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CONSTRUCTION
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The Industry’s Newspaper www.constructionnews.net H (210) 308-5800 H Volume 17 H Number 3 H MARCH 2019
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Feels like a fresh start
To infinite and beyond
The design team of Allied Fire Protection, L-R: Troy Davenport, Jesus Munoz, Raymond Delling, David Navarez and Paul Mahan.
One of Charles Teer’s outdoor living spaces by the pool
wo young men: one who spent his younger life being raised by strangers in an orphanage outside of Fort Worth; and the other who lost his father to brain cancer at a young age. They found their way to being best friends at the age of 13. They dreamed of owning a business together and never gave up on that dream. After high school, Shannon Payne experienced the corporate world after obtaining a business degree, while best friend John Hubbard began climbing the ladder in the fire sprinkler industry, starting as a fitter, then advancing to foreman and eventually to a project manager. In 1998, while in their mid-20s, the two followed through with their life-long dream and established Allied Fire Pro-
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tection. Payne with the business knowhow and Hubbard with the trade experience, began working out of Payne’s garage in Pearland, a suburb of Houston. “For the first year, we worked out of my garage. We did everything back then. We designed, we installed, whatever it took. We wore multiple hats to get the company off the ground,” says Payne. It did not take the company long to build up a customer base, but by their third year, they experienced their first emotional upset, 9/11. Everybody was holding onto his or her money, as no one knew what to expect from our Nation’s tragedy. The young company persevered and by late 2002, the economy began to pick continued on Page 14
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harles Teer’s entire life in construction has come into play as owner of Infinite Construction. In other words, there’s no end to what he’s done and what he does. “I did a little bit of everything,” Teer said. “I dabbled in so much when I was younger - doing tile and roofing and framing and interior cabinets, windows and doors and siding - I did so much through the years between 16 and 25, all these things are things that I do now.” Teer got his first taste of construction at 13, helping a guy in his neighborhood remodel. He worked for another company for years. During this time, Teer was observing how this man ran the company and all the processes that came with doing construction projects.
But when it actually came to going solo, Teer states that “I didn’t even purposely get into the business that I’m in; I just kind of fell into it.” It was during a slow time in the winter months, and after Hurricane Ike in 2008 that Teer left the nest. He had his DBA as Infinite Construction while a sub contractor. “I didn’t have a business plan,” he said of those early days. But, Teer took all that he had learned in construction to build patio roof extensions, gazebos, outdoor kitchens - you name it. One hard lesson Teer learned was when to say no and be spread out too thin. Now, he knows what his limit is. Work is steady for Infinite Construccontinued on Page 14
Giving new lift to a Houston icon
he University Center Tower was built in 1975 and is a prominent landmark of the Texas Medical Center. It was originally built as the headquarters for Bud Adams of the Houston Oilers. Today, it is home to The University of Texas (UT) School of Biomedical Informatics, which is a rapidly growing secondary education program for UT Health. Expansion and interior build-out of one of Houston’s icons was long overdue. JE Dunn Construction, a third-generation family-owned corporation specializing in construction management on projects of every size, was up to the challenge. With 22 offices throughout the nation, JE Dunn Construction has been delivering construction services for the past 25 years. The University Center Tower Vertical Expansion included core and shell construction of a 43,230sf, two-story structure atop the existing seven-story parking structure. The new building ties into
The renovated University of Texas Health Science Center Tower. Photo courtesy of G. Lyon Photography Inc.
the existing main tower so it can be accessed through levels six and seven. To meet the structural requirements for a new structure on top of the existing garage, horizontal and vertical concrete beams were added. The new building’s exterior is stucco and contains 150 punched window openings with a TPO roof. The interior includes 39,259sf of classroom and office space with TerraMai wood paneling and over 5,000sf of dryerase paint. Each office has interior window lights and a full glass door. The building contains a state-of-the-art AV system throughout. Because the current structure was built nearly 50 years ago, many of the challenges were due simply to the building’s age. A 1970’s building does not have the structural capacity of today’s buildings. To safely assemble the structure on top continued on Page 14