Union Station Transit Center Holds Grand Opening

Since their program began at Paschen on July 6, the six Paschen Scholars from Westinghouse Academy attended trainings and seminars, and learned about construction and engineering from Paschen employees and management. This past Friday, they completed their first year of time with Paschen. They will return for the next two summers to continue their education as Paschen Scholars.

In their first week, the Scholars met representatives from each department and participated in onboarding training, or “Boot Camp.” The Scholars spilt into groups of two and spent the day at Washington Wabash, Union Station, and Lakefront trail with our safety supervisors to get acclimated to being on a jobsite; and learned how to document would-be safety hazards.

In their second week, the Scholars learned about the importance of shapes in construction (triangles, domes, and arches), while preparing to build their own personal shelter structures. The Scholars picked the shapes that they wanted to base their designs on, then designed their structures, and determined the material that would be used based on of the sample materials provided, then the labor and overhead and profit. Paschen interns helped the Scholars build their structures, which were then displayed for Paschen employees to review and talk to the Scholars about their designs at the Drill and Grill event that following Friday.

In their final week, the Scholars worked on AutoCAD to create as-builts of their Personal Shelters. We visited the architecture office of exp US Services Inc, where the architects talked about the work they do and the concepts behind some of their designs, as well as their college experiences.

On Wednesday, the Scholars visited the Stroger Hospital JOC project, where they went over plans and specs and discussed Quality Control. They did a quality check sheet and discussed any issues they discovered with the Superintendant. Afterward, we went to see a Stalworth jobsite at Northwestern University, and the week ended with a Friday in the Field trip with Interns and staff, to visit jobs on I-90 and our Ozinga jobs in Des Plaines.

We look forward to seeing our Scholars again in July of 2017!

Our 2nd Friday in the Field occurred on July 22. Participants included our six Paschen Scholars, interns, and new hires, and all had a wonderful day visiting sites and learning about what Paschen does from those who are doing it in the field.

The group started by visiting the I-90 Jane Addams Tollway jobs, where the participants saw Paschen and Stalworth teams in action and learned about the jobs being done there. After lunch in the afternoon, the group visited our Ozinga project in Des Plaines.

Thanks to Chris Fedro, Marcus LuMaye, Dustin Vibbert, Tim Bea, Paul Spencer, and our project crews at both sites for taking the time to show our group their projects and encourage our interns and new hires to #learnwithpaschen.

Paschen kicked off the summer with the first Friday in the Field on June 24th. Interns, new hires, and other Paschen employees had the opportunity to visit the Union Station Transit Center, East River Road Bridge, and I-90 Eastbound Roadway & Bridge Widening projects.

The first stop was at the Union Station Transit Center project. Assistant Project Manager Gregg Brynda and Project Superintendent Bill Martin gave a tour of the jobsite and talked about scheduling and some of the obstacles they’ve encountered on the project.

From there, the group headed back towards the Paschen headquarters to visit the nearby East River Road Bridge over I-90 project, where Project Manager Adam Roths talked about the project, the timeline, and what work will be occurring in the next few months.

After lunch at Gino’s East, the group visited the I-90 Eastbound Roadway & Bridge Widening project, where Senior Project Manager Jared Szajkowski gave the group a tour of the site and talked about the three bridges on the job.

F.H. Paschen and George Westinghouse College Prep School inducted the first six students into the Paschen Scholars program on Monday, June 6, in a Hard Hat Ceremony at the F.H. Paschen headquarters in Chicago.

The six chosen students represented the top 18% percent of the freshman class, and included those who expressed an interest in construction. They each participated in interviews and activities to determine their abilities, creativity, and engineering aptitude. The Scholars will participate in the three-year program, and will visit Paschen three times a week for 3 weeks in July for the next three years, visiting jobsites, doing intern work, and learning about the culture and the world of construction.

The Paschen Scholars are:

• Tiana Collins
• Kayla Garcia
• Justino Martinez
• Ramon Quinto
• Jose Reyes
• Gustavo Sanchez

When speaking to the students at the ceremony, Patrick McGill, Westinghouse Principal, said, “All of you, right now, are making history at Paschen and at Westinghouse… The experiences you’ll have will be life-changing. They’re going to change the way you look at the world, and they’re going to change the goals that you set for yourself. That’s really what it’s all about.”

Joe Scarpelli, Executive Vice President of Paschen, said of the students and the program, “We are truly excited about working with Westinghouse Academy and starting the Paschen Scholars Program. This is an extraordinary program that will give students the opportunity to see what it is like working with a General Contractor in the City of Chicago. Our hope is that they will recognize the opportunities in our business and pursue a related four-year college degree, and maybe someday come to work for us full-time after college graduation.”

Paschen is proud of our involvement with George Westingthouse College Prep, and is committed to the mentorship of students interested in learning more about the construction industry through the Paschen Scholars program.

George Westinghouse College Prep is a new-start school that now offers two competitive programs; a selective enrollment College Preparatory program and a College and Careers program. A concerted effort by community activists, educators, parents, Chicago Public Schools, the City of Chicago and concerned citizens led to a newly constructed campus being built to house the new school. Find out more at www.newwestinghouse.org

Paschen Scholars, L-R: Gustavo Sanchez, Jose Reyes, Kayla Garcia, Ramon Quinto, Tiana Collins, and Justino Martinez

Paschen Scholars and Leaders, L-R: Ryan Kinney, GWCP Counselor; Patrick McGill, GWCP Principal; Joe Scarpelli, Paschen Executive Vice President; Gustavo Sanchez; Jose Reyes; Kayla Garcia; Ramon Quinto; Tiana Collins; Justino Martinez; Chuck Freiheit, Paschen Chief Operating Officer; and Antonia Winfrey, Paschen Project Manager.

F.H. Paschen (Paschen) is proud to be the 2016 recipient of the General Contractor of the Year Award from the Federation of Women Contractors (FWC), the fourth time that Paschen has received this recognition.

The award was presented on June 1, 2016 at the FWC Women Rock Awards ceremony, held at the House of Blues in Chicago.

The FWC is the oldest and most recognized leader among women-owned construction businesses in the Chicagoland area. It is committed to the advancement of entrepreneurial women in the construction industry. FWC members include general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, and service-related firms.

Beth Doria, FWC Executive Director, said of the award, “We are so pleased that F.H. Paschen was chosen as our GC of the Year. They have been strong supporters of FWC for over 25 years and have been engaged partners in providing greater opportunities for women and minorities in the construction industry.”

“Paschen is excited to be recognized as the Contractor of the Year by the Federation of Women Contractors,” said Paschen Chief Operating Officer Chuck Freiheit. “Paschen and FWC, and its members, have been working for over 20 years to build projects in the Chicagoland area, and we greatly value the relationship with the FWC and all of its member contractors.”

Leo Wright, VP of JOC; and Larry Mix, VP of Business Development, with Katie Canino and Beth Doria of Federation of Women Contractors

Chuck Freiheit, COO; Lauren Bailey, Admin Asst.; Dawn Caporale, Admin Asst.; and Leo Wright, VP of JOC

F.H. Paschen held its Spring Safety Kick-off Picnic on May 19, 2016 at the Paschen Headquarters in Chicago. The event focused on safety awareness for Paschen and Stalworth trade workers and onsite field crew members. Food was provided by Frannie’s Beef and Catering, and Central Contractors held a product presentation on crane safety; while O’Learys Equipment rental and supply and Fallsafe held product demonstrations on fall protection. Many prizes were awarded in a raffle, and three lucky winners received the Grand Prize – new Samsung TVs. Joey’s Angels and the Leukemia Foundation also were present, selling raffle tickets for a chance to win a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.

Paschen and Stalworth are committed to the safety of their employees and clients, and have made safety their number one priority. Paschen’s current EMR is .65 which, for a firm that self performs one-third of its own work, is considered impressive.

Paschen is one of over 30 companies in the construction industry participating in the ComEd CONSTRUCT program. CONSTRUCT offers more than 60 students the training, information, and guidance needed to compete for entry-level jobs with good compensation in construction-related fields.

On March 18^th, Paschen attended Company Overview Day, which gave CONSTRUCT students a brief summary of Paschen’s business, the types of work we do, and information on possible available positions. On April 8^th, we participated in the Career Awareness Fair where CONSTRUCT students were able to ask additional questions about the company and to meet Paschen employees.

The Company Overview Day and the Career Awareness Fair prepared CONSTRUCT students to select companies for job shadowing opportunities. Paschen also participated in two days of job shadowing (April 19^th and May 3^rd). Each day, we took three CONSTRUCT students to two jobsites. All six students were interested in field positions.

As part of our ongoing relationship with George Westinghouse College Prep School, F.H. Paschen recently organized two events to involve students at Westinghouse who are interested in the construction industry.

PASCHEN SCHOLARS

On April 26, F.H. Paschen kicked off our Paschen Scholars program. Students who participated represented the top 18% percent of the freshman class, and included those who expressed an interest in construction.

Twelve students participated in a group interview to determine how they worked together, then they were then given a chance to show their creativity and engineering abilities with raw materials—spaghetti and marshmallows—to construct a tower. Finally, Paschen conducted one-on-one interviews with the participants. Six students were chosen from this group, and will represent Westinghouse as Paschen Scholars.

The Scholars will participate in the three-year program, and will visit Paschen three times a week for 3 weeks in July, visiting job sites, doing intern work, and learning about the culture and the world of construction.

Special thanks to Antonia Winfrey, Tiffany Lomax, Jacob Kleiman, and Mary Kate Ward for helping conduct interviews and for help with coordinating this event.

WASHINGTON-WABASH CTA STATION SITE VISIT

On April 28, 2016, fifteen Westinghouse engineering students were invited to attend a site tour of the Washington/Wabash CTA Station construction site. Students were instructed on the correct use of safety gear and the importance of safety on a work site. Following an overview of the project by the Project Managers and Project Engineers, the students were led to the construction site to observe work being performed, and to learn about what happens at a jobsite.

Following the tour, the group returned to the site office, where they were treated to lunch, followed by a review of the plan grid and survey and surveillance images. During lunch, the project staff held a question-and-answer discussion outlining their experiences and how they came to work in the construction field.

Thanks to Washington-Wabash staff for participating in this event: Project Managers Antonia Winfrey, Josh Curran, Tiffany Lomax, and Frank Cassata; Project Engineers Rob Boss and Ross Hanchett, Senior Superintendent Ron Martin, Superintendent Dan Erickson, Project Engineer/Quality Control Courtney Wilson, and Virtual Construction Project Manager Christian Hubbard.

Comments by some of the student participants included:

“Today’s trip really opened my eyes to how much work really goes into a construction project. I had always wondered why it takes so long to simply break down the old structure and build [a new] one, but it is way more complicated than it looks. I think I have this perspective because I am going to be an Economics/Business Major and have never really acknowledged or took note of the numerous steps that engineering-related work accounts for. I think it is really interesting how there are hundreds of drawings and sketches that are designed for one sole project, and I really like how they are organized and managed [on the iPad app]. For the two construction managers that were inside the office, I thought it was really interesting that their field of study did not necessarily mean that they would do hands-on work for that field, but [they] instead branched into the management aspect of it.”–MARCO

“What I found interesting was the fact that Paschen has to work without stopping or shutting down the trains. They have to find ways to work around the trains, not to disturb it. Also if they delay in something they have to pay for it. Something I learned about engineering was that everyone has a different part while working together. Everyone is kind of their own boss and in charge of completing their task”.–GABY

“Something that really stood out to me was the amount of hours the engineers work! Not only that but the pressure they have with working around the CTA schedule, and if they delay the trains, they have to pay! The CTA asked for a renovation yet the engineers have to work around them. Also, the way in which they had to outline everything before the documentsharing application they have now [was so tedious]! Another important thing was that Paschen has to work from underground up—not even ground level—they had to go past that.”–MARICRUZ

“I learned that Paschen tests concrete using a powerful machine. The machine applies 6,000 pounds of force to a block of concrete. If the concrete doesn’t have the capability to take the pressure, it crumbles.”–MARQUIS

“Something that I thought was interesting was how deep Paschen had to go just to replace the columns. Also, it was interesting how they had to rent out the spaces and businesses so that they could put support beams [underground or around the construction site].”–KENYEA

“One surprising thing I learned about Engineering is that even if you go to school for a certain major, you may not [stay] in the exact field. I did not know what field of Engineering I wanted to go into, but now I know as long as I have an engineering degree, I could be anywhere in the field or designing.”–LAVONTA

Paschen is proud to participate in National Safety Stand-Down Week, which is held each year by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration to raise awareness of preventing fall hazards in construction. Incidents caused by falls from elevation are the leading cause of fatalities for construction workers.

Paschen coordinated toolbox talks at all of our active job sites during the week of May 2-6. Each talk included case studies, examples, and important reminders on how to prevent falls.

To learn more about the National Safety Stand-Down, visit https://www.osha.gov/StopFallsStandDown/

F.H. Paschen (Paschen) is pleased to announce that The American Public Works Association (APWA) has selected the Thornton Composite Reservoir as a recipient in the Environment more than $75 million category of the National APWA Public Works Projects of the Year for 2016.

As General Contractor for the job, Paschen built a 208 foot wide by 116 foot tall roller compacted concrete (RCC) gap dam and a 9,425-foot-long double-row grout curtain (groundwater protection system) extending around the entire perimeter of the Thornton Composite Reservoir to depths up to 550 feet below ground surface. The project was completed in July of 2015.

The award will be presented at the annual National APWA Awards Recognition Ceremony, held in conjunction with the 2016 PWX Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Monday, August 29, 2016 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

Paschen congratulates our Project Team for this prestigious achievement.

F.H. Paschen (Paschen) is pleased to announce that The American Public Works Association (APWA) has selected the Cermak-McCormick Place Elevated Green Line Station as a co-recipient in the National Structures $25 million to $75 million category of the APWA Public Works Projects of the Year for 2016.

As General Contractor for the job, Paschen built the new Cermak Road Elevated Station on the CTA Green Line. Work on the project included the construction of a new rail station with an innovative design involving a 260’ long tunnel structure with stainless steel and translucent panels. It includes three separate station houses and two elevator towers. The station opened to the public in February 2015.

The award will be presented at the annual APWA Awards Recognition Ceremony, held in conjunction with the 2016 PWX Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Monday, August 29, 2016 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

Paschen congratulates our team that was involved in this project for this prestigious achievement.

On March 18, representatives from F.H. Paschen were in attendance at The American Public Works Association (APWA)Awards Luncheon. Paschen was honored with three APWA Project of the Year Awards, as well as one Project Excellence Award:

• The Cermak-McCormick Place Green Line Station received the Project of the Year Award for Structures $25-$75 Million.
• The Rollins Road Grade Separation project received the Project of the Year Award in the Transportation $25-$75 Million category.
• The Thornton Composite Reservoir received the Project of the Year Award for Environmental in excess of $75 Million, and was also awarded the 2016 Public Works Project Excellence Award.

Congratulations to all of the teams involved in these projects. Paschen is proud of their commitment to excellence and quality, which is reflected in these awards.