February 2006 - Tradewinds: Familiarity Breeds Repeat Business
By Mandi Harding, FCA Executive Director

Teamwork spells success and Framing Contractors Association member Tradewinds Construction prides its operations from this moral fiber.

“We have select clientele,” said Mike Ward, who oversees Tradewinds panelized roof structures division. “The only way you can have select clientele is to have repeat work with these clients. I believe we have established ourselves with certain customers because we provide a quality product to a quality project. We have only been successful because of our top down approach to instilling the importance of teamwork.”

Tradwinds latest project, the Shadow Mountain Business Center project developed and general contracted by Panattoni Construction, Inc. is no exception.

The project is a series of five commercial office building shells located at Alexander and Pecos roads in North Las Vegas. Panattoni is selling the buildings individually, and although the project is still a few months from completion, only one building remains on the auction block.

“The buildings range from 30,000 to 40,000 square feet,” said Panattoni Construction Project Manager Michael Diebel. “We broke ground in September of last year and we intend to reach our target finish by mid-April.”

Tradewinds Construction’s portion of the project began December 1 and the company expects to have its trade work completed the early February.

“We are installing 165,156 square feet of panelized hybrid roofing system, which on average is taking us a week and a half on each building. However, we have encountered some delays in work schedule since the first of the year due to high winds. In fact, we have had to shut down operations on a few occasions and pick back up for weekend work, so we can still deliver on schedule,” Ward said.

Tradewinds is utilizing a team of 18 to keep the work on schedule for its $750,000 portion of the project. A great deal amount of product required to erect these panelized roof systems.

“We have used a tremendous amount of panel hangars and nails, roughly 98 boxes, or two pallets, and about three miles of strapping,” said Ward. “Of course there are two advantages to using a hybrid roof. It costs about $2 less per square foot than a traditional wood-framed roof. The other is the time savings.”

The biggest challenge and the foremost priority for the Tradewinds team is safety.

Site Superintendent Pedro Morales noted, “The job is moving pretty quickly. We are very pleased with the interaction and care Panattoni has placed on safety. While we do utilize our own personal fall protection plan by incorporating harnesses and roof clips, it is nice to have the added support in safety from the general contractor. Probably the biggest problem we have with regard to safety as a team is to get individual employees to worry about their own personal safety. Our employees know safety is a huge concern to us as a company and therefore comply, but they don’t seem to approach and be concerned at a personal level. I don’t think we are unique from a company perspective with this challenge.”

Panattoni Project Superintendent Mark Bevilacqua echoed the sentiment.

“We understand that safety, especially on a project of this magnitude is paramount. We assist our subcontractors’ safety programs by having our safety director on site weekly for scheduled meetings and for random inspections,” he said.

Ward added, “Especially, with our trade and this type of roof system, as a tradesman you are always on a leading edge, therefore fall protection is a must. One momentary lapse of concentration is all it takes. These panels carry a lot of weight and are awkward to handle. A lot can go wrong, real quick if you aren’t paying attention.”

The Shadow Mountain Business Center is not the first project Tradewinds and Panattoni have teamed up on nor does it as if it will be their last.

Ward commended the Panattoni team especially the attentiveness of Bevilacqua, “It makes a job so much easier to manage when the general contractor’s site superintendent is proactive instead of reactive and introduces a little foresight into the game plan. This is probably the primary reason we work with Panattoni time and time again, as they realize this necessity.”

Other Tradwinds projects around town include Beltway 62 for Thomas and Mack with Martin-Harris Construction, a Jackson Shaw North Port project with Affordable Concepts, Inc., the Beltway Corporate Center on Eastern Avenue with The Korte Company, Desert Industrial project in Henderson with Brooks Corp. and the Cheyenne Rancho Professional Plaza with Becker Development.