Mid-Winter Recap (March-April 2009)

2009 CRSMCA North Carolina

Most Valuable Employee


John E. Hyatt, Foreman, Murr & Laney, Inc.

Nominated because he is considered one of The Best Salesman the roofing industry in this area has ever had, John began his roofing career at the ripe age of 18 at H & S Roofing Company in Charlotte, NC. In 1965, H & S decided they didn't want to be in the roofing business any more, and sold their roofing department to some of its employees who were about to be laid off.


Thus, the formation of Murr & Laney, Inc. on October 1, 1965. John came to work with Murr & Laney as our first employee, and has been here ever since.


In his 50+ years in the industry, he has seen and done it all! He has watched the industry grow and change, and could tell stories all day long about "how it used to be done." John has probably worked on about every house in Myers Park, and knows the owners of most of them by first name. He is well-respected and trusted by all his customers, and by members of other trades. He is known as a master craftsman when it comes to installing slate roofing and has been known to show our competitors how to perform a job they were having problems with. Formulas for blended slate projects are in his head - "I know how it needs to look."


He is well liked and revered by our crews to the point that they beg to be allowed to work with him. His philosophy is that "I have to teach young kids how to lay slate, because I'm not going to be around forever."


He is active in his church (naturally as Chairman of their Building Committee) and enjoys singing in their renowned traveling Men's Choir.


We dare say that the roofing industry would find no better a representative than John Hyatt as CRSMCA's North Carolina Most Valuable Employee.



2009 CRSMCA South Carolina

Most Valuable Employee Award


Ricky Williams, Spann Roofing and Sheet Metal, Inc.


Mr. Williams is the ideal employee that every company is proud to have on their team. Ricky Williams began his roofing career in 1980 at 18 years of age. Through the years with Spann Roofing, he has become proficient in all phases of roofing and sheet metal and has developed into a great leader.


Attributes of his character include:


  1. He is dependable. He is the first employee at the office every single day, arriving by 6:00 a.m.
  2. He is efficient. His crews consistently beat the estimated labor on a project.
  3. He takes pride in his craft. Rarely is there a punch list on his completed projects.
  4. He goes the extra mile. He willingly works overtime if necessary to get the job completed on time, including occurrences of condensed deadlines.
  5. He is a good communicator. Whether it is our company's project manager, project owners, general contractor's superintendents, or field employees working directly beneath him, he lets everyone know how work is progressing in the field.
  6. He is a teacher. There are at least 3 other crew chiefs at our company that have learned the trade and their excellent work ethic from Ricky Williams. Additionally, company estimators routinely ask for his opinion when bidding a project to accurately project man-hours and time lines.
  7. He is a friend. Several of the younger employees go to Ricky Williams with non-work related issues, and he is willing to help and advise them.


Hard Rock Park Project

Hard Rock theme park is one recent project that showcased all of Ricky's skills. Completed in the spring of 20080, this project consisted of most types of roofing and sheet metal systems that are available. There were 48 different buildings on this project. The roof systems consisted of modified, built-up, single ply, asphalt shingles, concrete tile, wood shakes, 5V metal, corrugated metal, and standing seam metal roofing. Sheet metal work consisted of coping, counter flashing, through wall scupper drains, conductor heads, gutter and downspouts, soldered stainless steel sub-cap beneath cast stone coping, and wall panels. The total contract price exceeded 2.7 million dollars.


Like most new construction projects, the general contractors schedule was not always accurate. There were multiple delays and changes to the schedule; however, the completion deadline never moved. With Ricky on our team, Spann Roofing did not worry. At one time, there were 40 Spann Roofing employees working throughout the project. Although other crew chiefs worked on the project, Ricky Williams was the leader. He was instrumental in getting the work done correctly, and he accurately projected duration timelines and the required manpower.


Anytime there was an issue in the field where the project drawings did not accurately reflect the field condition, Ricky Williams was there to recommend and improvised detail that the architect, owner and general contractor would approve.


Economy Issues

In today's economy, price adjustments are typical. On one recent occasion, Spann Roofing revised a bid by substantially decreasing the labor to get the job. The crew, led by Ricky Williams, successfully beat the labor estimate by one week.


Nomination

Ricky Williams has always carried himself in a professional manner in whatever he is doing. He loves a challenge. He loves being considered on of the best. I truly believe he is the best roofing employee in the state of South Carolina. Everyone at Spann Roofing is proud of him, and I am delighted to recommend him for the Most Valuable Employee Awards.


Respectfully submitted by Samuel R. Spann, Jr., President, Spann Roofing and Sheet Metal, Inc.