Alabama

Hoar Construction of Birmingham, Ala., recently announced the promotion of Randall Curtis to vice president.

Curtis has been with Hoar Construction since 1992. In his new position, he will work closely with the firm's divisional operations managers to direct project management operations. He will also be involved in the teaching, coaching and mentoring of key staff to ensure company standards are met and client trust is maintained.

Curtis has a bachelor's degree in building science from Auburn University. He is also a participant in the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce Leadership Development Program, a member of the 2004 National MS Society Leadership Class and a member of the Sunrise Rotary Club.

Bart Taft has been hired as a project engineer in the Municipal Engineering Division in the Birmingham office of Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood Inc. Taft, a registered professional engineer in Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Florida, has more than 16 years of engineering experience.

His expertise lies in project management, water, wastewater, water resources, storm water, design and direction of construction drawings, contract specifications, bid process, structural design, construction review, client development and contractor/owner intervention.

David Parker is also a new addition to the team. With more than 21 years of experience, Parker will serve as a client manager for GM&C. He is a registered professional engineer in Alabama and Mississippi. Through his previous employment, he gained expertise in the fields of civil engineering and land surveying. His background in client relations, business development, personnel management, estimation, as well as design engineering for various road, bridge and site projects, makes him an asset to the firm.

Brice Building Company Inc. of Birmingham recently announced the appointment of Matthew C. Peters to chief financial officer. Peters began his career with the firm in 1999 as corporate controller and in 2003 was named division manager for BESCO, a Brice subsidiary. Prior to joining Brice, Peters spent six years in the public accounting field.

A Cum Laude graduate of Auburn University, Peters will oversee activities of the accounting department as well as corporate financial reporting, budgeting and cash management.

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) recently named William W. Moss of Birmingham as one of 11 new honorary members of the society.

Moss, president of Moss Enterprises Inc., was given the honor in recognition of his contributions and commitment to the designing and building of world-class racing facilities.

ASCE's highest accolade, active honorary membership is comprised of only 186 of its 139,000 members worldwide. The new honorary members will be recognized Oct. 20 at ASCE's annual Civil Engineering Conference in Chicago.

Arkansas

Mike Andrews, Tracy Pendergrass and Denny Upton have been named officers of J. A. Riggs Tractor Co. of Little Rock, Ark.

Andrews is vice president of sales and marketing, Pendergrass of vice president of product support and Upton is vice president of finance and information technology.

Brent Anderson, Tim Blenkenship, Adam Roberson and Matthew Robinson have joined Garver Engineers of Little Rock, Ark. Anderson and Roberson are design engineers for the civil engineering group. Robinson is a design engineer for the electrical engineering group and Blankenship is a senior design engineer for the transportation group.

Louisiana

Industrial Specialty Contractors LLC (ISC) of Baton Rouge, La., recently named Steve McNeal as its chief financial officer.

McNeal graduated from Jacksonville State University in 1970 with a bachelor's degree in accounting. After serving his country as a Green Beret in the 19th and 20th Special Forces, McNeal held positions as internal auditor and controller at firms from Birmingham, Ala., to Baton Rouge.

McNeal has been with the company for more than 15 years. He will maintain all financial aspects for ISC's corporate office and regional offices in Beaumont and Houston, Texas.

John Martin, president and chief executive officer of Walton Construction Co. LLC, has announced that Tommy Clark has been appointed senior vice president and managing director of the Shreveport, La., business unit.

Clark assumed the interim managing director's position this past April. He is one of six managing directors that are part of the senior management team. This team is taking on the leadership of the organization as part of the succession plan of founder and chairman Greg Walton.

Prior to joining Walton, Clark was a partner/director of business development at Aillet, Fenner, Jolly & McClelland Inc., a multi-regional engineering consulting firm in Shreveport.

Walton Construction also announced that Jerry Philmon, Todd Polk and Lisa Sawyer were promoted.

Philmon was promoted to project director. As part of his new role, Philmon is responsible for the operations management of several projects. He will utilize his 32 years of commercial construction experience to oversee several projects.

Polk was promoted to project director. In his new capacity, Polk is responsible for the operations management of several projects including the Northwest Louisiana War Veterans Home, Schwan's Mandeville Home Service Distribution/Warehouse Facility and Cox Communications relocation projects.

Sawyer was promoted to supervisor-project administration. She is responsible for the implementation of the project administration processes at jobsites, ensuring that processes and procedures are consistent and standardized.

Nicole L. Dufour has joined the staff of Wink Companies LLC as business development manager for the company's Architecture Department. With more than eight years experience in the marketing and business development of architectural services, DuFour is responsible for marketing Wink's architecture department in the New Orleans area with a focus on the healthcare, hospitality, commercial and residential markets.

DuFour is a 1987 graduate of Louisiana State University and a member of The Society for Marketing Professional Services.

Allison B. Watts has joined the staff of Wink Companies as business development manager. She is responsible for marketing and business development of the company's engineering services in the Baton Rouge and Lafayette areas. Watts is a 2003 graduate of Louisiana State University and has three years experience in the hospitality industry as an event manager.

Chris Moran has been appointed controller for Shreve Land Construction of Shreveport, La. He will assume the responsibilities from Craig Prothro, who was promoted to operations manager. Moran will be handling all financial matters for the Shreveport and Dallas offices.

Moran has 22 years experience in the accounting field. He received his bachelor's degree inb from Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, La.

Shreve Land also announced that Brady LoBue has been promoted to assistant project manager. Brady has been with Shreve Land two years. During this time he worked as an office esngineer on the Bossier Parish Community College project and then moved to the Shreveport office where he assisted with estimating and management of several commercial projects.

LoBue is a graduate of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge and holds a bachelor's degree in construction management from the College of Engineering.

SJB Group LLC of Baton Rouge recently announced that Dr. Aaron Bass has been appointed manager of coastal and environmental services, reporting to Vice President and Engineering Division Manager Mickey L. Robertson.

SJB Group also announced that William J. "Jeff" Bell has been appointed director of parks & planning, reporting to vice president and Engineering Division manager, Mickey L. Robertson.

In his role, Bass will be the primary client contact for the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources and local governmental subdivisions for analysis and design of coastal and hydraulic projects, marinas and harbors, navigation and dredging, and restoration of shorelines.

Bell has been with SJB Group since 2004 as a senior land planner and landscape architect.

Basic Industries Inc., an operating company of XServ Inc., has named Michael K. McKenna as project manager and estimator, a position newly created for the company's New Orleans operations, to manage recovery and rebuilding projects for facilities damaged by hurricanes.

McKenna's role involves business development and project oversight primarily in the New Orleans area and for the greater Gulf Coast.

PSI has appointed Brad Barth to the position of Geotechnical and Construction Services Department manager in its Baton Rouge operations office. Barth is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati with a bachelor's degree and master's degree in civil engineering.

PSI also announced the addition of Jonathan Penn to its Baton Rouge operations office as a staff specialist.

Tennessee

The Tennessee Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE) selected QORE Chairman, Senior Vice President and Northwest Regional Manager Mack B. McCarley as the 2006 Tennessee Outstanding Engineer of the Year.

Kathryn Gray, president of the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE), presented McCarley with the award at the joint TSPE/ACEC of Tennessee annual banquet in Franklin, Tenn. He is the first recipient to receive the accolade for a second time, after being honored with the title in 1998.

McCarley was selected for the award among nominations received from seven regional chapters of TSPE, an 1,100 member organization. Outstanding Engineer of the Year is the highest award given to an individual by the Tennessee Society of Professional Engineers.

In other news, QORE Property Sciences' Jonathan M. Smolen of Chattanooga, Tenn., has officially published a paper titled "An Alternative Test for the Resilient Modulus of Fine Grained Subgrades" in the American Society of Civil Engineering (ASCE) geotechnical special publication Pavement Mechanics and Performance.

The Southeast Cement Association recently announced that Barry W. Wilder has joined its staff as pavement applications director for Tennessee.

Wilder is responsible for soil cement, full-depth reclamation using cement and roller-compacted concrete market development, as well as the association's outreach and education efforts to the state and local governments, private developers, architectural and engineering consultants, construction managers and contractors.

Wilder has more than eight years of experience in the highway construction industry, most recently as project manger for the LPA Group Inc. He has had the opportunity to provide leadership on two highway design-build projects that included major stabilization practices, cement-treated recycled bases and concrete pavements. He had been involved in field testing, inspection, management troubleshooting and presenting innovative solutions to agencies.

Hickory Hardware, a designer, manufacturer and marketer of decorative, functional and industrial hardware, recently announced the addition of three new members to its management team. The new appointments are Barbara Tamkin as human resources director, Matt Southards as digital asset manager, and Robert Shirley as program manager.

Tamkin joins Hickory Hardware after serving 19 years as human resources administrator at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. Her experience in human resource administration includes retirement planning, benefit programs, program development and training, as well as other aspects of human resources management. Tamkin has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and certification as a professional in human resources.

Southards comes to Hickory Hardware after receiving his master's degree in business administration from the University of Illinois. He has experience in mobile connectivity and web portals for municipal-scale and smaller WiFi & WiMAX networks. Southards holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Thomas Edison State College.

Robert Shirley comes to Hickory Hardware from the technical support department of Dell Computer, after spending most of his career in the project management of automotive production system projects for companies like Saturn and Nissan. In his newly created position, Shirley will manage internal strategic development, risk management and programs for key Hickory Hardware customers. Shirley has an electrical engineering degree from Drexel University.

Smith Seckman Reid Inc., an engineering design and facility consulting firm, has hired Leigh Ann Sullivan as marketing coordinator for the firm's Memphis office.

Sullivan is responsible for creating promotional materials and developing and implementing marketing strategies unique to the engineering industry. She will also manage special events and trade show participation, generate proposals and strengthen corporate branding.

Prior to joining SSR, Sullivan worked for the Central Service Association in Tupelo, Miss.

Sullivan earned her bachelor's degree in communications from Mississippi State University in Starkville, Miss., with an emphasis in public relations and a minor in marketing.

The Tennessee Industrial Development Council has elected the following officers: Mark Herbison, president; Doug Lawyer, vice president; Walt Wood, secretary-treasurer; Kyle Spurgeon, immediate past president; Darryl Brady, East Tennessee representative; Robert Barnes, Middle Tennessee representative; Hollie Holt, West Tennessee representative; Marco Oliveri, Southern Economic Development Council representative; Elizabeth Theiss, SEDC alternate representative; and Paul LaGrange, state liaison.

Randy Pomeroy has been promoted to vice president and controller at Batten & Shaw of Nashville. Previously, Pomeroy directed the accounting department.

Grinder-Haizlip Construction Co. of Memphis has appointed Jerry W. James as a project manager.