2021 Hard Hat Award Recipient by Rindi White

Safety from the Start by Rindi White

Team Power by Rachael Kvapil

A Lasting Legacy by Jamey Bradbury

2022 Alaska Construction Spending Forecast

Alaska Construction Surveys by Jamey Bradbury

The Welding Shop by Jamey Bradbury

Alaska Pacific Leasing by Kevin Klott

A Project of Discovery by Pearl-Grace Pantaleone

President’s Message by Sarah Lefebvre

Executive Director’s Message by Alicia Amberg

New Members

AGC of Alaska Annual Conference Part II

2022 Legislative Fly-In: Building Up Alaska by Rindi White

Calendar of Events

Excellence in Construction Winners

Human Resources Update by Paula Bradison

Contractors & the Law by Michael Geraghty and Wiley Cason

Financial Services & Contractors by Dave Young

Occupational Health by Randee Johnson

Member News

In Memoriam: Delbert Cederberg

Advertisers Index

Jenith Ziegler
ChemTrack Alaska Inc.

David Haynes
First National Bank Alaska

Pearl-Grace Pantaleone
Cornerstone General Contractors

Sarah Lefebvre
Exclusive Paving

Alicia Amberg
Associated General Contractors of Alaska

Christine A. White
R&M Consultants, Inc.

Heather Sottosanti
Big State Mechanical, LLC

Rindi White
Editor

Monica Sterchi-Lowman
Art Director

Fulvia Lowe
Art Production

James K Brown
Graphic Designer

BUSINESS STAFF
Charles Bell
VP Sales & Marketing
907-257-2909 cbell@akbizmag.com

Janis J. Plume
Senior Account Manager
907-257-2917 janis@akbizmag.com

Christine Merki
Senior Account Manager
907-257-2911 cmerki@akbizmag.com

The Alaska Contractor is published by Alaska Business Publishing Co. Inc. for the Associated General Contractors of Alaska. Contents of the magazine are not necessarily endorsed by AGC of Alaska or Alaska Business Publishing Co. All rights reserved. Copyright 2022 by the Associated General Contractors of Alaska. For information about articles in this edition or for permission to reproduce any portion of it, contact Alaska Business Publishing Co.

here is one common denominator from the last two years: most of us at some point reevaluated the concept of value—in our lives, careers, relationships. I spent much of the week before our January mini-conference making calls to members whom I was considering for the nine board appointments the AGC president can make each year. In addition to getting to know some of my peers much better, I learned that the reasons for membership are as diverse as the membership itself. However, the feedback I received did distill down to one common value—networking. I learned not just how much we value the networking aspect of our organization but also how much we have missed having the ability to network.

In January we were (finally!) able to reap that value once again, the true net worth of our investment in AGC. We talked. We laughed. We discussed. We learned. We grew. IN PERSON! And it felt good! As Michelle Holland commented to me that week, “This year is already starting off better because of it!”

hat a time to work in construction! The last few years have been dizzying, with incredible highs and lows ushered in by a global pandemic and once-in-a-generation infrastructure funding. Here at Associated General Contractors of Alaska, we’re taking an optimistic approach and planning for future opportunities where benefits ripple into every corner of the state.

Alaska is set to receive billions of dollars in infrastructure spending this year, providing new building projects while creating good jobs for Alaskans. Projects on the horizon will require an eager, trained, and capable workforce. And demand for construction work won’t slow down in the foreseeable future.

lexibility and adaptation are skills the Associated General Contractors, or AGC, of Alaska team and members have honed well during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, when COVID-19 case counts were high in October, the annual AGC of Alaska conference was shifted to a two-part event, with a round of meetings held virtually in November and an in-person group of meetings scheduled for January.

Another virus spike in January led the group to cancel the main social event, the well-attended Dinner/Dance, but all other planned events were held at the Captain Cook Hotel in Anchorage, and members repeatedly said they appreciated being able to gather in person.

ging infrastructure and environmental contamination are problems often found on America’s military bases. Many were established during or shortly after World War I, an era when available building materials were limited and the detrimental impacts of chemical and fuel leaks were largely unknown.

This is what Ahtna Environmental faced last summer at US Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak when they replaced 1,600 feet of existing jet fuel pipeline running between a valve at a long-shuttered laundry facility and a pump station. After decades of use, the original line had failed a pressure test in the 2000s, and while a temporary fix was applied at the time, plans were made for an upgrade.

fter a marathon virtual Legislative Fly-In last year that included twenty Zoom meetings, the Legislative Fly-In was back as an in-person event in February, complete with meetings with legislators, the governor, and key state officials.

Held February 7 through 9, eight Associated General Contractors of Alaska members joined AGC Executive Director Alicia Amberg and lobbyist Dianne Blumer in Juneau for the event.

he Hard Hat award is the highest honor the Associated General Contractors, or AGC, of Alaska bestows, generally given to AGC members (and a few non-members) who have made a concerted effort to boost the Alaska construction industry. Past recipients include elected officials such as US Representative Don Young and US Senator Ted Stevens, along with stalwarts within the construction industry such as Dennis Nottingham, cofounder of PND Engineers; Jerry Neeser, founder of Neeser Construction, Inc.; and longtime AGC of Alaska Executive Director Richard “Dick” Cattanach.

There aren’t a lot of women on that list—no surprise, as the construction industry is predominantly made up of men (national Bureau of Labor and Statistics figures peg the split at about 90/10). But that’s changing, with women gaining half a percent or so each year between 2018 and 2020. And the Hard Hat recipient list is changing as well. The Hard Hat Committee chose Meg Nordale, co-owner of GHEMM Company in Anchorage, as the 2021 recipient.

hen planning large marine infrastructure projects, whether public or private, prospective clients first need someone to properly engineer and design the intended facility. Then they need to find a contractor to build it. Plenty of companies in Alaska are highly competent at performing either of these tasks, but only one, Turnagain Marine Construction, does both, helping customers through each step of the process, from conception to completion.

“I had the desire to be a design/builder that focused on customer service and long-term relationships,” says company founder and president Jason Davis. “We’re one of the few contractors that has in-house engineering capability that allows us to take a project—like a cruise ship dock or a container terminal—from the initial concept feasibility all the way through structural design, permitting, and construction.”

t takes a strong, durable foundation to make any project last, whether it’s a roadbed or a skyscraper. And within every business, it takes a foundational belief in the value and importance of on-the-job safety to create a culture in which workers feel comfortable pointing out potential safety hazards, where employees see the value in spending time reviewing proper safety protocols, and where personal protective gear is donned as automatically as a coat in winter.

Associated General Contractors of Alaska and ConocoPhillips recognized four companies and one individual for outstanding commitments to safety at the ConocoPhillips Excellence in Safety breakfast held January 28 as part of the AGC 2021 Annual Convention Part II.

Companies who applied to win the award had to demonstrate a commitment on behalf of company managers; active employee participation; ongoing safety training and work site hazard identification and control; and innovation in implementing their safety program.

his year began as an intense episode of Life Below Zero as Southcentral Alaskans experienced a mix of snow, rain, and wind storms that flipped over prop planes, destroyed road signs, and caused extensive property damage.

Residents of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough hunkered down as winds gusted up to 90 mph over the new year, leaving many without power for an extended period of time. Matanuska Electric Association, or MEA, launched crews and collaborated with other utilities and private companies to quickly restore power to the 22,000 members that lost it during the storm. Some residents and businesses are still waiting on local businesses to make storm-related repairs.

ike any website worth its click-throughs, WeBuildAlaska.com immediately catches a visitor’s eye by getting to the bottom line.

“Alaska’s construction industry is thriving! WeBuildAlaska.com is your one-stop shop for info on careers, training, and jobs across the state. Get started and get paid!”

Scroll down the front page of the site—a digital marketing campaign between the Associated General Contractors of Alaska and the Construction Industry Progress Fund, or CIPF—and more numbers jump off the screen.

ornerstone General Contractors defied the odds and turned an impossibly challenging project into an all-around award-winning success. Through the Gruening Middle School Earthquake Repair project with the Anchorage School District, or ASD, Gruening Middle School went from condemned to reborn in an eleven-month construction timeline, representing the best kind of collaboration on an extremely dangerous and extraordinarily complex project in Alaska.

Ask any person in or near Anchorage where they were at 8:37 a.m. on Friday, November 30, 2018, and they will tell you. That’s when a massive 7.1-magnatude earthquake shook Southcentral Alaska, shaking that continued with more than 10,000 registered aftershocks in the months afterward.

Photos courtesy of Lynn Eng

ast year, for the first time in its fifty-seven-year history, Associated General Contractors of Alaska’s Hard Hat Award was bestowed posthumously. Voted on by past recipients of the award, the Hard Hat is given at the Annual AGC Conference to recognize outstanding contributions to the Alaska construction community. When the conference was canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the award ballots that year were sealed.

The ballots were finally opened in September 2021. Voters chose their winner: John Eng, co-founder of Cornerstone Construction and former AGC of Alaska president. But Eng had passed away in June.

ontractors are unique in how they approach each of their disciplines, but one common theme is that finding and attracting the right talent is a challenge. Believe it or not, your interview process is the first step in mitigating the risk of a “bad” hire.

There are many influencers in the style and approach to interviewing. The overall strategy is to align the interview process, questions, and content with the mission and values of the business. Contrary to what many believe, the process should be intentional and conversational, putting the candidate at ease. Remember, you want the best candidate—not the best presentation.

echnology has come a long way since 1995. “Work that was previously done in the office is now done in the field,” says Matt Crow, owner of Alaska Construction Surveys, or ACS. “Technology has made it possible to reduce our workforce as well as increase productivity.”

Today, ACS relies on GPS, robotics, 3D scanning, aerial drones, and other technology to collect data in complicated environments for design and construction projects throughout Alaska.

But no technology can replace experience: ACS crews constantly train to stay current with new techniques, equipment, and software, and it’s their expertise that makes ACS Southcentral Alaska’s go-to survey company.

ost contractors are familiar with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA. Alaska is one of twenty-two states with an OSHA-approved “state plan” covering occupational safety and health issues for both public and private employees. This state plan is modeled after the federal rules and is maintained and enforced by the Alaska Occupational Safety and Health Section, or AKOSH. Like OSHA inspectors in other jurisdictions, AKOSH inspectors monitor project sites across the state and have the authority to issue citations if they observe a contractor’s employees violating safety laws.

The initial cost of an AKOSH citation is often modest. For example, first-time penalties for “serious” violations range from $1,036 to $14,502 and the penalties can often be reduced in exchange for cooperation and prompt payment.

e serve the North Slope,” says Patricia Yates, quality manager at The Welding Shop, Inc. “We’re the last stop, the furthest north closest to the North Slope. You leave our company shop, and it’s just a short haul to the oil fields.”

The Welding Shop is based in Fox, north of Fairbanks. Its proximity to its primary clientele guarantees steady business when the oil industry is booming. A fully equipped structural welding shop that specializes in heavy-duty fabrications and weldments, The Welding Shop primarily builds structures that support the pipeline, including pipe saddles and anchors, split sleeves, vertical support members, or VSMs, and horizontal support members, or HSMs.

s a business owner, you’ve worked hard to build your business. But what about the day when you might want to walk away from it all? Business transition planning is perhaps one of the most complex tasks a business owner will encounter. Many owners have a substantial portion of their family wealth invested in the business, a complexity that requires broader financial planning strategies to address retirement and estate-planning needs.

If you lack a comprehensive plan to pass on your business, now is the time to give serious thought to a formal business transition plan. A well-crafted transition plan identifies a long-term strategy that can inform short-term decisions.

ord of mouth is all Alaska Pacific Leasing really needs these days to rent and sell construction equipment. Its advertising budget? Zero. Nil. Nada.

“We’re pretty low profile,” says David Faulk, a fifth-generation Alaskan who, with his wife Bonnie, owns Alaska Pacific Leasing. “We don’t have an advertising budget. We go off our reputation in the industry.”

For more than forty years, Alaska Pacific Leasing has supplied the construction, oil and gas, mining, engineering, and research/development industries with equipment and vehicles from Southeast Alaska to the North Slope. The company specializes in a variety of General Motor vehicles, Peterbilt trucks, and Caterpillar heavy equipment.

s Alaska businesses scramble to maintain and gain compliance with the ever-changing landscape of COVID-19-related issues, attention to field safety has taken a back seat. Fear of the repercussions of non-compliance has seeped into many contractors throughout the state. This trepidation, paired with genuine concern for people and desire to do the right thing, has resulted in hastily pouring massive resources into the enforcement of COVID-19 protocols.

Many companies were deeply affected by productive time lost awaiting COVID-19 test results. In some cases, projects were stopped altogether. Struggling to avoid citations by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, losing government contracts, or receiving negative press, local companies have had no choice but to adapt to this new way of operating—whether or not it was feasible or aligned with their values.