2014 Winter Edition 12162014

“Paving the Pathway to a Successful Future”
2014 Winter
In this Edition….
PLP Program
New Jobs
A Better Place
Elgin OHare Update
Winter Safety
Announcements
And much more….
“The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential…..these are
the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.”
Confucius
December 19, 2014
INSIDE THIS EDITION
Letter from the President
………………………………… 3
PLP—Plote Leadership Program
………………………………… 4
A Better Place
………………………………… 4
New Jobs at Plote
………………………………… 5
Mchenry County—Randall Road
………………………………… 6
I-90 West Contract
………………………………… 6
Rt 25 & I-90 Reconstruct
………………………………… 7
IL Rt 58 West of I-90
………………………………… 7
I-90 Tollway Bidding Update
………………………………… 8
IL 68; Prairie Lake Rd. to IL 62
………………………………… 9
IL 173
…………………………………. 9
Rt 14
………………………………… .10
I-90 Retaining Wall Finished
………………………………….10
10R—28L PLS Project
………………………………… 11
McCornack Rd—Rutland Township
………………………………… 11
Bluff City Blvd
…………………………………12
Gary Avenue
…………………………………12
Talamore U.S. Home Corporation
………………………………...13
……………………………….13
Talamore—Ryland Homes
Elgin O’Hare Expy Western Access
…………………………………14
“I-90 East”
…………………………………14
Snap that Photo
…………………………………15
Snow Plow Safety
…………………………………16
Cold Weather Safety Tips
…………………………………16
Welcome to Plote Companies
…………………………………17
Anniversaries & Congratulations
…………………………………17
Plote Construction Inc.
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Letter From The President
As we wind down and finish up the field construction I’m happy to say 2014 was full of accomplishments you should all be proud of the many miles of roads you built this year.
In addition to what was completed in the field the office and estimating staff has also been hard at it!
They too have many accomplishments. I’m happy to say that our backlog for 2015 is quite impressive.
It is the collective efforts of all of Plote Construction that has stepped up to help us continue the
next 50 years. It is not without all of your efforts that
make us the strong organization we are today!
In closing I hope you use this holiday time off not
only to rest but to spend time with family and friends. I
look forward to seeing you next year and in helping conquer the I-90 tollway reconstruction.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Travel Safe
Dan
North Dakota Update
Hello from North Dakota,
The time of year has come to shut down many aspects of our program, as weather will and is dictating
our work.
We have been blessed this year as we have not had the -20 below zero in November like last year. But
we know sooner or later it IS coming.
We are still selling stone this week, but are going to shut down that also until January 5th.
With our “Slide Repair” Project completed this week, it is a good time for everyone to spend some time off
with family and friends.
It is very well deserved.
We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a prosperous 2015.
Larry Plote
Plote Construction Inc.
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PLP—Plote Leadership Program
The Plote leadership Program has had 4 sessions. There seems
to be a lot of good work going on in these leadership training sessions.
Bill Treasurer leads the group each meeting and we have one of our
executive team members as a guest at each session. So far Dan Plote,
Dan Shepard, Dick Lyons, and Mike Waller have assisted in these
training sessions. The most recent session was on Courageous Leadership. Pictured is a photo of the participants in the program doing an
exercise led by Bill Treasurer.
Karen B.—Executive Assistant
A Better Place
In the last Steamer I asked if any of you have any suggestions to make Plote a great place to work for
Dan and the other executive team members. You can email suggestions to Karen Busch at Kbusch@plote.com
and put on the subject “making Plote a great place to work” or you can drop them into Karen’s inbox on her
desk in an envelope with “making Plote a great place to work” written on the front.
I did get some suggestions from employees and we are doing a few things based on those suggestions.
First we will now be listing the employee’s birthdays coming up in the next three months in the Steamer. It
will only list the month of the employee’s birthdates due to some privacy issues. We will also be starting a
new program to recognize employees who go above and beyond in their jobs. Nominations will be made by
the managers to the executive team and recipients will be picked by the executive team members. The award
will be a $50 gift card to be used at Boulder Ridge Country Club in the pro shop or toward dinner at the club.
All reservations for dinner need to be made through Karen Busch to redeem the gift card.
Thank you to the employees who made suggestions and hopefully more of you will make suggestions
in the future.
Karen B.—Executive Assistant
Plote Construction Inc.
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New Jobs at Plote
Job
Plote Construction Inc.
County
IL 68; Prairie Lake Rd to IL 62
Kane - Cook Counties
IL 68; IL 72 to Prairie Lake Rd
Kane County
IL 21, Church St. to IL 60
Libertyville & Vernon Hills
Lombard Rd. Lot Resurfacing
Lombard
Ryland 2014 Paving - Talamore
Huntley
McCornack Rd - Rutland Twp
Kane County
Lennar - Talamore Pods 3 & 4
Huntley
I-90; Higgins Rd. to Roselle Rd.
Cook
I-90; Roselle Rd to I-290/IL 53
Cook
Bode Road, Braintree Dr. to Bode Circle
Hoffman Estates
Salem Drive; Bode Road to Golf Road.
Schaumburg & Hoffman
I-90; RTE 25 to Higgins Road
Cook
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Mchenry County-Randall Road
Night time patching experts we are at Plote Construction per Mchenry County DOT. This past fall
Mchenry County DOT let a project of patching along Randall Road. The project at hand was a 5.96 mile joint
repair from Harnish Drive to Alexandra Blvd. Required by time of completion would be over 1600 ton of
patching along with 14,000 sy of asphalt milling. While this may seem a small amount, equated over 5.96
miles and 4’ wide and reopened to traffic every morning made for daunting task.
Austin V. our superintendent for this project led the way to completing this work in the busiest part of
our season. The project as outlined required nightly set ups while working on a busy stretch of Randall road
and reopening in the morning to original lane configurations. Mchenry County wanted this done at night to
ensure business throughout the day would not be impaired by construction. Mchenry County DOT was ecstatic
at the professionalism by the staff along with the commitment of resources thrown at this high profile patching
project. With the completion in the short duration due to our production, Mchenry County DOT could not
have been happier!
A thank you to Mark P. and crew, along with Ken S. crew and Cesar C. and his group for working at
night! The project was a success as was completed safe along within a week of start with all patching. Austin
had striped and detector loop back in place within the following week. Mchenry County was hoping we would
get done in a month. Way to go!
Gary W. —Project Estimator /Coordinator
I-90 West Contract
The “West 90 job” looks like it is finished, but there are still
some loose ends (like the pond on the South side of the Tollway) to
tie up, but all of the roadway work was completed on time and under
budget. Although all the roadway work was completed on time, we
were still working endless hours digging a pond on the south side of
the Tollway. The Tollway did not acquire the land for the pond until
October 15th. Although this was not the most ideal circumstance we
took it as a challenge to finish a 150,000CY pond before the winter
came. Just like all other challenges we came across this year the pond
was no different. We knocked out 98% of the pond in a month and a
half. Due to some fiber conflicts there will be very minimal work to
complete next year. With that being said Plote was still one of the first contractors to have all lanes of traffic
ready to open by the intended substantial completion date. Due to delays
of other contracts further west the opening ceremony was pushed back
several weeks. The fact that we finished the project on time and under
budget we will be receiving a contractor of the year award at the annual
Road Builders meeting / holiday party. A big shout out to Dave F., Chuck
H., Mike F., Bill D., Juan C., Melchor G.,Jr., Terry C., and Troy I. for
working so hard in the field to make the contractor of the year award even
possible.
Frank T. — Project Engineer
Plote Construction Inc.
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I-13-4104 Rt 25 & I-90 Reconstruct
Some call it a jig saw, some call it Charlie Foxtrot, here at Plote Construction we call it a living. The
opportunity to build the Rt. 25 interchange that brings many of us to the office is part of the green machine’s
backlog. The first year is under our belt and along with a magnitude of utility delays, Plote Construction managed to navigate through many stage changes to keep the motoring public paying the toll booth. With a late
November deadline, the Rt. 25 bridge deck was a push to get open and traffic switched onto the new deck so
that demolition of the south bound half could take place over the winter months. The cement shortage did not
help the cause for Plote or Dunnet Bay in reaching this milestone. While Plote only had a couple hundred feet
of full depth concrete pavement to do on Rt. 25, the temperatures and coordination of approach slabs, connector slabs, parapet walls and sewers made this no easy feat.
Jake “Hemingway” N.—Superintendent
IL RT 58 West of I-90
The project performed as outlined above was a 1.0 mile grind and overlay performed at night by Plote
Construction. The project was a 6500 ton overlay with over 44,000 sy of milling to be performed at night by
one of the busiest malls in America!
A thanks to Terry C. and crew for working the grinder at night, along with Bernard B. and his guys for
working the trimming and cleanup to bring the cost within budget! Also, thanks to Mo G. and his crew for
paving along with Mark P. coming in on a Saturday day and getting the level binder paving completed. Good
move by Bill D. to facilitate construction and keep the rollers moving by paving on Friday night then Saturday
day! This allowed Daryl to get the structures raised then roll right into the surface course the following week.
The project led by Daryl N. was completed in the tight time frame as outlined in the contract. PCI and
crews completed the contract within the 25 Working days as outlined while bringing the project within budget.
Way to go Daryl! It was another million dollar project in the books and successful and safely built by all
whom worked on it.
Gary W.—Project Estimator/Coordinator
Plote Construction Inc.
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I-90 Tollway Bidding Update
Today 12/16 is the last day of I-90 bidding for the estimating department for 2014 bidding season. The
Toll road this week will have received bids to rebuild the outside lanes of the eastern portion of I-90 from the
Elgin Toll Plaza to the Kennedy Expressway. The whole department has worked diligently and effectively to
get to this point. Our success to date has been tremendous. Of the four contracts we put bids in on we have
been low bidder on three of them, totaling $225,871,762 all new work for the 2015 construction season. The
work stretches from I-290/Rt. 53 all the way west to our current project at Rt. 25. Two of the contracts were
bid at the same time in combination for a grand total of $148,992.391, the largest single bid to date in Plote’s
50 year history. The work stretches for a net total of 11.3 miles of roadway reconstruction. Quantities to note
are as follows: asphalt 218,000 tons, concrete
489,581 square yards, and earth excavation of
705,110 cubic yards. The work appears to be a tremendous challenge due to its size, but you can’t beat
the fact that it is literally at our front door. As estimating rolls into 2015 we will be selectively searching for additional opportunities to compliment the I90 corridor back log.
Bill M—Head Estimator
Plote Construction Inc.
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IL 68; Prairie Lake Rd. to IL 62
A late season start for contract I-13-4630 Lively Blvd didn’t stop Supt. Ty Z. and his crews from moving almost 200,000 CY of material in little over 3 months. Gen Supt Norm S. lined up the equipment and away
they went building 30 foot tall embankment for the future Western Terminal Access at O’hare International
Airport. Due to design and utility delays, the construction of the MSE Walls and Bridge Structure of Lively
Blvd was delayed until early December, and to keep the contract on track the ISTHA is keeping our boys busy
working right through the holidays. Thankfully to date mother nature provided an early Christmas present and
has kept her winter wrath at bay until this point, providing some relatively warm weather through the first few
weeks of December. A few more just like it and everyone can get some much needed rest while looking ahead
to the 2015 season.
Ben S.—Project Manager
IL 173
November brought all of us many different things this year. Things such as Turkey, stuffing, tighter
jeans, cold temperatures, and the end of Stage 1 construction on IL 173. During the course of stage 1 construction, Plote poured 78,000 SY of new concrete pavement. That amount was made up of a 4 lane mainline with
additional turn lanes, 11 intersections, and 2300 feet of a side street. A big thank you goes out to everyone
who was involved on the project from the prep crews, the pouring crews, and the PCC plant and paver operators.
Paul M..—Project Manager
Plote Construction Inc.
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Rt 14
Work on IDOT contract #'s 62268 and 62517 commenced late fall. Dave F. and Chuck H. have
been busy preparing for temporary pavement to be poured by year's end. With the pavement in, there
will be adequate room for Viridian Enterprises to work on underground storm sewer through the winter. Work being done in winter time is a huge hurdle but will help out the timeframe and schedule immensely.
Keith K.—Project Engineer
I-90 Retaining Wall Finished
It is sad to say, but the retaining wall job in front of the office is
coming to an end. On November 11th, construction of the last of the five
retaining walls on the job was complete. Since then, ditch work, sign installation, landscaping and punch list activities have been continuing in
an effort to wrap up the job in the fall of 2014. A Big Thanks goes out to
Jen T. for helping me in the office,
Dan Phillips for overseeing the job
and making sure all activities ran
smooth and Chris W. for overseeing
the MSE wall activities. The combined effort of these individuals
has made this job profitable and has been a pleasure to be a part
of. Now that we have mastered the art of MSE walls we will be
ready for more I-90 walls to come in the next year!
Nick P—Project Manager
Plote Construction Inc.
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10R—28L PLS Project
Steve D. and his crew lead by Foreman Moe G. had a spectacular year at O'Hare on the 10R28L PLS Project. A combined total of 193,019.02 tons of asphalt were placed, with the majority of the
work being completed at night. A good chunk of work was completed thus far, but there is still
roughly 50,000 tons of material to be placed next year. With the exception of a few bugs at the beginning of the job, the stringless trimming and paving has gone better than planned. Tim S. played a crucial part in making sure everyone was prepared for this task. We are looking forward to seeing planes
land next year!
Keith K—Project Engineer
McCornack Rd—Rutland Township
There are two words every estimator loves to hear at a bid opening: “Only Bidder”. That was
the case with McCornack Road for Rutland Township. It is hard to understand why there was only
one bid when the project was such a nice paving job. Plote was charged with the task of paving over
an existing gravel road with binder and surface. The only caveat was that there was a section of road
which needed to be paved to match existing elevations due to flood plain concerns. The job called for
excavation, base preparation, aggregate work and butt joints in preparation of paving. General Superintendent Bill D. and Superintendent George E. figured out a way to handle all of the prep work with
just one day of the milling crew! Then the paving crew led by Foreman Jeff K. came in and paved out
the job in two days. The entire project was completed under budget in less than a week which made
the township highway commissioner very happy. Great job team!
John R. – Estimator/Project Manager
Plote Construction Inc.
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Bluff City Boulevard & Gifford Road Intersection Improvement
A month and a half after a very successful August 1st IDOT Letting, the first project out of the eight
bids that we were low bidder was started. The project was small in magnitude, but complicated with the large
volume of truck traffic. The intersection was a major truck route into and out of for the local business such as
Bluff City Material, Vulcan Materials and Acme Refining Scrap Iron & Metal. With our superintendant
George E. coordinating with Bill D. on the availability of crews to constructed the project, George started with
Cesar C.'s crew to repair the two lane road with 260 SY of Class D Patching 9". Next, Terry C's grinding crew
milled 9,600 SY of the existing HMA pavement at a depth of 2". Before the local truck traffic could ravel the
remaining existing HMA over concrete pavement, Mark P.'s paving crew placed 550 tons of Poly Level Binder
at a depth of 1" & variable and then followed up with the placement of 990 tons 1.75" of HMA Poly "F" Mix
N90.The uniqueness of placing the surface course was that the Quality Management Control for this project
was "Quality Control for Performance" (QCP). With the large volume of truck traffic, PCI was able to get
100% pay factor on the surface. This was achieved by the team work of the paving crew, the manufacturing of
the mix from our Bartlett Plant, along with our QC department in the mix design and the quality control at the
plant and on the project site.
J. P.—Estimator/ Project Manager
Gary Avenue
The Gary Avenue Project was scheduled to start work the first week of April, but was delayed over 4
months due to utility conflicts. Without knowing a utility relocation completion date, Plote devised a staging
plan that allowed us to accelerate the project to a point where the N90 poly-binder course could be completed
by mid November. In order to complete the binder by November it was necessary to install over 11,000 feet
of storm sewer, more than 200 new drainage structures, 19,000 feet of Curb and Gutter, 10,000 tons of Level
Binder paved to specific grades, and over 7,500 sy of variable width PCC Base Course, all between June 1st
and November 1st. During the first week of November, when the weather was decent enough, Plote put down
over 7000 tons of Poly Binder in 3 days completing the poly binder on ¾ of the project. Unfortunately the utility delays on the south portion of the project did not get relocated in time for us to complete the entire project
this year.
Kerry F.—Sr. Project Manager
Plote Construction Inc.
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Talamore U.S. Home Corporation
Talk about waiting until the last second! U.S Homes saw Plote crews working in Talamore for Ryland
Homes and called us to get their roads in Talamore paved as well. The problem was that they had waited too
long and temperatures were becoming too cold to pave. It was the first week of November and the following
week called for high temperatures to drop into the 20’s by Wednesday. With only Saturday through Monday
looking like potential days to pave things were looking grim. With a little coaxing, (ok maybe a lot) General
Superintendent Bill D. and Plant Superintendent Billy W. agreed to schedule work through the weekend and
even open the plant on Sunday to accommodate the customer. We received a contract on Friday afternoon,
and went to work that Saturday. Crews worked tirelessly through the weekend to edge mill, patch and pave
final surface in Pods 3 & 4 of Talamore. Thanks go to Austin V., Terry C., Troy I. and the crews as well as the
Huntley Plant staff for working through the entire weekend at the end of a busy work season. It is your dedication that allowed Plote to take advantage of an opportunity while helping a customer in need. Now if we can
only get that pre-job meeting scheduled…
John R. – Estimator/Project Manager
Talamore—Ryland Homes
Fall brought us a chance to pick up some late season asphalt work close to home. Ryland was looking
for a contractor to pave the final surface lift in the developed sections of their Talamore subdivision in Huntley. All of the roads involved had been previously paved up to only binder, and had been without surface for
as far back as 2005!
It complicated matters that in order to turn the streets over to the Village of Huntley, Ryland first
needed to repair the existing binder before surfacing the streets. Two months and six rounds of proposals later,
Ryland chose to employ a combination approach of Plote to patch some streets and another contractor to heater
scarify others. This strategy was intended to save money, but flaws in the scarifying process left many areas of
road too high to surface.
With time running out and winter weather just days away, Plote stepped in to get things done. General
Supt. Bill D. called upon the Cassara milling crew to fix the issues left by the scarification. Troy I.’s paving
crew came in and placed almost 16,000 tons of surface in 10 paving days with a little help from Dominick Pisano’s crew on the last day! Special thanks go out to Austin V., Bill D., and George E. for all the coordination
(and patience) it took to get this job done. The streets look great!
John R. – Estimator/Project Manager
Plote Construction Inc.
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Elgin O’Hare Expy Western Access
Another substantial completion date met for the Plote Construction team out on the Elgin O’Hare Expressway between Roselle Rd and Meacham Rd.; all civil work was completed prior to midnight November
25th and all lanes were safely open to traffic. The final push on this project was not without its share of difficulties, as is with every contract. The cold weather snap in mid-November and industry wide concrete struggles nearly derailed us, and had Gen Supt Mike F. and his concrete crews slip forming single face barrier wall
right up to the contract deadline, but as per usual the work was completed and done to the highest quality. A
special thanks to Gen Supt Bill D., Project Supt Ty Z., Sr. PM Mark B. and Foreman Mark P. on the mainline
paving of SMA, it rides like glass! The first contract let on the Elgin O’hare Corridor was substantially complete by the original contract deadline, which is more than can be said for the adjacent contractors and their
projects. Another one in the books for Plote and the gang, and cheers to everyone for a successful 2014 and
what will prove to be a historic 2015 season.
Ben S.—Project Manager
“I-90 East”
The “East 90 job” looks like it is finished, but there are still some loose ends (like the erection/ electrical work of a DMS sign) to tie up, but all of the roadway work was completed on time and under budget. Plote
was one of the first contractors to have all lanes of traffic ready to open by the intended substantial completion
date. Due to delays of other contracts further west the opening ceremony was pushed back several weeks. Due
to the fact we finished the project on time and under budget we will be receiving a contractor of the year award
at the annual Road Builders meeting / holiday party. A big shout out to Dave F, Chuck H, Mike F, Bill D, Juan
C, Melchor G, Jr., and Troy I. for working so hard in the field to make the contractor of the year award even
possible.
Frank T.—Project Engineer
Plote Construction Inc.
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Snap that Photo
Plote Construction Inc.
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Snow Plow Safety
Snow plow safety is something that every snow plow driver must be aware of. The blowing, drifting snow
mixed with the slick pavement provides for hazardous conditions. So how can you safely make sure that yourself or others are not harmed during this process? Here are a few tips that might help you out:
· Be aware of your surroundings and know your route. Always make sure you know what possible obstacles
are within your plowing area like mailboxes, fences, signs, posts, etc. This can save damage to property and to
your plow, which in the long run will save you money.
· Always be tolerant and patient of other drivers or pedestrians around you. Imagine yourself in their shoes;
seeing a huge truck drive toward you with a plow on the front is not always the most pleasant thing.
· Watch your speed! This is a huge mistake many plow drivers make when going about their jobs. In fact,
many of the accidents involving snow plows are created because the driver was going too fast for the weather
conditions. It might be desired to get the job done faster, but it is not worth the injuries to your body, the plow,
or possibly someone else's body. Make sure you are constantly keeping an eye out for ice or obstacles. It is
also helpful to know the road and weather conditions before leaving to plow.
· Obey all traffic laws (i.e. wearing your seatbelt at all times). This will save lots of trouble with law enforcement and could save your life in the event of an accident.
· Make sure before leaving the vehicle after you have done your job, that you cut off all power to the snow
plow and spreader.
Get a good night's rest before going out to plow. Although this is sometimes impossible to do, make sure that
you are not feeling too drowsy or sleepy. Falling asleep at the wheel is obviously a devastating, fatal mistake.
Plow operators serve the community well during some of the worst weather. However, it is important that
EVERYONE, including you the plow operator, gets home safely in the snow.
Cold Weather Safety Tips
As colder weather approached it is important to remember that extreme cold can be dangerous and sometimes
fatal here are some safety tips for the winter months courtesy of The American Red Cross
1. Wear layers of lightweight clothing to stay warm. Gloves and a hat will help prevent losing your body heat.
2. Don’t forget your pets - bring them indoors. If they can’t come inside, make sure they have enough shelter
to keep them warm and that they can get to unfrozen water.
3. Protect your pipes - run water, even at a trickle, to help prevent your pipes from freezing. Open the kitchen
and bathroom cabinet doors to allow warmer air to circulate around the plumbing. Be sure to move any harmful cleaners and household chemicals out of the reach of children. Keep the garage doors closed if there are
water lines in the garage.
4. Keep the thermostat at the same temperature day and night. Your heating bill may be a little higher, but you
could avoid a more costly repair job if your pipes freeze and burst.
5. If you are using a space heater, place it on a level, hard surface and keep anything flammable at least three
feet away – things such as paper, clothing, bedding, curtains or rugs.
6. Turn off space heaters and make sure fireplace embers are out before leaving the room or going to bed.
7. Never use a stove or oven to heat your home.
8. If you are using a fireplace, use a glass or metal fire screen large enough to catch sparks and rolling logs.
9. Use generators correctly – never operate a generator inside the home, including in the basement or garage.
10. Don’t hook a generator up to the home’s wiring. The safest thing to do is to connect the equipment you
want to power directly to the outlets on the generator
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Welcome To Plote Companies
Maria Rodriguez—Plote Construction Inc. Estimating Administrator
Chris Yong— Plote Construction Inc. Systems Administrator
Anniversaries
Last
First
Congratulations
Years
Sistko
Mark
25
Wohler
Gary
15
Farris
Chris
5
·
·
·
Plote Construction Inc.
Congrats to Russ Ginn and his wife on their daughter
who gave birth to their new grandson, November
28,2014 safely and healthily .
Congrats to Linda Leach and her husband on their
daughter giving birth to their new granddaughter who
was born 12/11/2014 safely and healthily.
Congrats to our own Heather Stephens on giving birth
to her daughter!
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THE PLOTE COMPANIES
Corporate Offices:
1100 Brandt Drive
Hoffman Estates, IL 60192
Phone: 847-695-9300
E-mail: Info @plote.com
Website: www.plote.com
Got something you want to say? Keep a look out for the next edition of The
Steamer deadline of December 15.
Check us out on our new Plote Construction Inc Linkedin & Facebook
page. To promote after work hours “Friendship”, look us up from home
and indicate you “Like” us!