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THIS WORK WE LOVE Documenting the Power of Relationship Done Right

Introduction

n the foothills of north Georgia, the talk of the county is the new airport. It’s good news for the

hard-working communities in Habersham county. It means more jobs, more industries, more growth – new life. It’s big construction. It’s 45 acres. It’s more than 250,000 cubic yards of dirt moved and compacted in 50 days. It’s over 5,000 linear feet of massive storm piping put into the ground. It’s big. We finished it ahead of schedule with just two of our six crews. And that is the talk of the county, too. Ahead of schedule and not over budget. No one there had ever worked with Gearig Civilworks before. So when the folks in Habersham county were shaking their heads in happy surprise at how well their airport project was coming along, one of the commissioners asked if Gearig folks always worked like this. Our answer, I’m happy to say, was “Yes, sir. It sure is how we always work. It sure is.”

We do get noticed for how hard we work, for how well we work, how consistently we turn projects around, and believe it or not, for the age of our crews. The surprise is that crews as young as ours can work so skillfully in the field, with the land, with the machines, with each other. The results speak for themselves. They show that, age aside, we’re not short on experience. But it takes more than experience to continually deliver the high quality work we do. Some may say that young people, young crews, are just what it does take to be able to work so hard from sun-up to sundown. But, really, it’s not so much

That’s what

about working hard, though we do, as

drives us – this

passionate about this work and, you

passion for our

fuels us to work long days and still stay

work. It’s what

keeps us focused, keeps us curious, so

sets us apart.

it is about working passionately. We’re

see, that is the difference. That is what

excited about the work. That is what

we find solutions instead of pointing out problems. That is what drives us – this passion for our work. It’s what sets

us apart. And it’s what gets us and our work noticed. Maybe a department of transportation official visits one of our sites and is so impressed that he decides to document our erosion control measures in order to teach others the correct way to follow EPA guidelines. Maybe a government official shakes his head in pleasant surprise because he has never worked with such a high-caliber civilworks company before. The fact is we do get noticed. We are the breakout civilworks firm in the Southeast, role models for the civilworks industry.

Those are bold statements. I know they may even sound too bold, too big, too much like slick marketing. We stand by them, though, for the truth they represent, for the benefit they offer our current clients and all our new clients down the road. Standing by the truth is another part of why we’re so good at what we do. It speaks to the integrity we bring to our work. It speaks to the way we were raised, on the land, on family farms, learning the value of honest relationships, of truth, of integrity. This publication bears witness to all of that. It gives you a window into our company, into how we bring so much life to what we do, into how we come together and make so much

Clark Gearig

happen for the bene-

CEO Gearig Civilworks

fit of the client, for the

benefit of the land, for the benefit of the project. Spend just a little time reading the words, looking at the pictures. You’ll understand what I’m talking about. You’ll get this work we love. You’ll get what sets us apart, why clients choose to work with us. You’ll get the power of good relationship done right.

Clarity

The Land and The People The Power of Intention

here’s something about growing up on a farm. It forms in us a deep respect and love for the

land and for the people – for family, friends, and neighbors. It teaches us to accept that both land and people must come together, work together, to make crops grow, to make families grow. There is something about growing up on a farm. It reveals how to love well the land and the people, each other, so all can prosper in the rhythms and cycles of the seasons, of the days. There is something about growing up on a farm. It shows us that commitment to the land and to the people nurtures life: clearing the land, planting the land, harvesting the crops. Yes, this much we know. There is something about growing up on a farm. It fosters the type of honest relationship that always bears fruit – ensuring that both the land and the people thrive. And we who’ve grown up on farms know that it all starts with clear intention.

We come together on each project with the clear intention of letting our love for land and for people – for relationship – be the lens we use to guide us. The people that make up Gearig Civilworks are people from farms, from the land. That’s important for you to know. As a company, it sets us apart from others. Our clear intention brings us together in our love for this work we do, this work with the land and with each other, this work we do for our clients. We bring the values and integrity that working with the land for generations has taught our families. We aren’t shy to tell clients that our employees, our people, are our family. The land we work on connects us. That means that we come together on each project with the clear intention of letting this love for land and for people – for relationship – be the lens we use to guide us. It’s a simple foundation, but it is profound. It is a gamechanger. It means that a project is never just a set of plans for us. It means that your project is never just another job. Each project is a relationship. That means we bring our hearts and souls, our values, and our integrity to your project. And, of course, we bring our big machines, too.

Big Machines The Power of Focus and Presence

alk onto the land where we’re working, one of our job sites. You’ll see powerful

machines in action – many powerful machines rolling across the land. The air will be filled with the loudness of giant diesel engines. It’s the sound of power. Stop a moment. Stand. And as you look over all that is taking place, bring your focus to the earth under your feet. Notice how it trembles. It’s the physical sensation of the immense amount of brute force it takes to change a landscape. It vibrates from the ground to the soles of your feet through the core of your body. It’s what happens when big machines work, when massive earthmovers roll and push and pull and dig and scrape. These are the gritty, dusty, sweaty, deep-in-yoursoul experiences that come out of shaping a piece of land, preparing it for a new relationship with the world.

We love our equipment, and we have plenty. We own over 50 pieces of major earthwork and utility equipment. We maintain every single one of our hard-working, heavy, specialized trucks and machines for continuous smooth execution of all our projects. Our resources are also constantly atthe-ready to begin any new project a client may have. This demands that we know our equipment inside and out, that we know the best pieces of equipment for each type of project, for each phase of a project. And we do. We never fail to put together and mobilize the best and most complete force of equipment for a project. To

We know how to put together and mobilize a force of equipment that fits the unique needs of your project.

consistently and effectively provide this level of customization, we dedicate the time and resources to maintain a mechanically dependable, ready-to-roll equipment fleet large enough to handle anything from extensive residential projects to airport and

other large-scale transportation projects. We also offer some of the most

state-of-the-art machinery available today. We own big dozers like D6Rs and electric D7Es. We own big excavators like Caterpillar 349 track hoes with the lift capacity large projects require. And we bring to the table the CAT RM300 Road Reclaimer that can save tens of thousands of dollars on projects through sophisticated soil- and base-stabilization techniques. There’s something else that we bring with us. We call it focus and we call it presence. It’s a big part of how we support our intention of doing relationship right, of doing your project right.

We bring our

We focus on what each piece of equipment is designed to do. We focus on where it best

focus to what

serves the needs of the project. And we focus

unfolds in the

months at a time. Then when we’re operating

on how to keep it running long hours, weeks and

relationship

the equipment, when we’re bringing all our

between

of work, we also bring our presence and focus

the land and the machine.

experience to bear on a particular moment

to what the land is revealing to us, through the equipment, through the track hoe, through the dozer. This is relationship. Pure. Simple. Real. And we never lose sight of it.

Connection

Communications and Systems The Power of Listening and Acceptance

ave you ever walked the land, before the equipment arrives? Maybe an early winter

morning, with the sun rising, and the pink and orange sky breaking into the new day. Maybe you come to the crest of a hill, your heart beating a little faster from the climb, your breath puffing into the coldness of the air. For a moment, you settle. You sink into the stillness, the silence. For a moment, you feel the life of the land, its potential. It’s almost as if it’s speaking directly into your soul. And you listen. Suddenly a hawk cries out. It pierces the silence. You look up and see it circling overhead, its silhouette against the morning sky. You don’t move. You watch. You listen some more. You wait because you feel something isn’t finished. You don’t know what. You just know something else is to come. So you wait. And then somewhere in the distance, over your shoulder, you hear another piercing cry, another hawk. It connects. It answers. It communicates. And it serves in its own way to

move life along, life that’s never finished, that just changes, that just moves along, into a new season, a new crop, a new relationship between land like the land you’re walking and new purpose, new life. Our projects are always in motion, always moving along, from solution to solution – never stopped, never shut down, by a problem. We achieve this through our innovative communications protocol and sophisticated management systems. That may sound so hi-tech that it loses clarity, loses meaning. Here’s what you need to know: they are essential to do-

We develop detailed project narratives that lead you through each step of the process.

ing our work well, to doing relationship right. Simply put, they are the ways we connect, the ways we stay connected, the ways we communicate. They are how we make sure the big picture and the day-to-day details and discoveries

on the ground come together to keep the project moving along. Our big picture starts with your plans and moves to the development of accurate and precise project schedules. Then we develop detailed project narratives that lead you through each step of the process. Our schedules and narratives put everyone on the same page, able to track progress and identify with precision and clarity all interface points. We set the big picture in motion with our advanced GPS technology. It’s how we map your plans onto the land, onto the work site. It sets up a line of communication between the land

To make it all work, we listen. It demands our presence,

and our people in the machines. In real-time, we receive the information we need to be able to make precise cuts into the land, grading the site to meet your exact plan specifications. Of

course,

systems

and

communication

inevitably fail when people forget how to be in

our focus, so

good relationship with the systems, with each

that we see

ears. With our eyes. It demands our presence,

other. To make it all work, we listen. With our

what is really

our focus, so that we see what is really

happening.

And so we listen, and we accept what we

happening, not what we think is happening.

discover – not in the context of giving up, rather in the spirit of understanding that the

data we receive is our starting point, and it leads us to real solutions, to effective steps that keep the project smoothly moving along toward the land’s new purpose, new life.

Safety and Management The Power of Trust and Vulnerability

he earth under your feet is firm. You smell it as you breathe in – freshly dug, a little moist,

loamy. You hear sounds – slightly muffled, fainter than usual, rounder. The earth closes in around you, cuts you off from the landscape. Look up. All you see is sky, and the arm of the track hoe. Follow it with your eyes. You see the large bucket coming toward you. You sense its weight simply from its size. You sense its power, its force, all from the deepness of the trench you’re in. Behind you? A man sitting in the cab of the excavator, hands steady in their movement, eyes on the bucket, on the trench, and you trust, on you, too. The bucket gets closer, bigger, more real. It touches earth, pushes, digs, scoops, and pulls away, full. It leaves you, unharmed but not unchanged. It leaves the trench, unharmed but not unchanged.

Gearig is recognized as the standard bearer for safety on a job site. Unharmed but not unchanged. That’s the ultimate effect of strong safety and management practices on a civilworks project. It’s the perfect expression of years of experience and knowledge applied through an intricate framework of regulations. For us, it’s seamlessly integrated into each project. We work in ways that respect the vulnerability of your project. We know that this requires clear understanding of safety protocols for the land, for our people. This is important: Gearig is recognized as the standard bearer for safety on a job site. Safety of people. We have a current EMR safety rating of .84. Safety of the land. We implement a full range of Best Management protocol to guard against site erosion, production setbacks, and cost overruns due to flooding and runoff.

Our approach to site management is radical. We support good relationships in the field. It’s human. It works. And it really has nothing to do with managing people. It all hinges on two simple words: trust and vulnerability. We’ve learned they go together on our worksites. When the expertise is in place, whether we’re implementing erosion control measures; mobilizing our fleet of equipment, people, and supplies; or laying miles of new pipeline – we

Our approach to good site management hinges on two simple words:

must trust enough to be vulnerable with each other. To be okay with saying, “Hey, give me a hand over here.” To be able to tell each other, “I’m here for you. We can make this happen together.” If we can’t do that, if we can’t trust each other enough to be vulnerable in the field, well, we may as well hang up our hats and call it a day. Trust and vulnerability teach us to respect.

trust and

They teach us that we’re all in this together,

vulnerability.

to give of ourselves. Site management for us

that it’s okay to ask for help, that it’s okay

comes down to this: We rely on each other, help each other, to get the job done. And so

we trust and we let ourselves be vulnerable, with the person in the cab of the excavator, with the utility foreman, with everyone in the field. That’s how we manage a site. It’s how we finish a project, how we leave the land unharmed but not unchanged, how we come together as one of the strongest, boots-on-the-ground teams you’ll ever meet.

Dirt and Pipes and Boots on the Ground The Power of Togetherness and Teamwork

ou feel it from the start – early, at 7am. You feel it the moment you get out of the truck.

The heat. It didn’t break overnight. The air. It’s thick already. Your shirt. It clings in the humidity. The haze. It presses against you, just a little. There’s no doubt about it. You’re in for another hot, sticky day. Grab your hardhat, put it on, walk toward your crew, watch the site come to life. The day wants to be lazy. But you won’t let it. No one on the crew will let it. There’s talk about six more scraper pans and the off-road trucks coming in. Then a little laughter, a few jokes, a few smiles, a little more laughter. It all punctuates, fills in the gaps, helps to get the day going, to bring you all together, to let you know that you’re part of the team. Climb up and into the cab of your excavator. It’s a 329E. You love it. Come to think of it, you love this kind of day. It makes you feel connected, alive. You love this site, these people who you see everyday, who are part

of your life. In little moments like these, you know deep down that this work is in your blood. It’s in your bones. This work you love. This work we love is all about dirt, about moving it, about sculpting it, about creating good futures with it. So when the day is done, when we leave the equipment for the next morning, when we turn back to look at the worksite one more time, we see what moving 15,000 cubic yards of dirt in a normal day looks like. And when we’ve needed to up our game, and move more, well, on those days, when we turn and take that last look as the sun sets, we see what moving 25,000 cubic yards of dirt looks like. And it feels good. It feels like a good day’s work. That same feeling of accomplishment, of satisfaction, of love for work, happens when we see where stacks of pipe no longer

stand, when we see the empty space that bears witness to honest hard work, when we can take off our hardhats, wipe the sweat from our brows, maybe pat the dust from our clothes, and know that on this particular day, this day that isn’t different from any

It’s our willingness to

other day on the job, we’ve installed 2000 linear feet of pipe. And it feels good. It feels like a good day’s work.

trust that brings

It’s our willingness to trust, to be vulnerable,

us together,

us. It brings us together, makes us a team, a

makes us a team, a family.

that’s at the heart of a good day’s work for

family. It’s what puts our boots on the ground and what picks us up if we fall. It’s what lets us help each other, lets us lend a hand, lets us be okay with being weak when someone

else is strong. It’s what keeps us going, moves us along. And at the end of the day, it’s what fuels our creativity, keeps us responsive instead of reactive, keeps us ahead of schedule instead of behind.

Creativity

Finishing Ahead of Schedule The Power of Responsiveness and Action

ou’re pulling your pans over the land. You look in front of you. It’s a long way off, the edge of

the job site. And you smile, shaking your head just a little. You get it. You sense it, like the beating of your own heart. The tempo, the rhythm. You feel it pulsing through the worksite. It connects you. It moves you along, keeps you going. The cadence you need to stay on track, to stay alert, to creatively respond to what the earth reveals, with each cut, each scoop, each push, each pull. It’s how you stay on top of things, stay ahead of schedule. It’s how you solve problems. It’s how what is gets transformed by what you do – in the moment, in response, in action. You draw upon a sure tempo. It’s how progress is marked. The flow of equipment, the movement of dirt, the laying of pipe, the steady rhythm of work, of crews, of life. It beats like your own heart, responsive to need, keeping you alive. It’s a long way off, the edge of the job site. And you get it. You are part of it. And you smile, shaking your head just a little.

Each member of our team is an integral part of it, of the work. It’s something we all get deep down. There’s no one-upmanship here. There’s no room for it. Each person is essential. Each has a place. That‘s how we engage without getting in the way, without stepping on toes, without bumping up against egos. It’s how we excel in what we call responsive action. It’s true that we have sophisticated

...98% of our projects have been delivered on or ahead of

communication

systems.

have

detailed schedules, project narratives, and real-time updating capabilities. We have experienced crews and large fleets of heavy equipment. But if we didn’t have the ability to be present,

their originally

to listen, to accept, we wouldn’t have

planned

abilities, and possess them well. And

schedules.

anything. But we do. We possess these

so we can say without any hesitation that 98% of our projects have been delivered on or ahead of their originally

planned schedules. Now that is big. It is, in part, why clients seek us out. It is how our clients save tens of thousands of dollars on their projects. It’s how they, at the end of the day, are able to smile and shake their heads a little. It’s how we all, at the end of the day, are able to shake hands and celebrate a good job done well and a good relationship done right.