Flintco Talks

In this powerful and eye-opening episode of Flintco Talks, we cover one of the most pressing and often overlooked issues in the construction industry—suicide prevention. Join Central Texas industry leaders David Mahoney, Vice President, TCS Mechanical, Eric Gribble, Healthcare Core Market Leader, DPR Construction, and Kyle Smith, President, Capital Industries Mechanical Contractors in this heartfelt and honest conversation.

From personal stories of loss to actionable insights on creating positive change, this episode of Flintco Talks is another step in our collective journey to help keep our people safe both on the job and away from it. Don’t miss this crucial conversation that could help save lives. If you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out—help is available.

Links to all resources mentioned below ⬇️

VitalCog trainer contact- [email protected]

https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org

https://mysteadymind.com

https://rippleintent.org

https://www.constructionworkingminds.org

https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com

#construction #suicidepreventionmonth #mentalhealth

Is value engineering a dirty word? Find out in this episode of Flintco Talks where host Daniel Oates, Senior Project Manager at Flintco, discusses Target Value Design (TVD) and preconstruction with Mackenzie McHale, AIA, EDAC, LEED AP BD+C, Office Director, Principal at HKS, Mark Montgomery, P.E., LEED AP, Senior Vice President at WSP, and Ed Smith, Vice President at Flintco. The group dives into how TVD breaks projects into manageable buckets, the importance of early trade partner involvement, and the benefits of constant collaboration. Learn how TVD can eliminate waste, reduce RFIs and change orders, and ultimately deliver a successful project that meets the owner's vision while maintaining budget and schedule.

As part of Safety Week 2024, we invited Steve Eikanger, President and CEO of Flintco, and Barry Nelson, Founder and CEO of FactorLab into the Flintco Talks studio with host Daniel Oates to talk about the power of having authentic conversations around safety and how that helps build trust and respect among the team.

The discussion centers around “SmartTagIt,” a video pre-task plan (PTP) application created by FactorLab and adopted by Flintco in 2023 that uses cell phone video to help crews get more engaged in safety planning in a language they understand. The application harnesses AI to help organize, translate, and analyze PTPs making them more effective in mitigating risk; the familiar interface looks like a social media news feed with "likes, comments and shares," which supports team engagement and helps develop leaders at every level while magnifying the Flintco Ethos.

Learn how SmartTagIt is helping Flintco:

• Gain real-time visibility into safety planning and team engagement

• Identify and amplify exemplary leadership practices at every level

• Address issues proactively before they impact safety, quality, or productivity

The Construction industry is facing an existential threat from a severe shortage of skilled tradespeople. The explosive growth in Austin and Central Texas since the early 2000s has accentuated the issue. Area educators, City leaders, and industry in general are taking notice. J. Norris Sebastian III, Career and Technical Education Director at Del Valle ISD sat down with Flintco Talks Host Daniel Oates to talk about the issue and what companies can do to help bolster workforce development programs at area high schools.

Mr. Sebastian shares his own career development journey starting as a culinary student, to executive chef and current high school administrator developing career and technical education programs that prepare students for real-world success. We dive deep into the impact of these programs on the community, the challenges of the current workforce shortage, and partnership opportunities for local businesses with area educators.

Whether you're interested in educational innovation, workforce development, or inspiring life stories, this episode of Flintco Talks is packed with insights and inspiration. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more engaging conversations!

Patti DeNucci, an award-winning author who helps professionals communicate better, joins Flintco Talks to discuss strategies for improving conversations and connections. DeNucci emphasizes making an intentional choice to build relationships through asking thoughtful questions, actively listening without judgment, assuming positive intent, and acknowledging others. She shares tactics like the "40-second rule" for being concise and aiming to listen 60% of the time. She advises starting small, with a consistent daily effort toward more authentic interactions. In this episode of Flintco Talks, we explore practical ways to create more caring, courageous conversations in service of stronger communities and mental health.

In this episode of Flintco Talks, host Daniel Oates delves into the reasoning behind that decision with Flintco VP of Health Safety and Environment Steve Jordan. The podcast also explores a breakthrough safety innovation from FactorLabs that makes creating pre-task plans more inclusive and effective using video and advanced machine learning. Exciting stuff! Available wherever you get your podcasts.

Beginning March 1, 2024, traditional hard hats will no longer be optional for use on Flintco projects. It’s time. Traumatic brain injuries represent one-quarter of all construction fatalities. Safety helmets have proven to be more effective at preventing serious injury.

In this episode of Flintco Talks, host Daniel "DanO" Oates speaks with Mark Walker, a retired Navy SEAL and founding partner at Acumen Performance Group, a human performance company. Join Mark and DanO for their discussion around mental health, how to manage and maintain it, and the importance of building strong relationships. It’s an insightful conversation with actionable information for business leaders and their teams to perform at their best.

The 2022 mission to Rwanda in East Africa with Flintco was so successful, and the work so important, that we joined with our sister company Alberici to field another team of volunteers in 2024. In this episode of Flintco Talks, Host Daniel "DanO" Oates talks to Flintco Projet Engineer Kelsey Rollings about her experience with our first Bridges to Prosperity trip.

The 2-week bridge build is set for February 17 - March 2, 2024. The team is traveling to the Muhanga (ma-hung-ga) District in Southern Rwanda. Alberrici and Flintco are contributing most of the funds necessary for the trip, however, each team member is responsible for part of the fundraising goal of $13,250. Your donation supports the completion of the Matovu (ma-toe-voo) Trail Bridge, a 103 meter hybrid suspension bridge that will dramatically improve the lives of a community of 5,538 people.

Join us for a special Native American Heritage Month episode of Flintco Talks. Guest host Rex Woods, VP of Business Acquisition sits down with Vernelle Chase, Director of Tribal Relations at Flintco, to discuss her lifelong journey of service to Native communities.

Vernelle shares stories from growing up on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in rural Montana. She talks about getting her start in construction, advocating for increased use of Native businesses on projects, and working her way up to a leadership role at Flintco. Throughout the conversation, Vernelle provides perspective on the growth of tribally-owned businesses, the increase in Native representation in industries like construction and design, and the future of renewable energy projects and water rights settlements in Indian Country.

Vernelle also opens up about what drives her personally and professionally. She discusses her work supporting entrepreneurship through organizations like Native Women Lead, as well as her hopes for the continued success of Native peoples across industries. It is our honor to celebrate Native American Heritage Month with Vernelle and learn from her inspirational path of service and leadership.

Join host Daniel "Dan0" Oates and Melanie Gilbertson, Flintco's Director of Production Support, about the company's Lean journey. Melanie shares how she first got involved with Lean practices in 2009 and saw the benefits it brought to planning and scheduling.

After joining Flintco in 2016, Melanie led the company's introduction to Lean with two pilot projects. Melanie explains Flintco's three formal Lean roles - Lean Champion, Coach, and Mentor. We hear how an internal steering committee comprised of coaches and mentors created a compensation program around the discretionary effort to drive Lean throughout the organization.

Tune in to learn more about how Lean has helped transform Flintco's operations through collaborative planning, training, and continuous improvement.