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Craftsman
Commercial Drywall, Inc. Vol. 3 No. 3
January 1982
To improve work environment
Direction set for Operation 3P in 1982 Each new year, one of the primary goals for CDI is to establish direction for its productivity program, Operation 3P. 3P, which stands for Positive Productivity Program, began in 1979 as an effort to increase company productivity. Since then it has been made a permanent effort to continually seek ways to meet this goal. Originally. 3P consisted of incentives and awards recognizing (achievement. It has since been expanded into a broad based employee relations program which also includes company moves and policies to increase efficiency, a coordinated safety effort, a newsletter, training, computerization of tool management, a theft and loss prevention effort, and organized activities — softball teams, fishing tournament, and steak dinners. This year 3P will focus on ways to improve the quality of the work environment at the job site. Through company surveys, CDI has learned that a multitude of problems exist at the operating or worker level, and that these are often the major barriers that affect productivity. i
Some of these problems include material handling and placement, shortage of good tools, and the re doing of work. Statistics bear these out with some experts saying that it usually requires more effort to get materials within 15 feet of their installation than it does to actually •install them. As a result, 3P will see the development and utilization of more of these surveys to identify the
Worker surveys such as those being conducted above will provide useful information in determining exact problems faced on the jobsite. Information from these surveys will be used to find solutions to these problems and increase worker productivity.
specific problems on any particular job. With the information from these job surveys, CDI will then explore solutions to these problems. In addition, a productivity committee will be formed in 1982 to continually look at any problems which affects productivity. This committee will then develop ways to overcome the obstacles and thus improve operating efficiency. Thirdly, 3P in 1982 will emphasize the importance of communications in addressing problems. For the surveys to be useful, craftsmen must be willing to communicate the problems to their supervisors. Likewise, for the committee to function properly, information must
be brought to it before it can act on any matter. And, most importantly, supervisors, foremen and management must be willing to exercise the other half of communication and listen to the input they receive. Of course 3P will not be restricted to these activities and goals. Most of the programs already underway will continue, while new ideas will be developed and explored throughout the year. Wherever 3P takes us this year, your support as a craftsman in the field or a member of the office staff will be the key ingredient in its success, and the fulfillment of its goal.
From the top
CDI aiming high in 1982 By Dick Phillips Last month I shared my personal goals for 1982 with you. Also, I encouraged everyone to think about goal setting as a method of better managing their personal and professional time. This month I feel I should share in a general way some of the corporate goals that we have set for CDI in 1982. Corporate goals tend to be a little vague because once you leave the financial areas of the business and there are no more numbers and percentages to shoot for, you get into areas for which no one person has total control or responsibility. And, in goal setting, the more specific you can be, the more effective it is. To give you an idea of the kind of things we are going to be working on as a corporate group, I will list a few broken down into sales, production and administration. In sales, obviously, the ongoing goal is to bring in good business in excess of the good business brought in the previous year. In doing so, we can ensure the productive people in
the company will continue to have work over a period of years. Our sales team last year established the largest backlog in the company s history, with work going all the way into 1984. But, a company cannot rest on past performance. So we will continue a serious and active marketing program. A very specific and major goal that all the sales team is going to work is to find better ways to evaluate the "invisible cost” on these projects. This invisible cost is difficult to determine at bid time, and includes such things as how much waste will be on a job, will it be scheduled properly, what will be the quality of supervision on the part of our customer, will we have some young cub on the first job of this size or will we have a seasoned veteran who knows how to organize, plan and sequence a job? The right combination of these items gives us a better cost. The wrong combination drives up costs. In production, it will be a year of training. As our work base expands, our need for supervision expands. In
Transco crew fast on 20th floor lease
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Tight construction schedules are a way of life for CDI. But, in a recent remodeling job at the Transco Tower we went a step further in finishing a job quickly. Richard Perales and crew completed the 20th floor of the building for tenant Geosource in just 10 days. The job included demolition of the existing partitions, framing, finishing, wall coverings, plus the coordination of other subcontractors. CDI began work late Friday evening January 8 and completed on schedule before Geosource opened for business Monday the 18th. To top off the fast pace, the job was representative of CDI’s standards of high quality. Both the building management and the tenant were extremely pleased with the results. Those craftsmen deserving recognition for their hurried and
extra-hour efforts were Richard St. Lawrence, Felix Montgomery, Andy DeLarosa, Steve Schrieber, J.D. Schott, Juan Salinas, Becky Westerlage, Charles Groux, Cleofas Jimenez, Dimas Gonzales, Loretta Samford, Norzel Ross, and Gerald Green. Of course, there were many more craftsmen who played a part in the job, and the Craftsman extends its appreciation to these people also. On the administrative side, Richard Perales spent considerable time lining out the work and coordinating efforts. Project administrator Charlie Boyd kept much of the paperwork in order, while estimator Dick Johnson handled the sales and estimating end of the work. Dick also worked closely with Geosource personnel and other subcontractors in getting the job done on schedule. 2
1981, we conducted a very successful training program, in 1982, we will expand our training efforts a ' great deal so that we can form a larger core of well trained drywall foreman. Another item we will try to do in production this year is to increase the overall awareness of productivity. Our 3P program which is now three years old continues to be a successful effort. However, we cannot slow or let up for a minute. In the area of administration, our foremost goal is to get our computer fully operable. It has been a lesson in exasperation and frustration for many of our administrative people — from Barry Barnard down to our newest timekeeper. We have struggled for 18 months to bring this computer on line and although it is operable, it is far from where we want it to be. A major effort from our top administrators, computer people, and other officers in the company will be to bring to a conclusion the ‘bringin^j^ up” of the computer. Of course, I could go on and on with the subject of goals, but surely this is sufficient. This will be an exciting year and there are many areas in which goals can be fruitfully set. I trust that you will see the wisdom of doing this in your personal life, and also the necessity of being part of the team to help achieve the goals we have set as a company.
Craftsman Editor: Larry Williams The CDI Craftsman is published monthly by Commercial Drywall, Inc. for its employees and their families. Employees should send their news contributions to Larry Williams, Commercial Drywall, Inc., P. 0. Box 10686, Houston, Texas 77018.
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GDI-San Antonio gearing for active year CDI-San Antonio is entering 1982 ^fcwith its biggest backlog ever. With "several projects under contract and more already underway CDI is looking forward to a busy year. In gearing up for the increased pace, the office has hired an administrative assistant to handle material transfers, take time, and update budgets. He is Mike Mergele and comes to the company from a position as manager of a San Antonio shoe store. Mike began his duties with CDI in mid-January. Also an addition to the office is Dewitt Churchwell who has assumed his new duties as estimator and project manager. Dewitt comes to San Antonio from our Houston office and will enhance the company’s efforts in bidding new projects and managing existing ones. In field activities, Paul Buck has begun work on Cline’s Landing, two six story condominiums going up in Port Aransas. The two buildings are being done for Spaw-Glass. Work presently includes stocking, layout J^and framing. Labor foreman Richard Lopez and his crew did a good job handling the stocking on the project which is located about 150 miles from San Antonio.
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The Prudential Building is getting its start under foreman Pete Williams, two-story project is being done for general contractor Linbeck Construction, and includes exterior framing, drywall and acoustical ceilings.
Also underway is the Prudential building where Pete Williams and a crew of some 20 craftsmen are handling the extensive exterior heavy guage framing. Pete is one of the best in this type of work and so far his crew has performed well. The La Quinta Plaza continues to move along under Wayne Schultze. With ten craftsmen on the job, layout and framing has reached the fourth level of the eight-story structure. Another core job, the Greatview office park, is progressing well headed by foreman Bob Winder.
With layout and framing well along, tenant work is expected to begin in March. Newly promoted Mike Tinajaro is directing the construction of tenant partitions and ceilings at Northchase. The job is a two-story office building for Beeson Properties. In other news, Roger Pons has been made a foreman for CDI. Roger is presently helping head the Greatview project with Bob Winder. And, CDI has announced receiving the contract for ceiling installation on the Airport office park, a 12-story job to start in March.
Definitely better to improve what you have
'^Hbo/'s Alfred Sanchez is getting it right on door frames at the J.C. Penney Credit Facility, a fob recently completed in San Antonio.
Many years ago a dissatisfied horse asked the gods for longer , thinner legs, a neck like a swan , and a saddle that would grow upon him as part of his body. Admiring all these separate appendages of beauty, the horse longed to incorporate them all within himself. Straightway the obliging gods changed him into a creature embodying all the new features. But, desirable as they had appeared separately, the entire assembly struck terror in the horse, for he found that he had been changed into an ugly camel! 3
“There now,” said the gods, "you have been granted your wish, and they shall continue with you all your life as a reminder to you that it is better to improve what you have than to wish for what you have not. A horse should be thankful for what he is.
It is a mark of intelligence, no matter what you are doing, to have a good time doing it.
New Four-Leaf supervisor
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employee NEWS
Personnel developments In recent weeks several noteworthy changes have been made in the office. Tami Kirkpatrick has moved from secretary to Century billing . . . Susan Purvis has taken Tami’s previous duties and turned dispatch over to Karen Stroud ... Payroll and time department has a new manager, Diane Jones, and some new faces including Rita Jones, Cherryl Newton, and Arlene Wilganowski ... Cheryl Wolfe has moved up to the credit department . . . Kim Luttrell is now in contract billing while Barbara Smith works in account payables ... Heather Barbour is now co-ordinating workmen’s compensation claims .. . Edith Doolittle has taken over receptionist and billing duties for the Interior Group . . . Dorothy Schroeder and Star Beaver are new to CDI in the accounting department . . . Barry Nieman has rejoined CDI as a paint estimator.. . Allen Frank now heads up the millwork department . . . Greg Stine has moved from project administrator at TCT to estimator trainee in Alan Jezek’s department . . . New project administrators in the field include Stephen Cort Wagner and Ronald McKinley.
Bill Schafer receives honor ffndincfsuperv^of^^December, "a d9 which honors the romoanv's top field leader each month was presented to Bill for his efforts’at the Four Leaf Condominium Bill was foreman on the project and took the reigns of the twin 40-story towers following the promotion of Glen Brabham into the office Shortly afterwards, an accident disabled Four Leaf foreman James Foley thus adding to the
burden of his already big undertaking. Despite the sudden circumst ances which placed Bill under heavy pressure, Four Leaf has progressed well According to Bill, one of the first things he had to accomplish was to gain respect with those with whom he works. This included not only his foremen and crew, but the general contractor and other crafts as well, Obviously, what he has done has worked because Four Leaf is running
CDI-Austin eyeing major projects CDI-Austin has its eyes on the future as several new projects have been announced in the Capitol city. The projects are scheduled to be bid in the next several weeks and include a 32-story office building, two high-rise condominiums, a 28-story office tower, a 15-story, and new plants for Motorola, Lockheed and Tandem Computer. According to vice president and general manager, Larry Hanvey, CDI will be taking a close look at all of these projects. “These jobs will be some of the largest in Austin in sometime, so we definitely want to get our share.” Larry also says that construction has been somewhat slow in the
Capitol city and these upcoming jobs will be a big boost to the CDI backlog if we can get them. While the company is looking ahead to these drywall projects, the paint group already has several jobs under contract. These include the Aquatic Biology Building on the Southwest Texas University campus, a teaching center for the University of Texas, Hyde Park Baptist Church, A) Prucare Clinic, and the Meredith Building. The two jobs for the universities are scheduled to commence during the second quarter of 1982 while the others will start in February and March. The paint group's success in Austin is due to the fine efforts of its manager Pat Lunday and estimator Gene Dougherty. And, the quality work performed by the CDI craftsmen in the field make their work a lot easier to sell.
Time to join Bassers
______ complex. The job was handled by foreman Johnny Kovar and crew
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The CDI Bassers have announced that the last opportunity to join the club for the 1982 fishing season is nearing. The club, comprised of CDI employees, will start their year with a tournament in March. According to the club’s president, Glen Brabham, no new members will be admitted ^ once the first tournament has been organized in late February. If you are interested in the CDI Bassers, contact Glen at the office. g«Mi
^smoothly for a project expected to be ^completed in just a few months. Of course, Bill credits the quality of men with the success now being enjoyed at Four Leaf. "It really boils down to the kind of people I have,” he says. “The craftsmen here are the best in Houston as far as I’m concerned. The foremen are good Mike O’Brien and the finishers are good. Junior Deaton, Rudy Martinez and the painters are doing a great job, and our project administrator, Lee Jones, does an outstanding job. We all pull together and it makes everyone look good,” claims Bill.
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In addition, to all of this Bill is quick to point out that Glen Brabham provided him with a lot of guidance. "He was patient and gave me the chance to see what I could do.” Bill joined CDI as a journeyman in September of 1978 and first worked on leases at the Allen Center. He later worked at Greenway Plaza remodel and on the East and West ^towers at Greenway. He first became involved in condominiums at Greenway I and II. Prior to joining the Four Leaf project, he was made a foreman and served on the First City Tower. Currently, Bill and a total crew of about 140 carpenters, laborers, finishers and painters are well into the two 40 story buildings. The carpenters are primarily active in the penthouses, on leave outs and the first floor. The finishing operation is not far behind while the painters are putting some fine finishing touches on the units.
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Bill is a native of Florida, moving to Houston from Orlando in 1976. He worked as a house framer before joining CDI. He and his family, which includes wife, Viola, and children, Angel and Billy, reside in Conroe. Bill enjoys the outdoors with fishing and hunting topping his list of activities. In addition he enjoys custom painting vans and motorcycles. The Craftsman extends its congratulations to Bill for his fine jo for CDI.
Four-Leaf supervisor Bill Schafer poses proudly atop one of the 40-story towers while the other stands in the background. Bill took over the leadership of the huge project recently and has done an exceptional job guiding the 140 + craftsmen on the job.
HRS ©raekSing d©wo m false W=4?s Don’t be fooled by tax rebels or fellow employees into claiming too many allowances or total exemption for tax on Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate. Internal Revenue Service is cracking down on false W-4s. Under new temporary regulations issued March 19, 1981, IRS can now tell an employer exactly how many allowances may be claimed by an employee. The employer must withhold tax at that rate unless and until asked by the employee to take out more, or permitted by the IRS to take out less. The employer makes no further judgments and has no other options. Only employees who had no tax last year and expect none this year can be exempt. Here is how it will work. Suppose you claim 25 allowances on your W-4 so that no tax will come out of your oav The company will notify IRS IRS will check your records and may tell the company you can claim only (let's say) seven allowances.
From then on the company must withhold tax based on seven allowances. If you want more tax taken out, you can file a new W-4 claiming (say) five. The company will do it. But if you want to claim eight or more allowances, you have to attach your reasons. The company will send the request to IRS. The company can reduce your withholding only after IRS has reviewed and approved your request. Suppose you go to work for another employer and do the same thing. IRS will identify you as a repeater, subject to further investigation. Most employees claim only the allowances to which they are entitled; however, IRS is determined to stop abusive use of Form W-4, having already obtained a number of convictions. Filing a false and fraudulent W-4 is a crime, which can mean a $500 fine and a year in prison on each count. Following up with willful failure to file a tax return can add a $10,000 fine and a year in prison.
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Under Nick Nunez and Larry Grimm
Taking notice CDI prides itself on its ability to deliver a fast, quality product to its customers. And, we are especially proud of the people who make it happen. Below is a letter from just one client that shows we are succeeding in our goal. Congratulations to Ralph, Ted and the crew who did their jobs so well.
ACCENT AKT'T .sr.
Host Hotel finishes in good shape
COMPANY NEWS
s. wonhs\ Dccenbor 29. 1981
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Dear Hr. Phillips,
projoct, and tholr total cooperation has boon lnatruoental **■ ”rt I raallzo that thla Job waa a asall one when compared
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Pleaaa extend try thanka to Ralph and Ted...they are both valuable] aaoata to your caspanyl iraly
Killian B. Oliver cci hr. Ralph Karrlck
In this month’s spotlight is the eight-story Host Hotel project at Intercontinental Airport. The job, which began in mid-March of last year, was recently completed under the supervision of Nick Nunez and Larry Grimm. The hotel encompasses 234 rooms and a ballroom and was built as an addition to the already existing Host facilities. General contractor for the project was Harvey Construction. CDI’s scope of work consisted of the hanging and finishing of all drywall partitions and some tricky drops in the lobby and ballroom ceiling areas. According to Nick, whose carpenter crew handled all the layout, framing, and hanging, the Host was typical hotel job with a few surprises thrown in. High on the list of surprises was the fact that the architectural prints were not always consistent in their dimensions. "We had to work directly with the architect a lot because the figures on the plan just didn’t add up," says Nick. Additionally, sequence, which is critical to a project's success, was off. “We did fine on the framing on the way up, but hanging the rock on the way down didn’t get straight until we were below the fifth floor. Because of the sequence, we were
behind the plasterers and the glaziers, putting the pressure on us to pick up the slack,” says Nick. The job itself was a typical hotel job where dimensions and tolerance are restricted and there are a lot of cuts. "Every piece had a cut,” claims Nick, “except a few full sheets on the party walls." Despite these problems Nick feels very good about his crew’s performance. "We did good work and stayed pretty close to budget.” Working under him for much of the project were carpenters Scott Palan, Frank Mayorga, Larry Blevins, Terry Traylor, Donald Warman, and foreman Charles Barbour. Two laborers handled all the tool and material needs. They were Henry Freeman and Octavio Cruz. Completing CDI’s duties on the job was the finishing crew under Larry Grimm. Larry led an average of a dozen tape and floaters to a high quality finish. Larry says that his crew followed a good hanging job by the carpenters which helped pave the way for an excellent finished product at a good cost. "The toughest part for the finishers,” says Larry, "was the long drops in the ballroom and the lobby area. But, the hanging was good and we got our corner bead on straight so they turned out real well." Helping Larry on the Host job were Nathaniel George and Ron Pickering who ran the Ames tools. Other finishers who contributed to the job’s success were apprentice Timothy Booth, Delores Gibson, Charles Aldrich, Robert Hinkle, and Alonzo, Ruben and Richard Gonzales. The Craftsman extends its congratulations to all the craftsmen who worked on the job. Their production and quality is certainly appreciated.
vy' No man was ever honored for what he received. Honor is the reward for what he gave.
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A real ‘Pietsch’
Sheri valuable part of CDI team * What every office needs is an all W around person who can do almost anything. One such person does exist in CDI's Austin office and more than earns her keep as an efficient dependable employee. She is Sheri Pietsch, who although is part time has done an outstanding job in a variety of positions for CDI. Sheri joined the company in Houston in June 1978 between her junior and senior years in high school. As summer help, she performed a host of jobs including answering phones, delivering mail, typing, and anything else that needed doing. When school began again, she remained with CDI on a part time basis, working after school. She has kept this schedule of part time work after school and full time during the summer and on holidays through her last year of high school and three years of college. Today, Sheri is a senior at the IA University of Texas where she is working toward a Bachelor’s degree in financial accounting. And, when
school and study permit she serves in our Austin office. For the company, she balances bank statements, handles financial statements, works with the general edger and does the budget updates for the Austin operations. Two individuals who have worked the closest with Sheri have been vice president of finance, Barry Barnard and vice president and general manager, Larry Hanvey. Both agree that she has an excellent attitude, is very versatile and talented, and about as dependable as anyone you could meet. In fact, when Sheri graduates, there may be a bidding war for Sheri among the branches and the Houston office. All know of her attitude and ability, and need another good accountant. Sheri says that she plans to go to work full time following graduation next December and get a CPA accreditation shortly thereafter. Sheri is a native of Houston and has lived here all of her life except for one year in Huntsville at Sam Houston State University and her two years in Austin.
Sheri's enthusiasm for her job, as well as her ability to get it done has made her a valuable part of CDI. Presently, she serves the company in Austin in various accounting functions.
She says that right now her main concern is getting her degree. As a result, most of her non-working time is spent studying.
Houston Chamber releases ’82 foreeast The Houston Chamber of Commerce this month released its economic forecast for the city for 1982. In publishing the forecast, the Chamber first outlined the national outlook with the following predictions. • The Economic Recovery Act of 1981 will remain as legislated. • No new revenue-producing taxes will be passed in 1982. • The substantial budget deficit will be financed in the credit markets. • Money supply growth will be maintained at rates which will limit economic expansion. Inflation will be below the 8%-10% consensus forecast. •
• Unemployment will peak at a rate above 8.5%. The dollar will be stable in the international currency markets.
° Interest rates will remain high but generally below the 1981 experience. o Real final sales will rise modestly, but there will be no growth in inflation-adjusted gross national product. In regards to Houston the report said, “Inflation should erode our purchasing power in Houston slightly more than it does nationally. For the past two years, Houston has enjoyed an inflation rate below the national average. This year we should return to our typical experience and record one or two percentage points above the nation, but we do not expect a return to double-digit levels. In the construction market the Chamber forecasted slightly more multi-family housing starts than last year, but well below 1977-78 levels. Regarding the commercial construction industry the forecast offered a different outlook, 7
"Commercial and industrial construction stands in marked contrast to the residential experience. We are in a boom even by Houston standards. Currently we have one square foot of office space under construction for every four square feet of completed space. This news is good and bad. Obviously, the pace of 1980-1981 cannot be maintained, and a slowing will result later this year and next. The good news is that we no longer will have the shortage of space in class A buildings which has proved to be a strong deterrent to major corporate relocations to Houston in the past several years." In summary, the outlook for Houston in 1982 was reported as “good, but not robust." It concluded that as in 1981, the unpredictable availability and cost of credit will be unsettling — but Houston will do comfortably better than the rest of the nation.
CDI Systems continues surge in Metroplex CDI Systems continues to enjoy growth and success in the booming Metroplex area of Dallas and Fort Worth. Vice president and general manager, Mike Grogan likens that market to Houston’s vibrant construction economy. “This place is really going wild with new buildings. Besides the ones we already have in our backlog, we are bidding several each week. And, most of them are big ones!” According to Mike, the estimating department has worked up bids on nearly a dozen projects of substantial size in recent weeks. “And,” he
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The downtown skyline of Dallas is not far behind Houston as one of the fastest changing in the nation. This photo, taken last summer, was too early to show the two 50-story projects going up for CDI—the Arco and the Placid/Elm office buildings.
CDI Craftsman Commercial Drywall, Inc. 3539 Oak Forest Drive RO. Box 10686 Houston, Texas 77018
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says, “developers are coming out with more all the time.” A recent addition to CDI s growing backlog is the Arco Building in downtown Dallas. The 50-story structure is expected to be one of the city’s most prestigious office buildings when completed. CDI activity which includes drywall partitions and ceilings for core and tenant work will begin in early March. Also, CDI has received the contract from general contractor, Charter Builders, for the walls and ceilings in core and tenant areas on the 20-story Stemmons Place office
tower. Work there is scheduled to commence in late February. To help absorb the phenomenal growth, Mike says that his office has^ added another estimator trainee. He is Ed Cobb, who previously served with another interior contractor. In the field, construction activity continues its pace also. The two Fort Worth projects — Continental Plaza and City Centre II (both 40 stories) — are running some 90 craftsmen between them. At the Continental, the core work is progressing while two large leases have begun. One, the Continental National Bank, is a substantial sized lease and is under the command of Rudy Ross. The other is the Western Preferred Life lease and is being headed be Gene Locker. The push is on at the Galleria Mall where approximately 16 craftsmen are at work. The south end of the center has been readied for cover up. Directing the job for CDI is supervisor Bobby Duran and foreman John English. The 50 story Placid/Elm is seeing a great deal of activity with core, lease, and ceilings work going strong. The craftsmen number about 35 and are being led by Lee Romine, David Hayes, Mike Rider and Richard Schrieber. Meanwhile the Cedar Springs project is down to the last few details. Laverne Chandler, in charge of the carpenters, and Wayne Sprouser, running the ceiling work have turned out a great effort.
BULK RATE U.S. POSTAGE
PAID HOUSTON, TEXAS PERMIT NO. 2840