Western Specialty Contractors

Master Craftsmen in Building Envelope Restoration

Archives for February 2021

Employee Spotlight | Shez Tucker

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Western would like to recognize Shez Tucker as this month’s Employee Spotlight.

Kudos, Shez—and thank you for being a valued member of the Western team!

Q&A with Shez Tucker

01

What is your role at Western?

Superintendent of the Seattle, WA branch. I’m in charge of an assortment of things; manpower, equipment, training safety, quality control, and production.

02

What do you like most about Western?

The diversity of work we do and the opportunity to grow within the company.

03

What are three words to describe Western?

Safety, quality, and custom.

04

What is your proudest moment at Western?

When Western issued me a gas card.

05

What has been your favorite project at Western?

Working on the roof of the Space Needle.

06

How did you first learn about Western?

My good friend, Kenny O’Hare introduced me to Western.

07

Before working at Western, what was the most unusual or interesting job you’ve ever had?

I worked construction on my father’s crew for most of my childhood. It gave me a great foundation to build off at Western.

08

What advice do you have for prospective Western candidates?

Choose Western! It will provide you with the opportunity to learn and grow as much as you want. Work hard, listen to advice, and then follow it.

09

What have you gained from Working at Western?

Western has allowed me to take care of my family for the last 24 years. And when I was given the opportunity to transfer from Kansas City to Seattle, I was able to stay employed at Western. The experience of many types of work and training when needed.

10

What is on your wish list for the next 10 years with Western?

To help grow the Seattle branch from $6m to $15m a year.

11

If you could switch your job with anyone else within Western, whose job would you want?

No other jobs interest me at this point, unless Western starts a branch in the US Virgin Islands.

12

What about you? What do you personally enjoy?

My wife, Michelle, and I moved to Seattle to follow our passion for sailing. I had 19 years of experience in Kansas City at the time of the move. In the last four years, I worked as a foreman. Then, I was given the opportunity to become Superintendent a year ago. My first year has been a good one and I feel great about our branch making Track One!

As for our sailing dream, let’s just say we have done exactly what we expected. We live on a 40′ C&C sailboat that is rarely seen on the dock on the weekends. We live in the largest Live Aboard Community on the west coast, right on Puget Sound. We see whales, we catch lots of crabs, and explore new exciting anchorages on a regular basis. We love it!

Click here to view all of our Employee Spotlights.

Shez has a great ability to develop connections with our foremen and field crews. He’s not shy about jumping in during a large concrete pour or deck coating project to demonstrate our Best Practices.

During most of our year, our crews work multiple shifts. Daytime, swing, and 2 am shifts. Shez never hesitates to offer his help if the crew is having an issue, regardless of the time of day. Whether it’s delivering material or offering an extra set of hands, he’s always willing to help out.

David J. Kimble
Branch Manager | Seattle, WA
Western Specialty Contractors

ICRI Award | Christ Church United Methodist

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Christ Church United Methodist in New York, ICRI's Award of Merit (masonry category) winner
Christ Church United Methodist in New York, ICRI’s Award of Merit (masonry category) winner

Western Specialty Contractors – NYC Metro Branch was honored virtually on Oct. 22 with a 2020 International Concrete Restoration Institute (ICRI) Award of Merit (Masonry category) for façade restoration of historic Christ Church United Methodist in New York. The project had previously won Project of the Year from the ICRI Metro NY Chapter.

ICRI conducts an awards program each year to honor and recognize outstanding projects in the concrete and masonry repair industry. Judging is based on uniqueness, use of state-of-the-art methods and materials, functionality, value engineering, and aesthetics. Entries are received from around the world, and the winning projects are honored each year at the ICRI Fall Convention. Due to COVID-19 concerns, the 2020 Fall Convention was held virtually.

In 2018, Western’s crew, alongside Project Architect Kate Groob, RA, and Principal Thomas Fenniman, RA from Thomas A. Fenniman Architect took on the task of restoring one of the prominent structures on New York City’s Upper East Side – Christ Church United Methodist. Located at the northwest corner of Park Avenue and 60th Street, the 86-year-old brick and limestone church was showing signs of wear-and-tear and deterioration. Several of its brick corners had cracked and precariously pulled away from the building; its plaza on Park Avenue needed to be replaced and made ADA compliant, and grout between its limestone and brick was missing or damaged.

Western’s skilled workers performed masonry repairs, repointed all of the stone to stone mortar joints, and removed and rebuilt the failing masonry corners, amongst several other repairs. In total, Western performed work on approximately 19,000 square feet of the church’s total 28,000-square-foot Romanesque and Byzantine Revival style façade.

“One of the greatest challenges on this project was ensuring that the new masonry matched the existing. Understanding the historical significance of this structure, we went the extra mile to source masonry samples from several distributors in the Tri-state area and performed loose-laid mock-ups on site. After several modifications, we achieved the desired result by utilizing three brick colors with the darker browns removed from the blend and salvaged bricks mixed in their place,” said Western NYC Metro Senior Branch Manager James Norberg. “We are honored that ICRI recognized our dedication and expertise on this important restoration.”

In addition to the façade repairs, the church also needed to replace its 580-square-foot plaza. The previous plaza was flat with steps going up to both the front and side door entrances. This required the church to use a temporary metal ramp, which was an eyesore and not an ideal solution.

Western began the plaza replacement by removing the existing plaza down to the concrete deck, then installed the waterproofing system, which consisted of 2-ply Siplast torch down waterproofing, drain mat, rigid insulation board, and filter fabric. Lastly, the setting bed, pavers, limestone planter, ramp, steps, and curb were installed to complete the plaza replacement. To match the existing plaza, the same stone material was sourced for the replacement pavers, which was a Crab Orchard stone quarried out of Tennessee.

The $1.8 million project took just over four months to complete.

About Western Specialty Contractors

Family-owned and operated for more than 100 years, Western Specialty Contractors is the nation’s largest specialty contractor in masonry and concrete restoration, waterproofing, and specialty roofing. Western offers a nationwide network of expertise that building owners, engineers, architects, and property managers can count on to develop cost-effective, corrective measures that can add years of useful life to a variety of structures including industrial, commercial, healthcare, historic, educational, and government buildings, parking structures, and sports stadiums. Western is headquartered in St. Louis, MO with 30 branch offices nationwide and employs more than 1,200 salaried and hourly professionals who offer the best, time-tested techniques and innovative technology. For more information about Western Specialty Contractors, visit https://westernspecialtycontractors.com.