RockTalk the Podcast

How to save for buying a home!

Financial planning town hall Feb. 22

 Jacob will cover creative strategies for purchasing a home.

First steps to buying a home:

·  Budgeting tips

·  Tax benefits to home ownership

·  Benefits of a 401K when buying a home

To schedule you appointment with Jacob Young Financial team, please reach out to [email protected]

All things Building Materials and the team's three-year run of big successes are shared in this episode of RockTalk the Podcast.
Mark Treanor, Daniel Garcia and Jeff Lindsay give us an overview of the division, including the number of branches, locations and employees. 
They also give a recap of the division's performance during 2020-2022, and delve into the changes in purchasing that have helped lead the team to strong sales and profits. 

Additionally, they will share their insights on industry trends and forecasting. 
They also discuss strategies and preparations of customers in anticipation of a potential recession, as well as emerging trends and developments within the industry. 

The team shares new products available, and provides updates on use of new technology within the division. 
They also touch on the strong impact social media is making on Building Materials' connections with contrators and customers. 

Introduction:
Welcome to the podcast where we explore the innovative work being done in the tech industry. In today's episode, we're excited to have James Higgs and Ramero Garcia, security leaders in the IT department at Graniterock, join us to discuss the efforts they've made to keep their employees safe at work and at home.

Segment 1: Introduction to Graniterock and the IT department

• Graniterock is a leading construction and building materials company with a focus on sustainability and innovation.
• The IT department plays a crucial role in supporting the various business operations and ensuring the smooth functioning of technology systems.
• James and Ramero discuss their roles at Graniterock and the challenges and opportunities they face in their work.

Segment 2: Protecting employees at work

• Graniterock has implemented several measures to keep their employees safe at work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• These measures include providing personal protective equipment, implementing social distancing guidelines, and regularly sanitizing workspaces.
• James and Ramero discuss the challenges of implementing these measures and the importance of prioritizing employee safety.

Segment 3: Protecting employees at home

• In addition to keeping employees safe at work, the IT department has also taken steps to ensure the security and well-being of employees while they work from home.
• These measures include providing virtual training sessions, setting up secure remote access to company systems, and offering technical support to employees as needed.
• James and Ramero discuss the importance of supporting employees while they work remotely and the challenges of maintaining security in a remote work environment.

Conclusion:
We'd like to thank James and Ramero for joining us today and sharing their insights on the work the IT department at Graniterock is doing to keep their employees safe at work and at home. Their dedication to employee safety is a testament to the company's commitment to innovation and sustainability. We hope you've enjoyed this episode and stay tuned for more exciting discussions with industry leaders in the tech field.

Starting Jan. 1, Peter Lemon will take the helm as CEO at Graniterock.
Tom Squeri has held the CEO role since 2012, leading the company through some of its best performing years.
 
The two join the podcast again for a great conversation that takes us inside the leadership transition and some of the things on Peter's mind as he takes this new position. 

Peter started his Graniterock career as a summer intern in 1998. After three summer internships and a B.S. in civil engineering from UC Davis, Peter was hired by the Construction Division as an estimator/project engineer. 
Go Aggies!
His path at Graniterock kept moving forward, including time as the Construction Division's private works area manager.
In 2012, he was asked to manage the A. R. Wilson Quarry until earlier this year Peter was named Vice President of Logistics.
 
Listen in as Peter shares his passion for Graniterock and how the Boy Scouts have helped shape his leadership skills.
Plus, Tom offers Peter some words of advice.
Enjoy!

Graniterock Cares!
On average, the Company receives one request every day - money or resources - from a community group or nonprofit.
While we love to support all of the good work happening in our communities, we have to pick and choose where we spend our resources.
The Graniterock Cares committee meets once a month to review community requests and decide how to best support the various needs.
Members of Graniterock Cares include Keith Severson, Don Barrett, Karl Philipovitch, Stephanie Kniffin and Amy Nama.
Enjoy this show as they give us a behind the scenes look at what goes into community donations at Graniterock!

Longtime team member Abbie Gordon and her daughter Julianne Silva join us to chat about their journeys to Graniterock.
Abbie talks about her work as an accounts payable manager and Julianne shares a little about what it's like to work at the Wilson Quarry'.

Bonus story on how to make "Filhos" (Portuguese Doughnuts)

INGREDIENTS

UNITS: US

• 6 cups  flour
• 3(1 ounce) packages yeast
• 1⁄2cup  sugar
• 8 eggs, beaten room temperature 
• 2 cups  milk, warmed 
• 1⁄4lb  butter, melted (1 stick butter)
• 1⁄2teaspoon  salt

DIRECTIONS

• Mix all ingredients together with hands for 5 minutes until dough is smooth.
• Let rise 1 hour.
• Pull off various size pieces and fry in hot oil.
• Drain on towels and sprinkle with sugar.

Graniterock craft workers pay close attention when Jorge Sanchez, who worked many years as a lead laborer, shares details of the water valve replacement project in 2018 that went horribly wrong and nearly killed him when a steel pipe struck him in the head while working  for another construction company.

Jorge joins the podcast along with Construction Division safety manager Randall Jacobsen for a conversation that brings home the importance of strong communications for working in a high risk industry. 

As safety engineer, Jorge leads orientation training for new craft members joining Graniterock. He uses his experience to give back to others and drive home the principles of SafeStart and Safety Before All Else.

The conversation is wide-ranging, focused on keeping Graniterock People working and going home each night.

Stay to the end when we hear about Randall's former career as a restaurant owner in Santa Cruz!

Monitor. Measure. Manage.

Measuring concrete slump with a metal cone is officially old-fashioned. Ready mix concrete producers can now shave off priceless minutes from the process of measuring and testing concrete on site. Instead, they can constantly measure and adjust the slump, and monitor the water content of concrete as it travels from the plant to the job site.

In this Episode, the team from Verifi help us understand how this management tool is helping with sustainability and the bottom line.

More and more project owners want their buildings and infrastructure to align with their environmental values.
So that means they want construction materials made with sustainable, low-carbon ingredients.
On its face, traditional concrete with Portland cement is not the earth-friendliest material around as cement is very energy-intensive to produce, but much work and innovation have gone into changing that.

We brought in some of the Graniterock concrete team to talk about low-carbon mix designs and the evolution of sustainable building. 

Marketing Director Keith Severson hosts this show.
Guests:
Mike McGrath (Concrete Business Manager)
Zack Booth (Concrete Sales Manager)
Max Morgan (Concrete Sales Representative)

What we are chatting about?
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)
EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) 
Cement replacement (Fly Ash, Slag, Pozzolan)
Locally sourced aggregates (A.R. Wilson Quarry)
Pervious concrete (Beyond the mix, Recharging the underground aquifer)
Verifi (Quality control on mixers, making Graniterock more consistent)

Video cameras inside Company-owned vehicles?

No, it's not Big Brother, we promise.

Paul Cianciarulo, Matt Reade, John Wilshere and Anthony Lewis joined the podcast for a great discussion, sharing how Telematics is going to work and the timeline for rollout to all parts of the Company.

Telematics technology is used to help tackle a wide array of important tasks that help keep fleets running smoothly and safely.

The system contains data to indicate areas for improvement, from increasing fuel efficiency and pinpointing vehicle locations, to reducing collisions and saving lives.

It is quickly becoming an industry standard with many construction companies already using the technology.

With 400 vehicles in the fleet, including transportation, mixer trucks and construction pickups, Graniterock is jumping on board.

A small group of team members is currently testing two systems (Samsara & Lytx) to experience the technology and determine which will best benefit the Company. 

This technology is designed to help Graniterock team members be safer drivers and protect a team member's side of the story when involved in an incident. 

Installation is set to begin in January 2023.
More details will be shared at September's Zero in on Safety meetings.