Fall 2011 - Keep Trees - Alaska Quality Publishing, Inc.
Fall 2011 - Keep Trees - Alaska Quality Publishing, Inc.
Fall 2011 - Keep Trees - Alaska Quality Publishing, Inc.
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Associated General<br />
Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
8005 Schoon St.<br />
Anchorage, AK 99518<br />
(907) 561-5354<br />
Fax: (907) 562-6118<br />
www.agcak.org<br />
Contractor@agcak.org<br />
Editorial Board<br />
Margaret Empie<br />
Mary Killorin<br />
John MacKinnon<br />
April Reilly<br />
Vicki Schneibel<br />
George Tuckness<br />
Sandi Weber<br />
8537 Corbin Dr.<br />
Anchorage, AK 99507<br />
(907) 562-9300<br />
Fax: (907) 562-9311<br />
Toll Free: (866) 562-9300<br />
www.AQPpublishing.com<br />
Publisher<br />
Robert R. Ulin<br />
Managing Editor<br />
Rachael Fisher<br />
Editor<br />
Jamie Rogers<br />
Graphic Designer<br />
Justin Ritter<br />
Project Sales Manager<br />
Clem E. Mewmaw<br />
Advertising Coordinator<br />
Carol Choi<br />
On the cover: Assessing flood<br />
damage on Richardson Highway<br />
in Keystone Canyon, 2006.<br />
Cover photo by<br />
Mike isa aCs, al aska Dot&pF<br />
Features<br />
Table of Contents<br />
12 Prepare for disaster with a Continuity of Operations<br />
Plan for your company by Gov. Sean Parnell<br />
14 <strong>Alaska</strong> Dept. of Transportation and Public Facilities partners with contractors<br />
for emergency response by Commissioner Marc Luiken<br />
26 Natural disasters and the Department of Environmental Conservation by Ty Keltner<br />
30 Community holiday programs seek help by Rachael Kvapil<br />
32 Anti-Pebble ads fail the geography test by Orin Seybert<br />
34 4th Annual <strong>Alaska</strong> Construction Law Conference registration<br />
40 Talking in a crisis<br />
Are we meeting <strong>Alaska</strong>’s emergency communications needs by Jack E. Phelps<br />
50 In times of disaster Preparedness, response and recovery cornerstones<br />
of DHS&EM’s mission by Jeremy Zidek<br />
62 <strong>Alaska</strong> communities prepare for tsunamis by Jody Ellis-Knapp<br />
67 ADOT&PF emergency procurements by Mark O’Brien<br />
70 Project Update: Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory by Rindi White<br />
76 The Move to Mertarvik: Saving Newtok by E. Colleen Kelly<br />
80 Home, safe home<br />
Emergency plans, generators can provide sweet relief during disasters by Jamie Rogers<br />
83 Getting back to business<br />
Disaster preparedness will help minimize downtime by Marie Lundstrom<br />
86 Taking pride in what we do photo essay<br />
88 Coming to the AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> Convention in November: Bruce S. Wilkinson, CSP<br />
90 24th Annual AGC Anchorage Invitational Golf Scramble<br />
92 32nd Annual AGC Fairbanks Golf Scramble<br />
94 AGC <strong>2011</strong> Sporting Clays Shoot photo essay<br />
ProFiles<br />
20 Neeser Construction <strong>Inc</strong>. by Carly Horton Stuart<br />
46 Fairbanks Precast & Rebar by Rachael Kvapil<br />
56 Seward Building Supply <strong>Inc</strong>. by Bambi Childs<br />
68 Concrete Cutters by Tracy Kalytiak<br />
DePartments<br />
The <strong>Alaska</strong> <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
Publication of the Associated General Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
www.agcak.org<br />
4 Winning Bids and Construction Trends<br />
8 President’s Message by George Tuckness<br />
10 Executive Director’s Message by John MacKinnon<br />
18 Safety Report by Chris Ross<br />
24 Human Resources Update by Barbara Stallone<br />
36 Contractors & the Law by Robert J. Dickson<br />
38 Financial Services & Contractors by Robert Warthen<br />
60 Beacon/WorkSafe by Don Bisby<br />
89 AGC Annual Conference <strong>2011</strong> Registration<br />
95 Member News<br />
The <strong>Alaska</strong> Contractor is published by AQP <strong>Publishing</strong> <strong>Inc</strong>. for the Associated General Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong>. Contents of the magazine are not necessarily endorsed by AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> or AQP <strong>Publishing</strong> <strong>Inc</strong>. All rights reserved.<br />
Copyright <strong>2011</strong> by the Associated General Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong>. For information about articles in this edition or for permission to reproduce any portion of it, contact AQP <strong>Publishing</strong> <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 3
Note: Winning Bids and<br />
Construction Trends<br />
1) Source from projects advertised<br />
in the AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> Bulletin<br />
2) Calculations based<br />
on date of bid<br />
3) Supply/Service; Non-Construction<br />
bid results are not always<br />
advertised in the bulletin<br />
4) RFP results are not always<br />
advertised in the bulletin<br />
ArcTIc & WESTErn<br />
ALAKANUK REPLACMENT SCHOOL PHS II<br />
$23,680,868<br />
DOWLAND CONSTRUCTUTION INC.<br />
COLD BAY APRON/RUNWAY<br />
SAFETY AREA<br />
$7,353,644<br />
QAP<br />
UNALASKA BALLYHOO DRAIN/PAVE<br />
$2,212,606<br />
NORTHERN MECHANICAL<br />
KOTZEBUE FRONT LP WATER MAIN EXT<br />
$1,746,854<br />
TWIN PEAKS CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
KOTZEBUE UAF FLIGHT/CLASSROOM<br />
$1,343,252<br />
UIC CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
DALTON HWY AGGREGATE<br />
$1,339,800<br />
ALASKA MARINE EXCAVATION LLC<br />
DILLINGHAM UAF SCIENCE LAB/SPACE<br />
$1,168,707<br />
COHO CONSTRUCTORS LLC<br />
KIPNUK K-12 RENO/ADD SEWER PHS I<br />
$1,008,000<br />
ELITE MECHANICAL<br />
InTErIor<br />
FBKS RICHARDSON HWY FLOOR REPAIRS<br />
$8,965,263<br />
QAP<br />
FBKS GUARDIAN FLIGHT OPS CTR<br />
$2,779,299<br />
STEPPERS CONSTRUCTION<br />
GALENA SHOP BLDG REPLACE<br />
$2,494,000<br />
TC CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
FBKS AURORA RD RECONST/DRAINAGE<br />
$2,221,111.45<br />
EXCLUSIVE PAVING<br />
FBKS UAF CANHR HEALTH CLINIC<br />
$1,680,182<br />
GBC INC.<br />
FBKS GOLDEN TOWERS<br />
SPRINKLER UPGRADES<br />
$1,220,631.80<br />
G&S MANAGEMENT SERVICES LLC<br />
FBKS UAF WTP RENEWAL PHS I<br />
$962,204<br />
JOHNSON RIVER ENTERPRISES LLC<br />
SoUTHcEnTrAL<br />
AK SEWARD HWY RECONSTRUCT/<br />
BRIDGES<br />
$17,817,901.75<br />
HAMILTON CONSTRUCTION<br />
WASILLA SEWARD MERIDIAN PKWY<br />
IMPROVE<br />
$11,989,290.70<br />
QAP<br />
KODIAK LANDFILL LATERAL EXPANSION<br />
$2,482,899<br />
ANDERSON CONSTRUCTION LLC<br />
EAGLE RIVER LP RD RESURFACE<br />
$2,428,931.24<br />
GRANITE CONSTRUCTION CO. INC.<br />
ANCH PAVEMENT REHAB<br />
$1,896,780<br />
QAP<br />
ANCH INDEPENDENCE DR STRIP PAVE<br />
$1,823,125.70<br />
ROGER HICKEL CONTRACTING INC.<br />
AK PLOW TRUCKS/SANDERS<br />
$1,807,229<br />
TRAILER CRAFT INC/FREIGHLINER<br />
OF ALASKA<br />
ANCH ALEXANDER AVE RID<br />
$1,385,352<br />
NORTH STAR PAVING &<br />
CONSTRUCTION<br />
ANCH ELECTRICAL SVCS<br />
$1,323,713.60<br />
YUKON ELECTRIC INC.<br />
NINILCHIK WATER TREATMENT FACILITY<br />
$1,317,000<br />
FRAWNER CORPORATION<br />
4 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
ANCH WHARF <strong>2011</strong> PILE REAPIRS<br />
$1,159,999.86<br />
RICHARD PHILLIPS MARINE INC.<br />
ANCH AIA RESIDENTIAL SOUND<br />
INSULATION<br />
$1,118,998<br />
TBI CONSTRUCTION CO.<br />
PALMER MTA EVENTS CTR ADDITION<br />
$1,109,500<br />
TC CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
ANCH SWITCHGEAR<br />
$930,636<br />
CONTROLLED POWER<br />
NIKISKI TANKER/PUMP<br />
$887,388<br />
PIERCE MANUCATURING INC.<br />
SUTTON JONES FIRES CAPPING/ROAD<br />
MAINT<br />
$885,709.70<br />
BRISTOL DESGIN BUILD SERVICES LLC<br />
PORT MACKENZIE DOCK EXPANSION<br />
PHS II<br />
$878,475<br />
SWALLING CONSTRUCTION<br />
COMPANY INC.<br />
SoUTHEAST<br />
OW FH43 ROAD IMPROVE SEGMENT 1,2&3<br />
$30,647,941.38<br />
SOUTHEAST ROAD BUILDERS<br />
GUSTAVUS AIRPORT SAFTEY AREA<br />
IMPROVE<br />
$7,887,251<br />
SECON INC.<br />
HYDER SALMON RIVER ROAD REHAB<br />
$7,440,684<br />
SECON INC.<br />
KAKE INTERMODAL TRANSIT FAC PHS II<br />
$4,315,400<br />
WESTERN MARINE CONSTRUCTION<br />
JUNEAU BRH ROOF REPLACE<br />
$1,749,725<br />
CENTIMARK CORPORATION<br />
POW KASAAN HARBOR IMPROVE<br />
$1,372,534.29<br />
POOL ENGINEERING INC.<br />
SITKA MONASTERY WATER/SEWER<br />
$1,271,532<br />
AGGREGATE CONSTRUCTION<br />
GUSTAVUS SCHOOL RENO PHS III<br />
$1,260,000<br />
ALASKA COMMERCIAL<br />
CONTRACTORS INC.<br />
KETCHIKAN PAVEMENT REFURBISH<br />
$1,219,195<br />
SECON INC.<br />
SITKA STEEL BLDG<br />
$1,138,918.20<br />
CHG BUILDING SYSTEMS INC.<br />
SITKA JAPONSKI LIFT STATION UPGRADE<br />
$967,649<br />
CBC CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
HAINES STREET IMPROVEMENTS PHS II<br />
$957,910<br />
SOUTHEAST ROAD BUILDERS<br />
SKAGWAY DYEA ROAD BRIDGE REPLACE<br />
$902,564.41<br />
NORTH PACIFIC ERECTORS<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 5
$650,000,000<br />
$600,000,000<br />
$550,000,000<br />
$500,000,000<br />
$450,000,000<br />
$400,000,000<br />
$350,000,000<br />
$300,000,000<br />
$250,000,000<br />
$200,000,000<br />
$150,000,000<br />
$100,000,000<br />
$50,000,000<br />
2007<br />
2008<br />
2009<br />
2010<br />
<strong>2011</strong><br />
$450,000,000<br />
$400,000,000<br />
$350,000,000<br />
$300,000,000<br />
$250,000,000<br />
$200,000,000<br />
$150,000,000<br />
$100,000,000<br />
$50,000,000<br />
2007<br />
2008<br />
2009<br />
2010<br />
<strong>2011</strong><br />
$1,200,000,000<br />
$1,050,000,000<br />
$900,000,000<br />
$750,000,000<br />
$600,000,000<br />
$450,000,000<br />
$300,000,000<br />
$150,000,000<br />
2007<br />
2008<br />
2009<br />
2010<br />
<strong>2011</strong><br />
$-0<br />
$-0<br />
$-0<br />
highway<br />
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC<br />
building<br />
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC<br />
annual<br />
TRENDS<br />
JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC<br />
Source: Winning bids for projects advertised in the AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> bulletin.<br />
6 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
PrESiDEnt’S MESSAgE<br />
Resource development<br />
the key to <strong>Alaska</strong>’s<br />
long-term economic growth<br />
O<br />
ur state is so rich in natural resources, which have<br />
brought us great wealth. We have even weathered<br />
the crash of the U.S. economy primarily because<br />
of the income <strong>Alaska</strong> receives from bringing our natural<br />
resources to market. However, our memory is short. We have<br />
forgotten what it is like to not have the benefi ts provided<br />
by these rich resources. As citizens we stand by, watching<br />
complacently, while overbearing regulation, special interest<br />
groups and disproportionate taxation gradually close the<br />
doors of opportunity for petroleum and mining development.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> is still rich with minerals available on state and<br />
federal lands that are specifi cally set aside for petroleum and<br />
mining exploration. All that is needed is to remove the road<br />
blocks that makes them inaccessible or less cost-effective.<br />
All of us at AGC need to become the public voice that says<br />
yes to development.<br />
We need to fi ll the trans-<strong>Alaska</strong> pipeline with new oil. It<br />
has the unused capacity to transport 1.5 million barrels of<br />
oil per day, and we have that in undeveloped fi elds awaiting<br />
environmental or legal approvals. The line is now in danger<br />
of being shut down, due to the technical complications of<br />
transporting such a low volume of oil. It only makes sense<br />
to increase production and secure its future.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> has the resources even while Prudhoe and<br />
Kuparuk are declining in production. The National Petroleum<br />
Reserve, created in 1923, is a 23 million -acre site for<br />
resource development and holds an estimated 15 billion<br />
barrels of oil. Also, the 19 million acre Arctic Nation Wildlife<br />
Refuge, including its smaller permafrost plain set aside for<br />
oil development, in which only 2,000 acres is needed for oil<br />
drilling, holds up to 16 billion barrels. To the north are the<br />
Chukchi and Beaufort seas, holding 30 billion barrels of oil.<br />
As you can see, plenty of oil is still there. We just need to<br />
remove the road blocks.<br />
Pebble is the largest copper, gold and molybdenum<br />
deposit in the world. Experts estimate it holds 80 billion<br />
pounds of copper, 107.4 million ounces of gold and 5.6<br />
billion pounds of molybdenum. These minerals can be safely<br />
produced on state lands specifi cally set aside for mineral<br />
development.<br />
You would think this is an ideal opportunity for development,<br />
yet opponents to the Pebble project have created a<br />
lot of negative attention about the potential threat to Bristol<br />
GE O R G E TU C K N E S S<br />
President<br />
Bay fi sheries. Pebble is under attack for fear of hurting the<br />
fi shing industry, but currently they are only trying to provide<br />
answers through the permitting process, to prove that they<br />
can be a good partner and coexist with nature. <strong>Alaska</strong> needs<br />
these natural resources. We can all profi t from their development<br />
and see the growth of an industry.<br />
Little is said about the long-term economic benefi ts<br />
of Pebble. It is a multibillion dollar capital investment in<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>. The project has spent more than $120 million in<br />
environmental studies. There will be about 2,000 to 3,000<br />
jobs during construction and 1,000 permanent operating<br />
jobs for 25 to 35 years. Hundreds of millions will be spent<br />
in our economy during operations, not to mention the state<br />
and local tax revenue put in our coffers during the life of<br />
the project. There will be supply and service contracts that<br />
will produce additional long-term jobs. Pebble will be a<br />
multibillion-dollar infrastructure investment in <strong>Alaska</strong>, if<br />
given the opportunity.<br />
Recently I was privileged to visit the Pebble project<br />
to see fi rsthand how it operates; I was impressed by the<br />
ability to minimize the footprint on nature. Every effort is<br />
supported by helicopters. When you approach a drill site,<br />
you can’t help but realize how much work goes into drilling<br />
thousands of feet into the ground to examine the minerals<br />
below. Yet when you look around, you can’t see anything<br />
that shows signs of previous drill sites. The tundra and wildlife<br />
have completely recovered. Pebble has drilled more than<br />
1,000 holes to gather information about this resource, yet<br />
the landscape is unharmed. I was impressed and convinced<br />
they are serious about protecting nature and proving they<br />
can coexist as promised.<br />
Our economy stays healthy because of three income<br />
sources: petroleum, natural resource development and<br />
Federal government investment in <strong>Alaska</strong>. It is time to recognize<br />
that the Federal government is running out of money<br />
and will surely cut back its commitment to <strong>Alaska</strong>. Once this<br />
happens, it won’t take long to see a decline in our economy<br />
which will fi rst be seen in construction. We need to support<br />
resource development, help it to help us remain strong<br />
fi nancially and continue to have the fi nances to provide<br />
strong capital budgets to create jobs for our industry. I hope<br />
you too will become a positive voice for resource development<br />
and construction.<br />
8 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
EXEcUtiVE DirEctOr’S MESSAgE<br />
Practice the<br />
Boy Scout motto<br />
B<br />
eing prepared is never making the same mistake once.<br />
That’s why we’ve dedicated this issue to disasters,<br />
because, as we learned after the 1964 Good Friday<br />
earthquake, it’s not a matter of if one may happen but when<br />
and where.<br />
We take many things for granted – when we turn on the<br />
faucet, we expect potable water will come out; the lights will<br />
come on when we fl ip the wall switch; and when we fl ush<br />
the toilet, what is in there will go away somewhere.<br />
When one of those expected functions<br />
doesn’t work for whatever reason, we<br />
mumble a few #%&@##! at the inconvenience<br />
but are confi dent knowing that the<br />
responsible entity will soon have service<br />
restored. The worst that happens when the<br />
power is out is you miss the latest episode<br />
of “Storage Wars” or “Pickers.”<br />
Two years ago when Mount Redoubt<br />
was huffi ng and puffi ng, and even more so<br />
this spring with the quake and tsunami in<br />
Japan, it made me aware how unprepared<br />
and vulnerable we are. It doesn’t take too<br />
much to imagine a scenario that could very<br />
quickly make most of us wish we were<br />
better prepared.<br />
Imagine another major seismic event and tsunami (and<br />
miraculously no lives lost) with substantial damage to utilities<br />
and infrastructure – natural gas lines rupture, water and<br />
sewer lines break, power lines are down, highway bridges<br />
collapse and roads split open, and it happens in the middle<br />
of winter. It’s really cold outside, you have no gas to run your<br />
heating system and no electricity to run it even if you had<br />
gas, and there’s is no water because the pumps that run the<br />
system need electricity. It doesn’t do any good to call someone<br />
because your phone lines are down and cell systems are out.<br />
Your family comes fi rst, and if you aren’t prepared for<br />
this, you might think about taking some steps to become<br />
better prepared.<br />
I’m not suggesting you build that apocalypse shelter<br />
and become completely self-suffi cient, but there are a lot of<br />
things we all should do to be better prepared. For starters:<br />
at least a seven day food and drinking water supply, a good<br />
wood supply if you’re lucky enough to have a fi replace and<br />
extra propane bottles so you can cook on your gas grill (or<br />
charcoal for purists). A battery-operated radio and fresh<br />
We should all<br />
take stock of our<br />
own capabilities<br />
and defi ciencies<br />
and put some<br />
effort into being<br />
better prepared.<br />
JO H N MA CKI N N O N<br />
Executive Director<br />
batteries (your TV won’t work), because that will be where<br />
your emergency information comes from.<br />
Your family comes fi rst, and once you have taken care of<br />
them, your business, your equipment and your skills will be<br />
needed.<br />
You’ll read in this issue how the Department of Military<br />
and Veterans Affairs regularly practices emergency preparedness<br />
through the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency<br />
Management and the State Emergency Coordination<br />
Center or SECC. Whether it is an earthquake,<br />
a major fl ood or a terrorist threat, the<br />
SECC has had a number of tabletop exercises<br />
to prepare for their response and put<br />
plans, equipment and training to the test.<br />
The Department of Environmental<br />
Conservation, although not a fi rst responder,<br />
is there after an event to ensure the safety of<br />
water, air and food. They don’t do the actual<br />
work to fi x things; they help coordinate the<br />
resources to get them fi xed.<br />
The Department of Transportation is a<br />
fi rst responder to handle the cleanup and<br />
restoration of vital transportation links after<br />
a natural event. They do it on a regular basis<br />
— at least once a year — and make use of a<br />
multitude of private resources.<br />
In an event of the magnitude we’re imagining, the<br />
resources of the DOT, the electric companies and all the other<br />
utilities that we take for granted as “always being there” will<br />
be quickly overwhelmed and they too will be in the position<br />
of assembling and coordinating private resources to get<br />
services restored. They will need to muster the resources of<br />
every contractor and every able worker in the state.<br />
Coincidentally, at the time of this writing, <strong>Alaska</strong> Gov.<br />
Sean Parnell and Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan held<br />
a press conference to discuss emergency preparedness.<br />
They have talked about this before and take it seriously.<br />
They havebrought their own preparedness initiatives and<br />
exercises forward, and we need to pay attention. For more<br />
about what you can do to be better prepared, go online to<br />
ready.alaska.gov.<br />
The Boy Scouts of America have a good motto – “Be<br />
Prepared.”We should all take stock of our own capabilities<br />
and defi ciencies and put some effort into being better<br />
prepared.<br />
10 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
The familiar <strong>Alaska</strong>n mantra is:<br />
“We don’t care how they do it in<br />
the Lower 48. We’re different.”<br />
When it comes to natural disasters,<br />
we are different. <strong>Alaska</strong> has<br />
unique conditions: Our cold climate,<br />
long distances, diffi cult terrain and<br />
tsunami-prone coastal areas are characteristics<br />
that can challenge even the<br />
most prepared communities.<br />
Add to that our seismic location,<br />
active volcanoes, annual river breakups<br />
and lightning-sparked forest fi res in<br />
remote areas. In any given year, many<br />
natural disasters occur across the state.<br />
Gov. Sean Parnell<br />
Prepare for disaster with a Continuity of<br />
Operations Plan for your company<br />
But if they strike in winter, getting aid<br />
to affected communities becomes a<br />
unique problem for state emergency<br />
responders.<br />
My administration is focusing on<br />
emergency preparedness. The budget<br />
I signed this year contained $5 million<br />
for electrical generators and water purifi<br />
cation systems. This past August, my<br />
cabinet met at the Division of Homeland<br />
Security’s Emergency Operations<br />
Center at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson,<br />
to learn about and understand<br />
the scope of our state’s response and<br />
recovery capabilities, and better know<br />
how each department responds.<br />
In addition to a focus on preparedness<br />
at the state agency level, I’m<br />
encouraging <strong>Alaska</strong>ns to be proactive,<br />
and ready their families to be able to<br />
care for themselves for seven days, in<br />
the event of a widespread disaster.<br />
The business community plays a<br />
key role, too. If a major disaster occurs,<br />
it’s imperative that companies have a<br />
plan to quickly reopen their doors and<br />
provide the services and products the<br />
community depends on. Preserving<br />
our economy and future will be essential<br />
in that moment. For business<br />
owners and managers, this means<br />
having a Continuity of Operations<br />
Plan (COOP) in place.<br />
It’s not enough to just adopt a<br />
plan from another company or pull<br />
something that looks useful off the<br />
Internet. The effective plan is the one<br />
that you and your employees have<br />
built together. Experience tells us that<br />
a “boiler plate” plan is not worth much<br />
more than the notebook it resides in.<br />
Your company planning effort is as<br />
important as the fi nal plan.<br />
I also encourage business owners<br />
and operators to talk with their<br />
employees about creating family<br />
disaster kits and plans. Workers can<br />
return to their jobs more quickly,<br />
knowing their families will be safe.<br />
The quicker our businesses recover,<br />
the quicker our communities recover.<br />
Let’s make sure that our famous<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>n resourcefulness is matched by<br />
equally robust <strong>Alaska</strong>n preparedness:<br />
Get a kit. Make a plan. Be informed.<br />
Learn more, gain knowledge and<br />
fi nd tools to assist your company’s<br />
preparedness at www.ready.alaska.gov.<br />
Sean Parnell is governor of <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
12 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
<strong>Alaska</strong> Dept. of Transportation<br />
and Public Facilities partners with<br />
contractors for emergency response<br />
By Co M M i s s i o n E R Ma R C lU i K E n<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>’s diverse climate and expansive geography lends<br />
itself to unique natural disasters including earthquakes,<br />
forest fi res, fl ooding, volcanic eruptions, sea storms and<br />
erosion. <strong>Alaska</strong> also faces natural disasters that are distinctive;<br />
very few communities in the world are decimated by<br />
ice jams. Often it is the rare location where a natural disaster<br />
occurs that requires innovative or creative solutions. For<br />
example, the remote Taylor Highway with its narrow width<br />
and steep slopes can be markedly challenging for construction<br />
engineers and maintenance crews.<br />
City of Eagle after huge chunks of ice from the Tanana River pushed<br />
all the buildings off their foundations and away from the banks,<br />
May 2009. photo: alaska Dot&pF<br />
Co M M i s s i o n E R Ma R C lU i K E n<br />
When a natural disaster impacts commerce and restricts<br />
access, the <strong>Alaska</strong> Department of Transportation and Public<br />
Facilities (ADOT&PF) Maintenance and Operations (M&O)<br />
personnel are the fi rst line of response and repair. The M&O<br />
crews are the daily guardians of our roads, throughout all<br />
seasons. They are intimately familiar with each stretch of<br />
highway, using their intuitive knowledge of the isolation,<br />
available resources, equipment limitations and varying<br />
applicable materials.<br />
During the initial response to a disaster, ADOT&PF<br />
14 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
M&O crews quickly assess the damage<br />
in an effort to establish access, even if<br />
it is initially very limited access. State<br />
and local transportation agencies are<br />
empowered to immediately begin<br />
emergency repairs. Typical examples of<br />
emergency repairs include regrading<br />
of roadway surfaces, replacement of<br />
roadway embankments, debris and<br />
slide removal, erection and removal of<br />
barricades and detour signs, flagging<br />
and pilot cars during the emergency<br />
period, placement of riprap around<br />
piers and bridge abutments to relieve<br />
severe ongoing scour action, construction<br />
of temporary road detours and<br />
erection of temporary detour bridges.<br />
By providing<br />
additional<br />
equipment<br />
and personnel,<br />
contractors are<br />
essential in the<br />
overall response to<br />
a natural disaster.<br />
When supplemental resources are<br />
required to complete emergency repairs,<br />
ADOT&PF turns to local contractors<br />
for help. By providing additional equipment<br />
and personnel, contractors are<br />
essential in the overall response to a<br />
natural disaster. Contractors and M&O<br />
personnel often stay at the damage<br />
site until viable access is restored<br />
and the project can be turned over to<br />
ADOT&PF’s Construction section.<br />
When the emergency has been<br />
contained, then ADOT&PF Construction<br />
assumes responsibility. It works<br />
closely with contractors to make<br />
comprehensive, permanent repairs.<br />
In recent years ADOT&PF has faced<br />
several disasters that required close<br />
partnering with contractors.<br />
2002 Denali Fault Earthquake<br />
This earthquake tested the<br />
emergency response capabilities of<br />
ADOT&PF. The resulting damage of<br />
the 7.9 earthquake involved multiple<br />
roads separated by hundreds of miles<br />
(from Cantwell to Northway) requiring<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 15
quick response by several sections of<br />
ADOT&PF personnel. M&O worked<br />
with heavy equipment on road and<br />
airport damage while ADOT&PF<br />
design personnel assessed necessary<br />
repairs and appropriate mechanisms<br />
to accomplish the repairs in the midst<br />
of winter weather.<br />
ADOT&PF utilized emergency<br />
procurement procedures to fi nish the<br />
restoration work as rapidly as possible.<br />
Wilder Construction was instrumental<br />
in repairs to the Northway Airport.<br />
Wilder turned the shattered airport<br />
surface into a useable and maintainable<br />
gravel runway, allowing the<br />
airport to reopen.<br />
2006 Floods<br />
Late-season rains accumulated<br />
across southern <strong>Alaska</strong>, closing highways<br />
leading out of Valdez and Seward.<br />
Sections of the roads were under-<br />
water, washed out or covered with<br />
deep debris. Major damage occurred<br />
in Keystone Canyon near Mile 13 of<br />
the Richardson Highway.<br />
Harris Sand & Gravel was contracted<br />
to repair and reopen the fi rst 40 miles<br />
of the Richardson Highway. Great<br />
Northwest <strong>Inc</strong>. repaired the Richardson<br />
Highway north of Mile 40, as well as<br />
repairing and reopening the McCarthy<br />
Road. Wilson Construction completed<br />
necessary work on the Copper River<br />
Highway out of Cordova.<br />
2009 Eagle Ice Jams<br />
During the spring, rapidly warming<br />
temperatures resulted in accelerated<br />
melting of ice and snow. The evening of<br />
May 6, Yukon River ice began moving<br />
downriver. A large ice dam just below<br />
Eagle caused the river’s water level to<br />
rise more than 30 feet within a few<br />
hours, topping the banks and fl ooding<br />
downtown Eagle. The river ice was<br />
propelled onshore, and immense ice<br />
blocks wiped out all of the homes<br />
and structures along the river. At both<br />
Eagle and the Village of Eagle, homes<br />
and businesses were pushed off their<br />
foundations or crushed to matchsticks.<br />
Vehicles and fuel tanks were<br />
upturned, resulting in spilled oil, gas<br />
and chemicals.<br />
The huge ice chunks, mixed with<br />
chemicals and debris, cut off the only<br />
road access into the Village of Eagle.<br />
Due to the size of ice chunks and<br />
depth of the ice fi eld (from 8 to 30<br />
feet deep), it was determined that the<br />
ice needed to melt before the tangled<br />
debris could be removed. An alternate<br />
route had to be established to access<br />
the Village of Eagle.<br />
During the fi rst week following the<br />
disaster, an emergency procurement<br />
contract was issued through limited<br />
Village of Eagle after it is decimated by huge chunks of ice<br />
from the Tanana River. River. River. Note the the the debris, upended homes,<br />
overturned overturned fuel barrels barrels barrels and downed downed power power lines.<br />
photo: MeaDow bailey, alaska alaska Dot&pF<br />
16 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
procurement (solicited bids from several<br />
contractors) to install a detour road.<br />
The road construction involved clearing<br />
a detour road and then covering the<br />
detour road with temporary road mats<br />
to protect the ground from vehicle traffic<br />
and to provide a sturdy base for travel.<br />
The 4,500-foot-long tundra mat road<br />
was narrow, requiring flaggers on either<br />
end to ensure vehicles traveled in only<br />
one direction at a time.<br />
Once the scope was defined for<br />
work on the damaged road, the first<br />
fully-advertised contract was advertised<br />
through the Online Public Notice<br />
system. This was a standard procurement,<br />
with shortened advertisement (10<br />
days), for an equipment-rate contract to<br />
remove debris and construct permanent<br />
road repairs.<br />
2010 Taylor Highway<br />
During July, a record amount of rain<br />
fell in the upper Tanana Basin, resulting<br />
in severe road damage, culvert washouts<br />
and landslides in 43 unique sites along<br />
a 50-mile stretch of the Taylor Highway.<br />
Emergency work by ADOT&PF M&O<br />
crews included debris removal, culvert<br />
and ditch cleaning, filling wash-outs<br />
and road repairs. Equipment-rental term<br />
contracts were initially utilized for some<br />
repair work.<br />
An emergency procurement contract,<br />
awarded through limited procurement,<br />
was awarded for creek channelization.<br />
Normal procurement equipmentrate<br />
contract, with a general scope of<br />
work was advertised and awarded for<br />
the permanent repair of the road. The<br />
contractor, North Star Construction,<br />
expended commendable efforts from<br />
August to November to assure that the<br />
Taylor Highway would be available for<br />
use after spring breakup in <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
ADOT&PF is often faced with unique<br />
emergencies in challenging locations.<br />
Communication with the management<br />
team, other agencies and the public is<br />
a vital piece of successful response to<br />
an emergency or disaster. Due to the<br />
support of knowledgeable contractors<br />
and the expertise of diligent employees,<br />
we can accomplish remarkable things.<br />
When faced with jolting earthquakes,<br />
massive ice chunks crashing through<br />
villages or torrents of water flooding the<br />
highways, The Great Land is prepared<br />
with its greatest resource — great<br />
people.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 17
AK Safety<br />
PLUS SAFETY REPORT<br />
Small business<br />
safety challenges<br />
Achieving excellent safety<br />
results can be daunting for any<br />
contractor, but smaller contractors<br />
have even more challenges than<br />
their larger counterparts. Many larger<br />
construction companies have more<br />
resources, more overhead, committed<br />
safety professionals and easier access<br />
to information. Smaller fi rms fi nd<br />
it diffi cult to develop robust safety<br />
programs; many simply struggle with<br />
bare-bones compliance.<br />
Faced with limited resources,<br />
diffi culty in meeting regulatory<br />
requirements and disproportionate<br />
cost concerns, small businesses also<br />
tend to have higher fatality rates,<br />
more frequent and severe injuries<br />
and disproportionately high workers’<br />
compensation rates.<br />
Lack of knowledge can be another<br />
problem for smaller companies. Larger<br />
companies have had more experiences<br />
(unfortunately including more<br />
workplace incidents and injuries) from<br />
which to build knowledge of how to<br />
prevent future injuries. Smaller and<br />
medium-size fi rms simply do not<br />
amass enough man-hours to experience<br />
all the potential hazards and<br />
problems that can occur. This can cause<br />
“tunnel vision” and build a false sense<br />
of complacency. And when incidents<br />
do happen, they can be far more devastating<br />
to smaller fi rms simply because<br />
of the lower number of hours to spread<br />
out the impact of these events.<br />
Yet smaller contractors do hold<br />
some advantages over larger establishments.<br />
There can be a sense of safety<br />
values (e.g. “brother’s keeper”) and<br />
teamwork in smaller companies where<br />
employees, foremen and owners are<br />
much tighter-knit. Paradoxically, not<br />
having a dedicated safety professional<br />
can be advantageous – provided that<br />
the supervisor with line responsibility<br />
has the knowledge and authority to<br />
administer the site safety program.<br />
Safety is always more effective when it<br />
comes through the “line” organization<br />
as opposed to being a separate, lessintegrated<br />
function.<br />
While OSHA compliance is a<br />
strong driver, the incentive to create<br />
a safe work environment may not be<br />
connected with the desire to avoid<br />
fi nes and violations. The payoff for a<br />
safe work record is reduced workers’<br />
compensation costs, increased morale<br />
and productivity and more work from<br />
owners and general contractors.<br />
Small business compliance costs - 2008<br />
All fi rms $610<br />
Less than 20 employees $781<br />
20 – 499 employees $650<br />
More than 500 employees $500<br />
sourCe: “the iM p a C t oF oCCupatioNal saFety aND health aND hoMelaND seCurity Costs oN sM a l l Fi r M s –<br />
sM a l l busiNess aDMiNistratioN oFFiCe oF aDvoCaCy<br />
By Chris Ross, CSP, CPLP,<br />
President, The Engagement Effect<br />
The good news is that myriad<br />
resources are available for small businesses<br />
to build strong safety programs.<br />
The following resources can provide<br />
information, resources and guidance<br />
for fi rms wishing to improve their<br />
safety programs.<br />
b AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> - AGC members<br />
have access to a wide variety of<br />
programs and services though the<br />
AGC Safety website (http://www.<br />
agcaksafety.com), including access<br />
to resources and tools, an active<br />
safety committee, a video lending<br />
library, classes and workshops, an<br />
awards recognition program and<br />
much more.<br />
b OSHA Consultation - Most<br />
businesses are familiar with the<br />
compliance side of OSHA, which<br />
promulgates and enforces regulations.<br />
But the other side of OSHA<br />
provides assistance to employers<br />
through its consultation program.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> employers can utilize the<br />
consultation services of AKOSH<br />
(<strong>Alaska</strong> Department of Occupational<br />
Safety and Health) or<br />
Federal OSHA (depending on the<br />
jurisdiction). These agencies will<br />
provide ready answers to questions,<br />
perform courtesy inspections<br />
(be sure to have your programs in<br />
good order before requesting this<br />
service) and provide many workshops<br />
and training opportunities.<br />
The mission of consultation is<br />
primarily to assist small businesses,<br />
and they will prioritize<br />
requests from smaller fi rms over<br />
bigger ones.<br />
The Construction Health and<br />
Safety (SHARP) program is adminis-<br />
18 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
tered by AKSOH to recognize exemplary<br />
safety and health programs.<br />
Participating in this program is an<br />
excellent way to enhance your safety<br />
program. You can read more about<br />
SHARP online at http://labor.alaska.<br />
gov/lss/ak_chase.htm.<br />
b Safety Consulting Firms –<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> has a number of safety<br />
consulting and training firms who<br />
can assist with safety program<br />
needs, including: basic compliance<br />
training, developing written<br />
safety and health programs,<br />
enhancing supervisor safety skills,<br />
changing safety culture, providing<br />
advanced safety skills and many<br />
other elements of your safety<br />
system. These contract safety<br />
professionals can help to fill gaps<br />
in your program where in-house<br />
resources may be lacking.<br />
b Safety Trained Supervisor - The<br />
Safety Trained Supervisor (STS)<br />
certification program is intended<br />
for companies that have individuals<br />
who are managers or first line<br />
supervisor with a safety responsibility<br />
for a work group that is<br />
part of other work duties. Safety<br />
Trained Supervisors are not safety<br />
specialists or safety practitioners.<br />
Typical candidates have a safety<br />
responsibility that is adjunct,<br />
collateral or ancillary to their job<br />
duties (usually less than one-third<br />
of the total job duties).<br />
The typical certified STS helps their<br />
employer implement safety programs<br />
at the worker level through supervisory,<br />
safety committee or similar<br />
safety and health leadership roles. To<br />
achieve the certification, candidates<br />
must meet minimum safety training<br />
and work experience and demonstrate<br />
knowledge of safety fundamentals<br />
and standards by examination.<br />
Additionally, OSHA recognizes the<br />
STS-Construction credential. OSHA<br />
compliance safety and health officers<br />
consider it a factor in deciding on a<br />
focused inspection.<br />
b Safety Interns – The University<br />
of <strong>Alaska</strong> has a safety degree<br />
program for students who wish<br />
to become degreed safety professionals.<br />
Each year, students<br />
seek internship positions with<br />
employers to gain hands-on safety<br />
skills and experience. This affords<br />
small employers an opportunity to<br />
get much-needed safety expertise.<br />
To find out more about the UAA<br />
safety intern program, contact<br />
Lynda Kreps at (907) 786-6421<br />
or email inllk@uaa.alaska.edu.<br />
In Fairbanks, contact Marie<br />
Scholle at (907) 978-6287 or email<br />
mmscholle@<strong>Alaska</strong>.edu.<br />
b Internet – Some helpful websites<br />
are: www.osha.gov, http://www.asse.<br />
org, http://www.nsc.org, http://www.<br />
ishn.com, http://ehstoday.com.<br />
The Engagement Effect, a division<br />
of Ross Performance Group LLC, offers<br />
solutions in organizational results, safety<br />
and health, leadership, talent management<br />
and culture change. Learn more about us at<br />
www.theengagementeffect.com or email the<br />
author at chris@theengagementeffect.com<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 19
MEMBER PROFILE<br />
NEESER<br />
CONSTRUCTION INC. By Ca R ly ho R t o n st U a R t<br />
Anchorage-based design-build<br />
company specializes in<br />
high-profi le projects<br />
The Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center,<br />
the Alutiiq Center, South Anchorage High<br />
School and the 188 W. Northern Lights<br />
Building — much of Anchorage’s modern<br />
cityscape was built by Neeser Construction <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Covering a broad range of commercial work, including<br />
remote site work, NCI specializes in the designbuild<br />
method of project delivery. On design-build<br />
projects, a single entity – the design-build team<br />
– carries a project through from initial concept to<br />
completion. “Design-build projects are a unique skill<br />
set and NCI has the most experience of any contractor<br />
in the state,” Senior Project Manager George<br />
Tuckness said.<br />
NCI was founded in 1974 by current owner and<br />
President Jerry Neeser. Neeser and his brothers had<br />
been trained in carpentry by their father, Louis,<br />
and together they built schools, churches<br />
and commercial buildings throughout the Pacifi c<br />
Northwest. After the bottom dropped out of the<br />
construction market in the early 1970s, Neeser<br />
decided to head to <strong>Alaska</strong>. He held a commercial<br />
contractor’s license, but he primarily worked as a<br />
framing subcontractor. Slowly, he gained the trust<br />
of clients “who realized they didn’t necessarily have<br />
the construction savvy Jerry did,” Project Administrator<br />
Gary Donnelly said. One of Neeser’s fi rst<br />
high-profi le projects was the lockers and hot dog<br />
stand at Anchorage’s Mulcahy Stadium.<br />
Donnelly and Project Superintendent Sam<br />
Adams joined up with Neeser in 1977. Design-Build<br />
Coordinator Royal Field had joined two years prior.<br />
“The three of us have been with the company the<br />
longest, but there are a number of fi eld employees<br />
who have been with us 30-plus years,” Donnelly<br />
said. “That kind of continuity in personnel is really<br />
An exterior shot of the award-winning Dena’ina Civic and Convention Center. When the center opened in October 2008, it<br />
increased Anchorage’s civic and convention capacity by more than 300 percent.<br />
20 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photo: © keN grahaM photography.CoM
Founder, owner and President Jerry Neeser<br />
established NCI in 1974.<br />
unheard of in the industry, and certainly<br />
in our construction community. It’s a<br />
whole different approach and philosophy<br />
– this is very much a team and an<br />
extended family.”<br />
Donnelly attributes this team<br />
approach to NCI’s success. Indeed, the<br />
company has landed a number of highprofile,<br />
high-dollar projects over the<br />
years. The Dena’ina Civic and Convention<br />
Center was one such project. Located<br />
in the heart of downtown Anchorage,<br />
George Tuckness, NCI’s senior project manager<br />
and president of AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
photos: Courtesy oF Neeser CoNstruCtioN iNC.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 21
photos: Courtesy oF Neeser CoNstruCtioN iNC.<br />
From left to right: George Tuckness, Sam Adams, Jerry Neeser, Royal Field and Neil Bhargava.<br />
the $79 million, 215,000-square-foot<br />
concrete and steel structure utilized the<br />
design-build project delivery method.<br />
This method saved a full construction<br />
season, delivering the project well ahead<br />
of schedule while returning nearly $5<br />
million in contingencies back to the<br />
owner. It was completed August 2008.<br />
“It was evident through the entire<br />
project that the NCI team is the<br />
premier design-build team in <strong>Alaska</strong>,”<br />
Julie Saupe, president and CEO of the<br />
Anchorage Convention and Visitors<br />
Bureau, stated in a testimonial letter.<br />
“The development and design-build<br />
experts at Neeser Construction, <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
were the foundation for this facility to<br />
become a reality.”<br />
In 2009, the Dena’ina Civic and<br />
Convention Center received the<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>USA Insurance Brokers Excellence<br />
in Construction Award for a<br />
vertical construction job over $15<br />
million, and went on to win the 2010<br />
Design-Build Institute of America<br />
National Merit Award.<br />
Other notable NCI projects include<br />
the Rental Car Center ($52 million) at<br />
Ted Stevens Anchorage International<br />
Airport, the Togiak School ($22.3<br />
million) and Manokotak School ($10.2<br />
million) in Southwest <strong>Alaska</strong>, the New<br />
Community Education Center ($12.5<br />
million) at Joint Base Elmendorf-<br />
Richardson, the Anchorage Jail ($46.6<br />
million) and the Salvation Army SAFE<br />
Campus ($17 million) in Anchorage.<br />
“We successfully compete for the<br />
high-profile projects due to the core<br />
values instilled in us by Jerry Neeser.<br />
NCI has a reputation and a resume<br />
of projects that are on time and on<br />
or below budget. Our work is of the<br />
highest quality and done safely,”<br />
Tuckness said.<br />
Being members of AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
has also benefitted the company.<br />
“They keep us abreast of what’s on the<br />
horizon and the trends of the market,”<br />
Donnelly said.<br />
NCI employs a home office staff<br />
of approximately 40 individuals. Six<br />
project management units of five to six<br />
individuals per team are located at each<br />
project. The number of field personnel<br />
varies. Donnelly said NCI employs as<br />
22 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Project Administrator Gary Donnelly has been<br />
with NCI for nearly 35 years.<br />
few as 70 to100 and as many as 300 to<br />
400 depending on the quantity of work.<br />
Current projects include the Norton<br />
Sound Regional Hospital in Nome, the<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Department of Public Safety<br />
Crime Lab in Anchorage and the Goose<br />
Creek Correctional Center. While NCI<br />
has not been immune to the economic<br />
downturn, Donnelly said the company<br />
“is still going strong. It’s been spotty<br />
in terms of work out to bid, but we’re<br />
picking up a fair share of new work.<br />
There are also some very nice projects<br />
on the horizon, including the new engineering<br />
building and sports complex at<br />
the University of <strong>Alaska</strong> Anchorage and<br />
some sizable military projects on JBER.”<br />
“Many owners are starting to select<br />
their contractor based on their reputation.<br />
Even government agencies now<br />
recognize the lowest price is not always<br />
the best value,” Tuckness said. “NCI has<br />
a reputation for fast-tracking projects.<br />
We are finishing up the Goose Creek<br />
Correctional Center six months ahead<br />
of schedule and on budget. We hope<br />
this kind of success leads to future largescale<br />
opportunities.”<br />
NCI is committed to employing<br />
people who illustrate the highest integrity<br />
in their work. Project managers,<br />
estimators, accountants, architects and<br />
carpenters – everyone is dedicated to<br />
making NCI a company that commits<br />
and delivers. “Now that some of us are<br />
nearing retirement age, we are passing<br />
on our knowledge to those who will<br />
keep the company alive,” Jerry Neeser<br />
said. “Ultimately, the goal is to create a<br />
legacy and a continuation of a very fine<br />
business. We look forward to the next<br />
30 years.”<br />
Carly Horton Stuart is a writer based<br />
in Anchorage, <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 23
HUMAn rESOUrcES UPDAtE<br />
Invest in the hiring process By<br />
This column provides information about the law to help<br />
users competently cope with their legal needs. But legal information<br />
is not the same as legal advice – the application of law to<br />
an individual’s specifi c circumstances. Although we go to great<br />
lengths to ensure accurate and useful information, we recommend<br />
consulting a lawyer for professional assurance and your<br />
interpretation of a particular situation.<br />
What do you mean invest in the hiring process?<br />
The economy has started to rebound and you are<br />
feeling more comfortable with expanding your workforce<br />
by hiring more employees. This presents both a<br />
challenge and an opportunity. If you hire the right person,<br />
you may reach your goals, if you hire the wrong person, it<br />
can be disastrous.<br />
Discrimination legislation, worker’s compensation costs,<br />
benefi t costs such as medical, dental and vision insurance<br />
and the potential of litigation should be the primary motivator<br />
to take the necessary steps to hire the right person for<br />
the right job. Too often employers get in such a hurry to fi ll<br />
a position they don’t take the time to invest in the processes<br />
necessary to ensure the best possible outcome.<br />
Before you begin the hiring process you should<br />
carefully consider what you want to achieve. There are<br />
multiple issues as stake:<br />
• What do you want the employee to accomplish?<br />
• What outcome are you looking for?<br />
• What are the skills and abilities necessary to be<br />
successful in the job?<br />
• How do you fi nd someone with those attributes?<br />
To fi nd the right person for your job, you may need to<br />
look at non-traditional ways of looking for candidates.<br />
The Internet is now the most common way for employers<br />
to solicit candidates, but should not be the only way. Your<br />
current workforce is an excellent source of referrals, as are<br />
the state employment service in your area; professional<br />
organizations and trade associations; direct contact with<br />
prospective workers; websites that list job openings at no<br />
cost to the employer; newspaper advertising that offers<br />
Internet postings; and don’t forget to list your job opening<br />
on your company’s website.<br />
Then, if you have a well written job description and are<br />
offering a competitive wage and benefi ts package for your<br />
position, you should have candidates to interview. Review<br />
resumes or applications and ensure the person you are<br />
Ba R B a R a sta l l o n E, sphR<br />
considering meets the minimum qualifi cations for the position<br />
you are trying to fi ll. Schedule interviews with those<br />
candidates that you think might be successful in the position.<br />
Be sure to have them complete your company application,<br />
as that is the legal process, to become an applicant.<br />
After you have applications in hand begin the interview<br />
process. There are multitudes of ways to conduct job<br />
interviews but the most successful companies ensure that<br />
the company’s process is legally protected. This may include<br />
asking the same questions to each applicant with documented<br />
responses, a one-on-one interview with the hiring<br />
offi cial documenting the question and response, group<br />
interviews, team interviews, or any other manner of interview<br />
that is non-discriminatory. One of the reasons companies<br />
use standardized questions is to ensure the questions<br />
asked do not violate any of the legislation that is considered<br />
to be discriminatory.<br />
One of the best predictors of future job success is past<br />
performance. Ask the applicant to explain how they have<br />
addressed various situations in the past. Leave your questions<br />
open ended so you don’t get a text book answer.<br />
Once you have a fi nal candidate or candidates in mind,<br />
do your due diligence before you make a fi nal decision or<br />
make a job offer. This should include doing a background<br />
check, and may include drug testing, reference checks,<br />
education checks, criminal history check and a credit check<br />
if state law allows and it is relevant to the job being fi lled.<br />
These processes are just as important as the interview and<br />
may help determine if you hire the best person for your<br />
opening. The cost is nominal when you think about the<br />
potential liability for hiring the wrong person.<br />
The most successful companies invest in the hiring<br />
process, ensuring the probability of the best possible match<br />
between the person and the position. These companies have<br />
the highest productivity levels and demonstrate the most<br />
innovation and fl exibility resulting in low employmentrelated<br />
expense structures.<br />
A company may buy and sell their assets but until they<br />
realize their employees are their greatest asset, they can<br />
never be truly successful.<br />
Barbara Stallone, SPHR is a partner in The Human Resource<br />
Umbrella LLC, an Anchorage-based human resource consulting<br />
company and AGC member. Send questions about this column<br />
or suggestions for future columns to Barbara@HRUmbrella.com,<br />
or call (907) 727-2111 or (888) 470-0903 Visit the website at<br />
www.hrumbrella.com.<br />
24 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 25
and the<br />
Department of Environmental Conservation<br />
By ty KE lt n E R, dEC pU B l i C in F o R M at i o n oFFiCER<br />
When natural disaster strikes, the fi rst responders are<br />
typically local and may include police, fi re, emergency<br />
rescue crews, medical crews and even local<br />
volunteers. However, there are often impacts that fi rst responders<br />
do not address. Who determines if the air is clean,<br />
the water is safe to drink and that food has not become contaminated?<br />
The <strong>Alaska</strong> Department of Environmental Conservation<br />
(DEC) plays an important role in disaster response. The<br />
DEC’s routine business is to protect <strong>Alaska</strong>ns and the environment<br />
through programs that establish standards; permit<br />
air emissions, drinking water facilities, and wastewater and<br />
solid waste disposal; monitor the health of air and water;<br />
plan for and respond to oil and hazardous substances;<br />
ensure cleanup of contaminated sites; and inspect food<br />
service establishments. Following a natural disaster and<br />
Flooding in Eagle,<br />
May 2009.<br />
photos: Courtesy oF the DepartMeNt<br />
oF eNviroNMeNtal CoNservatioN<br />
after life-threatening situations have been addressed, the<br />
DEC’s expertise is often needed in recovery efforts.<br />
“We are not fi rst responders for a natural disaster, and<br />
we don’t run out to a site as soon as a disaster strikes,” said<br />
Alan Wien, DEC disaster response coordinator. “We are not<br />
equipped to provide on-scene assistance in saving lives or<br />
fi ghting fi res, but we will help after an event to make sure<br />
people are safe and environmental impacts are resolved.”<br />
In <strong>Alaska</strong>, natural disasters include earthquakes, tsunamis,<br />
fl oods, volcanic eruptions, wildfi res, severe storms, erosion,<br />
avalanches, landslides or a combination of events. Once fi rst<br />
responders have assessed the situation, the DEC’s disaster<br />
response coordinator manages requests for assistance. The<br />
coordinator determines what resources and expertise are<br />
needed and what can be provided.<br />
26 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Hazmat team member in the decontamination<br />
line as part of an exercise in April 2010.<br />
The DEC follows fi ve primary natural<br />
disaster response objectives. While all<br />
are important, safety is always fi rst.<br />
S AFETY: Ensure the safety of all<br />
staff involved, responding or<br />
exposed to the immediate effects<br />
of the incident.<br />
H EALTH: Assess the public health<br />
threat and assist with protection<br />
from the direct or indirect effects<br />
of contamination of water, land,<br />
air and food.<br />
E NVIRONMENT: Assess the<br />
environmental threat and assist<br />
with the direct or indirect effects of<br />
contamination.<br />
C LEANUP: Ensure adequate<br />
containment, control, cleanup<br />
and disposal of oil or hazardous<br />
substance contamination and<br />
debris.<br />
R ECOVERY: Assist in rapid<br />
recovery from the incident.<br />
The DEC’s role in recovery varies<br />
depending on the type of incident. In<br />
the case of volcanoes and wildfi res, air<br />
quality is a signifi cant concern. The DEC<br />
monitors air quality to determine the<br />
concentration of smoke and volcanic<br />
ash particulates and issues advisories<br />
when unhealthy levels are reached. Air<br />
modeling is conducted to determine<br />
where to anticipate future impacts.<br />
During a fl ood, concerns shift to<br />
drinking water quality and surface<br />
water contamination. In <strong>Alaska</strong> many<br />
homes have home heating oil tanks<br />
that break loose and spill. The DEC’s<br />
spill response teams provide guidance<br />
and oversight on cleaning up petroleum<br />
contamination.<br />
Flooded wells, outhouses and septic<br />
systems can threaten human health by<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 27
photos: Courtesy oF the DepartMeNt oF eNviroNMeNtal CoNservatioN<br />
Hazmat entry team responding to a simulated leaking chlorine gas<br />
cylinder as part of an exercise in April 2010.<br />
direct contact with sewage and contamination of drinking<br />
water. DEC personnel will issue boil water notices to disinfect<br />
sewage-contaminated water and advise how to sanitize<br />
a well and clean up sewage.<br />
After the fl ood, the DEC’s environmental health offi cers<br />
work with restaurants, stores and homeowners to identify<br />
what foods may be safe and what should be discarded or<br />
sanitized. “We draw attention to things people normally<br />
don’t think about,” says Kristin Ryan, director of environmental<br />
health. “It’s common for people to think that<br />
anything in a can is OK, even if it has been covered with<br />
contaminated fl ood waters. That is not necessarily the case.<br />
Food and beverage containers with screw-caps, crimped<br />
lids, fl ip tops and home canned foods cannot be disinfected<br />
and must be discarded.”<br />
\If a disaster creates a danger involving hazardous<br />
materials, the DEC can activate one of the state’s hazardous<br />
During Spring <strong>2011</strong> fl ooding at Crooked Creek, this tank fl oated and<br />
disconnected the fuel line, spilling oil.<br />
materials response teams, made up of fi refi ghters trained<br />
to work with biological, chemical, radiological and other<br />
hazardous substances. These teams are in Anchorage, Fairbanks,<br />
Juneau, Ketchikan and Kodiak; each is prepared to<br />
deploy anywhere in the state they are needed.<br />
28 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
A common misperception is that<br />
DEC staff clean up and fi x problems<br />
after natural disasters. However,<br />
the DEC does not actually conduct<br />
cleanup work or repair facilities. The<br />
DEC instead will help to evaluate<br />
impacts to the community and what<br />
needs to be done to address them.<br />
For spills and contamination, the DEC<br />
can arrange for contractors to arrive<br />
and respond accordingly. For example,<br />
during a fl ood, the DEC would assess<br />
damages and cleanup options and<br />
hire a contractor to ensure the area<br />
is cleaned of contaminants. The<br />
DEC continues to provide technical<br />
assistance to the responders and the<br />
community throughout the process.<br />
“While we don’t have the primary<br />
role in response to a natural disaster,<br />
DEC is an important support agency,”<br />
Wien said. “We want to make sure<br />
people know how to protect themselves,<br />
their property and resources<br />
from hazards that come from natural<br />
disasters.”<br />
To view the <strong>Alaska</strong> Department<br />
of Environmental Conservation’s<br />
Disaster Response Plan, visit:<br />
http://www.dec.alaska.gov/spar/<br />
perp/plans/adec_disaster.pdf<br />
For more information on the <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Department of Environmental Conservation,<br />
visit its website at: http://www.dec.<br />
alaska.gov/index.htm.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 29
Community holiday programs seek help<br />
AGC members get involved<br />
By Ra C h a E l KVa p i l<br />
It might seem early to think about the holidays, but two<br />
community programs are asking AGC members for assistance.<br />
First, the Anchorage Home Builders Association<br />
(AHBA) Associates Council is looking for sponsors for The<br />
Shoebox Program, a program that provides a backpack full of<br />
cheer to homeless and sheltered children. Also registration<br />
will soon begin for Canstruction, a creative annual design/<br />
build competition that benefi ts Food Bank of <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
The Shoebox Program<br />
It started with a shoebox fi lled with gifts and the desire<br />
to bring holiday cheer to less fortunate children. And<br />
though The Shoebox Program has graduated to backpacks,<br />
the program’s name and intention remains the same. As fall<br />
begins, the Anchorage Home Builders Association Associates<br />
Council is starting its annual drive for backpack sponsors<br />
and/or donations to make the holidays special for<br />
underprivileged Anchorage students.<br />
Vicki Portwood, executive offi cer of AHBA, said approximately<br />
1,500 to 1,800 Anchorage students, ages 13 to 17,<br />
fall into the category of homeless/sheltered living. These<br />
students are identifi ed by school nurses and family school<br />
AHBA staff<br />
shop for items<br />
to fi ll hundreds<br />
of sponsored<br />
backpacks.<br />
Volunteers gather at Taylored Restoration to stuff monetarily sponsored<br />
backpacks for pick up and delivery by school nurses.<br />
service coordinators who pass the names, ages and genders<br />
of students AHBA. Finding backpack sponsors starts with a<br />
letter from “Santa” to AHBA’s 220 members. Backpack sponsors<br />
can either pick up a backpack to fi ll or donate $50 so<br />
that AHBA can purchase items. Approximately 600 backpacks<br />
are sponsored through the program. AGC members<br />
30 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photos: Courtesy oF ahba
Backpacks are prepurchased by The Shoebox<br />
Program and then either picked up by sponsors<br />
to fi ll or fi lled during a “stuffi ng party.”<br />
To sponsor a backpack, donate<br />
money or volunteer with The<br />
Shoebox Program contact:<br />
AHBA at (907) 522-3605<br />
sponsored 20 backpacks last year.<br />
“Our members have found very<br />
creative ways to encourage sponsorships,”<br />
said Portwood. “Some have<br />
contests for the best decorated bag,<br />
while others encourage their friends<br />
and family to get involved.”<br />
In addition to backpack sponsorships,<br />
AHBA also relies on volunteers to<br />
help with monetarily-sponsored backpacks.<br />
AHBA shops for gifts and then<br />
holds a stuffi ng party to fi ll each bag.<br />
Purchased items include gifts and basic<br />
hygiene items such as a winter hat, a pair<br />
of gloves, a toothbrush, toothpaste and<br />
dental fl oss, and soap. School nurses<br />
pick up the backpacks the following<br />
day and distribute them to the children<br />
prior to their holiday break.<br />
“Nurses tell kids that their names<br />
were selected in a drawing,” said Portwood.<br />
“Many of these kids already<br />
face a lot of challenges and we don’t<br />
want them singled out.”<br />
AHBA does selective publicity of<br />
The Shoebox Program as a way to<br />
protect the identity of students and<br />
their families. However, word of mouth<br />
had gone a long way to encourage local<br />
home building, lending and real estate<br />
businesses to participate. To sponsor a<br />
backpack, donate money or volunteer<br />
with The Shoebox Program contact<br />
AHBA at (907) 522-3605.<br />
“Bulldozer” built by Enterprise Engineering of Anchorage won the “Jurors Favorite” award.<br />
Canstruction<br />
Food cans are no stranger to the art<br />
world, but Canstruction has learned to<br />
combine them with a unique design/<br />
build competition to collect food for<br />
community food banks. Teams of architects,<br />
engineers, designers, construction<br />
professionals and the students they<br />
mentor get the chance to show their<br />
artistic fl are by building a 10 by 10 by 8<br />
foot structure using only canned food.<br />
Then, after the competition in fi nished,<br />
the food is collected and donated to<br />
Food Bank of <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
“It is a unique way of mixing art<br />
and architecture,” said Jim MacKenzie,<br />
director of development and communications<br />
for Food Bank of <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
“And the best part is we get to raise<br />
food awareness and food for the food<br />
bank in a fun and creative way.”<br />
Though teams build their structures<br />
in a 12-hour period, there is a lot<br />
of planning that goes on beforehand.<br />
Teams register in November and turn<br />
in concept designs in mid-December<br />
so they turn in canned food orders by<br />
January for the February event.<br />
Iris Matthews, chairperson for<br />
Canstruction, said the timing of the<br />
competition is important since less<br />
food is donated in the months following<br />
the holidays even through there is still<br />
a signifi cant need.<br />
“Shelves are really bare during<br />
February and March,” said Matthews,<br />
“Canstruction is a great way to help<br />
Food Bank of <strong>Alaska</strong> restock a bit.”<br />
Canstruction brings in more than<br />
30,000 pounds of food each year.<br />
According to MacKenzie the food<br />
bank collects about 6.6 million pounds<br />
a year. He estimates that 90,300 <strong>Alaska</strong>ns<br />
are food insecure and use either<br />
food bank agencies or frequent soup<br />
kitchens. To meet the basic needs of all<br />
food insecure <strong>Alaska</strong>ns, Food Bank of<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> would need to collect about 13<br />
million pounds of food at a minimum.<br />
“Canstruction encourages people to<br />
get on board and fi ght to end hunger,”<br />
said MacKenzie. “Many start with this<br />
competition and then volunteer with<br />
Food Bank of <strong>Alaska</strong> as sorters, then<br />
as board members. Some continue to<br />
donate in other ways.”<br />
This year’s Canstruction will take<br />
place Feb. 18, 2012 at the University<br />
Center Mall. Registration starts in<br />
November. Firms can participate by<br />
forming a team or sponsoring a team.<br />
Teams typically have six to 15 members.<br />
For more information, contact Eric<br />
Voorhees at evoorhees@dowlhkm.<br />
com or Linda Hulteen at lhulteen@<br />
dowlhkm.com.<br />
Rachael Kvapil is a writer and<br />
photographer who lives in Fairbanks,<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 31<br />
photo: Mark Meyer
Anti-Pebble ads fail the geography test COMPASS: Other points of view<br />
By oR i n sE y B E R t<br />
I<br />
would be the last person in the<br />
world to jeopardize the Bristol Bay<br />
sockeye salmon fi shery, the largest<br />
wild salmon fi shery in existence. I started<br />
fi shing in the Ugashik River in 1950 and<br />
made the money to buy my fi rst aircraft,<br />
then start my airline, which of course<br />
grew to be successful supporting the<br />
fi sheries industry. To this day, my children<br />
and grandchildren rely on Bristol<br />
Bay to help with their livelihood, as well<br />
as their subsistence needs.<br />
However, the latest TV campaign<br />
by the anti-Pebble group is ludicrous.<br />
They are using a half-dozen residents<br />
of the Chignik/Perryville area (of<br />
which some are my relatives) to speak<br />
against the mine, as if they are Bristol<br />
Bay residents.<br />
Look at a map. The Chignik area is<br />
on the Pacifi c Ocean side of the <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Peninsula, nearly 1,000 miles from<br />
Bristol Bay by water. The Chignik Lake<br />
sockeye fi shery is the second largest in<br />
the state, next to Bristol Bay. It is much<br />
more similar to, but larger than, the<br />
Copper River, Cook Inlet and Kodiak<br />
Island producers, which are all at least<br />
in the same ocean.<br />
As anyone familiar with the sockeye<br />
salmon life cycle knows, they are hatched<br />
in early spring and spend the fi rst year<br />
growing to smolt in those streams and<br />
lakes. Then they go out to sea, spend<br />
two or three years growing, then return<br />
to their point of origin to spawn.<br />
The runs always return to their<br />
place of origination to start the cycle<br />
all over again. Thus there is no way any<br />
disaster in Bristol Bay could affect the<br />
Chignik runs, and vice versa.<br />
Let us look at the facts. Apparently<br />
there are very large, valuable mineral<br />
deposits in the hills west of Illiamna.<br />
In a worst case scenario, such as a dam<br />
failure or ongoing leakage of toxic<br />
material, there could possibly be two<br />
systems affected, Talarik Creek on the<br />
Lake Illiamna side, and the Mulchatna<br />
River on the Nushagak side.<br />
Both of these streams together<br />
support only a very small percentage<br />
of the total run spawning. The vast<br />
majority of the Nushagak run goes up<br />
the Nushagak and Wood Rivers to the<br />
Aleknagik/Tikchik lakes systems, and<br />
the vast majority of the Kvichak run goes<br />
to the East and North parts of Illiamna<br />
Lake, as well as Lake Clark. And of<br />
course the Naknek, Egegik and Ugashik<br />
systems are even more removed. It is<br />
unthinkable that any major disaster in<br />
one small area of the watershed would<br />
impact the entire run.<br />
As an example, Bristol Bay has<br />
already survived two major volcanic<br />
impacts. The fi rst was the Katmai eruption<br />
of 1912, which sent many tons of<br />
toxic ash down the Savanoski River into<br />
Naknek Lake and the Naknek River,<br />
which today is the second- or thirdlargest<br />
run in Bristol Bay. Then there was<br />
an eruption just six years ago of Mount<br />
Chiginagak, which sent material down<br />
Volcano Creek into Mother Goose Lake,<br />
Painter Creek and the King Salmon<br />
River (Ugashik), shutting down several<br />
sport fi shing lodges for a few years.<br />
Those runs are already coming back.<br />
There is information available that<br />
shows only 17 percent of Bristol Bay<br />
permits are held by bona fi de yearround<br />
area residents. The rest are held<br />
by non-residents who live in the continental<br />
U.S. or people with Bristol Bay<br />
roots who do not live there but only<br />
come for the two months to get their<br />
share. It appears that the large amount<br />
of money spent by the anti-Pebble<br />
group is mostly funded by outside and<br />
self-serving interests.<br />
I am neither pro or anti-Pebble;<br />
they have a long ways to go. First we<br />
would like to see their plan of production,<br />
which has not been done yet.<br />
Then they have to go through extensive<br />
local, state and federal permitting<br />
processes, which will all be subject to<br />
public review and input. We should at<br />
least give them a chance.<br />
Finally, if the anti-Pebble group<br />
cannot even get the obvious facts<br />
straight, how are we supposed to trust<br />
the rest of their advertising?<br />
Orin Seybert is the founder and retired<br />
CEO of Peninsula Airways (PenAir). He<br />
lives in Anchorage.<br />
This column originally appeared in the<br />
Anchorage Daily News on Aug. 17, <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
32 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
34 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Scholarship testimonials<br />
How to<br />
apply<br />
Landon Northey<br />
Construction has been a part of<br />
my life ever since I was a child and<br />
I hope for this to continue into the<br />
future. With the help of the Associated<br />
General Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong> I will<br />
be attending Boise State University in<br />
the fall to begin my further education<br />
and pursue my goal of obtaining a<br />
degree in Construction Management.<br />
I look forward to completing this goal<br />
and beginning a career in the construction industry. I would like<br />
to sincerely thank AGC for making this possible and helping<br />
me to begin building the road into my future.<br />
Jacob Mathiesen<br />
AGC scholarship has been a great help for<br />
my schooling through the years. I just returned<br />
to <strong>Alaska</strong> from a yearlong exchange program<br />
through the UAA Construction Management<br />
Program to (the) Northern Arizona’s CM<br />
program. I am happy that I have been given<br />
the opportunity of learning the Construction<br />
profession from different perspectives that<br />
develop my education, and to be supported<br />
by AGC along the way. AGC has assisted in<br />
sending students to Construction Expositions, Competing in Construction<br />
competitions, and meeting members of the industry at their regular<br />
events. I look forward to building <strong>Alaska</strong> along with AGC.<br />
The Construction Education Foundation is involved in all levels of construction education in <strong>Alaska</strong> – from<br />
students in secondary schools to older university students, to students looking to change careers or to take short<br />
courses to upgrade their skills. The foundation’s goal is to provide the next generation of construction workers in<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>. To that end, CEF works with the Associated General Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong> to offer scholarships to students<br />
taking (or will be taking) classes toward a degree that will support the state’s construction industry.<br />
To apply, download the forms at www.alaskacef.org/scholarships.html and return by deadline to the<br />
CEF offi ce at 8005 Schoon St., Anchorage, AK 99518. For more information, call (907) 770-1826.
CONTRACTORS & THE LAW<br />
When disaster strikes,<br />
reach for the “force majeure”<br />
When a genuine community<br />
or area-wide disaster<br />
occurs, attention will<br />
necessarily be drawn to many things<br />
other than contract documents. But if<br />
the normal routines of life and business<br />
in general have been disrupted,<br />
a contractor’s ability to continue<br />
performing contracts in place may<br />
be substantially compromised if not<br />
completely foreclosed, at least temporarily.<br />
When these dire circumstances<br />
arise hopefully the contracts in place<br />
will have “force majeure” clauses.<br />
A force majeure clause is a provision<br />
in a contract that excuses a party<br />
for its non-performance of the obligations<br />
it undertook in the contract. In<br />
other words failure to perform will not<br />
be a breach of the contract. Unless the<br />
contract addresses the grounds upon<br />
which performance may be excused, a<br />
contractor may rudely awaken to the<br />
fact that he will have to perform the<br />
contract even though the essentials<br />
to complete it are gone. For example,<br />
unless the contract specifi es otherwise,<br />
if a contractor contracts to build<br />
a building and it burns down before<br />
acceptance, the contractor is obligated<br />
to rebuild the building, and<br />
further, will be liable for damages to<br />
the owner for the delay in completing<br />
it. Consequently it is important to<br />
include in contracts a provision that<br />
sets out explicitly the kinds of situations<br />
that both parties agree would<br />
excuse performance required under<br />
the contract.<br />
Most construction contracts have<br />
what is in essence a “force majeure”<br />
clause, but it is not called as such. In<br />
the standard AGC contract document<br />
between the contractor and owner, the<br />
provision is found under the Section<br />
6.3, “Delays and Extensions of Time”<br />
clause. That provision starts out “if the<br />
Contractor is delayed at any time in<br />
the commencement or progress of the<br />
Work by any cause beyond the control<br />
of the Contractor . . . ” The provision<br />
states that in that event the contractor<br />
has the right to an equitable extension<br />
of time as well as an equitable adjustment<br />
in the compensation if additional<br />
costs are incurred because of<br />
the delay. The provision defi nes “cause<br />
beyond the control of the Contractor”<br />
to include decisions and actions of the<br />
owner or designer, “labor disputes not<br />
involving the Contractor; fi re; encountering<br />
Hazardous Materials; adverse<br />
weather conditions not reasonably<br />
anticipated; concealed or unknown<br />
conditions; . . . .” The AGC document<br />
also provides in the next paragraph<br />
that the contractor is entitled to additional<br />
time and to additional costs<br />
By ROBERT J. DI C K S O N<br />
(but without additional fee) when the<br />
delay is “caused by adverse weather<br />
conditions not reasonably anticipated,<br />
fi re, unusual transportation delays,<br />
general labor disputes impacting the<br />
Project but not specifi cally related to<br />
the Worksite, governmental agencies,<br />
or unavoidable accidents or circumstances<br />
. . . .”<br />
The AIA document is similar in<br />
that it covers “force majeure” under<br />
the “Time” article, and states at Section<br />
8.3.1 “If the Contractor is delayed at<br />
any time in the progress of the work [by<br />
any actions or decisions of the architect<br />
or owner] or by labor disputes,<br />
fi re, unusual delay in transportation,<br />
unavoidable casualties or any causes<br />
beyond the Contractor’s control, . . . ”<br />
Both the AIA document and the AGC<br />
document, as well as most construction<br />
contracts, do not excuse the contractor<br />
from performing entirely, but simply<br />
excuse the contractor from completing<br />
by the agreed date and allow for additional<br />
compensation if warranted.<br />
A more sophisticated clause that<br />
better takes into account the kinds of<br />
disasters that may happen in <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
defi nes ‘force majeure” to include<br />
“strike, lockout or other labor dispute;<br />
fi re; fl ood; storm; ice fl ow; lightening;<br />
earthquake; volcanic eruption; explosion;<br />
war; civil disturbance; blockade;<br />
act of God; governmental restraint<br />
imposed or caused by federal, state,<br />
borough or municipal law or by any<br />
rule, regulation, ordinance or order<br />
of or delay or failure to act by a<br />
federal, state, borough, municipal or<br />
other governmental agency; inability<br />
to secure required federal, state,<br />
borough, municipal or other governmental<br />
permits, approvals or easements;<br />
any judicial acts or restraints;<br />
accidents; uncontrollable delays in<br />
36 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
delivery or transportation of materials<br />
or personnel to the site; inability to<br />
obtain necessary materials in the open<br />
market; or any other cause, except<br />
the inability to pay money, beyond<br />
the reasonable control of the party<br />
claiming force majeure.”<br />
Typically, all of the force majeure<br />
clauses require the party who is<br />
claiming such to provide notice to the<br />
other party as soon as the event or<br />
problem has manifested itself. Even if<br />
the duration of the problem cannot be<br />
reliably predicted when it first occurs,<br />
the contractor should notify the owner<br />
or the other party to the contract of<br />
the force majeure event as soon as the<br />
contractor becomes aware of it.<br />
If a contract document does not<br />
include a force majeure or excusable<br />
delay clause, there are a number of<br />
common law doctrines that can provide<br />
relief when performance has become<br />
something substantially different than<br />
what had been originally contemplated.<br />
These include mutual mistake,<br />
frustration of purpose, impossibility,<br />
commercial impracticability and intervening<br />
illegality. But all of these legal<br />
doctrines require that the risk of the<br />
problem occurring has not been placed<br />
on the contractor, either expressly in<br />
the contract or impliedly, i.e., inferred<br />
from the explicit terms. The contract<br />
does not have to explicitly mention<br />
an event for a court to conclude<br />
from the rest of the document that<br />
the contractor bares the risk that the<br />
problem might occur. Consequently<br />
it is always best to have an explicit<br />
clause in the contract that excuses<br />
performance under conditions that are<br />
beyond the contractor’s control.<br />
This column provides information<br />
about the law to help users competently<br />
cope with their legal needs. But legal<br />
information is not the same as legal<br />
advice—the application of law to an individual’s<br />
specific circumstances. Although<br />
we go to great lengths to ensure accurate<br />
and useful information, we recommend<br />
consulting a lawyer for professional<br />
assurance and your interpretation of a<br />
particular situation.<br />
Robert J. Dickson is a partner of the<br />
Anchorage law firm Atkinson, Conway<br />
and Gagnon <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 37
FINANCIAL SERVICES & CONTRACTORS By Ro B E R t Wa R t h E n<br />
Commercial Loan Offi cer,<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> USA Federal Credit Union<br />
Help your lender help you<br />
In today’s economy, partnering with a fi nancial institution<br />
that understands your business and is willing to<br />
fund your dream is essential. If you’re thinking about<br />
applying for a loan or line of credit, there are a few things<br />
you can do to make the loan process easier.<br />
Know what’s expected when you apply. A smooth<br />
loan process starts with accurate and easily understandable<br />
fi nancial statements. The key factors lenders look for<br />
when analyzing a loan request are profi tability, liquidity and<br />
leverage. Your fi nancial package should include:<br />
• Three years tax returns on the company<br />
• Current year-to-date fi nancial statements to include a<br />
balance sheet and a profi t and loss statement<br />
• Current accounts receivable aging reports<br />
• Current inventory reports<br />
• Job status/work in progress reports<br />
• A current personal fi nancial statement from each owner<br />
who has at least a 20percent ownership in the company<br />
• Three years personal tax returns from same owners<br />
above<br />
Lenders analyze this information to confi rm whether the<br />
cash fl ow generated from the operations of the business will<br />
be suffi cient to repay the loan and all of the business’s other<br />
existing and proposed obligations.<br />
Aside from the cash fl ow, lenders also look for secondary<br />
sources of repayment of proposed fi nancing — specifi cally,<br />
collateral and personal guarantees from owners. Lenders<br />
may even ask borrowers to pledge personal assets to further<br />
support a loan request, which can include their primary<br />
residence.<br />
Presentation matters. Take the time to put together a<br />
well-organized, complete package. <strong>Keep</strong> in mind that your<br />
lender wants to know what your business does, how much<br />
money you want to borrow, how the money will be used<br />
and how you plan to repay the loan.<br />
If you want your lender to review your business plan,<br />
drop it off a day or two before your meeting so they have<br />
time to review it.<br />
Know when to apply. Plan to request your loan at a<br />
time of year when all of your fi nancials are ready and available<br />
for review. For example, a line of credit is renewed every<br />
12 months, so you should plan the maturity date for a time<br />
that makes sense — when you know your tax returns will be<br />
done; when you have income to report; and when you have<br />
time to gather your documentation.<br />
Borrow where you bank — or bank where you<br />
borrow. It’s always a good idea to have your accounts with<br />
the same institution you have fi nancial credit with. Your<br />
lender will consider your relationship during the approval<br />
process, and you may even receive more favorable pricing<br />
since the risk of lending to account holders is often lower<br />
than non-account holders.<br />
The bottom line. Give your business every advantage<br />
possible. Knowing how to make your lender’s job easier can<br />
go a long way in securing your loan, and having an organized,<br />
full package is a great start.<br />
38 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 39
Talking in a crisis<br />
Are we meeting <strong>Alaska</strong>’s<br />
emergency communications needs?<br />
By Ja C K E. ph E l p s<br />
A brief history<br />
The need for emergency responders from multiple agencies<br />
to be able to communicate effectively with one another<br />
in a crisis has been recognized for many years. Some 20<br />
years ago, the Association of Public Safety Communications<br />
Offi cials (APCO) took the lead in seeking solutions to this<br />
problem.<br />
In the late 1990s, the State of <strong>Alaska</strong> began reviewing<br />
emerging technologies to address this issue. After extensive<br />
analysis, <strong>Alaska</strong> adopted the APCO Project 25 standard to<br />
meet its future emergency communications needs. It was the<br />
fi rst of the 50 states to do so. The decision was prescient. P25<br />
has since become the de facto national standard for public<br />
safety communications, according to APCO.<br />
P25 involves the use of digital, trunked radio technology that<br />
is backward-compatible with conventional two-way radios. It<br />
can also accommodate an array of frequencies operating within<br />
the same network, allowing users of different frequency bands<br />
Typical equipment arrangement inside a remote shelter. This particular<br />
shelter is on the Seward Highway, south of Anchorage.<br />
The site site on High Mountain, near near Ketchikan. This<br />
was a brand new radio site site for the State State State of <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
Unlike many many many ALMR sites that were adapted<br />
from conventional radio radio sites, sites, sites, the High High Mountain<br />
location had to be built from the the ground up up and all all all<br />
materials had to be fl own in by helicopter.<br />
photo: photo: Courtesy oF soa<br />
40 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photo: Courtesy oF soa
SOA Engineer John Lynn at the Zone Controller<br />
computer monitor. From this location, technicians<br />
can monitor everything that is going on<br />
at remote sites system-wide. Alarms can be<br />
checked and often cleared from this single chair.<br />
to talk with each other. Law enforcement<br />
agencies, fi re departments, emergency<br />
medical personnel, transportation offi -<br />
cials and military personnel can use the<br />
system discreetly during normal, day-today<br />
operations and yet, with the fl ick of a<br />
switch, talk to one another freely during<br />
an event that requires their cooperation<br />
and mutual aid.<br />
The Department of Defense in <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
was interested in working with the State<br />
to develop such a system. Because of<br />
the large military presence in the state<br />
and <strong>Alaska</strong>’s unique global position<br />
and diverse geography, the DoD identifi<br />
ed an operational need for a stable,<br />
interoperable radio network. Moreover,<br />
it was conscious of its Defense Support<br />
for Civil Authority mission.<br />
By 2001, the State and the DoD had<br />
established the <strong>Alaska</strong> Land Mobile<br />
Radio (ALMR) partnership. They developed<br />
a plan to deploy a Very High<br />
Frequency P25 radio system along the<br />
major roads and in key outlying areas,<br />
especially in major population centers in<br />
Southeast and strategic points around<br />
Prince William Sound.<br />
Shelters at one of the remote sites along the<br />
Glenn Highway.<br />
photo: JaCk phelps<br />
photo: Courtesy oF soa<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 41
photos: Courtesy oF soa<br />
The new site at Sunnahae Mountain, just southeast of Craig. This site is critical for law enforcement<br />
activity on Prince of Wales Island. It enables Troopers deployed on POW to communicate<br />
with dispatch and detachment headquarters in Ketchikan.<br />
Creation of the system was<br />
understood to be a daunting financial<br />
and engineering task. It would<br />
require significant state and federal<br />
investment. The State and the DoD<br />
were committed to pursuing the<br />
funding because they believed P25<br />
would provide the best interoperable<br />
communications service to the military,<br />
civilian public safety agencies and<br />
other emergency responders.<br />
The events of Sept. 11, 2001,<br />
changed the funding picture significantly.<br />
The attack in New York brought<br />
into focus the need to use new technology<br />
for the safety and effectiveness<br />
A military helicopter lowers the antennal<br />
tower into place during construction of the<br />
High Mountain site near Ketchikan.<br />
of first responders, especially in the<br />
event of a multiagency response situation.<br />
Congress enacted large grant<br />
programs to help state and local agencies<br />
acquire P25 equipment, including<br />
both infrastructure and mobile devices.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>’s plan called for a joint<br />
buildout of 90 sites and two zone<br />
42 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
controllers (the brains of the system), all<br />
connected via digital microwave and fiber.<br />
Since <strong>Alaska</strong> already had in place more<br />
than 100 microwave sites, most of which<br />
were in the necessary locations, connectivity<br />
became a major role of the State. Of<br />
the 90 radio frequency sites, 41 were to be<br />
built and maintained by the DoD.<br />
Fast forward to <strong>2011</strong><br />
Of the originally planned sites, 83<br />
have been installed and activated, said<br />
State of <strong>Alaska</strong> Senior Engineer Dean<br />
Strid. Some additional sites have been<br />
installed, the need for which emerged<br />
during system construction. Moreover,<br />
the Municipality of Anchorage has added<br />
a third zone controller and a network of<br />
sites to service all territory covered by the<br />
Anchorage Police and Fire departments.<br />
This is where the flexibility of P25<br />
shines through. Anchorage chose to use<br />
the 700 MH band for its part of the system,<br />
believing it would suit Municipal needs<br />
better than VHF, which was deemed<br />
more suitable for coverage outside the<br />
Anchorage bowl. Yet, the APD and State<br />
Troopers can talk to each other on their<br />
everyday radios even though they operate<br />
on different parts of the radio spectrum.<br />
As State of <strong>Alaska</strong> Engineer John Lynn<br />
said, “The P25 system is frequency blind.<br />
Dean Strid, senior engineer for the State of<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>. Dean was responsible for designing the<br />
system, mapping the spectrum and coordinating<br />
the technical side of installation at all the ALMR<br />
sites. Without him there would be no ALMR.<br />
photo: JaCk phelps<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 43
Fire Station #12 in south Anchorage is an<br />
important repeater site for both the State’s<br />
VHF system and the Municipality’s 700 MH<br />
companion system.<br />
It simply doesn’t care what frequency the<br />
signal comes in on. The zone controller<br />
just sends it to the right talk group.”<br />
The Valdez Police Department was the<br />
first agency to use ALMR operationally<br />
for its primary communications needs. It<br />
has now been joined by dozens of local<br />
agencies which operate off the same<br />
network as the Troopers, the Department<br />
of Transportation, the <strong>Alaska</strong> Railroad<br />
and many others.<br />
Problems in paradise<br />
The system is clearly an operational<br />
success. It is being used daily by<br />
large agencies like the State Troopers<br />
and by small organizations such as the<br />
Mendeltna Volunteer Fire Department. It<br />
has been used successfully in one actual<br />
terror threat (Valdez in winter 2003).<br />
More than 200 law enforcement officers<br />
from across the state participated in the<br />
joint effort. Lt. Col. Jeff Badger, then-<br />
Operations Officer for the <strong>Alaska</strong> Army<br />
National Guard, said, “ALMR really<br />
saved the day. Once they understood<br />
what ALMR could do, many agencies<br />
(including the FBI) chose to use ALMR<br />
instead of their own radios.”<br />
The success is not unqualified.<br />
One problem is the decline of available<br />
funding to complete the system<br />
and operate it in areas that still need<br />
coverage. An example is Prince of Wales<br />
Island. ALMR coverage is available in<br />
Ketchikan, where the Trooper station<br />
is located. However, the Troopers are<br />
responsible for more miles of road on the<br />
island than in the city. The ALMR site on<br />
Gravina Island provides connectivity to<br />
Craig via a site on Sunnahae Mountain,<br />
but the State of <strong>Alaska</strong> lacks finances to<br />
operate that site, much to the chagrin of<br />
Troopers in the area.<br />
44 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photo: JaCk phelps
Moreover, the original buildout<br />
plans were drawn up before the population<br />
boomed in the Matanuska Valley.<br />
Strid said, “Coverage is weak in Knik,<br />
Houston and Big Lake. There are just too<br />
few channels to handle the increased<br />
activity out there.” Site Summit (above<br />
Fort Richardson) provides the best<br />
coverage, but it is also the key site for<br />
Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.<br />
There are not enough repeaters there<br />
to handle all the traffic, Strid says.<br />
Commander Tom Remaley of the<br />
Palmer Police Department also reports<br />
difficulties in the Valley. “We are no<br />
longer using ALMR,” he said. “I think<br />
the system is great and we’d love to<br />
be back on it, but it just didn’t consistently<br />
work because of connectivity<br />
issues. Too often my officers could<br />
not reach dispatch.” The problem has<br />
been reported to ALMR, but funding<br />
priorities have prevented a fix. So PPD<br />
is using their old conventional system<br />
while they wait.<br />
To make matters worse, the DoD has<br />
now decided that its need to participate<br />
in ALMR has decreased. According to<br />
Administration Commissioner Becky<br />
Hultberg, the Army has served notice<br />
The shelter at Site Summit above Fort Richardson off<br />
the Glenn Highway. This site provides some of the most<br />
extensive coverage of all the sites in the ALMR system.<br />
on <strong>Alaska</strong> that it will turn ownership<br />
and operations of its 41 sites over to the<br />
State no later than July 2012. If the State<br />
of <strong>Alaska</strong> does not accept responsibility<br />
for the sites, the DoD will decommission<br />
them and remove the equipment.<br />
This would cripple the system that is<br />
now depended upon by thousands of<br />
emergency responders, including state<br />
and local law enforcement. Hultberg<br />
and Public Safety Commissioner Joe<br />
Masters are faced with the problem of<br />
securing sufficient financing to assume<br />
full responsibility for ALMR or lose all<br />
the communication advantages that<br />
have been gained in the past decade.<br />
Jack E. Phelps is a freelance writer in<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 45
MEMBER PROFILE<br />
FAIRBANKS<br />
PRECAST & REBAR By Ra C h a E l KVa p i l<br />
Customization provides limitless<br />
opportunities for Interior manufacturer<br />
Ryan Johnson, general manager of Fairbanks<br />
Precast & Rebar, is pretty confi dent when<br />
he says, “Nothing scares us.” He speaks<br />
highly of the company’s experience and<br />
the resources that allow them to build highly customized<br />
products. In fact, Johnson says customized<br />
products make up a bulk of their orders since many<br />
construction projects need things built to design.<br />
Much of what Fairbanks Precast & Rebar provides<br />
isn’t necessarily identifi able by the consumer’s eye,<br />
such as concrete pads, traffi c barriers, containment<br />
barriers, utility vaults, manhole sections, panels and<br />
beams. Some of its products are featured in landscape<br />
designs such as concrete planter boxes, trash<br />
cans, benches and barriers. Some products, like<br />
custom bent and sheared rebar and welded wire<br />
mesh, are only ever seen by construction crews.<br />
However a product is used, Johnson says that Fairbanks<br />
Precast & Rebar has produced products in<br />
just about every shape and size over the years.<br />
Bent and sheared rebar and welded wire mesh are all customizable to spec.<br />
“We have good quality forms and intelligent<br />
people with lots of experience,” said Johnson.<br />
The company, originally named Fairbanks<br />
Precasters, was started in 1984 by Mike Dillon and<br />
Sandy McKenzie. In 1990, Mike Dillon bought out<br />
Sandy McKenzie and ran the business until he<br />
passed away in 2001. The company was purchased<br />
in December 2005 by Anchorage Sand & Gravel<br />
and the name changed to Fairbanks Precast &<br />
Rebar. Johnson’s main team in North Pole includes<br />
manager Tyler Beck in rebar and Tim Collette in<br />
sales and shop foremen Dennis Vahlsing and Steve<br />
Harvison.<br />
Johnson said their ability to build custom products<br />
to customer specifi cations allow Fairbanks<br />
Precast & Rebar to take on a variety of projects.<br />
Fairbanks Precast currently builds various custom<br />
products for Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., Doyon<br />
Utilities, British Petroleum and ENI Petroleum.<br />
Fairbanks Precast has also produced Texas barriers<br />
46 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photos: Courtesy oF FairbaNks preCast & rebar
An example of Texas barriers produced for the<br />
U.S. Army (Fort Wainwright and Fort Greely).<br />
for the U.S. Army (<strong>Fall</strong>/Winter 2009),<br />
and custom barriers for containment in<br />
Prudhoe Bay for various contractors.<br />
For the past three years, Fairbanks<br />
Precast & Rebar has provided Osborne<br />
Construction with several thousand<br />
feet of precast custom utilidor lids for<br />
a project on Eielson Air Force Base.<br />
Darrel Behrent, project engineer of<br />
Osborne Construction, speaks highly<br />
of the company’s ability to work on a<br />
flexible schedule and meet the project<br />
schedule.<br />
“They are cost effective and stand by<br />
the quality of their work,” said Behrent.<br />
“Plus they’re responsive to our needs<br />
and go out of their way to incorporate<br />
changes and make sure everything is<br />
done when we need it.”<br />
Travis Malin, project manager of<br />
H C Contractors, echoes Behrent’s<br />
praise. Fairbanks Precast & Rebar<br />
produced several products for H C<br />
Contractors including concrete barriers<br />
and storm drain catch basins. Most<br />
recently, it provided custom-made sewer<br />
manholes for the renovated storm drain<br />
system outside the University of <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Fairbanks Life Science Building.<br />
“This project is a lot like a puzzle,”<br />
said Malin. “Each piece has to fit perfectly<br />
to tie in with the museum. Fairbanks<br />
Precast & Rebar has done an excellent<br />
job working with last minute design<br />
changes and making sure everything is<br />
done correctly.”<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 47
Fairbanks Precast & Rebar has been an AGC member<br />
since November of 1984 when it was still run by the original<br />
owners. Johnson said it is important to maintain membership<br />
with AGC because it allows him to network with<br />
people who are involved in projects in the Interior. Though<br />
Fairbanks Precast & Rebar has maintained a steady workload,<br />
he feels this is important to keep up on changes in the<br />
construction industry, especially in a changing economy<br />
where construction is down and work on military bases is<br />
uncertain.<br />
“We do have to be cautiously optimistic even though<br />
we are in a good position,” Johnson said. “On the plus side,<br />
we have the ability to morph into anything. If projects are<br />
small then we can go small. If large, we can accommodate<br />
those too.”<br />
In addition to creating custom products, the company<br />
also stocks certain standard items: D.O.T. junction boxes,<br />
traffic barriers, standard utility vaults, type I and type II<br />
manholes, custom retaining wall blocks, wheel stops, splash<br />
blocks and different sized pads. The primary goal, according<br />
to Johnson, is to expand into all facets of the precast and<br />
rebar industry necessary to meet the demands of construction<br />
companies within Interior <strong>Alaska</strong>. Despite the uncertainty<br />
in the economy, Johnson is confident in what the<br />
company can accomplish.<br />
An example of manholes such as those created for the University of<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Fairbanks Life Science Building sewer renovation project.<br />
“The scope of work within the precast and rebar industry<br />
is limitless for us,” said Johnson. “We strive to be the best at<br />
everything we do for all our customers in and around the<br />
North Star and North Slope Region.”<br />
Rachael Kvapil is a writer and photographer who lives in<br />
Fairbanks, <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
Fairbanks Precast and Rebar frequently produces painted barriers for contractors, military facilities and other Interior companies.<br />
48 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photos: Courtesy oF FairbaNks preCast & rebar
In In times times of<br />
of<br />
disaster<br />
disaster<br />
JEREMY ZI D E K<br />
Public Information Offi cer,<br />
Division of Homeland Security<br />
and Emergency Management<br />
It’s just a matter of time …<br />
The importance of time is obvious during and immediately following a disaster, when<br />
life, health and safety issues are paramount and speed is of the essence. Time is also<br />
the common element in preparing for, mitigating against, responding to and recovering<br />
from disasters.<br />
Some disasters are “no notice” events, with little time for last-minute preparation. Earthquakes,<br />
avalanches, locally generated tsunamis and volcanic eruptions may occur at any time.<br />
Other events are seasonal and therefore somewhat more predictable. The effects of fall sea<br />
storms, extreme cold weather events, spring fl oods from ice jams and summer wildfi res vary<br />
by year, condition and location. For both types of events, the best preparation is advance work,<br />
for once an event occurs, preparation ends and response begins. The effectiveness of disaster<br />
response and recovery relates directly to time invested in planning and preparation.<br />
50 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Assault on Crooked Creek – Ballistic ice slammed into<br />
the Kuskokwim River village of Crooked Creek during<br />
this spring’s river break up. The massive blocks of<br />
river ice, raised by high floodwaters, destroyed homes,<br />
public buildings and other critical infrastructure.<br />
photo: Courtesy oF Dhs&eM<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 51
<strong>Alaska</strong>’s Division of Homeland<br />
Security and Emergency Management<br />
(DHS&EM) provides critical services<br />
to protect lives and property from all<br />
hazards and provides rapid recovery from<br />
natural and other disasters. Preparedness,<br />
response and recovery are the<br />
cornerstones of DHS&EM’s mission.<br />
It’s just a matter of using time …<br />
to plan and prepare<br />
Preparing for a disaster begins long<br />
before a community is affected in a<br />
continuous preparedness cycle in which<br />
partners plan, equip, train, exercise and<br />
evaluate to ensure an effective disaster<br />
response and recovery.<br />
Ideally, planning occurs at all levels:<br />
local, regional, state government;<br />
private and nonprofit entities; as well as<br />
individuals and families. Since disasters<br />
happen locally, local planning is essential.<br />
When community leaders, first<br />
responders, schools, utilities, health care<br />
providers and other critical personnel<br />
plan together, the plans are more<br />
effective and the process itself creates<br />
working partnerships essential during<br />
an actual response. Emergency operations,<br />
evacuation, hazard mitigation and<br />
other plans establish roles, responsibilities<br />
and processes by which a community<br />
gathers incident information, calls<br />
residents to action, assigns response<br />
duties, establishes priorities and calls<br />
upon resources. Unalaska used their<br />
evacuation plan to successfully evacuate<br />
their entire community on June 23, <strong>2011</strong>,<br />
after a previously installed siren signaled<br />
a potential tsunami.<br />
During the planning process, entities<br />
identify their existing capabilities and<br />
gaps in planning, trained and exercised<br />
personnel, essential equipment and<br />
other resources. DHS&EM provides<br />
52 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
state and federal funding and technical<br />
assistance for emergency warning<br />
systems, communications and other<br />
essential equipment; planning; training;<br />
and exercises. DHS&EM vulnerability<br />
assessments identify opportunities to<br />
strengthen critical infrastructure and<br />
key resources. Mitigation projects that<br />
derive from the planning process reduce<br />
the likelihood of future damages based<br />
on known risks.<br />
Training at all levels ensures<br />
expertise and experience. “Training<br />
an individual to use a single piece of<br />
equipment or one plan is fairly straightforward,”<br />
said John Madden, director<br />
DHS&EM. “Ensuring many people<br />
from different fields and agencies work<br />
in unison requires prior collaboration.<br />
When this occurs, we achieve a timely<br />
and orchestrated effort to address the<br />
needs of those affected by disaster.”<br />
It’s just a matter of time …<br />
until the ‘next big one’<br />
Exercises put plans, equipment and<br />
training to the test. An exercise can be<br />
a simple guided discussion at the local<br />
level, a drill that tests a few organizations’<br />
ability to address a limited situ-<br />
ation or a full-scale event that brings<br />
together multiple partners in various<br />
venues. Statewide <strong>Alaska</strong> Shield exercises<br />
occur every two years. The next<br />
statewide exercise, in February 2012,<br />
will test response capabilities in cold<br />
weather. The state has already begun<br />
planning for a catastrophic earthquake<br />
scenario for <strong>Alaska</strong> Shield 2014,<br />
the 50 th anniversary of the 1964 Good<br />
Friday earthquake.<br />
“If we wait until a disaster to develop<br />
skills, relationships and expertise, we<br />
have failed,” Madden said. “We must<br />
prepare when the sun is shining, with<br />
time with time to think things through<br />
and build experience free from the<br />
emotion and confusion of an event.”<br />
It’s just a matter of minimizing<br />
time … to respond effectively<br />
Communities, particularly larger<br />
communities with more resources,<br />
manage incidents, including fires, floods,<br />
storms and other events with limited<br />
size and effect locally, with or without<br />
a local disaster declaration. Jurisdictions<br />
can request assistance through joint<br />
predeveloped mutual aid agreements,<br />
as with the Tri-Borough Agreement<br />
among the Municipality of Anchorage,<br />
the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and<br />
the Kenai Peninsula Borough.<br />
Communities may request assistance<br />
through the State Emergency<br />
Coordination Center (SECC), led by<br />
DHS&EM. The SECC responds on<br />
average to 36 incidents annually, with<br />
more than 225 state and federally<br />
declared disasters in its history. SECC<br />
staff members provide telephonic or<br />
in-person assistance, or coordinate<br />
emergency response by state agencies<br />
and other entities. A governor’s<br />
state disaster declaration may follow<br />
a local disaster declaration, when local<br />
capacity for response and recovery<br />
is exceeded. The state, in turn, may<br />
request a presidential federal disaster<br />
declaration. However, none of those<br />
formal actions is required to address<br />
immediate life, health and safety<br />
needs. DHS&EM has the authority to<br />
call upon state resources and assets<br />
to address the immediate emergency<br />
needs of a community.<br />
The SECC becomes a hub of activity<br />
during a major event. The Department<br />
of Public Safety, Department of<br />
Transportation and Public Facilities,<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 53
Fully Activated SECC. Division of Homeland Security & Emergency Management personnel and multi-agency response partners staff the State<br />
Emergency Coordination Center during the <strong>Alaska</strong> Shield-Vigilant Guard-Arctic Edge exercise. The exercise tested multiple plans, communications and<br />
response equipment, and emergency operations training.<br />
Department of Environmental Conservation<br />
and Department of Health and<br />
Social Services liaisons fill key operational<br />
roles and provide critical information,<br />
while field personnel work in<br />
the affected areas. (Each agency also<br />
becomes the lead for their specialty<br />
areas.) DHS&EM calls upon numerous<br />
nonprofit disaster support organizations,<br />
volunteer agencies and others<br />
as necessary to support response and<br />
recovery.<br />
“Positioning key response organizations<br />
in the SECC allows us to<br />
gather a comprehensive picture of<br />
a developing incident and provide<br />
timely assistance,” said Bryan Fisher,<br />
DHS&EM Operations Chief and<br />
SECC <strong>Inc</strong>ident Commander. “Each has<br />
a unique role and expertise.”<br />
Decisions to evacuate, establish<br />
shelters, distribute emergency supplies<br />
and numerous other decisions are local.<br />
“DHS&EM works closely with local<br />
leaders as needed, but they have the<br />
responsibility and specific expertise to<br />
make critical decisions,” Fisher said.<br />
It’s just a matter of time …<br />
until winter<br />
Little time passes before recovery.<br />
Once immediate life safety needs are<br />
met, recovery begins. When damages<br />
are severe, governmental assistance<br />
becomes critical to a community’s<br />
recovery. Unlike most states, <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
has state programs to support recovery<br />
in the absence of a federal disaster<br />
declaration. A governor’s disaster<br />
declaration activates the state’s Public<br />
Assistance and Individual Assistance<br />
programs, managed by DHS&EM.<br />
The state’s Public Assistance<br />
Program is designed to help local, tribal<br />
and state governmental entities, and<br />
eligible private nonprofit organizations<br />
restore infrastructure damaged by the<br />
declared disaster to predisaster conditions.<br />
The state’s Individual Assistance<br />
Program provides timely assistance to<br />
individuals or families to meet eligible<br />
disaster-related necessary expenses and<br />
serious unmet needs. The state provides<br />
funding, technical assistance and grant<br />
management to eligible applicants, who<br />
complete their funded public assistance<br />
projects or replace items damaged or<br />
destroyed in the disaster.<br />
“This spring the village of<br />
Crooked Creek experienced an ice<br />
jam flood which destroyed 14 homes<br />
and damaged additional structures.<br />
Knowing that a rebuild of these<br />
homes would require a significant<br />
recovery effort, we laid the recovery<br />
ground work while the response effort<br />
was still under way,” Madden said.<br />
“DHS&EM and our partners developed<br />
a comprehensive plan that puts<br />
people in adequate housing before<br />
winter arrives. Building many homes<br />
from start to finish is never an easy<br />
task; building on a tight time frame in<br />
rural <strong>Alaska</strong> is a tremendous challenge<br />
DHS&EM readily embraces.”<br />
54 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photo: larry DixoN, keNtuCky eMergeNCy MaNageMeNt
In a state disaster with no federal<br />
declaration, DHS&EM coordinates<br />
local input, local work to secure and<br />
prepare new building sites, individual<br />
grant awards, funds available for rental<br />
assistance, state resources and technical<br />
assistance, partner agency resources,<br />
volunteer agency funding and direct<br />
support, donations and any other available<br />
resources. DHS&EM convened the<br />
Disaster Housing Task Force (DHTF) to<br />
coordinate the current Crooked Creek<br />
rebuild and to facilitate local, volunteer,<br />
state and private partner collaboration.<br />
The DHTF designs, procures funds,<br />
manufactures, assembles and delivers<br />
the materials required to complete<br />
homes during the short construction<br />
season known to all <strong>Alaska</strong>ns. Volunteers<br />
from Samaritan’s Purse and Christian<br />
Reformed World Relief Committee<br />
will construct the homes once materials<br />
arrive. Expensive air travel, unpredictable<br />
barge travel due to low water and<br />
vast distances between supply centers<br />
and Crooked Creek make efficient<br />
logistics a necessity.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>’s large geographic area,<br />
sparse population and wide range of<br />
threats and hazards create unique challenges.<br />
In 2009, the state responded to<br />
four simultaneous events – flu, flood,<br />
fire and fallout: the H1N1 pandemic,<br />
the historic Yukon/Kuskokwim ice jam<br />
flooding which affected 40 communities,<br />
the Mile 17 East End Road Fire near<br />
Homer and the Mount Redoubt eruption,<br />
which threatened the Drift River<br />
oil loading terminal. Low visibility from<br />
the fire grounded planes, and materials<br />
had to be moved by small boats so<br />
volunteers could continue construction.<br />
Coordination and problem-solving in<br />
a nationally recognized local-volunteer-state-federal<br />
partnership ensured<br />
homes were rebuilt in 106 days in four<br />
communities, including 25 percent of<br />
homes in Eagle, prior to winter’s onset.<br />
DHS&EM and all its partners take<br />
time as part of each planning session,<br />
training, exer cise, equipment installation,<br />
mitigation project and real-world<br />
event to evaluate and improve readiness<br />
for the next event. No one knows<br />
when the next event will occur, and we<br />
must all be part of a Ready <strong>Alaska</strong>. For<br />
information on simple steps you can<br />
take to prepare yourself, your family<br />
and your organization for disasters,<br />
visit www.ready.alaska.gov.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 55
MEMBER PROFILE<br />
SEWARD BUILDING<br />
SUPPLY INC. By Ba M B i Ch i l d s<br />
Diverse opportunities<br />
for unique entrepreneurs<br />
Nestled in the foothills of the Chugach<br />
National Forest, the waterfront town<br />
of Seward is a unique place fi lled with<br />
familiar faces and many people who have<br />
known each other for a lifetime. In 1972, Seward<br />
Building Supply <strong>Inc</strong>. was started by Don and Joyce<br />
Simpson, people who were interested in bringing<br />
something new and useful to the small, quiet<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> town. They operated the company as a<br />
building supply distributor and sold merchandise<br />
to fi t construction, domestic and building needs.<br />
In 1984, ownership of Seward Building Supply<br />
changed into the hands of the Simpsons’ daughter<br />
and son-in-law, Jean and Blaine Bardarson. The<br />
savvy and creative pair have been childhood friends,<br />
high school sweethearts and successful business<br />
partners for more than 30 years.<br />
The building supply part of the company was<br />
sold to Spenard Builders Supply in 1997, which has<br />
allowed the duo to create a multitude of ventures<br />
under the company umbrella while keeping the<br />
original name, Seward Building Supply <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
“With businesses always changing and evolving,<br />
trying new things is the only way to get rid of dead<br />
weight,” Blaine Bardarson, CEO/general manager<br />
of Seward Building Supply said.<br />
“Living in a town as unique as<br />
Seward, you can’t just have your<br />
hand in one thing. One has to pay<br />
attention to the trends. Be able to<br />
predict people’s needs and the<br />
changes in the market. Be proactive<br />
and reactive.”<br />
For example, to meet the needs<br />
of companies looking to provide<br />
affordable, comfortable and<br />
temporary housing for seasonal<br />
employees, the owners of Seward Building Supply<br />
began to convert steel containers into warm, ventilated,<br />
dorm-style bunkhouses that are compliant<br />
with state and local building codes.<br />
Seasonal Bunkhouse Solutions offers temporary living quarters in re-purposed<br />
Conex containers and are stackable to reduce footprint during the off-season.<br />
56 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photos: Courtesy oF se w a r D builDiNg supply iNC.
Jean and Blaine Bardarson owners of Seward<br />
Building Supply <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Operating under the name Seasonal<br />
Bunkhouse Solutions, the company<br />
offers living quarters that can safely<br />
house six people per unit. The steel<br />
construction allows these containers<br />
to withstand harsh elements, and the<br />
locking steel doors provide safety and<br />
security. All units include smoke and<br />
carbon monoxide detectors, ample<br />
lighting, and are temperature controlled.<br />
And when not in use, these temporary<br />
housing units can be moved and stacked<br />
away in storage, allowing employers to<br />
avoid permanently tying up the land. This<br />
year 150 employees are being housed<br />
in Seward, and in 2012 that number is<br />
projected to rise to 225. Seasonal Bunkhouse<br />
Solutions is looking into the<br />
opportunity to provide housing in Bristol<br />
Bay, Kodiak and Homer.<br />
Seward Building Supply and partners<br />
also saw an opportunity to economically<br />
thrive on boat storage and maintenance<br />
needs prompted by the community’s<br />
access to prime fishing and boating<br />
locales such as Resurrection Bay. Seward<br />
Boat Storage and Raibow Fiberglass<br />
were created to offer winter storage and<br />
blocking, blister repair, wood restoration,<br />
polishing, mechanical repair and more.<br />
The fully licensed and insured company<br />
allows people to maintain their vessels<br />
and enjoy them in the same location.<br />
And knowing <strong>Alaska</strong> to be a top<br />
travel destination, the Bardarsons saw a<br />
chance to share what they know about<br />
The Last Frontier. Bardy’s Trail Rides<br />
was created to provide educational and<br />
relaxing horse pack trips, overnight or<br />
daily, along Resurrection Trail and into<br />
Chugach National Forest. The horses<br />
are appropriate for all skill levels, and all<br />
riders start the journey in the old town<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 57
of Seward seeing beautiful wildflowers and maybe even<br />
wildlife along the way. The overnight journey will follow<br />
along Resurrection Trail to cabins that were originally built<br />
in the ‘20s, where guests spend the night in these restored<br />
dwellings. If visitors have only a day, they have the option of<br />
taking one of two daily pack trips. These daily adventures last<br />
approximately two hours and in April 2010, Bardy’s daily Trail<br />
Rides ranked among The Top 10 Trail Rides in the country by<br />
USA Today.<br />
The Bardarsons, who joined AGC in the ‘80s, find that<br />
through AGC membership some of their needs as small business<br />
owners can be met. In particular the Bardarsons, being<br />
the only two full-time employees of the company, appreciate<br />
and use the health services that the association provides.<br />
“With insurance being a big issue these days it works out<br />
well for our particular situation,” said Blaine Bardarson. And<br />
they also value other AGC members as potential customers.<br />
Blaine Bardarson, in addition to all of his other endeavors,<br />
is a ramp agent for the port in Seward. He also operates<br />
American Viking Lines with TOTE/Horizon and is an agent<br />
who provides storage containers for multiple purposes to<br />
local fish processing plants.<br />
Jean Bardarson, co-owner of Seward Building Supply<br />
finds that family, diversity and being busy are just a few of<br />
the things that satisfy her day to day. “Satisfaction is knowing<br />
that things get done. I work better while being busy because<br />
it seems I can get more tasks completed. With that I am able<br />
Bardy’s Trail Rides ranked among The Top 10 Trail Rides in the country by USA Today in 2010.<br />
Each bunkhouse contains three two-person dorm-style rooms.<br />
to look back and feel a sense of accomplishment,” she said.<br />
She not only shares the responsibilities of maintaining the<br />
family businesses with her husband but she is also a dental<br />
hygienist and the vice-mayor of Seward.<br />
“The ability to be creative and not always going with the<br />
status quo has been the key to success for the Bardarsons,”<br />
said Lori Draper, Wells Fargo district manager, former banker<br />
for Seward Building Supply and family friend. “With one<br />
58 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photos: Courtesy oF se w a r D builDiNg supply iNC.
Each bunkhouse meets uniform building and<br />
fi re codes as well as square footage and headroom<br />
requirements.<br />
being the internal optimist and the other<br />
taking the more grounded approach,<br />
they are able to complement each other<br />
and form a very balanced partnership.”<br />
Noticing a problem or unmet need<br />
and fi nding a solution is the goal of<br />
Seward Building Supply. “The mission<br />
of our company is to seek out all opportunities<br />
and act on them with a simple<br />
rule: Say what you’re going to do and do<br />
what you said,” Blaine Bardarson said.<br />
Bambi Childs is a writer who lives in<br />
Anchorage, <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 59
BEACON WORKSAFE<br />
Drug testing measures<br />
starting to pay off?<br />
With the increased acceptance<br />
of drug testing in the<br />
workplace, many donors<br />
have tried to “beat” a drug test by using<br />
a variety of products. These products<br />
range from solutions for the donors<br />
to drink to adding compounds to their<br />
urine specimens after they have voided<br />
to substituting the specimen with other<br />
fl uids or even obtaining negative urine<br />
from friends or vendors. Many of these<br />
products attempt to affect the initial<br />
screen in hopes that it will produce a<br />
negative result, while other products<br />
interfere with the confi rmation test in<br />
hopes that a legally defendable result<br />
will not be obtained.<br />
Knowing that these products are<br />
available and are being used by many in<br />
the workforce has employers concerned<br />
with whether their employees are truly<br />
drug-free or if they have just “beat” a<br />
test. I was recently monitoring one of<br />
the popular Internet chat sites for drug<br />
users, and I found a conversation that<br />
I found interesting. A female worker<br />
was asking if anyone could tell her<br />
what product to use to help her pass<br />
an upcoming drug test that she had<br />
convinced her boss to allow her to<br />
retake. She explained that her fi rst test<br />
was positive and her boss believed her<br />
story that the lab made a mistake. She<br />
indicated that she had quit smoking<br />
pot three weeks previous to her test<br />
and was hoping that enough time<br />
had elapsed to allow her to test negative.<br />
To make things worse, she had<br />
recently found out that she was pregnant,<br />
making it even more imperative<br />
that she keep her job. She sounded<br />
desperate, almost begging for someone<br />
to help her. The conversation that<br />
ensued between her and another drug<br />
user basically concluded by the drug<br />
user assuring her that she would pass<br />
her test if she used a certain synthetic<br />
urine product. This drug user was so<br />
sure that no testing technology existed<br />
that would detect synthetic urine as<br />
long as it was used correctly.<br />
After reading this, it made me<br />
aware of how confi dent drug users<br />
are becoming with synthetic urine<br />
and how arrogant they can be about<br />
beating the system.<br />
Now for some good news —<br />
Congress recently introduced the “The<br />
Drug Testing Integrity Act of <strong>2011</strong>, HR<br />
707” which states:<br />
The Drug Testing<br />
Integrity Act of <strong>2011</strong>, HR 707<br />
The Act prohibits the manufacture,<br />
marketing, sale, or shipment in interstate<br />
commerce of products designed<br />
to assist in defrauding a drug test.<br />
BAN OF PRODUCTS DESIGNED<br />
TO DEFRAUD DRUG TESTS.<br />
(a) Conduct Prohibited - It shall be<br />
unlawful to knowingly manufacture,<br />
market, sell, ship, or otherwise<br />
provide to another individual any<br />
product with the intent to assist<br />
such other individual to use such<br />
product to defraud a drug test.<br />
(b) Defi nition - As used in this Act, the<br />
term ‘defraud a drug test’ means —<br />
(1) submit a substance that purports<br />
to be from an individual other<br />
than its actual source, or purports<br />
to have been excreted or collected<br />
other than when it was actually<br />
excreted or collected; or<br />
BY DO N BISBY<br />
Beacon OHSS Drug and Alcohol<br />
Compliance Consultant<br />
(2) engage in any other conduct with<br />
the intent to produce a false or<br />
misleading outcome of a test for the<br />
presence of a controlled substance.<br />
In recent years, other actions have<br />
also been implemented by the federal<br />
government to try to reduce the<br />
number of employees using “cheating<br />
products.”<br />
One of the changes occurred on<br />
June 25, 2008, when the Department of<br />
Transportation (DOT) published a fi nal<br />
rule amending 49 CFR Part 40 to make<br />
specimen validity testing mandatory.<br />
Specimen validity testing is the evaluation<br />
of the specimen to determine if<br />
it is consistent with normal human<br />
urine. The purpose of validity testing is<br />
to determine whether certain adulterants<br />
or foreign substances were added<br />
to the urine, if the urine was diluted or<br />
if the specimen was substituted.<br />
According to Dave Michaelson, Certifying<br />
Scientist at Pathology Associates<br />
Medical Laboratory (PAML), the<br />
National Laboratory Certifi cation<br />
Program has taken a strong and active<br />
role in specimen validity testing. Each<br />
laboratory must determine whether<br />
a donor has submitted a valid specimen<br />
with the following qualifi ers:<br />
Adulterated: The specimen either<br />
contains a substance that is not a<br />
normal constituent of human urine or<br />
contains an endogenous substance at<br />
a concentration that is not a normal<br />
physiological concentration.<br />
Substituted: Test results document<br />
that the specimen does not exhibit the<br />
characteristics of normal human urine<br />
(i.e., it could not have been provided by<br />
the donor).<br />
60 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Dilute: Specific gravity and creatinine<br />
values are below the lower limits for<br />
normal human urine, as established<br />
by the program. Donors may deliberately<br />
dilute specimens by consuming<br />
large amounts of water or other liquid<br />
or by adding liquid to their urine<br />
specimens.<br />
Laboratories are conducting<br />
validity testing on every specimen<br />
tested. Michaelson says, “With the<br />
current amount of products available,<br />
and the new ones hitting the shelves<br />
each week, laboratories are working<br />
hard to identify each donor as they try<br />
to beat their drug test.<br />
I am glad to report that the determination<br />
and persistence that is shown<br />
by some of the laboratories in finding<br />
ways to detect synthetic urine is starting<br />
to pay off as more and more users are<br />
getting caught using synthetic urine.<br />
Michaelson reported that with the<br />
validity testing that is currently being<br />
conducted, employers are receiving test<br />
results that are reported as “Invalid,”<br />
instructing employers to “re-collect<br />
under direct observation,” due to the<br />
urine characteristics not being consis-<br />
tent with human urine. Validity testing<br />
is eventually catching those employees<br />
who are using synthetic urine, and<br />
it is causing a great concern among<br />
“cheaters.”<br />
In addition to validity testing, the<br />
Department of Transportation, on<br />
Oct. 1, 2010, also made the following<br />
changes to its drug testing rules:<br />
In addition to lowering the<br />
cutoff levels for amphetamines<br />
and cocaine, the U.S. Department<br />
of Transportation (DOT) joined<br />
the U.S. Department of Health<br />
and Human Services (DHHS)<br />
to require urine testing for the<br />
heroin marker, 6-acetylmorphine,<br />
or 6-AM specifically.<br />
Dr. Barry Sample, Director of Science<br />
and Technology for Quest Diagnostics<br />
Employer Solutions, said that “the<br />
newly mandated testing process for<br />
the heroin marker 6-acetylmorphine,<br />
or 6-AM, revealed a nearly 20 percent<br />
jump in positive results in 2010.”<br />
I feel good about the changes that<br />
have been made and are occurring in<br />
the drug testing industry and which<br />
are significantly reducing the number<br />
of people who are cheating on their<br />
drug tests. Anyone who would like<br />
to support HR 707, “The Drug Testing<br />
Integrity Act of <strong>2011</strong>,” can write to their<br />
congressman asking that they vote to<br />
pass this act into law.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 61
By Jo d y El l i s-Kn a p p<br />
Earthquakes in <strong>Alaska</strong> are always<br />
a major cause for concern and<br />
are a big consideration when it<br />
comes to disaster preparedness. But<br />
for towns that sit on <strong>Alaska</strong>’s coastline<br />
that concern increases dramatically<br />
with the added danger of a tsunami.<br />
Devastation by tsunami is an unfortunate<br />
part of <strong>Alaska</strong>’s history, the most<br />
memorable being the tsunami that<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> communities<br />
prepare for tsunamis<br />
New sirens signal improvements to warning systems<br />
struck <strong>Alaska</strong>’s coast with the 1964<br />
earthquake. The 1964 <strong>Alaska</strong> tsunami<br />
killed 119 people and caused almost<br />
$400 million in damage to <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
communities.<br />
Today’s technology is designed to<br />
help prevent such a loss from occurring<br />
again. The NOAA West Coast<br />
and <strong>Alaska</strong> Tsunami Warning Center<br />
in Palmer literally has its finger on<br />
the pulse of <strong>Alaska</strong>’s coastal areas.<br />
According to director Paul Whitmore,<br />
who has been at the center for 25<br />
years, staff members are always developing<br />
new procedures and processes<br />
to improve the function of the warning<br />
center. “Our responsibility is all of<br />
North America, Puerto Rico and the<br />
Virgin Islands,” he said. “We bring in<br />
data from networks all over the world,<br />
photo: Courtesy oF paul wh i tM o r e, Noaa, west Coast aND alaska ts u N a M i warNiNg CeNter<br />
62 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Warning siren in the city of Valdez.<br />
both seismic and sea-level data that is<br />
analyzed and used to make forecasts.”<br />
Whitmore said that warning sirens<br />
in <strong>Alaska</strong> communities are installed<br />
through state grants and are operated by<br />
local communities. The warning center<br />
issues guidance when there is danger.<br />
“We’ve improved our warning systems<br />
quite a bit,” he said. “When the Japan<br />
tsunami occurred, we were able to get<br />
the right level of alerts to many different<br />
regions. We can issue warnings to<br />
evacuate or just warnings about strong<br />
currents that do not require evacuation.”<br />
Several towns in <strong>Alaska</strong> have received<br />
new, upgraded warning systems in the<br />
past few years, including Seward and<br />
Valdez. Both communities were hit<br />
hard by the 1964 earthquake, forever<br />
changing the attitudes of those living<br />
there and making tsunami preparedness<br />
a top priority.<br />
David Squires, chief of the Seward<br />
Volunteer Fire Department, said that<br />
warning sirens installed five to six years<br />
ago replaced the civil defense sirens that<br />
had been the town’s warning system<br />
since the 1980s. “It was a borough-wide<br />
decision to have the new units installed,”<br />
he said. “The sirens we had were older,<br />
and we needed new technology.”<br />
The sirens are controlled via an<br />
Internet link and are all connected on<br />
the peninsula. They are tested weekly<br />
and maintained by the borough. The city<br />
of Seward does checks and points out<br />
any problems, and the computer software<br />
that triggers the sirens includes a<br />
photo: Courtesy oF Mark s. taNs, iNtegrateD NotiFiCatioN sy s t e M s, llC<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 63
Graph showing the placement of warning sirens in Valdez.<br />
64 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
graphiC : Courtesy oF george keeNey, eMergeNCy MaNager, City oF valDeZ
self-diagnostic check to verify that the<br />
sirens are operating properly.<br />
When asked about any potential<br />
problems with the sirens, Squires said,<br />
“These sirens do not always penetrate<br />
houses. If you are inside watching<br />
television, you may not hear them.<br />
We’ve also had some problems with<br />
these sirens being activated in areas<br />
we do not need to notify, something<br />
that is going to be modified. The Kenai<br />
Peninsula will be going back to local<br />
control, with dispatch centers being<br />
responsible for siren activation.”<br />
In Valdez, there were originally<br />
two old sirens that could give off two<br />
different signals. Replacing these with<br />
the new warning systems means that<br />
the city can now broadcast messages<br />
in combination with the sirens. George<br />
Keeney, fire chief and emergency<br />
manager of Valdez, said that the city<br />
now has warning units throughout the<br />
community. “We worked with a team<br />
from Federal Signal, from whom we<br />
purchased the units, and our contractor,<br />
Integrated Notification Systems, to<br />
calculate the best locations to cover the<br />
greatest population,” Keeney said. “We<br />
worked at covering even the farthest<br />
NOAA operates two tsunami warning centers in the United States: the West Coast/<strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Tsunami Warning Center and the Richard H. Hagemeyer Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The<br />
West Coast/<strong>Alaska</strong> Tsunami Warning Center area-of-responsibility consists of Canadian coastal<br />
regions, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the ocean coasts of all U.S. states except Hawaii.<br />
subdivision to bring them into our<br />
notification realm. Each station can be<br />
individually activated for broadcast in a<br />
single section of the community.”<br />
Keeney explained that when there<br />
is an incident, dispatchers can activate<br />
the entire system or just an individual<br />
section of the community. In a major<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 65<br />
photo: Courtesy oF paul wh i tM o r e, Noaa, west Coast aND alaska ts u N a M i warNiNg CeNter
earthquake, a dispatcher is authorized<br />
to hit the “all call” warning button. “With<br />
our Port of Valdez we are susceptible<br />
to locally generated tsunamis,” he said.<br />
“We rely on the dispatcher to activate<br />
the system immediately. They are told if<br />
shaking goes on for over 20 seconds and<br />
is enough to move items at the station,<br />
hit the button. We have residents in the<br />
harbor and other low-lying areas that<br />
need time to get to higher ground. We<br />
do not tie into a state system due to our<br />
location and the mere size of <strong>Alaska</strong>. We<br />
rely on our city manager, police, mayor<br />
and fire chief to activate the system<br />
when disaster warrants.”<br />
The Valdez system is designed to<br />
continuously check itself. City maintenance<br />
teams also do monthly checks on<br />
the units, and a contractor is hired annually<br />
to evaluate and maintain components<br />
of the system.<br />
Paul Merkouris is the manufacturer’s<br />
representative for various communication<br />
and public safety products in <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
He has worked on behalf of Federal<br />
Signal Corp. on the installation of the<br />
new signals. “I worked closely with Fire<br />
Chief Keeney to investigate and look<br />
at potential sites for the distribution of<br />
our Federal Signal Modulator sirens to<br />
provide both digital (voice) and siren<br />
tones that could be activated by city<br />
personnel,” Merkouris said “We looked<br />
at sites that would give the best coverage<br />
of voice and tones to adequately warn<br />
the city of impending disaster.”<br />
The new warning system can also be<br />
used for events such as power outages,<br />
informing residents when power might<br />
be restored. It could also alert residents if<br />
a hazardous chemical had been released,<br />
telling them where to go for shelter.<br />
Keeney said this lets the city quickly<br />
notify residents of any incidents and<br />
potential disasters, with capabilities that<br />
far exceed the old sirens that sat atop the<br />
police department and fire department.<br />
“By teaching the public what the system<br />
does and when to listen to local radio<br />
stations for broadcasts, we can really<br />
reach out and inform them,” Keeney said.<br />
“We can do so much more with them,<br />
and they are much more functional than<br />
what we had before. We don’t even like<br />
to call the new warning system sirens;<br />
they are more than that.”<br />
Jody Ellis-Knapp is a writer who lives in<br />
Anchorage, <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
66 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
ADOT&PF emergency procurements<br />
CO N T R A C T O R S P R O V I D E R E S O U R C E S F O R D I S A S T E R R E S P O N S E<br />
By Ma R K o’BR i E n, Ch i E F Co n t R a C t s oFFiCER<br />
When disaster strikes <strong>Alaska</strong>, the<br />
State Emergency Coordination<br />
Center is tasked to lead the<br />
response. The SECC gathers, processes<br />
and reports emergency situation intelligence<br />
to aid in state policy and decision<br />
making; supports local communities as<br />
they direct and control disaster emergency<br />
response operations; and accounts for the<br />
state’s response costs.<br />
When the SECC is activated, agencies<br />
come together to process information and<br />
start recovery and repair procurements.<br />
Several agencies may initiate procurements<br />
and repair contracts for municipal-owned<br />
or privately owned facilities contracts,<br />
temporary accommodations and services.<br />
The <strong>Alaska</strong> Department of Transportation<br />
and Public Facilities follows<br />
procedures in the <strong>Inc</strong>ident Field Operations<br />
Guide when responding to incidents<br />
affecting roads, highways, airports<br />
and state facilities. When supplemental<br />
resources are required, the ADOT&PF<br />
scopes out the extent of immediate work<br />
for emergency repairs. These are the<br />
repairs needed during, and immediately<br />
following, a disaster to restore essential<br />
traffi c, minimize the extent of damage or<br />
protect remaining facilities.<br />
The ADOT&PF has “term contracts” in<br />
place for various aspects of maintenance<br />
and repair services throughout the state.<br />
These contracts may be for heavy equipment,<br />
guardrail items, providing road<br />
surface material, for crack and surface<br />
repairs, as well as many other items. If<br />
established term contracts include in the<br />
scope some emergency repair and maintenance<br />
activities required, then work<br />
orders/notice-to-proceed may be initiated<br />
under those established contracts for<br />
emergency repairs.<br />
If extensive damage repairs require<br />
capabilities beyond existing term<br />
contracts, the ADOT&PF will assemble<br />
scoping and specifi cations for soliciting<br />
quotes. The ADOT&PF operates within<br />
uniform procurement procedures defi ned<br />
by the State Procurement Code, <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Administrative Code and department policies<br />
and procedures for emergency (alternate)<br />
procurements.<br />
Under emergency conditions there<br />
often exists an immediate threat to<br />
public health, welfare or safety which<br />
makes procurement through competitive<br />
sealed bidding impracticable or contrary<br />
to public interest. Under these circumstances,<br />
emergency procurements may<br />
be made. Those supplies or professional<br />
services required to relieve the emergency<br />
situation may be procured with an<br />
emergency procurement and “shall be<br />
made with competition that is practicable<br />
under the circumstances.” Generally, if<br />
time permits, this means the department<br />
will solicit quotes. In some situations<br />
there is not suffi cient time to request<br />
quotes and a single contractor may be<br />
selected to mobilize immediately.<br />
Once the immediate emergency has<br />
passed, normal competitive procedures<br />
are used for contracting. However,<br />
contracts may fall under a waiver of<br />
standard advertising period allowing for<br />
three to 14 days advertisement. In these<br />
cases, the ADOT&PF posts a notice in<br />
the Online Public Notice system that a<br />
bid package is forthcoming. To subscribe<br />
to updates through the OPN system,<br />
visit http://notes3.state.ak.us/pn or, if<br />
you have a smart phone, you can scan<br />
the following code to take you to the<br />
website.<br />
For construction-related contracts, all<br />
contractors must have an <strong>Alaska</strong> business<br />
license, appropriate contractor registration,<br />
insurance, bonds, a Notice of Work<br />
and pay applicable fees to the <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Department of Labor and Workforce<br />
Development, regardless of the contract<br />
dollar amount. State and federal prevailing<br />
wage rates may apply.<br />
In facing natural disasters, the<br />
ADOT&PF relies on the pool of <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
contractors to provide resources to repair<br />
our roads, runways and facilities.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 67
MEMBER PROFILE<br />
CONCRETE CUTTERS By tR a C y Ka ly t i a K<br />
Fairbanks couple carves out<br />
new life, business together<br />
Just about every building in Fairbanks with<br />
window, door or other holes drilled through<br />
concrete has involved the expertise and toil of<br />
Concrete Cutters.<br />
“It seems we’ve changed the landscape of Fairbanks,”<br />
said Denise Taylor, who co-owns Fairbanksbased<br />
Concrete Cutters with her husband, Jim<br />
“We’ve cut just everything — the hospitals, Eielson,<br />
Wainwright, the university. You’d be hard-pressed to<br />
go down the street and not fi nd someplace we cut.”<br />
Construction has been a part of Jim Taylor’s life<br />
since he was a boy. His father worked in construction<br />
but died after falling from a building when Jim<br />
was 11.<br />
Jim worked two jobs while growing up to<br />
help support his mother, who had fi ve children.<br />
Although Jim worked in construction, it wasn’t his<br />
fi rst career choice.<br />
“He wanted to be a doctor,” Denise said. “He<br />
was putting his sisters through college and couldn’t<br />
afford the tuition required for medical school,<br />
so he compromised and got a degree in medical<br />
lab technology. But, you’re just a hand behind a<br />
slot in the door. It was very impersonal, and Jim’s<br />
a very outgoing person. It wasn’t what he was<br />
anticipating.”<br />
So Jim returned to construction and found work<br />
in Washington. “It paid the bills,” Denise said. “It<br />
was a stepping stone, one after another.”<br />
Denise met her husband while they were<br />
working for Columbia Basin Cubers, a business<br />
that compressed fresh-cut hay into cubes to be sent<br />
overseas for dairy cows to eat. They married 5 1/2<br />
years after their fi rst date in 1977. Denise worked<br />
as an escrow offi cer for a title company before the<br />
couple launched Concrete Cutters. They now have<br />
a daughter and two sons.<br />
Jim fi rst started concrete coring in October 1984<br />
after the owner of a local concrete-coring business<br />
talked to him on a worksite, offered him a job and<br />
sent him to Washington to learn to cut concrete.<br />
When that company went out of business, Jim and<br />
Denise started their own enterprise.<br />
“Concrete cutting is concrete cutting,” she said.<br />
“It’s pretty cut and dried with concrete cutting —<br />
either the hole is there, or it’s not.”<br />
Jim and Denise Taylor, co-owners of Concrete Cutters.<br />
The couple started with one core drill and one<br />
hand saw.<br />
“That was tough,” she said. “I quit my job and<br />
was doing the books. We would start at 7 in the<br />
morning, fi nish at one job at 3 in the afternoon,<br />
and the next job we’d fi nish at 2 in the morning.<br />
I’d throw clothes in the washer and dryer and we’d<br />
start again at 7 in the morning. That was brutal. All<br />
the hours we were working, we waited 15 years<br />
before having kids. My mom gave up on us. All the<br />
baby blankets she had made and set aside, she gave<br />
them all away.”<br />
About fi ve years after starting the company, the<br />
Taylors hired coworkers. Concrete Cutters currently<br />
has eight employees. Six of those cut concrete,<br />
while Jim supervises and Denise runs the offi ce.<br />
The business is primarily a seasonal employer.<br />
“We cut with water, which limits the exterior<br />
construction we can do in the winter,” she said.<br />
Denise says she thinks the biggest thing that<br />
has changed in the business over the years has<br />
been the paperwork.<br />
“We’ve seen a phenomenal increase over<br />
the years in what’s required by everybody — not<br />
with homeowners but by government jobs,” she<br />
said. “There are insurance requirements, certifi ed<br />
payroll, reports, drug policies, EEOs. It’s insane<br />
how much the paperwork has increased. It’s one of<br />
those things, especially since some of it is required<br />
68 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photo: Courtesy oF CoNCrete Cutters
efore you start up on the job. It’s just<br />
a requirement of the job.”<br />
Concrete Cutters joined Associated<br />
General Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong> on July<br />
23, 1993. The most important benefit<br />
Denise has seen is access to AGC’s<br />
plans room and, through that, access<br />
to everything that is bidding in the<br />
state that’s not private.<br />
“I use it a lot more online than in<br />
their office,” Denise said. “That makes<br />
it convenient. Going through the<br />
drawings … I don’t have to spend as<br />
much time in their office, so I spend<br />
more time in mine.”<br />
The member services are also key,<br />
she said.<br />
“Having our name associated with<br />
AGC, being in the member directory<br />
— it’s just one more form of advertising<br />
having our name up there.”<br />
One of the more unusual jobs<br />
Concrete Cutters took on was removing<br />
the face and walls of the University of<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Fairbanks’s Rasmuson Library,<br />
which was being remodeled by<br />
Ghemm Co. <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
“It was just really comical,” Denise<br />
said. “All these suits showed up, all<br />
these professors wearing suits and<br />
hardhats. Boys and their toys; it doesn’t<br />
matter how old the boy, they love to<br />
demolish or watch something being<br />
demolished.”<br />
A challenging job involved the<br />
Wescott Pool.<br />
“We used a deep-cut slab saw for<br />
that,” Denise said. “This particular<br />
job had exceptionally thick concrete<br />
around the pool, 24 to 28 inches thick.<br />
They were installing a new mechanical<br />
system 20 to 30 inches deep and<br />
needed a saw that could go down that<br />
deep. In addition, a large volume of<br />
concrete had to be removed to install<br />
new footings for the new water slides<br />
that were installed.”<br />
Kevin O’Hara of Watterson<br />
Construction has been working with<br />
Concrete Cutters since the early 1990s.<br />
“A remodel on the Fire Station at<br />
Clear AFB, that was my first experience<br />
with them,” O’Hara said. “We<br />
had some block walls we had to have<br />
cut and removed, cut and demo on<br />
several doorways, part of a foundation<br />
that needed to be taken out,<br />
plus the usual coring for plumbing<br />
and electrical piping. We did a dorm<br />
down there the following year that<br />
was a lot more involved. They’re<br />
always responsive and real friendly;<br />
they keep on top of it and are neat,<br />
for concrete cutters. It’s not the most<br />
glorifying job in the world.<br />
“They’re good to work with, always<br />
there when you need them, even when<br />
you pull the ‘typical contractor’ on them<br />
and tell them, ‘I needed it yesterday; if<br />
I needed it tomorrow I would call you<br />
tomorrow.’”<br />
Concrete Cutters has also helped<br />
remodel some large barracks at Eielson<br />
Air Force Base.<br />
“There was a lot of poured concrete<br />
walls between rooms, plumbing and<br />
heating lines, cutting floors for ductwork,”<br />
O’Hara said. “Anything from<br />
concrete to asphalt, those guys do<br />
a little bit of everything. Anything<br />
harder than wood to cut, we give<br />
them a call.”<br />
Tracy Kalytiak is a writer who lives<br />
near Palmer, <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 69
photos: © keN grahaM photography.CoM<br />
Project<br />
Update<br />
Scientifi c Crime Detection Laboratory<br />
New facility to help analysts tackle State’s backlog of evidence<br />
An open stairway is a focal point in the entryway of the<br />
new state Scientifi c Crime Detection Laboratory being built<br />
in Anchorage. This photo was taken in May. The $87.5<br />
million facility is set to be complete in June 2012.<br />
70 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
By Ri n d i Wh i t E<br />
How many construction projects<br />
in <strong>Alaska</strong> require installation of dense<br />
impact-resistant steel and Kevlarreinforced<br />
rubber to prevent a stray<br />
bullet from escaping? Or fume hoods<br />
strong enough to allow law enforcement<br />
officers to safely make methamphetamine<br />
so they can understand<br />
what to look for when investigating<br />
drug crimes?<br />
Building a scientific crime detection<br />
lab is not something <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
contractors are asked to do frequently.<br />
The facility includes a lot of laboratory<br />
space and houses a sophisticated air<br />
system that ensures both the safety of<br />
lab analysts and the integrity of crime<br />
scene evidence. It’s not something<br />
every contractor is qualified to do.<br />
But Neeser Construction <strong>Inc</strong>., which<br />
built the state Public Health Lab and<br />
Medical Examiner’s Facility in 2001, is<br />
familiar with the demands that accompany<br />
creating such strictly controlled<br />
environments.<br />
“It’s a real fun building to build,”<br />
said Sam Adams, senior superintendent<br />
at Neeser Construction and field<br />
located project manager of the $87.5<br />
million state crime lab project. “It’s<br />
a complicated building, and coordinating<br />
all the systems to work together<br />
is a challenge.”<br />
Work continues on the exterior of the new state<br />
Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory off Tudor<br />
Road in Anchorage in this May photo. The 86,000<br />
square-foot building will replace the existing crime<br />
lab, which public safety officials say is too small to<br />
meet the current forensic needs of the state.<br />
photos: © keN grahaM photography.CoM<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 71
Neeser was selected in 2008 to build<br />
the new Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory<br />
near East Tudor Road in Anchorage.<br />
The project is on schedule to open in<br />
June 2012. The new 84,000-squarefoot<br />
building will replace the 1986-era<br />
19,200-square-foot scientific crime lab<br />
located at 5500 E. Tudor Road.<br />
Adams, in August, said the project<br />
was nearly 60 percent complete.<br />
Workers are landscaping and enclosing<br />
the building so work can progress<br />
throughout the winter.<br />
“We’re working on interior finishes<br />
and casework and (installing) equipment.<br />
The flooring is scheduled to come<br />
in another month and a half. Paving<br />
is complete. We’re probably 50 to 60<br />
percent done with the landscaping and<br />
will be done in the next two weeks,”<br />
Adams said.<br />
While coordinating the highly efficient<br />
mechanical systems, which take<br />
up 20 percent of the building space,<br />
has been a challenge, other parts of the<br />
building have been really interesting to<br />
build, he said.<br />
Like the 1,225-square-foot firing<br />
range, an 8-inch concrete walls and<br />
ceiling coated in Kevlar-reinforced<br />
rubber panels. The range includes a<br />
ballistics laboratory and professional<br />
light rails so courtroom-quality photos<br />
can be taken easily. It’s also outfitted<br />
with a ballistic baffle system on the walls<br />
and ceiling to reduce noise both in the<br />
range and to the surrounding offices.<br />
And it has an advanced air system that<br />
cleans the air in the range, for the safety<br />
of the firearms analysts.<br />
Forensic laboratory manager Orin<br />
Dym said one neat — and needed —<br />
feature of the firearm and tool laboratory<br />
is ample storage space. Investigators are<br />
often called on to fire test bullets — he<br />
estimated firearms analysts fire about<br />
1,000 rounds a year — but sometimes<br />
they only have part of the weapon in<br />
question.<br />
“We have a reference library of<br />
weapons to recreate (the weapon in<br />
question),” Dym said.<br />
The state firearms reference library<br />
of about 1,500 weapons is currently<br />
“horribly undersized,” Dym said.<br />
The weapons come from forfeitures,<br />
at no cost to the state. Although Dym<br />
would like to add to the library, the lab<br />
currently has no space to do so. The new<br />
lab will have space for 10,000 reference<br />
72 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
weapons, he said.<br />
The firearms and toolmark lab is one of nine being built<br />
into the new building. It will also have: a latent prints, or<br />
fingerprint analysis, laboratory; a breath alcohol laboratory;<br />
a blood alcohol laboratory; a controlled substances<br />
or drug laboratory; a biological screening laboratory where<br />
evidence is checked to see if blood or other biological<br />
material is present; a DNA analysis laboratory; and a DNA<br />
databasing laboratory.<br />
The updated DNA laboratories are key features in<br />
bringing <strong>Alaska</strong>’s forensic techniques up to date, Dym said.<br />
DNA processing occupies more lab space than any other<br />
section in the new building, he said, and for good reason.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> has a higher rate of violent crimes than many<br />
other states our size, Dym said. <strong>Alaska</strong>, on a per-capita<br />
basis, has the highest rate of sexual assault and is high in<br />
the rankings for other violent crimes. The new lab contains<br />
a significant amount of storage space for DNA and other<br />
biologic evidence, which a new state law says must be<br />
retained for 50 years.<br />
But DNA analysis takes space. Dym said analysts<br />
currently use sign-up sheets to use the DNA laboratory<br />
and, to maintain integrity of evidence, no more than two<br />
analysts are allowed in the lab at once. The cramped space<br />
means doing without robotic equipment that automates<br />
A worker installs a pump header in a mechanical space within the new<br />
state Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory in this May photo. About<br />
20 percent of the square footage of the building is devoted to complex<br />
ventilation and mechanical systems.<br />
George<br />
Tuckness<br />
Neeser Construction <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
In these perilous economic times,<br />
more than ever we need to think<br />
about how to strengthen our<br />
economy; it doesn’t take long<br />
once you get involved in AGC to<br />
realize that their efforts are focused<br />
on strengthening and growing our<br />
construction industry as a whole. As contractors many<br />
times because of how competitive our industry is, we find it<br />
difficult to see beyond just what prospers our own business.<br />
I think AGC helps us come together to find ways to help<br />
each other to provide a healthy construction economy. It is<br />
an effective way to have a voice in Government whether it<br />
is State or National. When you get involved in AGC you<br />
can have your voice heard, you can see changes<br />
with positive results. AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> has long<br />
been a positive factor in <strong>Alaska</strong>’s economic success.<br />
Roger Hickel<br />
Roger Hickel Contracting, <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
As a member of AGC I’m able to work on many<br />
important issues that affect our business and be heard. I<br />
really enjoy working with all the professionals in AGC<br />
and many have become close friends.<br />
Peggy Knapman<br />
Earth Stone <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
As a specialty contractor the greatest value to us is the<br />
mentorship and the ability to build relationships. The AGC<br />
offers so many opportunities for those of us in the construction<br />
field, access to education and training. The networking<br />
opportunities are endless. There is no price one can put on the<br />
value of having the support of others who have gone before you.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 73<br />
photo: © keN grahaM photogr aphy.CoM
Workers install ductwork in the controlled<br />
substances laboratory on the second floor of<br />
the crime lab in a May photo.<br />
many of the analysts’ tasks and would<br />
speed processing. The state has had<br />
access to grant funding to buy two<br />
pieces of equipment for analysis but<br />
lacks room to install them.<br />
The larger lab space will also increase<br />
the number of samples each analyst<br />
can process, Dym said. That will allow<br />
analysts to eliminate a backlog of unprocessed<br />
DNA cases. Although employees<br />
have worked hard for four years to bring<br />
the evidence up to date, Dym said an<br />
18-month backlog of DNA evidence<br />
relating to violent crimes remains.<br />
When those cases are processed,<br />
Dym said analysts would tackle the<br />
backlog of evidence relating to property<br />
crimes cases.<br />
“If you’re sitting with murder cases (to<br />
process) you don’t work a burglary. Those<br />
are worked in the gaps,” Dym said.<br />
Getting the property crimes cases<br />
up to date may end up lowering crime<br />
rates, he said.<br />
“There’s a 30 percent increase in the<br />
success rate of solving property crimes<br />
when you employ DNA evidence,” Dym<br />
said. “The goal is to be working violent<br />
crimes and property crimes all within a<br />
30- to 45-day timeframe.”<br />
The building is designed to accommodate<br />
the needs of the state and<br />
advances in forensic technology during<br />
74 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photos: © keN grahaM photogr aphy.CoM
the next 50 years.<br />
The new lab also contains 17,400<br />
of “shelled-in” lab space that can be<br />
quickly put to use if needed, Dym said.<br />
And the labs are all movable — counters,<br />
tables and other equipment are on<br />
wheels instead of being bolted to the<br />
floor. A zoned heating and ventilation<br />
system will allow spaces to be redesigned<br />
without having to shut the whole<br />
building down, which is the case in the<br />
existing lab, Dym said.<br />
Dym said he’s been impressed with<br />
Neeser Construction’s performance on<br />
the project.<br />
“This is the third lab (construction<br />
project) I’ve been involved with, and it<br />
is the smoothest project I’ve ever seen,”<br />
he said. Dym worked in Arizona prior<br />
to coming to <strong>Alaska</strong> four years ago and<br />
was involved in two crime lab construction<br />
projects there.<br />
Matt Tanaka, project manager for the<br />
state Department of Transportation and<br />
Public Facilities, said he’s pleased with<br />
how the project is progressing. The state<br />
was able to save $5 million by working<br />
with Neeser to shorten the construction<br />
schedule and finding cost-saving methods<br />
in how the project is carried out.<br />
“It’s been one of the most successful<br />
projects I’ve worked on,” Tanaka said.<br />
“There’s been good team interaction, no<br />
surprises. They have excellent control of<br />
the project.”<br />
The building is a construction<br />
manager/general contractor approach,<br />
in which Tanaka hired a design team<br />
— <strong>Alaska</strong> architecture firm Livingston<br />
Slone and national forensic science<br />
design specialists McLaren, Wilson and<br />
Lawrie <strong>Inc</strong>. — to design the building.<br />
Neeser assisted in the design process to<br />
refine the project.<br />
“Working with the contractor during<br />
design allows you to achieve cost<br />
savings,” Tanaka said.<br />
Adams said Anchorage-based<br />
Udelhoven Oilfield Systems Services<br />
is the mechanical contractor, General<br />
Mechanical <strong>Inc</strong>. is installing ductwork,<br />
Megawatt Electric LLC is wiring the<br />
building, Siemens Building Technologies<br />
is installing building controls and<br />
Saxton-Bradley <strong>Inc</strong>. is providing the<br />
casework and laboratory equipment.<br />
Rindi White is a writer who lives in<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 75
The The Move Move to<br />
to<br />
Mertarvik:<br />
Mertarvik:<br />
Saving Saving Newtok<br />
Newtok<br />
By E. Co l l E E n KE l ly<br />
For a village with a population<br />
comparable to the staff of a small<br />
corporation, the geophysical turmoil<br />
of Newtok, <strong>Alaska</strong>, has received a<br />
large amount of attention. It was the<br />
subject of a May 2007 New York Times<br />
article which profi led the small village<br />
as a victim of global warming.<br />
Not one year later, The History<br />
Channel spotlighted the sinking<br />
village during its tribute to American<br />
life in the multi-part documentary<br />
“Tougher In <strong>Alaska</strong>.”<br />
Now, the land of Newtok, which<br />
translated from its native Yupik means<br />
“rustling of grass,” hasn’t done much<br />
“rustling” in the past several years.<br />
Sinking? Yes. Eroding? Absolutely.<br />
But rustling? Hardly.<br />
The culprit for this environmental<br />
shift has more or less been identifi ed as<br />
climate change. Over the years, higher<br />
temperatures are believed to have softened<br />
the permafrost surrounding this<br />
southwest <strong>Alaska</strong> village to the point<br />
where the widening of a nearby river<br />
has offi cially muscled out the villagers.<br />
Most of Newtok’s nearly 350 residents<br />
are traditional Yupik Eskimos<br />
who make up the modern lineage of<br />
the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta <strong>Alaska</strong>ns<br />
known as the Qaluyaarmiut, or “dip<br />
net people.”<br />
The widening Ninglick River may be<br />
forcing residents to seek a new home,<br />
but the relocation site of Mertarvik will<br />
not be wholly unfamiliar.<br />
Specifi cally selected by the residents<br />
of Newtok, Mertarvik is on<br />
Army LCU at barge landing site.<br />
photo: aDot&pF<br />
Residents of the southwest <strong>Alaska</strong> village of Newtok are being forced<br />
to relocate due to widening of the Ninglick River.<br />
nearby Nelson Island — a mere nine<br />
miles away from their home village.<br />
And, if you didn’t know any better,<br />
said Jamilia George, state co-chair<br />
representative of the Denali Commission,<br />
you would think you had just<br />
arrived on the Emerald Isle instead of<br />
Nelson Island.<br />
With its lush green fi elds and<br />
sweeping landscapes, the Ireland-like<br />
Aerial view of Mertarvik which shows the fi nal product after the IRT pulled out this year.<br />
76 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photo: JaMilia george, Mike blaCk<br />
photo: aDot&pF
The village of Newtok is home to 350 Yupiks.<br />
village is as rich in natural beauty as<br />
it is in natural resources. Mertarvik,<br />
which in English translates to “getting<br />
water from the spring,” is situated near<br />
a volcanically warmed spring. This<br />
year-round freshwater source will be<br />
a much-welcome change from the<br />
Newtok method of obtaining water:<br />
namely, melting ice in the winter and<br />
pumping lake water into a water treatment<br />
plant in the warmer months.<br />
And, just as the water above ground<br />
is critical to the survival and prosperity<br />
of the Newtok people, so is what lies<br />
beneath it: a treasure trove of basalt<br />
and pit gravel. George said a quarry<br />
will create a local, well-trained and<br />
portable workforce to extract the rocky<br />
resource and will serve as an economic<br />
anchor for the community.<br />
The land that makes up Mertarvik<br />
was obtained through an exchange<br />
between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife<br />
Service and the Newtok Native Corp.<br />
But building a village in the middle of<br />
the <strong>Alaska</strong> tundra is no simple task.<br />
Early on in the relocation process,<br />
the <strong>Alaska</strong> Department of Transportation<br />
provided the means by which all<br />
other infrastructure could be built: a<br />
barge landing. The Innovative Readiness<br />
Training at the Pentagon, directed<br />
by Capt. Karen Trueblood, brought the<br />
first materials to Mertarvik and began<br />
the process of installing a pioneer road<br />
from the barge landing to where future<br />
infrastructure could be built.<br />
photo: JaMilia george, Mike blaCk<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 77
Mertarvik, which in English translates to<br />
“getting water from the spring,” is situated near<br />
a year-round freshwater source.<br />
Personnel from the U.S. Marines,<br />
Navy and Army Corps of Engineers, the<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Air National Guard and a collection<br />
of contractors have all had a hand<br />
in coordinating the years-long relocation<br />
effort that is still under way.<br />
One such contractor is Cornerstone<br />
General Contractors <strong>Inc</strong>. based<br />
in Anchorage, which so far has been<br />
awarded the task of constructing phase<br />
one of a crucial piece of infrastructure to<br />
the relocation of Newtok: the Mertarvik<br />
Evacuation Center.<br />
The single-story structure will stand<br />
120 feet by 60 feet and serve as an “emergency,<br />
pioneer-level infrastructure,”<br />
according to the Newtok Planning Group.<br />
In the short term, the MEC will support<br />
construction activities throughout the<br />
village’s relocation process, while its longterm<br />
function will be to provide shelter<br />
for residents in the event of flooding or<br />
other disasters, as well as accommodation<br />
for future village needs.<br />
Phase one was all about setting up<br />
a solid site: laying a foundation of piles<br />
and installing structural subflooring, as<br />
well as installing miscellaneous steel<br />
decks and hand rails.<br />
To get the materials to such a<br />
remote location, Cornerstone enlisted<br />
the services of Northland Service Co.,<br />
which ships cargo and freight between<br />
Seattle, <strong>Alaska</strong> and Hawaii.<br />
Cornerstone project manager Mike<br />
Selhay says the material delivery went<br />
“quite well” considering the intricate<br />
level of coordination required. Construc-<br />
78 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photo: JaMilia george, Mike blaCk
IRT loader working on evacuation road with<br />
Army LCU in the background. photo: aDot&pF<br />
tion materials like structural steel piles,<br />
beams, glue, trim joints, BCI trusses and<br />
plywood sheeting all arrived by barge on<br />
June 6. In about 60 days, phase one of<br />
the MEC was completed in an impressive<br />
52 days ahead of schedule.<br />
A small but dedicated team of<br />
two to four full-time Cornerstone<br />
employees, including Selhay, worked<br />
on the project from 35 percent design<br />
through the construction management/<br />
general contractor process all the way<br />
to contract execution.<br />
Even though few locals were hired in<br />
the construction of phase one, Newtok<br />
villagers were essential for carrying out<br />
the project’s logistics, which often came<br />
in the form of a guided nine-mile skiff<br />
ride to Mertarvik. Selhay described it as a<br />
“cohesive working relationship” between<br />
Cornerstone and Newtok residents.<br />
As of Sept. 6, Cornerstone is awaiting<br />
notifi cation from the Department of<br />
Transportation and Public Facilities to<br />
begin pricing for 2012 work, which is<br />
expected to begin in June 2012. Next<br />
year’s work will consist of weathering<br />
in the building, including installation<br />
of the structural shell, insulation and<br />
roofi ng.<br />
E. Colleen Kelly is a writer who lives<br />
in <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 79
Home, safe home<br />
Emergency plans, generators can provide sweet relief during disasters<br />
By Ja M i E Ro G E R s<br />
Home is where you want to feel<br />
safest — warm, fed, comfortable,<br />
secure from unwanted<br />
intrusion.<br />
But what if an intruder into your<br />
home security isn’t a person but something<br />
more powerful? From winter<br />
storms to wildfi res and fl oods to earthquakes,<br />
natural disasters in the Last<br />
Frontier are often a force greater than<br />
any human threat and, in many cases,<br />
are more dangerously unpredictable.<br />
Being prepared for <strong>Alaska</strong>’s unique<br />
environment and its inherent dangers<br />
is one way to minimize the impact of<br />
these natural disasters. And there are<br />
many options — even during extreme<br />
events — to keep your home, sweet<br />
home as safe and secure as possible.<br />
When nature goes rogue<br />
The great outdoors is a large part<br />
of what makes <strong>Alaska</strong> so alluring.<br />
But as big and beautiful as nature is,<br />
it possesses an equally large potential<br />
for danger. From the most powerful<br />
earthquake ever recorded in North<br />
America in 1964 to the ice jam fl ooding<br />
in Crooked Creek this May, the forces<br />
of nature can be devastating to any<br />
region, city and structure.<br />
Though it’s nearly impossible to<br />
prevent this magnitude of damage,<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong>ns can prepare their homes for<br />
it, making them as safe as possible<br />
during and after the event. The<br />
American Red Cross of <strong>Alaska</strong> is a key<br />
organization that is constantly educating<br />
residents on ways to stay safe.<br />
Kelley McGuirk, disaster preparedness<br />
and response director for the<br />
American Red Cross of <strong>Alaska</strong>, says<br />
that the mere size of the Last Frontier<br />
means there are a multitude of problems<br />
residents could face every year.<br />
“Due to the geography of the<br />
state, we have areas that are affected<br />
by coastal erosion and winter storms,”<br />
McGuirk said. “There are also places<br />
that are under constant watch for<br />
fl ooding in the spring.”<br />
In addition, earthquakes and wildfi<br />
res threatening urban areas have the<br />
potential to affect the most <strong>Alaska</strong>ns<br />
each year. The organization stresses<br />
the need for people to make a disaster<br />
plan, build a home disaster kit and get<br />
training to be able to handle any disaster’s<br />
aftermath.<br />
First, <strong>Alaska</strong>ns should make a plan<br />
that includes discussing with your<br />
household what the potential dangers<br />
are and how each person will respond<br />
in a team effort.<br />
“When the plan is in place, it is also<br />
important for the family to practice the<br />
plan and make sure that each member<br />
of the family knows what to do in case<br />
of different types of emergencies,”<br />
McGuirk said. “These plans should be<br />
updated as children grow and family<br />
dynamics change.”<br />
The discussion should include<br />
designating a place for friends and<br />
family to regroup outside the home,<br />
a place outside the neighborhood if<br />
necessary and an out-of-state person to<br />
be everyone’s emergency contact, since<br />
long-distance communication may be<br />
easier than local calls. Practicing your<br />
emergency plans will make them easier<br />
to execute during a real disaster.<br />
Next, the American Red Cross of<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> recommends preparing a disaster<br />
kit for the home. The most obvious<br />
considerations of food, water and fi rst<br />
aid and medicine for each member of<br />
your family are supported by additional<br />
suggestions of emergency tools, sanitation<br />
supplies and clothing and bedding.<br />
See the full list of suggested supplies<br />
to stockpile at http://alaska.redcross.<br />
org/Build_a_Kit.php. The American Red<br />
Cross also sells a premade kit for those<br />
who want everything conveniently<br />
prepared for them.<br />
80 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Third, the Red Cross offers courses to<br />
help you respond in disaster situations, an<br />
especially vital skill set if first responders<br />
can’t reach your home or are tending to<br />
more immediate emergencies. Classes,<br />
offered during the day and evening,<br />
range from how to administer first aid, to<br />
performing CPR on adults and children,<br />
using a fire extinguisher properly and how<br />
to turn gas, water and electrical utilities<br />
off. Most classes last one to two hours, but<br />
some may run up to five hours to provide<br />
more in-depth information. For information<br />
about disaster response classes,<br />
call (907) 646-5400 or visit http://alaska.<br />
redcross.org/Course_Schedules.php.<br />
<strong>Keep</strong>ing the heat on<br />
when power goes out<br />
Whether the threat to safety comes<br />
from wind, water, air, earth or manmade<br />
hazards, loss of electrical power in your<br />
home isn’t just an inconvenience. It can<br />
mean loss of basic necessities for survival.<br />
“We recommend that everyone look<br />
at the possibility of large scale and longterm<br />
power utility outages. The availability<br />
of on-site backup power, via generator<br />
or battery, can provide a comfort level to<br />
safeguard homes or facilities,” said Chris<br />
Mues, vice president of Alcan Electrical &<br />
Engineering. “Alternate heat sources are<br />
also recommended in the event natural<br />
gas is disrupted. Wood burning fireplaces<br />
can be essential.”<br />
Generators, whether portable or<br />
stationary, run on fuel such as gasoline,<br />
diesel, natural gas or liquefied petroleum<br />
gas and convert mechanical energy into<br />
electrical energy. Both bring lights and, more<br />
importantly in the winter, electrical heating<br />
systems back on-line in your home.<br />
While portable generators are relatively<br />
inexpensive, they also have a short running<br />
time of a few hours before their fuel tanks<br />
must be refilled. Even when hooked up to<br />
a continuous fuel supply, portable generators<br />
must be started manually and linked<br />
to a home’s power loads.<br />
Art Stemen, manager of Raven Electric<br />
in Anchorage, said that most homes in the<br />
Anchorage area could get by with a portable<br />
generator hooked up to its heat source.<br />
But residents have additional options.<br />
“If they feel that they have more than<br />
most portable generators can supply power<br />
to or feel that they would like to prepare<br />
for a long-term disaster then they should<br />
possibly think about having a permanent<br />
generator with automatic transfer switch<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 81
installed,” Stemen said.<br />
Stationary generators — more<br />
complicated to install, usually by a<br />
qualified contractor — offer a range of<br />
advantages. When connected a house’s<br />
wiring system, they can be programmed<br />
to turn on automatically, with the<br />
lag time between utility outage and<br />
switch-over at only 10 to 30 seconds.<br />
Many units can recognize when regular<br />
electric power is restored and shut off<br />
automatically as well. In addition, most<br />
stationary generators output more kilowatts<br />
than their portable counterparts.<br />
But even with generators, you still have<br />
to plan for disasters, Stemen said.<br />
“Most generators are very dependable,<br />
and they all need annual servicing<br />
to insure that they will provide power<br />
when needed,” he said. “Diesel generators<br />
are expensive; almost twice as<br />
much as LP gas or natural gas ones. …<br />
With natural gas you would have to be<br />
concerned that in the event of a major<br />
disaster there would be a possibility the<br />
gas line would be shut off, rendering<br />
the generator inoperable. LP gas is<br />
what we install the most, utilizing a<br />
remote LP fuel tank; these tanks vary<br />
in sizes and portable size tanks can be<br />
removed and refilled.”<br />
Ultimately, it’s all about fitting the<br />
generator to a homeowner’s specific<br />
needs and budget, something Raven<br />
Electric takes into careful consideration.<br />
“These costs vary with the size of<br />
the home and the electrical needs of the<br />
homeowner,” Stemen said. “Most contractors<br />
will give estimates for the installations<br />
and make sure that the size of the<br />
generator meets their customer’s needs<br />
as well as the national electrical, state<br />
and local codes. Average cost for a fully<br />
installed system falls between $10,000<br />
upwards to in some rare cases $20,000.”<br />
In <strong>Alaska</strong>, being prepared and<br />
having a backup plan for power are two<br />
priceless ways to minimize the threat of<br />
natural disasters. Taking steps now to<br />
cover these concerns during a natural<br />
disaster will make your home a safer,<br />
more secure place to survive.<br />
“The end goal is to provide safe<br />
alternative power and heat sources to<br />
protect your building from freezing and<br />
maintain your ability to function on a<br />
stand-alone basis,” Mues said.<br />
Jamie Rogers is an editor for The<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Contractor.<br />
82 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
Getting back to business<br />
Disaster preparedness will help minimize downtime<br />
By Ma R i E lU n d s t R o M<br />
Is your business ready for the Big Jolt<br />
— a 7.0 or 8.0 earthquake, or even<br />
a 9.0? What if you get fl ooded out?<br />
What if a wildfi re, or even a local on-site<br />
fi re, ruins equipment, records, communication?<br />
Tornadoes and hurricanes are<br />
uncommon in <strong>Alaska</strong>, but we do have<br />
a bunch of potentially active volcanoes<br />
that can make major trouble for airlines<br />
and air-based supply lines. Big storms<br />
can create extended power outages that<br />
could stop your business cold. Planning<br />
and preparing for terrorist activity or war<br />
is not something we want to think about.<br />
And yet, a look at the news suggests that<br />
thinking about and planning for such<br />
unlikely events might be a prudent move.<br />
Every business presumably has an<br />
emergency part in the business plan —<br />
how to deal with a minor power outage,<br />
deployment of key employee, fi re and<br />
water damage, vandalism, hacker harassment,<br />
long-term illness of key person in<br />
the business, equipment that goes haywire<br />
and/or gets too old to be useful — and all<br />
the hundred and one things that can go<br />
wrong from one day or week to the next.<br />
You get insurance and security systems to<br />
protect equipment, computers, records,<br />
funds, and people — to cover the day-today<br />
issues you can reasonably expect are<br />
going to happen at some time.<br />
But what about a BIG event — a<br />
disaster? How do you prepare for that?<br />
And more important, how do you recover<br />
from disaster and stay in business?<br />
The Small Business Administration<br />
has all kinds of suggestions. Go to<br />
the SBA website http://www.sba.gov/<br />
node/4633 and see how the SBA can and<br />
will help you. They are, of course, mostly<br />
geared to helping businesses after the<br />
fact of disaster with loans and tactics<br />
for recovery. But they also have plenty<br />
of ideas for planning and preparing<br />
for disasters so you can ride out any<br />
temporary loss of business and get back<br />
to normal as quickly as possible. First,<br />
though, you need to have a plan.<br />
Make a Plan. What’s the worst-case<br />
scenario you could face? How about an<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 83
8.0+ earthquake? We have more earthquakes<br />
per year than the lower 49 states<br />
combined — and we have had some<br />
enormous ones (1899, 1964, 2002). On<br />
average, an 8.0 or bigger has occurred in<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> about every 13 years since 1900.<br />
Planning for that covers a lot of the preparation<br />
you’d need for some other calamity<br />
— power outage, loss of heat, loss of<br />
water, communication difficulty, damage<br />
to buildings and equipment, fire danger,<br />
flood danger, injury to people — family<br />
and employees, deaths of family members<br />
or employees, inability to move around or<br />
travel because of road damage or slides,<br />
loss of supplies from Outside, tsunami<br />
damage — all of these situations occurred<br />
in the 1964 quake and could happen<br />
again. Even with the <strong>Alaska</strong> Division<br />
of Homeland Security and Emergency<br />
Management, http://www.ak-prepared.<br />
com available to help, you still have your<br />
own family and business to think about.<br />
Barebones Prep List. Earthquake<br />
preparation for a business is similar to<br />
the earthquake preparation you do for<br />
your family — and actually the kind of<br />
preparedness you’d need for most <strong>Alaska</strong>style<br />
disasters — floods, fires, big storms.<br />
Here is a minimum list, without extensive<br />
details. You need to do the following:<br />
A. Identify hazards and figure risks —<br />
What in your business location(s)<br />
could injure or kill someone in a big<br />
quake (flood, fire, storm)?<br />
B. Try to mitigate those hazards in<br />
advance — Do a safety check, put<br />
film on the inside of big windows, set<br />
up a generator to use during power<br />
outage, etc.<br />
C. Make sure everyone knows what to<br />
do during a quake — Duck, cover,<br />
hang on. Stay away from windows. If<br />
outside, avoid power lines, buildings,<br />
light posts, trees, possible slide areas.<br />
If in a mountainous area, watch out<br />
for falling rock, slides.<br />
D. Set up a communication and action<br />
plan for after the quake — Know<br />
where all your employees live, cell<br />
phone and land line numbers (neither<br />
may be functional), and alternatives via<br />
radio/TV/Internet (none of which may<br />
be functioning, except possibly radio).<br />
What should each employee do?<br />
E. Assemble and store emergency supplies<br />
and a first aid kit — The Red Cross<br />
http://www.redcross.org has a list of<br />
what should be in a home survival<br />
84 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
kit and a checklist for earthquakes. A<br />
booklet, downloadable at www.aeic.<br />
alaska.edu, covers much of what you<br />
need to know and do to prepare.<br />
F. Arrange for ongoing data backup for<br />
your records — Computer records and<br />
digitized paper records could be stored<br />
online, but in a different, safer state.<br />
G. Practice your plan with your employees<br />
— Do a run-through of your plan so<br />
your employees know you’re serious<br />
and you want everyone to have the<br />
mindset of being prepared.<br />
H . Have a long-range, post-quake (flood,<br />
fire, storm) business recovery plan<br />
ready to follow — This is what you<br />
have after the What if-? planning. Be<br />
sure to get employee input.<br />
I. Review all plans regularly as your business<br />
circumstances vary.<br />
Some websites have checklists and<br />
suggestions which are more detailed. Try<br />
these: http://www2.agilityrecovery.com/<br />
assets/SBA/quakeprepsba.pdf or http://<br />
www.earthquakecountry.info/roots/<br />
7StepsBusiness2008.pdf<br />
As you’ll see at the SBA site, in the<br />
aftermath of a catastrophe, it will matter<br />
whether the disaster-affected part of<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> is declared a federal disaster area.<br />
If so, loans and other help will be more<br />
readily available. If not, then you have to<br />
think about other sources of help, such as<br />
the state. Having an after-calamity recovery<br />
plan for your business will make it easier to<br />
get help. Plus, with a solid plan, you may be<br />
able to go it alone —<strong>Alaska</strong>-style.<br />
Marie Lundstrom is a freelance writer<br />
who lives in <strong>Alaska</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 85
AGC<br />
members’<br />
projects<br />
Whittier Small Boat<br />
Harbor Improvements PH-I<br />
C ontractor: Swalling<br />
Construction Company, <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
sWallinG installeD tHe 530-Ft. oPen<br />
Cell GalVaniZeD sHeet Pile BulKHeaD For<br />
tHe CitY oF WHittier on t i m e anD W i t H in<br />
tHe limiteD in-W a t e r W o r K WinDoW.<br />
86 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
photos: Courtesy oF swalliNg CoNstruCtioN Co., iNC.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 87
Coming to the AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Convention in November<br />
Bruce S. Wilkinson, CSP<br />
Going for the Gold in People, Service, Safety, <strong>Quality</strong> and Performance <br />
There is a Nike commercial that goes like this: “True competitors know that they don’t win the SILVER - they<br />
lose the GOLD!” It’s true! You’ll never see a cheerleader put two fi ngers in the air and yell “We’re number two!,”<br />
“We’re number two!” That’s why managers, leaders and h.r. professionals have to go for the gold when it comes to<br />
motivating and inspiring today’s diverse, multi-generational workforce. This will be an enthusiastic, informative and<br />
fun-fi lled program that will demonstrate some unique and effective ways to get designated leaders and team members<br />
to constantly “Go For the Gold”, when it comes to organizational service, safety, quality and performance.<br />
You will learn:<br />
• How to develop and implement trickle-down positive attitudes, throughout the workforce.<br />
• How to move some team members from “can do” to “want to.”<br />
• How to understand the diverse learning and communication differences of a multi-generational team.<br />
• How to motivate, lead and inspire different thinking team members to both understand and implement organizational<br />
culture, values and philosophies.<br />
• How to manage, motivate and inspire team members differently and reward and<br />
correct them consistently.<br />
• How to make workplace safety both an organizational and personal value.<br />
• How to take the organization’s mission, vision and value culture and turn it into<br />
a real world matching climate of mutual pride, trust, respect, teamwork<br />
and personal responsibility.<br />
Bruce S. Wilkinson, CSP is a leadership/communication/culture<br />
implementation specialist, professional motivational keynote speaker<br />
and trainer who reinforces personalized messages with humor, passion,<br />
enthusiasm and authenticity. His mission is to help organization’s translate<br />
their culture into a workplace climate that inspires excellence, service<br />
and accountability. Bruce has degrees in both Safety Engineering and<br />
Occupational Safety and Health. He was a two-term elected member of<br />
the Board of Directors of the National Speakers Association and is one<br />
of fewer than 800 people worldwide to earn the prestigious Certifi ed<br />
Speaking Professional (CSP) designation.<br />
He recently retired after twenty-three years of service as a post certifi<br />
ed reserve police offi cer with the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Offi ce (New<br />
Orleans), where he worked in patrol, emergency rescue and as a member<br />
on the police academy staff. Besides his personalized keynotes, he has<br />
developed and presented programs on effective leadership, teams, multigenerational<br />
communication, in-house branding, workplace culture/<br />
climate, change, work/life balance, humor at work, customer service,<br />
sales motivation, safety leadership and personal responsibility.<br />
As President and Chief Leadership Offi cer of Workplace Consultants,<br />
<strong>Inc</strong>. and Wilkinson Seminars and Presentations, he has presented<br />
in all 50 states, delivering enthusiastic keynotes and training programs<br />
for over twenty- fi ve years to clients such as Offi ce Depot, Burger King,<br />
KFC, Sonic Drive-In, Xerox, Frito-Lay, ExxonMobil, various contractors,<br />
government agencies, energy related organizations, Kellogg’s,<br />
T.G.I. Friday’s, the Department of Defense, NASA, LSU, the IRS, Miller<br />
Brewing, Anheuser-Busch and Jack Daniel’s.<br />
BR U C E s. Wi l K i n s o n, Csp<br />
pR E s i d E n t a n d Ch i E F<br />
lE a d E R s h i p oFFiCER,<br />
Wo R K p l aC E Co n s U lta n t s, in C./<br />
Wi l K i n s o n sE M i n a R s a n d pR E s E n tat i o n s<br />
FRIDAY EVENTS<br />
WHO: Bruce S. Wilkinson, CSP<br />
W HAT: The Management<br />
Symposium sponsored by<br />
Parker, Smith and Feek <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
W HEN: 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.<br />
Friday, Nov. 4<br />
W HERE: The Hotel Captain<br />
Cook, 939 West 5th Ave.,<br />
Anchorage, AK 99501,<br />
(907) 276-6000.<br />
88 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
AGC Annual Conference<br />
Registration Form<br />
HOTEL CAPTAIN COOK - NOVEMBER 2-5, <strong>2011</strong><br />
Associated General Contractors of <strong>Alaska</strong> Annual Conference Registration Form<br />
Complete and return to: AGC, 8005 Schoon Street, Anchorage, <strong>Alaska</strong> 99518<br />
907-561-5354 Fax 907-562-6118 email: kimberley@agcak.org Conference website: www.agcak.org/annualConference.html<br />
One person per form. Make copies of this form as necessary for additional registrations.<br />
Registrant’s Full Name: ___________________________ Company Name: _____________________________________<br />
Billing Address: _________________________________ City/State: _____________________ Zip Code: ____________<br />
Phone #: _______________________________________ Invoice (Members Only): _______ VISA ______ M/C ______<br />
Card Number: __________________________________ Expiration Date: ________________ Three Digit Code ______<br />
Card Holder’s Signature: _________________________ E-Mail: ____________________________________________<br />
Full Conference Registration (<strong>Inc</strong>ludes most meals & seminars. (Does not include Family Night, Ladies Brunch, or the Dinner Dance.)<br />
1st Attendee from Company: Member - $295.00 ____ Non-Member - $350.00 ____ Student - Full Conference $100.00 ____<br />
2nd Attendee from same Company: Member - $275.00 ____ Non-Member - $330.00____<br />
Will you be joining us for the Friday morning Parker, Smith & Feek Management Symposium with Bruce S. Wilkinson, CSP ?<br />
yes ____ no ____ (<strong>Inc</strong>luded in Full Conference Rate, or see Friday events for single item purchase.)<br />
One Day and Single Event Registration<br />
November 2nd - Wednesday Only: Member - $75.00 ____ Non-Member - $100.00 ____ Student - $30.00 ____<br />
Daily Registration: <strong>Inc</strong>ludes Breakfast in the Vendor Room, First National Bank <strong>Alaska</strong> “All about AGC” Luncheon and all<br />
Wednesday sessions. Will you be joining us for lunch? (RSVP Required) yes ____ no ____ Limited Seating Available.<br />
(Lunch sponsored by First National Bank <strong>Alaska</strong>)<br />
November 3rd - Thursday Only: Member - $175.00 ____ Non-Member - $210.00 ____ Student - $60.00 ____<br />
Daily Registration: <strong>Inc</strong>ludes Breakfast, Marsh & McLennan Agency “Excellence in Safety” Awards Luncheon and all Thursday<br />
sessions. Vendor Room Reception – AFT Deck from 4:30 – 6:00 pm<br />
November 4th - Friday Only: Member - $175.00 ____ Non-Member - $210.00 ____ Student - $60.00 ____<br />
Daily Registration: <strong>Inc</strong>ludes Breakfast, the <strong>Alaska</strong>USA Insurance Brokers “Excellence in Construction” Awards Luncheon, and<br />
all Friday sessions, including the Parker, Smith and Feek Management Symposium with speaker Bruce S. Wilkinson, CSP.<br />
November 4th - Friday Management Symposium Only: Member - $100.00 ____ Non-Member - $125.00 ____<br />
Student - $30.00 ____ Parker, Smith & Feek Management Symposium with Bruce S. Wilkinson, CSP (8:30 to 11:30 a.m.)<br />
November 4th - Family Night’s Construction Fun Fair: Tickets at $5 each ____ (Children under 12 Free)<br />
November 5th - Saturday Morning Breakfast: $35.00 ____ (included in Full Registration)<br />
November 5th - Ladies Brunch: $45.00 ____ (Saturday, 10:30 am to 12:00 pm)<br />
November 5th - AGC Annual Dinner Dance: 6:30 pm to 1:00 am - $175 per person<br />
(Tickets will go on sale October 5th, starting at 8:00 am. Recommended call time, 8:00 am.)<br />
Total Amount Due: Member ______________ Non-Member ______________ Student ______________<br />
For updated conference information, visit the AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> website at<br />
http://www.agcak.org/annualConference.html
AGC Golf<br />
ANCHORAGE<br />
ANCHORAGE<br />
ANCHORAGE<br />
Congratulations to the FOLLOWING PRIZE WINNERS of the<br />
24 th ANNUAL AGC ANCHORAGE INVITATIONAL GOLF SCRAMBLE!<br />
1 ST PLACE TEAM<br />
Mark Trujillo, Spenard Builders Supply<br />
Paul Kovach, Spenard Builders Supply<br />
Richard Herring, Construction Unlimited <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Mike Travis, Travis/Peterson Environmental Consulting <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
John Reed, Oles Morrison Rinker & Baker<br />
3 RD PLACE TEAM<br />
Ron Pichler, Denali Drilling <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Don Hansen, Northland Services<br />
Joe Pavlas, <strong>Alaska</strong> Steel Co.<br />
Ryan Gluth, Tunista Construction LLC<br />
Scott Bleeker, First National Bank <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
2 ND PLACE “PLAYER SELECT” TEAM<br />
Carlile Transportation Systems<br />
Robert Province, Mark Harlan, Joe Fey, Kevin Laurin, Marc Kuck<br />
2 ND PLACE TEAM<br />
Mike Miller, Construction Machinery Industrial LLC<br />
Pat Reilly, Rain Proof Roofi ng<br />
Pat Falon, Laborers Local 341<br />
Roger Hickel, Roger Hickel Contracting <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Kenneth Martens, North Slope Telecom<br />
1 ST PLACE “PLAYER SELECT” TEAM<br />
ACME Fence Company<br />
Mark Lulay, Brian Horschel, Ryan Hunt, Suzanne Fairbanks, Nelson Stone<br />
3 RD PLACE “PLAYER SELECT” TEAM<br />
COLASKA <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Allan Stone, Kevin Tune, Al Grant, Brian Vreeling, Mike Evans<br />
90 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
AGC would like to thank the following SPONSORS<br />
ACCUPOINT INC.<br />
ADVERTISING STRATEGIES LLC<br />
AGLIETTI OFFRET & WOOFTER<br />
ALASKA DINNER FACTORY<br />
ALASKA INDUSTRIAL HARDWARE INC.<br />
ALASKA MECHANICAL INC.<br />
ALASKA NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY<br />
ALASKA QUALITY PUBLISHING INC.<br />
ALASKA RAILROAD CORPORATION<br />
ALASKA STATE DISTRICT COUNCIL OF<br />
LABORERS<br />
ALASKA TRAFFIC COMPANY<br />
ALASKA USA FEDERAL CREDIT UNION<br />
AMERICAN FAST FREIGHT<br />
ANALYTIC INVESTORS<br />
ANCHORAGE SAND & GRAVEL CO. INC.<br />
ARC PACIFIC NORTHWEST<br />
BODY RENEW ALASKA<br />
BRADLEY HOUSE<br />
CARLILE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS INC.<br />
COLDFOOT ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES INC.<br />
CONOCOPHILLIPS ALASKA<br />
CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY INDUSTRIAL LLC<br />
CORNERSTONE CONSTRUCTION<br />
CRAIG TAYLOR EQUIPMENT CO.<br />
CRUZ CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
DAVIS CONSTRUCTORS & ENGINEERS<br />
DAVISON & DAVISON INC., LAW OFFICES OF<br />
DOKOOZIAN & ASSOCIATES INC.<br />
E P ROOFING INC.<br />
EMULSION PRODUCTS COMPANY<br />
EXXONMOBIL<br />
F&W CONSTRUCTION CO. INC.<br />
FIRETAP<br />
FIRST NATIONAL BANK ALASKA<br />
GLACIER BREWHOUSE<br />
GRANITE CONSTRUCTION COMPANY<br />
GRAZZINI BROTHERS AND COMPANY<br />
HD SUPPLY WATERWORKS<br />
HOLMES WEDDLE & BARCOTT, P.C.<br />
INSULFOAM LLC<br />
INTERNATIONAL FIDELITY INSURANCE COMPANY<br />
JACKOVICH INDUSTRIAL & CONSTRUCTION<br />
SUPPLY INC.<br />
JERMAIN DUNNAGAN & OWENS<br />
KELLY LAWN AND LANDSCAPING LLC<br />
KNIK CONSTRUCTION CO. INC.<br />
LIBERTY NORTHWEST MUTUAL<br />
LINDQUIST LLP<br />
LOCKITCH CLEMENTS & RICE P.S.<br />
LONESTAR STEAKHOUSE<br />
LYN ENTERPRISES INC.<br />
LYNDEN<br />
MCGINLEY’S PUB<br />
N C MACHINERY CO.<br />
NEESER CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
NORTH STAR EQUIPMENT SERVICES<br />
NORTHLAND SERVICES<br />
NORTHRIM BANK<br />
OLES MORRISON RINKER & BAKER LLP<br />
ORSO<br />
OTIS ELEVATOR CO.<br />
PACIFIC ASPHALT PRODUCTS<br />
PACIFIC INCOME ADVISERS<br />
PARKER, SMITH, & FEEK INC.<br />
POLAR SUPPLY CO. INC.<br />
QUALITY ASPHALT PAVING (QAP)<br />
RAIN PROOF ROOFING<br />
RITCHIE BROS. AUCTIONEERS<br />
SEABRIGHT INSURANCE COMPANY<br />
SPENARD BUILDERS SUPPLY<br />
SPENARD ROADHOUSE<br />
SUMMIT WINDOWS & DOORS INC.<br />
SUNSHINE CUSTOM PROMOTIONS<br />
SUITE 100<br />
TEAMSTERS LOCAL 959<br />
THE BUSINESS MD<br />
THE HOTEL CAPTAIN COOK<br />
THE HUMAN RESOURCE UMBRELLA LLC<br />
TOTEM EQUIPMENT & SUPPLY INC.<br />
TOTEM OCEAN TRAILER EXPRESS INC.<br />
UNIT COMPANY<br />
UNITED RENTALS<br />
UNIVERSAL ROOFING OF ALASKA INC.<br />
URS<br />
WEAVER BROS. INC.<br />
WILLIS OF OREGON<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> CONTRACTOR 91
AGC Golf<br />
FAIRBANKS<br />
Thanks to the WINNERS AND SPONSORS of the<br />
32 nd ANNUAL AGC FAIRBANKS GOLF SCRAMBLE<br />
photos: Courtesy oF agC oF alaska FairbaNks oFFiCe<br />
All Profi ts benefi t the FAIRBANKS AGC EDUCATION FUND<br />
1 ST PLACE NET DIVISION<br />
WELLS FARGO BANK Jim Culley, Charlene Callahan,<br />
Brian Horschel, Brian Ridley, Gigi Kannenberg<br />
3 RD PLACE NET DIVISION<br />
JACKOVICH INDUSTRIAL & CONSTRUCTION SUPPLY, INC.<br />
Dennis Thies, Terri Wolters, Crystal Haman, Cathy Shuttleworth, Ryan Barnett<br />
2 ND PLACE GROSS DIVISION<br />
FLOWLINE ALASKA Richard Schok, Sam McConkey,<br />
Bobby Atkiss, Jon McCoy, Howard Thies<br />
2 ND PLACE NET DIVISION<br />
MT. MCKINLEY BANK Paul Robinson, Jeremy Pletnikoff,<br />
Kerry Hafele, Rich Pace, Aaron Pletnikoff<br />
1 ST PLACE GROSS DIVISION<br />
ARTIC FIRE & SAFETY Stewart Thompson, Micah Bartlett,<br />
Corey Lumley, Joe Raffson, Addison Turnbough<br />
3 RD PLACE GROSS DIVISION<br />
TEAMSTERS LOCAL 959<br />
Mike Littlefi eld, Len Moser, Fred Scott, Rick Alford<br />
92<br />
The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
SPECIAL THANKS<br />
to our MAJOR SPONSORS<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Digital Printing <strong>Inc</strong>.; Spenard Builders Supply; Allied Building<br />
Products; Brice <strong>Inc</strong>.; Insulfoam LLC; N C Machinery Company;<br />
Construction Machinery Industrial LLC ; Hale & Associates <strong>Inc</strong>.;<br />
Cruz Companies; Denali State Bank; <strong>Alaska</strong> USA Federal Credit Union<br />
OUR AWESOME VOLUNTEERS!<br />
Mark Norum, Leslie Helmers, Jaci Glenn & Denise Goss – AK USA FCU<br />
Tina Henne, Lisa Worrall & Carolyn Pratt – PTAC/SBDC<br />
Steve Post & Bryan Davis – North Star Equipment Services<br />
Karl Gohlke – Frontier Supply Co.<br />
Steve DeMolen – N C Machinery Co.<br />
Diane Shoemaker – Fountainhead Hotels<br />
Jon Watts – Polar Supply Company<br />
Roger Pagel – Airport Equipment Rentals <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Fran & Bill Westervelt – Dimond Fence Company<br />
GOLF TASK FORCE<br />
Adam Dunlap<br />
Bob Cummings<br />
Dennis Thies<br />
Diane Shoemaker<br />
Jeremy Pletnikoff<br />
Karl Gohlke<br />
Togi Letuligasenoa<br />
Larry Peterson<br />
Paul Bauer<br />
Richard Green<br />
Steve DeMolen<br />
Brice <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
AK Regional Council of Carpenters<br />
Airport Equipment Rentals <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Mechanical <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> USA Federal Credit Union<br />
Allied Building Products Corp.<br />
American Fast Freight<br />
Arctic Fire & Safety<br />
Aurora Construction Supply <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Brice <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Carlile Transportation Systems <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
CH2M Hill Constructors <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Colaska <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Construction Machinery Industrial LLC<br />
Contech Construction Products <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Denali Drilling <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Larry Peterson<br />
LONGEST DRIVE<br />
AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> thanks all donors, volunteers and participants.<br />
This annual event is made possible through their generosity and support!<br />
Team & Player Sponsors<br />
Denali State Bank<br />
Denali Mechanical <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Dimond Fence Company <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Exclusive Paving<br />
ExxonMobil<br />
Fairbanks Materials<br />
Ferguson Enterprises<br />
Flowline <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Hale & Associates <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Interior <strong>Alaska</strong> Roofi ng <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
International Wood Industries <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Johnson Controls<br />
Jackovich Industrial & Const. Supply <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Johnson River Enterprises LLC<br />
M en’s – KORY SMITH, La dies’ – DEE LIEBL,<br />
DIMOND FENCE COMPANY CH2M HILL CONSTRUCTORS INC. FAIRBANKS<br />
CLOSEST TO PIN (4 HOLES)<br />
LAIRD GRANTHAM, AK REGIONAL COUNCIL OF CARPENTERS<br />
ADDISON TURNBOUGH, ARCTIC FIRE & SAFETY<br />
JAMES REINHOLZ, CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY INDUSTRIAL LLC<br />
BEN HONIG, KIEWIT BUILDING GROUP<br />
AGC President,<br />
George Tuckness<br />
Lynden mascot<br />
AGC Golf<br />
FAIRBANKS<br />
Kenneth A. Murray Insurance<br />
Kiewit Building Group<br />
Liberty Mutual Surety<br />
Lynden Transport <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Mt. McKinley Bank<br />
Neeser Construction <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Plumbers/Pipefi tters #375<br />
Rockwell Eng. & Const. Services <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Stanley Nissan<br />
Sun-Air Sheet Metal <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
Spenard Builders Supply<br />
Teamsters Local 959<br />
Wells Fargo Bank<br />
Travis/Peterson Environmental & Consulting <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 93
Sporting Clays Shoot event was held at<br />
the Birchwood Recreation & Shooting<br />
Park on Aug. 26, <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
Thanks to everyone who came out and<br />
joined us for the day, and thanks to<br />
the Grazzini Brothers and Company<br />
for their sponsorship of the event.<br />
94 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
photos: aZ i M u t h aDveNture photography
Member NEWS<br />
Happenings on the <strong>Alaska</strong> construction scene<br />
AncHOrAgE MUSEUM EXPAnSiOn<br />
earns green building cretifi cation<br />
Kumin Associates’ recently completed Anchorage Museum Expansion<br />
project has achieved LEED® Certifi cation for its environmentally friendly<br />
86,000-square-foot addition. This distinction is held by only a small handful<br />
of buildings within the municipality of Anchorage. LEED® recognizes new<br />
construction for minimizing environmental impact and its Green Building<br />
Rating System promotes a whole building approach to sustainability by recognizing<br />
performance in fi ve key areas of human and environmental health:<br />
sustainable site development, water saving, energy effi ciency, materials selection<br />
and indoor environmental quality.<br />
LEED® certifi cation for the Anchorage Museum addition is based on a<br />
number of green design and construction strategies, which include:<br />
• Locating the building in a dense<br />
urban center providing easy access for<br />
pedestrians, buses and bikes<br />
• Designing a vertically oriented<br />
building, preserving more public<br />
green space<br />
• Maximizing natural light by ensuring<br />
90 percent of interior spaces have<br />
exterior windows (which is highly<br />
unusual for a museum)<br />
• Using building materials made with<br />
recycled content<br />
• Installing low emitting indoor materials,<br />
including carpeting, cabinetry,<br />
paints and sealants<br />
• Having collection and storage areas<br />
for recyclables<br />
• Utilizing low-fl ow or automatic<br />
plumbing fi xtures to save water<br />
• Avoiding use of refrigerants with<br />
Chlorofl uorocarbon (CFC) in the new<br />
building’s heating, ventilation, air<br />
conditioning and refrigeration systems<br />
• Monitoring systems to enhance<br />
indoor air quality both during and<br />
after construction<br />
• Carefully selecting and placing exterior<br />
lighting to reduce light pollution<br />
• Choosing primarily native plants for<br />
the landscape design<br />
• Having numerous bike racks and<br />
an employee shower and changing<br />
room to encourage employee bicycle<br />
commuting<br />
The new wing was designed by internationally acclaimed London architect<br />
David Chipperfi eld with the Anchorage fi rm Kumin Associates as architect-of-record,<br />
RISE <strong>Alaska</strong> as project manager, and Alcan General as general<br />
contractor.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 95
PAciFic AlASKA<br />
FrEigHtWAYS<br />
receives <strong>2011</strong> Quest<br />
for <strong>Quality</strong> award<br />
Member NEWS<br />
Happenings on the <strong>Alaska</strong> construction scene<br />
Pacifi c <strong>Alaska</strong> Freightways was<br />
honored with the <strong>2011</strong> “Quest for<br />
<strong>Quality</strong> Award” for achieving the<br />
highest overall score in the Western<br />
Region LTL carrier division and recognized<br />
with the highest scores in the<br />
categories of “On-time Performance<br />
and Value.”<br />
“We are honored to receive this<br />
prestigious award during our 50th year<br />
anniversary. Our team has always been<br />
focused on providing great service to<br />
Stg inc. AQUirES<br />
600 tOn crAnE<br />
for use in the<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> market<br />
STG <strong>Inc</strong>., headquartered in<br />
Anchorage, <strong>Alaska</strong>, has added a new<br />
Liebherr LR 1600/2 lattice boom<br />
crawler crane to the company’s fl eet.<br />
The crane, with a rated heavy lift<br />
capacity of 600 metric tonnes (660 U.S.<br />
tons), will be the largest crawler crane<br />
located in the <strong>Alaska</strong> market.<br />
“We made the decision to bring the<br />
1600/2 crawler to <strong>Alaska</strong> based largely<br />
on the construction demands of several<br />
upcoming projects,” said STG President<br />
James St. George. “By having this<br />
resource based in Anchorage, we also<br />
Agc OF AlASKA nAMES<br />
KArEn HAUtMAn<br />
Fairbanks branch manager<br />
Karen was named Fairbanks branch<br />
manager in July following more than two years<br />
of part-time employment with the company.<br />
Prior to AGC, Karen was the visitor services<br />
manager for the Fairbanks Convention & Visitors<br />
Bureau for seven years and worked 13 years for Princess Tours in<br />
the Rail and Motorcoach Divisions. She has resided in Fairbanks since<br />
1984 with her husband, John, and two children.<br />
our clients, and it is very rewarding to<br />
be recognized for these efforts,” said<br />
Ed Fitzgerald CEO for Pacifi c <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
Freightways.<br />
The Quest for <strong>Quality</strong> awards<br />
is voted on by readers of Logistics<br />
Management magazine, and is regarded<br />
as one of the most important measures<br />
of customer satisfaction and operational<br />
excellence in the transportation<br />
industry. Each year, the study evaluates<br />
believe that it will open options for<br />
more cost effective construction by<br />
eliminating mobilization costs associated<br />
with bringing cranes of this<br />
capacity to <strong>Alaska</strong> from the Lower<br />
48 when required.”<br />
The 1600/2 crawler will be<br />
outfi tted with 108 meters of main<br />
boom, thus providing a tip height of<br />
354 feet. “In considering the purchase,<br />
we were particularly attracted not just<br />
to the crane’s capacity, but also to the<br />
ease with which it can be transported<br />
and assembled,” said St. George. “It is<br />
almost a given that we will face challenging<br />
logistics with any of our projects<br />
and this particular confi guration<br />
will offer effi ciencies moving in and<br />
out of jobs.”<br />
The Liebherr 1600/2 also has a<br />
proven track record completing wind<br />
power projects, a construction segment<br />
and measures service providers across<br />
the nation utilizing criteria such as<br />
on-time performance, value, information<br />
technology, customer service and<br />
equipment/operations.<br />
Pacifi c <strong>Alaska</strong> Freightways is proud<br />
and honored to accept this award on<br />
behalf of its associates who work hard<br />
every day to provide our clients with<br />
customized solutions that result in<br />
fast, fl exible and fl awless service.<br />
that STG currently leads in the <strong>Alaska</strong><br />
market. The crane’s super structure is<br />
supported by two-meter tracks which<br />
result in more limited ground bearing<br />
pressure requirements in comparison<br />
to other available options. This confi guration<br />
increases overall stability while<br />
making it easier to walk the crane to<br />
different locations between heavy lifts.<br />
The LR 1600/2 design will also comfortably<br />
handle the next generation of<br />
wind turbines currently entering the<br />
market supported by 100 meter towers<br />
and providing over 3 MW in generation<br />
capacity.<br />
While the crane is well suited for<br />
utilization on wind power projects,<br />
STG’s 1600/2 will be put straight to<br />
work setting gas turbines at Chugach<br />
Electric Association’s new Southcentral<br />
Power Plant Project upon its arrival<br />
in Anchorage.<br />
96 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
ElEctric<br />
EnginEEr<br />
earns PE<br />
designation<br />
AMC Engineers announces<br />
Jessica Hannan has passed the<br />
NCEES Principles and Practice of<br />
Engineering exam.<br />
Hannan is a graduate of the<br />
University of Idaho with a bachelor<br />
of science in electrical engineering.<br />
She is a member of the USGBC<br />
Cascadia Chapter and the Society<br />
of Women Engineers Local Chapter.<br />
Her specialty areas include interior<br />
and exterior lighting, integration<br />
of daylight and occupancy sensors,<br />
multi-media presentation and<br />
sustainable design.<br />
Jessica played a significant role<br />
in recent projects such as the UAA<br />
Health Sciences Building, Ketchikan<br />
Aquatic Center, and the Seward<br />
Community Library and Museum.<br />
She is currently involved in the<br />
design for the UAA Athletic Sports<br />
Facility and Juneau State Library<br />
and Museum.<br />
Hannan served as a contributing<br />
engineer on the Clark Middle<br />
School Renewal and the Su-Valley<br />
Jr./Sr. High School. Both projects<br />
received national lighting awards<br />
from the Illuminating Engineering<br />
Society.<br />
As a LEED accredited professional,<br />
she served as the mechanical/electrical<br />
LEED Coordinator for<br />
Susitna Valley Jr./Sr. High School and<br />
Fred and Sara Machetanz Elementary<br />
School with both schools<br />
achieving LEED Silver certification.<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 97
Member NEWS CONTINUED<br />
In Memoriam<br />
Daniel Paul Olson<br />
Wasilla resident, Daniel Paul Olson age 65 passed away peacefully and in his<br />
sleep at his gold mine in Eureka, <strong>Alaska</strong> on July 29, <strong>2011</strong>. He was born Dec. 24, 1945<br />
in Hancock, Mich., son of Edward and Elsie (Suomala) Olson. He graduated from<br />
Chassell High School in 1964.<br />
Daniel is survived by his wife of 43 years, Allouiz and their 13 children, which<br />
includes fi ve sons, Alan Olson and his wife Lorinda; Derek Olson and his wife<br />
Anne of Wash.; Jeffrey, Jesse, and Shane Olson all of Wasilla; his daughters Jennifer<br />
Matson and her husband Wayne; Jacquelyn Olson and her partner Mike Wellman<br />
Sr., Diana, Lynn and Shannon Olson; Natalie Goddard and her husband Rodney all<br />
of Wasilla, Julia Norby and her husband Scott, Starr Richards and her husband Clinton of S.C. He is also<br />
survived by 11 grandsons, 18 granddaughters, one great grandson and one great granddaughter.<br />
Dan had a great passion for <strong>Alaska</strong>. Prior to moving to <strong>Alaska</strong> Dan lived in Yacolt, Wash. and also<br />
lived in Michigan and New Hampshire. He drove the Alcan by himself in 1977 to seek work; he<br />
worked for many years in the construction trade from Nome to the Southeast. He worked with his<br />
children in a successful family owned business, <strong>Alaska</strong> Professional Construction <strong>Inc</strong>. in Wasilla. He<br />
loved fi shing especially the salmon derby in Homer each spring with his wife and kids. His family<br />
said Dan had a way about him where his children always wanted to<br />
be a part of his plans, they loved their father and loved doing things<br />
with him. Dan was a man who certainly lived by his principals and<br />
values who believed right was right and wrong was wrong there was<br />
no middle ground. He was an encourager to everyone and was the<br />
the current and archive issues of The<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> Contractor magazine are<br />
online at agcak.org under “News and<br />
Media” tab or at AQPpublishing.com<br />
under “Business” publications.<br />
Read us online! Links to the electronic versions of<br />
pillar of his family. Dan was friendly to all had a big smile and could<br />
tell stories. His ultimate dream was to gold mine and God granted<br />
him that wish this summer. He loved the serenity of the mountains<br />
and the beauty of the fl owers; but above all he loved the Lord Jesus<br />
Christ his Savior.<br />
98 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>
In Memoriam<br />
Ronnie Joe Allen<br />
Ronnie Joe Allen, of Anchorage,<br />
passed away surrounded by family<br />
and friends at Providence Hospital<br />
on Aug. 31, <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
Ronnie was born March 6,<br />
1958, in Lubbock, Texas, to Billy<br />
J. and Brenda K. Allen. He spent<br />
most of his childhood in California,<br />
moving to Anchorage in<br />
June of 1973. Ron graduated from<br />
Service High School in 1976. He<br />
worked in the equipment sales<br />
and service industry for more<br />
than 30 years, most recently with<br />
Construction Machinery Industrial<br />
LLC. Ron served on the board of<br />
directors of the Petroleum Club<br />
Anchorage and was instrumental<br />
in starting “Shoot for the Cure” a<br />
Cystic Fibrosis fundraiser. He also<br />
was active in AGC, serving on the<br />
AGC Associates Council since it<br />
began in 2009.<br />
Ron lived his life to the fullest, he<br />
loved to spend his free time scuba<br />
diving in the Caribbean, fi shing on<br />
his boat in Prince William Sound,<br />
trap and skeet shooting and just<br />
Contined onto the next page<br />
Welcome new AGC Members<br />
from June <strong>2011</strong> - August <strong>2011</strong><br />
GENERAL CONTRACTORS<br />
UIC CONSTRUCTION<br />
SERVICES LLC<br />
David Klopp – General Manager<br />
6700 Arctic Spur Road<br />
Anchorage, AK 99518-1550<br />
Phone: (907) 677-5220<br />
Fax: (907) 677-5288<br />
Email: david.klopp@ukpik.com<br />
General Contracting and Construction<br />
SPECIALTY CONTRACTORS<br />
DENNY’S CONSTRUCTION INC.<br />
Dennis Downs<br />
38334 Lakewood Road<br />
Sterling, AK 99672-9692<br />
Phone: (907) 262-1552<br />
Fax: (907) 260-9196<br />
Email: dennysconstruction@gmail.com<br />
Masonry and Concrete<br />
BECKER TRUCKING<br />
Ronald W. Becker – Owner<br />
P.O. Box 60667<br />
Fairbanks, AK 99706-0667<br />
Phone: (907) 457-296<br />
Fax: (907) 457-4165<br />
Email: beckertrucking@alaska.net<br />
General Excavation, Sitework, Trucking<br />
TSUNAMI ELECTRICAL INC.<br />
Tracy Whidden – President<br />
7241 Michelin Place<br />
Anchorage, AK 99518-2871<br />
Phone: (907) 344-5130<br />
Fax: (907) 522-3963<br />
Email: TracyWhidden@<br />
TsunamiElectric.com<br />
Electrical Contractor<br />
NIEGEL AND PRICE<br />
CONSTRUCTION<br />
Wes Niegel and Robert Price<br />
2497 Aster Drive<br />
North Pole, AK 99705-5535<br />
Phone 1: (907) 590-1326<br />
Phone 2: (907) 347-4639<br />
Fax: (907) 358-3741<br />
Email: niegelandprice@yahoo.com<br />
Specialized in Concrete,<br />
Framing and Sheetrock<br />
ASSOCIATE CONTRACTORS<br />
AKPHQ – <strong>Alaska</strong> Portable<br />
Headquarters, Housing &<br />
Logistics Services<br />
Suzanne Spanjer – Owner<br />
1145 Shypoke Drive<br />
Fairbanks, AK 99709-2537<br />
Phone: (907) 687-4653<br />
Email: owner@akphq.com<br />
Portable Remote Jobsite Logistics –<br />
Housing, Offi ces, Bath Buildings,<br />
Kitchen Units and More<br />
RED BOX REFUSE LLC<br />
Carl Saden – Regional Manger<br />
P.O. Box 220914<br />
Anchorage, AK 99518-1575<br />
Phone: (907) 561-0220<br />
Fax: (907) 770-9937<br />
Email: carl@redboxrefuse.com<br />
Waste Hauling and Container Rental<br />
Recruited by: Claudia Rodriguez-Zinn<br />
SHERATON ANCHORAGE<br />
HOTEL AND SPA<br />
Melinda Allen – Sales Manager<br />
401 E. Sixth Ave.<br />
Anchorage, AK 99501-2638<br />
Phone: (907) 343-3159<br />
Fax: (907) 343-3145<br />
Email: Melinda.Allen@<br />
SheratonAnchorage.com<br />
Hospitality<br />
Recruited by: Teri Gunter,<br />
Senco <strong>Alaska</strong> <strong>Inc</strong>.<br />
STANLEY NISSAN<br />
Steven M. Hess – Executive Manager<br />
2610 S. Cushman St.<br />
Fairbanks, AK 99701<br />
Phone: (907) 452-1701<br />
Fax: (907) 452-3041<br />
Email: shess.stanleynissan@gs.reyray.com<br />
Commercial Trucks, Trucks, Cars,<br />
SUVs, New Nissans<br />
ALLIED GIS<br />
Gail Morrison – President<br />
8600 Spendlove Drive<br />
Anchorage, AK 99516-6971<br />
Phone: (907) 333-2750<br />
Fax: (907) 333-2751<br />
Email: gmorrison@alliedgis.com<br />
GIS Mapping, Surveying,<br />
Aerial Photography<br />
<strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong> The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor 99
Member NEWS CONTINUED<br />
AGC of <strong>Alaska</strong> Calendar<br />
Golf Tournament –<br />
July 15 – Fairbanks<br />
A GC Chili Cook-off –<br />
October 5 – Anchorage<br />
A GC Annual Convention –<br />
November 2-5, <strong>2011</strong> –<br />
Hotel Captain Cook, Anchorage<br />
AGC Members Christmas<br />
Open House –<br />
December 14 – Anchorage<br />
AGC Members Christmas<br />
Open House –<br />
December 15 – Fairbanks<br />
Contined from page 99<br />
having fun with his many friends.<br />
His survivors include his parents<br />
Billy and Brenda of Anchorage,<br />
son Joshua and daughter-in-law<br />
Rebecca of Eugene, Ore., daughter<br />
Chandra Mistrot, son-in-law John,<br />
granddaughters Calista and Elizabeth<br />
of Austin, Texas, brother Scott,<br />
nieces Shelby, Shawna and Kylei ,<br />
sister Chandra (Don) Dieffenbach<br />
all of Anchorage, nephew Brett<br />
(Tara) Dieffenbach of Reno, Nev.,<br />
and many, many good friends.<br />
In lieu of fl owers the family<br />
suggests memorial donations to<br />
“Shoot For The Cure” at www.<br />
shootforthecureak.org or at any<br />
FNB <strong>Alaska</strong> branch, or a blood<br />
donation to the Blood Bank of<br />
<strong>Alaska</strong> in Ron’s name.<br />
100 The <strong>Alaska</strong> conTrAcTor <strong>Fall</strong> <strong>2011</strong>