Richard Gushman is appointed as new president and CEO

Longview, WA—May 15, 2012

Gibbs & Olson is pleased to announce an internal ownership transfer. Richard Riley and Robert Hitt, longtime owners, are stepping down with the fourth generation of employee-owners taking their place. Richard Gushman is appointed as the new president and CEO.

With over 60 years of ownership stability employees familiar with their mission and goals succeed retiring shareholders. The firm has advanced three employee-owners to the leadership team; Tom Gower, Mike Marshall and Vicki Wiggins. They’ll join existing owners in moving the company forward.

“These changes represent a benchmark in our strategic planning and ownership transition plans. “ said Richard Gushman, new president. “We look forward to the next phase, I’m optimistic about our future and expanding our services with innovative ideas that broaden our expertise to better serve our clients.”

Gushman, started with the firm over 23 years ago and since 2003 has served as Vice President. In addition to his Vice President duties, he has managed multi-million dollar projects with a demonstrated ability to identify and implement cost-effective solutions for a wide range of complex technical issues. Mr. Gushman has provided consulting services on dozens of infrastructure projects. He has a proven track record of successful project delivery from initial conceptual design through final construction and project closeout.

About Gibbs & Olson

Employee-owned and operated, Gibbs & Olson provides civil engineering and land surveying services to public and private sector clients throughout western Washington and northern Oregon. Founded in 1950, we have a commitment to quality and provide clients with practical solutions for their water, wastewater, transportation, stormwater, site development and land surveying projects. More information about the firm can be found at www.gibbs-olson.com.

*         Standards of Care
*         Standards of Professional Conduct
*         Recent Case Examples relative to Independent Duty Doctrine, Immunity Under Workers' Compensation Law and Lien Law Update
*         Engineering Firm Quality of Deliverables from PW Director Perspective
*         Ethics

For more information, take a look at the brochure here: WSPE_May_2012_SPEP_Seminar.

Register through this link http://www.washingtonengineer.org/.  The cost is only $70 per participant, including a follow-on reception.

Minority and Women's Business Enterprise

CERTIFICATION FAIR

FOR ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

From 3:00pm until 6:30pm

AIA Seattle, 1911 First Avenue (Between Stewart and Virginia)

FREE!  No RSVP necessary.

Questions? Contact Douglas Jennings AIA at (206)221.4219 or djenning@uw.edu

ABOUT THE EVENT – If your architectural or engineering (A/E) firm is minority-owned, women-owned, or a small business and you are not yet certified by the state, county, or federal governments, or by the NMSDC, this is your chance to learn about the benefits of certification and how to become certified.

WHO WILL BE REPRESENTED – The following organizations will have representatives available to discuss the advantages of certification and the certification process:  1) The Washington State Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises (OMWBE); 2) King County (KC); 3) The Northwest Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC).

EVENT AGENDA – Throughout the event, there will be open one-on-one discussions with organization representatives to answer individuals’ questions about certification.   Between 3:30 and 4:00, each organization will make a short presentation about certification.

BENEFITS OF CERTIFICATION – OMWBE, KC, and NMSDC will all discuss the advantages for A/E firms becoming certified.   Additionally, certification helps public agencies (including those listed below) meet their diversity goals.

Construction projects are fraught with claims and change orders. CI's Claims Avoidance and Resolution Committee, construction industry professionals whose work and experience focuses on pro-active dispute avoidance management, have compiled their years of experience to present a set of Best Practices for claims avoidance and resolution.

Speakers will share expertise on dispute resolution, successfully navigating through a delay claim, defining and pricing overhead costs, and techniques for constructability reviews. A session on "Claims 101," will also be offered, to introduce neophytes to the ins and outs of construction claims.

Program

Please visit the seminar website for additional details and registration: content.asce.org/conferences/ciriskman/

AELC 2012 legislative session report (FINAL)

ESHB 2190 ACEC provisos

2012 Transportation Funding Package

Harris Group achieved this honor by creating a culture of wellness and significantly reducing its healthcare costs through widespread employee participation in proactive health and wellness initiatives. The selection process involves IHS evaluating healthcare data for companies with clinical information demonstrating employee health across an index of key indicators.

Harris Group strongly supports employees’ efforts to be healthy. Their wellness program includes comprehensive preventive screenings, discounted premiums for participation, and tobacco cessation.

The performance-based plan in effect measures employees’ health via a series of blood tests and a questionnaire which measure key health indicators such as blood pressure, LDL (bad) cholesterol, glucose, triglycerides, and tobacco use.  Follow-up for identified health conditions is swift, and employees are encouraged by IHS to carefully monitor and control their health conditions through medication, diet, and exercise, as appropriate. 

“We are extremely proud to receive this award and credit our employees for their efforts in living a healthy lifestyle. Harris Group has focused on employee health for a number of years.  I am convinced that our incentivized health assessment program has not only helped some of our employees identify and deal with some critical health issues, but has also led to an overall consciousness and improvement in the overall health of our employees,” said Jim Gabriel, President and CEO of Harris Group Inc.

“‘Healthiest Companies in America’ recognizes those companies that do an outstanding job encouraging employees to engage with these programs. It’s just one way to showcase this crucial component of containing healthcare costs nationally,” said Joseph A. O’Brien, Interactive Health Solutions, Inc. President and CEO

About Harris Group

Harris Group is a multidiscipline engineering consulting firm with 10 offices located throughout the United States. Founded in 1975 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, we have a full-time staff of over 250 engineers, designers, project managers, technical and business specialists, and administrative and corporate support.

Our ability to provide a total project solution as one organization — from inception through completion — is distinctive in the engineering industry. We establish long-term customer relationships with exceptional project management and responsiveness from our skilled professional staff. Our ability to internally manage and accomplish complex multidiscipline projects facilitates efficient communication, streamlined processes, and successful results for our clients.

To learn more about Harris Group please visit us at www.harrisgroup.com

For more information on “Healthiest Companies in America,” visit http://www.healthiestcompanies.com/

Kicking off the conference is the Welcome Reception Thursday night. The reception will include a buffet dinner, and the preview of the Silent Auction to benefit the ACECPAC.

The main session on Friday will include workshops and panel presentations covering various funding mechanisms. After the workshop, the ACECPAC Silent Auction will begin, where many will vie for desired items.

In addition to the Passing of the Gavel ceremony on Friday, dust off those Derby hats and get ready for some horse racing action as we celebrate “A Night at the Derby”.

Saturday has been tweaked a little to allow attendees the opportunity to visit and explore Spokane after the conference concludes. Spokane is also wrapping up the annual Lilac Festival with a huge parade Saturday night.

Additional activities and sights to see for Saturday include golfing at Indian Canyon, Spokane Winery Tour, Lilac Festival’s Crusin’ the Falls Classic Car Show, and many parks and trails.

Spring Conference Sponsors
Clark Nuber, P.S. ♦ HRnovations ♦ Kibble & Prentice, a USI Company ♦ Lane Powell ♦ PNCE Health & Welfare Trust ♦ Skellenger Bender, P.S.

TIME & LOCATION
May 17-19, 2012 | The Davenport Hotel, Spokane, WA

REGISTRATION INFORMATION
$495 for members of ACEC Washington by April 17, 2012. $545 after 2/22. $350/$400 for firm-determined Future Leaders. $300/$350 for Friday only.
Register online

Spring Conference Brochure

EVENT INFORMATION
The Leadership Development Group is pleased to host General Barry McCaffrey as our guest speaker for this month’s meeting. General McCaffrey brings an unparalleled knowledge of national and world issues and his leadership skills speak for themselves. General McCaffrey’s biography can be found here.

The meeting will be held in Two Union Square’s Conference Center (Suite 5122). Parking is available in the Two Union Square Parking Garage, the Washington State Convention Center and surrounding area lots.

Two Union Square | Map
601 Union Street
Suite 5122
Seattle, WA 98101

REGISTRATION INFORMATION
RSVP here if you plan on attending. There is no cost for the meeting, however seating is limited, so be sure to sign up early.

WSDOT is holding a series of meetings across the state next month to share information about the disparity study and to gather personal accounts of experience with the agency’s contracting and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program. The DBE program helps socially and economically disadvantaged businesses compete for government contracts on a level playing field.

WSDOT’s disparity study, which is being conducted by an independent consultant, includes an analysis of the agency’s contracting activities. It will determine if discrimination is occurring in WSDOT-administered contracts related to state transportation projects, including highways, transit and aviation. 

Discussions will focus on WSDOT’s contracting and implementation of the federal DBE Program, and whether there is equality in opportunities for obtaining transportation-related contracts, starting and expanding businesses and fair access to financing, insurance and bonding. Feedback regarding WSDOT’s outreach efforts and assistance programs for small, woman- and minority-owned businesses is also encouraged. Comments received will become part of the public record for the disparity study.

All meetings will be held from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Dates and locations are as follows:

Wednesday, Feb. 15  - WSDOT Northwest Region Headquarters Cafeteria - 15700 Dayton Ave. N., Seattle

Thursday, Feb. 16 - WSDOT Eastern Region Headquarters - 2714 N. Mayfair St., Spokane

Tuesday, Feb. 21 - Yakima Valley Opportunities Industrialization Center – Training Center - 815 Fruitvale Blvd., Yakima

Wednesday, Feb. 22 - Clark College Valley Community College, Penguin Union Building, Fireside Lounge - 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver

Thursday, Feb. 23 - South Seattle Community College – Georgetown Campus; Building C - 6737 Corson Ave. S., Seattle

Information from the disparity study will assist WSDOT in implementing the federal DBE Program and meeting federal-financial aid requirements. 

To ensure adequate materials are available, registration is required for these events.  To register, please email DisparityStudy@wsdot.wa.gov with your first and last name and indicate which event you will be attending. You may also call toll free, 1-888-259-9143, or 360-705-7084 to register.

WSDOT will also accept written comments regarding your experiences in the State of Washington transportation contracting industry. To submit a written comment, email DisparityStudy@wsdot.wa.gov  or write:

Disparity Study
WSDOT, Office of Equal Opportunity
PO Box 47314
Olympia, WA  98504-7314

Many of the auction items fell in the “experience” category. Reports have been fantastic for such items a gourmet Spanish dinner at Loy’s or a weekend of crabbing at the Gahnberg’s Hood Canal cabin. Others are still being collected as the fun goes on and on.

With a track record like that, how could we not do it again? No worries, we will – at the Spring Meeting in Spokane and we are soliciting donations now. So if you have an idea for an auction item, call Loy Young to get started. If you don’t, call Loy to get help with an idea. Do you cook, have a boat, sports tickets, member of a golf club, own a vacation home, drink wine, make jewelry? Just like the fun, this list goes on and on.

If you already have an item to donate, please fill out the Donation Form here and send it to ACEC Washington.

2012 Spring Conference is May 17-19 at The Davenport Hotel in Spokane, WA.