Alabama

John D. Bond III, a former employee of J.A. Jones Construction Co., has joined the law firm of Bradley Arant Rose & White LLP as a partner in its Birmingham office.
In his new role, he will practice with the construction and procurement practice group.
While at J.A. Jones in North Carolina, Bond's most recent position was president. Before serving in that position, he was senior vice president, general counsel.

Eddie Hyde has been appointed vice president of construction for Hoar Construction, a full-service contractor headquartered in Birmingham.
Hyde's responsibilities will include project staffing, production, safety and quality control. He formerly was director of field operations for Hoar Construction's healthcare division.

Arkansas

Mitch Chandler has been named communications section leader at the Arkansas Dept. of Economic Development in Little Rock.
Chandler has held positions in news, programming, promotion and sales at various television stations in Little Rock.

Kathy Robinson of Perryville has joined East-Harding Inc. in Little Rock as a controller. Robinson previously worked at Nabholz Construction.
Erick Roberts of North Little Rock has joined the company as assistant project manager.

Easter-Harding's Michael Parker has been named a LEED Accredited Professional for his work in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design developed by the U. S. Green Building Council.

Mississippi

Dennis O. Norris replaced William "Bill" Hobgood as chief of the operations division at Vicksburg District U. S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Hobgood has retired after serving 36 years in the Corps. Norris previously served as the assistant chief of operations.

The Vicksburg District includes areas of Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

IRBY Construction Co. IRBY Construction Co., a Jackson-based power line and telecommunications contractor, announced that John Nye has been named CEO and Bill Korlath has been named president.

They will replace Fred Haag, who left his positions at IRBY and Quanta Services Inc. to pursue other opportunities, the company said.

Nye had been manager of transmission technical services at Par Electrical Contractors and Korlath previously served as executive vice president of operations. Robert Croft will continue as CFO at IRBY Construction and Mark Mullen remains as executive vice president.

Tennessee

Gerald King has been promoted to vice president of Hoar Construction's Nashville Division.

King has more than 28 years experience in the construction industry working with clients such as HCA, Tenet Healthcare Corporation, United Surgical Partners International, Community Health Systems Inc. and Surgis Inc.

He holds a bachelor's degree in building construction from Auburn University.
Hoar Construction is headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., and has offices in Houston, Orlando and Nashville. The company is a full-service contractor with retail, healthcare, commercial and program management divisions.

Gate Precast Company has named Hagen Lambert as president of operations and Dean Gwin as president of sales and marketing.

Hagen is responsible for all operational and administrative issues for Gate Precast and Dean will manage sales and marketing efforts at all six architectural precast plants.

Gate Precast is the new name for all six of the architectural precast concrete plants being operated by the company, a division of Gate Petroleum Co.

The following plant locations will operate as Gate Precast Company: Nashville, Tenn.; Winchester, Ky.; Oxford, N.C.; Monroeville, Ala.; and Sarasota and Kissimmee, Fla.

Gate Concrete Products Co. will continue to operate its prestress operations under that name in Jacksonville, Fla., and Houston, Texas.

ACEC The American Council of Engineering Companies of Tennessee, Memphis Chapter, recently elected new officers and board members.

Elected were President Richard Bursi, president/CEO of OGCB Inc.; Vice President John Perry, associate vice president of Buchart-Horn Inc.; Secretary David Canup, director of electrical division for Ellers, Oakly Chester & Rike Inc; Treasurer Steve Hill, vice president of Barge, Waggoner, Sumner & Cannon Inc.

Chapter board members are Edward Hargraves, partner with Askew, Hargraves, Harcourt & Associates LLC; Yousef Saleh, chief structural engineer with Pickering Firm Inc.; Bernard Zawada, principal with Burr & Cole Consulting Engineers Inc.; and Immediate Past President James Collins, regional vice president of Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc.

National

Fred W. Heldenfels IV was named chairman of the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI). PCI is the national association representing the producers, suppliers and users of precast, prestressed concrete for the construction of commercial, industrial, residential and public/institutional buildings, bridges and transportation facilities and other specialized structures.

President and CEO of Heldenfels Enterprises Inc., Heldenfels is a 1979 graduate of Texas A&M University and a fifth generation Texan. With manufacturing plants in Corpus Christi and San Marcos, Texas, Heldenfels Enterprises continues the tradition of Heldenfels Brothers Inc., a family-owned construction and materials business formed in 1909 by Heldenfels' great-grandfather.

The firm specializes in the manufacture and installation of precast/prestressed concrete structures for the highway, marine/industrial and commercial markets.

Heldenfels has led other industry, community and education organizations, having served in recent years as president of the Texas A&M Twelfth Man Foundation and the Texas Good Roads/Transportation Association. He is also past chairman of the Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce and past president of the Precast Concrete Manufacturers Association of Texas.

He has been an active member of the AGC of Texas, having served as an area chairman and on several committees.

Rivers Claytor with John W. Hancock Jr. Inc. of Salem, Va., was named president of the Steel Joist Institute, the industry association of steel joist manufacturers in Myrtle Beach, S. C.

Claytor has more than 32 years of experience in the steel joist industry and currently serves as executive vice president of John W. Hancock. He has served on the Steel Joist Institute's engineering practices, consensus specifications, research and executive committees.

Sam Mahdavi with Quincy Joist Co. of Quincy, Fla., will serve as first vice president, and Denis Tremblay with Delta Joists Inc. of Ste. Marie de Beauce of Quebec, Canada, will serve as second vice president.

Besides setting standard for the steel joist industry, the Steel Joist Institute works closely with major building code bodies throughout the country, helping to develop code regulations regarding steel joists and joist girders.

John W. (Bill) Kirk III, president and chief executive officer of Associated Asphalt Inc., was named 2004 chairman of the Asphalt Institute Board of Directors at the institute's annual meeting in La Jolla, Calif..

Paul Kolbeck of Colas, S.A., was named vice chairman.

"I look forward to serving as chairman," Kirk said. "My goals are to continue the work of our past chairman, strengthening our partner relationships and enhancing the value of the institute for our members. I also hope to help the institute with the many challenges facing the industry and renew our commitment to building a brighter future."

Kirk has been involved with the institute for more than six years through Associated Asphalt and has served on a number of AI committees. Most recently, Kirk has served as the chairman of the Membership Committee. He views membership as the "lifeblood" of an association and through his chairmanship he hopes to enhance the institute's value to all members and the industry as a whole.

Kirk is a native of Roanoke, Va., and a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College.

The International Association of Geosynthetic Installers (IAGI), a group of geosynthetic installers dedicated to raising the professionalism of the industry, announced its board of directors for 2004-2005.

The following individuals were elected to serve on the board: Carl Apicella, American Environmental Group LTD; Brian McKeown, Clean Air and Water Services; "Demo" Dave McLaury, DEMTECH Services Inc.; Dennis O'Brien, MPC Containment Systems Inc.; John K. "Robbie" Robinson, Engineered Textile Products; Anne Steacy, Poly-Flex Construction; William Steinke, Steel Dragon Enterprise Co. Ltd.; and Lee Taylor, Taylor Geosynthetics.

Robinson will serve as president, O'Brien will serve as first vice president, Taylor will serve as second vice president and Steacy will serve as treasurer.

Robert Haddox, PLS Construction Services Inc. will continue to serve on the board as immediate past president.

"It has been a pleasure to work for the IAGI organization," Haddox said. "IAGI has accomplished many things and the new Board of Directors is planning serveral new initiatives. Look for more good things from this group."

IAGI strives to provide a fourm for geosynthetic installers to advance installation and construction techniques, as well as to strengthen the knowledge, image and community within the industry.

The Erosion Control Technology Council (ECTC), an organization committeed to the advancement of rolled erosion control materials, elected its officers for 2004-2005.

Tim Lancaster, North American Green Inc., was elected chairman; Deron Austin, SI Geosolutions, was elected vice chairman; and Mark Myrowich, ErosionControlBlanket.com, was elected treasurer.

Tony Johnson, American Excelsior Co., and Kevin Spittle, Profile Products LLC, were named at-large board members.

Laurie Honnigford continues to serve as ECTC executive director.

ECTC is a non-profit group committed to advancing the use of rolled erosion control materials by providing education and leadership in the industry.