ABC Celebrates

Merit Shop Contractors’ Commitment to Excellence

Dave Craker, Chairman of ABC of Wisconsin

Dave Craker,

Chairman of ABC of Wisconsin

It is my pleasure to present the annual ABC of Wisconsin Projects of Distinction Awards program. I think you can see from the program that we are making the judging of this program very difficult indeed, due to the high quality of work being submitted.

For the twelfth year we are showcasing the finest work that the state has seen, and one that was out of state for that matter. I am very proud to be able to be the one to introduce these winners to you in this magazine.

This awards program has made winners out of all of us in the merit shop construction industry. This is because what we really are doing is shining a spotlight on our best work, and when we do this, we all benefit.

Once again you have set a record for entries with 63 submitted in 2004. Of course we expect to see that bar raised again with even greater numbers. I think it's a sign that we are recovering from the downswing we have experienced the past few years.

This year we have 21 Projects of Distinction Winners and 8 Merit Award Winners. Merit Awards are given to contractors that ranked extremely high but were edged out by another impressive project in that category. The quality of these projects speaks for themselves.

All winning projects were completed between August 2003 and September 2004. The competition is open to all general and subcontractor members of ABC of Wisconsin. The projects were recognized in such areas as overall distinctiveness, execution of design, craftsmanship, coordination, budgeting, safety, difficulty and unusual challenges.

Before I conclude I would like to thank two very important groups in this year's program — the judging panel and our sponsors.

This year's judging panel included:

Ludwig W. Ridder, Ridder Design, Inc.
Jeremy Harrell, The Daily Reporter
Clair Urban, Contractor — Tools & Supplies
Terry Kolberg, Brink, Kolberg & Associates
Jody Andres, Hoffmann Corporation, LLC
Skip Tenpas, Central Sands, Inc.

Our major sponsors include:

Grant Thornton, LLP
J.J. Keller & Associates, Inc.
Vendura Industries, Inc.
Tradesmen International
Lycon, Inc.
The Daily Reporter
Smith & Gesteland
Virchow Krause & Company

Please take a moment to thank the individuals from these companies who make our awards program so successful.