Jacobsen route captains lead the charge
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Andee Dixon, Corey McGrath, Miguel Dominguez, Ben Grace, & Josh Abramson Jacobsen Landscape Design and Construction Midland Park, NJ |
When the snow is flying in Midland Park, NJ, the route captains for Jacobsen Landscape Design and Construction are on the front line, supervising site operations and managing customer relations for the company’s 76 commercial sites.
Ed Gorman, co-department manager, says the captains—Andee Dixon, Corey Mcgrath, Miguel Dominguez, Ben Grace and Josh Abramson—are the “backbone of our operation.” Each captain is assigned a plow truck with a salter so he can respond to any situation. They have oversight for all services performed onsite. During a storm they manage customer service, callbacks and ice patrol. Post-storm, they make sure the trucks and equipment are cleaned and refueled and remote material stockpiles are restocked.
The success of each event rests largely with the captains, since they are responsible for planning the routes, training their drivers, assigning sidewalk crews and ensuring their assigned equipment is ready to go. That preparedness was on display last season when the company battled storms that dumped more than 40 inches of snow in less than 30 days.
“Without these guys we would not be able to boast a better than 90% renewal rate,” Gorman says. “We had three 90-hour work weeks and not once did anyone fail to come through as a true professional.”
With supervisor deployed, foreman steps up
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Chris Fernandes Supervisor R.S. Widdoes & Son Wilmington, DE |
Michael Widdoes is currently deployed overseas with the National Guard, and while he’s away, he is grateful to have Chris Fernandes as a supervisor on the R.S. Widdoes & Son team.
Fernandes has been with the company since high school, starting as a laborer and moving up to foreman in a short time. While Fernandes’ official title is laborer foreman, Widdoes says he’s “a lot of everything,” whether he is painting the office, cleaning the shop or supervising 10 to 15 laborers at 8 to 10 sites during a snowstorm.
He puts in countless hours before, during and after the storms to make sure the teams are prepared, Widdoes says. In addition, since they are a smaller company, R.S. Widdoes & Son doesn’t have a full-time mechanic so Fernandes has become a valuable resource in that area as well. Last season, a plow pump blew and Fernandes worked all night in the snow and rain to get the plow working in time for the next round of snow that morning.
“A breakdown can cost us dearly, but Chris is as good with a wrench as he is with a plow,” Widdoes says. “He is one of the best employees we’ve ever had. I don’t think I’d want to take on half the snow work we do if we didn’t have him. Since I’ll be deployed this snow season, our company will rely on Chris more than ever to ensure successful snow removal operations.”
