€@mm©rcial Craftsman
Commercial Drywall, Inc. Volume I, No. 1
November 1979
Commercial Oratemacn
M&m monthly newsletter acctmite employees Commercial Drywall Inc. begins publication of its first employee newsletter with this issue of the Commercial Craftsman, a monthly periodical aimed at Commercial employees. With a continuing emphasis on its people, Commercial hopes to bring employees closer together as a company, and recognize their achievements on the job. Through the Craftsman, employees can learn more about the people who make up Commercial Drywall, and the jobs they perform. In addition to news and features on employees, the Craftsman will provide news and information on the ^^ompany itself, and its role in the ^Construction industry. According to Commercial’s presi dent, Dick Phillips, “Our company has experienced tremendous growth during the past several years. We feel that with this growth comes a great need to communicate to our increasing numbers of employees, both in the field and in the office. “Our employees are our greatest asset, and the more they know about the company and each other, the more a part of the company each feels. And of course we want to know more about the people who are helping make Commercial a success.” A portion of the Commercial Craftsman will be used to recognize outstanding Commercial employees. These will include an honor for a foreman of the month, project of the month and a key office person. In addition, a variety of topics covering the activities of our employees will be highlighted in various issues. Other departments within the ^teiraftsman will focus on company ^^ews, personal mentions, as well as ^Recognition in the areas of service anniversaries, birthdays, and new employees. As done with this initial issue,
copies of the Commercial Craftsman will be mailed to the employees' homes approximately the 10th of
each month. Additional copies will be made available to the employees at the Commercial office, 2117 Judiway.
Jerry Brooks receives a $100 check from Bruce Marek as Austin vice president and general manager Larry Hanvey looks on. Jerry's entry “Commercial Craft sman" was selected as newsletter name.
Brooks $1 ®@ richer after newsletter contest Jerry Brooks, a Commercial Drywall carpenter in Austin, has been named the winner of the recent contest held by Commercial to name its new monthly newsletter. The winning entry, the “Commer cial Craftsman,” was selected over nearly 200 other names submitted by Commercial employees in Houston, San Antonio and Austin. The prize, a $100 check, was presented to Jerry in Austin by Commercial's director of construction, Bruce Marek and Austin’s vice-president, and general manager Larry Hanvey. Jerry has been with Commercial for approximately three years and works on the LaCosta project, a twostory atrium office building under construction by Russo Properties, located just off I-35 north in Austin. The contest judging was con
ducted by a six-member special newsletter committee who first nar rowed the choices down to 25 names. From this, six were chosen in the final cut, from which the “Com mercial Craftsman” was eventually selected. The five runner-ups, all deserving honorary mention were Melvin Dillman's “Drywall Street Journal,” Johnny Kovar’s “Drywall— CDI Style,” David Carvalho’s “The Gypsum Sheet,” Jim Sonnier’s “Hammer and Hardhat Review,” and Dennis Alford's “Wall to Wall Mon thly.”
Commercial Drywall extends its appreciation to those employees who made the contest a success by sub mitting names. Such involvement helps pave the way for more contests in the future.
COMPANY NEWS
From the top By Dick Phillips The first issue of the Commercial Craftsman, as will be true of every issue, is dedicated to Commercial Drywall employees. The Commercial Craftsman will reach a large number of people who share a variety of interests, but at least one common characteristic—all are employees of Commercial Drywall. And regardless of job, whether you’re in production, administration, sales, or accounting, you perform a role vital to the success of our company. Because of this, The Commercial Craftsman will place its emphasis on you, the employee, and what’s impor tant to you. We will aspire to talk to you, and about you and your fellow employees. And we will listen. Our goal is to provide interesting and informative material that tells something about Commercial Drywall and the people who make it work. In addition to news about employees, we will attempt to convey information about our company, so that you can have a better understanding of your role in this growing organization. No company can prosper without maintaining awareness of trends and activities in its industry. The Commercial Craftsman will strive to keep you abreast of significant industry news which may affect Commercial Drywall, and therefore, you. As with any publication, The Commercial Craftsman is not fully developed with this one issue. In fact, it will take many before it becomes a mature publication. And to progress in the right direction, it needs input from you—your ideas and support. Already, this is evident in its name, submitted by Jerry Brooks of Austin in the recent contest held for employees, and worth $100.00. We hope that you will find interest in the Commercial Craftsman, and look forward to its arrival in the mail each month. And we hope that you will share it with your family and friends, so that they too can learn more about the company and the people with whom you work.
Supervisors (I to r) Daryl Hammons, Three Allen Center; Buddy Mayo, One and Two Allen Center remodeling; and James Foley, Meridien Hotel pose with Allen Center projects in background.
Project of the month
Allen Center work highlighted Commercial Drywall is proud to select Allen Center as its first “Project of the Month.” Allen Center, with three major jobs currently underway, employs a substantial number of Commercial crafts men—carpenters, hangers, finishers and laborers. The three jobs which make up our Allen Center activity include Three Allen Center, a 50-story high rise office building, the Meridien Hotel, a 19-story luxury class facility, and comprehensive remodeling in One and Two Allen Center buildings. In selecting Allen Center, Commer cial recognizes the project as one of our concentrated efforts where a variety of skills on a variety of jobs is being undertaken. And production on the hotel, high-rise and remodeling has been excellent thus far. In working to make Three Allen Center a successful job, supervisor Daryl Hammons credits the quality of his men with the superior job perfor mance. "A job is only as good as the men who do the work. And I feel that I have the kind of people here who believe in going out and doing the best they can. And when you do that, you always come out near the top,” ’ says Hammons. Meridien supervisor, James Foley offers similar praise for his men. “When you have the right person doing the right work, everything just sort of falls into place,” says James. “I feel that I have some of the best in the trade, so it’s just a matter of putting them in the right place and
letting them go.” Remodeling supervisor, Buddy Mayo credits Commercial's team spirit with his crew’s success. "On the job, we feel part of a group. There’s a lot of unity and people helping one another,” says Buddy. "I think a good deal of this positive attitude stems from my people knowing that they will always be rewarded for doing a good job. So they’re willing to give 100 percent on the job,” he claims. The Craftsman congratulates Allen Center and all of the Commercial people there for a fine job being done in the Commercial spirit of teamwork.
United Way drew® tops campaign goal This year’s United Way campaign winds down with Commercial Drywall employees proving again that they are truly “people helping people.” During the month of September, Commercial staffers took to the field with information booklets and a film about the United Way. In this way, it was felt that Commercial employees would gain a better understanding of the United Way—how it works and where the money goes. The results were incredible. With an ambitious goal of $50,000, employees met the challenge and responded with pledges totaling $70,146.09, an amount more than $20,000 above goal and representing participation by 81 percent of all Commercial people.
EMPLOYEE NEWS
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Patsy namedl ‘key person’ Commercial’s "key person" for November is Patsy Whitehead, our dedicated “budget girl.” Patsy, whose actual title is cost control administrator, is now in her ninth year with Commercial, making her one of our oldest employees in seniority. Patsy first came to Commercial in 1971 as a billing clerk. She remained in that position for more than five years before moving to her present job. The wife of a Texas Ranger, Patsy has been married for 19 years and her son, Michael, attends the Naval Intelligence School in Denver. For Commercial, Patsy is a busy and integral part of the company. To her, goes the responsibility for keep ing up with all job budgets and faking sure reports accurately reflect the status of jobs, their costs, percentages, and profits on a weekly basis. Job supervisors and foreman know her well, as they hear from her when their job status reports differ from her figures. And, budget information she submits to the computer is the basis for which the winner of the catered barbeque lunch is determined. So it’s not unusual to find Patsy in her office going over a budget report with one hand holding the telephone to her ear and the other thumbing through a computer printout. According to Patsy, the thing she likes most about working with, budgets is "knowing that they re right.” Besides budgets, Patsy can be considered a Jack-of-all trades around the office. She orders birth day cakes, office supplies, and keeps everything running smoothly. When someone has a question, Patsy is a ,*flood bet to know the answer. W Commercial is proud to have a dedicated person like Patsy in sue an important role. She has certainly been an asset over the past eight years.
Supervisors of the month
Richards, @r®gan take honors
Mnnhth’’iruSt tW0 "SuPervisor of the
Month honors have gone to Jay Richards for September and Chuck Brogan for October. The award, begun by Commercial n September of this year, recognizes an outstanding supervisor each month, and is based on a number of job achievements including perfor mance, creativity, planning, communication ability and safety. The award is given during a breakfast held the third Tuesday of each month at the Brookhollow Hilton. September’s supervisor, Jay Richards, heads up construction activities at the Greenway Plaza condominium project and Summit Tower West. Jay, who started with Commercial as an apprentice carpenter eight years ago, has been a supervisor since 1975. Among Jay’s proven talents is his ability to plan the job out prior to start-up. In doing this he has managed to anticipate and often solve problems before they occur. According to those who work with him, Jay has excellent communica tion with his workers, both asking and using their ideas on the job. Chuck Grogan, supervisor at the Marshall Fields store in the Galleria, has also displayed the positive characteristics which earned him the supervisor of the month award for October. Chuck, with Commercial for the past two and half years was made supervisor about 18 months ago. Since then, he has shown the ability to not only work well with his people, but with the contractor and other trades as well. As supervisor, Chuck's planning and communicating virtues help keep the job running as smoothly as possibie And, one of his most important characteristics to emerge is that he keeps the general contractor and
Patsy
Whitehead, November’s key person
owner pleased by producing high quality work. Another strong point is his popularity with his workers, which he has gained through an open desire to give them the necessary guidance, understanding and equipment to get the job done. The Craftsman extends its con gratulations to Jay and Chuck for their awards and dedication to the job. We feel that these men are two fine examples of the many quality people which Commercial Drywall is proud to have.
Jay Richards named September super visor of the month.
Chuck Grogan displays plaque for October supervisor award.
Heavy work Itosdl awaits Commercial Business is booming at Commer cial. Lots of work will be on the boards with a number of new projects to start this month. So far, November promises ... Intercontinental Airport’s Terminal C with Linbeck Construction ... North west Atrium II, a three-story office building for Houston Construction ... Northwind Plaza, an eight-story Miner-Dederick job on US 290 ... the 49-story First City Tower in downtown Houston by W.S. Bellows ... the Heights House for the Elderly, a 10-story housing project by Harvey Construction ... a pump station, a City of Houston improvement project by Manhatten.
BBQ hits the spot Commercial’s Budget Beater lunches have met with tremendous enthusiasm since beginning last July. The Commercial Craftsman will feature the weekly winners each month. But, to let everyone know who has been eating good since July, below is the list of the first 12 winners:
First International Plaza Fred Lay, Supervisor Yorktown Center Wick Wumez, Supervisor Rosewood Professional Building Gilbert Shelton, Supervisor Houstonian Pete Camarillo, Supervisor Greenway Condo I Jay Richards, Supervisor First International Plaza Fred Lay, Supervisor Three Allen Center Daryl Hammons, Supervisor Three Allen Center Daryl Hammons, Supervisor Meridien Hotel James Foley, Supervisor Meridien Hotel James Foley, Supervisor Marshall Fields Painting Ben Boatright, Supervisor Three Allen Center Daryl Hammons, Supervisor
Commercial Craftsman Commercial Drywall, Inc. 3705 Piney Woods P.O. Box 10686 Houston, Texas 77018
W years service Tommy Underwood (left) and Bobby West Sr. were recently honored with per sonal engraved dress watches for 10 years service with Commercial Drywall. Tommy is a carpenter's foreman at Two Allen Center while Bobby is a finishing foreman for Commercial. Congratulations guys!
From the Hill Comtiry
Saou Antonio going strong Commercial Drywall operations are continuing to grow in Austin and San Antonio with several new projects underway in both cities. in Austin, the big job is the IBM building, a three-story engineering structure and one-story manufactur ing facility being added to the present complex. A major project in San Antonio is the Riverwalk Marriott, a 30-story hotel on the banks of the San Antonio River. Commercial in Austin is headed up by Larry Hanvey who serves as vice president and general manager over both Austin and San Antonio. Larry has worked with Commercial for four years, opening up the Austin office. Activity in Austin centers around several projects in addition to IBM.
Included are a five-story Data General building by J.C. Evans Construction; LaCosta, a two-story atrium office building by Russo Pro perties; and a 10-story remodeling job in the E.O. Thompson building in downtown Austin. Jerry Bonds, as branch manager, oversees activities in San Antonio. He first joined Commercial in Austin and moved to San Antonio, beginning operations in that city in September of last year. In addition to the Marriott, work just ended on the 19-story Valero building by Linbeck Construction, Also recently completed is a Dilliard’s Department Store in one of San Antonio’s newest malls. In that same mall, work continues on a Wyatt’s Cafeteria by Commercial.
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