant on our new building, it has been a blessing. The blessing comes in the form of collaboration and teamwork. It is a powerful thing to witness as different disciplines pull together to resolve issues in minutes that could have previously taken days or weeks.