WTS Los Angeles Forming Scholarship Sub-committees

In order to increase awareness of WTS scholarship opportunities and encourage more student participation in WTS, the WTS College Scholarship Committee will form subcommittees for each eligible college/university in the region. The subcommittees will be comprised of an appointed student representative, an appointed professional liaison, and an overseeing professor. Ideally, all members of the subcommittee are encouraged to become WTS members. There are many benefits, particularly for students. These positions will be pioneering positions for WTS-LA as there as been no formally established mechanism to foster relationships between students and professionals. The hope is that the volunteers will forge strong ties between the Organization and the schools, generating new ideas and activities to foster professional development at the student level.

WTS College Scholarship Outreach subcommittee members serve from January to December in a given year. Listed are some expected activities of each role.

Student Representative

• Meet with Professional Liaison to get updates on WTS activities and scholarships
  
• Update fellow students regarding WTS activities and scholarships
  
• Find a Professor to help promote WTS to other professors and students

Professional Liaison

• Meet with Student Representative to assist students in promoting WTS activities and scholarships
  
• Maintain contacts with students, professors and staff that support WTS
  
• Update WTS regarding the related activities of their assigned school

The positions are open to all students and members interested in serving WTS in this capacity. Applications are currently being accepted and will be open until positions are filled for the year. An initial kickoff meeting, gathering subcommittee members from all schools, will be planned for late March 2006. The exact time and location is to be determined.

For more information, please contact Kim Chan via fax at (213) 362-9480 or via email at chanki@pbworld.com or Sue Lai via fax at (310) 732-3649 or via email at slai@portla.org. To submit an application, please fill out the attached application for the role of interest and return to Kim Chan via fax at 213-362-9480 or via email at chanki@pbworld.com.

Drywall Contractors Association Honors Two Projects and Principals in Design Contest

The Northern California Drywall Contractors Association/Drywall Information Trust Fund last week announced the winning project, architect and contractor entries for its 27th annual Design Contest at a ceremony at Massimo's Restaurant in Fremont.

The winning projects, according to Jason W. Fell, technical director for the DITF, the technical arm of the NCDCA, were in the residential and commercial categories and must have been a mix of good design and good workmanship. Fell added that there is no second place.

The first place award in the residential category went to the Youstra residence in Portola Valley. The winning project was a large custom home with a mix of drywall at a perfect level 5 and wood details that required the gypsum board to be true and within the strict tolerance.

The winning architect was M. Dean Jones of Tiburon; general contractor was K. Welton Inc. of Palo Alto; and the winning drywall contractor was Daley's Drywall of Campbell.

The winning commercial project was the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco.

The new de Young museum, which opened last October, is a 300,000-sq.-ft. building with a three-story main level and a nine-story educational tower topped by an observation deck with sweeping views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Ocean Beach and Twin Peaks. The steel structure features a unique base isolation foundation system and a custom copper exterior façade, which is the largest of its kind in the world. The museum has numerous exhibition spaces, a cafe, a gift shop, a theatre, and offices. The museum showcases priceless collections of American art, and art of the native Americas, Africa and the Pacific.

Fell said the project is "an excellent example of our level 5 finishes, and the structure had to be one that contributes to the surrounding environment. The design complexity was out of the box, and the structure's interior, as well as exterior, had to present priceless artwork in a truly modern way."

The architect on the project was Fong & Chan of San Francisco (with Herzog & de Meuron); the general contractor was Swinerton Builders of San Francisco; and the drywall contractor was KHS&S of Concord.

The Saratoga-based DITF works very closely with over 120 drywall contractors, all who use only a State of California certified, trained workforce. Member contractors do commerical, industrial, institutional and residential work, including residential steel framing.

The current NCDCA board of directors are Todd Fearon, president, of Anning-Johnson Col; Gregg Brady, vice president, of Brady Co.; Bob Miller, secretary, of R.A. Miller Drywall; and Burke Nicholson, treasurer, of Bayside Interiors. Directors include Jerry Burdick of Best Drywall Interiors, Craig Daley of Daley's Drywall & Taping, Joe Jean of J&J Acoustics, Gary Robinson of Magnum Drywall, Steve Rossa of S&R Drywall, and Jim Watson of Raymond Interior Systems.

CEA Honors 33 NorCal Building Companies with Safety Recognition Awards

Thirty-three Northern California building construction companies received the Construction Employers' Association's 2005 Safety Recognition Award during the group's 19th annual dinner last month at the Concord Hilton.

The 33 firms were evaluated on a number of criteria, including a total incident rate 25 percent below the industry average, a lost workday incident rate 25 percent below the industry average, an experience modification rate below 1.0, a flat or negative experience modification trend over the past four years and demonstration of maintaining an active safety training program.

The recipients of the 2005 CEA Safety Excellence Awards include: Acme Construction Co. Inc. of Modesto; BBI Construction of Oakland; BN Builders Inc. of San Mateo; C. Overaa & Co. of Richmond; C. M. Peletz Co. of San Jose; Cahill Contractors, Inc. of San Francisco; Clark Construction Group-California L.P. of Oakland; Clark Pacific of West Sacramento; Devcon Construction Inc. of Milpitas; Dome Construction Corp. of San Francisco; DPR Construction Inc. of Redwood City; Hallmark Construction Inc. of Santa Clara; Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction Co. of San Francisco; Herrero Contractors Inc. of San Francisco; Hunt Construction Group Inc. of San Francisco; Interstate Scaffolding Inc. of Richmond; James R. Griffin Inc. of Fremont; Lathrop Construction Associates Inc. of Benicia; McCarthy Building Cos. Inc. of San Francisco; McClone Construction Co. of Shingle Springs; Nibbi Bros. Inc. of San Francisco; Oliver & Co. Inc. of Richmond; Performance Mechanical Inc. of Pittsburg; Plant Construction Co. L.P. of San Francisco; Roebbelen Contracting Inc. of El Dorado Hills; Rudolph and Sletten Inc. of Redwood City; S.J. Amoroso Construction Co. Inc. of Redwood Shores; Safway Services Inc. of Benicia; Skanska USA Building Inc. of Seattle; Swinerton Builders of San Francisco; TBI Construction & Construction Management of San Jose; Vance Brown Inc. of Palo Alto; and Webcor Builders Inc. of San Mateo.

Recognizing the crucial role safety plays on the construction jobsite, CEA maintains the Building Industry Safety Forum Program. This program provides an opportunity for safety officers and jobsite personnel of member firms to be involved in discussions, workshops and seminars where safety professionals speak on important issues relating to the building construction industry.

"Promoting safety and education is a top priority in this industry," said Dana Lahargoue, corporate safety director for Roebbelen Contracting Inc. and CEA's safety committee chairperson.

In addition to the Safety Forum Program, CEA offers a number of services and programs to its members including negotiation of union agreements, professional labor relations representation, legislative representation, building industry seminars and conferences, a public works/prevailing wage program and many other benefits. It currently maintains offices in Sacramento and Walnut Creek.