“kenny’s 2 pennies” by kenny g. gubbels, senior project

T H E Y O U N G L O V E

CONVEYORFOR EMPLOYEES AND FRIENDS OF YOUNGLOVE CONSTRUCTION, L.L.C.

Leaders in the design and construction of bulk materials handling facilities

Builders of value... Builders of trust... Since 1896

broken on the project. The engi-neer, manager, and superintendentneed to be involved to define criti-cal lifts during the design and esti-mating phase, as these lifts canhave major effects on the project. For me, critical lift planning

starts when requesting quotations onequipment, bridges, hopper tanks,etc. Always ask for the weight of thequoted item. Even an estimatedweight from the supplier is betterthan nothing or guessing. Havingthis information will help in select-ing the cranes needed for the proj -ect, the size and span of the bridgesyou should be designing around, orhow far the equipment or materialscan be shop assembled before beingshipped to the job site. This willdetermine what lifts will be critical. Once you have a handle on sizes

and weights, you can start to look atthe best crane options to completethe job. There are many variableshere, so I will just cover the basics.

I typically start by looking atwhat the crane will be sitting orfloating on (and barge crane picksare where the real fun begins!).This will determine a lot aboutthe selection of the crane for thecritical lift. For example, if theground will not support the load

Critical Lift Planning“Kenny’s 2 Pennies” by Kenny G. Gubbels, Senior Project Manager

With the demand of higherthroughputs at agricul-tural facilities constantly

increasing, manufacturers, facilitydesigners, and construction crewsare facing more challenges thanever in building these facilities.Everything nowadays is larger,heavier, taller, farther away, moreawk ward, and with tighter tolerancesthan ever before. In our industry,almost every major item that showsup on the job site has to be hoistedor lifted into place with a piece ofequipment; and most of the timethat’s done with an on-site crane. With the increased size of equip -

ment, bridges, etc., “critical lifts” onthe job site are becoming an every-other-day occurrence. Per OSHA, acritical lift for crane hoists is definedas lifting a load greater than 75% ofthe rated capacity of the crane (basedupon the crane configuration). Critical lift planning needs to

start way before ground is ever

SPRING 2016

of the crane, it will have to be mattedwith a crane deck before operatingthe crane; or you may have to buildroads or do large amounts of dirtwork to position the crane whereyou’ll need it for a critical lift. Second, I look at the size, type,

and number of cranes required forthe critical lift. This typically comesdown to what equipment is availablein the area you are working in andwhat type of lift you are making. Forexample, if a load has to be liftedand carried a distance to a set point,a crawler-type crane may be the bestchoice. If a quick in-and-out criticallift is required, a hydraulic cranemay be the best choice due to the

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“Critical lift planningneeds to start way before

ground is ever broken on the project.”

Continued on Page 2

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A M E S S AG E F R O M T H E P R E S I D E N T

______________By Ken I. DuBois, President

In the con -struction indus -try, the word“patience” iscertainly anatypical one.Constructionis founded onaction-based

principles—work hard, workharder, and can’t you work harderthan that?! If hard work does notsound appropriate, how about, “Getyour butt moving faster, faster,faster!” (We offer a PG rating orless in our Conveyor articles.)

Clearly we push the limits whentrying to become more efficient inorder to finish our projects in accel-erated time frames. This allows thefacilities we construct to begin pro-ducing sooner; and, the sooner aproject is completed, typically thelarger our profit will be. So howdoes patience fac tor into the equa-tion in our industry?

In my 21 years in the construc-tion industry, I would estimate thefirst half was centered on the prin-ciples I mentioned in the first partof this article. Since then, beingpatient has become a more predomi -nant principle. It may very well bethat having four kids in the secondhalf of my professional career hashad something to do with that!

The less patient I am with mykids, the more it seems I am push-ing a rope. When I raise my voicea few levels and demand achanged behavior, it may work forthe moment; but it rarely changesfuture behavior. When I calmly andfirmly describe a behavior thatneeds to be modified by my kids,they all (even my 4-year-old, Ava)seem to turn the corner and, in the

future, remember what the properbehavior is to be (versus remem-bering Dad’s loud voice!).

Several years ago I pollednumer ous Younglove Super -intendents on what they felt theirtop strengths were. I figured Iwould get a lot of top responseson planning, motivating, commu-nication, hard work, or other tra-ditional leadership topics. Severalof these items were mentioned,but the one receiving the most topmarks was patience. Patience wasin the top one or two of almostevery Super intendent’s list.

Our job site leaders clearly needto be strong in the requirements toconstruct the projects; i.e., formingtechniques, concrete placementmethods, weld symbols, properequipment installation details, etc.However, leading their crews effec-tively requires several “tools”; and,without patience, it is difficult toput many of the others into practice.

From the office, patienceprobably looks and feels differentthan on the job site. We have to bepatient when evaluating and pro-viding proposals for projects. Weneed to be patient while awaitingfeedback after sending out a bid.There has been more than oneinstance where an initial discussionwith a prospective client has takenyears before the proj ect became areality. We need to practicepatience when receiving nega tivefeedback from an owner, supplier,subcontractor, or even the job sites.

While patience can look differ-ent at home, work, or play, we mustcon tinue to work toward improv-ing this personality trait. When mypatience seems to be at an appro-priate level, I know I feel more atease in my decision making—and Iknow the people around me defi-nitely reap the benefits. (Just askmy children!)

PATIENCE quick set-up time. Or perhaps it’s atwo-crane pick—hydraulic andcrawler. All of these factors need tobe risk managed and reviewed. Third, I start the process of com-

pleting a critical lift planning docu-ment. This is a formal documentrequired by OSHA that sets out thedetails of the pick. This wouldinclude general information (date,job site, lift description, lift location,lift height, etc.), personnel infor -mation (the crane operator, liftsuper intendent, riggers, etc.), andlift criteria (rigging techniques, lifthazards, number of cranes, etc.).This document will also cover cranecapacities when lifting, maximumwind speeds during lifts, groundconditions, and communication toall parties involved with the lift. Depending on the complexity of

the critical lift, sometimes it is bestto consult a heavy lift engineeringfirm to complete this documentand provide an engineered liftingplan, complete with engineer-stamped drawings. Not only is OSHA wanting this

documentation, but your insurancecompany will also want this infor-mation on any high-risk lifts of high-value materials or equipment.Typically you should contact yourinsurer before any high-dollar liftsare made. Many times they have ateam of risk managers that will wantto review your critical lift plan. Acomplete and detailed critical liftplan will result in less push back andMonday-morning quarter backingfrom the insurance company. Finally, after the critical lift plan

is complete, a pre-lift meeting isheld on the job site with all partiesinvolved. The critical lift plan isreviewed (and sometimes modi-fied), and then the lift can begin! n

KENNY’S 2 PENNIES (CONT.)

(continued from Page 1)

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P R O J E C T U P D AT E

to send everyone home each day,proud of their achievements andinjury-free.Our commitment to safety with

regard to job site planning, leader-ship training, employee training,and con tinuously reviewing safetyexpectations to make sure we walkthe talk has been crucial for oursafety success.

Thanks to everyone withYounglove for helping us build ouroutstanding safety culture. We area safety leader in our industry withan injury rate below 1.5. Currently,our people have worked over 500days without a loss day injury.Once again, thanks to everyone

for our safety success.

Great job, everyone!

S A F E T Y O U T L O O K

500 and Counting!By Randy J. Hooey, CSP, Director of Safety

With a two-phasestart-up, the newSinclair Milling

facility is up and running inParkersburg, Iowa. Productionof mash feed started in late2015, and pelleting production started during the first part of2016. This mill is now underSinclair Milling’s operation.

As mentioned in previousissues, this was our first proj ectfor Sinclair Milling. We wouldlike to thank them for their con-fidence and trust in YoungloveConstruction; and we are lookingforward to working with JimLuebbers, Roger Baker, and teamagain, as we hope this facilitywill be the first of many in agreat partner ship.

Sinclair Milling Up and RunningFeed Mill; Sinclair Milling, Inc.; Parkersburg, IowaKen DuBois, Project Executive; Carlos Rodríguez, Project Manager; Dar Bierman, Project SuperintendentTricia Welch, Project Design Leader

Those ofus atYounglove

are proud of oursafety cultureand what thatculture hashelped usachieve as a

team. The goal of our com pany is

belt conveyors and supports, areinstalled, wired, and ready to go.The receiving bucket elevators areset, stacked, and braced back to thesilo structure and leg tower. Wehave also erected and installed theleg towers and conveyor bridges atthe roof. The cone hoppers have been

hung and welded in each of thefour silos. The aeration required in

two ofthe siloshas beeninstalledandductedback tothe fans,andwe’veinstalled

West Memphis Equipment Installation andConveyor Bridge Construction CompleteBarge Terminal; Louis Dreyfus Company; West Memphis, ArkansasKen DuBois, Project Executive; Jon Branning and Kenny Gubbels, Project Managers Terry Reinert, Project Superintendent; Joe Newman, Project Design Leader

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The West Memphis truck-to-barge facility is nearing completion. It hasn’t come

without its many challenges of ris-ing and falling river levels, but wehave now finished pouring all ofthe concrete and are focusing oninstalling the equipment and half-mile-long conveyor bridge. All of the tunnel equipment,

including the receiving drag and

the reclaim drag and belt convey-ors below the silos. The transitionsbetween each piece of equipmentare currently being fabricated. Inbetween the cone hopper comple-tion and equipment installation,the painting sub contractor wasable to squeeze in and finish upthe painting of the cone hoppers.The grain dryer and steel

tank were erected by our sub -contractors, and equipment installation is proceeding. We’veinstalled the wet and dry bucketelevator legs and dry grain dragconveyors (one below the graindryer and one at the roof for distri-bution to the silos). It won’t belong before Terry’s crew beginsinstalling the belt and cups foreach of the bucket elevator legs.Installation of the equipment

associatedwith thesteel tankis alsonearlycomplete,and we’veinstalledthe reclaimgates andbelt con-veyor.Younglovehas erectedand set thesupporttower and

Above: Setting the conveyor bridge overthe 92-foot-diameter steel tank

Right: Erecting the 250-foot-long spanof the levee bridge

conveyor bridge feeding the steeltank structure. The belt conveyorwas installed on the con veyorbridge prior to setting it with thecrane, so only the spouting andtransitions to and from this beltconveyor remain there.Out at the river, one of our sub-

contractors completed the bargeloadout tower and spout andinstalled all of the bents and towersat the half-mile-long conveyorbridge. Following this work,Younglove had a crew build theconveyor bridges with the con -veyor installed before setting them.We started out building thesebridges at the river by the bargeloadout tower and spout and thenheaded inland toward the silostructure. Younglove’s crew set the250-foot-span bridge over the leveeon April 25th. This was the longestspanned, most compli cated, andmost carefully planned crane pickon this project—so completing itwas a major milestone! Going forward on the rest of

this project, the electrical sub -contractor will be completingwiring and terminations.Younglove’s crew will be finishingup construction on the samplebuilding and installing truckprobes, fabricating and finishingthe spouting and transitionsbetween the different pieces ofmaterial handling equipment, com-pleting punch list items, andpreparing for the automation andcontrols subcontractor and start-upof the facility.

We look forward to finishing upanother successful proj ect for LouisDreyfus Company so they are able toreceive grain this fall and ship itdown the river to another one oftheir great facilities!

The new Ardent Mills siloproject in Decatur, Alabama,is now in the midst of pre-

slip activities. After dealingwith some delays due toweather and relocation ofexisting utilities, SteveJohanson and crew wereable to finish pouring the mat slabfor the 30-foot-diameter silo.The silo slip is schedule for the

third week of May, followed by the

completion of an overhead slab,roof, and crossover bridge to theexisting mill.

This proj ect should be com -pleted early summer of 2016.

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Ardent Mills Silo GearingTowards May SlipMidds Silo; Ardent Mills, LLC; Decatur, AlabamaKen DuBois, Project Executive; Carlos Rodríguez, Project Manager Steve Johanson, Project SuperintendentBrian Hickson, Project Design Leader

Mat slab rebar placement

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YO U N G L O V E N E W S

Service AwardsChosen

n Taylor Semi-Hollowbody T3 SeriesElectric Guitar

n Sony Camera withInterchangeable Lens

n Troy-Bilt Bronco RidingLawn Mower

n Old Town Saranac 160Canoe

n Lenovo 2-in-1 Touch-Screen Laptop

n Cabela's Commercial-Grade Vacuum Sealer

n KitchenAid Stand Mixer

n Blueridge HistoricSeries Acoustic Guitar

n HP Pavilion 17.3"Laptop

n Samsung HomeTheater System

n Makita ElectronicPolisher/Sander withPolishing Kit

n Seiko Lady's Watch

n T-fal Hard AnodizedCookware Set

n Cabela’s Comfort TracRubber Boots

n Insignia™ 24" HDTV

n Cuisinart Program -mable Coffee Makerwith Hot Water System

n Karaoke System

n RCA Home TheaterSystem

n Motorola Radio Pack

n Homelite GasChainsaw

At Younglove, we know our success is based on the loyalty of our employees. Manyof these talented, hard- working, and dedi cated people have been with us for anumber of years. Each year we honor those who have achieved milestones in

their service to us, and this year we honor the 22 employees shown on these pages. As asmall token of our appreci ation, we were pleased to present each of these indi vidualswith a gift of his or her choosing.

Congratulations, and thank you for your

hard work and dedication!

22 Employees Honored forYears of Service with Younglove

Dar BiermanProject Superintendent

35 Years

John SevereDesign Technician

35 Years

Allan BeattyTruck Driver30 Years

Fred FrahmForeman30 Years

David MilianForeman30 Years

Mona BangertJobsite Administrator

20 Years

Jarret BiermanAsst. Superintendent

15 Years

Thomas CravensForeman10 Years

John “Kenny” FullerAsst. Superintendent

20 Years

Terry ReinertProject Superintendent

20 Years

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John Severeretired fromYounglove onMarch 25 afterserving for 35years as one ofour DesignTechnicians. John began

working for Younglove in 1980.From that time until 1996, heworked on no less than 104 proj -ects. In January of 1996, the com-pany began assigning a specificDesign Leader for each project.From 1996 through 2016, Johnwas the Design Leader in charge ofan additional 26 projects. That’smore than 130 projects! (And thatdoesn’t even include the prospectshe worked on!) Several have described John as

being a dedicated, hard-working,and conscientious employee whosedrawings were always very organ -ized and clear. His knowledge,experience, and strong work ethicwill truly be missed by the com -pany.

Congratulations, John!Enjoy that retirement!

Jim Nelsonjoined theYoungloveteam as aDesignTechnicianbeginningApril 1. Heobtained his

degree from Northeast CommunityCollege in South Sioux City,Nebraska, in 2014 and has sinceput his drafting skills to use atTyson Meats and C.W. SuterServices.

Welcome aboard, Jim!

Oscar ZamoraMillwright10 Years

John DormanOperator5 Years

Greeley GuerraProject Superintendent

5 Years

Felipe GutierrezMillwright5 Years

Eustacio HernandezCarpenter5 Years

Larry KeesisLead Foreman5 Years

Jacinto MendietaLaborer5 Years

Francisco Montez, Jr.Welder5 Years

Jose MotaLaborer5 Years

Rodolfo T. PerezMillwright5 Years

Frank RomeroForeman5 Years

Jose SanchezCarpenter5 Years

Work, family, an activesocial calendar, and thegeneral chaos of day-to-

day life can make it feel impossibleto find time to squeeze any type ofeducation into our lives. I sit hereand stare at the piles of books Ipurchased for my PE exam. Half ofthem have not been opened; theother half I only opened to browsethrough them. I keep telling myselfI’ll get started when one job comesto a close and the next one isn’t sobusy; but then, on the other hand,my wife and I are expecting oursecond child late this summer—just before the exam. So when willI have time to study? With everything going on in our

lives, education probably nevercrosses our minds. We live in such afast-paced society and are attached toour jobs through technology in such

a way that we truly never “get away”.The idea of “work-life balance”seems, at times, almost impossible.But at the same time, that tech -nology is a blessing when it comesto education. Not only can we takeon-line courses, but we can viewnew and up-to-date codes and safetychanges. The construction industryis an ever-changing, fluid businesswhere codes and standards canchange overnight. For our industry in particular, we

have several avenues we can takefor continuing education. Some ofthem might have to be searched out,while others are easily accessible.The Grain Elevator and ProcessingSociety (GEAPS) offers on-linecourses though K-State for infor-mation on the grain and millingindustry. Saturday courses areavailable for electrical codes(www.electrical.nebraska.gov/pdf/2015-2016-CE.pdf). The NationalFire Protection Associ ation (NFPA)offers on-line courses. There’s theWorld of Concrete in Las Vegas.WITCC (our local community col-lege) offers courses. And there aremany others. The point: It is never too late to

take a course. Whether it is to get abetter understanding of the indus-try you are in or to be moreinformed on codes and standardsor new safety requirements, there isalways something you can learn.

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P E R S O N A L I N S I G H T S

Continuing EducationBy Karl L. Pittmann, Project Manager

“Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only at death.”

— Albert Einstein

Jodi Millertook on thereins of ChiefFinancialOfficer as ofApril 1. Jodi isnot new to ourcompany, asshe’s been withthe Klinger Companies since 2000.She was originally hired on as theAccounting Manager and was pro-moted to Controller in 2004. Jodi attended Briar Cliff Univer -

sity in Sioux City, Iowa, where shemajored in Accounting and minoredin Business. She then went on toachieve her CPA certification.

Congratulations, Jodi!

The posi-tion of ChiefFinancial Officer was for-merly held byBob DeSmidt,who beganworking for thecompany backin 1977. Over the years, his posi-tion expanded into also taking onthe role of human resource directorand reviewing all of our contractlanguage and insurance work. After a long and successful

career with us, Bob has decided tobegin retiring in a “phased-down”manner during 2016. He has alreadyspent the last several months train-ing others in the various aspects ofhis position; and, beginning inJune, Bob will begin working parttime as he continues to work onsome special projects and mentorthe staff taking over his duties.

Congratulations, Bob,on a job well done!


Younglove ispleased toannounce

this facility inSurrency, Georgia,has been commis-sioned and turnedover to FriesFarms to operate.

We would liketo thank FriesFarms for theopportunity todesign and con-struct this facilityand to be a part oftheir growth andteam.

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Fries Farms Project CompleteFeed Mill and Grain Storage; Fries Farms, L.L.C.; Surrency, GeorgiaLoren Field, Project Executive; Jared Myers, Project Manager; Dave Wilberg, Project SuperintendentPat Ebner and John Severe, Project Design Team

Top: New feed mill

Bottom: Grain storage annex, 100-foot-diameter silo, newreceiving, and grain dryer

Left: Feed mill and warehouse

As Spring hits its stride, sodoes our crew in Pomeroy,Iowa.

Dave Johansen and crew havethe mill tower up, and installation

of the binhoppersis in fullswing.The crews

are busy installing floors, stairs,and other structures. Dirt workaround the site for the tilt panelfoundations began in early May. Dar Bierman and his crew will

be joining us to help with installa-tion of the tilt panels around thesite, which will include the warehouse/high bay, tank farm,

boiler room, aircompressorroom, loadoutcanopy, andreceiving/grinding build-ing. As equipment

starts to roll in,the crews areeager to begininstalling it. Theblock masonrywork has beencom pleted, andpainting in thepellet tower isunder way.

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Great Progress Made at PomeroyFeed Mill; NEW Cooperative, Inc.; Pomeroy, IowaKen DuBois, Project Executive; Karl Pittmann, Project Manager; Dave Johansen, Project SuperintendentKelly Henrichs, Project Engineer; Tricia Welch, Project Design Leader

We are pleased to announcethat Younglove has beenselected to construct the

new poultry feed milling facility forMar-Jac Poultry in Spruce Pine,Alabama. After some lengthy site develop-

ment delays, dirt work is cruisingforward while Jim Hornung andcrew mobilize to begin site set-upand construction. The site willinclude a railroad loop track so unit

trains of corn can be received. Thetrack will cross an existing ravinein one area, which will requireapproximately 70 feet of fillplacement to bring it to theproper grade. The all-concrete feed

milling facility will be com-prised of a receiving tunnelwith both rail and truck pits;slipformed mill tower and silosix-pack for grain and soy meal

storage; and tilt-panel grinder room,receiving building, boiler room, and warehouse. Over 11,000 cubic yards of concrete willbe placed by the time the proj - ect is complete. Completion isscheduled for late fall of 2017.

Younglove first worked for Mar-Jac in Maysville, Georgia,in 2004. We’re pleased to once

again be teaming up with themon this exciting project!


Younglove Awarded Mar-Jac ProjectFeed Mill; Mar-Jac Poultry AL, LLC; Spruce Pine, AlabamaJared Myers, Project Executive; Joey Posivio, Project Manager; Jim Hornung, Project SuperintendentPat Ebner, Mohammad Fotouhi, and Brian Hickson, Project Design Team

Builders of value…

Builders of trust

The Younglove Conveyor is publishedtwice a year by

Younglove Construction, L.L.C.2015 East Seventh Street (51101)P.O. Box 8800 (51102)Sioux City, Iowa712-277-3906 � Fax [email protected]

For more information, please request acorporate brochure at the above address.

The Younglove Conveyor, Vol. 16, Issue 1

Younglove...Since 1896

YOUNGLOVE

11

YOUNGLOVE MISSION STATEMENTOur mission is to provide premier construction services,including design, construction, and project management.

We build enduring value and trust using a dedicated team approachto continuously improve customer satisfaction, safety, quality,

and our work environment.


The new animal feed pre-mixplant for InternationalNutrition is very close to

being com pleted. Terry Dunnette andcrew are now finishing up miscella-neous final work items and assistingthe Owner in start-up of the facility. The facility has seven mixers and

bagging lines. Four of the mixersare on load cells, which greatlysimplifies the plant flow and reducesthe handling of dust- producing

ingredientsprior to themixers, wheremineral oil isthen added. For the bag-

ging systems,the City ofOmaha requiredthat an OSHANationallyRecog nized

TestingLaboratory(NRTL)certifyeach of thefour main bagging systemassemblies. CSA (1 of 17NRTL’s) was brought in toinspect and certify each ofthese lines.

Thanks to InternationalNutrition for allowing us to be

involved with them in the design andconstruction of their new manufac-turing facility.

Start-Up Begins at International NutritionRebuilt Animal Feed Pre-Mix Plant; International Nutrition, Inc.; Omaha, NebraskaBill Bradbury, Project Executive and Project Manager; Terry Dunnette, Project SuperintendentTricia Welch, Project Design Leader

Office entrance

Receiving driveway with bulk storage bins above


YOUNGLOVEBuilders of value…Builders of trust

Younglove Construction, L.L.C.

P.O. Box 8800

Sioux City, IA 51102

Address Service Requested

PRSRT STDU.S. Postage

PAIDSioux City, IowaPermit No. 138

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way, withPeco makingtheir firstbatch of pel-leted feed inFebruary. Today

Peco has fullcontrol overthe site, withYoungloveassisting intuning the

mill. As this was my firstproject with both Pecoand Younglove, I takepersonal pride in the work

As Jim Hornung and crewput the final touches on theCorning, Arkansas, project,

let’s look back to where we started.It was almost two years ago whenYounglove was awarded its thirdproject for Peco Foods. Jim andcrew mobilized to the site inMay/June of 2014. That winter the crews worked to

get both the mill and grain silosslipped before the spring of 2015.By August of 2015, Peco Foods wasable to start grain receiv-ing in their three650,000-bushel bins.By January 2016, start-up in the mill was under

Jim and crew have done to makethis proj ect so successful.

We look forward to future oppor-tunities to work with Peco Foods, Inc.

Work Wrapping Up in Corning, ArkansasFeed Mill; Peco Foods, Inc.; Corning, ArkansasLoren Field, Project Executive; Karl Pittmann, Project Manager; Jim Hornung, Project SuperintendentPat Ebner and Brian Hickson, Project Design Team

“kenny’s 2 pennies” by kenny g. gubbels, senior project

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